Masterchef (CA) - General Discussion

[mauras]

I was rooting for Mary all the way through, and I'm glad she won, but wow, Jeremy's sushi looked amazing. His dessert was beautiful too, though the flavors didn't sound all that appealing to me. This was a very talented final two.

Edited January 6, 2017 by mauras
Spelling

[Rai]

Both desserts looked and sounded amazing. Take note, Top Cheftestants!

I giggled a whole lot though when Mary loaned Jeremy some sugar for his appetizer, and one of the judges said, "That's so Canadian."

[Rammchick]

It's so amazing to get to the finale and not only want to watch it, but actually be happy at the outcome.  I would've been happy with either of them winning, to tell the truth.  I haven't watched the finale of the American version of this show in three seasons.  Gordon Ramsay could learn a lot from our Canadian cousins.  Thanks for a great season, and congratulations, Mary!

[Jersey Guy 87]

9 hours ago, Rai said:

I giggled a whole lot though when Mary loaned Jeremy some sugar for his appetizer, and one of the judges said, "That's so Canadian."

I said the same thing before he could say it.

[spiderpig]

I would have been happy with either one winning.  (However when the judge said how fantastic the cooking was, but one 3-course meal was slightly more cohesive, I thought for a second they would announce Jeremy because of the predominantly southeast Asian focus.)

Congratulations to Mary.  That woman can cook!

[cooksdelight]

I love this show, I just wish it was on here as it was also being aired in Canada. And at the same time, same day every week. The challenges and the food on this show is far superior to the US version. No freaky challenges out in the middle of nowhere. Technical artistry from these folks that I've not seen on the US show. From appearances and ingredients, I really wanted to dive into Jeremy's food. Mary's was equally beautiful, but the dessert sounded like an awful lot of blueberry. At any rate, both were great and congratulations to Mary!! I think they will both go far.

[susannot]

The whole season was great.  Both Jeremy and Mary delivered superb, innovative, creative menus.  Either could have won but I felt that Mary showcased Canadian ingredients more effectively.  The challenges were incredibly difficult and I doubt whether the US Masterchef contestants could cope.  I read an article today that said investors are lining up to help Jeremy open a restaurant in Winnipeg.

Edited January 7, 2017 by susannot

[pastafarian]

I finally saw the finale and congrats to Mary!  I enjoy this version so much more than the Ramsey dominated US one.  I've always wondered why the Canadian version is 'Masterchef Canada' not just 'Masterchef' OR that the US version isn't called 'Masterchef USA'?  The show originates from the UK, not the US!

[MajorWoody]

This show was such a pleasure to watch. 

Contestants that are actually decent to each other, know how to cook, Judges that are respected and also show respect to the contestants, and most importantly, no idiotic characters from Central Casting like on MC US.

Why can't the US version be more like this, instead of the train wreck it has become?

Congratulations to Mary, and to Jeremy for his strong showing.

[Christina]

1 hour ago, MajorWoody said:

Why can't the US version be more like this, instead of the train wreck it has become?

I read an interview with Gordon Ramsay where he said American's like the drama. I don't know why he thinks that, since MC:US is typically panned when compared to other countries by everyone on the internet. It is often accused of hiring from Central Casting and accused of creating characters instead of looking for people who have some cooking skills. It was very apparent these last few seasons, when they did the head-to-head cook offs, and the bigger personality won. It is rare to get everyone on the internet to agree, but they seem to agree on these things.

[MajorWoody]

Interesting that Ramsay thinks that way.

I watched a small part of Season One (US), and hated the way Ramsay and especially Joe treated the contestants. Then I caught MC Canada, Season 1, and found it to be refreshing and much better. after watching S2, I decided to give the US version another chance, after having skipped a few seasons. I was glad to see that Joe was gone, as I couldn't stand him and his smug, condescending attitude, but still feel the show pales in comparison to Canada. The last few seasons of MC US have been nothing but manufactured characters and drama, with cooking being an afterthought. And Tosi is a joke as a judge, no matter what Ramsay tries to push.

