S15.W08 (E35-39)

[katisha]

Another Sunday, another elimination!

[katisha]

And the train wreck that is 'Secrets and No Surprises Whatsoever' lurches on. Not for one millisecond did I ever think that either Declan or Brent would be going home. But I did wonder if Adi's simpler (if poorly executed) flavours might get her across the line when the judges appeared to be suggesting Rue's dish tasted weird. 

I just cannot get on board with a top 7 which includes Cath and Rhiannon. @Aerobicidal, I am also feeling S5 vibes about how it's all playing out and that's the worst season of all time so needless to say, this is not a good thing!

[Snazzy Daisy]

S15•E35 - Caviar Taste Test/Colors Elimination Challenge

Quite a boring episode for me. Once I know Theo is safe, I pretty much fall asleep on and off throughout the Round 2.

Cath and Rhiannon are surprisingly good in the taste test. Damn it!

Brent with the hibachi AGAIN.

Why is Declan allowed to use red food dye to meet the brief?

Rue’s dessert is really uninspiring despite using apricots instead of oranges.

Adi is clearly flustered and really doesn’t want to be in Round 2. It messes her head. 75 mins for raw fish with zhoug? Doesn’t she realize that the whole dish doesn’t have to be green? She can do something mint-based, herbs oil, pesto sauce or pandan dessert etc. Anyway, bye-bye Dr. Adi.

Geez editors! Thank you for that drone shot in the preview. Now we can guess who’ll be in the Top 6. 🙄

Edited June 27, 2023 by Snazzy Daisy

[Aerobicidal]

12 hours ago, katisha said:

Not for one millisecond did I ever think that either Declan or Brent would be going home.

Replace that with "picosecond" and we are sharing a brain.

On the positive side, we may finish the season without having to see Reynold as a guest. There haven't been a glut of savory ice creams, granitas, parfaits, or crumbs. No one on this cast has been revealed to be a sex criminal (yet). The blokey editing has been surprisingly toned down as well.

If, heaven forfend, Cath or Rhiannon win this season (which they won't, although not as much as Ru won't IMO), at least they will likely be as relevant as Justin or Emma Dean within months. (And if those people are actually relevant in Australia, don't tell me!)

Off topic, the way people with broad Australian accents pronounce the word "here" never stops fascinating me. It sounds like it would be physically painful to say it like that. (Disclaimer: I am from a state in the U.S. that, due to a specific movie from the '90s, is associated with a particularly awful accent, although it's pretty uncommon to encounter in the area where I live.)

[katisha]

11 hours ago, Aerobicidal said:

If, heaven forfend, Cath or Rhiannon win this season (which they won't, although not as much as Ru won't IMO), at least they will likely be as relevant as Justin or Emma Dean within months. (And if those people are actually relevant in Australia, don't tell me!)

I don't know if it makes Emma Dean relevant but a few years ago she and Lynton, the runner-up from the dreaded Season 5, were co-hosting a show on Channel 10 called My Market Kitchen.  God only knows why!

After tonight's episode I say bring on the all-male top three because the way this season is panning out, it's the only possible sensible outcome.  At the moment, the most confident and seemingly competent female cook left is Rhiannon.  Yes, I said it!  Of the other three...

• Rue got lost in her head and let her lack of confidence get the better of her.
• Cath did something really dumb in the midst of all her chaos.
• Malissa did what Malissa does i.e. cook poorly 75% of the time.  So that means tomorrow night she's a shoo-in to use the pin and we'll lose either Cath or Rue.

I love it when Theo breaks out in the voice of his dad, complete with Greek accent.  Hilarious and very endearing.  I don't find Cath's constant self-directed pep talks quite so endearing - you know how she's constantly telling herself, "Keep calm, Cath."  "You've got this, Cath."  

 

[Mellowyellow]

Wooohoooo I cannot lose tomorrow!!! Of the three Rue is the least offensive but I am happy to lose any of those three!!!!! Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[Snazzy Daisy]

S15•E36 - Everything Mystery Box Challenge

Well, we know who's going home tomorrow...

Anyway, great job Theo! So proud of you!

Keep cooking with your heart into the final week OK...

