Finales, Restaurant Wars, Expensive Houses, and Fashion Shows [The Week In Bravo]
October 23, 2009 by Maria Diaz
Since I barely had time to catch up this week (my obsessive posting will return next week, darlings!), I thought I’d do a condensed post on this very, very busy week in the Land of Narcisisstic Delusion and Occasional Food Competitions aka Bravo.
1. Those brats at Million Dollar Listing showed up on their normal time: Mondays at 10p.m. Have you been watching? I admit I have a hard time watching those brats hawk million dollar homes. A particularly douchey moment on this week’s episode (which to be fair, was not because of the agents), was when one of Josh’s clients starts hitting on a potential renter and trying to get all Indecent Proposal on the couple who wanted to rent the house. Awwwkward!
2. 
Flipping Out Season 3 ended! The rap that Jeff Lewis told me about (YES, ME, I AM ALL POWERFUL IMPORTANT JOURNALIST) on the Bravo conference call way back in August finally came true! Jenni Pulos may have a real future as a children’s party rapper who dresses a lizard.
Having the season end with Chloe’s party was an interesting choice; Jeff and Ryan’s unraveling relationship was clearly the dramatic force of this season much like Jeff’s firing of Chris was last time. It’s very clear that Jeff cares for Chloe deeply, even if his dark sense of humor isn’t always appropriate. The whole thing was kind of sad, just like the season. However, we’re not quite of the woods yet! Flipping Out’s reunion will air next Tuesday at 10pm and it looks hella dramatic.
3. Top Chef had its Restaurant Wars episode and Tom Colicchio claims that the winning team this year was the best Restaurant Wars they’ve ever had. Take that, former contestants! I think they should eliminate front of the house because most chefs are surly and unpleasant and are in the back of the house for a very good reason. And Laurine proved that that is the most thankless job of all by getting eliminated. The Voltaggio brothers conflict is damn near ruining the season for me with all their power struggles. I know you got family baggage and it’s heavy, but leave it the door, dudes.
Speaking of Top Chef, they’re shooting the finale this weekend! Toby Young tweeted he was in a hotel room with a pregnant Padma and her breasts were “massive” and Gail tweeted she went to dinner with both Tom Colicchio and Super Chef Thomas Keller. Obviously, Gail is food A-list and would naturally be having dinner with the Toms, but Toby in a hotel room with Padma? That’s gotta be work related. You know Padma just doesn’t chill with Toby.
This is an old photo, but I think it works. Dwight was the sixth housewife!
4. Real Housewives of Atlanta ended its second, almost eternal-seeming second season. I’m happy to see them all go with their scripted scenes, and non-stop photo shoots. The anti-climactic ending of She By Sheree, especially since we’d already seen the photos months ago, resulted in a big, fat BLAH for this jaded blogger. These bitches couldn’t even get together for ONE final party.
Even Orange County housewives Gretchen, Tamra and Vicki could make it to their final season party and you know those three hated each other with the burning passion of a thousand Gretchen Rossi highlights. Is it worth even parsing? It was just more of the same: Kim waving around her bling and bragging about her obviously fake engagement, Lisa and that dead look in her eyes as her husband sweetly said that his home was where his family was and all she could think about was “her” gym, Nene totally losing it and saying she hopes that Kandi and Kim drown in a lake (sorry that was all editing!) and Sheree caring more about her weave than her fashion show. Dwight had to straight up tell her not to leave the W when she was freaking out over her hairdresser. Say what you will about Dwight, but one thing he knows how to do is plan a party. The fact that Sheree is now downplaying his involvement in the press is just wrong.
Anyway, next week we get a reunion special, Thursday 10/29 at 10pm! Sweet, we get to watch more grown women have nervous breakdowns in public. Will you be watching?
[Images: Bravo/NBC Universal]
I think a good part of the reason this was the “best” restaurant wars was that they didn’t have to spend precious time decorating the restaurant, picking out linens and tableware, and all that extraneous nonsense as in seasons past.
Is what Eli was wearing what passes for “dressed nicely” these days? An untucked shirt under a sport coat? That just looked sloppy and lazy to me, no matter how casual the restaurant or hip the clientele. I would have loved to see Robin tell him to tuck in his shirttail hahaa!
I meant to add…. since they didn’t have to do the decorating, etc., they could spend all their time making excellent food.
Although I don’t know how excellent the food actually was. There was a teenage meltdown going on in my house right about then and I was a bit distracted.
Maria – do you know where they are filming the finale?
Hm well Top Chef is losing me to The Next Iron Chef, which is fun and campy. It’s obvious who will be in the TC finale, and ho-hum one of the brothers most likely will take it home. ho hum again.
Is it just me or does Jen’s heart not in it? She seems bored most of the time and though I’m rooting for her don’t see her making it to the end just due to the blase attitude towards the challenge. I would like to see Kevin sweep in and hack his way, red Viking beard, and all and take the crown.
Stopped watching Flipping Out this season, as it was too depressing. Personally, I use television for escapism and seeing the final “divorce” between Jeff and Ryan is just too painful. I wish them both the best, but I imagine, like any relationship, both were partly to blame and both are partly innocent.
Million Dollar Listing – have no interest in watching.
Real Housewives – stupid series of fake shows that I also don’t watch.
I think Jen is really anxious. The few times she hasn’t done well, she takes it very hard. She’s probably used to always being the best and losing a few times hasn’t been easy.
Rumor is they’re filming in Napa!
Seriously, I was beginning to think that I’m the only one who watches Bravo this much! So glad I found your site. In case you haven’t had enough RHOA commentary, I wrote my own at http://mamashauna.blogspot.com/.
I have really enjoyed Top Chef this season, i thought the cast was excellent, and have actually saved some of the episodes to try to recreate the recipes…concerning Top Chef, i did miss the chefs picking out the decorations and such, maybe it’s just me, but i always got a kick out of seeing the chefs try to create the WHOLE restaurant scene, from beginning to end.
Agree with Becky, Flipping Out really depressed me, i prefer my divorces with 8 kids and a “nanny banging” husband…not between a couple of guys i actually cared about.
I have stopped watching Real Housewives New Jersey, Atlanta, and maybe, just maybe, will check in on the first episode of Orange County…Housewives have become like the reality show “Survivor,” a bunch of backstabbers looking for their shot of fame, rather then what i was watching it for, looking at how the rich live, work etcetera…i mean what i saw last year was like some of my “former backstabbing” friends, except with better shoes…and i don’t need cable for that.