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The Judges: Half-Baked Or Fully Risen?

Meredith Quill

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mlp

mlp

I don't know where else to put this................................. I was half watching the commercial tonight for the upcoming season and got just a glimpse of the host.  I didn't look fast enough to see who it was but it wasn't Bobby Deen.  Does anyone know why he isn't hosting this year?  I've become quite fond of him and I'm going to miss him.

  • Love 1
Hotel Diva

Hotel Diva

On 3/29/2017 at 4:39 PM, Snappy said:

Jesse Palmer seems nice enough, but I loved Bobby's personality for this show.

I loved Jesse Palmer. He was a very nice guy, no critiques, but I still wish for them to bring back Bobby. He seems like the better guy. With him, the judges are more nicer, the contestants aren't drooling too much, and the jokes are appropriate than just having to watch Jesse eat. I really hope they bring back Bobby Dean, even though his mother is a retard.

I used to like Nancy Fuller, but now she comes off as a stupid, cute, and annoying judge. I would have two choices: (a) Eliminate Nancy altogether and just have Duff and Lorraine, or (b) bring back Bobby Deen and have him as one of the judges, just in case Mr. Match Dot Com wants to quit.

  • Love 1
Simon47

Simon47

5 hours ago, Deskisamess said:

I don't like Nancy. Her behavior on the current episode was way out of line...she actually pinched Duff's arm, HARD! If he had done that to her it would never be tolerated.

Agree! Valerie Bertinelli knows about the food more, and doesn't do physical things like that while still having a sense of humor!

  • Love 2
grisgris

grisgris

I'd pay good money to see Marcella and Lorraine on the same judging panel. I agree that Marcella would be a good replacement for Nancy. As HyeChaps stated, Marcella is a trained pastry chef. I thought she did a great job with Jason on that baking competition they judged last fall. She was polite, professional, and personable without being overly cutesy or sarcastic. Nor did she demonstrate any "mean girl" behavior (looking at Lorraine, who seemed to have backslid a bit during the latest episode.) While I like Valerie and agree that she is great with the kid bakers, a competition of this level needs to be judged by peers/professionals. With the kids, Valerie seemed to be laser focused on whether or not the cakes were moist or not, while Duff did the heavy lifting by delivering the direct criticism. (They were kind of like good cop/bad cop.) OTOH, Valerie was the one who'd sense when a kid was having a meltdown and go offer support/encouragement  in a firm but empathetic manner -- and without telling them how to get out of the mess they were in.

Nancy has become insufferable. I think maybe Duff was exaggerating a wee bit (just because that's his personality) but Nancy had no business pinching him because he didn't agree with her. Nancy seems to have relegated herself to the role of disagreeing with not only Lorraine but now also Duff, just for the sake of being contrary. She doesn't ever have much constructive criticism to back up her complaints. At least Duff, (and sometimes, Lorraine) will describe what mistakes the baker made and how to prevent them in the future. Nancy just harps about the appearance, whether or not she can taste the flavor, and when warranted, lack of ALCOHOL. (I honestly wondered during "Holiday Baking Championship," if she was downing a few "eggnogs" backstage during the judges' breaks.)

Of course, as always, be careful what you ask for, as we could just as easily see Damiano occupying her seat come December ...

  • Love 6
mlp

mlp

I agree with all of that grisgris even though I don't like Marcela.  She does have the credentials.  

I'd love to know what happened between FN and Ron Ben-Israel.  He knows what he's talking about and I adore him.  Then there's Zac Young.  They use him off and on and he's a pastry chef in a high level position.  He talks too much and can be annoying but he's an expert.  

I wonder what happened to Jason Smith.  He seems to have disappeared.  

Nancy was totally out of line pinching Duff.  If she had pinched Lorraine, people would have been screaming racism.  If Duff had pinched either of the women, people would have screamed sexism.  I don't understand why Nancy was allowed to get away with that and I really don't understand why FN aired it.

  • Love 7
BradyB66

BradyB66

(edited)

I love Duff, I really do.  But I am so over his mugging for the camera every time he takes a bite.  The big mouth and the big eyes rolled to the side were funny the first couple times he did it for the kids, but now it's just stupid.  Stop it already!

Edited by BradyB66
Needed to make my sentence grammatically correct.
  • Love 1
grisgris

grisgris

Sherry Yard would be a great addition to this judging panel. It seems like such a waste of talent to having her judge shows like "Bakers vs. Fakers."  This show is really putting me off of Nancy. She was pretty nasty last week. I get so tired of her smug expression as she cuts into her piece of whatever and announces in her sing-song voice, "This doesn't look (taste) like spring!"

