S04.E09: Semi-Final

[jenh526]

Haven't finished watching this yet but Beca is hilarious. I love that her face is all covered in flour, and the reference to Planet Frances that nobody can hitch a ride to was great. She looks like my cousin, who is of French extraction.

[Brattinella]

I don't think Paul had a thing for Ruby or her for him, but I do think she worked that quivering lip and those puppy dog eyes like nobodies business. Case in point, neither judge made any comment on that crap shed she made and gushed over how good her canapé's looked when they were no fancier than Becca's. I personally thought Becca's looked nicer, bland, but at least nice looking. Ruby's were sloppy looking. No one is going to eat her food which apparently so good the judges overlook the fact that they look like shit when they look like shit. But for whatever reason, probably not wanting to look like they are kicking a puppy, they barely criticized Ruby when she actually deserved to be criticized. It's really annoying and makes her my least favorite contestant on this show. I will not be happy if she wins, and this show is supposed to be my TV happy place.

 

You said this WAY better than I could, thanks!

[chessiegal]

I don't think Ruby's dishes are sloppy. I don't find her annoying.  From what I've seen, I think Kimberley should win, but then I haven't been able to taste anything. I trust Paul and Mary to make the right decision, so I'll be happy with whomever wins.

[editorgrrl]

I trust Paul and Mary to make the right decision, so I'll be happy with whomever wins.

And as we saw last US season (UK series 5), the winner is chosen based solely on their performance in the final—so any of the three could win.

[Kohola3]

Holy cow, that brain thing looked dreadful.  And that snotty goo they put on it?  Can't remember who said it was like ghostbusters but that was SO true!  Definitely not on my bucket list of things to try.

[adhoc]

1.  >>I HATE when they leave out specific directions to a recipe.... Why do they insist on leaving out critical parts to the recipe?
 

What I don't get is that with several of these technical challenges, one or two contestants will say "I have no idea what that is." And a few seconds later, those contestants, along with everyone else, are creating a reasonable facsimile of the requested dish.  So are the 1 or 2 contestants who do know what is being requested (Charlotte Royale or whatever) explaining it to everyone else, and we just don't see it?

 

2. Said of Mary as she walks away (or maybe of Paul?):  "Un derrière comme une pêche !"  (A behind like a peach)  :-)

 

3. When I first saw Frances, I thought she was blind. Of course she's not--in fact the detailed artistry she puts into her bakes is impressive--but the way she squints and does not quite seem to focus in her side interviews (or if she does focus it's hard to tell) always makes me think "visually impaired". 

Edited November 4, 2015 by adhoc

[Rinaldo]

What I don't get is that with several of these technical challenges, one or two contestants will say "I have no idea what that is." And a few seconds later, those contestants, along with everyone else, are creating a reasonably facsimile of the requested dish.  So are the 1 or 2 contestants who do know what is being requested (Charlotte Royale or whatever) explaining it to everyone else, and we just don't see it?

I don't think so... They're following the instructions (not everything is left out), and thereby producing something that resembles the desired result.

Edited November 4, 2015 by Rinaldo

[Lura]

Thank you, editorgrrl, for providing the link to Beca's blog.  It looks interesting, and it will be fun to read.  Much as I love a good gin and tonic, though, I think l'll skip making her Gin and Tonic Cake!

[Jesse]

I don't think Paul had a thing for Ruby or her for him, but I do think she worked that quivering lip and those puppy dog eyes like nobodies business. Case in point, neither judge made any comment on that crap shed she made and gushed over how good her canapé's looked when they were no fancier than Becca's. 

 

For what it's worth, this is still a reality TV show, and I'm sure we don't see every comment made on every item (except maybe the technical?). 

 

What I don't get is that with several of these technical challenges, one or two contestants will say "I have no idea what that is." And a few seconds later, those contestants, along with everyone else, are creating a reasonably facsimile of the requested dish.  So are the 1 or 2 contestants who do know what is being requested (Charlotte Royale or whatever) explaining it to everyone else, and we just don't see it?

 

I think it's a little of both -- the directions do tell you what to do, and people do look at each other's work. I mean, even if I've never seen a Charlotte Royale, if the directions tell me to make a jelly roll and slice it and line a bowl with the slices, I can do that.  But we've definitely seen people not knowing how thick how make X or what direction to pipe Y or things like that. 

[Aquarius]

Holy cow, that brain thing looked dreadful.  And that snotty goo they put on it?  Can't remember who said it was like ghostbusters but that was SO true!  Definitely not on my bucket list of things to try.

