S14.E04: The Feast Of Seven Trash Fishes

[spiderpig]

5 minutes ago, meep.meep said:

I thought it was Sylvia who didn't know how to use the pressure cooker.  You'd never mistake one for the other, but the names are confusing!

If you'd never worked with something before, why wouldn't you cook a test batch before launching into a big meal?

I'm a simple home cook who remembers when pressure cookers were regarded as potential hazards due to covers exploding, etc.  But that was 50 years ago!  I bought a PC around 10 years ago to play around with for the sheer novelty of it, and have made some very tasty dishes.  So this idea of pros acting like they'd never seen one before is very odd.

[hendersonrocks]

Quote

I was hoping this Brooke/Emily collaboration would be the scene for Brooke's "I wish I'd never come back" scene from the season promos, because I knew she was safe under the circumstances, and now that means her potential elimination is still to come.

I'm 99.9% sure that clip of Brooke was shown in the season premiere. 

Once again Casey was so busy throwing shade at someone (this time Amanda's vibe in the kitchen, last time Silva's dish) and ended up on the losing end of it. You do you, Casey, or you're not going to make it very far.

Katsuji is a hot mess. 

[spiderpig]

6 hours ago, Corgi-ears said:

Harumph, when did it become acceptable for a judge, namely Hugh, to comment on how he thought two chefs (in this case, John and Katsuji) would have a clash of egos and thus put out a bad dish? I guess the fact that the chefs in question are "veterans" and already known made it possible. But it's not a path I want Top Chef to go down. "I worked with you years ago, so I know you're an asshole. Color me shocked that your dish works!"

So it's not possible to debone the mullet that Shirley and Sheldon (or, as she called him, Shelton) cooked? How useful that Tom would juts mention it in passing instead of explaining it to viewers.

Worst thing about the episode was Sylva mentioning that he's married. Best thing was seeing Blais enter the dining room trailing behind Padma like a eager lapdog and going, "So it's my first time blahblahblah..." and Padma going, "Oh really?" while absolutely not caring what he actually said. But it's possible my confirmation bias is in effect.

On the next episode, Top Chef will apparently demonstrate that Padma is not needed.

I suppose I should say something relevant to TC, but I love your username and avator, corgi-ears.  I have a corillon myself and worship her great big ears and 4-inch legs.

Oh yeah - about the show - this ep was so convoluted I kept checking my wineglass level to make sure I hadn't zoned out. Are the Magical Elves editors getting a head start on CA's new pot laws?  Maybe the Carolina heat/humidity were getting to the crew.

[spiderpig]

3 hours ago, theatremouse said:

There are often not-necessarily-promoted-on-camera prizes for winning elimination challenges. It's not like on MC where only the bottom are even up for elimination in the first place and they then cook again to not go home. The EC on this show is the "main" challenge. So it'd be weird for her to not cook at all with immunity, and if there were a not necessarily-product-placementey prize, if she didn't cook, she'd also not be eligible to win, which would suck.

Thanks for the insight, theatremouse.  I'm finding I'm asking myself "did I miss something?" a lot this season.

[le bordel chaud]

I really don't like Casey, although it has nothing to do with the Carla situation. She has just always rubbed me the wrong way and her cooking has been inconsistent at best. The sooner she's gone, the better.

Katsuji was also insufferable this episode. If you are making me sympathize with John Tesar, then you must be pretty flippin awful.

I wish they could have found more likable returnees tbh. Brooke comes across almost desperate to me--you can tell losing to Kristin and then her Top Chef Duel has done a number on her. She takes herself pretty seriously. I like Shirley but not as much as she likes herself. Her never-ending family stories are amusing I guess. Sheldon doesn't bother me but I'm not rooting for him either. And I had no recollection of Amanda before, but now I will never forget her. As someone in the throes of a substance abuse problem on a reality TV show not called Intervention. Not a good look.

None of the newbies have made much of an impression. I guess I like the Italian girl the best so far.

Edited December 24, 2016 by delicatecutter

[biakbiak]

1 hour ago, hendersonrocks said:

I'm 99.9% sure that clip of Brooke was shown in the season premiere. 

Once again Casey was so busy throwing shade at someone (this time Amanda's vibe in the kitchen, last time Silva's dish) and ended up on the losing end of it. You do you, Casey, or you're not going to make it very far.