 

Then finally getting to see Season 3 of Canada just reinforced how much better the Canadian version is.

Ramsay should try it, I'll bet it would do better in the ratings. 

Edited January 8, 2017 by MajorWoody

[Jersey Guy 87]

19 hours ago, Christina said:

I read an interview with Gordon Ramsay where he said American's like the drama. I don't know why he thinks that, since MC:US is typically panned when compared to other countries by everyone on the internet. It is often accused of hiring from Central Casting and accused of creating characters instead of looking for people who have some cooking skills. It was very apparent these last few seasons, when they did the head-to-head cook offs, and the bigger personality won. It is rare to get everyone on the internet to agree, but they seem to agree on these things.

What "people on the internet" agree with and what produces ratings on TV aren't necessarily the same thing.  I don't pay all that much attention to ratings but MC:US is obviously doing well enough that Fox keeps renewing it, adding celebrity versions, etc.  Would it do better with more focus on cooking and less focus on drama?  I'd love if they decided to find out.

[pastafarian]

Leave the US version be, just don't let it infect the others and we're fine.  I don't watch the US version anymore, nor would I give a 'celebrity' version even a moment of my attention.  I've had my fill of Gordon Ramsey on TV, though given the opportunity I will try his restaurants.  Thanks to the 'internet' I can view all the other Masterchef (in English) versions and compare.  The Australian version was even more a teaching show than a contest.

[Canada]

"24 home cooks compete to earn an apron and a spot in the Top 12"

Rice dishes!  When I heard someone say they were going to make risotto in a 20 minute timeframe, I yelled at my TV, "don't make risotto!!!!!!"

[shok]

I felt sorry for some of the contestants who were cut. Some of them didn't even get 30 seconds of airtime. Their friends and family probably were all excited to see the first show to see their friend/loved one have their (albeit brief) moment in the sun and they got nada.

Is Thea the producer's pick this year? Her face and hair got an enormous amount of showtime. Reminded me of Mary and her flinging of her red hair being in every shot last season.

[PepperMonkey]

So first episode IN to actual competition and I am so disappointed. Am I mis-remembering last season? Because I do not recollect last year's Canadian home cooks being so "Americanized."

Trevor had so many advantages it was ridiculous and I know Alice is wishing she hadn't let him use her oven. Of course, she would have looked terrible if she didn't.

I find Miranda and Justine singularly unpleasant. Justine's eyeroll and fake clap when Miranda was announced as 2nd place was really telling. I'll give it another episode or two, but it has become super tricky like Masterchef (US), which I don't enjoy at all anymore because it's become more reality show than cooking competition.

[Canada]

I have to agree... there's something really irritating about a lot of the contestants so far.  I haven't picked out one who I like.  Which really sucks, because I've given up on a lot of the American cooking shows and I don't want my Masterchef Canada to go down the same route as them. 

[Christina]

On 3/10/2017 at 9:24 AM, PepperMonkey said:

Because I do not recollect last year's Canadian home cooks being so "Americanized."

I think the correct word would be "Ramsayized" because Top Chef, the baking shows and even the Food Truck Race* have people who can actually cook, as opposed to Ramsay's shows who hire people for drama whether they can boil water or not. Ramsay has insisted in interviews that American's like the drama, even though it seems like Masterchef US has more hatewatchers then fans. I had to give up on completely it last year, because the bullying and trash talking made me irritated and the show wasn't salvageable to me. One contestant of Masterchef US last year was put in a suit and tie and couldn't even cook rice, having never done it before.

Which leads to me this post and comment because the Canadian version has so far had two people who claim to not know how to cook something. The one who claimed he didn't work with pork, only to be relieved to find out it was veal, and the other who had never poached lobster in butter before, but was going to try it for the first time on this show. If you were planning to go on a cooking competition, wouldn't you practice with anything you hadn't cooked before? They had to know that they were on a short list when the boxes of rice showed up, because they would have to had prepared to leave home and work. 

