ANTM makeovers,some of my Heroes theories and who will be the Next Iron Chef America?

With Top Chef over(I so have to catch that reunion special,totally forgot about it last night! Thank TPTB that Bravo loves to replay shows quite abit there)and since Project Runway won't be on until mid-November,I thought that it would be fun to give Food Network's search for the Next Iron Chef a try. Wow,do these guys have it tough!


In the first challenge,the eight contenders were split into teams of two and each team member was given fifteen minutes to do the following:break up a whole chicken,fillet a salmon,milk a couple of coconuts,shuck six oysters,slice a daikon paper thin and french some chops(no,that's not a naughty joke-frenching just means to slice most of the meat off of the bone,making the chop look like a lamb lollipop). It reminded me of the mise en place QF challenge on TC this season but I think that only Hung could've kept up with these folks. The quality of the cuts counted as well as the speed,which made Aaron Sanchez the winner of that round.





Next up was a double dessert challenge-the chefs had to make one "freeform" dessert using any of the ingredients supplied in the kitchen(however,they were not given any butter,sugar or cream-if they wanted any of that,they had to make it themselves)and the other had to use a savory food as the main focus.

The choice of meats included tripe,beef shoulder,duck and squid. John Besh managed to make catfish and grape truffles that the judges liked(I recall seeing him compete on the regular ICA,with the secret ingredient being apples). Traci Des Jardins picked salmon roe but she really made a beet salad with it,rather than a dessert so she was eliminated.

I have to admit that was pretty impressive,so it looks like I'll be tuning to see who wins for awhile. The over the top theatrics of ICA just crack me up to no end and they do whip out some mighty interesting dishes(my favorite IC is Kat Kora),so this competition should be fun.



ANTM had their big makeover round this week,and bitchy Bianca's hair was in such bad shape that they had no choice but to shave most of her locks off. They really did her a huge favor since over processing can destroy your hair(Bianca not only had dyed it to death,she also had a perm and a weave tossed in there)down to the roots.

The photo shoot theme was flowers and plants-Bianca's sunflower shot didn't wow the judges but neither did Chantal's baby breath. Chantal was so busy fussing at both the photographer and Mr. Jay that she totally screwed it up for herself. Sometimes,you have to deal with multiple feedback,honey-just learn to roll with it!



Heather once again did very nicely,as a portrait of weeds. She looked amazing,like a character out of a Tolkien novel. The girl sent home this time was Victoria,who seemed to be "slumming" here as a model and kept picking fights with Twiggy,of all people!

Why would you,a newbie, argue with Twiggy about fashion modeling,especially since she's not the least bit bitchy? That's like debating with Michael Jordan about moves on the basketball court-when someone speaks from actual knowledge and experience,you're the one who looks like a loser!



On Heroes,Sylar is back,but not able to truly go on the attack as he's slowly recovering from that little sword business last season. I don't blame the Illusionista for trying to distract him from his troubles but Sylar is more of a goal orientated kind of fella. Poor guy,kind of felt sorry for him(yes,he's evil but I still like him,okay? Gotta have my villian lust sated somehow):





We also saw Nikki drop Micah off at his grandmother's(RIP D.L. but hello,Lt. Uhura!)and Claire find out why West is so keen on outing her in public. Hey,dude,maybe if you did the Superman bit earlier,that would've cleared some things up sooner,you know? Teenagers are too much:



So,here are a couple of possible ideas I have about this season's plot arcs. I think what Sauron's(the old school Hero going after Mama Petrelli and her gang)power is. Based upon the fact that he's able to detect Molly when she does her seeker ability and haunt her dreams,plus that the person who tossed Hiro's dad off of the roof was covering up their face and could possibly be able to fly,Sauron may have the ability to take over a person's mind and body telepathically.

Years ago,I read a novel by Dan Simmons called Carrion Comfort,in which "mental vampires" used their body snatcher skills to play some pretty twisted games and feed off of the folks they controlled. Would it be so surprising that Nathan was taken over and killed Papa Nakamura while Peter's former mentor Claude attacked Mama Petrelli at the police station(no one saw anyone enter or leave during that assault)?

Also,I wouldn't be surprised if Kensai was an ancestor of the Petrelli clan. Given his self healing powers and that the "Godsend" symbol is a logo of the family's corporation,it does make sense. It would also explain the close ties between the Nakamura and the Petrellis,especially if Hiro's time meddling gets more intricate.We shall see.


Random Notes:

Nip/Tuck: The show is returning at the end of October and I can hardly wait. The promos have been decent but the tattoo ones are so gimmicky. I like the new one with the Weezer song and plenty of clips from the upcoming shows but alas,it is not on YouTube yet. The Wicked Game number is rather arty but strange enough to fit right in with the whole vibe of the series: