Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Hell’s Kitchen: Ding Dong, Sara’s Gone
Hell, yes! No. More. Sara.
Woohoo!!!!!!!!!!!!
I practically did a happy dance. We both clapped and cheered. For something on TV! How lame is that? But it was Sara.
Okay, the challenge. That was cool. In retrospect, given that each construction worker was supposed to sample each dish and vote, as opposed to selecting what sounded good to them, the result was entirely predictable.
Heather went totally lowbrow, but chicken sandwich and fries is so… McDonald’s. While I love McDonald’s and it has a revered place as part of any normal person’s diet, it’s not going to win a “which is best” vote against, well, lots of things.
Conversely, Sara, whom I’d bet got the second lowest vote count, went weirdly highbrow. Quail? Hello!? Who eats Quail? Surely not many construction workers for lunch.
Keith had a shot, with his lobster and greens, but not everyone likes lobster, and fewer like greens.
Virginia, though… how all-American is a turkey sandwich? Without being traditional fast food. Take something most people love, fancy it up, but not over the top, and you’ve got a winner. Smart. She may fall apart every time she’s on the vegetable station, but apparently she can plan a menu people will enjoy, and relate to the public personably.
Every time she does something right, then she gets goofy. That was a cool prize, though; almost a grand worth of stuff. On top of a guarantee at the final three!
For the dinner service, Heather was amazing and showed why she was an early favorite. Keith only messed up in a minor way. I still see those two in the final, yet… the teaser previews for next week said we’ll be shocked (again) at who is eliminated. That would have to mean Heather or Keith, because Virginia wouldn’t be shocking.
Sara was bad. Really, majorly bad. Justifiably the one to go home even if Virginia weren’t safe bad.
Fascinating tactic, telling Virginia she was no longer safe. We assumed that was more ploy than true, and that turned out to be the case.
In the end, Virginia had only herself to challenge, and she did it. She’s at that “still growing up” age. When she had a choice to take herself out of it, or not, sending Sara home, she agonized but then you could see the mental switch flipping. We witnessed a life-changing moment right there on camera, in which everything changed for her, not just externally, but in her mind and her self-perception. Virginia lit up with it.
I may be rooting for Keith and expecting him to win. I may be impressed with Heather and not at all unhappy if she wins instead. But watching Virginia at that moment was one of the most compelling things this season. If that gives her the momentum and fortitude to compete as if she really belongs, who knows… The others are human too. Heather, especially, can break under pressure. Maybe it’ll be a completely unexpected Keith and Virginia finale. Maybe the trip to Vegas was indeed foreshadowing.
By the way, did I mention Sara’s gone? And I’m thrilled? Yes!!
Update:
Excellent commentary along similar lines, via Jen, who let Beth speak for her.