S22.E16: Finale Part Two: America's Next Top Model Is…

[niklj]

I watched to see if they would do any other hoop-de-doo for the series finale but it kind of reminded me why I stopped watching in the first place (around the mess that was Cycle 17). Too bad they didn't get more advance warning so they could've at least had a farewell cycle like American Idol is getting because this show really did have a large cultural impact. Nyle was a nice winner to go out on, even if his walk looked like a newly-programmed android prototype got sent out too early.

 

Goodbye Tyra, goodbye smizing, goodbye unrealistic expectations, goodbye ANTM, and goodbye to all the fans who've made the journey hilarious.

 

P.S. And goodbye to the word "journey."

[HunterHunted]

"No, Top Model's legacy is the celebration of all things Tyra: a testament to the undeniable power of believing in yourself to such baffling excess that the reality of your abilities becomes inconsequential."

This line just sums it up, doesn't it? Good article!

Before I knew that this was the last season, I kept telling friends that the reason I still watch this show is because Tyra Banks is the real life version of David Brent from the British version of The Office. She is an arrogant, hypocritical, self-absorbed egomanic who delusionally thinks she's Mother Teresa. Half of the time, I'm certain she doesn't get it. The other half, I think she kinda gets it. Either that or Ken Mok gets the camp aspect of Tyra and is a Tyra whisperer.

[EricaShadows]

I stopped watching the cycles in their completeness about midway through this jank journey, somewhere around cycle 10 or 11, but would "check in" every so often and, if a cycle looked promising, would go back and watch what I missed.  I stopped watching entirely around 17 or 18 because there was no point.  It was all about the drama at that point and not about the modeling.  The modeling had stopped being the point in, I think, Cycle 5, but the show had pretenses.  All the pretenses stopped after the "British Invasion" cycle.

 

I remember seeing something from one of the girls in an early cycle (I think it was YaYa who said it) that she'd been told she wouldn't be hired if people had known she had been on ANTM.  I wonder if that's a stigma of ANTM by itself or something about the reality show business in and of itself, that people assume your skills aren't there if you appear on one of these shows.

[Julia]

Whoever chose those outfits was making very sure nobody was going to question the outcome. Mikey's baggy pants shoved into metallic boots did him no service at all, and putting little Lacey in an outfit that chopped her off at the neck, shoulders, thighs and ankles/calves - and then putting her next to Mamé's Elvis collar, wide shoulders, high-cut legs and do me pumps - was just cruel. 

 

No quarrel with the outcome. Mamé is a beautiful woman, but she doesn't apear to have the maturity to handle what she has on her plate now, and I don't think she's regal enough to get away with being unrelatable. 

 

[Stardancer Supreme]

I just finishing what this episode and am still processing my overall opinion.

 

However, I will say for now that I burst out laughing when Devin did his first walk. That alone made this episode worth watching. It was so over-the-top.

 

I know others are tired of him, but he made me laugh in what has (otherwise) been a pretty meh week.

 

Oh yes. We have Devin to thank for "Smellll ma Fieeeass, bitch! Feeeel ma Boom, bitch!"  (That will never not be funny to me ever.)

[NikSac]

Finally got a chance to watch this today.

Congrats to Nyle. I'm proud of him and kind of figured he'd win it. I agree he's probably not the best model out there, but he's very good and I hope he finds success. I got the feeling all of the top 4 could probably have modeling careers of some sort after this, unless the ANTM stigma follows them.

 

Tyra's outfit was hilarious!  I thought she had maybe put on some shapewear and pantyhose and then forgot to put her actual outfit over it.  My husband happened to walk through the room when she was on and said "who are these freaks?"  And then they panned away from Tyra and he said "oh, it's that model show - what the hell is she wearing?"  His theory was she's trying to prove she stll has a good body.

 

Devin annoyed me so much on the runway, I was thinking how irritating he'd be to work with pretty much the whole time. He took some decent pictures, but can you imagine having to deal with that personality, and not knowing what crazy unpredictable thing he might do next?

 

Well it's been fun snarking with everyone here.  See you on the other forums!