[Aerobicidal]

It's frustrating to me that this episode devoted so much time to Theo, Brent, and Declan being happy, confident, and perfect. I mean, I'm glad they're living their best highly edited lives, and I actually think Brent could be even more competent based on the judges' reactions to his food all season(s). Also, If the alternative is hearing Cath and Rhiannon talk--fine--but it's getting very heavy-handed and the producers are almost completely ignoring multiple contestants when there aren't many left.

I would actually bet money at this point Brent will win; it's just a matter of whether Theo or Declan will finish second. 

@katisha I can't even remember Emma or Linton well enough to imagine if they would be good or bad hosts. I've only seen two former contestants hosting on TV, Poh and Adam Liaw, and I really like Adam.

Speaking of which, I can see Brent or Theo being fairly popular hosts. Everyone else who's still on? With exception of Malissa (thanks to her non-edit), each one of them would be a deal-breaker for me as a potential viewer. But I'm hardly the target demographic for Australian food television!

[katisha]

 

So it seems there are actually two agendas this season - the one where a bloke has to win, and the one where the old bats are kept around way longer than they should be (and as you all know, I'm not being ageist as I myself am older than dirt 😂 )  Even after that pressure test when she seemed to implode right from the start, Cath bloody well survives and Rue goes home.  And Rue had such a lovely, classy exit speech that it made me realise she was by far my favourite of the four women left and I'm quite bummed that she's gone, to be honest.  

• Can anyone explain to me why Malissa played that pin?  Not only did she get everything done, but it looked really good and she said she was happy with the flavours. Mystifying.
• Those of you watching from overseas and noticing how painfully broad Cath's and Rhiannon's accents are, I couldn't agree more.  They both sound what we call very "bogan" (I guess the US equivalent would be "redneck").  I would like to think that my accent is a lot closer to Malissa's accent, where you can tell she's Australian but it doesn't hurt your ears to listen to her talk.
• And last but not least, where did Declan get that truly heinous jacket?

 

Edited June 27, 2023 by katisha

[Snazzy Daisy]

S15•E37 - Clare Smyth‘s Beef & Oyster Pressure Test

Another unappetizing dish in the pressure test!

Noooooooo Malissa! You should’ve kept that pin to secure yourself into Top 5. Damn it, girl! You play right into producers’ hand, you know that? Andy is tasked to sew some doubts, obviously.

Goodbye Rue! Self-doubt till the end. You’re just lucky to be in Top 10, unlike Grace. Yeah, yeah am still bitter.

From now on, will chaotic Cath be turning on her waterworks every time she’s in trouble?

Whoever pays attention to the earliest preview knows which contestants will be in Top 4. No surprise here. Why they always spoil it for us??! Ugh.

Various shades of pink on the gantry! 💕

The real (fashion) disasters in this episode…

🤣🤣🤣   
 

Edited June 28, 2023 by Snazzy Daisy

[Mellowyellow]

@Snazzy Daisycould you pretty please tell me who the top 4 are in spoilers or spoiler tags? 

Thank you!!!!!

 

[Snazzy Daisy]

34 minutes ago, Mellowyellow said:

@Snazzy Daisycould you pretty please tell me who the top 4 are in spoilers or spoiler tags? 

Thank you!!!!!

 

Here you go...

SPOILER ALERT!!!

Spoiler

From an aerial shot in Cactus Country...      

 

Edited June 28, 2023 by Snazzy Daisy

[Aerobicidal]

@katisha You didn't find Declan's jacket to be nice, different, unusual?

Speaking of which, just for myself, I'm very familiar with bogans and bogan accents. I should try harder not to judge, but I will say that there are certainly English language accents that I find far harder to tolerate.

The contestants with immunity pins are getting really mixed messages this week ("back yourself . . . as long as you would risk your entire family's lives that your kofta won't be dry"). Honestly, I wouldn't blame the judges for messing with people as a coping mechanism for the sheer awfulness of (much of) this final group and having to deal with Cath's drama and stress. Being on set with her--forget her accent--for 12 hours . . . I'd need to spend the next week drinking Chardonnay at Croutons on the Bay to recover.

Still, they probably could have sold an elimination of Cath instead of Rue, so I'm just projecting.

