Worst Cooks In America

[Superclam]

The good news is the finale is next week! 

[mlp]

I keep guessing wrong.  For some time, I figured the final two would be Paris and Eliza.  When she left, I thought maybe David.  I liked him.  Now I think it will be Naje.  I don't dislike her but she's too loud and too much for me.  

I have no interest in seeing those very loud drag queens again so I'm not looking forward to next week.  

[CalicoKitty]

The sad part for me is that I think Ann is a very good teacher.  I would much rather learn more from her than see all the stupid antics, and all the over-the-top "students".  I don't need all the games and silly activities.  I would like to see more serious teaching and learning.  When did this show turn into a food circus?

[HyeChaps]

Anne was great on Secrets of a Restaurant Chef.

I don't think we see the actual teaching of technique.  That would be more interesting than antics!

[RoxiP]

I am probaby behind on actually watching the shows but does it seem like they are doing a lot of grilling this season?

By the way, I like the "Superchef" a lot more than I thought I would.

[SilverLake0315]

19 hours ago, RoxiP said:

By the way, I like the "Superchef" a lot more than I thought I would.

I didn't know anything about him coming into this, but I like him a lot. I think he'd be a great permanent addition to this show. His teaching style is awesome and he is definitely not hard to look at  lol  I guess his wife agrees since they have 8(!) kids!

[seacliffsal]

So, they had Rich and Eliza trade teams just to then eliminate them both in the same episode?  I will miss Eliza, but am so glad that Rich was eliminated (I never found him as funny as he found himself).

During the second hour they show a video of Nick robbing a store (he took a bottle of wine, put it in his backpack and left).  It is so unsettling to me how this show is presenting his criminal actions as humorous.  They are also sending the message that this type of behavior is harmless and entertaining, AND that it is even being rewarded by having him on the show (getting exposure, pay, and a shot of winning [which I doubt as I think Paris will be Anne's representative in the finale]).  

[Superclam]

35 minutes ago, seacliffsal said:

but am so glad that Rich was eliminated (I never found him as funny as he found himself).

OMG, I really disliked him. Trying WAY too hard to be funny. 

 

[Superclam]

Since I like Nick, but I really don't approve of shoplifting, I went to his TikTok page to see what was up. It seems like he wears a wig & dresses like Dora the Explorer and then pretends to put stuff in his backpack, superimposed against various store backgrounds. He's not actually stealing anything, but I don't particularly care for the content. Dude has 1.6M followers, so nobody cares what I think. 

[SilverLake0315]

Well, I was totally wrong about who would go to the final. On BOTH sides!

Anne doesn’t typically bother me too much, but that smug look she gave the camera when the other team was having trouble with dessert made me want to smack her. 

Hoped for a different outcome 😕

[mlp]

47 minutes ago, SilverLake0315 said:

Well, I was totally wrong about who would go to the final. On BOTH sides!

Me too.  I've figured Paris would be a finalist since week one - until his very last dish when he started cooking rice with 7 minutes to go.  I thought Darnell wanted to pick Naje but, in the end, he made the right decision.  I was OK with either of the last two winning.

That "influencer" should have been embarrassed to be offering opinions while sitting between two actual chefs.  I haven't liked Leah or Karen since they were on Top Chef but they both have good reputations as far as their culinary skills go.  Karen looks like she's lost a lot of weight.  I barely recognized her.

[SilverLake0315]

6 hours ago, mlp said:

I was OK with either of the last two winning.

I should say, I don’t mind Nick winning… I just didn’t want Anne to win ☺️

[Superclam]

I definitely wanted Paris to win, but whatever. I think that was my least favorite WCiA season. 

[seacliffsal]

It seems that the contestants who make it to the finale are those who are best able to follow directions.  Palate doesn't really matter compared to the ability to do exactly as instructed.  The contestants don't choose the menu or the recipes, they are to follow precisely what the chef tells them to do.  I think one of the mistakes Darnell made was keeping the parmesan crisp when Michael didn't get it crisp enough during the practice meal-it was the same observation that one of the judges made.  I personally would find the flavor of the crisp too strong compared to the rest of the dish.

I will say that both meals looked really good.

[Rahul]

3 hours ago, seacliffsal said:

It seems that the contestants who make it to the finale are those who are best able to follow directions.  Palate doesn't really matter compared to the ability to do exactly as instructed.  The contestants don't choose the menu or the recipes, they are to follow precisely what the chef tells them to do. 

I miss the days when the finalists would collaborate with their chef mentors to come up with a final menu that was an elevated fine dining version of a either a meal they would love to have or something that reflected their cultural heritage and items they could cook for their family and friends. These past 10+ seasons or whatever have done away with that element and the show is all the more lacking for it.

[jcbrown]

5 hours ago, Rahul said:

I miss the days when the finalists would collaborate with their chef mentors to come up with a final menu that was an elevated fine dining version of a either a meal they would love to have or something that reflected their cultural heritage and items they could cook for their family and friends. These past 10+ seasons or whatever have done away with that element and the show is all the more lacking for it.

I miss those days, too. I think the show was a lot better when it was not just a pro trying to teach someone to perfectly replicate one of the chef's dishes. I'd rather see the contestant work with the chef to come up with something meaningful to them. I would find that much more interesting. Creativity is more interesting to watch than mimicry.