The shade she was throwing was in a TH so she knew what the outcome was when she those things.

[yourmomiseasy]

1 hour ago, hendersonrocks said:

I'm 99.9% sure that clip of Brooke was shown in the season premiere. 

Once again Casey was so busy throwing shade at someone (this time Amanda's vibe in the kitchen, last time Silva's dish) and ended up on the losing end of it. You do you, Casey, or you're not going to make it very far.

Katsuji is a hot mess. 

Casey was right though, Amanda was a shit show in the kitchen.  It looked like Amanda's manic flailing around might have had a negative impact on Casey's dish as it was hard to work with all the mayhem going on.   

[buttersister]

it was having a negative impact on my viewing, too.

[Calamity Jane]

13 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

I think Amanda may have been drunk or something. The way she sweats, talks freaky, runs around maniacally... definitely looked like something was amiss.

Sounds more like meth.  

[cooksdelight]

9 minutes ago, Calamity Jane said:

Sounds more like meth.  

She's too heavy to be on meth. 

[Court]

4 hours ago, biakbiak said:

Yeah plenty of chefs don't know how to use a pressure cooker because it's a "short cut" many chefs don't employ. Antonia and several other chefs in earlier seasons haven't known how to use one. Even John's point wasn't about chefs in general not knowing how to use one but about not learning before you came on TC because of the time constraints involes in the challenges.

Good point but you would think they would have seen several seasons and know it is crucial to learn!

[mlp]

5 hours ago, buttersister said:

Anyone still reading that magazine?

I take Food&Wine.  So far, I've liked the small changes the new editor has made.  I also like her editorial comments at the beginning of each issue.  She comes across well in print and I had no objection to her when I saw her on the show.

[biakbiak]

14 minutes ago, Court said:

Good point but you would think they would have seen several seasons and know it is crucial to learn!

Antonia needed Blais's help on All Stars so even a chef who was on before didn't think it was a necessary skill to learn and many chefs have survived without ever using a PC on the show,

Tom also pointed out on twitter that they just aren't used frequently in a professional kitchen though also noted that he had installed a commercial grade PC in his new restaurant, so maybe it will become a trend.

[rho]

10 hours ago, spiderpig said:

If she had immunity, why did she cook at all?  On Masterchef they send the victor up to the balcony to watch the others toil away.

I think some of the best dishes have come from chefs who had immunity, Sheldon is one that comes to mind. I recall he always killed it when he had immunity. And even though it doesn't really count, I think it does influence the judges once the herd starts to thin out. 

With all the emphasis this week on Emily, I was shocked when she didn't go home. I really hope this season doesn't devolve into a parade of former bosses who fired her. The less Emily on my screen, the better.

[spiderpig]

8 minutes ago, rho said:

With all the emphasis this week on Emily, I was shocked when she didn't go home. I really hope this season doesn't devolve into a parade of former bosses who fired her. The less Emily on my screen, the better.

Witty, off-the-wall contestants are welcome to this viewer.  Gloomy sourpusses like Emily are not.  Just take your attitude and go away.  I can cook my own trash fish, thank-you-very-much.

[HunterHunted]

2 hours ago, biakbiak said:

Antonia needed Blais's help on All Stars so even a chef who was on before didn't think it was a necessary skill to learn and many chefs have survived without ever using a PC on the show,

Tom also pointed out on twitter that they just aren't used frequently in a professional kitchen though also noted that he had installed a commercial grade PC in his new restaurant, so maybe it will become a trend.

Considering that this is a cooking competition, you would think the cheftestants would practice with a pressure cooker because invariably they will attempt a 10 hour dish in 3 hours. They should all memorize a basic cake and cookie recipe. Just like how every chef on Chopped has a basic ice cream and sometimes a cake recipe.

Kenji Lopez-Alt uses a pressure cooker a decent amount. I'm actually surprised that he hasn't been a guest judge on Top Chef.

[cooksdelight]

Casey having immunity -- and throwing together a lousy dish -- shows everyone that if it's not crucial for her to cook well, she won't. Doesn't speak well of her abilities as a chef, in my opinion. Suppose you went to her restaurant, she was cooking, and just didn't worry about whether the dishes were top notch or not?

[Jesse]

8 hours ago, HunterHunted said:

Considering that this is a cooking competition, you would think the cheftestants would practice with a pressure cooker because invariably they will attempt a 10 hour dish in 3 hours. They should all memorize a basic cake and cookie recipe. Just like how every chef on Chopped has a basic ice cream and sometimes a cake recipe.

