Masterchef (US) - General Discussion

[cameron]

Another questionable show.  In the first episode Kimberly was called out  for making something as simple as a fried chicken sandwich while Baby Boomer Rebecca who made the same dish wasn't even called out for it or shown when they previewed all the dishes before the judging.  Fix might be in.  Kimberly was one of two who were eliminated in the first challenge.

Edited September 5 by cameron

[snarts]

Aside from the insipid "generations" format, the pacing this season has been terrible. Breaking for three weeks, returning with double episodes, and now eliminating 40% of the remaining contestants in one night.

Both the format and the eliminations seem to be a purposeful attempt to highlight the younger contestants, likely in an effort to court a younger demographic of viewers. 

Say what you will about risotto, panna cotta, etc. but chicken most often seems to be the kiss of death. 

Edited September 5 by snarts

[Ancaster]

1 hour ago, cameron said:

Another questionable show.  In the first episode Kimberly was called out  for making something as simple as a fried chicken sandwich while Baby Boomer Rebecca who made the same dish wasn't even called out for it or shown when they previewed all the dishes before the judging.  Fix might be in.  Kimberly was one of two who were eliminated in the first challenge.

Well, to be fair, Gordon warned Kimberly that if she was doing something as simple as a chicken sandwich, it had to be the best possible.  You could tell looking at it during judging that it was dry as a bone and they said it was lacking oomph in terms of flavour.  She said during the cooking part that she thought it was overcooked and not her best, or words to that effect.  I don't remember what they said about Rebecca's, but I don't remember any critique being close as bad as Kimberly's (in the first round).

[fishcakes]

I didn't even think about this during the show, but a friend pointed out that cooking spicy chicken for the Hot Ones guy was probably not a good plan. Adam's must have been exceptionally good to get the win on a chicken dish when it's Sean's job to eat chicken.

After the auditions, I predicted a GenX would win the whole thing since they seemed like the strongest group going in, which is an example of why it's good that I don't bet money on these shows.

Really over Kamay always preemptively finding a reason why it's not her fault if she should happen to lose when working with another person. Arthur's not a confident leader, Murt doesn't listen, and last night, "Rebecca and I agreed that I would be the leader, but now she's taking over and leading" repeated at least twice by her and I don't know how many times by the judges. She doesn't seem to get that if she's not responsible if they lose, then she shouldn't get credit if they win.

The Wall challenge was less chaotic than it has been in other seasons. Everyone last night seemed to communicate well, for the most part. Poor Michael though, stuck working next to a shouty Horacio.

Sorry to see Warren go because he's such a joyful person, but everyone left seems to be a better cook than he is, so I guess it's fine. I'll miss his funny THs and how cheerfully he accepts the judges' criticisms.

[cameron]

3 hours ago, Ancaster said:

Well, to be fair, Gordon warned Kimberly that if she was doing something as simple as a chicken sandwich, it had to be the best possible.  You could tell looking at it during judging that it was dry as a bone and they said it was lacking oomph in terms of flavour.  She said during the cooking part that she thought it was overcooked and not her best, or words to that effect.  I don't remember what they said about Rebecca's, but I don't remember any critique being close as bad as Kimberly's (in the first round).

They never questioned or showed them talking to Rebekka about her fried chicken sandwich.  Completely swept under the rug.

 

 

Edited September 5 by cameron

[PhoneCop]

3 hours ago, fishcakes said:

After the auditions, I predicted a GenX would win the whole thing since they seemed like the strongest group going in, which is an example of why it's good that I don't bet money on these shows.

Don't worry, I was right there with you, at least initially.

I feel like Michael's had this in the bag since his first win. Maybe I'm jinxing him, but Adam's been up and down and everybody else has had a more flawed edit, so.

[mlp]

I wasn't surprised by the eliminations in the first hour.  I liked Kimberly (and I think the world needs more English teachers) but I never thought she'd make the finals.   I'd never worked up any interest in someone whose "career" is professional cornhole player.

In the second hour, it was obvious that Horacio wasn't going to survive.  I hated to see Warren go but I can't argue with the decision.  I wonder if he'll actually pursue going to culinary school.  I've read about people getting college degrees in their nineties so I hope he does.  

Rebecka and Kamay did a lot better than I expected considering the ego clash.  They're both a little hard to take so I suppose they'll be around until close to the end.

Joe needs to burn that plaid suit.  

 

 

[cameron]

13 hours ago, mlp said:

I wasn't surprised by the eliminations in the first hour.  I liked Kimberly (and I think the world needs more English teachers) but I never thought she'd make the finals.   I'd never worked up any interest in someone whose "career" is professional cornhole player.

In the second hour, it was obvious that Horacio wasn't going to survive.  I hated to see Warren go but I can't argue with the decision.  I wonder if he'll actually pursue going to culinary school.  I've read about people getting college degrees in their nineties so I hope he does.  

