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S07.E05: Animal Attraction


Bella

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The artists have to successfully mash-up two animals to create a new species in an individual challenge.

 

Another "not a monster" challenge. They listened to us!!!

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I saw Guardians of the Galaxy this weekend - it was great! I was fascinated by the make-up and fabrication and looked forward to Face Off this week. But I didn't love any of the work tonight. My live judging scored Cig, Damien, and Keghlan in the top and Sasha, Stella, and Doc in the bottom with Doc last. However, my highest was to another girl but now I can't even remember who it was or what she made. Maybe it will come to me after reading other posts. 

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I enjoyed this challenge and was fine with the winner and loser. I also feel like the quality of the work is finally ramping up a bit.

I want to like Sasha because she's got talent and seems a decent enough person, but her bewildered babydoll routine is working my last nerve. You've heard of the "sexy baby" persona? It's like that, but a dumbed-down version. Which is why I've taken to calling her Stupid Baby.

Best moment for me? George merrily scampering about on all fours.

Edited by Portia
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Yeah, I do want to like Sasha too. It's obvious she's talented with the sculpt and painting. But her personality is so "cutesy little girl" that it becomes irritating.

 

It was like Laney a couple of seasons ago. Too put on in a "look how cute I am" sort of way.

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The losing entry looked like a burn victim.  I was hoping for a thorough and well deserved trashing.  I didn't see any animal at all in there.  The eye holes looked like a $2 kid mask.  The paint was smeared on randomly, like finger painting.

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I have a feeling that they'll find a way to make them monster-like.

Of course they made them monster-like, they don't know how to do anything that isn't monster-like any more.

 

All the "animals" that had big balls for eyes should have been in the bottom IMO, they just look so fake & stupid. I don't think Damian should have won just because he had those big, dead, ball eyes on his animal.

 

Yeah, I do want to like Sasha too. It's obvious she's talented with the sculpt and painting. But her personality is so "cutesy little girl" that it becomes irritating.

 

It was like Laney a couple of seasons ago. Too put on in a "look how cute I am" sort of way.

I particularly noticed the little bobby pin holding her hair on the side, just like a 5 years old. Yuck.

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I can only think that Glen has the hots for Sasha because that thing was not that great.  Sculpted feathers and a crappy feather poncho with leggings does not make a good animal hybrid.  The man was not looking at the entire creature if he was looking at it at all.  I don't recall the other judges having all that much to say about it either.  And considering this is the girl responsible for the boxing gloves in the last challenge, I'm not too impressed.  I remember that Laney stayed way past her expiration date to the end.  I sincerely hope that doesn't happen with Sasha.

 

That said, I wasn't terribly impressed with most of these, actually pretty disappointed.  

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Sasha's sculpt was pretty good, but the costuming just reminded me of that episode of Golden Girls where they end up taking roles in a production of 'Henny Penny.' Big bulky feather suit and stocking legs. The little girl schtick is obnoxious.

 

I was also pretty impressed with Damien's work. I know the show focuses on when things go wrong, as that's where the drama is, but I would have liked to have seen how he laid a lot of the feathers and fur. He handled that really well, especially for not having worked with either before.

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A bird/horse combo played an important role in Clash of the Titans.

Oh, right! Now I remember it!

 

Perhaps I should have just made fun of the show for mentioning Sharktopus in a world that has moved on to Sharknados.

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I think the artists faced a big challenge this week. It wasn't the fur but the faces. If you didn't choose wisely it was difficult to avoid making a mask and most of the creatures required those flat glassy eyes to communicate their non-humanness. There's no way you can avoid doing those big eyes and still get the point across that you're making that specific animal. Weirdly, I liked this more than the tree challenge. There were some spectacular failures and a lot of masks but there was also a level of artistry that was missing last week. While I wasn't in love with any of the looks (though the cat/owl was growing on me by the end... that sounds weird) there were a lot of artistic choices that I liked this week compared to last week.

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Am I misremembering, or did I hear Stella explain that her creature was two different species who merged into a new species "because of evolution"?  Now, I was never much of a science student, but I don't think that's how it works.

