Every good reality show needs a villain. So I guess it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Nick, the Couture Teddy Bear (left), got the axe on last night’s Project Runway despite the fact that Santino’s disintegrating, ill-fitting pantsuit was clearly the worst outfit of the night (with Daniel V.’s tragic red-gold party dress not far behind).
Santino, who’s been a little less hateful (and a lot more human) the last few episodes — thanks in no small part to his dead-on Tim Gunn impersonations — returned to the dark side last night with a combination of delusional boasts (”I’m definitely one of the most talented people in that room”) and unnecessary pot shots at his opponents (”You can’t polish a turd”). Which would be all well and good if he had the design skills to back up his bravado, but let’s face it: Santino hasn’t turned out a knockout frock since Week 2. (And no, his gingerbread-house lingerie doesn’t count.)
That said, it’d be hard to defend the wrinkle-licious suit Nick designed for Daniel V. in this week’s challenge, which asked each of the designers to make-over one of their fellow finalists. Men’s pants with no pockets? Seams with more gather-ation than a stretch waistband on Thanksgiving? G-g-g-g-ghastly.
While I hate to see adorable Nick exit prematurely (his closing remarks about knowing his parents would be proud of his Project Runway performance moved me to tears), I have to admit he has seemed less enthusiastic about the competition with each passing week. And considering that Kara has yet to win a single challenge, I’d be surprised if she makes the final three, which means a likely showdown among Chloe, Daniel V., and Santino at Fashion Week. Despite really liking Daniel V.’s runway transformation this week, though, I’m still rooting for Chloe (with her innovative, wearable, and sexy designs) to go all the way – as long as she avoids any more shades of sky blue.
Who do you think should win this season of Project Runway? And who do you think will win?
I’m not the biggest Kara fan, but she should have won last night’s challenge. Her outfit for Santino was stylish, clever and suited him perfectly. Chloe’s was nice, but just not as innovative. As for Santino in the final three, it’s likely, particularly if you consider where Wendy Pepper ended up in last year’s show.
I had soooo picked Daniel, Chloe and Nick for the final three. I can’t believe that Nick’s outfit (with no pockets and poorly sewn) was worse than than Santino’s hideous jumpsuit (that had velcro and was falling apart at the seams, literally!!!) Santino is the demon spawn and don’t want him to even get a chance at fashion week. I will have to pull for Kara to knock him out. But when hell froze over last year with Wendy Pepper, Santino is a good shot to show. Argh!
Despite Nick’s poor showing, he was still robbed. Santino should have been kicked off several weeks ago but last night’s abomination makes me distrust the impartiality of the judges. The fans of the show want the best designer to win. We don’t care about fabricating a “villain” for the sake of dramatic tension. Klum & Company deserve a long, loud “boo” for this unpardonable breach. That said, Chloe deserves to win as she’s been the most consistently creative.
Santino’s desing was not only the ugliest of the night, it was the ugliest of the season. It made Guadalupe’s static-cling dress for Nicki Hilton look good.
Chloe’s was the best of this rather boring challenge. Kara’s would have looked ridiculous on anyone but Santino, and Nick’s was too ambitious. Daniel’s was disappointing, but not the total disaster the judges said it was. Not nearly as bad as Santino’s.
So how do you design an outfit that is ugly, ill-fitting, unflattering, and unfinished and not get booted off the show? Could it be Satan?
In the end, it will be Daniel, Chloe and Santino. The upsetting thing about this is that Santino has gotten so many free passes along the line, and then you see the opening of the credits where the judges’ scores and PRODUCERS input goes into deciding who’s out each week. They’ve kept the overbearing, self-centered, General Zod clone around at the expense of others who had an earnest desire to succeed, not just boast about POSSIBLY succeeding.
That said, ever since losing his model, Nick has been on a downward spiral and probably earned the nudge out the door so Chloe and Daniel can get ready to duke it out for the top spot in the end.
Why does Santino always feel like he has to do everyone else’s work for them and then complain about it? He took over both team challenges completely and then tried to play off his execution problems on someone else. Last night he blamed all the time he had to spend on Kara for his ugly jumpsuit not being finished. He knows the rules by now, finish your own work before you help. Kara should have one both last week and this week. I think you’re right about the producers – they clearly love Santino and hate Kara!
