S20.E15: What the Hell

[jewel21]

Quote

The three remaining chefs must cook a five-course dinner service.

Airdate: 09/13/2021

[GHScorpiosRule]

BOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[EllaWycliffe]

Was the fake drug bust necessary? It was painfully asshole to me.

[mertensia]

Eh, I guess I can handle who won.

 

 

 

[Ms Blue Jay]

I wanted Megan to win simply because people kept saying that it was "obvious" that Trenton would win long before he even became a frontrunner.  I did not think it was obvious at all.  

2 hours ago, EllaWycliffe said:

Was the fake drug bust necessary? It was painfully asshole to me.

Absolutely awful.  I was laughing the whole time but it was terrible to do that to people barely out of high school.  

Edited September 14, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay

[preeya]

2 hours ago, EllaWycliffe said:

Was the fake drug bust necessary? It was painfully asshole to me.

GR's sense of humor leaves a lot to be desired. Fake drug bust, and twice with an attache case full of $$$.

[Chicago Redshirt]

I assume the fake drug bust thing was staged. It just seems ridiculous if you are either of the top two that you would think that a) anyone in the competition at all would bring two big ass stashes of drugs in from the start (as you have to know that there'd be no opportunity to bring the drugs in once filming has started) that they packaged in a peculiar way b) that now that it's just down to the last two, either someone booted off left said drugs in the dorms or they belong to your competitor c) Hell's Kitchen has security that had been unbeknownst to you does routine security sweeps that were thorough enough to find these drugs from wherever they were hidden and yet somehow were not noticeable until now d) that the drugs would have been a big enough deal that they would consider tanking the show right before its climax (as opposed to simply figuring out who the drugs belonged to and DQing that person, or sweeping things under the rug, etc.)  and e) that the way they would have conducted an investigation into such a big deal would be for GR to personally investigate on camera (as opposed to the security people or a producer or what have you). 

I just can't see someone in the middle of the prank not being, "It must have been Trenton, Chef, because it's for damn sure not mine." Or "Chef, run that part back again about you going through our stuff all the time. That's kind of messed up."

Then again, it's easy for me to see it as obviously fake and bizarre as someone older, cynical about how reality shows work, and not in the mix of it. 

[cameron]

Kyia sure is a sore loser.

[Chicago Redshirt]

I'm very curious what led to Kiya hating Trenton so much that it seemed like she wanted to diss him at every opportunity. I remember she was salty that she came in second in a challenge and Trenton took Megan or someone else instead. And she has previously talked about him being a jerk. But was there more to it than that? Also, is she right to hate Trenton or is there something else going on? Like she also put Brynn in there with her Trenton-hate, but I don't think the show had demonstrated any animosity from Brynn to Trenton. 

I'm pretty convinced that Kiya was tanking her tasks in order to sabotage Trenton. 

I sometimes wish that picking the brigade was not a straight schoolyard pick but a snake draft (i.e. Chef 1 gets pick 1, Chef 2 gets pick 2 and 3, Chef 1 gets pick 4 and 5 etc.) because oftentimes, the brigade overshadows everything. Here, I think Trenton had the better dishes (at least according to the judges), the better leadership, the better overall performance in the season and so it probably didn't matter. 

[LakeGal]

I expected a man to win this season.  It has been female winners recently.  Too bad it had to be Trenton.  I preferred Megan of the final 3.

[LakeGal]

The reaction shots of Trenton's girlfriend annoyed me.  She was just always there squealing.  

[AZChristian]

4 minutes ago, LakeGal said:

The reaction shots of Trenton's girlfriend annoyed me.  She was just always there squealing.  

And I found myself wondering if he would have pulled that ring out of his pocket if he hadn't won.  LOL.

[fishcakes]

Megan is a better leader than Trenton but she had no chance with that team. Trenton had four solid, albeit annoying, chefs; Megan's only really good chef was Steve. Emily is just okay, and Josie and Victoria are useless. She had the sense to pull Josie off the meat station after she'd borked it twice (though why she put her there in the first place is a mystery), but when Kiya repeatedly messed up, Gordon had to tell Trenton to call a meeting and then all Trenton did was whine to his team, which somehow worked? It seems like Gordon has repeatedly helped Trenton the last two or three weeks in a way that he doesn't help the others (for example, tipping him off to each of the sabotaged dishes in the run the pass challenge and, in one instance, literally spelling out the problem for him), so I can't say I'm surprised he won. He's a good chef, but overall, I think Megan should have won.

