Masterchef (US) - General Discussion

[AZChristian]

17 minutes ago, DougJones said:

I missed it, but why did Lexi go home?  Couldn’t tell if Joe insulted her or complemented her by saying she presented something as if she invited him over to her house. 

I think he meant it as an insult.  They were supposed to be presenting things that were "elevated" . . . not what you'd plunk down in front of your family.

[Grrarrggh]

I'm depressed that Alejandro didn't suck again, I'd like to see him go home. And if Abe reminds the audience he's lived in Romania or London one more time.... I like Suu and Michael a lot though. 

[jcbrown]

This season is really really boring. I am guessing it's the pandemic that is keeping them in the studio all the time? Don't they usually have more varied challenges than this? 

[GHScorpiosRule]

6 minutes ago, jcbrown said:

This season is really really boring. I am guessing it's the pandemic that is keeping them in the studio all the time? Don't they usually have more varied challenges than this? 

No. The first half of the season was filmed before the pandemic. I think the remaining show was filmed during or post pandemic? Someone posted up thread.

[Persnickety1]

I don't have any food trucks near me.

I only know Roy Choi from his appearance on the Gilmore Girls reboot.  

I haven't been awestruck by any of the "legends" that have appeared so far in this season.  

[leighdear]

12 hours ago, jcbrown said:

This season is really really boring. I am guessing it's the pandemic that is keeping them in the studio all the time? Don't they usually have more varied challenges than this? 

I think they usually go out & about, divide into teams for challenges, interact with Military units, wedding parties, civic groups, go into the professional kitchens of local restaurants, etc. 

They seem totally studio-bound this season & it's very snoozy for me too.  

[tinkerbell]

19 hours ago, eel21788 said:

per pound, aren't chicken wings more expensive than a whole turkey?

Yes - as others, have said, around thanksgiving, most grocery stores have specials of ridiculously cheap turkey as long as you purchase other groceries (like a $50 purchase, but maybe that's out of her budget?)   as others have said, you can also buy turkey in parts if you don't want a whole turkey.  But a whole turkey, for someone with cooking skills, can provide several meals, more than the equivalent in chicken wings.

Her husband is in the military - so they live on a military base that doesn't give families at thanksgiving dinner?  there are no options for getting a turkey?  churches, community centers, food pantries?  I don't want to be mean, but she wasn't homeless, if they wanted a turkey they would be able to get a turkey.   I really hate the way they play up the "so poor we couldn't afford fancy food" angle.   

[bluepiano]

18 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

Yeah. I was starting to 🙄🙄🙄🙄 every time she said “we have no money and this is all we could afford” as if they are homeless/living below the poverty line.

Was pleasantly surprised (delighted, actually) to see Lexie go. So sick of her pleading poverty every week. I came from a military family and it's really insulting, because while lower grade servicemen aren't making six figures, they can certainly feed their families well. It's also insulting to people really living in poverty who are literally struggling to put food on the table. 

You can't afford turkey? Rubbish. Especially when you can shop at a base PX. Glad she's gone before she told us that her family eats off paper towels because they can't afford dishes.

 

Edited August 20, 2021 by bluepiano

[mertensia]

Anne is a bitch.

Abe got taken down a few well-deserved notches.

How did Lexy think she was elevating her dish? 

Okay, Joe, hate to break it to you but thousands of families in the US eat venison. Ever heard of deer hunters? And guess what, most of them aren't hoity toity chefs.

I haaaaate passion fruit. Why does everyone love it?  

[GHScorpiosRule]

Again, I have to ask if the editing monkeys were screwing with us? Because I was 🙄🙄🙄 at Alejandro crossing himself multiple times before he brought his dish to the judges.

[Grrarrggh]

4 hours ago, tinkerbell said:

Her husband is in the military - so they live on a military base that doesn't give families at thanksgiving dinner?

Not everyone in the military lives on base. 

4 hours ago, bluepiano said:

I came from a military family and it's really insulting, because while lower grade servicemen aren't making six figures, they can certainly feed their families well. It's also insulting to people really living in poverty who are literally struggling to put food on the table. 