Yeah, that's what I was thinking -- not that they use the pressure cooker in their normal life, but that it would be strategic to practice with it before hand.  And 100% agreed on the desserts! 

[theatremouse]

16 hours ago, biakbiak said:

Yeah plenty of chefs don't know how to use a pressure cooker because it's a "short cut" many chefs don't employ. Antonia and several other chefs in earlier seasons haven't known how to use one. Even John's point wasn't about chefs in general not knowing how to use one but about not learning before you came on TC because of the time constraints involes in the challenges.

It's not even necessarily just about the time constraints and a pressure cooker being a logical skill to have in your back pocket. It's one of those "you went on this show on purpose, have you ever watched it?" moments. Every season has someone attempting something with a pressure cooker and either totally fucking it up because they didn't know what they were doing, or being tense as fuck and miraculously surprised when it turned out great. They should all know by now that this will come up if they go on this show. So "I don't know how to use that tool" is a really idiotic statement. Are there things it's totally reasonable for them to be unfamiliar with because pro chefs (or even just American pro chefs) don't often use? Sure. But a pressure cooker ain't one. It's like going to a baseball game and being surprised there are peanuts.

[wallflower75]

16 hours ago, spiderpig said:

Thanks for the insight, theatremouse.  I'm finding I'm asking myself "did I miss something?" a lot this season.

I found myself asking "Did I miss something?" in this episode.  Did I miss it, or did they not tell us what nearly half of the chefs made in the quickfire challenge?  Because I don't remember hearing what Sheldon, Silva, and Silvia made--and I'm pretty sure there were at least two more they didn't mention.  Just the good ones and the bad ones.  Geez, spend a little less time shoving the "Katsuji is a pot-stirring dick" storyline down our throats (we get it, really) and a little more time telling us what everyone made.

Last week, I sided with John Tesar and this week, I'm feeling bad for Emily.  You could see it on her face--for all her bravado about having an attitude that's gotten her fired from three restaurants, she still wanted to impress one of the chefs who'd fired her but lost her nerve.  (IIRC, Brooke faced a similar situation in her original season.)  Kudos to Emily for not throwing Brooke under the bus, which as we know would've been very easy for her to do.

I was so nervous when I realized that Jim had gotten stuck with Amanda, especially remembering Casey's TH in the preview for this episode.  Then when they were on the bottom, I thought, "If he goes home because he was stuck with her..."  Fortunately, B.J. finally went, and Jim lives to cook another day.

I'm enjoying this season a lot more than I did last year--I like most the veterans remaining (even John--huh.  How did that happen?) and I like some of the rookies as well.  They're standing out for me more than last year's crop, where I'd be hard-pressed to remember who won, much less anyone else who competed aside from Grayson.

One last thing...loved Sheldon in the pink hat he put on while shopping.

Edited December 24, 2016 by wallflower75

[Merneith]

I would watch the "John and Katsugi Make Stewed Tomatoes Hour".  It beats watching random people gush about their "Most Decadent Favorite Blah-Blah" which is all the Cooking channel does any more.

[ratgirlagogo]

On 12/23/2016 at 6:23 AM, chiaros said:

I, too, was surprised by their designating amberjack as "trash fish". When I saw it on the table of fish selections, I must say my eyebrows went up. Trash fish? Really? Haven't these people eaten kanpachi/kampachi - RAW - in sushi places? Or cooked with it? In fact, in less-scrupulous places when they had "hamachi" they probably were eating North American Pacific/Atlantic amberjack...

They weren't calling them "trash fishes" because they as chefs didn't value them - kind of the opposite.   As a sushi fan you know sushi places serve a much wider variety of fish in general than you'd find in the average American restaurant.    Thus Kata said on the episode - that given the realities of current commercial trawl fishing all kinds of potentially not just edible but delicious fish are thrown away by the fishermen because there's not enough of an immediately available market for things like mullet and tunny and amberjack to take up space on the ship hauling them back to shore.  This was honestly even more common in the days before modern refrigeration and factory ships, but of course more of an issue now because we are fishing the oceans to extinction.  I'll be damned if I can find it now or even remember the season it was from - but Tom did a long Bravo blog post  years ago about overfishing (complete with a short reading list that I remember included a wonderful book by G Bruce Knecht called Hooked, about an Australian patrol boat that's trying to catch fishing pirates in the South China Sea - only available now as a Kindle book but a great read if you're interested) - not surprising as sustainable seafood is one of his big projects.

http://foodpolicyaction.org/ 

 

I wish Tom still did a Bravo blog,as he so often included this kind of material that the show did not.  Of course I'd like it even better if if made it onto the show itself, but hey.