[RCharter]

I will say I got a big laugh at that interview bit with Nyle where he's being perfectly serious and we hear his translator and see him signing away like mad, while he's sitting there in this totally ridiculous red harness thing that would embarrass anyone in the universe sitting there in it.  I didn't know whether to laugh, or admire how nonplussed he was.

 

 

 

 

This is like the worlds worst "Who Wore It Better?"

[RCharter]

******************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

I half watched the finale.  But I realized after Mikey left that I think I would have been okay with him winning, but I'm happier that Nyle won

 

Mikey was a very gracious loser and Lacey can take a lesson

 

Also -- that "presentation" was the absolutely most ridiculous thing I've ever seen and it cements the problems I have with Tyra.  I get that she wants to empower people and empower models, but I think its very condescending for her to think that every model has to do everything in their life the way she says.  Not every model has to have some 10-20 year plan that involves them becoming some business mogul.  And really Tyra, you've had a great show, a talk show and some shady ass pyramid schemes you've tried to unload on the world.  You're not a business mogul, you're not Oprah and you never will be.

 

But what in the hell does a model's 10 year business plan have to do with him or her becoming America's Next Top Model.  Last time I checked, no one was asking a model what her 10 year business plan was, or if she was going to open up a chain of fitness clubs or whatever.  These are fairly young people, and by trying to force them to all be these "business people" she forces them to come up with stupid ideas.  Personally, I think Mame might have lost the minute she said something about how she was going to "be a completely different type of model" because you know Tyra will always think that sort of thing is only for her.

[RCharter]

I haven't watched every episode so I don't know the whole story behind Mame and her mother, but her situation is very similar to another pageant queen, Kenya Moore (Miss USA 1993, RHOA) .  She was raised by her aunt because her mom basically didn't want her (and still doesn't).  

I feel like Kenya is worse because in Mame's case I get the idea that they did what they did so that she wasn't in danger, and to afford her more opportunities.  So, it was a calculated plan by two parents who cared for her and loved her enough to try to do the best by her.  Kenya's mother never even wanted to know her and won't acknowledge her presence.   It has to be different knowing that you have two parents who loved you enough to want better for you and some deadbeat lady who pretends you don't even exist.

 

I don't think Mame's case is easy, I just think it has to be different.

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it, here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

 

America's Next Top Model Ends With A Whimper And A Very Bangable Winner
This might not have been Tyra's finest cycle, but nothing can erase her crazy legacy. Alex Zeidel looks back on the season, and the series as a whole.

[Kromm]

P.S. And goodbye to the word "journey."

We'd have to murder The Biggest Loser franchise to get that wish (and heck, doesn't The Bachelor use it too?)

[Mattipoo]

Is Zardoz Sean Connery? Yikes! Nyle definitely wore it better.

Those final runway costumes (if you can even call them that) were the worst and most hideous clothes I have ever seen in my life. Looks like one of those challenges on "Project Runway" when the contestants make a costume from stuff they get at a pet store. Definitely one of the worst final runway shows ever, right up there with the ghost brides cycle.

Nyle's interpreter deserves an award for signing all of the crazy Tyra-isms with such enthusiasm and sexy hip movements during the panel. He was booching and tooching for his life!

[RCharter]

Is Zardoz Sean Connery? Yikes! Nyle definitely wore it better.

Those final runway costumes (if you can even call them that) were the worst and most hideous clothes I have ever seen in my life. Looks like one of those challenges on "Project Runway" when the contestants make a costume from stuff they get at a pet store. Definitely one of the worst final runway shows ever, right up there with the ghost brides cycle.

Nyle's interpreter deserves an award for signing all of the crazy Tyra-isms with such enthusiasm and sexy hip movements during the panel. He was booching and tooching for his life!

Those clothes were really the absolute worst.  They all looked like the candles you put on someone's birthday cupcake.  I was half watching, but even from across the kitchen looking at my laptop I could see the clothes were hideous.  Its all so very "Emperors New Clothes,"  it looks weird and so someone figures it must be genius.  I think I might have liked Mame's last outfit, but maybe it was just the least awful.

[vavera4ka]

yay!

