S07.E04: The Devil's in the Details

[ElectricBoogaloo]

In the flash challenge, the artists face the most extreme test of detail ever attempted. A veteran artist returns to the Competition sparking old rivalries. The battle continues for 100K and the title of Ink Master.

[azshadowwalker]

Fuckwad wasn't even in the bottom with that crappy tattoo completely lacking in detail? First, they keep him after the atrocity he created in the first episode. Now, they put both Anthony and Meagan in the bottom four instead of him?! I am at the point where I might stop watching until he is gone. I end up muting most of the show, anyway. If this is what the idiots at Spike think makes good TV, it might be time to find something else to watch on Tuesday nights.

[Rancide]

Ridiculous elimination panel.  They had to call four people down just because, as per usual, they judges completely disregard the opinions of the pointless human canvas jury and because asshat Nunez had already announced he was going to pull Megan Jean's pigtails.  What a waste.  I don't disagree about Picasso and Alex, though I would have sent Alex home because technical flaws and all, I'd rather be tattooed by Picasso than by the guy whose designs are dumb.  But one or more of St. Marq, Matti, or even possibly Sausage, should have been down there.  But once again the vets just seem to be skating on through.

 

This season is terrible.  I feel bad for real talent like Anthony, Megan Jean, and Christian who, in any other season, would be already be laser-focused on aiming for the finals but in this season keep having to fight week after week just to remain in the already small and continually shrinking newbie pool while the vets come in and hog up all of the "safe" spots for no particular reason that I can see other than that they are the vets.  These poor newbies may not even make it halfway through this season when in any other season they would have been among the final 3-4.  

 

If every one of the vets was really just so clearly superior to any one of the newbies, I would still think the format was a bad idea and reflected poor planning, but at least it would be fair within the show's own (stupid) rules.  But I don't think that's the case.  The talented newbies really do just seem to be getting randomly shit on because the judges have a hard-on for their faves from prior seasons regardless of whether those faves are actually delivering.

[qtpye]

This season is terrible.  I feel bad for real talent like Anthony, Megan Jean, and Christian who, in any other season, would be already be laser-focused on aiming for the finals but in this season keep having to fight week after week just to remain in the already small and continually shrinking newbie pool while the vets come in and hog up all of the "safe" spots for no particular reason that I can see other than that they are the vets.  These poor newbies may not even make it halfway through this season when in any other season they would have been among the final 3-4.

 

 

I agree.  Meghan, Christian, and Anthony are some of the best the show has ever had.  Also, Picasso and Alex are not anywhere near as bad as the cannon fodder that usually goes home at this point in the season.

 

I apologize, because I am going to stand on my shallow box for a second.  Anthony is hot.  I also love the fact the fact that  he seems like a pretty humble and cool guy.  I was finding Alex kinda hot too, until he started acting jerky (I am scratching my head on that one...dude is so not my type).

 

Sorry about that..shallow part is over.

 

I was sad to see Picasso, but guy looked like he was on the edge of a nervous breakdown.  His style was quite unique.

 

So, Christian is Sausage's employee and Meghan is dating Cleen in real life?  What next...we find out that Alex is St. Marq's long lost son?  Maybe that is going to be the real twist...all the newbies and the veterans are connected in some way.

 

The veterans are getting a free pass over some much more deserving newbies.  This season is going to be even more frustrating then usual, because so far many of the old timers are under performing.

 

I think if you mess up your own challenge that should be an automatic pass to get sent home.  If you are setting up the parameters of the challenge then the skull pick should not matter, because you should be a master that particular specialty (looking at you St. Marq).

[psychoticstate]

How in all that is golden did St. Marq not get put in the bottom three for that horrific tattoo?  It was far worse than Meghan's - - personally I didn't find hers all that bad, probably middle of the pack.  But Nunez got his boxers twisted over it so she's got to be the Kyle Dunbar of this episode.

 

I felt bad for Picasso but I think he's too sensitive for this competition.

 

Thank God Anthony was saved.  The human canvas jury are a bunch of dipshits because I found his tattoo to be lovely and exactly what the canvas wanted.  He was correct with regard to her skin tone and also cluttering up the tattoo with too much detail.  He is my favorite newbie - - very calm, soft spoken and his work speaks for itself.  Sausage is right to fear him.  If he had gotten sent home last night, Cleen and I would not be able to friends anymore.

 

So Cleen and Meghan are a thing?  Good for them, I guess although I don't watch Ink Master for relationship stuff.  I watch to see good tattoos that I'm too afraid to get in real life.

[zxy556575]

I thought Meghan's tattoo was nice and didn't understand the judge's criticism, even with multiple closeups. It had nice depth and shading overall and especially on the filigree. I guess the image itself wasn't to their liking, but the client wanted it, so screw that.

[Jenkins]

Ridiculous elimination panel.  They had to call four people down just because, as per usual, they judges completely disregard the opinions of the pointless human canvas jury and because asshat Nunez had already announced he was going to pull Megan Jean's pigtails. 

 

Completely agree. This is EXACTLY why there were four up for elimination. Because Nunez opened his mouth during critique and said Megan was going to be down there.

 

Sorry, no way in HELL did she deserve to be up for elimination. Especially over St Douche. His tattoo was actually horrible in my opinion. NO detail and the roots looked like cracks to me. But they are apparently going to keep him around for scenes like last night where he and the guy with glasses act like they are going to fight.

 

And as much as I hate to admit it, Cleens tattoo was pretty damn sick. He deserved the win.

 

What I found hilarious was the vets acting like they needed to step up and do something! I forgot the wording they used, but it was along the lines of "we need to start getting rid of them!". Ummmm, nothing BUT newbies have went home so far...

 

Not sure what the producers were looking to do this season, but surely this wasn't it...right?

 

I don't use social media, but I hope they are getting ripped apart for this horrible format and their obvious bias in judging.

[qtpye]

St. Marq's tattoo was awful.  There is no way that read "Venetian Mask".  I guess at this point St. Marq could tattoo a literal turd for the rest of the challenges since they are going to let him stay, no matter what he does.

[Charlesman]

As always, when they call down 4 people for elimination, and when they reveal that you're the person the Human Canvas jury picked, then breathe a huge sigh of relief: you're safe. The judges have their 3 and the jury is meaningless. You can't go home if you're the human canvas pick in a group of 4.

[Muffyn]

Picasso is the wrong kind of artist for this competition.  And I do mean he is an artist.  He has a unique vision.  I would go to him for a tattoo IRL.

 

Meghan did not belong in the bottom for that tattoo.  She was middle of the pack.  St. Marq’s tattoo was poorly designed and poorly executed.  I’d ask who he has naked pictures of but I don’t think the judges would care.  So who does he have a picture of dressed as a baby sucking on a bottle while covered in his own feces?  Otherwise, I got nothing here.  He makes the show difficult to watch and his work is mediocre. 

 

I was glad that they immediately told Anthony they didn’t think he belonged in the bottom.  I am liking his work and his attitude.  Can we get more people like him? 

 

I appreciated that, in the first competition, Christian gave the canvas a tattoo he really wanted rather than just the fingerprint.  He knew he most likely wouldn’t win because of problems with the fingerprint.  It still was an aesthetically pleasing tattoo that the canvas seemed to really like.  It is so rare on this show that people seem to think about what they are leaving on someone’s body.  While I know it is what people agreed to, I just can’t see having a big fingerprint tattooed on my body.  YMMV

 

I remember liking Cleen during his first season.  Did he change or was I nuts?  He is really playing up the reality TV persona to the point that I just don’t want to hear his squeaky voice.

[azshadowwalker]

I remember liking Cleen during his first season.  Did he change or was I nuts?  He is really playing up the reality TV persona to the point that I just don’t want to hear his squeaky voice.

 

I remember thinking he was cool on his season, and liking him on the episode of Redemption (?) he did. Original Flavor IM is going in the shitter with their focus on "drama" and "conflict".

Edited March 23, 2016 by azshadowwalker

[candall]

Agree with the consensus--format is ill-conceived and extremely frustrating. 

