Synopsis
Well with this particular incarnation of reality shows, beautiful people show us common folk how tough it is to look pretty. The wonders of being paid thousands of dollars to get up and dress in clothes that you won’t wear because they’re either ugly or too expensive. People like Heidi Klum and Tyra Banks trying to illustrate that fashion and glamour is tough, demanding work is simply silly. Now bear in mind, this point of view is from a bitter, bald and dumpy looking guy whose idea of fashion is m…king sure that he wears comfortable socks before getting into sandals.
The show borrows a little bit from American Idol, as a casting call went out and a lot of people responded to it. And some of the judges are a little bit caustic. There are guest judges with each competition, but their names escape me and are not worth remembering. As show hostess, Heidi manages to stay out of the picture enough to not make herself part of the process, but the current Ms. Seal may be the wrong choice for the face of the show. Now, it’s a reality show about something I don’t like, featuring someone I could care less about. Why the hell did I find it engaging?
Well, the contests that the competitors are put through are actually fairly decent. They get a fixed budget, and a theme to work with, using materials from a particular sector. For instance, they have to make clothes from food, or vintage clothing stores. They’re given a couple hundred bucks, a few minutes to buy materials, and the remainder of the day to put them together. With the time crunch, to see what these semi-accomplished designers put together is kind of fun.
The designers have the opportunity to win a design contract, a load of cash and some other fun goodies. And upping the ante, the models also compete as well, and they are chosen by the designers before each competition. The last one to be picked goes home. As far as the designers, the judges determine what is or isn’t crap, and the worst design for each competition has it’s designer sent home. Not too bad.
The models are models, and there’s not too much going on there, and most of the focus is on the designers. Now, there are some unique personalities, and some of them are drama queens, whether they wear bras or jockstraps. For instance, Jay is pretty nice, Austin is good, but, oh I don’t know. The villain of the show, created by the producers or by her own doing, is Wendy. Wendy looks like a drag queen at times, and she hails from Middleburg, Virginia, which is down the road from where I live. Now if you’ve watched the show, I want to make clear that Wendy’s look or attitude isn’t indicative of the area. Wendy seems to have a lot of free time, so she does this little design thing, but by and large, if she was acting this way around me in any places around here, she’d get smacked in the mouth. Never have I seen someone so strange and outspoken, doing nothing but…finish third? Ugh. Come back home, be quiet, serve your husband and child, and keep going to wine tastings and mixers, which was probably what you did before you “discovered” fashion design.
Call me crazy, but there’s so much drama and so many tight deadlines on the show, that it’s actually not too bad. Some of it is predictable and recycled from other shows, but it doesn’t make it less entertaining. Would I watch the Season Two that is airing now? I wouldn’t make it a point, but if Bravo did a marathon and I stumbled onto it while watching TV, I’d give it a shot.
Video
Miramax has reproduced the show in full frame goodness, and it looks fine. Having never seen the show before, I don’t know if it looks better or worse than the initial broadcasts, but there aren’t any visual problems, so all’s well on this front.
Audio
Like most other TV shows, the audio option is for Dolby Digital 2.0 surround. Everything sounds crystal clear, without any surround activity, there aren’t any mosquito noises or distortion, all the prattling by the contestants sounds as clear as you’re going to want to hear it.
Special Features
The first 9 episodes are spread out over two discs, with the third disc housing the last two episodes and special features. The first extra, entitled “Wear are they now?” is a look at some of the designers now, less than a year after the contest. But it’s a 40 minute look at where the designers are now, so it can’t be that bad, but it’s a little long. Next up are 10 deleted scenes that run for about 15 minutes total, and still galleries for each designer.
Closing Thoughts
Well, even though it’s a reality show, it’s actually produced pretty well, and the two-pronged competition approach is somewhat unique and commendable. The extras on this three disc set are very light, but otherwise, this is a decent rental choice for the reality TV fan in your life.
Special Features List
- Post-Show Interviews
- Deleted Scenes
- Still Galleries
