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They congregate in the kitchen and are greeted by host Kelly Choi, who's dressed like she just flew in from a luau in Hawaii. A slutty luau. This week for their Quickfire Challenge, the Masters will be revisiting one of my very favorite Quickfires ever: the one-arm egg challenge from the Season 1 vs. Season 2 competition special in which the top four chefs from Season 1 (minus LeeAnn) battled the top four from Season 2. Super-villian Stephen from Season 1 ended up winning with what looked like a boring, unoriginal, Denny's-worthy omelet, though it admittedly looked perfect despite the chef only using one hand.

I'm optimistic that the Masters will do better than that snobby, snarky, conflict-starting oenophile. For the most part, they don't disappoint. Anito Lo cooks with a perpetual half-snarl but whips up a delicious truffle-oil, oyster sauce egg dish that impresses a three-person panel of egg experts (eggperts?) that includes my beloved Gail Simmons from Food & Wine magazine who looks as radiant as ever (I must admit, upon seeing her, I screeched, "Gail! GAIL!" just like Carla from last season). Anita received a perfect score from the judges.

The other three Masters were not quite as successful. Douglas made an open-faced corn cake with scrambled eggs and ham that Gail found delicious – it got three stars. Mark somehow made homemade pasta with an egg and cream sauce, though he forgot to add the olive oil – it got two and a half stars. And poor Mark tried to make soft scrambled eggs in little pots in the oven but they never ever set. He only put out one serving instead of the requisite four, with Gail saying that it tasted like burnt grease. He deservedly got only half a star – I'm assuming that the judges decided against giving him zero stars because his dish was not filled with rat poison.

The Elimination Challenge sounds intriguing – the Masters will be cooking dinner for Neil Patrick Harris (he'll always be Doogie to me) and some of his friends at the Magic Castle in Los Angeles, which, as I understand it from the episode, is some sort of invite-only abode filled with magical paraphernalia and spooky paintings. Sounds like Pirates of the Caribbean mixed with my high school's magic club if you ask me.

Each chef is randomly assigned one word from the realm of magic – mystery, illusion, spectacle or surprise – and must cook a dish inspired by that concept. I must say that this is the hardest challenge of Top Chef: Masters so far. Granted, cooking in a dorm room or making street food out of offal is no easy task, but c'mon . . . you can't compare it to trying to make a dish based around the vague idea of "mystery."

The Masters tromp off to Whole Foods, clutching $250 in their greedy little hands. They shop without much drama. Mark notes that Anita doesn't talk very much (maybe she's actually thinking about her dish?) but says that the other three Masters have "quietly concluded that she's the one to beat." Ummmm, ya think? She just schooled you guys by getting a perfect five stars in the Quickfire Challenge and only now are you concluding that she's the one to beat? Maybe you're not the sharpest knife in the kitchen.

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