 

I chuckled at "pulling Meghan Jean's pigtails," but the whole premature evaluation thing left a sour taste.  I would have gained some respect for him if he'd said he'd reconsidered, instead of sticking with being right, since he wasn't.

 

My favorite scene in each season is when one of the drowners says:  Okay, NOW it's time to reveal my talent, pull out the stops and start running the house.

Edited March 23, 2016 by candall

[leighdear]

I'm honestly just sticking around for Sarah.  I mute about 75% of the show, so that keeps my blood pressure down a bit. 

 

I thought Kleen's masque was gorgeous. I still think he's an asshat, with a ridiculous fake name, but he can SOMETIMES do nice art.  And I agree that this show is absolutely not right for Picasso.  Too much pressure.  

[Inkmaster0345]

Knew Picasso was going home the second that he had his ridiculous little speech with Alex. Picasso probably has some of the best artistic vision of anyone ever to compete on the show, unfortunately it just doesn't transfer for the poor guy. I have no doubt he'll be a successful artist in some way shape or form during his time, but I'm not sure it'll be through tattoos. 

 

I'll echo what everyone else has said about the format of the show. The veterans are at a complete advantage, not only because they get to pick the challenge, not only because some of them are entering 1/3 or halfway into the competition, but because the judges have labeled them as "untouchable" before their needle even hits skin. In a normal season, when a good artist that has been at the top consistently occasionally drops the ball, they are still safe because the judges say something along the lines of "we know what you're capable of, this just wasn't your day, so you're in the bottom" but there's never really a threat that they'll go home, and the audience knows it. The problem with this season is that all of the veterans are being given the benefit of the doubt for their past work, which is obviously unfair because the newbies don't have that to fall back on. If a newbie screws up, it's because they aren't very good. If a veteran screws up, it's just a forgivable slap on the back.  

 

Not a huge fan of Matti. Thought he was overrated in season 4 and even though he had some wins, I believe Halo should've made the finale instead. Not sure how far he'll go, but I wouldn't be surprised if he's one of the first veterans to bite the dust. 

 

Meghan, Christian, and Anthony are clearly the only newbies that will be able to stick around with the veterans for the long haul. All things considered, Alex isn't a bad tattoo artist and would probably make it to 7-8th place in a normal season, but given the circumstances of this season I just don't think he's long for this world. I'll make a bold prediction and guess that next episode will be the first in which a veteran goes home (most likely SM), after that it will be Alex, and then that's when the real fun begins. Sarah, Matti, Sausage, Jime, James, and Cleen are all finalists (no disrespect to Jesse who does amazing work as well), and Anthony, Christian and Meghan are all very skilled. It's going to be an absolute dogfight and there's going to be some very, very good artists going home with a 6th or 7th place medal  

[Merneith]

For all the talk about Picasso's artistry, I was never as impressed with anything he drew as I am compared to Meghan Jean's work. I thought his mask was a bra for the longest time, with the weird shading of the eyes sockets and no real nose to speak of. I won't miss him, although I would have sent that stupid redwood tree home first.

[Kromm]

The Womens Hater Judges strike again. While I can understand the objection to that thing on the top of her mask, they acted like her tattoo overall was about ten times worse than it was. 

[SunshineSquid]

I got major second hand embarrassment for Alex and St. Marq in their faux fight. Im fairly confident that neither of those guys have been in a fight before. On a completely shallow note, Anthony is so dreamy. I love his soft spoken manner and he is easy on the eye. THAT is who I want to watch more of in the competition. Not people arguing. 

[grumpypanda]

I just got around to watching this episode and like the rest of you I don't understand how St. Marq wasn't in the bottom for that horrible tattoo. I'm not an artist but I could have drawn a better tree and mask than that pile of dog poo.

I still don't get the format of this season. The veterans the enter the competition at the very end only have to do a few challenges and can still win the entire thing. What happened to Best Ink? It wasn't a great show but at least it didn't have all this stupid drama and these dumb twists.

Anyway, I loved Cleen's tattoo. I thought it was one of the best tattoos I've ever seen on this show. Absolutely beautiful!

Edited March 26, 2016 by grumpypanda