I guess sometimes nice guys DO finish first :)

 

btw when the four of them were standing before (during) presentations, from certain angles Nyle with his darker skin next to Mikey, and those leather pants and that pony tail looked like Khal Drogo's brother lol

[NeenerNeener]

Hmm. Looking at that picture of the 4 of them during the elimination segment....Nyle is taller than Mikey, but their bios both list them as 6' 2". Their shoes don't appear to make much difference, so they might be rounding up or down to fit the "maximum average" height of a male model. Poor Will, from last season. 6' 6" really was outside the average; maybe they picked him to be an obvious early boot but he was just too good to cut until the end.

 

And now I realize that it's kind of sad that I know this shit. I'm another commenter who came over from TWoP and has been watching this show since Season 1. I gave up on Survivor and Amazing Race long ago, but I just couldn't seem to quit Tyra. End of an era.

Edited December 6, 2015 by NeenerNeener

[Kromm]

Is Zardoz Sean Connery? Yikes! Nyle definitely wore it better.

Zardoz is a giant floating stone head.  Sean Connery er... encounters him. It. Whatever. While wearing the world's weirdest diaper/S&M gear combo.

 

At least Nyle's lucked out that the version they stuffed him in didn't have that diaper and thigh-high kinky boots like Connery had to wear.

[dolphincorn]

 

I gave up on Survivor and Amazing Race long ago, but I just couldn't seem to quit Tyra. End of an era.

 

Survivor is better than ever lately, and RuPaul's Drag Race has managed to fill the void that this show left in my life when it discovered "social media."

[NYGirl]

I am so happy for Nyle!  He's so good looking and nice.

 

I fast forwarded through most of the show..way too much filler.

 

Why were Tyra and Kelly acting all like fangirls screaming and stuff while the runway was going on?  I'm perplexed.

[PepperMonkey]

I stopped watching this "cycle" halfway though, but then I tend to do that once my Tyra fatigue kicks in.

 

I'm very glad Nyle won and Lacey stopped being pretty about the time I stopped watching, I guess.

 

I will miss these posts and will miss the absurdity of knowing ANTM was still on the air, in spite of how dreadfully horrible/wonderful it had become.

[Starsandbucks]

Never posted on the ANTM forums here but did way, way, way back on the first few Cycles on TWOP and have seen every single episode, for better or worse. I'm happy Nyle won. I think he looks like a beautiful Tom Ford or Hugo Boss model. I hope he does well. Go Nyle!!!

[MMLEsq]

Survivor is better than ever lately, and RuPaul's Drag Race has managed to fill the void that this show left in my life when it discovered "social media."

Off-topic, but.....Survivor really has been very good the last few seasons.  I'm loving the current season.

 

Someone mentioned it above, but I also wonder how this season of ANTM would have been different if they had known before it started that it was the last season.  I wonder if they'll ever do a "where are they now?" or some other recap of the show.  I can't picture Tyra giving up the opportunity to celebrate the 22 different cycles...all the "firsts" (first plus-size winner, first male winner, first transgender contestant, etc.).  Wouldn't it have been great if the last season could have gone back to some of the earlier judges, etc. -- Mr. Jay, Nile, Janice...etc. 

[Pepper Mostly]

I love you for this reference!!  I had to go look him up again.....please see:  http://shanekbass.weebly.com/

 

 

Bless you--those were the days! to this day I say "he's huge in Belgium". I may be the only one who gets it, but it still gives me a laugh! 

[Surrealist]

I just realized that I'm going to miss "And your photographer for this shoot will be Erik Asla."

[RCharter]

I just realized that I'm going to miss "And your photographer for this shoot will be Erik Asla."

I'm going to miss judges introductions.  Just in case I forgot since last week that Kelly Cutrone is a "PR maven" and that Miss Jay is "a runway diva extraordinaire"

[40Love]

I haven't watched every episode so I don't know the whole story behind Mame and her mother, but her situation is very similar to another pageant queen, Kenya Moore (Miss USA 1993, RHOA) .  She was raised by her aunt because her mom basically didn't want her (and still doesn't).  Also, I dated a guy who was raised by his aunt because his mom was a drug addict and he didn't find out that the person he thought was his mom was really his aunt until he was in his teens.  Those situations really did a number on these people.  Even though the aunts stepped up to the plate and did everything to give them love and support, they still seem to be crippled emotionally because they didn't get what they felt they needed from their bio mothers.  Maybe it's the same with Mame.  They seem to harbor some deep seated pain and resentment that makes them seem cold hearted and emotionally challenged.  Having both my loving parents raise me, I can only imagine how it feels to not get the love you need from the people who gave you life.