I'm not looking at spoilers, so forgive me if this comment needs to be qualified, but assuming we're getting a male winner, I will prefer this winner to at least three former ones, and that's just off the top of my (barely functioning) head.

[katisha]

42 minutes ago, Aerobicidal said:

You didn't find Declan's jacket to be nice, different, unusual?

Ah, a Kath and Kim fan - love it! 😂

[Mellowyellow]

Thank you @Snazzy Daisy

On a different note I'm up to the episode where Brent is in elimination and the messing with him and the pin is nasty! I'm glad he stuck to his guns!

I thought Declan played his pin well a few weeks back. There was no need to mess with Brent. His dish sounded pretty good and he wasn't foundering.

ETA: What is to with Andy's suit??? It's a REALLY bad suit..... Very bubble looking which is just bizzare!

I respect Declan's crazy jacket more than that suit 😂

Edited June 28, 2023 by Mellowyellow

[retrograde]

17 hours ago, katisha said:

the old bats are kept around way longer than they should be

I don't disagree generally, though I will say that in this one case, I think Rhiannon did the most interesting thing with the "everything" mystery box and was robbed of screen time by three blokes cooking meat and bread. 

I liked Rue more than most, but she was definitely struggling in recent episodes and can't be too salty about her exit.

Theo remains my favorite, a little by default, but I'll eat my hibachi-burned hat if Brent or Declan don't win this. 

[katisha]

11 hours ago, Snazzy Daisy said:

wHere you go...

SPOILER ALERT!!!

Hmmm.  I looked.  I think it must be a mirage! 😂

At this point there's not much Cath can do to bring me around to being a fan of hers but at least she admitted to not doing much in that challenge and Rhiannon carrying her along and apologised for it.  A bit of self-awareness is never a bad thing.

Yay to Theo and Malissa for acing that entree! Did they pick the colour of their Brown team uniforms based on Declan's 💩coloured jacket yesterday?  

Whilst I don't think I would really enjoy eating that dessert that Brent and Declan made, I'll have to take the word of the judges that it was weird but nice.

On another note, not only has this season really been a bit of a disappointment in terms of the quality of contestants, but the closer we get to the end, the more I'm remembering that it's Jock's swansong and that we lost him after it was done, and it's still making me sad. 🥹

6 hours ago, retrograde said:

I don't disagree generally, though I will say that in this one case, I think Rhiannon did the most interesting thing with the "everything" mystery box and was robbed of screen time by three blokes cooking meat and bread. 

Yeah, I'm not Rhi's biggest fan but she's from Townsville so the odds were pretty high she was going to be quite bogan-esque!  And I do respect that what she does, she probably does pretty well and at least she seems to have a decent palate.  When I lived up in Townsville myself for a few years I knew people who sounded and acted a lot like her and many of them were rough diamonds, very Aussie/ocker but would be the first to help someone out if they needed help.  

[Snazzy Daisy]

S15•E38 - O.MY Farm to Table Service Challenge

I enjoy this episode more than yesterday’s. The absence of Mel is refreshing. No poetic word salad and we get to enjoy the great dynamic & bromance between Jock and Andy. Their body language says everything, obvs.

Blayne Bertoncello is attentive and supportive. He has the right attitude and mannerism to be a good mentor on MCAU. I prefer to see Blayne again rather than that Nelly Robinson dude.

Great job Theo/Malissa and Deccy/Brent. You guys work well together. 👍🏻

Pasta again, Malissa? This time you’re lucky to have Theo working and balancing on the sauce and the beautiful plating.

Am actually hoping for the guys to do their take on Bloody Mary dessert. Sadly, they come out with the same old same old panna cotta and granita. Hmm.

The other pair OTOH is chaotic as expected. Their curry doesn’t look like curry TBH, so watery. 🙄

”We aren’t the fish queens.”

”Am not a fish girl.”

FFS Cath! Have you done any prep before coming on to this show??! 😡

At Top 6, you SHOULD know how to fillet a fish and how to multitask. Stop giving excuses. We don’t f-king care!

I honestly believe that these 2 are still around just because of their dramas. And the producers always feature them in the talking head as if they’re so compelling to watch. Ugh. 😣
 

Edited June 29, 2023 by Snazzy Daisy

[Aerobicidal]

This episode was zzzzzzzzz for me. Brent and Declan a pair--shocking. The results--shocking.