The fake drug bust was a dick thing to do but so hilariously stupid that I couldn't even be mad. A recreational user doesn't buy their stash in multiple five-pound bricks, and if they did know where they could buy it in that quantity and had the money to pay for it, then they wouldn't need Gordon's piddling $250K prize or a job as his head chef because they would already have gainful employment as drug lords.

[GHScorpiosRule]

6 minutes ago, fishcakes said:

It seems like Gordon has repeatedly helped Trenton the last two or three weeks in a way that he doesn't help the others (for example, tipping him off to each of the sabotaged dishes in the run the pass challenge and, in one instance, literally spelling out the problem for him)

And Trenton STILL couldn't tell or answer! He kept nodding his head as if trying to figure it out, even AFTER Gordon TOLD him what it was.

Then he whined in his talking head how he doesn't eat raw fish. Whatever.

[nitrofishblue]

I really didn't like Trenton because he "in my opinion" dripped of creepiness. He made me cringe!!

[snarkylady]

 

1 hour ago, LakeGal said:

The reaction shots of Trenton's girlfriend annoyed me.  She was just always there squealing.  

 

1 hour ago, AZChristian said:

And I found myself wondering if he would have pulled that ring out of his pocket if he hadn't won.  

Agree on the squealing, I actually thought she was perfect for Trenton, she came across as obnoxious, but how much of that was coached by the HK crew?

And for my cynical thoughts, I'm wondering if Trenton approached HK's staff or they approached him, but I can't help but think they knew about the proposal and it was prearranged.  It is such great publicity for Gordon Ramsay, "watch Hell's Kitchen, you never know what may happen". 

*confession, I had already tuned out before the proposal aired and I'm not sure when they showed it but my suspicions were raised when I saw the story this morning. 

[GHScorpiosRule]

33 minutes ago, snarkylady said:

*confession, I had already tuned out before the proposal aired and I'm not sure when they showed it but my suspicions were raised when I saw the story this morning. 

He proposed after he won, in the middle of all the confetti and champagnee flowing.

[Yeah No]

2 hours ago, fishcakes said:

Megan is a better leader than Trenton but she had no chance with that team. Trenton had four solid, albeit annoying, chefs; Megan's only really good chef was Steve. Emily is just okay, and Josie and Victoria are useless.

Megan made the mistake of choosing her team members based on her personal feelings about them.  Trenton chose based on strategy. Kyia didn't get why he chose her but that's why.  I agree with you that Megan should have won but Ramsay wanted a man this time after so many female winners.  I always wonder if he goes the extra mile to help out the runners up or may actually give them jobs later on.  So Megan may not be so bad off anyway.  Would have been nice for her to have the title.  When he gave them the jackets after the fake drug bust I almost hoped he might do a first and give them both a shared win.  Oh well.

52 minutes ago, snarkylady said:

And for my cynical thoughts, I'm wondering if Trenton approached HK's staff or they approached him, but I can't help but think they knew about the proposal and it was prearranged.  It is such great publicity for Gordon Ramsay, "watch Hell's Kitchen, you never know what may happen". 

After watching so many "surprise" proposals on TV over the years I don't believe that most if any of them are spontaneous.  These shows don't like the idea of anyone doing anything they don't know is going to happen on camera first, unless it's that kind of show where they love train wrecks.  And this is not one of those.  They don't want those situations where the woman turns the guy down, LOL.  I know it has happened but shows now want to prevent that.  I wouldn't be surprised if Ramsay himself suggested it.  Trenton may have already proposed to her but Ramsay may have thought it would be a wonderful idea if they made it look like Trenton won then proposed.  So she and everyone went along with the gag.  Plus Trenton doesn't seem like the kind of guy with enough guts to want to do something like that without Ramsay suggesting it first.  It was just too perfect to be real, IMO.  Another ruse like the drug bust.

Edited September 14, 2021 by Yeah No

[Ms Blue Jay]

The show isn't live, so even if she turned down the proposal that's easy to remove from the show.

[Lovecat]

5 hours ago, LakeGal said:

The reaction shots of Trenton's girlfriend annoyed me.  She was just always there squealing.  

 

4 hours ago, AZChristian said:

And I found myself wondering if he would have pulled that ring out of his pocket if he hadn't won.  LOL.

Oh, she was suuuuuuuper annoying.  And then I did the math on how old they were when they started dating (14) and it sort of made sense.  Neither one is fully grown up yet.

