I've been calling myself a genius lately, not for any real reason, just trying to boost my spirits a bit before the school year. Getting everything into my car at IKEA made me a genius, for instance.
I had rather a stroke of brilliance yesterday when I was helping my friends Carrie and Paul to move. They had this picture left by previous tenants of a statue of a bull licking the hand of a maiden sitting on his back.
"I bet it's Zeus and...um...Europa," says I.
Know what? It was. I used to be quite a classic myths freak, and even though I haven't studied them in quite a while, somehow I came up with the name Europa. You know the story...how Zeus changes into a bull to carry Europa away and seduce her...I was thinking that was linked to the Minotaur story but I am misremembering that; in fact Europa's daughter-in-law had the Minotaur, so it is still linked. I had the Europa part right. The statue's replica is at Cranbrook in Michigan.
Anyway, I am a genius.
The apartment is coming along. I stained/painted (as in, stain that thickened into paint as I worked) my coffee table blue on Tuesday and am looking forward to getting more whatnot over there from my living space. I need to make it all conducive to my work. My stove isn't on yet, though, so I'm crossing my fingers that happens soon. Then I can buy a tea kettle and make cocoa. I can't decide what appliances to buy...a second TV? with VCR or DVD? Microwave? It's all very light and airy, which I think will help me settle down and write or grade or whatever. And there's room for my dance barre. Hooray! At last!
Project Runway.
Was anyone else kind of bored with PR this week? It's a malingering feeling from previous weeks, too, actually. Somehow there's some zest missing this season. People are fighting, sure, but that's never that interesting to me anyway. It all seems...sullen or sulky in a way, no fire to it. The challenges should be interesting, but the material we're being given to watch just isn't living up to PR standards. Some have complained that we're not getting enough of the designs themselves, and I can see that point; we aren't shown much of the sketch-to-product timeline, we're not getting much Tim Gunn critique, and we don't see some designs at all (unless they're crumpled up on a table) before runway. I looked at the clock when Tim Gunn was finishing his round of the workroom, and it was 10:20...forty minutes left for the two hours they have in the morning and the runway show? No, no, no. It's all off. And a "personal" consultation with the TRESemme guy? Really not that interesting. Maybe fun for the designers, but it didn't make intriguing TV. Having the models pick their designers was sort of interesting, but it still didn't quite have the investment of, say, the wedding dress challenge of season 1. I liked seeing more of Michael, so that earlier complaint is taken care of, but seriously. The show needs some life that isn't grumpy. I'm starting to like Angela more just because she has some energy!
As an additional, but unrelated complaint, the PR website is a disaster. I know I've mentioned that before, but today they have Tim's Take divided up into eleven separate little pages, which will take forever to navigate, and it's still in that tiny little print. WAKE UP, BRAVO!
Anyway, they've indicated that the next few challenges are going to be really tough, so let's hope they're not lying. I want to see grit, not just insecurity.
Okay, spoilers section.
I was glad Michael won. His outfit wasn't my favorite, but it was very sassy and I think he had one of the biggest design challenges with his icon. Pam Grier is such a strong personality, and he did really well with her. I really liked Angela's dress this week, actually wish I owned it, and the aforementioned element of fun in her life radiated from that dress. Laura created the perfect Katherine Hepburn outfit, smooth and not fancy, because Kate didn't like fancy all that much. Kayne also came through with his "dark Marilyn" ensemble, and Uli once again showed mastery of prints, though I'm starting to want a little more variety from her.
I didn't think Vincent's outfit was too bad this week, but Bradley's was a clear disaster. Poor Bradley. I don't feel like I ever saw his real design personality. I'm scared for Robert. He's letting the comments infect him, and he's really shaky right now. He has great talent, but he's too scared to use it to meet a challenge. That being said, his outfit wasn't terrible, and I actually didn't think he needed the scare of the bottom two this week, when that spot should have been Vincent's. Jeffrey...not so much for me this week. I wasn't gung-ho for Alison, either, though it was closer to the good side than the bad. Let's call both of them indifferent.
3 comments:
Some say Laura played it safe, but honestly, that's what her look was supposed to be: clean lines, elegant, subtle, well made, classic. She shouldn't have been ignored. I wanted to drop 10-15 pounds and buy that outfit for myself. I rated the look "5" for hotness on the PR website.
I agree that there's been an emphasis on the typical reality-TV bickering. I want to see more of the creation process. That's why a lot of fans came to the show in previous seasons: Project Runway was something different; contenders were rewarded for their self-discipline, techniques, and creativity, and that's the process we want to see.
Also, the constant product naming and placement -- Tresemme and L'Oreal -- has become laughable. I'm even embarassed that I drive a Saturn sometimes, because poor Tim Gunn has to whore them out so blatantly. At least he got to take his Saturn to the Cloisters and find some peace, albeit on camera.
--SECP
I am in 100% agreement with you...first about the sleek but sassy garment by Laura, then the bickering, then the product placement, which has been decidedly worse this season, even down to that "get the look" commercial that is the same every time. I think I've seen it about eight times. Why do you suppose the whoring has escalated so much?
I think the whoring has increased because, due to internet buzz, the marketing execs finally realized what a hot show it was. However, these same marketing execs don't realize that the information-savvy, fairly cosmopolitan Gen-Xers the show tends to appeal to (in my observations, anyway) are more alert and resistant to pushy, cheesy marketing.
Marketing execs are the ones who came up with the Head On commercial. Blunt repetition and bright graphics. It wasn't even meant to be funny. "Project Runway" viewers are more like the Slate columnist who analyzed the Head On commercial.
I mean, I'm sure there are lots of young women out there who'll buy L'Oreal instead of Cover Girl because of Project Runway's ads, but there are lots of us who are just rolling our eyes, snarking about the ads, and heading to the kitchen for snacks.
--SECP
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