A few comments on the Season 10 premiere of America’s Next Top Model:
The show has upped the campiness this season. For the most part, it fell flat. The school girl ‘theme’ was childish and J. Alexander was about as believable as a school administrator as he would be playing the role of NFL quarterback. I think Tyra did a fairly good job camping it up as ‘prom queen’, though and some of the judging ‘camp’ was genuinely funny (such as the glasses of milk and request to keep them coming).
Starting off with 14 models likely means that a double elimination is ahead.
Returning to New York should help this show seem more credible as a modeling experience rather than an acting experience.
The contestants this season are as follows:
Amiee:
Amy: two ‘amy’ characters was not acceptable to Tyra so they were told to figure out a name change. Apparently, ‘Amy’ will be called ‘Amis’ going forward. Neither of these two stood out to me in episode #1. Both are very attractive, but are they unique enough to be models?
Allison: She looks like Sarah Silverman. She is clearly going to be attention seeking and, as such, a ‘troublemaker’. Her comment to prom queen Tyra about sleeping with her boyfriend shows that she is nimble minded, though. She should stick around for awhile.
Anya: One of several models that should qualify as ‘having a speech impediment’. I’m not sure if she was talking ‘surfer’ or ‘valley girl’ or what, but she sounded like she had a 3rd grade education. One of the weaker models in the looks department, I expect her to go home early.
Atalya: The 5th model with a name starting with the letter ‘A’. That is about how much she stood out for me in episode #1. Like the two Amys, she is very attractive, but maybe not ‘unique’.
Clair: Clair is the new mom. She lives in NYC anyway, so maybe she can sneak home and breastfeed when no one is looking? I understand why she is continuing to express milk, but why is she drinking it? This could give her a big advantage in the competition, though. When they ask her to be ‘more versatile’, she can actually change her breast size for each photoshoot.
Dominique: She was the last model that made the cut and she has spent most of the last 10 years of her life in the tanning booth. Every season casts at least one model that ‘looks like a drag queen’, so maybe that is her role of the season. I’m hoping that they just brought her in so they can teach the audience that tanning booth complexion is not attractive. Send her home soon.
Fatima: From Africa, it took no time at all to draw a line in the sand between ‘US African American’ and REAL African-American. Her setup/line about the ‘bi*@h’ was very funny. She showed a lot of articulate/intelligent thought and she cried like a baby when she first saw Tyra at judging. That shows that she has watched the show before and understands how to manipulate Tyra. The crying seemed completely fake to me, but Tyra is a sucker for people that worship her. On the other side of the coin, female circumcision does not equate with being unable to have sex with men. Either there is more to the story, or she doesn’t understand her sexuality. Either way, I’m not sure her ‘platform’ is something that the ANTM audience can relate to. This is a platform for ‘Miss Africa’ or ‘Miss Universe’, not Top Model. Anyway, her unique look, personal backstory, and intellect should keep her in this show for a long time. They just need to get rid of her hair so that she will look like a model.
Katarzyna: Maybe next week I will figure out how to say her name. She is the Ivy League model for this season as well as the ‘Eastern Block model’ for this season. She seems more interested in modeling than last season’s Ivy Leaguer and is a whole lot more articulate than Cycle 8 finalist, Natasha. She should be on this show for some time.
Kimberly: J. Alexander summed her up well as a good modeling mold for Barbie. She is good at acting dumb, but is it acting? Look for her in Abercrombie & Fitch ads some day soon. I can’t see her going far in this competition, but she would be perfect as the winner of a guest appearance on Gossip Girl. She could also be useful for an episode 'platform' on how to clear up your complexion.
Lauren: Every season casts a ‘tom boy’ and she is this season’s entry. Unique is entertaining, but are we really supposed to see ‘model’ in her?
Marvita: She fills the role of ghetto model this season as the other ghetto model didn’t make the cut. She will also share time with Dominique filling the drag queen role. She will probably stick around for awhile because this show loves to lift up the downtrodden, but I'd just as soon see the women that what to get into fist fights sent home early 9or never cast in the first place).
Stacy: She looks a whole lot like a young Robin Givens, but when she opens her mouth your eardrums will start to bleed. Her voice is even more squeeky/pippy sounding than Smurfette. For that reason alone, I hope she is voted off soon.
Whitney: Before this season started, I was tempted to predict that this would finally be the season where Tyra would crown a ‘plus model’. It is time for that ‘gimmick’ to play out. Whitney is perfect for the role because her body really isn’t out of tone/shape (like the stretch mark model that was cut), but her neck/face give off a ‘fat girl’ look. That is exactly what the plus model industry wants: models that ‘look fat’, but at the same time will look like they have good bodies in whatever clothes you put them in. That way, the ad viewer will believe that the clothes have the ability to make them look great, too. The thing is, even with all that going for her Whitney didn’t impress me at all.
Final comments:
The season premiere of this show really works better as a 2 hour event and I wish they would go back to that format.
The models in this season are definitely more attractive than in the past few seasons. Every last one of them, except Dominique, is more attractive than last season’s winner. This cycle’s cast seems taller, as well. Maybe Tyra has listened to the critics a bit and decided to get this show back to its roots?
I was disappointed not to see the new judge in episode #1. I’m looking forward to episode #2 for the return of Nigel and the introduction of our new judge, though. This show remains one of the premiere Reality shows on TV alongside Survivor and The Amazing Race.
