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October 25, 2006: Lychee-gate
To keep the lychees or to return them? That is the question. Part of me (the evil part of me) was thinkin' Otto's mistake was telling Marisa they may have accidentally pocketed the crate of lychees for free in the first place. Before we get into the nitty-gritty of this scandal, I have to say I've never heard the word "lychee" uttered so many times in a one-hour period; it was positively dizzying. And is it "lee-chay" or "lye-chee"? Since Otto was the only one committing to "lye-chee," I'm gonna go with everyone else. Anyway, yes, it was a problem that Otto's conscience didn't let him return the goods immediately. But am I the only one who really, really hoped it'd be Marisa who'd get the boot? By the end of the episode, I was almost willing to overlook Otto's lapse in judgment in order for her to "pack her knives and go." Her crimes: 1) her not taking complete responsibility for her gelatinous disaster of a dessert (when Chef Ming Tsai called it "a hockey puck," I laughed so hard); 2) her twisting Otto's words to make them seem even more damning; and 3) that smuggy-smuggerson look on her face when Otto was confronted with his mishandling of the situation. Sure, the producers may have used a little creative editing and snuck that smugshot (new word) in there, but at one point she had that look on her face. And for that, I wanted her gone. Harsh? Maybe. It took him longer than it should have, but at least Otto finally came around and took responsibility for what he did; I was a bit shocked he took himself out of the competition. I may have been misreading this, but it seemed like Tom had it out for Marisa and her dessert. Bet he was ready to eliminate her.
Quickfire Challenge: Make Sushi in 30 Minutes
Winner: Cliff
This was such a difficult challenge. Beyond difficult. I take my hat off to Michael for creating a dish even though he had never prepared sushi before. I was totally impressed with all the wannabe top chefs for making their dishes look good and, for many of them, taste good, too. All this activity came after an obscenely early 4:30 am wake-up call and a trip to the fish market. Josie was two for two in this episode. She said sushi was "her thing" and she was well versed in the ways of Vietnamese food (see Elimination Challenge). Frank knew the proper way to greet guest judge Chef Hiroshi Shima, who's the Corporate Executive Chef for Katana and Sushi Roku — a restaurant I love, by the way. I am so happy Cliff won the challenge.
Elimination Challenge: Teams Must Make One Hot Dish and One Cold Dish in a Korean or Vietnamese Style
Winner: Team Vietnam and ultimately Betty
Why is it that in reality-TV competitions, it always seems there's one team that has its act together and one that's totally, utterly a mess. Team Korea came up with the genius idea to drink sangria while coming up with their menu. I appreciate a nice glass of sangria as much as the next person, but while you're coming up with the all-important menu for the challenge? Don't think so. The chaotic group did manage to wow the judges with their spicy braised pork as opposed to Team Vietnam's pork pho. Loved how Gail made sure she asked who was responsible for Team Korea's dessert, or should I say, who was to blame for the dessert. From the beginning to the end of the challenge, it was clear Team Vietnam was going to win, even though the judges made it seem like the competition had been more balanced. Betty's contagious smile put her team over the top, plus they came up with the cool cucumber-and-aloe refresher the judges (especially Padma) seemed to like. Josie's "rah rah" perkiness was a bit grating at times, however.
Frank scored some points with me when he not-so-eloquently scolded Team Korea for its lack of cohesiveness: "It's a team. And if you don't back your teammates, you might as well shove your head up your ass." Well said, Frank, well said. And, finally, kudos to my sister as well as SmilingFan35 for calling out Marcel's Wolverine 'do. You two are so right.
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Oct 26, 2006 4:45 AM
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I can't decide if I like this show. Since there's nothing else on, I'll probably keep watching it, but it's no project runway. I wouldn't have eaten most of the food cooked. I don't like seafood, I wouldn't even consider eating it raw, and liver is gross.
The pork last night was probably good though.
I disagree with most of your assessments of the people. Frank was annoying at the end. I was glad that otto quit. He didn't need to be there he's a liar. And he STOLE! The rest of the team shouldn't have had to take credit for that, like frank seemed to think they should. I think he knew about it the entire time. I wouldn't put it past him to ahve hidden it a little on the bottom of the cart on purpose. He seemed like that kind of a guy.