 

Dreadful is the word.  Even when Paul and Mary sat down and shared the "perfect" one - I almost barfed at the way the slice quivered.  It was unholy.  I couldn't imagine putting my fork anywhere near that thing, let alone letting any of it get near my mouth.  YUCK!

 

I was so sad to see Beca go.  And so mad to see Ruby making all her faces, even after they announced it was Beca leaving.  I don't hate Ruby but boy she rubbed me the wrong way during that elimination and in her comments afterward.  She is starting to seem really disingenuous. 

 

I don't want to be spoiled so I've been avoiding even searching for any of the contestants names, let alone looking at the blogs or whatever.  But once we find out who wins I will do so, and give Ruby's writings a chance.  I want to be wrong about her.

 

I would be happy to see either Kimberley or Frances win.  I have loved Kimberley since week 1.  Frances has really grown on me.  Those cauliflower canapes looked an absolute delight!

[DHDancer]

Dreadful is the word.  Even when Paul and Mary sat down and shared the "perfect" one - I almost barfed at the way the slice quivered.  It was unholy.  I couldn't imagine putting my fork anywhere near that thing, let alone letting any of it get near my mouth.  YUCK!

 

And yet you eat chocolate mousse, banana pudding, trifle,  etc I bet.   I just don't understand why you would think the texture of this is so different.  It's a strawberry mousse sitting in a bowl lined with jam filled cake!!!   Now I agree about the jell they painted on the outside being unappealing but I believe that's there to hold the mould together when it's turned out, not for any other reason, and despite the texture we saw as it was painted on, it would have no taste, and you would be unaware you were eating it.

 

PS Charlotte Royal is part of the family of "Charlottes" -- look up apple charlotte for instance: same idea but made with bread or lady fingers.

Edited November 4, 2015 by DHDancer

[Brattinella]

And yet you eat chocolate mousse, banana pudding, trifle,  etc I bet.   I just don't understand why you would think the texture of this is so different.  It's a strawberry mousse sitting in a bowl lined with jam filled cake!!!   Now I agree about the jell they painted on the outside being unappealing but I believe that's there to hold the mould together when it's turned out, not for any other reason, and despite the texture we saw as it was painted on, it would have no taste, and you would be unaware you were eating it.

 

PS Charlotte Royal is part of the family of "Charlottes" -- look up apple charlotte for instance: same idea but made with bread or lady fingers.

It's the jelly roll swirl feature that creeps it out for me.  It looks like a brain!  I could eat the contents, that mousse looks delicious.

[Pallida]

I don't like strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, etc., so I know I wouldn't like the Charlotte Royale :)  I do think the image of it looking like a brain makes it different from other soft-textured desserts though.

 

I found this image (linking rather than embedded since it's somewhat big) http://i.imgur.com/KdMFWk0.jpg and although it's not a swiss roll (since it's not a roll...), I think it looks more appetizing.

[jellywager]

It's not the flavor I'd be worried about if I were making a Charlotte. (As if! :)) It's the texture. That glaze looked as if it would create an unnecessary and unpleasantly thick layer on top of the soft cake.

Ok, Sue won me over this episode. I actually thought she was funny! I'm glad she called out how ugly the dessert is. When she introduced ti she said that she never heard of it either but when she saw it, it looked like brains. Then her reference to bringing the brains to the judging table cracked me up.  I agree the dessert looked unappetizing, sure we eat other desserts that have a similar texture (but I don't know about that clear gloppy glaze-it made me want to vomit) but I think it is the pattern of the swiss roll and the sharp contrast between the red jam and the light yellow cake that turns my stomach. 

Ruby doesn't bother me at all. Sure she is self depreciating, but in the US version of the show the young contestant was really confident and she was bashed as well. But then I could go into how females are treated in the world verses males but this is really not the place for it.

I find Kimberly so darling. I love her smile , it lights up her face. All her bakes look totally delicious. I really like when she gets a compliment from the judges and how she is proud and smiles. I really favor her for the win. 

Becca is awesome, but as soon as I heard about her banana, banana, banana chip cake (which banana chips are NOT my thing) I knew she was a goner. With all the real banana, I don't understand why she would use a banana extract. I never use an banana extract when making my banana cakes. I thought her stilton macarons looked on the dry side, but I didn't really want to see her go. 