2 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

He proposed after he won, in the middle of all the confetti and champagnee flowing.

More like he collapsed on his knee like he was having a heart attack or something and then practically flung the ring at her without saying anything.  I cringed.  

[GHScorpiosRule]

4 minutes ago, Lovecat said:

how old they were when they started dating (14)

Well, he's 23, so he was at least 14.

5 minutes ago, Lovecat said:

More like he collapsed on his knee like he was having a heart attack or something and then practically flung the ring at her without saying anything.  I cringed.  

😝😝

[Persnickety1]

1 hour ago, Lovecat said:

More like he collapsed on his knee like he was having a heart attack or something and then practically flung the ring at her without saying anything.  I cringed.  

😂 I totally agree!  At first, I thought he had tripped and fallen trying to make his way to her. 

Edited September 14, 2021 by Persnickety1

[preeya]

8 hours ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

I'm very curious what led to Kiya hating Trenton so much that it seemed like she wanted to diss him at every opportunity. I remember she was salty that she came in second in a challenge and Trenton took Megan or someone else instead. And she has previously talked about him being a jerk. But was there more to it than that? Also, is she right to hate Trenton or is there something else going on? Like she also put Brynn in there with her Trenton-hate, but I don't think the show had demonstrated any animosity from Brynn to Trenton. 

I'm pretty convinced that Kiya was tanking her tasks in order to sabotage Trenton. 

I sometimes wish that picking the brigade was not a straight schoolyard pick but a snake draft (i.e. Chef 1 gets pick 1, Chef 2 gets pick 2 and 3, Chef 1 gets pick 4 and 5 etc.) because oftentimes, the brigade overshadows everything. Here, I think Trenton had the better dishes (at least according to the judges), the better leadership, the better overall performance in the season and so it probably didn't matter. 

These people live with each other for quite a bit of time (at least 3 months). In that period of time, in close proximity with each other, quite a bit of "stuff" can and will happen. Thus animosities are built. We, the audience, are not privy to all their interactions. All that said, I don't think the final cook-off really has as much bearing on the outcome as we are led to believe. By episode #15 GR knows who he's choosing and the finale is just made up drama for the audience and ratings. That's my humble opinion.

[mojoween]

Kiya redeemed herself when she eventually said she wouldn’t fuck up on purpose to sabotage Trenton, but she does know future employers heard everything she said before that?

I have watched every season of this show since minute one, and yet I have no recollection in THIS season of Trenton doing a punishment of cleaning the “Eiffel Tower” or Megan having a reward in a private jet. Sucks getting old.

Edited September 14, 2021 by mojoween

[preeya]

1 hour ago, mojoween said:

I have watched every season of this show since minute one, and yet I have no recollection in THIS season of Trenton doing a punishment of cleaning the “Eiffel Tower” or Megan having a reward in a private jet. Sucks getting old.

I also had no recollection of the jet and the Eiffel Tower, but they were there. After some research, I found the private jet ride was in episode 4 and the cleaning of the Tower was episode 5. And you are 100% correct; getting old SUCKS.

[Sir RaiderDuck OMS]

Now that the season is over, does anyone have any idea how Trenton did and whether he's still working for Ramsay two years later?

[xcrayon2215x]

I feel the drug bust was over the top in my opinion. Trenton's victory was not something I was expecting but a man hadn't won in so long so it was a good time for it. Trenton's girlfriend seemed extreme to me.

[Yeah No]

3 hours ago, preeya said:

4 hours ago, mojoween said:

I have watched every season of this show since minute one, and yet I have no recollection in THIS season of Trenton doing a punishment of cleaning the “Eiffel Tower” or Megan having a reward in a private jet. Sucks getting old.

I also had no recollection of the jet and the Eiffel Tower, but they were there. After some research, I found the private jet ride was in episode 4 and the cleaning of the Tower was episode 5. And you are 100% correct; getting old SUCKS.

I agree about getting old, and if it's any consolation I also have no memory of either and probably would have assumed both scenes were never shown on screen if you didn't prove otherwise.

[Yeah No]

6 hours ago, preeya said:

These people live with each other for quite a bit of time (at least 3 months). In that period of time, in close proximity with each other, quite a bit of "stuff" can and will happen. Thus animosities are built. We, the audience, are not privy to all their interactions. All that said, I don't think the final cook-off really has as much bearing on the outcome as we are led to believe. By episode #15 GR knows who he's choosing and the finale is just made up drama for the audience and ratings. That's my humble opinion.