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Am I misremembering, or did I hear Stella explain that her creature was two different species who merged into a new species "because of evolution"?  Now, I was never much of a science student, but I don't think that's how it works.

You can breed two subspecies and sometimes two species though I'm a little fuzzy on that. There are some theories that Homo sapiens and Neanderthals might have bred. But yeah, that's not because of evolution. The offspring of that cross might through various circumstances diverge into a new species through evolution but that's different from just the results of a cross making a new species. You can also splice in some genes from one species into another species but again, not evolution. 

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Yeah, you generally don't get two distinct species merging through evolution. They can ultimately look similar to one another/develop analogous features (convergent evolution), but that isn't the same thing as crossbreeding. It's also worth pointing out that even when crossbreeding is successful, the crossbred animal is usually sterile and therefore not a new or distinct species.

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Except for George's creation they all had too much of a humanoid aspect for my taste.

Exactly! Did I miss where they said it was an animal. animal, human hybrid? I was thinking along mythological lines, myself. None of these makeups impressed me much.

 

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Yeah, you generally don't get two distinct species merging through evolution. They can ultimately look similar to one another/develop analogous features (convergent evolution), but that isn't the same thing as crossbreeding. It's also worth pointing out that even when crossbreeding is successful, the crossbred animal is usually sterile and therefore not a new or distinct species.

Extreme nerd humor: This episode should have been dedicated to the memory of Lynn Margulis. 

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Extreme nerd humor: This episode should have been dedicated to the memory of Lynn Margulis. 

 

Extreme nerd comeback: best to keep it for the subcellular mashup theme show!  You know the one where they are taken to a room with microscopes and they need to dress up protists?

 

Zing!  Boo-oye-oye-oye-oye-oye-oye....

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There are some theories that Homo sapiens and Neanderthals might have bred.

IIRC, DNA study suggests that most humans have both Neanderthal and.. I can't remember their name, D-something, another stone age hominid from Asia DNA in them.

 

Overall I liked the selection here. They weren't great, but i'd say I could see most of them in the BBC Narnia films or the Neverending Story and that is about the highest compliment you can give to cheap, quickly built animal costumes. The only one that stood out as really bad was Doc's, which was just horrendous.

 

I want to like George's more than I do. His willingness to drop the human form and go full body is great. But he really doesn't seem to have the time management skills to back that up and I feel if he continues this way he'll get sent home for a janky attempt at full body while everyone else was doing the typical cowl/face/hands/chest.

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They weren't great, but i'd say I could see most of them in the BBC Narnia films or the Neverending Story and that is about the highest compliment you can give to cheap, quickly built animal costumes. 

Question for the people who have been watching from the beginning (I am one of you but I have a spotty memory): Did they use to have three days for challenges? A common complaint for Project Runway is the ridiculous one day challenges when they want really quality work. I think to do team challenges or simpler cowls/face pieces the artists manage well on Face Off with two days. But for the big ideas I find myself wishing they'd give them another extra day or two.

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That model who is allergic to the glue - hasn't he been on for a while? How do they keep a model around who is allergic to the main glue?

 

I wasn't impressed with any of these makeups, even the top looks.  I thought it was a poor challenge.  I totally agree with the Golden Girls reference - those tights looked absurd.

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Question for the people who have been watching from the beginning (I am one of you but I have a spotty memory): Did they use to have three days for challenges?

Three days is the usual, with the body painting challenges getting six hours and most of the finales getting four days. I think maybe the multi-headed giant challenge gave more time than usual.

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Why can I not get excited about any of these contestants this year? I so look forward to Face Off every "season" even when they are too close together because I always get new information, techniques, ideas and camaraderie from a group of people that are mostly likeable.

This time, though, I still don't have a favourite, which is really unusual for me this many challenges in. I'm more psyched each week to see some of the models who are back again than the actual creations.

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Not a huge amount to say this week- didn't even comment on last week's episode- but I'm still very positive on the judging and choices.  So far, I can't say a single person who has won or been sent home didn't seem, to me, to be deserving of either outcome.