Edited November 5, 2015 by jellywager

[Frost]

Sorry, but that one looks gross to me as well.  Not as bad as the jelly roll version, but still.  Something about the pink and beige color combination mixed with the mounded shape just turns me off.

[DeLurker]

Neither the Charlotte Royale nor the Opera cake appealed to me.  Visually, I was overwhelmed by the Charlotte, but in both cases there is just too much stuff going on for me - a variety of flavors plus textures all going on at once.  For me, they end up "competing" and not complimenting each other.

[Aquarius]

And yet you eat chocolate mousse, banana pudding, trifle,  etc I bet.   I just don't understand why you would think the texture of this is so different.  It's a strawberry mousse sitting in a bowl lined with jam filled cake!!!   Now I agree about the jell they painted on the outside being unappealing but I believe that's there to hold the mould together when it's turned out, not for any other reason, and despite the texture we saw as it was painted on, it would have no taste, and you would be unaware you were eating it.

 

I have never seen mousse, pudding or trifle quiver like that slice of Charlotte Royale did.  If I did, I would not eat them.  I disagree about the gel; I think probably it gives the cake a texture I would not be eager to try.  So I stick to my original opinion.  It looked dreadful.

[adhoc]

Goodness, Monty Python's 1970-something "blancmange" skit just popped into my mind.

[shandy]

 I thought her stilton macarons looked on the dry side, but I didn't really want to see her go. 

 

I do like a hint of blue cheese but melted or crumbled finely in a gourmet salad. I don't think I would be brave enough to take such a large piece with very little else in the way of flavors  w/o sauces/salsa/salad to accompany, although this week was strange - normally I would try anything but this week  they were the only thing I could get behind. 

[TaraS1]

Can we get Ruby on Hell's Kitchen next season?  After all the coddling from Mary and especially Paul, I need to see Gordon Ramsay screaming in her face about raw scallops. 

 

I was sad to see Becca go (not as sad as I was about Christine last week - I was too bummed to even post about it) but I was just so happy it wasn't Kimberley.

[SFoster21]

I don't get the Ruby love from the judges. First week, she got Star Baker when it should have gone to Kimberly, imo. And this week, both her technical and her showstoppers were a mess! But she stays!

[Hyacinth B]

Speaking of Chicago, did anyone else have a problem during the Sunday night airing?  It would sort of stop and pixelate out and the sound would drop for 5-10 seconds and then it would come back. Usually that kind of thing goes away eventually but it was like that for the entire episode. Really annoying because this is a show that I Really Want To Watch. Thank God WTTW has something like 3 other channels on Comcast, so I set it to DVR again on WTTW Prime. No problems.

 

She's majoring in Philosophy. If I were doing that I wouldn't be any fun, either.

 

Yes! The main station WTTW has been doing that often lately. It happened again last night when we were watching Check Please. Hard to know if it's the station itself or Comcast. And it continued last Sunday evening during one of the Masterpiece programs, or maybe both. At least we have the other PBS channels to fall back on - I'm not sure if Comcast is the only provider that carries them all.

 

Is anyone else in the Chicago area who doesn't have Comcast having the same problems?

Edited November 7, 2015 by Hyacinth B

[theatremouse]

It's the jelly roll swirl feature that creeps it out for me.  It looks like a brain!  I could eat the contents, that mousse looks delicious.

The funny thing is, to me, only the poorly done cakes looked like brains. Kimberly's did not. I mean, I still could see how one might describe it that way, especially after seeing the others, but hers had so little of the mousse visible on the exterior, if I hadn't been told "looks like a brain" in advance, and hadn't seen the poorly constructed other examples, I don't think my mind would've gone there at all.

[L2vagaJovi]

I have been lurking for a little while now but I am finally chiming in...Just want to start off by saying I have loved this show for several seasons now and I am impressed with the contestants competitive camaraderie, skills, and overall good natures. While I believe Ruby is a fantastic baker, I have always felt as if the winner should exhibit a measure of confidence in their respective dishes. Ruby obviously has the skills to be on the show and continue through the weekly competitions; she just does not have a winning attitude.  If I were her friend, I would beg off tasting any of her bakes because the pressure to say something nice would be exhausting. It reminds me of the difference between a singer or musician who can sing or play an instrument and someone who has musicality. Not sure if Ruby trusts her own musicality with her bakes which makes me feel as if I would be terribly disappointed if she were to win the competition. 

 

So sorry to see Becca go. She had such confidence in everything she put forth and had such a fantastic attitude. But I have been rooting for Kimberly since day one and I hope she wins the whole thing. 

