24 in 24: Last Chef Standing - General Discussion

[Irlandesa]

5 hours ago, chessiegal said:

I haven't checked my Twitter feed in years but did today. Michael Symon replied to someone complaining about the long hours. His response was that it was no different than opening a new restaurant which is something all these chefs have done.

I think it's hilarious.  That's the challenge.  Every chef who signed up for this knew what they were getting going in and that it'd be something they'd have to navigate.  They're in the middle.  Energy will probably go up closer to the end because they know it's almost over. 

7 hours ago, Mellowyellow said:

like Mika. I think she’s just slightly delirious so she’s rambling. Doesn’t count as a personality flaw to me. She’s not nasty or anything.

I like Mika too.  I think she's funny and like the food she's putting out.

3 hours ago, tessabq said:

I feel the same about Marcel. He was not an ass on Top Chef; he was just young.

I think his youth prevented him from realizing he was about to take things too far and so he was an annoying gnat/bit of an asshole to his fellow chefs.  He has gotten better with age.  Not perfect but better.  

But back then, the people on his season didn't know how to handle him so we got the bullying incident which was awful.  Harold handled him much better during the special S1 vs. S2 chefs  when he basically told him to stop being a child because everyone there just wanted to cook.  That seemed to at least temporarily get through to Marcel.

[mlp]

On 4/28/2024 at 9:15 PM, susannot said:

So far Marcel and young Chris look the best.  Chris Oh and Mika are fading fast.

I agree and I'd add Martel.  He seems OK too.  I don't like Mika and keep hoping she'll go.  I do like Chris Oh but he's fading fast.  I was sorta expecting him to take the cash option and pack it in.

On 4/29/2024 at 11:51 AM, Liddy52 said:

I like the Voltaggio Brothers and enjoyed  their appearance.

I like them too.  For some reason, I've always thought that Michael is on the short side so I was surprised to see that he's actually taller than Brian.

5 hours ago, paramitch said:

He's [Marcel] definitely matured over the past decade or so, and it's been nice to see him achieve more calmness overall.

I've always lliked Marcel.  He's all grown up, happily married and has a son he adores.  I hope he wins.  If not, Martel.

6 hours ago, paramitch said:

He [Carlos} reminds me a lot of the twins on "Rock the Block" 

Oh lord.  I see what you mean.  I loathe those two so much that I FF past their segments.  I wish Carlos would calm down but I don't actively dislike him.  

[Mellowyellow]

This cast is likeable and I find their food and personalities more appealing than another cooking show I’m also watching right now. The newer chefs Young Chris, Tall Fire Chris, Martel, Mika all cook well and carry themselves well on TV. Kess wasn’t as strong on the cooking side but she’s darn likeable too! Great casting Food Network. 
 

This is a bit of a guilty pleasure for me because the 24 hour thing is such a gimmick but it’s sooooooooooo fun to watch. I’m counting down for the next episode! 

Edited May 1 by Mellowyellow
is not are!

[tv echo]

19 hours ago, Ellee said:

Did I read or hear about Chris Oh having some health issues before doing this show?

I seem to recall that on one of the earlier episodes, maybe the first episode of 24 In 24: Last Chef Standing, Chris Oh said something about having some health issue (prior to the show) and coming back from it. But I don't remember the details. At least I think it was on this show.

Edited May 1 by tv echo

[roughing it]

Marcel is always doing something that annoys me, and I've noticed chefs on other shows (like TOC) doing it to - the praying hands with the bow.  What the hell is THAT all about??

[AZChristian]

1 hour ago, roughing it said:

Marcel is always doing something that annoys me, and I've noticed chefs on other shows (like TOC) doing it to - the praying hands with the bow.  What the hell is THAT all about??

In some cultures, it is considered a sign of respect and gratitude. 

[paramitch]

2 hours ago, roughing it said:

Marcel is always doing something that annoys me, and I've noticed chefs on other shows (like TOC) doing it to - the praying hands with the bow.  What the hell is THAT all about??

He's showing thanks and humility.

However -- just speaking generally, this is a good example of how Marcel can't seem to catch a break from many viewers.

If he speaks from the heart, he's pandering. If he expresses enjoyment for the competition, he's arrogant. If he says he's playing for his mother's cochlear implant surgery, he's sucking up for the prize. If he shows appreciation or thanks, he doesn't seem genuine, etc.

