Egomilio Sosa
Emilio Sosa
Growing up, and for many years thereafter, I have been told that people who exhibited arrogance were clearly just trying to compensate for a feeling of inferiority or for a lack of self-esteem. In the case of Emilio Sosa, I’m not so sure. I finally was able to watch the season finale of Project Runway, as well as the reunion show that took over the Models of the Runway slot. And of the whole hour and half I was most struck by Emilio’s incredible ego and by his incredulity at his loss to Seth Aaron. He just didn’t seem to get that someone was judged to be better than he.
It was these two shows that convinced me — as if I hadn’t already realized this — that I care just as much about the personality of the designers as I do about the clothes. In this respect, Emilio and Mila were always low on my list to support. All in all, I may have liked Emilio’s clothing the best. Seth Aaron’s still looked overworked, if perfectly fitted. I actually found Mila’s collection much more appealing than was the sum total of what she had produced on the season thus far. But all in all, not as impressive as Emilio or Seth Aaron.
But what most impressed me about the whole fiasco was Emilio’s arrogance. And this after a season of cockiness: refusing to listen to Tim’s advice; constantly boasting that he was the one to beat; crowing when he won consecutive challenges. He seemed shocked that Seth Aaron had won. Not disappointed, as would be warranted, but stunned. He then committed his greatest error. He said, “In the words of our wisest competitor this season, Anthony Williams, you don’t have to win the crown to be the king.” Loyal watchers will know that this was decidedly not what Anthony said. Because Anthony is a camp goddess he was not only trying to make light of his elimination but also to poke fun at his own flamboyance and the fact that he would, like a good queen, carry on no matter what. Emilio, in exchanging queen for king, was not only erasing half of Anthony’s meaning, but also trading in the sentiment to say that he not only would be, but also already was the best, no matter what the judges said. First of all, this is remarkably cocky (and he continued by talking about the “worldwide” esosa brand he was going to be establishing). Second, the degaying of the remark is a little offensive. Is Emilio Sosa gay? I have no idea. (I do know that asking that question is going to result in ten hits per day. Update: He’s gay. Check out the comments below.) Is he an unmarried male fashion designer? Indeed he is. So either he’s gay and a little self-loathing and hung up on his masculinity, or he’s a mildly homophobic straight guy. In either case he paid homage to Anthony and then stripped him of his gayness, which is pretty difficult to do with Anthony.
His behavior on the reunion show only confirmed his arrogance. While he was willing to “accept” Nina’s explanation for Seth Aaron’s victory (that Emilio had created a line and not a collection), that he had to question her in the first place just demonstrated how much he didn’t get it: no matter how much they liked you, Emilio, they liked Seth Aaron better. Simple as that.
Parallel 17
Where is my post evaluating the season finale of Project Runway, you might be asking yourself. Where indeed? I had to attend an odious work function on Thursday night and so missed what I had thought was only going to be a reunion show. I was wrong. It was the finale. And it’s still not on the Lifetime website. Of course I know who the winner is and I’ve watched the brief clips of the collections, but I have yet to see the actual episode or the reunion episode that apparently aired in the MotR slot. Dear reader, I am without a DVR. So I await Lifetime’s decision to include the finale on mylifetime.com.
In the meantime, I can share with you the dinner that Alastair and I had last night. We ventured out in the wind and the rain to one of our longtime faves, Parallel 17, the Vietnamese restaurant named for the line of latitude that once separated North from South Vietnam and presumably for the fact that it’s on 17th Avenue (at Franklin). We haven’t been to P17 in a while and the menu has changed somewhat; it seems like there are more appetizers but perhaps fewer entrées. That said, there seemed to be a number of specials we overheard servers telling their tables about; we were not informed of these ourselves (!). No great loss, as our meal was very tasty! We began with the calamari, which P17 serves with deep-fried slices of jalapeños, oranges, and other citrus fruits as well as a salad of watercress and a tangy dressing. Delicious. We followed that up with an order of the steamed pork buns, themselves served with a spicy cilantro and cabbage slaw. These appetizers, it must be said, are not small.
Braised Short Ribs with Chinese Broccoli, Potatoes, and Onion Rings
We would have been fine splitting just one entrée but of course we had already ordered two. And they, too, were generous. This was the rare moment where your DOD boys were unable to clean their plates (or, in my case, cutting board). Alastair ordered the coffee-braised short ribs, which he’d had before. They come with a potato purée, onion rings, and Chinese broccoli that looked very green and very tasty.