 

Yes, it's all relative. No one can really judge another person's threshold for pain. I think it's unfair to Mame to say "Just get over it. Others have had it worse". She only knows what she feels. Mame obviously has some deep unresolved issues with her parents.. that she seriously needs to work out with them. I think she'll be just fine in the modeling business, especially Runway work. Good luck to her on that front... and Congrats to Nyle!

 

I also hope she can work it out with Justin... but, I have my doubts about that one. Hard to be with someone you can't trust... especially someone with who makes such bad decisions. Even if her "liaison" with Mikey minor 1st base flirtations. It was just so "yucky". You traded in a snuggle with a dog who's chased after every woman in the house, for the possibility of a long-lasting meaningful relationship with a loyal, good and fine as hell guy. Silly, silly girl!

[proserpina65]

It's sad to see this show come to an end. It reminds of this one time when I was seventeen and modeling in Paris . . .

I was reminded of the time that other bitch stole my alarm clock so I couldn't get up in time to watch ANTM.

I will miss Miss Jay with his funky weirdness but I have a feeling he'll pop up here and there.

 

I'll always have the memory of him teaching Regis Philbin to walk a runway on Regis and Kelly.  Yes, he was the last link to professional modeling and I will miss him.

[NutMeg]

this finale was so weird - Mame kills it on the runway - her real forte as she is indeed plastic in her pictures. All the judges are ecstatic about Mame, which makes sense, as Nyle was not good - too fast, too happy to show his back to the audience, etc. If the judging criteria was runway, Mame would have won big time.

 

Then we go back to previous pics - hi again, Erik Alda! - and yes, Mame looks static, but so does Nyle!!! Always giving us the same facial expressions in each and every picture. I

 

I'm happy for him and wish him the best, but to me he does not represent deaf people, but GOOD-LOOKING deaf people, and same as Lacey doesn't represent "formerly 17 lb. heavier women", he does not represent "the deaf community", because his looks gave him advantages that those who don't look so hot will never have. I wouldn't be so harsh on him if he hadn't try to beat it into me that deaf people can do it - which I had never doubted! so it felt weird that he kept hammering this all along - hey budddy I just  wanted to know if you could model. And I still think you were not the best of the season, but you were a first for Tyra and your fans are real and have been there from week 1, so more power to you!  

 

I was half-spoiled, because I knew his app is out there - a teenage girl I know of is learning to sign with Nyle's app !

 

(Edited because deaf =/= dead)

Edited December 9, 2015 by NutMeg

[Surrealist]

this finale was so weird - Mame kills it on the runway - her real forte as she is indeed plastic inher pictures. All the judges are ecstatic about Mame, which makes sense, as Nyle was not good - too fast, too happy to show his back to the audience, etc. If the judging criteria was runway, Mame was winning big time.

 

I like Nyle. I'm happy that he won. I think he's incredibly handsome, but I agree with you that Mame's runway and portfolio were better than his.

[SuburbanHangSuite]

I'm happy for Nyle but I thought Mame owned that final show. Miss J trying to sabotage Nyle by telling him to speed it up. His first pass looked crazy.

Did y'all see Tyra and Kelly fan out when fine-ass Justin hit them with that wink? I don't blame them...I would've swooned too.

[adhoc]

Don't you guys think that Zappos had a say in which contestants were the final 2 and maybe even which one was the winner?

 

In a previous thread, I stated that after looking at the Zappos couture site, Mame looked to me most like a fit for the models already shown there (well, except that she's black, and every model on the main site appeared to me to be whiter than white, but in that case, a model of color would have been a plus IMHO). I also thought that if Mame did not win, then Nyle might, because with his looks, he could "sell" the expensive accessories that abound on the site. 

 

I could be totally wrong, but I cannot help thinking that Zappos had a lot of input into who the 2 finalists were, at the very least.

[RCharter]

Don't you guys think that Zappos had a say in which contestants were the final 2 and maybe even which one was the winner?