[Zahdii]

If you're ready for it, the Finale is up:

 

http://video.pbs.org/video/2365541481/

[stillshimpy]

Well, I like Ruby just fine. I don't think she's working anything when it comes to Paul. I think she's a lovely, incredibly bright young woman who lives in a world that tells women they can never be enough of anything (Pretty enough, smart enough, funny enough, thin enough) and that it can actually be worse for a woman who comes so close to have every kind of societal approval thrown her way (she's gorgeous, willowy, bright and skilled) and that the only way to handle that with anything resembling grace at 21 is to be self-deprecating or find herself accused of being too full of herself. Because that's the kind of giddy shit that faces beautiful, bright and talented young women.

She smiles plenty and she didn't make Beca's exit about herself. She said not a word, the camera just happened to focus on her very quietly crying. I don't think it's appropriate to blame Ruby for the focus of the editors.

Anyway, it's reductive to say that Ruby gets by on Paul's appreciation of her looks. Kimberly is every bit as lovely.

I know Paul Hollywood's reputation and the scandal that surrounded him at one point, but I think that makes it even less likely that he'd be favoring a beautiful young woman.

Anyway, that Charlotte was a nightmare with that congealed, glossy goo on it. I will miss Becca, she was so much fun, but her "banana essence" did her in...combing with crushing the banana chips to give some kind of texture (yup, you'd call that gritty).

I like everyone left, but confess I hope Kimberly wins. Nothing against Ruby, at all. I like her, I just think Kimberly has a more developed talent.

Edited November 13, 2015 by stillshimpy

[Aquarius]

It's as equally as reductive to assume Ruby's behavior is due to her being so bright, beautiful, and willowy.  I'm sure the whole thing is more complicated than that.

 

And she wasn't silent about Beca's elimination as it related to her.  She was slient during the elimination - they all are.  But her comments after the elimination were most certainly about herself - she was so sure it was going to be her, etc.  Of course no one knows how much was edited out, but that is what came across.

[snarktini]

Ugh, that Charlotte thing looked awful. I don't like any gelatin textures, though, and jelly rolls are not my thing. There was not a single component of that I wanted to eat. 

I am not inside Ruby's head, but her self-doubt seems entirely genuine to me. She's an extreme perfectionist, so even small criticism hurts and she sees the flaws more than the successes. I agree her distress is hard to watch sometimes, but I sympathize. She's still very young, learning who she is and what she's capable of. She's lovely and I wish her well. 

Not for a moment do I think Paul and Mary are giving her a pass because she's fragile and makes puppy dog eyes. I've thought a lot of her bakes sounded wonderful! In this episode, I heard far more praise for the flavors of her canapes compared to Beca. And I thought they looked better, too. Unfortunately, they didn't praise any of Beca's trio at all and based on what we heard I expected Beca to go, even though I would have liked to see her through. (She's awesome, the one I most want to hang out with.)

I admire contestants with poker faces who can present a falling down mess calmly! It takes a lot of poise to present something you're uncomfortable with and resist the temptation to apologize, cringe, or pre-empt the criticism. It took me too long to learn this skill. (And, frankly, watching Ruby reminds me to keep up the good work.)

Edited July 14, 2016 by snarktini

[cherrypj]

On 11/2/2015 at 12:05 PM, little black cloud said:

She just doesn't seem like any fun. What I love about this show is how likable almost all of the contestants seem to be, and while I'm sure Ruby's perfectly nice, I find it hard to relate to people who don't seem they could ever just cut loose, joke around, and enjoy themselves. She's just intense and exhausting, no matter how good her food might taste and independent of how awful it often looks.

Nailed it, and that's why I was so sorry to see Beca go, too. Still rooting for Frances; her designs are just outstanding and inventive.

I definitely don't think Ruby had a thing, at all, for Paul. When he quizzed her about the saffron, I could swear she sneered at him, "Oh, yes, you'll get a taste of it." (Paraphrasing, of course.)

Edited January 29, 2018 by cherrypj
Added the bit about Ruby & Paul

[Crs97]

Well, I never thought it would happen, but I actually told Mary to shut up when she started quizzing Frances about her canapés and whether they would be style or substance.  That horse is dead, Mary.

I have mentioned before that Ruby has the unfortunate tendency to smirk.  You get her woe is me look followed by a smirk when she gets a compliment, which makes her look manipulative.  Her stuff looked terrible; maybe they should have sent two home.