 

Damien's model has been on the show for awhile, and she's far and away the best one on the show. She's the cute little blonde who always looks so frickin psyched every time she comes through the door on application day.

That was the first thing I wanted to mention about this episode!!!  It says something that she, among the other models, apparently many of us have "picked up on" as bringing a lot to the table.  I've noticed her in past seasons; she really inhabits the character, and I'm curious how much the artists/contestants fight over these valued models who are more than just mannequins for their work.  Not to mention, as noted earlier, how we still have models with weird allergies that act as nothing so much as an unpleasant surprise for the artists.  It seems an unfair twist, since this is the kind of thing that would never happen "on set", because presumably an agent/casting director would know to ask these questions.

 

I'm happy for Damien this week- he had a rough start, but got the best model, and had a pretty good design.  I'd say at this point, I'm starting to develop a couple of favorites.  For me, that includes George as the guy I'm rooting for the most: consistently competent, focused, mature, but obviously loose enough to have fun as seen by his many dancing interludes.  Plus, more than anyone, he avoids the humanoid or excessive monster shape, when it's not called for; his choices to make fully non-human makeups is to be applauded, in a sea of mediocre human-like makeups in this as well as past seasons. 

 

Along with that, the interaction with him and Cig to hammer out how they'd split the Armadillo/Alligator plans is *exactly* the kind of mature, thoughtful, responsible behavior that makes me love Face Off.  Even though, despite his obvious skills, and his apparent calm and measured persona, I still have issues with "Cig" Newton and his many-shaped pieces of flair.  But that's on me- he's done nothing on camera but turn out one well-crafted makeup after another, and has never been seen with excess drama, cattiness, or whining... so the fact that he kind of grates because of the "personality" he presents is 100% my issue, not his.

 

Similarly, I'm becoming a fan of Rachael; she was under the radar for me to start, but she's a) super, super, super cute- such a gorgeous, curvy, natural woman, so very beautiful (and this is not a show I look to for eye candy, but Rachael this year and yes, the incredibly sexy to me Corinne last year who I was crushing on big time, are helping bring the pretty as a fun bonus) , and b) is really quietly super competent.  We don't see drama about her because she's not fucking shit up!  I think someone above mentioned past contestants who can win/place on challenge after challenge, yet still act panicked and manic every.  damn.  week and people like George, Rachael, et al are blessedly not doing that.  Rachael's been safe every week, with one top looks appearance, but never really falls on her face.  I'm predicting her and George will be in the top 5 or 6, along with Cig and Keaghlan.

 

Lastly, I've got a soft spot for Sasha; I don't think her baby girl thing is an affectation, so it wouldn't be any more right for me to judge her on that if I'm not going to castigate Cig.  I think she's just young, and inexperienced, so she lacks confidence.  Hell, she wasn't wrong that the leggings were pretty sad, but she was wrong that her face wasn't very well executed.  That said, obviously despite her inexperience and lack of practical skills, she also turns out well done, well conceived makeups; she makes up for her lack of practice with a really great eye for design.  I still think she won't make it too much further, because the time has to be coming where her lack of experience on specific media will blow up in her face.  I can't recall who this week was worried about delaminating in their mold- after George told them about that risk- but that's the kind of thing that will hit Sasha sooner or later, and leave her in bottom looks and going home.

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I love the weeks when the number of contestants is a prime number so that they can't do team/group challenges.

 

I was really worried for this week's challenge because faux fur is a bitch to work with. As one of the contestants said, it can look really fake. I am glad that they got to choose the two animals they wanted to combine. While I totally get that in a real work situation, they might just be told which two to use, I prefer challenges like this where they get to choose so that they can't whine about how they got stuck with something they didn't want to do. This way, there are no excuses.

 

One thing I really liked was that when Cig and George discovered they had chosen the same animal combination, they decided to sketch together to make sure that their designs didn't look too similar. In comparison, the first week of Skin Wars, the contestants had to create something inspired by their hometowns. Two of them were both from Colorado. Instead of talking to each other about their concepts, one of them said he was afraid they would end up doing the same thing so he decided to base his concept on another location.