21 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I think [Marcel's] youth prevented him from realizing he was about to take things too far and so he was an annoying gnat/bit of an asshole to his fellow chefs.  He has gotten better with age.  Not perfect but better.  

But back then, the people on his season didn't know how to handle him so we got the bullying incident which was awful.  Harold handled him much better during the special S1 vs. S2 chefs  when he basically told him to stop being a child because everyone there just wanted to cook.  That seemed to at least temporarily get through to Marcel.

Boldfacing mine. This feels like it's rephrasing what happened to put more blame on Marcel. Sure, Marcel was an irritating kid. But saying "people didn't know how to handle him" goes too far for me. And it wasn't a license to bully, attack, and physically assault him. All they had to do was shrug, ignore him, move on, be grownups.

I absolutely do not think Marcel was the one who "took things too far." He was a silly, arrogant kid on "Top Chef" who acted a little smug and who occasionally did incredibly embarrassing raps about his talent for the camera in his confessionals

Marcel wasn't any worse than dozens of other TC cheftestants in seasons to follow in his self-confidence. And he never abused, mocked, or hurt another contestant. Unfortunately, this skinny kid's self-confidence and arrogance was like blood in the water to certain bullying types like Betty, Cliff, Ilan, Elia, etc., so we had people repeatedly screaming in his face, threatening him physically, and ultimately assaulting him (a group-planned assault that was ret-conned in full cooperation with "Top Chef" to appear like a less-harmful spontaneous "we all want to shave our heads!" lark, when in fact, if you analyze it, the rearranged footage shows that they assaulted Marcel first, and then everyone shaved their heads so their stories were straight. (To be fair, Tom was horrified and genuinely wanted to send them all home and give it to Marcel.)

So anyway, sure, Marcel was absolutely a brat (in a minor way) 10-15 years ago, even if he didn't deserve the horrific bullying he received in response. But I do believe he's evolved, and I'm enjoying seeing that evidence here.

I don't know why there is something about Marcel that brings out such extreme emotions in people. He was treated almost as badly in the follow-up "special" Top Chef dinner TV event a few seasons later, for instance, as he was in S2 -- in which Fabio interrogated him about S2 (Marcel didn't want to talk about it), mocked him, screamed at him, and asked the cameramen to turn off the camera because "Marcel was making [him] look bad" -- meanwhile, he had further gone out of his way to stoke drama by making Marcel team up with one of his bullies, Ilan Hall, to cook a dish -- which he did,  very quietly and without complaint. Fabio tried the interrogation when that didn't elicit an emotional scene.

I like that Marcel is doing well, and I'm totally rooting for him. But I like several of the players and there's no one I can't stand, honestly, so it's all good.

Edited May 1 by paramitch
fixed quote

[Irlandesa]

10 hours ago, paramitch said:

This feels like it's rephrasing what happened to put more blame on Marcel. Sure, Marcel was an irritating kid. But saying "people didn't know how to handle him" goes too far for me.

I never blamed Marcel for being assaulted.   Not now not back then when I liked him much less than I do now.  And for the record, I don't dislike him. Tom should have been able to boot everyone involved in the incident like he wanted to.

But two opinions can be held at the same time.  One is that people can think he's the victim of an unwarranted assault that never should have come close to happening. Those same people can also think there are times he acted like a complete asshole and lacked the emotional intelligence to recognize when it stopped being fun trash talk and turned him into someone people didn't want to be around or might not appreciate as a TV personality.

13 hours ago, roughing it said:

Marcel is always doing something that annoys me, and I've noticed chefs on other shows (like TOC) doing it to - the praying hands with the bow.  What the hell is THAT all about??

That's not just Marcel and other chefs.  I've seen people do it in real life.  It's a nonverbal way to express gratitude (as pointed out above) but usually conveys an extra dose of feeling honored.  The chefs in these competition shows often respect, and even sometimes hold in awe, the chefs judging them.  They're trying to show they feel extra honored to be able to feed them.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 2 by Irlandesa

[TexasTiffany]

I'm really loving this show. I'm surprised I like it. I started watching just to see what it was about. I'm already wondering when they could do another season. Tournament of Champions is done only once a year, but this 24 in 24 could be done every 6 months or less. 