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Oct 26, 2006 10:31 AM
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I agree with you, I too think that Marisa should have gotten the boot, her whole attitude stunk with her continually trying to throw her teammates under the bus. Frank was a true team player! And right now, you have to act as a team if you want to get anywhere.
What I believe Otto said was: "I think we got this case of lychees free?" If Marisa was so concerned about it, something should have been said before they left the market - not after they got back to the kitchen. And than at the end when they were questioning her about her dessert she took offense at it and told off her other female teammate (i can't remember her name). I loved Chef Ming Tsai calling her on the carpet for it ; "did you taste it?" I hope I'm not the only one who thought Chef Ming was an extremely handsome chef - he can cook for me anytime...  until next week!
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Oct 26, 2006 11:00 AM
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Love this show. Hate Marissa. Marcells hair is stangely aerodynamic.
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Oct 26, 2006 11:28 AM
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What I believe Otto said was: "I think we got this case of lychees free?" Posted by lazygrl
I had the closed captioning on. Acutally he said we got the case for free. No "think" came out if his mouth. He stole it.
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Oct 26, 2006 11:36 AM
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Leah, don't get me wrong. I'm not an Otto fan. But ultimately, I really wanted to see Marisa gone more than I wanted to see Otto gone. I really hope she doesn't last too much longer.
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Oct 26, 2006 11:42 AM
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Lychee-gate. I love the title of your blog. Great Recap. This episode to me raised some questions like since Otto took himself out, could the judges have then turned around and still eliminated Marisa for her horrible dessert?
I do love the show. I don't have a clear favorite yet. I will say that there are definitely some characters though. Marcel and Ilan are emerging as both being rather arrogant. Frank seems like a little bit of a loose cannon and Michael seems to have some issues too.
I agree that Marisa needs to go. Isn't she the one that said she was going to use her looks to get her farther? I don't think that is going to work. LOL
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Oct 26, 2006 12:57 PM
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When I first saw Marcel's hair, I first thought of Syndrome from The Incredibles, since it's got that wind blown look. But yeah, there's definitey some Wolverine in there !
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Oct 26, 2006 1:48 PM
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Thanks for the kudos Tina!
I also agree that Marissa should have said something before they left the store instead of waiting until they got back to the kitchen to say something. How she went about resolving this issue wasn't mature. To tell other people and then tell Tom without addressing it with Otto first? That just bugged me and didn't make her look any better than Otto.
And Ming was gorgeous last night...
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Oct 26, 2006 2:19 PM
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thanks for the clarification on what exactly Otto had "muttered" - i still think that if it was that big of a deal w/Marisa she should have brought it up at the market instead of later. I'm not condoning what Otto did - just saying that it should have been up on a 1x1 rather than the way it happened. I think Marisa should have gone along w/Ottto.......
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Oct 26, 2006 2:48 PM
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thanks for the clarification on what exactly Otto had "muttered" - i still think that if it was that big of a deal w/Marisa she should have brought it up at the market instead of later. I'm not condoning what Otto did - just saying that it should have been up on a 1x1 rather than the way it happened. I think Marisa should have gone along w/Ottto.......
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Oct 26, 2006 2:52 PM
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It bothered me that Marisa didn't say or do anything about the lychees until they got back, and then pretended to be all outraged about it. She wanted to put all the blame on Otto, but she knew about it before they left the store and since she didn't say or do anything at that time she's really just as guilty as Otto. I thought they both deserved to go.
TeleVamp - Yeah, I though Syndrome as well, with a touch of Wolverine's sideburns. Maybe he's their bastard love child... who knows? LOL!
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Oct 26, 2006 5:05 PM
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I love this show, but my main problem remains with the host. She's just as bland and forgettable as the host they had last year. It really makes you appreciate the spark Heidi Klum brings to Project Runway when you see how dull these hosts can be.
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Oct 27, 2006 9:25 AM
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Leah_bh - they re-aired the show last night and Otto definitely said "I think we got the lychees for free" - the caption clearly showed the word think and you could also hear him state it audibly. You need to watch the show again.
Marisa is the one who should have gone home. She turned on the team and tried to blame others when ultimately it was her fault they lost the challenge - the judges stated they lost because of the dessert.
Betty is my favorite so far. She has a great personality and seems to work well with others - which is important when you are a chef.
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Oct 27, 2006 11:40 AM
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