Duck Four Wraps
I ordered the “Duck Four Wraps”: duck prepared four ways (rillette, mousse pâté, pan seared, and confit) and about a million other things (pickled onions, radishes, garlic; scallions, jicama, basil, and on and on). All of this one wraps up in four pancakes. So. Much. Food. All of it very good indeed, particularly the confit (skin so crispy!) and the pâté, which was so rich I couldn’t finish it. Alastair and I paired our meals with two different glasses of dry Italian white chosen from P17′s good selection of wines by the glass.
P17 was awarded Westword’s Best Nouvelle Vietnamese in 2008; I wonder of course whether or not Denver actually provides much competition in this category. Regardless, the food is delicious, the service is friendly (even if only certain diners get told about the specials), and the ambiance — save the TV featuring the basketball game (why do ALL Denver restaurants have TVs for showing sports? The subject for another post) — is warm and pleasant. Especially on an evening of gusting winds and occasional rain.
What Would Madonna Do?
Usually, date a younger man.
I’ve become a recent fan of Glee. I know. I’m a little behind the times… and maybe that’s one reason why I need to date a younger man. I’m not sure how I missed the show boat, but I finally jumped on board during a recent stop in Natchez, Mississippi and I’m along for the ride… all the way to New Orleans. I really can’t help loving that man of mine.
And my timing could not have been better. Glee’s “Power of Madonna” episode–its best-reviewed and most eagerly anticipated segment to date–aired last night. After all the hype, Glee delivered the goods. Not only were the musical numbers fun and creative, but the storylines about sex, strength, confidence, independence, and individuality all worked well with the theme. I must admit, I’m a Madonna fan, but certainly not her biggest. However, watching her Rejuvination Re-Invention Tour from the front row with my best gal pal Leona back in 2004 was a life changing experience.
In last night’s episode several of the pop idol’s hits such as ”Ray of Light,” “Express Yourself,” “4 Minutes,” “What It Feels Like for a Girl,” and “Like a Prayer” were strewn throughout the story. Sue Sylvester’s spin on Madonna’s “Vogue” was a highlight. You can watch it here.
After this, what can we expect for the rest of the season? I don’t know, but I’m going to be watching to find out.
Dixie Carter, 1939-2010
Dixie Carter as Julia Sugarbaker
As children of the 1980s and as homosexuals of the male variety, we would be remiss if we did not acknowledge the passing of the great Dixie Carter, who died last week at the age of 70. No one, but no one, could do a tirade like Carter in her role as Julia Sugarbaker on the classic sit-com “Designing Women.” Along with “The Golden Girls,” the ladies of “Designing Women” kept 1980s proto-gay boys company through the trying years of middle school. And for that we will be forever grateful.
Dixie Carter, we will miss you.
Project Runway Final Three
So last night’s episode of PR was, it must be said, a bit of a snooze. Tim’s visits to the finalists’ hometowns were much more abbreviated than usual. The only meal we witnessed was the sampling of Filipino delicacies with the Sario clan. We did, however, get to see Mr. Gunn on a trampoline and that might have been worth the price of admission. Otherwise, however, not so thrilling.
Brandise and Mila
The reason for tuning in, of course, was to find out which of the two possible semi-finalists — Mila or Jay — would make it to Bryant Park (Seth Aaron and Emilio are already in). It kills me to say this, but I was actually torn after watching about half the episode. I have spent the better part of this season loathing Mila and her clothing. But somehow I turned last night. Maybe it was that I find all of Jay’s crying a little trying. Or that I don’t like the idea of an all male final three. Maybe it was that I didn’t actually mind a couple of the coats that Mila had created. Or that I kind of love that she has a dorky boyfriend and a dalmatian (color blocked!). Perhaps it was because I agreed with Tim that much of Jay’s collection was seriously overworked. Whatever the reason, I think I might actually have been rooting for Mila when it came time for the final pronouncement. I really felt like it could have gone either way. Both Mila and Jay had some good pieces and some missteps: the collar of the sparkly dress for Mila and the hideous shiny silver shirt in the case of Jay. And while Mila won, I think it might all be a moot point: my guess is that neither one stands much of a chance against Emilio and Seth Aaron.
If PR was a bit pokey last night, then MotR was even more boring. Without a real elimination, there just wasn’t much drama. So Brandise created it! I’m starting to wonder if she’s being given prompts by the producers, because asking each designer to name the one s/he believed was most talented (aside from oneself) seemed like a ridiculous exercise in awkwardness. Of course it came back to bite Brandise in the ass when the models themselves had to answer the same question and Christina and Lorena both chose each other, leaving Brandise out in the cold with Emilio.
