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"The Big Payday" -
November 30 We
are down to Rob and Jon (and Kevin, but he's the mole,
so he can't win). One of the first 2 people will be
stuffed with a $100,000 contract and a new career for
Thanksgiving. The other one...will feel like a real
turkey.
The two finalists make their way to New York, where they
are shown the sights as they tour the city. They go
through Rockefeller Center as Kevin notes that
everything is faster in New York. Rob is thrilled to be
in NYC as they hit Radio City Music Hall and St.
Patrick's Cathedral. Rob really wants to work here,
while Jon is still...stoked.
They grab food at the Carnegie Deli as the owner wonders
why he can't get into the calendar. Heh. They gawk at
the mountains of meat that they are provided with and
they are all stuffed when they get out of the deli.
We get Bruce repeating the mantra of 'City Boy' Rob Vs.
'Jungle Boy' Jon before going into the first challenge.
They go into a room where they see three colored
cardboard boxes. Attached to each one has a note, saying
'You're wardrobe for tomorrow'. 'Uh-Oh' says Rob, as he
opens up the box. He has good reason to say 'Uh-Oh', as
in the box is....bracelets, and nothing more. 'Screw
this, This is my wardrobe' says Kevin, as he takes both
pieces of cardboard box and wraps it around his torso.
Good think, there Kevin. It's not going to work, but
good thinking, anyways.
How are the guys going to handle it? Jon doesn't want to
do it, but he asks Father to forgive him as he's will do
it, adding that he thinks that Rob will have no problem
doing it. Jon...is right, as Rob says 'I can be naked
doing this. You guys can bow out now.'
Kevin thinks that Jon has the look while Rob has the
confidence to expose themselves. Bruce says that Kevin
now has to expose himself...as the mole judge. Before
that happens, most of the models from earlier come back
to surprise everyone. Maurice comes out first and tells
them all that one of them will be eliminated right now -
then he says 'psyche' as the rest of the models file in.
Jason tells them that ROb better win - because he has a
lot of money bet on him. Paolo is happy to see everyone
while Kevin O comes back to hug Kevin P. They tell Rob
and Jon that Tate missed his flight - but they were
pulling a joke on him and Tate does show up.
The eliminated models want the finalists to make a
speech. Rob says that he's happy about the friends that
he's made, and he thinks that the people who didn't do
well in the competition will do well in other areas. Jon
is psyched to see everyone and says that he has memories
of all of them during his journey through the
competition.
Then it's Kevin's turn. 'I have something I have to tell
everybody...I'm going to be dropping out of the
competition...I'm not who you think I am. The truth is,
the only thing you really know about me is my name. I've
actually been modelling professionally for the past few
years now and I represented the U.S. in the 2003 Male
Modelling Competition, in which I placed second
runner-up.' The guys are laughing at him, wondering how
he could be in that competition (and frankly, so do I),
but the light bulb seems to be going off in Tate's head.
Continuing on - 'Ever since Day 1, we've been all living
together, interacting, and I've been watching everybody.
I've been reporting to the judges on all of your
eliminations.' He shows everyone the footage, adding
that everything in terms of his judging has been
impartial. They then show footage of him criticizing
everybody, and that can't get him many points with
everyone. It doesn't, as everyone curses him out.
He says that it's down to two people, and he'll see them
all at the elimination. He walks off, leaving the models
stunned. Kevin O. thinks that he deserves an award,
while Tate feels betrayed. You don't hear anyone else,
but the perception is that the models did feel that he
was biased - as did I. We'll talk more about that later.
Back to Jon and Rob, who are asked if they can pull it
off to win it all, while wearing nothing? Well, the
letter that they get asks them that, and Jon's response
is no. He packs up and says that he's not going to do
it. Rob tells Jon to not give up, as he tells him that
Marissa had a shoot that she wouldn't pose nude in. Rob
says that he doesn't want to win by default, and tries
to get Jon to do the shoot. Message to Rob - if the last
person who is between you wants to quit the competition,
YOU LET THEM QUIT.
Kevin talks about how people should be comfortable - but
they should always be hesitant in terms of who they
should be photographing for - or everyone is going to
want a nude pic of you. Foreshadowing?
The guys take a taxi - in their robes - and visit Karl
Simone, who will be their photographer. He hasn't
convinced Jon to do the nude shoot, but after Rob takes
a look at his website, he is game. Karl reiterates that
there won't be any private parts shown and Rob is cool
to go while Jon says to not expect any promises.