On a serious note, it boggles my mind that no one involved with this episode was aware that the correct term for those lime leaves is makrut and not the K-word, which is a horrible racial slur that should absolutely not be said on feel-good reality TV or any other TV in 2023. And it was said like 45 times in this episode. Yeah, this is a somewhat recent thing to be widely known, but it's not that hard to adapt. Adam Liaw has explained this multiple times on his show, which is actually feel-good rather than hate-watch TV, in my extraordinarily humble opinion.

[katisha]

9 hours ago, Aerobicidal said:

Adam Liaw has explained this multiple times on his show, which is actually feel-good rather than hate-watch TV, in my extraordinarily humble opinion.

Ah, Adam Liaw.  What a season that was.  He was the worthiest of winners but I loved young Callum too.  Those were the days!

Meanwhile, back to reality.  What's worse than watching Cath and Rhiannon cook in an immunity challenge?  Having them watch an immunity challenge and shriek from the gantry like a pair of fishwives.  My ears! 🙉

If Theo had managed to sqeak over the line to beat that chef tonight I might have been convinced he was getting a last minute winner's edit, but no - if I owned a house and were a gambling woman, I would be betting that house on Brent.

How is it that Malissa has been in five immunity challenges and probably even more eliminations?  Inconsistency, thy name is Malissa.

My fearless prediction for Sunday is that a woman will be eliminated.  I'm a genius! 🤣

[Snazzy Daisy]

S15•E39 - Ingredients/Equipment Immunity Challenge

What a noisy episode! I wish they mute the gantry during the 1st half. It’s painfully screeeeeeeeeeeching! Shut up! 😒

For both dishes, it’s 7/10 from Jock and Andy. Then Mel comes out with 6/10 for Theo. WTH Mel??!

Anyway, congratulations Theo for making it to the Top 5. Yay! Forget about the pin, it can also be a curse. Just keep cooking from heart, OK! And ohh, nice tribute to Grace on that betel leaf tempura. 💕

They show us a glimpse of Deccy wearing a pin in this week’s preview. Nice trolling! 🙄

Chase Kojima reminds me of an Energizer bunny…

So, an elimination with Kirsten Tibballs huh. I guess it’s time for Brent to surrender his pin.🤞🏻

 

Edited June 29, 2023 by Snazzy Daisy

[Aerobicidal]

10 hours ago, katisha said:

Meanwhile, back to reality.  What's worse than watching Cath and Rhiannon cook in an immunity challenge?  Having them watch an immunity challenge and shriek from the gantry like a pair of fishwives.  My ears! 🙉

This is exactly what I was thinking when the episode started, but they didn't seem to get much air time, although maybe more than Declan did. I wasn't paying that much attention, though.

Even so, I was not-secretly surprised that Theo lost to the guest chef; I guess the glowing edit he got was setting up something else (winning the first challenge today, making it to the final, maybe winning but I still think Brent will).

I think there is a very slim chance that Declan will be SHOCK! eliminated in fourth place but I'm mostly just saying that so I can gloat in the unlikely chance it happens. I definitely think he's one of the three most talented cooks left.

[Mellowyellow]

Ok I'm going to confess and say it, Declan is my favourite!!!!! I actually like all the guys but Declan is soooooo endearing. I don't care if it's the editing, I'm a sucker for this edit!!! 

Actually it's really weird this season because I'm practically always raging at how incompetent Cath is and how badly Malissa cooks pasta but I still like them more than Larissa from way back when. They just seem like nicer people to me! Not that Larissa ever did anything bad, I just didn't like her! 

[retrograde]

I have grown to like Declan. He's very awkward and clueless sometimes, but he does seem like a lovely person and he obviously has a lot of raw talent. If he wins, I won't be mad.

But Theo I think just has a more confident, cohesive and interesting perspective on food, as well as a wider skill range.

Brent is fine, and I'm glad he's conquered his mental health struggles, I just can't get excited about someone with such a big advantage winning. He has half a season of experience ahead of everyone else. 

I suppose there's a chance one of the remaining women win, but I doubt it. 

[Snazzy Daisy]

Theo’s Crispy Betel Leaf Kangaroo - his tribute to Grace. 💕