  • Love 8
dewelar

dewelar

(edited)

As I (improperly) mentioned on the season thread, I am over all three judges and their shticks. Sherry Yard was actually one of the judges on the first show of this type that I ever watched (which was apparently the first season of the Halloween version, and whom I confused with Sandra Lee in the aforementioned post) along with Carla Hall and Ron Ben-Israel. That's still the best panel any of these shows have had IMO. Admittedly, I watch a lot less FN than I used to, so I have no idea if there's anyone left that I'd substitute for Duff/Nancy/Lorraine. I think Lorraine might be OK to keep if the other two were ditched, so maybe her, Sherry and Jason Smith would be good for a cycle?

ETA: I couldn't remember who "Marcella" was until I Googled. I actually watched Best Baker in America with Jason, and have absolutely no memory of Ms. Valladolid. I suppose no impression is better than a bad impression, so I'd take her over Nancy.

Edited by dewelar
Found out who Marcela is
  • Love 3
Simon47

Simon47

I haven't seen Sherry Yard judging in a long time. She knows about the food, gives constructive criticism and doesn't keep harping on the negative stuff like Nancy does. 

Replace Lorraine with Valerie Bertinelli. I haven't seen her really around adults on these shows. Gives her a chance to communicate better.

I would do Jason for Duff because I like all of his words for judging and he was really great. Even Susana can join the judging panel because I loved her last fall.

  • Love 2
2727

2727

When Nancy's isn't being passive-aggressive she's being straight up aggressive, like whenever Lorraine says she doesn't taste lemon, for example, Nancy will smugly pronounce that she DOES taste a lot of lemon. Usually with a snotty glance at Lorraine.

Nancy doesn't pull the same shit nearly as much with Duff.

I mean ... taste isn't an absolute. There's room for disagreement! Nancy and Lorraine both get visibly annoyed when someone contradicts their opinions.

  • Love 6
Lura

Lura

I liked Nancy's show mainly because she cooked the kind of food that I like to cook and also because she was instructive.  I hated to see it end.  On this show, though, her role is merely to react to someone else's baking.  I like her fine, but I can see how she and Lorraine could clash.  They both have strong personalities and are bound to disagree sometimes.

Did anyone else here see a segment of the baking show that Lorraine had on British TV?  She made a couple of things for her father.  She wasn't very adept or especially skilled and at one point admitted it.  I wondered at the time how she'd gotten a show of her own.  Now, when I see her judging others, I can't help but think of her show and how unprofessional, giggly and immature she was.  Partly because of that, I tend to take Nancy's and Duff's opinions more readily.

  • Love 3
grisgris

grisgris

(edited)

Honestly, of the three, the only one who I give any credence to is Duff.  He knows what he's talking about and gives constructive criticism. Nancy and Lorraine take a few bites and it's Lorraine's job to decide whether or not she can taste the ingredient du jour. Nancy's role seems to be moistness/dryness (like Valerie in the kids' show) and whether or not the decorations are "Springy" or "Holiday." And of course, absence of booze (when that is an ingredient and seems to thankfully be missing this season.)

I thought that Nancy really dialed it back during the latest episode. I saw that she grabbed Duff's arm while they were laughing but it seemed like a good-humored affectionate gesture as opposed to that cruel pinch she gave him several weeks ago.

I have seen Lorraine's baking show on The Cooking Channel. I enjoyed it because it was new talent and the production reminded me somewhat of Nigella Lawson's old shows. Since Lorraine has crossed the pond, I dislike her more and more. Even when she hosts that awful show, "Bakers vs. Fakers" there is something about her that rings hollow. She may be a fine pastry chef and she is professionally trained. Sadly, she just doesn't have the personality to host an American show or serve as a judge. She comes across as very phony and pretentious and her attempts at "humour" fai

Edited by grisgris
  • Love 7
stormy

stormy

The show needs a revamp.  First, find a host (not the current one) and stick with that person. This revolving door of a host is puzzling. 

I'm not so sure the judges are into this anymore.  It's another day at the office.  The Food Network has a lot of people that serve as judges on it's various competition shows, surely they can find a few that would be appropriate for this show.

And actually, I'd like to see the show become a bit more serious.  Without the lame challenges and the host coming out like a clown to announce what has to be thrown in at the last minute.

  • Love 8
BusyOctober

BusyOctober

I keep watching this show, but I don’t know why.  I like Duff, but haaaaate Nancy, the host, the dumb “twists” and Lorraine in that order.  I wasn’t a fan of Bobby Dean but the guy last year wasn’t too bad.  This guy is annoying, and his corny style reminds me of the same corn ball “jokes” delivered by the  host of AFV (Carlton of Fresh Prince). 

  • Love 2
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