The shots will be with them in a chair - which has Jon
wondering why they have to be nude if they are sitting
in a chair. It gets to the point that Bruce calls up
Jon, who says that the Kevin Peake reveal and then this
makes them feel that he is being taken advantage of.
Bruce then speaks to Rob, who is very comfortable with
it.
Rob goes first, and he is tilted across for the shoot.
You can't see any naughty bits, though the photographer
seems to be a little irritated with him. Karl says that
Rob was completely comfortable with himself, which was
very important. They finish the shoot without a problem.
The focus now shifts back to Jon, who says that he will
do it - if everyone is cleared out and only him and the
photographer are there. Karl says that he's cool with it
and Jon decides to 'crank it out and get it over with'.
He clears out everyone and Jon indeed goes through the
shot. He immediately puts the towel back on and he likes
what Karl did. Karl thought Jon was great, and Jon
thought that after that shoot, he could do anything.
Can he win the competition? They get a note that tells
them they they will know tonight who wins. They both get
one final interview with the IMMG executives, who have a
hand in deciding who wins. Rob says that the best part
of the experience was the interaction with the
photographers and a vision of their experiences.
Jon is up next, and he finds Bruce in the portfolio of
models. He says that he gets excited about each shoot.
He also asks if there are shoots that he doesn't have to
do if he doesn't want to - and they say yes. They thank
him and send him on his way.
Both models pack - and each one talks about how they
think the other one will win. Way to have confidence,
guys. After everything is packed up, they go downstairs
and see their final shots. Bruce talks about how they
both will have long careers in the business. Marissa
said that she thought form the beginning that Rob and
Jon would be the last 2 people left. They both see each
other's gallery and wish themselves good luck one more
time as Carmen comes to congratulate them both.
Both models get one more judging session. The judges are
Bruce, Marissa, Kevin, and the two interviewers from IMG
- Martha North and Chris Forberg. We start with... Rob.
Bruce loves the nude shot and has redeemed himself since
the train wreck. He loves how he wears his clothes and
loves the evolution. Marissa still has the feminine
issue with him, but she likes the attitude and strength
in the final photo. Martha does see that he's still
uncomfortable and Bruce is going to send him to Runway
School. Chris doesn't like the forehead, while Kevin
thinks that Rob has done a great job.
Now, Jon - Bruce likes how he pulled it together for the
last run and he has a great set of work. Marissa loves
the photo. Kevin likes the nudes as well, but the height
could be an issue. Chris wants a different expression
besides a straight-on look, though he says that height
can be adjusted. Marissa wants to know how bad he wants
it - and what it's going to be like when he's on the
road. Kevin wants to know where the fire is. Jon says
that it's his personality - and he really wants it
badly.
Bruce gives Carmen the final envelope - and tells them
all that they have both been incredible. Carmen says
that she will miss everyone and she wishes them all the
best. She tells Jon Johnson...congratulations, he won!
Jon is shocked and drops his face in his hands, adding
that he's freaking out right now. Rob says that he will
continue to pursue modelling and he wishes Jon the best
in his success.
Marissa hugs Jon, asking him if he is glad that he got
naked. Jon says yes and hugs him. Bruce says that 'It's
hard to find a great model, but he have him. His name is
Jon Johnson'. Marissa says all of the girls love him,
and they all toast to his success. 'I'm looking forward
to getting to know the executives at IMG...Everyone
needs their break. I think I definitely got it with this
show.' We then see a slideshow of all of his photos, and
then we fade to black.
My Take? Well, I think that the selection of Jon is the
right move. However, the way they got there was far from
it. I think that Kevin Peake, contrary to popular
belief, was very biased, as everyone who was against
what he did in the first episode was eliminated one by
one - especially in episodes where the only reason we
got for people to leave was that they weren't model
type. The real reason may as well have been 'well, Kevin
told us to get rid of them'.
I didn't buy Kevin's 'impartiality' and neither did the
audience, as the ratings on this show quickly vanished.
It's too bad, because the show itself isn't that bad.
Unfortunately, the biggest part of a game is how 'fair'
it is, and this fails miserably. This one gets a C-, and
Kevin Peake gets an F.
I would like to thank the model audience for reading the
recaps. We are not done with the BRAVO shows, however,
as I will also be recapping Project Runway. We'll see in
24 hours if that show can survive this recapper's cut. |