There are thousands of military families that need food stamps and food pantries to get by. Being in the military doesn't mean you aren't living in poverty and "literally" struggling to put food on the table. 

[snarts]

7 minutes ago, Grrarrggh said:

There are thousands of military families that need food stamps and food pantries to get by. Being in the military doesn't mean you aren't living in poverty and "literally" struggling to put food on the table. 

I don't think anyone is saying there aren't military families struggling to make ends meet, Lexie just repeatedly used it as her shtick like a broken record. I mean I get she might not be eating filet mignon and lobster every night, but to say you can't afford turkey is bit much.  Glad to see her go.

Was anyone else surprised to see her wearing the exact same outfit as last episode?  Was anyone else wearing the same clothes?  It does seem odd this season that they're only doing one challenge per episode. Last night was one of the first times someone was on the balcony with immunity, wasn't it?

[tinkerbell]

41 minutes ago, Grrarrggh said:

There are thousands of military families that need food stamps and food pantries to get by. Being in the military doesn't mean you aren't living in poverty and "literally" struggling to put food on the table. 

I'm sorry, but I"m having a hard time buying her poverty-stricken sob story of feeding her family for $40/week.   Food stamps would give her more than that, food pantries give free food to people who qualify.  Yes, I know that military families can be struggling, but she is talking about it as if she gets no benefits at all, and they only have $40 for food total.  Yes, we have programs to help people have food, and I have no doubt some military families qualify.  but she isn't saying that.  she's talking about having 40 bucks to grocery shop for a family of 4 for a week, implying that the $40 feeds all 4 of them, with no other help, and the judges are applauding her for being able to make meals for that amount. 

AND, I'm responding to the way it has been repeated EVERY EPISODE, sometimes more than once in an episode.  Then Aarrrrrrron saying it's "beautiful"  that her family has wings instead of turkey for thanksgiving.    I don't like sob stories.  

Edited August 20, 2021 by tinkerbell

[GHScorpiosRule]

28 minutes ago, snarts said:

Was anyone else surprised to see her wearing the exact same outfit as last episode?  Was anyone else wearing the same clothes?  It does seem odd this season that they're only doing one challenge per episode. Last night was one of the first times someone was on the balcony with immunity, wasn't it?

No, because everyone else was wearing the same clothes as well. This was like part two of last week’s episode.

I guess because it’s a “LEGENDSSSSSS” season, we’re not getting the usual relay challenges; making pasta challenges, and pressure cooker elimination challenges. In past seasons, the cooks were given half the time to cook whatever dish, not a full hour like they’re doing this season.

[Yeah No]

I still miss the "dreaded pressure test".

[mamadrama]

5 hours ago, snarts said:

I don't think anyone is saying there aren't military families struggling to make ends meet, Lexie just repeatedly used it as her shtick like a broken record. I mean I get she might not be eating filet mignon and lobster every night, but to say you can't afford turkey is bit much.  Glad to see her go.

Was anyone else surprised to see her wearing the exact same outfit as last episode?  Was anyone else wearing the same clothes?  It does seem odd this season that they're only doing one challenge per episode. Last night was one of the first times someone was on the balcony with immunity, wasn't it?

As someone raised poor and currently going through a hard patch, I can confirm that:

I SAY:  "I couldn't afford X"

I MEAN:   "I technically have the money, or could find it, but it would mean robbing Peter to pay Paul or doing without an actual necessity to get something that we really just WANT."

I agree that poverty was her shtick, but I didn't eat turkey for Thanksgiving until I was an adult because we couldn't afford one. We gave our names to the local charities almost every year, but there was a ton of need in my county and limited supplies. If we ate meat it was either pork, fish, venison, or rabbit-the latter 3 because my dad was a hunter/fisherman and although he didn't live with us he'd bring it over. 

Even now a turkey is often out of our range. I went shopping yesterday. A 13lb turkey was $19 at our Save a Lot (our county's only grocery store). Meanwhile, a pack of 16 drumsticks was $2.47. Sure, if we really wanted one then we could move money around and forgo some of the staples on our list. But it's a turkey. It's not a priority. For $19 I could get a few pounds of potatoes and enough pork and chicken to get us through 2 weeks.