Regarding Elizabeth Faulkner, I usually like her on these cooking competitions but I don't remember seeing her win anything. I was surprised that she acted like she should have won her round b/c she's Elizabeth F. more than it being about her dish. She should realize there are tons of good chefs out there that haven't been on every Food Network show ever created. It's good to see some new faces. 

Some of these chefs we will probably see more of in the near future. I'm really liking Martel and navy Chris. 

I remember the whole Top Chef awfulness at Marcel's expense. On this show when they showed Carlos Anthony and the other chefs in the break area suddenly talking about Marcel and how they wanted him out, it gave me those Top Chef bullying vibes again. 

I'm okay with them talking about how tired they are, etc. They're all experiencing this together and they're kind of bonding. Plus, they're so tired that they are getting silly and making jokes. I laughed at Chris Oh when he was walking his dish to the judges table rather slow. Michael Symon commented how he needs to move a bit faster. Chris said something about only having the one speed now. You don't get that on Chopped. 

[Irlandesa]

27 minutes ago, TexasTiffany said:

On this show when they showed Carlos Anthony and the other chefs in the break area suddenly talking about Marcel and how they wanted him out, it gave me those Top Chef bullying vibes again. 

Those comments were in reference to how talented Marcel is as a chef. Of course they want him out. 

[schnauzergirl]

Martel was on Wildcard Kitchen the other night and swept away the competition -- Tiffani and Shirley -- and Judge Scott Conant -- with his dishes.  Walked home with all the cash!  He also came across as a nice guy.  

Edited May 2 by schnauzergirl

[Lamb18]

On 4/29/2024 at 11:51 AM, Liddy52 said:

I like the Voltaggio Brothers and enjoyed  their appearance. However they kept commenting on how they had never seen a competition like the relay one in which the one team member set up the classic combo dish and the other teammate didn't know what had been started and how to complete it. Guy's Grocery Games has had two episodes with a similar but to me more difficult challenge. It involved 3 team members and more requirements for the dish. Is there only one female chef left? I don't think any of the judges ate deliberately biased but it is interesting when you compare the results with the blind judging on Tournament of Champions. 

.

 

Doesn't MasterChef have that challenge where two contestants team-tag each other on a dish? One starts, the other one goes in, then the first one again, back and forth until the cooking time is over.

[mlp]

8 hours ago, schnauzergirl said:

Martel was on Wildcard Kitchen the other night and swept away the competition -- Tiffani and Shirley -- and Judge Scott Conant -- with his dishes.  Walked home with all the cash!  He also came across as a nice guy.  

I enjoyed that episode a lot because I like Martel, can't stand Tiffani and I'm not crazy about Shirley.  Or Scott Conant for that matter.  I didn't realize how young he is until then.  He's talented, creative and personable.  I think we'll be seeing him more often.

[Salacious Kitty]

Mika appeared on another episode of Wildcard Kitchen with Carlos and Maria from Top Chef. Carlos won most of the pot. 

Edited May 3 by Salacious Kitty

[Andyourlittledog2]

On 4/30/2024 at 12:19 PM, paramitch said:

I continue to root for Marcel -- after season 2 of "Top Chef" (and its vicious bullying and actual physical assault) he handled horrific abuse with so much class, I'm going to root for him where I can.

I know many don't like him, but I never minded him. Sure, he was cocky in his younger days, but it wasn't outward-focused or mean-spirited, so it just came off like hot air. He never used his arrogance to hurt other people, he just believed in himself and for me it was sort of nerdy and amusing and endearingly young.

He's definitely matured over the past decade or so, and it's been nice to see him achieve more calmness overall. I thought his food here looked gorgeous.

I've always liked him and am so glad to see him doing well. I am rooting for him to win. 

[catrice2]

On 5/2/2024 at 1:48 AM, Irlandesa said:

I never blamed Marcel for being assaulted.   Not now not back then when I liked him much less than I do now.  And for the record, I don't dislike him. Tom should have been able to boot everyone involved in the incident like he wanted to.

But two opinions can be held at the same time.  One is that people can think he's the victim of an unwarranted assault that never should have come close to happening. Those same people can also think there are times he acted like a complete asshole and lacked the emotional intelligence to recognize when it stopped being fun trash talk and turned him into someone people didn't want to be around or might not appreciate as a TV personality.