[sourpickles]

First off, I'm glad to know that I wasn't the only one who was floundering (no pun intended...actually, ok) with the lack of coherent explanations and editing.  I didn't have much of a grasp on why they were cooking what they were and all, but when I watch it again I might be ok.  Also, what the actual hell was up with Amanda?  I honestly thought she was on something, she was a bit frenetic in her season, which I chalked up to being nervous, but nothing like this.  I felt bad for her, when she sees that..............I thought Jim and Casey did a great job staying calm and not reacting overly to her.  I wasn't sold on Jim but I really like him now.  And oddly, I like John T as well.  For one hot minute, you know he'll do something next week.  Katsuji, Katsuji.  I like him despite myself, but he's a picker.  He just snarks at people till they snap.  He was like that on his last season too.  I wasn't surprised BJ went home, he was alright but not up to this season.  And the more I see Sylvia, the more she niggles some memory.......I really have to wonder if I haven't seen her on some other show before.  Can't think of what else I wanted to say, have to watch the episode again!  As I said on the Project Runway comments, I'd like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, Happy Kwanzaa, or if you are an atheist, a Very Nice Day.  See ya'll next week!

[Jobiska]

I suppose I'd watch a Katsuji and John show, but what I really want is the Shirley and Sheldon show.  I'd watch them cook together, shop together (I too loved him with the hat, and her forgiving him for the accidental sabotage, and all that), look for a vacation house and take vacations with their families together...I think they're my two favorites, although I am always impressed when someone can return to a reality show and make a concerted effort to rebuild their image/impression, like John is.   

[sourpickles]

I suppose I'd watch a Katsuji and John show, but what I really want is the Shirley and Sheldon show.  I'd watch them cook together, shop together (I too loved him with the hat, and her forgiving him for the accidental sabotage, and all that), look for a vacation house and take vacations with their families together...I think they're my two favorites, although I am always impressed when someone can return to a reality show and make a concerted effort to rebuild their image/impression, like John is.   

Understood on both counts. I really think Sheldon and Shirley are exactly what we see. Two genuine, nice, family oriented, talented people who happened to land on a tv show. As opposed to those who show up, personality in mind. Or are just asshats in general. As for John, I'm waiting for the next shoe to drop. I've seen redemption arcs go wrong before. Or maybe he was misunderstood........................

[ratgirlagogo]

Quote

From the recap:

Her frazzled hair and panicked eyes give her a "Claude Cat before the Nerve Tonic" look.

Forgot to say that this description of Amanda is spot on.  LOL.

[Court]

I've had amberjack in seafood restaurants in Florida which is why I was surprised of its inclusion. Occasionally in Georgia as well.  

[jcbrown]

Emily and Amanda can both go anytime. the former for her godawful attitude and the latter for her frenzied energy.

[bitchin camaro]

There's been mention of Amanda having health problems, so her behavior could be due to legit meds that she's on. Steroid treatment, for example, can make people nutso and she's got the moonface that lots of people on prednisone get. 

I was glad to see BJ go this week. Something about him just really rubbed me the wrong way. Shirley and Sheldon are just a delight to watch, especially working together. I'd like to see them and Kenneth the Page on their own show. 

[awaken]

On 12/23/2016 at 3:47 AM, spiderpig said:

I don't remember ever rewinding so much during an episode.  I couldn't understand what was said, and more important, I had no idea what trash fish they were saddled with.  Very poorly edited, IMHO.

I'm glad it wasn't just me!  I had a really hard time following and getting into this one and I felt bad since I look forward to it all week!  

On 12/23/2016 at 10:44 AM, racked said:

 

Emily's habit of pulling her chin into her neck in THs is really unflattering. She is so not ready for reality 

Emily is rat-like to me. Tiny eyes, weird chin, twitchy nose. 

[spiderpig]

1 minute ago, awaken said:

I'm glad it wasn't just me!  I had a really hard time following and getting into this one and I felt bad since I look forward to it all week!  