 

Best part of the episode was seeing all the cute animals! I give Sasha credit for not freaking out that owl started flying towards her face. I would have been screaming and flailing.

 

A close second was Geroge putting on his costume and running around the room on all fours.

 

On a shalllow note, I LOVE Kryolan makeup so I'm always looking at the makeup in the background and coveting. Their makeup is such good quality and it's so affordable.

 

This week I felt like everyone just did some sort of head/face piece and then said the hell with the rest of the body and threw some clothes or fur on from the neck down.

 

Drew's red fox/squirrel monkey looked a little too werewolf in the face to me.

 

Dena's red fox/prairie dog had such bulging eyes that I thought it was a kinkajou. The face looked like it wasn't mobile at all.

 

Keaghlan's eurasian lynx/kinkajou looked like a monster to me because of the giant eyes. The fur looked so fake, which I know isn't her fault. I agree with Glenn that the face was too cartoonish.

 

Cig's armadillo/alligator definitely had a reptilian look but again the face looked immobile.He was busting out of that shirt too.

 

Damian's tawny owl/coatimundi looked great compared to everyone else's because not only did the model have a headpiece but she had feathers on her body. That was a much more complete look than the costumes where they just slapped a shirt and camo pants on the model. His model was working it too, which really helped.

 

I felt bad for George because it's not his fault that his model was allergic to the stickier glue. I know that is something you have to deal with on set too, but it still sucks. His was one of the few that had a head to toe look.

 

Sasha's tawny owl/bobcat looked pretty impressive from far away and I liked the feathery face sculpt she did, as well as the paint on the face. I know she understandably regretted only putting brown leggings on the model, but honestly that shirt and wings was more than some other people did on their models' chests. I agree that the face combined the aspects of a cat and an owl really well.

 

Jason's fennec fox/red tailed hawk was pretty weak. I know not every design has to be a complete transformation but I felt like his sculpt was mostly the beak. I also didn't like how much space you could see in the eye sockets.

 

Stella's kinkajou/serval wildcat was not great. Up close the face looked like a bad Halloween mask.

 

Doc's bald eagle/squirrel monkey was another one that had issues with the eye sockets. The face also looked like a Halloween monster mask. The feet were so cartoonish.

 

I liked Rachael's fennec fox/coatimundi. Although she used faux fur, it wasn't just a big onesie.

 

I would have been fine with Sasha winning, but Damian deserved it too. I will not miss Doc's turquoise Slim Jim hair.

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Along with that, the interaction with him and Cig to hammer out how they'd split the Armadillo/Alligator plans is *exactly* the kind of mature, thoughtful, responsible behavior that makes me love Face Off.  Even though, despite his obvious skills, and his apparent calm and measured persona, I still have issues with "Cig" Newton and his many-shaped pieces of flair.  But that's on me- he's done nothing on camera but turn out one well-crafted makeup after another, and has never been seen with excess drama, cattiness, or whining... so the fact that he kind of grates because of the "personality" he presents is 100% my issue, not his.

 

I have always thought of myself as a "doesn't judge a book by the cover" type.  However, this show, with people with oddily colored hair and eybrows, and guys like Cig, Glenn , and Eric (past season, long hair on only one side of his head) has taught me two things - One, I am not as non-judging as I thought I was, and, two, you really can't judge a person by their appearance.

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That model who is allergic to the glue - hasn't he been on for a while? How do they keep a model around who is allergic to the main glue?

I could be confusing two contestants, but I think that the material being used wasn't what is ordinarily used and the glue in question is what is preferred for that material. The glue that was substituted and might not have held was probably the main glue.

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Not to mention, as noted earlier, how we still have models with weird allergies that act as nothing so much as an unpleasant surprise for the artists.  It seems an unfair twist, since this is the kind of thing that would never happen "on set", because presumably an agent/casting director would know to ask these questions.