That's not just Marcel and other chefs.  I've seen people do it in real life.  It's a nonverbal way to express gratitude (as pointed out above) but usually conveys an extra dose of feeling honored.  The chefs in these competition shows often respect, and even sometimes hold in awe, the chefs judging them.  They're trying to show they feel extra honored to be able to feed them.

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah, but which one took all the blame?  You can argue they still needed a show, but they all should have had consequences. Cliff too went on with his career but is defined by the incident way more than the others.   I am also sure production had something to do with encouraging them for "good tv." 

[AZChristian]

29 minutes ago, catrice2 said:

I am also sure production had something to do with encouraging them for "good tv." 

I'm a firm believer that production gets involved more than we know with a lot of shows (looking at you, Naked and Afraid).

Having said that, I can't believe that a production company would encourage participants to commit an assault on another participant.  If Marcel had been badly injured when Cliff took him to the floor, he'd have gone after the production company for lots of money . .  . and publicity the production company didn't want.

It's possible the production company agreed to a settlement that would see Cliff removed in exchange for Marcel's not filing charges.

[Salacious Kitty]

22 minutes ago, AZChristian said:

I'm a firm believer that production gets involved more than we know with a lot of shows (looking at you, Naked and Afraid).

Having said that, I can't believe that a production company would encourage participants to commit an assault on another participant.  If Marcel had been badly injured when Cliff took him to the floor, he'd have gone after the production company for lots of money . .  . and publicity the production company didn't want.

It's possible the production company agreed to a settlement that would see Cliff removed in exchange for Marcel's not filing charges.

There was some kind of compromise, because Tom wanted them ALL gone. 

[Mondrianyone]

1 hour ago, catrice2 said:

Cliff too went on with his career but is defined by the incident way more than the others. 

Maybe that's because he was the one actually filmed assaulting Marcel. But oddly enough he was also the only one involved in the incident who went on to get his own show. Go figure.

[meep.meep]

Marcel and Illan also have had their own TV shows.  What happened on Top Chef happened years ago and everyone involved seems to have moved on.  It's not a factor on this show.

I think it's the need for creativity that's making them more tired.  Most of them are used to being on the line for hours on end - the difference is that then they are doing the same thing over and over, and here they need to come up with new dishes for each round.

[Mondrianyone]

You're right, but I didn't include Marcel since he wasn't accused of assaulting himself, and I left out Ilan because no one I know ever got the Esquire Network. Cliff was the only one who had a show on an actual food-related channel.

[Salacious Kitty]

22 minutes ago, Mondrianyone said:

You're right, but I didn't include Marcel since he wasn't accused of assaulting himself, and I left out Ilan because no one I know ever got the Esquire Network. Cliff was the only one who had a show on an actual food-related channel.

What network hosted Knife Fight? I watched it a couple of times. It was okay at best. Ilan was still an ass. 

[meep.meep]

Knife Fight was on Esquire.  It was good enough to be ripped off by the Food Network.  Hope Ilan and the other producers got a good payoff.

[Salacious Kitty]

2 minutes ago, meep.meep said:

Knife Fight was on Esquire.  It was good enough to be ripped off by the Food Network.  Hope Ilan and the other producers got a good payoff.

I preferred the show with Kristin Kish, Jeremy Ford, and Justin Sutherland on TBS. Fast Foodies. It was great cooking with some laughs. 

[potatoradio]

On 5/1/2024 at 6:26 AM, Mellowyellow said:

Great casting Food Network. 

Agreed. And Michael Symon can hold his own as a host, so, while I don't mind Guy F., it's nice to see someone else emerging as a fun and engaging host. 

If they are determined to make Carlos happen, they should always make him cook for twelve hours BEFORE appearing on camera. Tired Carlos is a bit more palatable. Still hoping he doesn't win.

I can stomach the Volts far better now that they aren't THE VOLTAGGIOS, ALL HAIL THE MOST TOTES ADORBS BROS TO EVER APPEAR ON TV AREN'T THEY AMAZING, OMIGOD OMIGOD. They seem more down to Earth when I've seen them appear on things lately. 

The TV dinner plating challenge had me rolling on the floor laughing, especially Chris Oh putting brownie bits in the top bowl of a tower. Points for giving the challenge the one-finger salute while still playing and maintaining a fun attitude.

I will never watch one of these shows without a craving for fried shrimp and fried chicken. Thank goodness we don't have a frier in our kitchen. 