Those behind the scenes interactions used to be more a part of the show in earlier seasons.  It seems like all reality competition shows have moved away from airing that stuff and so what gets broadcast is more sanitized than it used to be.  The fact that they aired those talking heads with Kyia had me scratching my head because we really didn't get the context of her comments.

[Yeah No]

10 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

The show isn't live, so even if she turned down the proposal that's easy to remove from the show.

It's not just about what airs on the show.  It's still hugely embarrassing for the couple and all that witness it happening in person during filming, and TV shows want to avoid that for the benefit of everyone involved.  It would have to be one of the most humiliating experiences for both parties especially if their families are present in a crowd of onlookers as they were here.  I can't imagine how the family would feel if the show let a guy propose without being sure of a positive outcome first.  I'm sure that they would feel very let down that the show risked ruining their special day.  I suppose it could happen anyway without them knowing first.

Edited September 15, 2021 by Yeah No

[Chicago Redshirt]

7 hours ago, Sir RaiderDuck OMS said:

Now that the season is over, does anyone have any idea how Trenton did and whether he's still working for Ramsay two years later?

It would make sense to me that he has not started working for Ramsay because that would spoil the surprise of him winning. From this interview, it sounds like he's only now fixing to go and start at GR Steak.

[Diana Berry]

12 minutes ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

It would make sense to me that he has not started working for Ramsay because that would spoil the surprise of him winning. From this interview, it sounds like he's only now fixing to go and start at GR Steak.

I agree did some searches on him and the restaurant.  Sounds like he hadn’t started the job yet until after the announcement.  

Seems like one of the classier GR restaurants , of course the welly is the showstopper.

[Sir RaiderDuck OMS]

25 minutes ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

It would make sense to me that he has not started working for Ramsay because that would spoil the surprise of him winning. From this interview, it sounds like he's only now fixing to go and start at GR Steak.

Thanks for the link! Fascinating interview. I'd just assumed he went to work for GR right away, as nobody would have known who he was before the show aired. 

 

10 minutes ago, Diana Berry said:

Seems like one of the classier GR restaurants , of course the welly is the showstopper.

GR's Wellington is awesome, but I also recommend the American Wagyu steak: It's expensive, but after your first bite, you WILL know where your money went.

[hookedontv]

Not sure I have anything to say that has't already been said. I couldn't stand Trenton's girlfriend, I mean, she really irritated me. All the squealing and over the top cheering. And then she fell to her knees when he won? Gurrrl, pull yourself together. I felt like she was just an attention seeker. I don't care how young she is, she was just over the top.

I wonder if she was secretly wishing Trenton proposed to her after he started to pull in his $250k salary? I'm sure he gave her a lovely ring, but I feel like she will be asking for an upgrade....

[preeya]

3 hours ago, hookedontv said:

I wonder if she was secretly wishing Trenton proposed to her after he started to pull in his $250k salary? I'm sure he gave her a lovely ring, but I feel like she will be asking for an upgrade....

We had a discussion about this and concluded he probably bought the ring with the $3k GR gave him for the shopping spree. And yes, she'll probably ask for an upgrade.

[GHScorpiosRule]

5 minutes ago, preeya said:

We had a discussion about this and concluded he probably bought the ring with the $3k GR gave him for the shopping spree. And yes, she'll probably ask for an upgrade.

I thought he bought her one of those expensive leather handbags when he was on the shopping spree? Or did he just look and decide not to get one. Not that I care.

[preeya]

1 hour ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

I thought he bought her one of those expensive leather handbags when he was on the shopping spree? Or did he just look and decide not to get one. Not that I care.

I think the bag (if he bought it) was like $1000. which would have left him with $2000 for a generic, definitely up-gradable ring.

[KeithJ]

On 9/14/2021 at 10:08 AM, AZChristian said:

And I found myself wondering if he would have pulled that ring out of his pocket if he hadn't won.  LOL.

He proposed (I turned if off as soon as they announced the winner)?  Tacky.

[bluepiano]

On 9/14/2021 at 7:58 AM, LakeGal said:

I expected a man to win this season.  It has been female winners recently.  Too bad it had to be Trenton.  I preferred Megan of the final 3.

I preferred Megan on a personal level, but she didn't seem mature or experienced enough to take on a high pressure job. She is listed as a "line cook," so that means no managerial experience. Trenton is an "executive chef," so while I have to wonder what kind of a restaurant has a 23 year old executive chef, on paper he's more qualified.