Rebecka and Kamay did a lot better than I expected considering the ego clash.  They're both a little hard to take so I suppose they'll be around until close to the end.

Joe needs to burn that plaid suit.  

 

 

That suit looks like a 1970's sofa.

[AZChristian]

52 minutes ago, cameron said:

That suit looks like a 1970's sofa.

It probably was, until Joe's mom tore it apart and made him a suit out of the upholstery.

[Yeah No]

On 9/5/2024 at 9:19 AM, cameron said:

Another questionable show.  In the first episode Kimberly was called out  for making something as simple as a fried chicken sandwich while Baby Boomer Rebecca who made the same dish wasn't even called out for it or shown when they previewed all the dishes before the judging.  Fix might be in.  Kimberly was one of two who were eliminated in the first challenge.

I'm glad you and others noticed this. I couldn't get over it as it was happening. They just completely bypassed focusing on Rebecca altogether. I agree, it stinks to high heaven and feels like a fix is in. But I see it as possibly a fix for getting into the finale not necessarily the winner. 

On 9/5/2024 at 9:33 AM, snarts said:

Aside from the insipid "generations" format, the pacing this season has been terrible. Breaking for three weeks, returning with double episodes, and now eliminating 40% of the remaining contestants in one night.

Both the format and the eliminations seem to be a purposeful attempt to highlight the younger contestants, likely in an effort to court a younger demographic of viewers. 

Welp, you just about summed up everything I think and feel about this season!  I didn't even post last week and I don't really care who wins at this point.  I don't think it's any coincidence that all the oldest generations are gone except Rebecca and that Murt has suddenly become so much better. Yeah, right. 😏

[WescottF1]

On 9/4/2024 at 10:32 PM, KeithJ said:

My DVR shows it’s on next week.  

As for this week, when Becca was saying she didn’t really have experience with spices I was so expecting her to say “because spices are against my religion.”  I know that’s terrible but it was the first thing that came to my mind when she was making that statement.

I said the exact same thing to my wife...

Edited September 9 by WescottF1

[Ancaster]

Is it just me or is there a serious lack of actual culinary talent amongst these contestants?

[seacliffsal]

On 8/31/2024 at 7:51 PM, GHScorpiosRule said:

Back from vacation and the only thing worth watching was Gordon showing everyone how to make filet mignon with coffee grounds dry rub, the mushrooms, and sauce!

@seacliffsal, this is STRIKE TWO! You failed to mention this! You know what will happen if you hit three, don’t you?😜🤪

I’m rooting for Michael and Adam.

Ok, I've learned my lesson and certainly don't want a third strike, so I just want to put it out there that watching Gordon demonstrate the four dishes to be featured at the restaurant takeover has made the entire season worth it.  The combination of skills, artistry, and flavors is amazing.  I hope that all of these contestants realize how fortunate they are to be learning from the master.  Even Aaron seemed impressed as he was watching Gordon cook.

Age jokes, age stereotypes, etc., may have bothered me at times, but all of that (well, most of that) is forgotten and forgiven because they let me watch Gordon cook!

I now have to finish watching the rest of the episode as I paused it right after his cook in order to comment.  I am quite sure the episode will go down hill from here...

[cameron]

12 minutes ago, seacliffsal said:

Ok, I've learned my lesson and certainly don't want a third strike, so I just want to put it out there that watching Gordon demonstrate the four dishes to be featured at the restaurant takeover has made the entire season worth it.  The combination of skills, artistry, and flavors is amazing.  I hope that all of these contestants realize how fortunate they are to be learning from the master.  Even Aaron seemed impressed as he was watching Gordon cook.

Age jokes, age stereotypes, etc., may have bothered me at times, but all of that (well, most of that) is forgotten and forgiven because they let me watch Gordon cook!

I now have to finish watching the rest of the episode as I paused it right after his cook in order to comment.  I am quite sure the episode will go down hill from here...

Once again, Michael was the only one called out for flambeing his fish while Rebekka and Becca did the same exact thing.  A lot of questionable producer driven elements here.

[GHScorpiosRule]

23 minutes ago, seacliffsal said:

Ok, I've learned my lesson and certainly don't want a third strike

😂😂😂

24 minutes ago, seacliffsal said:

I just want to put it out there that watching Gordon demonstrate the four dishes to be featured at the restaurant takeover has made the entire season worth it.  The combination of skills, artistry, and flavors is amazing.  I hope that all of these contestants realize how fortunate they are to be learning from the master.  Even Aaron seemed impressed as he was watching Gordon cook.

SO.MUCH.THIS! And then the final challenge, of the final four trying to keep up with Gordon as he cooked that salmon dish.

It's pure poetry and magic in motion.

I call producer shenanigans that THREE "accidentally" flambéd their salmon?