Here at DOD we’re very curious to see who will take the top prize but it looks like next week is the obligatory reunion show…
Kalinda
Archie Panjabi as Kalinda Sharma
I’ve posted about The Good Wife before but I am feeling the need to extoll its virtues once again, and particularly those of Archie Panjabi, who plays the character of Kalinda Sharma. Kalinda is an investigator for the firm of Stern, Lockhart, and Gardner. And she is, in a word, fantastic. The writers have made her character multilayered, devious, conniving, intelligent, sexual, and saucy. In short, she is not simply a bit player but has all the complexity of a (particularly interesting) real woman. And as one of about five Indian women on American television in speaking roles (fewer?), that’s no small feat (Panjabi is British, though plays an American on this show). That Panjabi manages to make the most of what the writers provide for her is, of course, all to her own credit.
Viewers may remember the episode when Kalinda was a witness and manipulated the judge into dismissing the testimony she did not want to be giving. She did this by making not-so-very veiled hints about the judge’s own sexual proclivities (which included reenacting scenes from plantation life with African American prostitutes). It was genius. Last week’s episode featured another true gem. Kalinda is at a college gym and wants access to a locker. She’s dealing with a college kid or perhaps assistant coach who works there.
Kalinda: You got the keys?
Coach Kid: Don’t you need a warrant or something?
K: Yeah, if I were a cop. I can get bolt cutters in here but it’d be easier if you just opened it.
CK: So you’re not a cop?
K: No.
CK: And you’re not with campus police?
K: Unh uh.
CK: So who are you?
K: Kalinda
And he opens it! Not only does the writing make fun of the way that we all, schooled in cop shows, think we know what to ask in such a situation, but it also points out that we wouldn’t know quite what to do when faced with answers like Kalinda’s. And as preposterous as it sounds, you believe it. Or, at the very least, her performance is so good that you’re thrilled into wanting to believe it. And that’s pretty much the same thing.
“That was a bit of a shock, yes?”
Where do I begin? Episode 11 of Project Runway, “Sew Much Pressure” was like no other this season. You may be thinking to yourself, doesn’t Blake typically writes the PR/MoTR entries? Yes, dear DOD readers, Blake does. However, the shock was too much for Blake who was “too upset by Cerri’s leaving and Brandise being a bitch” to write anything this week. So here is my attempt:
The remaining designers were charged with creating a red carpet look for a very opinionated celebrity who asked to be “on the best dressed list, not the worst dress list.” Really… I thought all celebrities yearned for the moment they would be on the worse dressed list. I guess that’s better than not being on any list at all. Just saying. I was more confused by Lifetime’s inability to find a willing celebrity… and decided to recycle the pregnant Klum for yet another challenge. Marie Claire cover, anyone?
"I will not have a bump so think of me without the bump."
There was plenty of drama, however, to distract me from this. Seth Aaron’s model Valeria decided to take a high-paying gig with DKNY… and Cerri got to return! Even more surprising, Maya, after a lengthy disappearance, announced that she was dropping out of the competition. She was somewhat upset with not winning a challenge, but everyone was stunned. And so was I… until I found out that Anthony got to come back! And in his own words, “Who wouldn’t want Anthony back? Heck who doesn’t like him, I like him.” It reminded me of when the fabulous Chris March got booted and returned in Season 5. I could not have been happier to see him return. Last week was heartbreaking.
And Miss Thang is back.
Emilio and Anthony impressed the judges so much that they both won. Emilio’s sequined gown was constructed without a flaw. The shimmering fabric wasn’t my favorite, but it fit beautifully. Anthony’s black-and-white gown embodied, in my mind, classic Hollywood glamour and let’s be honest, this was a challenge for Anthony. I’m looking forward to seeing him dress the stars. Heidi chose Emilio’s gown and guest judge Jessica Alba (who is apparently making the rounds this week) chose Anthony’s. I loved Alba’s comment that “It’s one movie on one side and another movie on the other side.”
Emilio Sosa
Anthony Williams
The rest of the designers were serious disappointments. WHEN is Mila going to go? Her dress was nothing red carpet-like. According to Nina Garcia, it looked like “something the Housewives of New Jersey would wear” and I could not have agreed more. The final two were Jay and Jonathan. I think the pressure finally got to Jonathan whose dress was thrown together at the last minute and was eliminated.
The Ladies of SVU
People often say that Law and Order (in all of its varieties) keeps New York actors employed. And it certainly seems that way when you see a play in New York: almost every cast member has an L&O credit.