I watch in America through means we are not allowed to discuss here, and keep seeing that episode three has aired but there are no links to watch. Can someone tell me when episode three is supposed to air, because I think it must not have aired yet?

*Food Truck Race last season was completely truncated and appeared to be a backdoor to introduce one of the Jersey Shore kids and his mom who had a short lived food show. I didn't watch it because their time on Food Truck Race was annoying. No matter the challenge, she made meatballs. On one episode, they were supposed to use an ostrich egg and one team really "heroed" {gag} the egg, while the Jersey Shore team made meatballs, and they won. Someone suggested that it was a set-up to get people introduced to that team, and sure enough, you couldn't un-see it. Then, they had a show where they traveled and tasted foods, and the intro was something like, "Ma is an expert at cooking chicken, but has never cooked friend chicken." Sigh. Way to ruin a good show Food Network. The other teams could cook, at least.

[kitten59]

For me, MC Canada is second only to the U.S. version in terms of overproduced, cheesy, glossy bullshit. I still watch, but it's my second least favorite out of the entire franchise. Masterchef the Professionals (U.K.) and even Masterchef Australia are infinitely better. And Chef Alvin bugs, sorry.

[Canada]

13 hours ago, Christina said:

I watch in America through means we are not allowed to discuss here, and keep seeing that episode three has aired but there are no links to watch. Can someone tell me when episode three is supposed to air, because I think it must not have aired yet?

Episode 3 hasn't aired here yet.  It will air here tomorrow, Thursday.

[Christina]

Thank you @Canada

[PepperMonkey]

Episode 3:

Miranda: ugh. So unpleasant. Justine's screaming vocal fry is killing me.

I really liked Kimberly.

So far, I'm team Matt or Thea. I don't care much for any of the others. I'm still watching, though, so what does that say about me? 'Course I'm watching Masterchef Junior and I swore I was done with that one. It's the only one of the Ramsay shows I have any vested interest in (and it's slight interest, I can assure you), having given up on Hell's Kitchen and regular Masterchef US a while ago. I always try to watch them and abandon ship when we're not too far from the harbor.

[Lilac2000]

I feel like Miranda and/or Justine will go far...uggghhhhh. Both are supremely annoying and full of themselves. I guess team Matt?? There's certainly no one I am really rooting for right now. Except Michael and Claudio...I always root for them!

[Christina]

I'm pretty lukewarm on everyone, too. Someone irritated me, but as I sit here, I can't remember who it was so maybe it wasn't too bad. I also haven't wanted to watch more than once, so there is that. It's still not as unwatchable as MasterChef US, but I've finally finished MasterChef The Professionals last season, so I need something else. 

The yelling in this episode was something else. I seriously would have told both women that I knew they were the leaders, but they needed to check their tone when speaking to me because I was getting irritated and I wasn't even there. I don't know what makes people think they have to yell to assert their authority. That has never worked for me in any job I've ever had. The louder you yell, the less you know. 

[SirOsisOfLiver]

I found the blond team leader (Miranda?) to be really annoying, and apparently others did too. Which suggests that the casting people would have as well. Which makes me ask myself, was she chosen in spite of being annoying, or because she was annoying?

The more this show emulates the U.S. version, the less appealing it becomes. This whole BS of "now you get to save one person - will you save yourself or be honourable?" is such a contrived bit of arranged drama that it irritates the crap out of me.

[Ciarrai]

Wow, so Miranda is quite the heinous bitch.

[Kairay]

I think Justene and Matt picked Thea because she is not a strong cook. She was so giddy about it though. Good luck girl.

[Canada]

I think there are maybe 3 or 4 people this season who can cook and seem to be there for the cooking.  The rest just appear to like mugging for the camera as much as possible.  Unicorn chick and constant-wide-eyed-stare chick can go any time!

[Christina]

First few seconds is the recap of last week with someone squealing, "Meeeddddiiccc!" in a tone that I suspect was "enhanced" for the show, even though people's voices can change to fingernails on chalkboard level irritants when they are surprised or injured.