Emily is rat-like to me. Tiny eyes, weird chin, twitchy nose. 

I too was very interested in the "trash fish" concept and the only one I could decipher at first was mullet.  Then amberjack, which around here is no trash fish.  Then triggerfish.  I can't remember what the rest of them served, if they ever mentioned it.

Since it's Christmas Eve and we're all full of good will toward (wo)men - Emily always looks like she just sat on a tack.  If she dropped my undescribed trash fish on the kitchen floor, she seems the type who would just slap it on a plate and serve it anyway.

As Tiny Tim said "God Bless Us Every One!!!"

[biakbiak]

27 minutes ago, spiderpig said:

Then amberjack, which around here is no trash fish.  Then triggerfish.  I can't remember what the rest of them served, if they ever mentioned it.

They mentioned them all: Tunny (Jaime/Sylva, blackbelly rosefish(Brooke /Emily, barrel fish (BJ/Silvia), tilefish (Jim/Amanda), mulket (Shirley/Sheldon), triggerfish (John/Katsuji), amberjack (Casey).

Edited December 25, 2016 by biakbiak

[candall]

Rough times for Emily around here--she resembles a rodent, she seems like she'd serve food that fell on the floor? 

 

I dunno, Cook's Delight says Katsuji is a nice guy, but he doesn't seem all that nice to me.  He and Tesar might be old friends and pushing each other's buttons for the show, but he went back to the stew room as The Winner and still had to give Bottom Three Emily a hard time while she was waiting to hear if the axe would fall.  What's the point of making someone feel shittier than they already do?

 

I liked this focus on alternative fish.  Fish is my favorite and I'm always torn between being environmental vs. enjoying a nice fish dish while I still have a chance.  (My conscience always gets me and I have tilapia, meh.)  I HATE to think fishermen have been tossing these perfectly edible fish overboard!  Eek, it's too much like how those big tuna used to go for a penny a pound for cat food and now they're so rare the finest sushi chefs in Japan sometimes pay $100,000 for one at auction.

It would be excellent if those small catch species caught on and were thought of as a "rare treat" special offering instead of "trash fish."

.

Edited December 25, 2016 by candall

[cooksdelight]

Quote

What's the point of making someone feel shittier than they already do?

Might be because she's nasty to the other chefs when they are back at their living quarters? He has nothing nice to say about her, at all. I've yet to find any of the contestants with any words of kindness for Emily.

[candall]

7 hours ago, cooksdelight said:

Might be because she's nasty to the other chefs when they are back at their living quarters? He has nothing nice to say about her, at all. I've yet to find any of the contestants with any words of kindness for Emily.

I don't really like seeing anyone get in a few extra kicks when someone's already been knocked down, no matter who it is.

I only have the show to go by, but so far I've mainly seen Emily's bad character established from statements she made in her THs, which may or may not have sounded more appropriate depending on the specific questions asked.  My poor opinion of Katsuji is based, not on his words, but on three separate incidents when I felt his onscreen behavior was less than admirable.

[awaken]

They really made tunny sound as if it tastes terrible. Iron tasting and bloody. I'm curious now!  

[Lovecat]

On December 23, 2016 at 0:01 PM, lordonia said:

I was sewing during the episode, looked up at the TV to see Nilou, and thought she was Gail. I for real looked up Gail Simmons + weight loss to see what she'd done to herself.

We saw Brooke definitely being The Decider with her team dish, so I rolled my eyes a little when she didn't have the guts to say so during judging (that we saw). Waffle, waffle, wishy waffle.

I thought the same thing about not!Gail.  

At at one point in her TH, it seemed like Brooke was implying that she kept throwing out ingredients to see where Emily would say no, like it was a test or something. She was incredulous when she suggested lime and tamarind and Emily still didn't speak up. But then she went and actually used all of the ingredients, so if she truly did know that she was going too far, I've got to put it on her for not backtracking and editing that dish.

On December 25, 2016 at 0:07 AM, awaken said:

Emily is rat-like to me. Tiny eyes, weird chin, twitchy nose. 

Sorry to pile on, but yeah, same.

[Tara Ariano]

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

Top Chef Gets Trashy

You've heard of the seven deadly sins? Meet the seven deadly trash fish. Can the chefs find Jim-dandy ways to serve up the garbage of the sea?