Kiya had no chance to win this because of her total lack of social skills. I'm sure she had no idea how bad she looked with her childish "I hate Trenton" comments. It struck a sour (grapes) note throughout this episode. Other than Kiya, this season was refreshingly free of petty personal squabbles and backstabbing. 

Trenton's squealing girlfriend didn't annoy me, as she did some people. But I did get tired of her being shown constantly, with the title "Trenton's girlfriend." If the proposal was known about in advance by GR and the producers, does that mean that Trenton knew in advance he was going to win? Maybe not, but if he lost he'd have been doubly crushed. 

On 9/14/2021 at 12:50 AM, Chicago Redshirt said:

Then again, it's easy for me to see it as obviously fake and bizarre as someone older, cynical about how reality shows work, and not in the mix of it. 

You can't fault these two young people for believing that drug bust was real, given the pressure they were under.  I thought it was an incredibly cruel thing to do to them. The contestants are already intimidated by GR, and here he was, yelling in their faces in a threatening manner, regarding a serious criminal offense. I generally like GR, but man, that was bad.

Edited September 16, 2021 by bluepiano

[eXiled]

On 9/15/2021 at 8:34 PM, bluepiano said:

I preferred Megan on a personal level, but she didn't seem mature or experienced enough to take on a high pressure job. She is listed as a "line cook," so that means no managerial experience. Trenton is an "executive chef," so while I have to wonder what kind of a restaurant has a 23 year old executive chef, on paper he's more qualified.

Kiya had no chance to win this because of her total lack of social skills. I'm sure she had no idea how bad she looked with her childish "I hate Trenton" comments. It struck a sour (grapes) note throughout this episode. Other than Kiya, this season was refreshingly free of petty personal squabbles and backstabbing. 

That was my favorite part of this season. This was the youngest set, but they seemed very mature, compared to some of the 48 year olds we've seen acting like buttheads. Kiya came off as immature and inexperienced, so there was no way she would win. I don't care what part of the country you're from, if you want to be a real chef, you have to have an adventurous palate.

I knew Megan wouldn't win because of her lack of confidence (asking vs. telling). Also, with the exception of Steve, I felt she chose her friends to back her in the kitchen when she should have been picking the best chefs. When pushing to win something, you have to be cutthroat. That means logically factoring in the strengths and weaknesses of the other players. You may love another cheftestant to death, but if she can't cook, she'll screw you in the end.

Trenton's an asshole, so I turned the show off when he walked through the door. I hope he and his attention-starved fiancee are very happy together. I love when two equally yoked people come together, saving other innocent people from harm.

[mojoween]

Megan was screwed as soon as Christina said, then repeated eleventy times, that she hates to lose.

[bluepiano]

4 hours ago, eXiled said:

This was the youngest set, but they seemed very mature, compared to some of the 48 year olds we've seen acting like buttheads. 

I made a similar comment earlier this season. I was dreading this season, because with a group so young I was expecting the drama to be out of control. But other than Kiya, and to a lesser extent Bree, it was probably the most mature, level headed group they've had.

[kassa]

I can see hiring him because a) they needed a male winner; b) he's better than average of adult contestants in this franchise despite his youth; c) the job likely bears no genuine restaurant responsibility, so if he puts people off they can pay out the (show-budgeted) salary and make him do prep until he leaves to start his own restaurant (which you know he'll do anyway). She struck me as the person you'd want as a genuine protege who can be brought up to run YOUR business. 

[Such A Flirt]

Very disappointed. Guess Gordon wanted a mini-me, and Megan was too boring.

And, OMG, the annoying attention-hog girlfriend! She must be so exhausting to be around.

[SweetSin]

On 9/14/2021 at 12:36 PM, Yeah No said:

I always wonder if he goes the extra mile to help out the runners up or may actually give them jobs later on. 

Yes, he gave Jon from S11 a job working for him. Jon first worked under S10 winner Christina as a sous chef for Gordon Ramsay Steak at the Paris in Las Vegas and now he's an Executive Chef in the Gordon Ramsay North America Group. Jon is the only non-winner to work for Ramsay I believe.

[DropTheSoap]

I was hoping it’d be Megan, but knew it’d probably be Trenton. Oh well…

[Lukeysboat]

On 9/23/2021 at 9:55 PM, SweetSin said:

Jon is the only non-winner to work for Ramsay I believe.

Jason Santos did not win his season.