 

 

 

[susannot]

I can't believe that the kitchen was not supplied with almond flour for Kess's macarons.

[Thalia]

On 4/28/2024 at 9:04 AM, tv echo said:

But I had to say, I'm concerned about letting chefs get so sleep deprived and exhausted, both physically and mentally, when they're going to be cutting with knives and cooking over flames.

I am not sure if they showed it happening, but it looks like Carlos cut one of his fingers.  I noticed him wearing a latex glove on his left hand while cutting.   Rewound it a couple of minutes and he didn't start out with the glove.   And then while listening to Michael explain the channel, Carlos held up that hand and he is wearing a black finger cot on one finger.  

[Liddy52]

After watching last night's episode, I am more convinced that this show needs blind judging. Or at least a panel of judging. It has to be uncomfortable for the judges in its present format.  I was really confused with the first half of the show and disappointed to see Martel leave. Carlos still annoys me. And I am getting annoyed with hearing about how no one has ever done anything like this, but many of the challenges are similar to challenges on other cooking contest shows. The main difference is that do them all in 24 hours. However several of the chefs have gotten breaks by virtue of winning  various challenges.  

Edited May 6 by Liddy52

[janeyjay]

Co-sign the blind and/or more than one judge concept. It's a lot of pressure and responsibility for one person to decide who stays and who clocks out -- especially if that judge has prior/current relationships with the participants (although Jet navigated this issue very well IMO.)

Bummed to see both Martel and Chris D go, as I like them each quite a bit (and hope to see them frequently in the future on my telly.)

Trying to imagine a kitchen with both Carlos AND Malarkey and I became as exhausted as Chris Oh at the prospect of THAT.

[cameron]

1 hour ago, janeyjay said:

Co-sign the blind and/or more than one judge concept. It's a lot of pressure and responsibility for one person to decide who stays and who clocks out -- especially if that judge has prior/current relationships with the participants (although Jet navigated this issue very well IMO.)

Bummed to see both Martel and Chris D go, as I like them each quite a bit (and hope to see them frequently in the future on my telly.)

Trying to imagine a kitchen with both Carlos AND Malarkey and I became as exhausted as Chris Oh at the prospect of THAT.

Was surprised that Chris D got the cut.  Don't agree with that decision.

[lavenderblue]

Yeah, I didn't care for how much time Brooke spent in her judging on her familiarity with the chefs. She made a point of asking if she knew Chris D, where he had to remind her of Chopped. She on the other hand had extensive commentary on Carlos based entirely on her comparisons of himself to himself. Would Chris Oh's chicken dish lacking much flavor from the chicken be a bigger issue if she hadn't known who made it? Etc. Just strange vibes.

I do enjoy how loopy everyone was last night, though.

[mlp]

I was sorry to see both Martel and Chris D. leave and surprised that Chris Oh outlasted both of them.  I like Chris Oh but he seemed to be feeling the fatigue a lot more than the rest of them.  I was hoping Mika would be sent home for her doughy arepa and too much spice but I didn't think Brooke would eliminate the one woman left.  

I hope that appearing on this show gives both Martel and Chris D. a boost to their careers.  

Still rooting for Marcel.

[Irlandesa]

1 hour ago, mlp said:

I was hoping Mika would be sent home for her doughy arepa and too much spice but I didn't think Brooke would eliminate the one woman left.  

The arepa dish won so I don't think Mika was in any danger of going home for that.  Brooke didn't seem to like much about Chris D's second chicken so I wasn't surprised when he was sent home.

They gave an actual time in this episode so it sounds like they started the competition around 9 a.m. 

[susannot]

I hate to see the last two black contestants go home one after the other, but they had the least good dishes.  As someone said upthread, I'm sure it will boost their careers.  Apparently Martel has already appeared on and won a lot of cooking shows.  And young Chris (good-looking!)  will do well too.

[janeyjay]

9 hours ago, lavenderblue said:

I do enjoy how loopy everyone was last night, though.

In this spirit, I'm going to start naming all my dishes after myself. 

[AZChristian]

Do the contestants get tested for stimulants?  At least one of them seems very perky to me after 18 hours on his feet.

[Ancaster]

On 5/1/2024 at 1:51 PM, paramitch said:

He's showing thanks and humility.

However -- just speaking generally, this is a good example of how Marcel can't seem to catch a break from many viewers.