 

In a previous thread, I stated that after looking at the Zappos couture site, Mame looked to me most like a fit for the models already shown there (well, except that she's black, and every model on the main site appeared to me to be whiter than white, but in that case, a model of color would have been a plus IMHO). I also thought that if Mame did not win, then Nyle might, because with his looks, he could "sell" the expensive accessories that abound on the site. 

 

I could be totally wrong, but I cannot help thinking that Zappos had a lot of input into who the 2 finalists were, at the very least.

I think Zappos had to have a say in the winner.  Whoever it is is going to be representing the Zappos brand on the website.  They are the main sponsor and while I'm sure Tyra is trustworthy in all things I'm sure Zappos didn't feel like putting it all in Tyra's hands.  

 

This though, is one of the times where I think the likability of the model does matter, because people are going to be driven from the show to the Zappos site.  So Zappos wouldn't want to chose an unpopular model.  And honestly, since Zappos overall does commercial stuff, I can see where Nyle would be their best choice.

[OnceSane]

I expect Zappos had a say in who won as I believe Cover Girl did back in the day as well.

[NorthstarATL]

How could Nylon Mag pass up the opportunity to feature "Nyle", whose name is made for them? Congrats to him on being America's Last Top Model, though. I can hear Mame berating her impassive mother all the way home after her loss. I'll miss this crazy show, even though it usually made me cringe.

[proserpina65]

I like Nyle. I'm happy that he won. I think he's incredibly handsome, but I agree with you that Mame's runway and portfolio were better than his.

Her runway was indeed better.  Her portfolio was worse than Nyle's; she looked dead in every single shot to me.

[needschocolate]

First, Under the Dome is cancelled and, now, we have come to the end of ANTM...None of the other forums I read have the humor and snark of those two.  I will miss reading all the comments.

 

I would have loved it if one of the 10-year business plans would have been "After making a name for myself in the modeling world, I am going to create a TV show for aspiring models and teach them all my secrets."  I can see Tyra eliminating them immediately, but I can also see her giving them the win because they want to follow in her footsteps.

 

Wow. I thought they would give it to Mame after her runway performance. Nyle was a bit stiff but he'll get the hang of it. Glad he won. His love for his mom is so sweet. Mame's reaction to losing was bizarre. She wanted to be upset for the cameras but Nyle's happiness was too infectious. Then she tried to do a dramatic emotional breakdown with her mom but had to hide her face because she isn't a good actress. This ep had way too much filler (how many times do we need to rehash each model's backstory?) and the powerpoint presentation challenge was just silly. I skipped past most of it. Anyway, yay for Nyle!

 

And Mame's mom is an even worse actress, she didn't even try to look like she cared that her daughter was "heartbroken" (or maybe her mom is as bad as Mame was implying).

 

Wow, did I just hear Mame diss her parents in her presentation, talking about the love and support she DIDN'T get as a child? With her mom standing right there?

I think she may have handed Nyle the win.

 

And then Mame says that she is so happy that her mom is there and she can share this moment with her, or something like that.  

 

I still don't understand why the aunt who raised her wasn't the family member that came for the photoshoot and finale (yeah, I do understand ...Drahma, darling)

 

It's sad to see this show come to an end. It reminds of this one time when I was seventeen and modeling in Paris . . .

 

Did you have to share an apartment with 8 other girls and sleep on the floor?

[Surrealist]

Her runway was indeed better.  Her portfolio was worse than Nyle's; she looked dead in every single shot to me.

 

I think that Nyle's attractive, but I also thought he gave the same expression in several shots. I guess it's a toss up for me on whose portfolio was worse, but I'm glad that Nyle won.

Edited December 8, 2015 by Surrealist

[Former Nun]

'm happy for him and wish him the best, but to me he does not represent dead people,

 

 

Sadly, I loved this line.

[still hoping]

Too drawn out.....Nyle is a nice finish to the show...but to me he looks like he could get a spot as one of the muscle guys on Ru Paul's Drag Race...which IMHO he would enjoy more than cuddling Lacey. 