For health and safety reasons you'd think they'd do some kind of patch test on all the models before they were cast. You know, get all the paints, glues, etc. they give the artists and test them on their arms to see if there was a reaction. Best case scenario if you don't do that, the artist starts to apply the allergen and the model starts to itch or turn red and they stop and everything is fine. Worst case scenario someone could really get sick.

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What's weird is that it was a known allergy, not a sudden thing or a surprise.

 

You're right, he did say it was the best glue, and it might just have been for that material, though I assumed he was being more general.

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Sasha's sculpt was pretty good, but the costuming just reminded me of that episode of Golden Girls where they end up taking roles in a production of 'Henny Penny.' Big bulky feather suit and stocking legs. The little girl schtick is obnoxious.

 

I was also pretty impressed with Damien's work. I know the show focuses on when things go wrong, as that's where the drama is, but I would have liked to have seen how he laid a lot of the feathers and fur. He handled that really well, especially for not having worked with either before.

I agree, I loved Sasha's sculpt but the costume was very corny & not much thought put into it. I hate when they praise one person for a non-finished piece but then will go in on someone who did a head to toe makeup.

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Top three were well-deserved.  Thought that Sasha person could have won.  Face she did was incredible.  Too bad she didn't have time for anything but tights for the legs.  If she could take her time she would be totally awesome every week.  And I appreciate the lack of overgrown ego with her.

 

The winner was well-deserved but the one thing I still remember days later is the head sculpting Sasha did.

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That was the first thing I wanted to mention about this episode!!!  It says something that she, among the other models, apparently many of us have "picked up on" as bringing a lot to the table.

She's the current main model I notice(along with the lean faced latino guy, asian guy with glue allergy and white guy with a jaw so square you could level a door frame with it), and she is really good with it. Though my favorite overall model on the show was the tall, skinny black woman who was the model for a lot of really good make ups and had a great way of putting character into them. Unfortunately I think she isn't a part of the last two seasons. I also miss Rob Wilson from the first, because damn that was some eye candy during the application phase.

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Yeah, wasn't at all a fan of Sasha's creation, and of the judges fawning all over it. But then again, none of this week's creatures particularly impressed me. Either fun fur looked cheap, big googly eyes looked fake, or the paintjob wasn't up to snuff. Also, there was a distinct lack of fun & lightheartedness in those concepts... i'm sure some of those hybrids could have easily worked much better if done in a more stylized or cartoony style...

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Toaster Strudel Aug 20 2014. 1:42 pm

Extreme nerd comeback: best to keep it for the subcellular mashup theme show!  You know the one where they are taken to a room with microscopes and they need to dress up protists?

 

They should do this -- it would put new meaning to "After you are done sketching, we will return to the lab".

 

On an unrelated note: I have also admired the presentation skills of many of the models.

Does any one know their names/faces so that I could give them proper credit on the boards ?

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On an unrelated note: I have also admired the presentation skills of many of the models.

Does any one know their names/faces so that I could give them proper credit on the boards ?

 

IMDB.com to the rescue! - sort of. You can scroll down and find them in the big list of cast and contestants here, then click on their names for more info. Not all are there, not all are labeled as models, and not all have clickable links for more info. But it's a start.

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Thought that Sasha person could have won.  Face she did was incredible.  Too bad she didn't have time for anything but tights for the legs.  

Having a few days to mull over it I think not having time to do anything with the legs might have been the best thing. Maybe not so much not having the time, but not choosing to spend the time on the legs. As bad as Doc's face work was ( agree with Toaster Strudel he looked like a burn victim) the super-cartoony bird feet combined with the aviator outfit just made it even worse.  Those huge Foghorn Leghorn feet were all I could see - and as Lois Burwell pointed out Sasha's work drew one's attention to her lovely face sculpt on her piece.  

 

ETA that I kind of wish they'd all had to just do a makeup based on ONE animal, and have it reflect something more specific about the animal.  

Edited by ratgirlagogo
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i'm sure some of those hybrids could have easily worked much better if done in a more stylized or cartoony style...

They were told specifically not to do that and Keaghlan was heavily dinged for going more cartoony than realist.

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