Per the SHOW I think her claim was exaggerated. IRL, though, it does happen. My family of 4 has a monthly grocery budget of $240. There's not a lot of wiggle room.

Anne can go at any time now. Alexander, too. I'm rooting for Michael. 

[Chyromaniac]

You know, there's an attitude that I try to maintain as I'm watching this show (and some others), that really makes the experience a ton more enjoyable.  I'm not saying it's for everyone - but if you do happen to find yourself getting annoyed at certain contestants, or the judges, or whatever, please consider it as an option for yourself.  Here it goes...

I don't care.

I don't care who wins, I don't care about their backstories, I don't care about their dreams and ambitions, I don't care about who thinks who is their biggest competition, and I don't care about parsing every detail that they say or do to try and out them as a phony.

I don't care, because for the most part none of that actually matters.  It's more or less just a product of editing - it's the producers attempting to create a narrative to help "explain" the results of the actual competition.  After all, that's what this is - a cooking show.  If I'm going to get invested in anything, it's that.  I enjoy watching the challenges (although I agree that the format this season feels confined and repetitive), and I like seeing what the contestants make.  I do have favorites - but I try to base it around who makes food I'm interested in, and who seems talented (yes, this can also be a product of editing, but at least it's more objective than the storylines).  Beyond that, I will admit that the personality elements of the show can be interesting or entertaining, depending on how they're presented.  But at the same time I'm not going to spend emotional capital getting annoyed because the show decided to beat certain contestants' storylines into the ground - even if those people seem to be playing along.  In the end, it's just not worth caring about.

Edited August 21, 2021 by Chyromaniac

[Ms Blue Jay]

On 8/19/2021 at 6:18 PM, KeithJ said:

I never really disliked Anne until this episode.  Her complaining and being all b*tchy at Joseph for critiquing her.  Gordon asked a question, Joseph answered.  He didn't really even say anything mean like "Anne's food looks terrible", all he said was something about her running around being all frantic.

Seriously! Gordon ASKED.  Multiple times.  🙄. And Joseph tried to be as encouraging and as diplomatic as possible.  I like him even more now.

I continue to hate Joe's attitude.

Anne could win Best Cheerleader, I guess, because she's always shouting nice things at the other contestants, but other than that, I'm shocked that she's still there.  Her nerves probably stress everyone else out which is probably why Joseph finally felt the need to say something.

Funny how Roy Choi kept telling Lexi to be confident and then she tried and it got her kicked out.  Oh lord.  Overcorrection.  

Edited August 21, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay

[Colorado David]

1 minute ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Seriously, Gordon ASKED.  Multiple times.  🙄. And Joseph tried to be as encouraging and as diplomatic as possible.  I like him even more now.

Yeah, agreed. that's on the judges egging Joseph on, because he wasn't being vocal except when they prompted him. Imagine if Elise from Hell's K was up there, all the comments she'd be making.

[fishcakes]

When the judges called time, Anne looked up to the balcony and said something like, "what do you think, Joseph?" but it sounded sarcastic to me, like, "pray tell, what does the doooorman think of my quail?" The previews for next week showed the contestants being put in pairs for something, so I'm guessing we'll see Anne and Joseph coupled up, with replays of her comments about him to make it look like they're feuding, although if they are, she's the only one who seems to know it.

[Colorado David]

2 hours ago, fishcakes said:

When the judges called time, Anne looked up to the balcony and said something like, "what do you think, Joseph?" but it sounded sarcastic to me, like, "pray tell, what does the doooorman think of my quail?" The previews for next week showed the contestants being put in pairs for something, so I'm guessing we'll see Anne and Joseph coupled up, with replays of her comments about him to make it look like they're feuding, although if they are, she's the only one who seems to know it.

Ah man the dreaded relay cook off. It rarely ends with good results.  I wouldn't mind seeing the dreaded blind taste test, without the comical punishments to other contestants. 

[Colorado David]

I don't know how valid the blind taste test is, as if you are sighted you can eyeball what you are cooking, but it was always enlightening seeing what the chefs could discern vs not (and not sure how valid vs staged the competition is).  I mean cauliflower, from the texture how can you not pull that one? I'm guessing the celery family is more difficult, and some of the poultry and beef. 