 

I still think Mikey and Mame were the best fashion models esp Mikey but all in all the top 4 were better than many other years models - even if the settings and photogs etc were so cheap this year. I admit I will miss this show but it was moved around and dragged out, so I would forget it . Sigh

[PamelaMaeSnap]

"Kinda like in the old TWOP fav "Showbiz Moms and Dads" where Shane Klingensmith's Mom was blabbering on and on how Shane was playing at the "Raymond James Stadium Where the Bucaneers Play" and he was really singing on a flatbed truck parked outside in the lot."

BEST. THREAD. EVER. (Should all of us out ourselves with our old TWOP names, asked Jazzie Cazzie?) And yes, I DO still have my "Shane Klingensmith: Big In Belgium" T-shirt.

Poor Glark with the crying Debbie Tye phone call (at least I always assumed it was her).

And hey y'all ... POT LEDOM!!!!!!!!

[Kiwi123]

Mame's mother looked like she'd been given a glass of sherry a few days earlier and had then woken up on the set, with no clear idea of what was actually going on. She looked utterly perplexed 95% of the time. <br /><br />I'm happy that Nyle the hottie won, but I also liked Mame and didn't think she was was bitchy as many others seemed to believe: I thought she was very droll, and a smart woman.

[Jobiska]

 

but I also liked Mame and didn't think she was was bitchy as many others seemed to believe: I thought she was very droll, and a smart woman.

 

 

Yeah, for me most of their foibles and missteps can be explained away by "they're all just so young!"  Even Mikey's--and I think even the coldness when he drops people with no warning (Courtney, Devin) that I've criticized before is a product of his past.  

At any rate, I still don't really know what makes a good model because I don't really follow fashion (I know more designers than Courtney though) and I certainly wasn't going to learn what makes a good model even from watching almost every episode of this show!  But I think Nyle will do well, and more importantly IMHO, he's someone who has his head on straight and won't be messed up by winning!

[RCharter]

Yeah, for me most of their foibles and missteps can be explained away by "they're all just so young!"  Even Mikey's--and I think even the coldness when he drops people with no warning (Courtney, Devin) that I've criticized before is a product of his past.  

At any rate, I still don't really know what makes a good model because I don't really follow fashion (I know more designers than Courtney though) and I certainly wasn't going to learn what makes a good model even from watching almost every episode of this show!  But I think Nyle will do well, and more importantly IMHO, he's someone who has his head on straight and won't be messed up by winning!

I think Mikey is skeevy and gross.  However, I am moved by his story, and it somewhat explains why he would have to develop a hard exterior and an ability to drop people quick.  If everyone around you is just fighting to survive, you may learn to just look out for number one.  And he was such a gracious loser, and he could have been such a dick.  I think the way he handled his loss made me soften even more towards him.  Because I know that after this, Lacey will go home to a relatively normal family, and eat her tilapia and apples.  Mame will go back to pageants (if she'd like) and her aunt and uncle (if they will have her after this).  Mikey will just go back to being broke if he can't get some work.  So, I really hope he does.  He just needs to remember to bathe, wash his hair, properly condition and flat iron it.  And try not to talk so much.

[PamelaMaeSnap]

I'm not sure how many more pageants Mame can go back to ("fame" from ANTM notwithstanding) ... after finishing Top 5 at Miss USA, she's out of the Trump-i-verse now (he still owns that line, right?), my assumption being that if it's anything like the other big pageants, once she's won her State title (no less made it to Top 5 in Miss USA) then she's no longer eligible to return.

 

I guess there's Miss World, but that's kind of a cheap knockoff imitation. 

 

And I can't imagine her going far in Miss America ... aside from not knowing if she has any talent, this doesn't seem like the kind of PR they'd want (hey, our Miss Maryland is an also ran from Miss USA and ANTM). 

 

I think her pageant career is over BUT I think she's gorgeous and the notoriety of ANTM and being the last woman standing on the last episode could help her pro career now. I hope so, anyway. I could totally see her having that rare post-ANTM commercial modeling career. She photographs like a dream and has a great look. She was definitely my favorite girl.

[RCharter]

I'm not sure how many more pageants Mame can go back to ("fame" from ANTM notwithstanding) ... after finishing Top 5 at Miss USA, she's out of the Trump-i-verse now (he still owns that line, right?), my assumption being that if it's anything like the other big pageants, once she's won her State title (no less made it to Top 5 in Miss USA) then she's no longer eligible to return.