All that said, this is NOT Hell's Kitchen! These are all home or youtube/tiktok cooks! So that first challenge at the pop up whatever, I thought was very unfair. But Michael for the win.

And just how many times did Rebekkah fail to close the oven door AFTER Gordon warned her to close the damn thing? Three. How can you forget to do that?

I was glad to see the back of Murt.

[seacliffsal]

Woo Hoo!!!! Just finished watching the entire episode and we got a SECOND Gordon Ramsay cook!!!  This episode should become a classic as we got to watch Gordon cook twice!  

So, a couple more comments after watching the entire episode-Becca made more mistakes as team captain for the restaurant takeover than did Murt, but Murt was the one removed as captain.  Becca let the overcooked scallops, undercooked steak and duck, and the other mistakes onto the plates.  However, Adam was out of his depth and deserved to leave=BUT I would have been fine with a Becca elimination.

During the final challenge I was shocked that three contestants made the same mistake with the salmon and flambe.  I just don't understand the salmon mistake as they knew the skin was supposed to be crispy yet they poured cream into it.  Glad Michael made it through, wasn't surprised that Rebecca went home but did kind of wonder if they were going to try to have a finale of one person from each of the three remaining generations.

I hope Michael wins as I have liked him from the beginning.

[Madding crowd]

The pop up restaurant episode was hard to watch. Gordon was yelling at them to the point it would be hard to do anything. This is turning into Hell’s Kitchen. Becca’s team made way more mistakes and were the clear losers but Murt was the one removed as captain. Also thought they were just looking for an excuse to get rid of Murt in the second episode when Michael’s dish looked like a bunch of things thrown together and Becca’s was boring. I do like the one where they follow along with Gordon but the fact most of them couldn’t follow along should clue them in that they were going too fast.

 

[KeithJ]

I really hated the restaurant pop-up part of the show.  This is Masterchef, not Hell's Kitchen.  These are home cooks that have no aspirations of working on a line in a restaurant.  There was no reason for this.

And Gordon, if you were that embarrassed about sending out a half order of scallops, walk over to the other team and take some of their extras.  They had plenty and were done with their appetizer service.

[Tango64]

Didn't they show Rebekkah's oven door left open three times after Gordon yelled at her for it? It seemed like ominous foreshadowing of a catastrophic event, as the editing doesn't leave much room for extraneous shots. But no, there was no payoff. Maybe Rebekkah will sneak into the finale and open an oven door?

 

1 hour ago, seacliffsal said:

During the final challenge I was shocked that three contestants made the same mistake with the salmon and flambe. 

Also, I was surprised that everyone's salmon was "perfect!" except for the one with the extreme char. I thought they'd have to say everyone f'ed up their salmon and judge the other items. 

[GHScorpiosRule]

6 minutes ago, Tango64 said:

Didn't they show Rebekkah's oven door left open three times after Gordon yelled at her for it?

Yes. As I stated it up thread. And yet, Michael, quietly kept reminding her to shut it! And she just said sorry and did it two more times!

[MsVulcan]

I really dislike when they do these professional kitchen challenges.  These people are home cooks, not chefs.  Gordon should not be yelling at them in front of diners when they have been thrown into the deep end.  As a diner I would feel very uncomfortable.

[snarts]

1 hour ago, MsVulcan said:

I really dislike when they do these professional kitchen challenges.  These people are home cooks, not chefs.  Gordon should not be yelling at them in front of diners when they have been thrown into the deep end.  As a diner I would feel very uncomfortable.

This. It's the wrong show. These are home cooks who admittedly have never worked in the restaurant industry nor do they ever aspire to. It makes no sense other then allow him to yell and throw food. 

Personal pet peeve is when he asks how long, the chef tells him, yet he continues to yell for the item. When they do as he asks, he's pissed that that it's undercooked. WTF does he expect them to do, speed up time? 

[KeithJ]

1 minute ago, snarts said:

Personal pet peeve is when he asks how long, the chef tells him, yet he continues to yell for the item. When they do as he asks, he's pissed that that it's undercooked. WTF does he expect them to do, speed up time? 

Gordon: "How long on the fish?"
Contestant: "8 minutes"
Gordon: "8 minutes?!?  It should be 4 minutes."
Contestant gives fish in 4 minutes.
Gordon: "Its raaaaaaaaaw!" and throws it at the wall.

[bankerchick]

3 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

And yet, Michael, quietly kept reminding her to shut it!

While it's true that this is a dangerous habit and Michael was right to call her out on it, it seemed to me that he was scared shitless of Gordon yelling at them (who wouldn't be?)  He was panicking with Murt in charge and at one point freaked out about (something..) on the plate.  'Hide it.  Hide it before Gordon sees it!'

I called Rebecca and Murt to go home at the start of the episode.  The remaining three are better cooks and though I don't like Becca, I knew they would have her in the final.  We've seen way too much of her this year for it to go any other way.  And it was clear that it would be a  Gen Z or Millennial winner.