[seacliffsal]

11 hours ago, jcbrown said:

I miss those days, too. I think the show was a lot better when it was not just a pro trying to teach someone to perfectly replicate one of the chef's dishes. I'd rather see the contestant work with the chef to come up with something meaningful to them. I would find that much more interesting. Creativity is more interesting to watch than mimicry.

What is they had them go to the first dish they made (in the first episode when they are showing their lack of cooking ability) and incorporate an improved version of that within the three course meal?

[jcbrown]

11 hours ago, seacliffsal said:

What is they had them go to the first dish they made (in the first episode when they are showing their lack of cooking ability) and incorporate an improved version of that within the three course meal?

For instance--this would demonstrate actual progress. Even if not in the finale, it would be a good challenge to incorporate somewhere. It seems like they may have had some challenge like that in past seasons? Before it turned into more grandstanding and shenanigans than cooking.

[SilverLake0315]

On 2/14/2023 at 8:37 PM, jcbrown said:

It seems like they may have had some challenge like that in past seasons?

I've been bingeing the entire series the past couple of weeks, and yup, they used to do that. I didn't realize how much the show has changed from the beginning to now.

On a related note: anyone know why season 7 isn't available anywhere? I totally get why that one recent season isn't available.

[Mondrianyone]

That's the season in which the woman who won was later charged with the murder of a three-year-old adopted child.

Edited February 16 by Mondrianyone
typo

[Jaded]

9 minutes ago, Mondrianyone said:

That's the season in which the woman who won was later charged with the murder of a three-year-old adopted child.

She was convicted last year and it apparently the jury only had to deliberate an hour before deciding to find her guilty. She was sentenced to life in prison. 

[SilverLake0315]

9 hours ago, Mondrianyone said:

That's the season in which the woman who won was later charged with the murder of a three-year-old adopted child.

That was season 20. Totally get why that one was pulled.

Season 7 was a celeb season. I can’t find any explanation for why it’s missing. 

[jcbrown]

11 hours ago, SilverLake0315 said:

I've been bingeing the entire series the past couple of weeks, and yup, they used to do that. I didn't realize how much the show has changed from the beginning to now.

They had one challenge where they had to recreate their signature dish to share at a meal with other contestants, didn't they? And they used to have them cook for their loved ones, which was another challenge I miss.

[Jaded]

I just looked up who the "celebs" were on season 7. It might be missing due to Chris Soles from "The Bachelorette/The Bachelor" and his legal issues.
 

Quote

In April 2017, Soules was arrested and charged with leaving the scene of a fatal traffic accident in Aurora, Iowa. He was charged with a class D felony for leaving the scene of an accident causing death. He was not charged with driving under the influence, although court documents obtained by People magazine revealed that he was allegedly in possession of alcoholic beverages and containers at the time of the crash, which occurred around 8 p.m. on Monday, April 24, 2017.

His attorneys were hoping to avoid a trial since Soules is a "public figure" and an "unnecessary trial" could be "damaging". "If Mr. Soules is forced to proceed to trial and then appeal, there would be no way to undo the publicity and restore Mr. Soules to his original position," his lawyers stated, according to documents obtained by the Des Moines Register. "Addressing this questionable and fundamentally unfair charge, given these facts, prior to trial, better serves the interests of justice." On August 23, 2019 he was convicted after his guilty plea to leaving the scene of an accident. His penalty was two years' probation.

 

[Mondrianyone]

My mistake.

[SilverLake0315]

14 hours ago, Jaded said:

I just looked up who the "celebs" were on season 7. It might be missing due to Chris Soles from "The Bachelorette/The Bachelor" and his legal issues.

Ahhhh, ok. Thanks!

[Jaded]

41 minutes ago, SilverLake0315 said:

Ahhhh, ok. Thanks!

I got really curious after it was mentioned upthread that Season 7 was missing and wanted to know why too.

[Ilovepie]

I have only watched one episode, but I came here to vent - I am already over all of these assholes who make a living being "extra" and acting their most over the top worst selves just for some clicks. I am sick of reality shows casting "internet famous" people like they are celebrities - I am sure it's even cheaper than getting D-list celebrities as these people seem down for anything as long as they can make a buck on it and gain more followers. I like the science gal and Moira Schitt impersonator. That's about it. I didn't read the whole thread, so don't spoil me!

Anyone farther along - do they settle down or are they all continuing their wacky schtick? I am disappointed that Jeff didn't return to lead the blue team - he was the perfect sweetness to Anne's toughness, and his personality worked so well for all the dumb games. The superchef seems kind of low energy for that stuff so far......

[Superclam]

2 hours ago, Ilovepie said:

That's about it. I didn't read the whole thread, so don't spoil me!

Anyone farther along - do they settle down or are they all continuing their wacky schtick?

It doesn't get much better, although I ended up liking a few of the cooks more than others. My least favorite season, no contest. 

[Superclam]

It's funny, because I wasn't going to spoil it, but I was trying to remember who won, but I really can't without looking it up. 

[jcbrown]

On 2/27/2023 at 5:36 PM, Superclam said:

It's funny, because I wasn't going to spoil it, but I was trying to remember who won, but I really can't without looking it up. 

I know what you mean. All I can remember is it was not who I expected but I have no memory of who was even in the finale.