[Lamb18]

Just watched the episode. John and Katsuji need to go on The Amazing Race together.

[Darth Nigel]

I am confused watching Katsuji's interactions on the show (where he's often shown being a dick), and comparing it with the reactions of many of the chefs around him and on his Facebook feed.  Then I remembered something John Scalzi wrote -- "The failure mode of 'clever' is asshole".  I suspect that applies here too, although it's possible Katsuji is an asshole, just a personable one.

Having said that, I loved watching John and Katsuji together.  And they produced some good food too.

I figure about two or three more episodes before we get down to the serious contenders; there's still a few (in both camps) who clearly are not going to be successful here.  

Edited December 29, 2016 by Darth Nigel

[bunnywithanaxe]

Was it John who was pronouncing the word "mole" like he was a freaking toreador? Or was I hearing things.

Accent on the second to last syllable. If the word is only two syllables, that means the first syllable. Sorry, it just bugged me. But the dish itself looked... Lickable, I guess, so that's the important bit.

[StevieRocks]

On 12/23/2016 at 4:28 PM, biakbiak said:

The hipster glasses judge is Graham Elliot, who was on two seasons of Top Chef Masters and formerly a judge on MasterChef, is a new regular judge he just isn't ob every episode. 

Ugh...I hate this moron almost as much as I detest Blaise. Stop with the fame-whoring already. I was TRYING to watch the unwatchable "Cooks VS Cons (Geoffrey Z. notwithstanding-love him), and fugly hipster glasses Elliot was fame-whoring on THAT show, too. He brings NOTHING. Plus, I miss Gail. :( 

[StevieRocks]

On 12/23/2016 at 6:13 PM, Lura said:

My "take" on this episode was that it was an ill conceived idea in the first place, or so it seemed to me.  Several cheftestants didn't know what "trash fish" meant, and some had no idea how to prepare their fish.  Then, for a judge, they bring in a chef known for his expertise with fish.  His palate had to be trained on fine fish dishes.  Just MHO.

Yes, yes, yes. My God--I prepare the feast of the seven fishes every Christmas Eve, and I thought this was such a wasted opportunity. Let us see them preparing some exquisite seafood dishes. But then, I've always hated corny, gimmicky challenges that throw in doltish 'twists.' Tesar's family feast sounded wonderful. 

[Christina]

This just re-aired on Bravo, and the editing that showed the judges' table was the next day seemed obvious, although I didn't catch it the first time I watched. Amanda, who appears to be in the throes of a severe addiction, went from a sweaty mess as they presented their food to dry and cleaned up as they were hearing the verdict. Even if it was hours later, she wouldn't have been so clean and dry.

Substance abuse is such a known issue in kitchens, that I hope someone steps up and confronts her about her spiraling out-of-control and gets her to realize she needs help. I don't necessarily want it to happen on camera, but it was quite uncomfortable to watch her cook and then babble as they presented their food. Jim seems relatively laid back, which was probably good for her to have a team member who was not confrontational, but she clearly needs help. Even Tesar's new laid back persona would have been pushed to the limit, and Casey or Katsuji would not have been able to keep from yelling at her, which I realize would not have been helpful. Maybe while she is in Last Chance Kitchen she will be transferred to a rehab center to detox.

[Randomosity]

On 12/24/2016 at 11:27 PM, bitchin camaro said:

There's been mention of Amanda having health problems, so her behavior could be due to legit meds that she's on. Steroid treatment, for example, can make people nutso and she's got the moonface that lots of people on prednisone get.

 

5 hours ago, Christina said:

...Amanda, who appears to be in the throes of a severe addiction...

Given the more recent comment, I just wanted to reiterate the earlier one quoted above. We have NO IDEA what Amanda's deal is. Why assume an addiction with negative connotations and requiring rehab/detox? 

Wasn't it mentioned she hasn't even been cooking for a while because of an injury/surgery? She could well be on steroids - a legitimate prescription for anti-inflammatory purposes, or any number of other medical reasons. And steroids absolutely give people moonface, and can cause somewhat manic episodes. (Actually, even upon the first airing and before seeing posts here, it stood out to me that despite her round face, the rest of her still appears rather thin, which would definitely fit with steroids.)

[pinguina]

Regarding the use of pressure cookers: someone pointed out that if you had never used one and knew that you got selected for Top Chef wouldn't you think, "Maybe I should learn how to use it because of the time limits."?

Also on that show where kid chefs compete with professional chefs, those kids use pressure cookers (I think even the youngest one!)

[Christina]

I take steroids and I go to a pain management clinic. I've never seen anyone act like that on Prednisone, but have seen it with pain meds and it's cheaper cousins, heroin and meth. She is spiraling out of control, and it is uncomfortable to watch. Casey also seems to be shown drinking a lot, but they haven't shown her out of it, yet.

If it is by a legitimate drug, she is not getting a good response from it, and should return to her doctor asap. I will concede that a steroid could cause it, because I don't know for sure that it can't, but I still see drug addiction. In any case, she is not well and needs help.

[Randomosity]

30 minutes ago, Christina said:

I take steroids and I go to a pain management clinic. I've never seen anyone act like that on Prednisone, but have seen it with pain meds and it's cheaper cousins, heroin and meth. She is spiraling out of control, and it is uncomfortable to watch. Casey also seems to be shown drinking a lot, but they haven't shown her out of it, yet.

If it is by a legitimate drug, she is not getting a good response from it, and should return to her doctor asap. I will concede that a steroid could cause it, because I don't know for sure that it can't, but I still see drug addiction. In any case, she is not well and needs help.

I'm not discounting what you've seen, but it's still a MAJOR leap to make any of those sorts of assumptions about a person you've only seen on a highly edited television show. And ONE episode of it. I also assume that if you had a medical degree and were qualified to make such diagnoses, you would have mentioned that fact.

In any case, what you mention having seen is your experience. My experience? 11 years of undergrad and grad school myself and 5 more years teaching undergraduates and graduate students. Stress, pure and simple, especially combined with lack of sleep, can make anyone act nuts for a while. And that's all we've seen of Amanda.

(And don't think the editing fairies don't play up the crazy. A few choice instances spread out over the full cooking time edited down to 20 seconds of episode air could make any of them look insane. It's quite likely that, given she was a risk factor for elimination for undercooked beans, the editors played up other aspects of her day for added drama/red herring, including prompting Casey for additional commentary.)

Any number of things could explain her behavior/portrayal.  I'm sorry your experience is such that you automatically turn behavior like that into an assumption of drug addiction.

[HunterHunted]

1 hour ago, Christina said:

I take steroids and I go to a pain management clinic. I've never seen anyone act like that on Prednisone, but have seen it with pain meds and it's cheaper cousins, heroin and meth. She is spiraling out of control, and it is uncomfortable to watch. Casey also seems to be shown drinking a lot, but they haven't shown her out of it, yet.

If it is by a legitimate drug, she is not getting a good response from it, and should return to her doctor asap. I will concede that a steroid could cause it, because I don't know for sure that it can't, but I still see drug addiction. In any case, she is not well and needs help.

I take prednisone from time to time for allergies. It makes me really buzzy and agitated. Agitation and hyperactivity are known side effects of prednisone. My doctor warned me about it when he prescribed it.

[Christina]

On 12/29/2016 at 11:57 PM, Randomosity said:

Any number of things could explain her behavior/portrayal.  I'm sorry your experience is such that you automatically turn behavior like that into an assumption of drug addiction.

That implies that I equate drug addiction to a being a bad person and I do not. I didn't imply that and I certainly didn't say it. We are not going to see eye-to-eye here, and the only reason to respond is to make it clear that drug addiction is not a failure.

There have been studies that have shown people with prior history of alcohol abuse are able to maintain control of their use of morphine over long periods of time. Oxycontin, on the other hand, has an almost guaranteed addiction rate across the board, whether predisposed or not, because the formulation of that drug results in peak and crashes that send the brain into severe distress. 

There is absolutely no way she hasn't been on pain medications, because you can literally have a stoke or heart attack from pain. Dependency and addiction are known to happen. There is no shame in needing pain medication and there is no shame in becoming addicted.

If she is having a reaction to a steroid, which seems to be based on her having a round face, she needs help. If she is having a stress induced manic episode, she needs help. If she is in the throes of addiction, she needs help. Only she doesn't know it because her brain is telling her she is maintaining. It's one of the first things we learn in pain management. The first two are not more worthy of sympathy while the third is worthy of scorn. Not in my opinion, and with all of the information we have available, it shouldn't be in anyone else's opinion, either.