[Yeah No]

14 hours ago, Colorado David said:

I don't know how valid the blind taste test is, as if you are sighted you can eyeball what you are cooking, but it was always enlightening seeing what the chefs could discern vs not (and not sure how valid vs staged the competition is).  I mean cauliflower, from the texture how can you not pull that one? I'm guessing the celery family is more difficult, and some of the poultry and beef. 

Are you sure you're talking about the right show?  Sounds like "Hell's Kitchen" to me.

[Colorado David]

2 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

Are you sure you're talking about the right show?  Sounds like "Hell's Kitchen" to me.

I was. I wouldn't mind if masterchef borrowed some ideas from HK.

[Yeah No]

1 minute ago, Colorado David said:

I was. I wouldn't mind if masterchef borrowed some ideas from HK.

I didn't realize that your second paragraph was referring to one in your previous post.

[Colorado David]

2 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

I didn't realize that your second paragraph was referring to one in your previous post.

Sorry for the confusion, I did get off topic there.

[preeya]

I believe we have two back to back episodes tonight (8/25). Check your DVR settings.

[iwantcookies]

Did you guys know that Abe lived in Romania? 🙄😭

Lexy who has a $40 a week food budget eats chicken wings frequently. They cost $3.49 a pound. They can’t afford a turkey 🙄 but can afford chicken. Turkey’s are cheap around thanksgiving. Her I’m poor storyline is fake.

Since when 39 year olds are young man (Alejandro) and young lady (Anne)? They are not young.

I hate all the fake storylines. I wanted to throw my tv out the window.

This show makes me crabby.

I am happy Lexi is gone. Bye liar.

[Chicago Redshirt]

5 hours ago, iwantcookies said:

Did you guys know that Abe lived in Romania? 🙄😭

Lexy who has a $40 a week food budget eats chicken wings frequently. They cost $3.49 a pound. They can’t afford a turkey 🙄 but can afford chicken. Turkey’s are cheap around thanksgiving. Her I’m poor storyline is fake.

Since when 39 year olds are young man (Alejandro) and young lady (Anne)? They are not young.

I hate all the fake storylines. I wanted to throw my tv out the window.

This show makes me crabby.

I am happy Lexi is gone. Bye liar.

Chicken wings became more expensive as a byproduct of the pandemic. Before, they were generally $1-$1.50 a pound. https://www.newsweek.com/chicken-wings-shortage-sees-prices-rise-restaurants-across-us-1590832

Now that doesn't change Lexy's overall deal into truthful, cause it's not. But it is at least plausible that chicken wings were cheaper per pound than turkey even at Thanksgiving where Lexy was. 

The Internet tells me Gordon Ramsay is 54. So to him, it would be appropriate to call someone under 40 young man/young lady. 

[Grrarrggh]

SOOOO glad Joseph is gone. He was a little a-hole this entire episode. Joe was just as bad. Yuck. 

[jewel21]

I still don't understand how Anne is only 39, I honestly thought she was closer to 49. Anyway, I'm not sad she's gone. She's been bugging me for while. 

Also, how the heck did Autumn break 6 bones in her foot. WTH was she doing?

[EllaWycliffe]

On 8/20/2021 at 9:37 AM, leighdear said:

I think they usually go out & about, divide into teams for challenges, interact with Military units, wedding parties, civic groups, go into the professional kitchens of local restaurants, etc. 

They seem totally studio-bound this season & it's very snoozy for me too. 

Honestly I really like not dealing with the "faux resteraunt" events where person X is getting married and or we spend 20 minutes of the show insisting we adore cops, firemen and soldiers, only to move on immediately once done. I'm an Army veteran myself please don't get me wrong, I respect the professions but these shows throw the fake to where I am surprised the contestants aren't required to get on their knees and beg forgiveness for sullying these folks meals.... Its easy to play the ass kissing game when you're basically offering to make a free meal but I never hear about these shows making genuine, large charitable donations to the first responders etc that they insist they love. 

More actual cooking in the kitchen is fine by me. 

[Lurk]

1 hour ago, jewel21 said:

I still don't understand how Anne is only 39, I honestly thought she was closer to 49. Anyway, I'm not sad she's gone. She's been bugging me for while. 

