Top Chef: Seattle Recap
By David Mumpower
November 27, 2012
While the episode was filmed a while ago, this is the Top Chef Thanksgiving episode. As such, tonight features a “Turkeypocalypse”. As Syfy prepares to create a movie from the concept, I will state that the name does not represent the images presumably conjured in your mind. No, a well-organized turkey militia is not planning to attain vengeance against mankind for our annual ritualistic sacrifices. Alas, sleep-inducing Tryptophan remains their only means for revenge.
Instead, the current group of 17 players is divided in two teams. They are then informed that there will be a team captain for each side. At this point, Tom Colicchio and Emeril Lagasse enter the kitchen as my inner fanboy climaxes. Clean up on Aisle Me.
The Red Team aka Colicchio’s Cooks is comprised (alphabetically) of Bart, Carla, CJ, Eliza, Joshua, Lizzie, Micah and Stefan. The Gray Team aka Emeril’s Bamslam is comprised (alphabetically) of Brooke, Chrissy, Danyele, John, Josie, Kristen, Kuniko, Sheldon and Tyler. While Bamslam has a player advantage, Colicchio’s Cooks gets a slight nod on overall talent because of CJ, Stefan and Bart’s reputation. Then again, the team I think looks the best on paper almost never wins, which is (not coincidentally) why I never gamble.
The joy of this portion of the episode is the visceral thrill the cheftestants experience. They are crafting a meal with two of the most famous chefs in the world today. Tyler in particular has a moment he will never forget. He works side by side with Emeril Lagasse as they create a gumbo. Whether he wins Top Chef or is eliminated in this very episode, Tyler will always brag to his friends about this inimitable cooking lesson.
Chrissy is closer to my heart in terms of maximizing her opportunity. She asks Emeril if she can say “Bam!” as they stir their base. While I am confident Lagasse has heard this request literally thousands of times in his life, he still manages a genuine smile at the request, albeit a brief one. Colicchio’s Cooks are reverential of Tom’s requests. Even Carla, who possesses one of the most dominant personalities in the history of the competition, defers to him. Interestingly, Lagasse is much more famous but on Top Chef, Tom is anointed one.
Food preparations are angrier than normal. The space is tight, which leads Stefan to yell at John Tesar among others for being selfish with their work areas. I suspect this will not be the last time that the two gentlemen butt heads. Carla also has a run-in with Tesar, who calls her “Honey” enough times to get kneed in the junk.
The editing focuses upon a few players, which is the show’s manner of displaying the candidates for elimination/victory. Josie is worried about the time. The (apparently) returning player has selected a risky strategy to aid her team since she has immunity. Her turkey is not cooking in a satisfactory manner yet. My mother always says the same thing on Thanksgiving morning only to present the most delicious food in the world a few hours later. So I am not buying it.
Tyler reveals that when he is not being star struck by Emeril Lagasse, he is a recovering alcoholic. He is currently seven months sober, a commendable period of sobriety. As we all know, there is nothing funny about alcoholism unless the person is a celebrity (see: Mel Gibson). So I will move along to Kuniko who is, amazingly enough, having trouble with the clock once more after failing to produce a dish earlier. Surely to God she will not mess up the timing twice, right?
Carla is given a back story, which is rarely a good sign on the show. We learn that her parents died at a young age, which forced Carla to raise her siblings. I presume that this early instance of forced maturity is what led to her forceful personality. I also imagine that her siblings have never in their entire lives gotten a word in edgewise.
“That’s why I left Europe: European women.” – Stefan, who is still single, ladies! Don’t everybody hit on him at once.
Continued:
1
2
3
|
|
|
|
Print this column