Next, we have Miranda saying, "I see one box sitting up next to the judges and I don't know what could be in there." No duh...that's kinda the point of the show, and with one of my medicines making me more easily irritated than normal, decided to turn it off until later.

Having just watched the episode of Evil Lives Here about William Choyce, I decided I needed a palate cleanser and turned back on this episode after getting some ice cream. You know that they ask them the same questions several different times in several different ways so they have options of what to playback, so why do they purposely choose the clips that make the people look so horrible? Are we supposed to dislike everyone? The US version has decided to just become trash television, is that what the Canadian version is becoming? It is clear some people try out just to become television personalities, but there is no reason to cast them. There has to be more people in Canada who are good home cooks, can give up a month for this show, and are not obnoxious and arrogant. I can't imagine going on a reality show myself, but if it was truly a cooking competition for the home cooks and not a dramatic "look at me" experience, I might try it. The editing is probably scaring away legitimate contestants.

If no one tasted blueberries in the cake, maybe there weren't enough blueberries in it. If they used fresh, and you didn't get one, there wouldn't be flavor throughout. If anyone got it, they didn't show it, so I'm guessing not one person tasted a blueberry. It certainly didn't look like they were well dispersed throughout that layer.

I hate the word "elevate" as it applies to comfort food. It's comfort food; it's supposed to be full of calories and fat and heavy and not "elevated"!!! pfft. You're supposed to feel full and bloated and heavy after eating comfort food. If you "elevate" it, it is a brand new dish. Okay, I hate the word "elevate" when it comes to food period.

To end with something nice to say, Aaron doesn't seem whiny or arrogant, and he was humbled by the praise, so I guess he's my number one pick, and will probably be the next to go.

[SirOsisOfLiver]

I've seen Masterchef US, UK, Australia and South Africa and the US is by far the turd circling the bowl. What a shame that the Canadian version chose to emulate the US version when it could have been so much better.

[Fex]

On 3/25/2017 at 9:21 AM, Christina said:

If no one tasted blueberries in the cake, maybe there weren't enough blueberries in it. If they used fresh, and you didn't get one, there wouldn't be flavor throughout. If anyone got it, they didn't show it, so I'm guessing not one person tasted a blueberry. It certainly didn't look like they were well dispersed throughout that layer.

I thought the exact same thing about the blueberries! If nobody got it, it was a failure on the part of the cake, not the contestants. Some of them were so good at the blind tasting.

I've never had tuna casserole, and I don't feel like I ever need to.

[Ciarrai]

Why did Mai and Jordan dye the cake pink for no reason? It's not like they flavoured that layer with strawberries or something. 

[SirOsisOfLiver]

That was a chickenshit play by Aaron. You were the leader, you made all the decisions, all your decisions were wrong, then you bail out and leave the rest of your team to pay for your mistakes. Real classy move. I don't understand why Thea allowed him to be safe. I would have refused to agree to the unanimous vote. If I have to cook for my life, so do you, asshole.

I really hate this "pick somebody to be safe" bullshit. You all lost, so you should all cook. More fake producer-driven melodrama crap.

On a  brighter note for we Canadians, I noticed an ad for Masterchef Australia to be shown in Canada on Gusto starting next week. It could very easily make me drop this really poor Canadian version.

[Canada]

Okay, show, you lost me this week.  What a bullshit elimination.  Alisha did not deserve to go home.  I think I'll try Masterchef Australia, since it's had so many recommendations.  I want to watch good cooking, not drama and eliminations that fit some producers pre-planned idea of who should go home.

P.S. Aaron, you're a dick.  Hope your wife appreciates that.

[SirOsisOfLiver]

If you've never seen MC AU, you'll barely recognize that it's the same franchise. I highly recommend it.

[Fex]

I am really excited to check out Masterchef Australia! I keep hearing about how great it is. Thanks for the good news!

Normally, I think it's smart for contestants to save themselves, given the opportunity. If they had said it was up to the team leader, and Aaron chose himself, I'd be okay with that. Where it had to be a unanimous team decision, he was a total d for holding his ground, considering the loss was entirely his fault. Not in the way that the team leader is automatically responsible, but because Aaron insisted on cooking to order, when number of sales was the deciding factor! What was he thinking?????

