After a week of watching episode 1 over and over again, we're ready for the second episode. The episode starts off with models being chosen. Aha! The so-called spoiler of model Jia being injured on the way to the Final Three fashion show is not much of a spoiler, because who knows who she'll go with next. Model selection goes smoothly and, for the record, Jia is chosen by Vincent.
Heidi announces the challenging, by teasing that they will be designing a gown for an American icon. And it's Miss USA Tara Conner! Gothamist likes how Tara wore her tiara and sash, because no one would have known who she was without it. Well, maybe pageant and prom store owner Kayne, but now one else. That said, Tara is very cute and we can't believe she's just 20 years old. The winning dress will be worn by Tara at this weekend's Miss Universe pageant, and the designers freak out. Kayne is actually crying. Tara says the evening gown counts for one-third (!!) of the score, so it's serious stuff.
Back in the workroom, Tara explains what she wants in a gown: Something to elongate her, perhaps in monochromatic earth tones, nothing too boobalicious and no white. Tim says the designers get 30 minutes to sketch, then each will present their ideas to Tara, who will choose seven lead designers - and then the leads will choose a partner. Right off the bat, Angela decides she NEEDS to partner with Kayne, because he knows gowns and she doesn't. So she spends the 30 minutes of sketching time trying to convince Kayne that they would be a great team. And this doesn't escape the attention of the other designers, including Malan and Keith who look on curiously. God, we hate Angela so damn much - and she keeps giving us reasons to.
The designers meet with Tara, and God bless her, she's a patient thing. Notable things: Keith looks like he feels her up while Angela doesn't even come in with a sketch - she sabotages her chances of being chosen as a lead so she can, as another designer (maybe Keith or Jeffrey) said, "Ride someone else's coattails." AUGH! She's not even trying. Isn't this against the rules, producers? Angela tells Tara that she's going to ask questions and will sketch something there, and says, "Do you like empire waists?" and Tara says, "Uh, no..." and Angela is all "I got it." HATING HER.
Tara selects Kayne, Jeffery, Malan, Uli, Keith, Vincent and Laura to be designers (she calls Kayne a pageant freak!). Laura chooses Michael first, Kayne gets to pick a partner second and chooses Robert (he VOs that he would have chosen Angela if she hadn't harrassed him). And funnily enough, Angela was chosen last - leaving her with Vincent who hilariously says, "I'll take Allison." It's like the people with the funky glasses had to pair up! The other teams are Malan and Katharine, Uli and Bonnie, Jeffrey and Allison, and Keith and Bradley.
It's off to Mood to spend $300, and the designers gravitate towards shades of brown. Kayne picks an irridescent organza that looks purple as well as brown and green, and Jeffrey scoffs at it. But the real drama is Vincent and Angela arguing over things and Vincent pulling the "I'm the lead designer" shtick to get his way (rightly so, if only because Angela is hateful).
The workroom scenes are interesting for these reasons:
- Kayne and Robert get along very well, cracking each other up (their dress is gorgeous, by the way)
- Laura wanted to work with Michael because she though he'd call her on her shit
- Keith keeps reassuring Bradley that he's not phoning it in (Keith has immunity)
- Malan says that when he was little, he made all these sketches of dresses and showed his mother; his mother looked at a few and then told him he'd never be a designer and never to sketch again
- And Angela and Vincent are at each other's throats - total smackdown time and the extras
Tim Gunn likes Uli and Bonnie's dress, this drapey layered concoction. He has some suggestions for Kayne and Robert's dress which has a bustley ruffly detail at the hem. He's disappointed in what Vincent has so far (we can't tell what it is, but it's green), and Angela disavows any attachment to the dress when pressed by Tim. The dress from Malan and Katherine, though, is compared to a log, and it's so apt - it's brown material intricately ruched so it looks exactly like tree bark. Or a Buche Noel. Sew sew sew, rush rush rush, Vincent vs. Angela, yada yada yada, screaming, anguished faces, you get the picture. At the Atlas, Vincent and Keith bitch about Angela and then Jeffrey calls her a "Feminazi" which makes us think Jeffrey kinda stupid, because Angela wasn't being particularly feminist or nazi-ish - she's just horrible.
Runway day! While Katharine was excited about working with Malan to learn from him, now she's nervous because their design is too short and not that great. But they must present on the runway. Michael Kors is away, so Vera Wang is stepping in to judge, and along with Heidi and Nina Garcia, Tara Conner will judge, too. The dresses come out:
- From Jeffrey and Allison: A rather deconstructed looking gown with multiple straps, in different shades of beige and brown. Good for a cutting edge fashionista, but not good for Miss USA.
- From Keith and Bradley: A flowy chiffony dress in soft brown. It's an empire waisted dress, and it's pretty, but rather shapeless.
- From Kayne and Robert: *The* dress. It's beautiful - halter with so many rhinestones it looks like a necklace leads to the strapless dress with a ruffly hem. It's very pageant for the 21st century.
- From Malan and Katharine: Hmm. The bark corset top is very heavy looking, and the straight skirt is unfinished. You can tell the detailing took a lot of time, but it's off.
- From Uli and Bonnie: A flowing halter dress, with straps of twisted fabric and a low back, in a soft pale brown (with pink in it). It's very lovely, but there's no boob support.
- From Laura and Michael: A very simple dress sparkling with rhinestones; it has a more complicated drapping on the skirt that's very elegant looking... but not as splashy as we think Tara would want
- From Vincent and Angela: A very basic light green gown with a V-neck and protruding shoulder details. The back of the dress is very nice, but Angela's right - it does look like a designer could make in college. (We hate it when Angela's right!)
The judges ask Kayne/Robert, Malan/Katharine, Uli/Bonnie and Vincent/Angela to stay on the runway. Tara loves Uli's design - the cut, the color. The judges also really like Kayne's dress, though we can't tell if Tara loves it. Malan's and Vincent's dresses are the most problematic, with Vincent's dress being at least more wearable because it's more classic. Katharine says she shouldn't be sent home because it wasn't her design - it was Malan's, and Malan, to his credit, says he should be sent home if their dress loses. Whereas when Vincent and Angela defend themselves, it's balls-out bickering. Vincent said that the experience working with Angela was traumatic while Angela claims she did a lot more (to her credit, we only know what Bravo showed us, so maybe she did help more).
The judges name Kayne (and Robert) the winner! Tara says she will work that dress, and Kayne is walking on air. Heidi deems everyone safe except Malan and Angela. Angela is scolded for not working well with others while Malan is taken to task for a dress that's inappropriate. And then Malan is given the Auf Wiedersehen. No, not Malan! Angela is told she made it by "barely," and we can only imagine that she was needed so someone else could yell at her about macaroni art.
Poor Malan - he says he feels so ashamed now that he's been kicked off and he weeps. He's like a Tim Burton character - like Edward Scissorhands or Willy Wonka, all alone in the world and weird.
Be sure to check out Blogging Project Runway for all the PR scoop - including transcriptions of Tim Gunn's podcasts! (Tim Gunn got really angry at Vincent for not letting Angela help him, but "I was going to have to work with Vincent by hook or by crook anyways…and I have to say, Zulema he is not…I will take Vincent over Zulema any day!")