Also, how the heck did Autumn break 6 bones in her foot. WTH was she doing?

Anne has irritated me from the beginning. Can't really pin down exactly why. Glad  she's gone.

I wonder if we'll ever really find out how Autumn broke her foot. Would be interesting to see their interactions outside the kitchen like we see some dorm time on HK.

[Such A Flirt]

Was this the first episode filmed after they had to stop because of the pandemic? I thought most of the contestants looked different. Would also explain Autumn's sudden injury.

Joseph and Anne needed to go. Alejandro and Michael are most likely next.

Anyway, they should just stop pretending and give the bloody prize to annoying Kelsey already; she is clearly the Chosen One and has been since the very beginning.

[mertensia]

You could see when Joseph gave up: when Anne said "we will make **this** so **I** can get an easy win".  She steamrolled him and he wasn't interested in fighting her. I bet she's like that a lot. Me, I'd I've walked. I can't do steam rolling anymore.

It was time for both of them to go. This hiding them is so much better than tagteaming.

[preeya]

IMHO, the "wall replication challenge" was the dumbest thing I've ever seen.

[Emkat]

Anne is a screeching harpey who is completely full of herself.   Bye!!!

[fishcakes]

Anne was in over her head and has been for a while. She probably has a few dishes that she makes well and used one of them in her audition, which got her on the show, but in general, she's not a very good cook. The last few weeks, her technique, palate, and plating have all been bad. And I'm not sure why she keeps trying to make Asian food because she doesn't understand how to use the ingredients and she fails every time she does. But now she's going to be so certain of what a great cook she is because she got to seventh place on Masterchef. She's one of those people whose self-confidence far exceeds their competence. This is the person who usually ends up becoming your boss. 

Joseph was in a bad position because with only five minutes to plan a dish and get everything from the pantry, there was no way he was going talk Anne into anything other than what she wanted to do. He had no choice but to follow her, and that was especially clear when he tried to object to a technique with her during the cooking and she shouted him down. By the time she was yelling instructions that would completely ruin the rice, his face was so resigned, I was waiting for him to give a Jim Halpert look to the camera. He knew they were going to lose and he should have saved himself by not following her bad directions, but he got too hung up on the identical dish requirement of the task and not on the restaurant-quality requirement, maybe because with that horribly conceived dish that was a lost cause. She should have been eliminated instead of him. He's been inconsistent and might have been the next to go, but it's wrong that she outlasted him, even if it's just by one spot.

[mertensia]

18 minutes ago, fishcakes said:

Anne was in over her head and has been for a while. She probably has a few dishes that she makes well and used one of them in her audition, which got her on the show, but in general, she's not a very good cook. The last few weeks, her technique, palate, and plating have all been bad. And I'm not sure why she keeps trying to make Asian food because she doesn't understand how to use the ingredients and she fails every time she does. But now she's going to be so certain of what a great cook she is because she got to seventh place on Masterchef. She's one of those people whose self-confidence far exceeds their competence. This is the person who usually ends up becoming your boss. 

Joseph was in a bad position because with only five minutes to plan a dish and get everything from the pantry, there was no way he was going talk Anne into anything other than what she wanted to do. He had no choice but to follow her, and that was especially clear when he tried to object to a technique with her during the cooking and she shouted him down. By the time she was yelling instructions that would completely ruin the rice, his face was so resigned, I was waiting for him to give a Jim Halpert look to the camera. He knew they were going to lose and he should have saved himself by not following her bad directions, but he got too hung up on the identical dish requirement of the task and not on the restaurant-quality requirement, maybe because with that horribly conceived dish that was a lost cause. She should have been eliminated instead of him. He's been inconsistent and might have been the next to go, but it's wrong that she outlasted him, even if it's just by one spot.

Yeah, Joseph got dealt a bad hand. His frozen face when throwing the salt into the sticky rice was telling. Did she ever **once** listen to him?

[AZChristian]

21 minutes ago, fishcakes said:

Anne was in over her head and has been for a while. She probably has a few dishes that she makes well and used one of them in her audition, which got her on the show, but in general, she's not a very good cook. 