Jaclyn Smith
Ann-Margret
However, here at DOD we’ve noticed that Law and Order: SVU keeps another set of people employed: fantastic female actors who don’t get so much work these days. Tonight the guest stars were Susan Anton, Jaclyn Smith, Morgan Fairchild, and Ann-Margret! Of course we’re happy to see Mariska Hargitay, Tamara Tunie, and Stephanie March on most episodes, but semi-regulars Judith Light, Christine Lahti, and Marlo Thomas make us even happier.
Add to the guest star list the likes of Lena Olin, Lynda Carter, Angela Lansbury, Swoosie Kurtz, Cicely Tyson, Carol Burnett, Brenda Blethyn, Ellen Burstyn, Rhea Perlman, and Annie Potts, and you know we’re smiling. And guess who’s coming next, and for four whole episodes? Sharon Stone!
Sharon Stone
We’re upset that Christopher Meloni has announced that he’s leaving after this season, but if the guest star list continues to look like this, we’ll still be watching.
“Oh Lordy, I have to go!”
Cerri sports Jonathan's winning dress in Episode 8
Cerri gets her own post, so distraught am I by her elimination. I have grown seriously fond of this pale Irish model with the luminescent skin, kind heart, and wicked tongue (made all the better by her amazing accent). I think I first fell for Cerri (whose last name is McQuillan, according to the Lifetime website) when she seemed most cognizant of the amazing presence of Lauren Hutton as a judge early on in the season. Her words: “Sweet Mother of Jesus, it’s Lauren Hutton!” Or maybe it was when Cerri confessed that she was made uncomfortable by the challenge where she had to model with a child. Turns out Cerri doesn’t like kids so much and is willing to say so on national television. But my crush only deepened as Models of the Runway featured more of Cerri’s acid tongue and her highly amusing commentary. Click here for a selection of some of her best moments (I could not, for the life of me, get it inserted into the post like a YouTube video).
So needless to say, I was dumbstruck when Cerri, who had stood by Jonathan throughout the judges’ complete trashing of his dress last night (“I like me dress and that’s all that matters!”), was dumped by her pale partner in crime in favor of Brandise. And Cerri, for her part, seemed just as pissed off. Good for her. Despite my general love for Jonathan, I was miffed.
Because Cerri redeemed Models of the Runway and made me feel like there was a real reason to watch it. It wasn’t just the trashy addendum to PR that provided a lot of the good gossip (though it remains that), it was my chance to root for a competitor in her own right. And now I have no one to root for. As Cerri herself would say, “Simple as.”
Toss One Back for Anthony!
Brandise inches down the runway in Mila's disaster
I am barely able to discuss the fact that I largely approved of the judges’ decisions regarding the top three last night, so distracted I am by how misguided was their decision about who was eliminated! I have one word: MILA! One word for so many reasons, all of which the judges themselves seemed to acknowledge: The print wasn’t really one. The dress was unattractive and dated (I recall references to back porches in the 1970s). Her model could not walk. This is a problem. And yet Mila just seems impervious to having ever done anything wrong. And so critical of everyone else all the time. I don’t know if the camerapeople are doing their best to coax little jabs and barbs out of her, but she sure doesn’t hold back. In short, I do not like her and I do not like her clothes.
Which brings me to the two other contestants in the bottom three last night, both of whom, let’s face it, I adore. Each in his own way Anthony and Jonathan have captured my heart: Anthony for his unabashed flamboyance, his determined belief that a portly, ragingly effeminate, extremely funny black man has the right to be himself. As Anthony himself put it last night, “You Don’t Have to Win the crown to be the Queen.” Amen, Sister. And Jonathan I love for his intelligence and his humor and his sincerity. And last night, for his determination (without tears!) to stand up to a truly nasty Michael Kors. Both of them have, let’s be honest, done better work than they did last night. But neither of them deserved to go home in the face of the train wreck that was Mila’s rainbow column.
Tim and Anthony face off as the latter sports one of his signature Talbot's cardigans
In the end I (like most viewers?) want to like both the designer and her/his clothes. I want to be happy that a particular person has won the competition both because I believe that person is talented but also because I have grown fond of him or her. And unless Maya or Jonathan seriously steps it up, this may be a challenge for me, because I’m having difficulty summoning up much love for any of the remaining contestants, even as I recognize their talents (even Seth Aaron, at least last night — though I maintain that those pants were hideous and overworked).
So let us think fondly of Anthony and of how he amused us. I leave you with one final Anthony gem from last night. Commenting on Jonathan’s fabric and design, he noted how pale both were, how pale Jonathan himself was, and how much he wanted to throw some color all over the lot. As Anthony put it, “They are just pale as hell.” And in Anthony’s Southern drawl “pale” and “hell” actually rhymed.
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