 

I guess there's Miss World, but that's kind of a cheap knockoff imitation. 

 

And I can't imagine her going far in Miss America ... aside from not knowing if she has any talent, this doesn't seem like the kind of PR they'd want (hey, our Miss Maryland is an also ran from Miss USA and ANTM). 

 

I think her pageant career is over BUT I think she's gorgeous and the notoriety of ANTM and being the last woman standing on the last episode could help her pro career now. I hope so, anyway. I could totally see her having that rare post-ANTM commercial modeling career. She photographs like a dream and has a great look. She was definitely my favorite girl.

listen, I'm no Tyra-mogul, and I didn't attend Harvard Extension's 9 week course on Business n' Stuff but I feel like even if Mame couldn't compete, she could probably get into some other business that revolves around pageants.  

 

I've seen an episode of toddlers and tiaras and it seems to be a pretty lucrative business.  But of course, I could see that being a fallback position if modelling fails.  I don't think Mikey has any fallback position, I don't know if he finished high school or if he has any other marketable skills.  He could always sell that hair, especially since it flat irons like a dream....but still

 

I do think Mame has the catwalk body, as does Hadassah (who I'll always have a little place in my heart for since I tend to support the unlikable underdog)

[PamelaMaeSnap]

I'm not a pageant expert (and if I was one I probably wouldn't admit it!) but I did stay at a Holiday Inn where most of the pageants on Toddlers and Tiaras (love) were held ... and have watched way too many reality TV shows based on pageantry ... and my daughter was friends with a girl who was a perennial first-runner up in the local teen pageant scene ...

 

That is to say, I'd be stunned if Mame wanted anything to do with this scene unless she was actually competing. She is gorgeous and competitive and has so many other options. Being involved with a pageant on the "other" side would be such a comedown for her.

 

It seems like most of the people we see running these pageants, especially at local levels, are either overaged wanna-bes who could never have been contenders or long-ago winners of Miss Petal on the Sunflower Honey Bee Queen of Lower Magnolia County (hey, maybe we could get Hadassah to run a pageant?) or skeevys guy who runs the local used car lot (or was that "Smile"?)

 

(I really wish they'd run a marathon of Toddlers and Tiaras and/or Showbiz Moms and Dads.)

[proserpina65]

 

Mikey will just go back to being broke if he can't get some work.

 

Mikey has worked as a model and was signed to NEXT Miami.  So he's not without prospects in the modeling world.  Plus, there are other careers, even without a college education.

[RCharter]

Mikey has worked as a model and was signed to NEXT Miami.  So he's not without prospects in the modeling world.  Plus, there are other careers, even without a college education.

In this day and age, I can't imagine a job that pays reasonably well without any education further than high school.  Even Starbucks barristas are required to have a bachelors degree (unless they recently relaxed that) and I remember a story the other day on NPR or some radio station that a particular McDonalds was also requiring a college degree.  

 

I'm sure you can get a minimum wage job with just a high school diploma, but without any education beyond that (and I'm including college, and technical schools....which are both getting more costly) I can't imagine.  And minimum wage would keep him pretty broke.

 

So, I truly hope modelling works out for him.

[Mattipoo]

I read somewhere that Mikey is a manager of a bowling alley in his hometown. Maybe he can have a bowling alley business after his modeling career ends?

[NeenerNeener]

Remember, winning ANTM only guarantees the winner the $100,000 (probably 55-60k after taxes). A successful modeling career....not so much. So Lacey, Mikey and Mame are no worse off than before the show started, except that they don't have the stigma of the ANTM winner title. Being the winner has actually been detrimental to a model's career in most cases. So, don't worry about Mikey/Mame/Lacey, be happy for them!

Edited December 11, 2015 by NeenerNeener

[RCharter]

I read somewhere that Mikey is a manager of a bowling alley in his hometown. Maybe he can have a bowling alley business after his modeling career ends?

LOL.  Your comment is so much funnier than you could possibly know, because managing a bowling alley seems very Mikey to me.  Poor kid, I certainly hope modelling works for him, it looks like it is, so good for him.