[preeya]

How does a raw duck dish leave the kitchen if "Gordon The Great" is expediting?

Edited Friday at 12:01 AM by preeya

[fishcakes]

I had to laugh at the contestants being forced to say how beautiful Gordon's "rooftop" restaurant was when it was just astroturf and Wayfair furniture on a building's subroof. You could tell from the buildings in the background that they were probably only on the third floor of whatever building they were in.

Gordon has totally lost interest in these challenges. He chastised Murt for dumping what he said was a "whole cup of salt" on a dish, but then sent it out anyway (bonus shot of a customer after that saying "this needs some acidity to balance out the salt") and also for putting his thumb on the top of the plate, after which we saw every single server with their thumbs on the plates. And sending out a plate with only 3 scallops on it when everyone else at the table had 5? He didn't even let that kind of thing happen on Food Stars and that show was complete shit.

I am surprised that we're not getting a Becca/Rebecca showdown in the finals because they've both been judge's favorites from the beginning. I think they wanted Michael there as well because those three have been talked up the most, although Michael was kind of a latecomer for them. But since Kamay was the only one not to make a major mistake in the final challenge, there was no way to justify cutting her.

I looked at the stats last week, and Kamay had the most top 3 finishes/wins (6 total, including team challenges) and Murt had the second most with 5, but neither of them have been really promoted by the judges/show. Even so, I'm sorry to see Kamay still there; I liked her in the beginning, but she's gotten to where she's always blaming someone else when she feels like it's not going well for her. Last night she was extra ridiculous saying the reason she kept sending up raw duck was because "the stove wasn't hot enough." Okay, well, yes, isn't it terrible that there's no way for her, the chef, to control the temperature of the stove. FFS.

Finale next week, but up against the Survivor premiere, which seems like the perfect way for FOX to end their terrible scheduling decisions for this season.

 

Edited Thursday at 08:59 PM by fishcakes

[jcbrown]

I like Kamay and I like Michael just fine. I am team Anyone But Becca.

[mlp]

6 hours ago, preeya said:

How does a raw duck dish leave the kitchen if "Gordon The Great" is expediting?

I have said the same thing on the HK boards more than once.  Gordon sends a dish out then screams at the cook when it comes back.  I guess he hopes the drama will overshadow the hypocrisy.  

The three people I expected to see go did go but I thought Murt or Rebecka should have stayed instead of Becca.  They've been favoring Becca all along so I hope she didn't win.  She's immature and annoying.  I hope Michael pulled it out.

[Ancaster]

All I could think is who leaves the oven door open like that?  Don't they know anything about physics?

Edited Friday at 03:51 AM by Ancaster

[jcbrown]

20 hours ago, Ancaster said:

All I could think is who leaves the oven door open like that?  Don't they know anything about physics?

It was really stupid, especially that she kept doing it.  The oven is going to cool off and you are going to hurt someone. I've been cooking for decades and never once left the oven open after I took something out of it.

[Colorado David]

i know right?? common sense, you know someone is gonna bang a shin on that thing. maybe she was trying to sabotage her team?

[Yeah No]

On 9/12/2024 at 4:52 PM, fishcakes said:

I am surprised that we're not getting a Becca/Rebecca showdown in the finals because they've both been judge's favorites from the beginning. I think they wanted Michael there as well because those three have been talked up the most, although Michael was kind of a latecomer for them. But since Kamay was the only one not to make a major mistake in the final challenge, there was no way to justify cutting her.

Because I keep track of these things, it's been relatively rare for 3 people of the same sex to go into the finale, so my suspicion is that there wasn't so much obviously wrong with Michael's dish compared with Rebecca's to have to send him home over her. Truthfully I thought she was a better cook than him in general so of the two of them I'd have rather seen her in the finale. And I'm not so sure his gnocchi looked that good. They looked overdone on at least one side and dry to me. And I thought the judges were overly kind to his previous dish in saying that it just "needed some editing". It needed a TON of editing. Why wasn't he called out for the unnecessary shrimp?

Like someone else above, I'm suspicious that 3 of them made the same mistake all by themselves together. Gordon's cooking was sped up so much there was a lot we didn't get to see.

Of the three of them left I'm rooting for Michael now. Becca is annoying and not as good as they or she thinks she is and Kamay's facial expressions make me wonder what she's really thinking and I haven't seen her food standing out that much either. Michael seems like a more genuine and humble guy who really tries hard so I like him better than the other two. Do I think he's the best cook there? No, but none of them left are that great. Rebecca had more talent than the three of them put together. I think they're still there because they're Millennial and Gen. Z.

[SHERMDOG]

Kamay is a passive aggressive BITCH! 

ANYONE for the win except her. And I'm not a Becca fan at ALL.