If he speaks from the heart, he's pandering. If he expresses enjoyment for the competition, he's arrogant. If he says he's playing for his mother's cochlear implant surgery, he's sucking up for the prize. If he shows appreciation or thanks, he doesn't seem genuine, etc.

Boldfacing mine. This feels like it's rephrasing what happened to put more blame on Marcel. Sure, Marcel was an irritating kid. But saying "people didn't know how to handle him" goes too far for me. And it wasn't a license to bully, attack, and physically assault him. All they had to do was shrug, ignore him, move on, be grownups.

I absolutely do not think Marcel was the one who "took things too far." He was a silly, arrogant kid on "Top Chef" who acted a little smug and who occasionally did incredibly embarrassing raps about his talent for the camera in his confessionals

Marcel wasn't any worse than dozens of other TC cheftestants in seasons to follow in his self-confidence. And he never abused, mocked, or hurt another contestant. Unfortunately, this skinny kid's self-confidence and arrogance was like blood in the water to certain bullying types like Betty, Cliff, Ilan, Elia, etc., so we had people repeatedly screaming in his face, threatening him physically, and ultimately assaulting him (a group-planned assault that was ret-conned in full cooperation with "Top Chef" to appear like a less-harmful spontaneous "we all want to shave our heads!" lark, when in fact, if you analyze it, the rearranged footage shows that they assaulted Marcel first, and then everyone shaved their heads so their stories were straight. (To be fair, Tom was horrified and genuinely wanted to send them all home and give it to Marcel.)

So anyway, sure, Marcel was absolutely a brat (in a minor way) 10-15 years ago, even if he didn't deserve the horrific bullying he received in response. But I do believe he's evolved, and I'm enjoying seeing that evidence here.

I don't know why there is something about Marcel that brings out such extreme emotions in people. He was treated almost as badly in the follow-up "special" Top Chef dinner TV event a few seasons later, for instance, as he was in S2 -- in which Fabio interrogated him about S2 (Marcel didn't want to talk about it), mocked him, screamed at him, and asked the cameramen to turn off the camera because "Marcel was making [him] look bad" -- meanwhile, he had further gone out of his way to stoke drama by making Marcel team up with one of his bullies, Ilan Hall, to cook a dish -- which he did,  very quietly and without complaint. Fabio tried the interrogation when that didn't elicit an emotional scene.

I like that Marcel is doing well, and I'm totally rooting for him. But I like several of the players and there's no one I can't stand, honestly, so it's all good.

 

Thanks for articulating this so well; I agree completely.

Do you know the Top Chef offshoot "The Dish with Kish"?  Marcel was on an episode recently and I found him to be pretty delightful.

[Ancaster]

Anybody want to join me in a drinking game?  Every time Mika mentions Cuba/Cuban, take a shot of rum and a puff on a cigar.

[Ancaster]

Hang on, what's going on?  My market has only shown up to Ep 5, and according to the Food Network site, Eps 6 and 7 (with Brooke) are "upcoming ".

 

Edited May 7 by Ancaster

[Mellowyellow]

😭😭😭 that was a difficult episode to watch! Martel and Young Chris were my favourites!!!!! And they both went home😭😭😭

Hopefully they will pop up regularly on the various Food Network shows!

[eclectcmoi]

Martel and Chris Oh were both just on an episode of Wildcard Kitchen and Esther Choi was their judge.  Lots of crossovers on that show.  

[potatoradio]

Does anyone else feel tired while watching this? It's like yawning; very contagious to hear someone say how exhausted they are. Pretty soon I'm feeling drained myself and all I do is sit on the couch and eat dinner!

I would have preferred Mika and Carlos to be the two who went home, so I knew they wouldn't. Boo on losing Chris and Martel, both of whom I really found to be engaging personalities and I wanted to try their food for sure. 

Yeah, blind judging just needs to happen. That was so unbelievably awkward and not subjective. 

[schnauzergirl]

Did I hear correctly that when Mika put her dish in front of Brooke, she said "Girl power."?  And I thought it was interesting that Brooke remembered judging Chris from Chopped.  Sounds as if the judges really don't know the competitors beforehand.

So sorry about Martel and Chris.  Not fond of Chris Oh and not quite sure why. Of the four remaining, I'm Team Marcel, but Carlos is on a roll.  Mika did perk up a bit.

