Episode Report Card Miss Alli: B+ | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT The big gamble
By Miss Alli | Season 1 | Episode 11 | Aired on 03.24.2004
Troy interviews that he felt the game had to be "something that attracts attention." He talks about meeting with the casino carpenter (something the dossier says they're entitled to do), and asking him about the grandest thing he'd ever built. The carpenter cites a wheel, and Troy says that he figured that somewhere, there had to be a wheel lying around that they could refurbish. Sure enough, they find one. Troy calls it "the wheel of [his] dreams." Yes, but a guy can't marry a wheel, because what would come next? Polygamy? Troy claims that the rest of his team "will be very happy" with him for finding the wheel. I'm not sure Bill is in a "be very happy" kind of place on this task, so I hope Troy doesn't have his hopes too terribly high. Maybe his team "will scowl less."
Meanwhile, Katrina and Amy meet with Bob, a guy who's got himself a car lot. Katrina claims that in her earlier discussions with Bob, he promised to give her whatever they needed. When the conversation starts, Katrina says that they were hoping he would give them a free Crossfire -- just give it to them outright. That does not seem likely, I have to say. Katrina does her baby-voice thing as usual, making these obnoxious cutesy faces and trying to be all flirty, which is not working on this particular car guy at all. One would almost suspect that Katrina is not the first woman to ever try to wheedle something out of this particular guy in this particular way, and that he's seen enough women of her type in his time to be reasonably immune to it. Not surprising, since he would have gone broke twenty-six seconds after opening his dealership if that were not the case. As the negotiation stalls, Amy complains that Katrina "has a tendency to use sexuality as her prime negotiating tactic" (way to pay attention, there, Amy) in tasks. Amy says that when it didn't work with this guy, all Katrina did was crank it up, which Amy felt also wasn't working. "You know what?" Amy interviews. "Turn off the sexual bullshit and let's talk business." Eh. I agree in theory, but I'm not sure I think Amy has much credibility on that point. Her cutesy-ass way of trying to play the little push-pull game with Nick isn't doing anything for me either, empowerment-wise, so I'm not sure either one of them is going home with the Seneca Falls souvenir t-shirt. But despite the fact that Katrina has been talking and talking to this guy for some time now, when Amy takes a shot, Katrina whines in an interview that Amy wouldn't let her be the lead on the negotiation. Amy manages to wrap up the deal with Bob by offering him something of value -- rather than by cocking her head and giggling -- and Katrina looks mightily put out about it. ["Hate!" -- Sars] Yeah, poor Katrina, upstaged by someone who speaks in complete sentences, none of which include the word "Pleeeeeeeeease." How appalling.
Video poker! Games! And then, it's time for the bit about the Fercos Brothers. As it happens, the Trump Taj Mahal has a show that looks very Siegfried-and-Roy, complete with tigers. Troy and Kwame go to visit the executive producer of the act, who is ten years old. I don't entirely understand this, but we'll go with it as it's presented. Troy chats with the kid a little about how he's "gone straight to the top," and the kid's all, "What do you want? I have things to do." Troy asks the kid -- who is named Fitz -- whether they can "co-market" with him. They'll promote the show, and he'll give them some stuff to enhance their game. Fitz offers them "some of the dancers in costume." Hee. Troy interviews about how weird it was to be negotiating with a ten-year-old. The kid agrees to let them use the lions and tigers from the show, and Troy -- always bubbling over with enthusiasm -- talks some more about what a great partnership it's going to be. "Let me give you advice in life," Fitz tells Troy. "Don't sell when it's already sold." Kwame makes a face like, "Oh, man, you just got schooled by Fitz. And Fitz is too young for pimples." Amusingly, I found an article about Fitz that states that Fitz learned the "don't sell when it's already sold" line from...Donald Trump, who said it to Fitz when Fitz was trying to convince him to bring the show to the Taj. So Fitz is actually somewhat famous for being told this same thing by Trump, which explains why he hauled it out here and used it on Troy.