Daniel V. should win and will win. Santino is only being kept around for ratings. Plain and simple.
The judging on this season is so rigged. Yes, Santino might be an entertaining “Wendy Pepper” villian. And yes, Santino’s fashion week show would probably be pretty outrageous.
But since when does unsubstantiated future glory get anyone ahead in Project Runway? It’s all about the project *now*. Santino frequently overcooks his designs and undercooks his execution.
Look, the fabulous Austin Scarlet would have had a terrific fashion week show. But the judges realized that his stuff was gowns, gowns, gowns! And he simply could not be flexible in his own idea to meet the requirement of the weekly assignments.
The fact that he picked the same exact fabric as Austin in the “inspiration” challenge should have sent him packing. How does he keep dodging the bullet? He’s always the bottom two designers.
Now they almost *have* to have Santino make it to the final three. How dull would it be if Chloe, Kara and Daniel V were the final three?
Santino should have gone home a long time ago and, as adorable as Nick is, he really has not designed anything memorable in weeks. But, I don’t think the debate over which of those two should have gone home matters. The real competition is between Daniel and Chloe. Kara has done well for the past two weeks and with Santino’s designs, literally, falling to pieces it would be great to see his ego suffer the humiliation of missing the top three by one spot, especially to Kara. But, really, Chloe and Daniel have been the only designers who have consistently performed well and deserve to be the winner.
I agree that Kara is probably cannon fodder next week, but she’s had a couple of strong showings in a row. Good for her. She deserves to be in the final four. And so does Santino. Really, when was the last time you were wowed by anything Nick designed? The guy’s a sweetheart, sure, but he didn’t have a strong enough point of view or the drive to win this thing. (Maybe it’s the result of too many years as a teacher and “make it work” designer?) Santino, on the other hand, is one I think just might dazzle us with his Fashion Week collection (freed from the constraints of the made-for-TV challenges). I don’t really want him to win, but I’m curious to see what he’d present.
Sanitino stayed “in” because the guest judge liked his design. None of them liked Nick’s.
The guest judge was a celebrity stylist. Given the he liked Santino’s horrid, unflattering jumpsuit, all I can suggest to his clients is to fire him. The man has no taste.
Poor, sweet Nick. If there was ever a question of bias in the judging, last night should have settled it. Sure, the suit was imperfect, but worse than the lumpy, molting jumpsuit poor Kara was forced to have taped to her body? I don’t think so.
There was a lot I loved about this challenge, but my favorite thing was that it forced the designers to design for actual people. (It also gave us some insight into how much a the models do for the clothes- they display them rather than just wearing them, and I think that hides a lot of flaws.) I think that’s why Chloe and Kara did well; they may come off as dull on the runway sometimes, but it’s because they approach the clothes as things to be worn, not art that goes on a model. This is the second week in a row that Kara has come close to winning and I think that if she makes it into the final three (and I hope to God she does) it won’t be a fluke or an upset.
A few random observations:
- I hope anyone who was going to hire that ‘celebrity stylist’ is seriously reconsidering after that sampling of his tastes. Anyone who thinks that a woman would actually want to be seen in public in that jumpsuit needs to have his head examined. And then hit repeatedly with a bat.
- The vanity of Santino truly knows no bounds. Not only is he the greatest artiste in the world, he is also the most handsome man, as he noted after lapping up the compliments from the makeup artist, who then proceeded to transform him from General-Zod-does-Rasputin to that guy who runs the ring toss at the carnival and laughs at you every time you miss.
- Finally, a note to said designer: Insulting someone’s work and then laughing does not count as a joke. No fair getting pissy when they start to get offended.
i can’t tell who is going to win but i had nick and santino in the finals. daniel and chloe have really turned it on and either of them could take this! i will miss nick though
I heart Nick!!!! I didn’t think he would win it all but i did want him there for the final 3 – and maybe santino as number 4 – but kara is BORING – and nick was a lot more consistent than Santino – Santino has always been in the bottom 2 – the judges really messed up this time, I don’t even feel like watching it anymore now. Go Dan V.