[SirOsisOfLiver]

MC AU concentrates on cooking and that's it. The challenges are hard enough without any fake producer drama thrown in the mix. They do some seriously difficult stuff, and the people are all just really nice. It reminds me of Face Off: the contestants are all likeable and help each other out of jams.

And you won't see a hot babe with her cleavage popping out and her hair down, tottering around a kitchen in heels and a short skirt.

[Canada]

On ‎2017‎-‎03‎-‎31 at 6:49 AM, SirOsisOfLiver said:

On a  brighter note for we Canadians, I noticed an ad for Masterchef Australia to be shown in Canada on Gusto starting next week. It could very easily make me drop this really poor Canadian version.

I've watched two episodes so far this week, in the season showing from 2014, and I love it!  I definitely can't go back now for the Canadian or American versions, especially after seeing the commercial for this week's episode of MC Canada.  It looks like the usual BS and drama from annoying people.  This one is so much better.  We get some stories and background on the contestants, but it's mainly about the cooking.  I just wish a forum existed for it, as I'd love to read people's comments on the old seasons.

Edited April 6, 2017 by Canada

[OnceSane]

2 hours ago, Canada said:

I've watched two episodes so far this week, in the season showing from 2014, and I love it!  I definitely can't go back now for the Canadian or American versions, especially after seeing the commercial for this week's episode of MC Canada.  It looks like the usual BS and drama from annoying people.  This one is so much better.  We get some stories and background on the contestants, but it's mainly about the cooking.  I just wish a forum existed for it, as I'd love to read people's comments on the old seasons.

 

We have a forum for Masterchef Australia here.

[SirOsisOfLiver]

Now that we've gotten past the auditions, things really get going. When they bring in people like Heston Blumenthal or Marco Pierre White for a week, it's pretty impressive what these home cooks are capable of. I've said more than once, the average contestant on the North American versions couldn't hold a candle to these people.

[allthatglitters]

Absolute BS that Justine was eliminated. That two were eliminated without warning like that is ridiculous. Its not as if they really screwed up. They were the only ones with everything on their plate, that should have held more weight for one. The shrimp were wrapped badly but so were Aarons and Mirandas. It was not explained better why this had to be a surprise double elimination. I think Matt should have gone because aside from the poor wrap job on the shrimp, everything else Justine cooked, including the shrimp, were done well. Her tempura batter seemed to be the judges favorite. Whereas Matt didn't cut the beef very well and left the skin on the salmon. So he should have gone home. Especially if you take into account all the great dishes Justine has put up. Only the Canadian version would make sure to kick off one the most charismatic positive contestants early. I'm going to miss her great energy.

[kitten59]

On 4/5/2017 at 2:50 PM, Canada said:

I've watched two episodes so far this week, in the season showing from 2014, and I love it!  I definitely can't go back now for the Canadian or American versions, especially after seeing the commercial for this week's episode of MC Canada.  It looks like the usual BS and drama from annoying people.  This one is so much better.  We get some stories and background on the contestants, but it's mainly about the cooking.  I just wish a forum existed for it, as I'd love to read people's comments on the old seasons.

Oh man, don't I know it! The Canadian and U.S. versions are pretty much unwatchable after you see the Australian (and, for me, U.K.) versions of this franchise. Having said that, if you really want to see an unbearably heinous cooking competition, try My Kitchen Rules Australia. It's an abomination.

[buffynut]

6 hours ago, allthatglitters said:

Absolute BS that Justine was eliminated. That two were eliminated without warning like that is ridiculous. Its not as if they really screwed up. They were the only ones with everything on their plate, that should have held more weight for one. The shrimp were wrapped badly but so were Aarons and Mirandas. It was not explained better why this had to be a surprise double elimination. I think Matt should have gone because aside from the poor wrap job on the shrimp, everything else Justine cooked, including the shrimp, were done well. Her tempura batter seemed to be the judges favorite. Whereas Matt didn't cut the beef very well and left the skin on the salmon. So he should have gone home. Especially if you take into account all the great dishes Justine has put up. Only the Canadian version would make sure to kick off one the most charismatic positive contestants early. I'm going to miss her great energy.

Seeing that every episode they say "at least one will be eliminated" I was impressed that they let 2 go this time.  And for some reason Justine annoys me, so I'm not sad she's gone. In fact, I'm hoping she won't be the one to come back.

She reminds me of someone, actually. Was there a contestant on the US version, a while back, that looked like her? Maybe that's why I have a dislike for her.

Matt was on The Social yesterday. I just caught the tail end of the show, so didn't see his interview, just that he'd been a guest.

[SirOsisOfLiver]

If they had to eliminate two, I'd have been very happy to wave bye-bye to Miranda and Aaron. Her constant screeching out orders would have been enough for me to try my skills at knife-throwing.

[allthatglitters]

18 hours ago, buffynut said:

Seeing that every episode they say "at least one will be eliminated" I was impressed that they let 2 go this time.  And for some reason Justine annoys me, so I'm not sad she's gone. In fact, I'm hoping she won't be the one to come back.

She reminds me of someone, actually. Was there a contestant on the US version, a while back, that looked like her? Maybe that's why I have a dislike for her.

Matt was on The Social yesterday. I just caught the tail end of the show, so didn't see his interview, just that he'd been a guest.

Justine was amusing to watch as a character I thought. A maniacal energy bunny in the kitchen but with a much better attitude than any on the Aaron/Miranda team I thought. Both of those have shown less than stellar character in talk or behaviour at certain points. But even on merits of previous cooks and how she personally did on this dish. Ultimately I wanted her to stay because she put up better  dishes during her stay than a number of others that are still there. But Matt also deserved to stay more than the A/M team. And they should have announced right at the start, that the whole 2 person losing team is going to go home IMO.

Edited April 9, 2017 by allthatglitters

[surreysmum]

Did you see the commercial right afterwards, tho', announcing "second chance" returns? The double elimination was clearly no more than a stunt setting that up. One or both of Matt and Justine will surely be back.

[Christina]

Did anyone watch the online episode that showed someone (Matt?) being injured? It was played up on the actual episode, but not shown and I'm really too lazy to bother and track it down, enact the permissions to let me watch a Canadian station in the U.S. only to see a three minute commercial of something stupid.

[Ciarrai]

Alice definitely proved why she was out first. She was awful in all three challenges.

[Fex]

This episode made me wonder more than usual: what happens to all the extra food? They each got an entire salmon, and cooked one filet. Then the judges brought out 50 5-ingredient dishes. I really hope someone ate that food... except not if was sitting out under hot lights for hours and hours.

Just in time for her to leave, Miranda finally made me like her with that quip about hoping it was an eating contest! Loved it.

[Christina]

In the US version, the production team picks out the clothes, resulting in someone last year cooking in a suit and the women cooking in heels. If that is true of the Canadian version, someone should be fired for putting Miranda in that horribly fitting shirt. It was practically see through, left nothing to the imagination, and made her look awful. Her personality is bad enough.

This episode though, she wasn't nearly as bitchy as before. Maybe it was because she had won the earlier challenge, or maybe I was just distracted by her shirt.

MC:AU is culinary school, MC:US is trash television. In the Australian version, they are there for three months and take several classes when they are not in the studio. You see them grow by leaps and bounds. That wouldn't happen in the US, because they wouldn't pay to put people up for three months and no channel would play episodes five days a week for three months. They are not even close to the same show. Some exit interviews of past contestants show that they were allowed to take some classes before the try-outs, there were limits to the training they could have, but one contestant told how she went to the Sydney Fish Market, a huge place, and took every seafood class that they offered. Another one had worked in a restaurant as a waitress, and was able to have the cooks show her how the equipment worked and offer her some tips and since she wasn't paid as a cook, she still qualified to be on this show. They also don't seem to cast for drama.