 

 

[MerBearHou]

1 hour ago, schnauzergirl said:

Did I hear correctly that when Mika put her dish in front of Brooke, she said "Girl power."? 

You sure did, and it was in that moment I rolled my eyes and said that no way was Mika going to be sent home.  Ugh.  

Edited May 7 by MerBearHou

[schnauzergirl]

Just saw on Michael's fb page that FN has renewed 24 in 24 for a second season.

[paramitch]

Oh, man, sleep-deprived Carlos is on my last nerve. He's even worse than Regular Carlos.

He's just overreacting everything and it's all so fake. He "woos" after every pause by Michael Symon, and spends precious seconds of his cooking time pausing to shriek about how amazing his own food tastes and he absolutely -- cannot -- believe -- it!

When he chills out and is a normal person, he's so much more bearable and here when they were all exhausted, he had a few little moments I found real and kind of likable. But then he would be back in insufferable mode, amped up to 11. 

Meanwhile, I thought the judging here did feel a little weird -- Mika's wings were not a "chicken dinner" to me, and they looked a little undercooked and rubbery to me.

On 5/6/2024 at 8:30 AM, lavenderblue said:

Yeah, I didn't care for how much time Brooke spent in her judging on her familiarity with the chefs. She made a point of asking if she knew Chris D, where he had to remind her of Chopped. She on the other hand had extensive commentary on Carlos based entirely on her comparisons of himself to himself. Would Chris Oh's chicken dish lacking much flavor from the chicken be a bigger issue if she hadn't known who made it? Etc. Just strange vibes.

Yeah, I normally like Brooke -- she always seems very straightforward and laser-focused whether competing or judging, but here her mentioning Carlos's past food and comparing that with his current offerings just felt like she was giving him a bit of an advantage.

I was sorry to see Martel and Chris go -- they're both so visibly talented, and really charming, smart, and funny on camera. I think we'll be seeing a lot of them going forward. I was happy Marcel continued forward. He really seems to have matured -- as a person, but also, as a chef. It was interesting to see him talk about how when he was young, he wanted everything to be complicated, and now he thrives on more simple dishes with depth of flavor. 

I do think it's funny to see everyone so sleep-deprived, and that the show is acknowledging how serious that can be, and does seem to be trying to keep the contestants safe (I can enjoy them all being goofy on lack of sleep as long as nobody hurts themselves!).

 

[mlp]

I looked at the FB post for this show today and there were well over 300 comments.  Almost all of them were positive.  Many people said this is the best show on FN.  I'm not surprised they're planning another season.

[TexasTiffany]

I'm glad this show is getting such a good response. 

I kind of like the clock keeps ticking and it's all filmed at one time. On many other competition shows, the editors play with the editing and time clock too much. For example, the host on other shows will yell out "2 minutes" but a contestant will be starting their sauce or just starting whatever item that we know on this green earth takes longer than "2 minutes". And, they've still got to plate. 

They're down to six chefs now, I think. I'd like for them to invite Chris Oh to move to a closer cooking station. He's got to walk all the way from the back and the judges comment about him being slow and tired. It's funny yet I still feel sorry for Chris.

I'm really liking Marcel and his commentary. He's so mature, and appreciative, and talks about his little boy. I'm rooting for him. I'd like his mom to get the implant to hear. Everyone's got a plan for that money though. Carlos and Mika want a honeymoon for their fiance and spouse, respectively.

Esther made the comment that she wanted to go to Hawaii, too. Michael being funny throws in Esther with the Hawaiian trip. LOL I doubt Mika wants Esther on her honeymoon. 

Edited May 8 by TexasTiffany
you know, some punctuation can make things clearer

[Mondrianyone]

The person I want to win almost never does--except for this time! It's nice to see that people can evolve, and Marcel's transformation from arrogant snot to humble adult really seems genuine. I'm very happy for him. And for his mom. Yay!

[Ancaster]

Whoever it was deserved to go home for undercooked rice a couple of episodes ago.  Nevermind that it's often the kiss of death in these cooking competitions,  there was no excuse.  They chose to wait until 20 minutes before time rather than getting it out of the way.

In other unsurprising news, Carlos has been back to 150% obnoxious dickhead.

(FWIW my local affiliate just aired the episode with Maneet.)

Edited May 13 by Ancaster