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The focus of Judges Table is understandably the issue of individual performance versus overall leadership. The judges clearly loved Lizzie and Brooke’s dishes. Either of them would have been a solid choice for overall winner if the women’s team had emerged victorious. Neither of them will be going home tonight. Yes, there is now a 50/50 chance that Kristen, the best player this season, will be eliminated because of Josie’s mistakes.

An intense conversation occurs as Tom tries to intuit what occurred with the broth. Josie throws the bus into bus into fifth gear and runs over Kristen as hard as she can. Repeatedly. The entire debate identifies the core issue that BOP’s Top Chef recappers have always mentioned with Restaurant Wars. The judging system in place seems to punish those who attempt too much while absolving those who take on too little responsibility.

Josie notes that Kristen helped her plate the broth. Ergo, the fault should be at the very least shared if not directed toward Kristen. She then mentions that she didn’t select the concept or the menu. Josie goes on to mention that she would have stuck to the original idea of the bouillabaisse. She specifically fails to mention why this occurred. Kristen’s leadership is the issue, not Josie’s sloth, right?

With each instance wherein Josie attempts to hide from accountability, Kristen steps up and embraces it. This is the personality trait that the best of us like Kristen possess while the worst of us like Josie make weak excuses. Tom does everything he can to key upon the right question to reveal the truth. Kristen refuses to take the bait again and again. She eventually mutters “Bite my tongue. Bite my tongue.”

Eventually, Kristen’s reticence to call out her teammate undoes her. In the biggest shock since the second episode of Top Chef All-Stars, Kristen is eliminated instead of Josie. The outrage factor on this decision is high and rightfully so. Colicchio himself acknowledges that he botched it.

The problem with the show’s format is that the judges are not made privy to the details of cooking preparation. Tom repeatedly attempted to ask Kristen why the broth dish failed. Only in the aftermath of the vote did he recognize what he should have asked. The correct question was, “Kristen, if Josie worked for you, would you have fired her for this performance?” As polite as Kristen may be, the honest answer to that question would have been “YES!”

Josie failed because that is what Josie has done all season. At least she is consistent. Now Kristen joins Bart in the “Unluckily teamed With Josie” portion of the Loser’s Bracket. The good news for Kristen is that she did what seven others had tried but failed to do. She defeated CJ at Last Chance Kitchen, so she is still alive in the competition. I for one am really looking forward to the next episode when Josie is eliminated and has to face the vindictive Kristen.

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