I came into Top Chef late in the game, only really watching in full this past season. It just ended, so I won't spoil the ending outright, but the result of tonight's finale was endemic of everything that is wrong with what is otherwise a reasonably good piece of reality television.
Here's the thing. They have to stop judging meal to meal. If someone can excel time after time and then get ejected on a technicality or a mis-timed misstep, you're not likely to actually end up with the best person as Top Chef.
So from now on, they will need to judge each contestant cumulatively. Now I know why they don't currently do this. It's because if someone starts to run away with the competition, they will lose any sense of drama, and thus ratings.
Unless they find a new way to spice things up. First, in addition to the judges, the chefs will judge each others' dishes. This will shake up the results. Second, chefs will be allowed to poison dished, but they can't dictate who gets what plate. So they may end up killing a judge, in which case they are sent home immediately.
Also, the first challenge of the next season will be cooking and eating Toby Young, thus solving the dual problems of Toby Young and the irrational vilification of cannibalism.
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Thank you, although I know there is not a need to.
ReplyDeleteI agree. Meal to meal judging is a stupid way to come up with the ultimate winner.
Perhaps they could have a cumulative assessment for 10 shows. Then they would go into the "playoffs", where their performance during those ten shows determine head to head matchups.
Then they start eliminating. When only two are left, everyone in America can watch the final matchup while eating food they have made based off the previous shows.