Gotta be honest . . . I wouldn't know the difference between a parsnip and a turnip either.  But I sure wouldn't go on a cooking show and humiliate myself by having that pointed out in front of millions of people.  

[AZChristian]

On 8/21/2021 at 9:32 AM, fishcakes said:

The previews for next week showed the contestants being put in pairs for something, so I'm guessing we'll see Anne and Joseph coupled up  . .  . 

Well, you called that one correctly!

[fishcakes]

5 minutes ago, AZChristian said:

Well, you called that one correctly!

Ha ha, this is more proof that I watch too many reality shows. Anne was nicer to Joseph than I expected though; she was a bulldozer but not mean, and she seemed genuinely sorry when he got eliminated.

[mamadrama]

I couldn't get over Anne's parsnips plate looking like a small collection of penises. 

[AZChristian]

4 minutes ago, mamadrama said:

I couldn't get over Anne's parsnips plate looking like a small collection of penises. 

Or a collection of small penises.

[Colorado David]

5 minutes ago, mamadrama said:

I couldn't get over Anne's parsnips plate looking like a small collection of penises. 

omg you said penises blush :) 

[Ms Blue Jay]

Two hours????? My whole world is upside down.

Looks like it's going to be the same case next week.

I genuinely liked Joseph. I felt so bad for him.

Like I said, the issue with Anne is she just gets wayyyyyyy too stressed and I'm sure it's not fun to be around.

I'm really starting to like Alejandro, if that's the guy who seems really emotional all of the time.

I hate Joe so I'm glad Anne told him that he sucks the most through the television screen.  LOL.  She made herself so useful with that.  Also Gordon throwing his head back and laughing.

Edited August 26, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay

[Grrarrggh]

Apparently I'm in a minority but I couldn't stand Joseph in his last episode. He acted like a immature whiney toddler. He couldn't get his way so he didn't even bother to try. As my grandmother used to say, he cut off his nose to spite his face. Joe was almost worse. All his chauvinist comments, which I'm seeing repeated here, about what a harpy Anne is were sickening. If Anne had been a man Joe would be talking about how much he respects him for taking over. Everything with Mario is making more and more sense.....  

[preeya]

2 hours ago, Grrarrggh said:

Apparently I'm in a minority but I couldn't stand Joseph in his last episode. He acted like a immature whiney toddler. He couldn't get his way so he didn't even bother to try. As my grandmother used to say, he cut off his nose to spite his face. Joe was almost worse. All his chauvinist comments, which I'm seeing repeated here, about what a harpy Anne is were sickening. If Anne had been a man Joe would be talking about how much he respects him for taking over. Everything with Mario is making more and more sense.....  

You're not, because I'm with you. Any time one of these contestants goes into silent mode they deserve whatever they get. He acted like a spoiled brat and it cost him big time. Bye, Bye, Joseph.

Edited August 26, 2021 by preeya

[bluepiano]

What is it with Autumn's "many" visits to Japan? On a bartender's salary? I was expecting them to explain that but they never did. She is probably one of the best cooks, but all her tattoos kind of put me off. It was fitting that she and Michael were paired together last week. The tatted couple. (And I've always thought Aaron's tats are stupid. A rich kid trying to look "street.")

I may be the only person here who liked Anne. I thought she was always sincere. I preferred her to Kelsey, who somehow gives off a fake vibe to me. I'm tired of hearing about her kids every week.

Joe's comments to the guest legend about how Suu is a much better cook than she showed made him sound like a disappointed parent after their kid muffed her lines in the school play. 

Question. How much offscreen coaching do the contestants get? I was very surprised at how knowledgeable they all seemed about Japanese cuisine, when only Autumn and Suu said they had any experience with it. (And then there's Abe with his "international" background, though Romania is a long way from Japan).

Edited August 27, 2021 by bluepiano

[Mrs. Hanson]

On 8/26/2021 at 10:05 AM, fishcakes said:

By the time she was yelling barking instructions that would completely ruin the rice

Fixed that for you!

Glad she is gone.  I could never be friends with a female like her as she seems amped up and controlling over everything.  Glad she is not a teacher I have to work with, lol.