Morning at 505. We see Dominique lying in bed and she tells us that she feels like David's departure is the end of the world. She slept in his bed and cried because she wanted to say goodbye and didn't get the chance. Eduardo comes in with Cesar and kisses her to make her feel better.
She says that Calvin was really angry that she turned on him at the judging and bitched at her, whereupon she says she told him they'd have to talk about it later. Calvin interviews that he's upset she betrayed him. He feels left out and apparently has no idea why everyone would dislike him. He says that he stood up for them and they stabbed him in back. They, the other people... meaning NOT HIM, are mean spirited. Jesus.
A note is slid under the door. They are being summoned to Norfolk Street. Cindy tells us that she is happy that she has survived this far into the competition. Jeffrey drives with the assistance of a fancy GPS. They arrive at a beautiful cathedral. Iman is standing with the tiniest, most solemn boy child in tux. The cathedral is a popular site for weddings, as well as fashion shows. Their challenge is to create wedding looks and they will be competing as couples. Calvin interviews that he doesn't trust anyone, while everyone is really dying to work with him.
The sad small child walks up to designers with a black bag and they pull rings from bag - matching rings means you are on a team. Calvin chooses first and we hear how nobody wants to work with him. Dominique and Jeffrey are the first team matched. Cindy chooses the same ring as Calvin. "Why me?" she asks. That means that Cesar and Eduardo are a team.
Iman introduces the couples that they will be designing for and they are all same sex. Cindy is freaked out, though I believe she works and lives in Los Angeles. Maybe she doesn't get out much? The couples are wearing rings that match the rings that the designers are already wearing. The set of boys belong to Calvin and Cindy. Calvin is unhappy because they are big boys. The others each get a set of ladies. Jeffrey is psyched about his girls and tells one that he has same hair as her.
They have 30 minutes to sketch and Iman tells them not to disappoint the clients. Cindy doesn't know how to make menswear. Andrea and Johanna are Eduardo and Cesar's girls. Johanna says that, instead of white, she would like to wear mustard to her wedding. Cesar sees that Andrea is a dandy or, as Johanna labels her, a gay man in a woman's body. So, he's going to make her a kicky suit. Christina and Bridgette, Jeffrey and Dominique's couple, know exactly what they want. Paul and Eric are the big boys. Eric says he never thought he'd meet someone who'd mean as much to him as Paul does. Calvin, unfazed by their love, won't let them talk. Cindy says he's being rude and, wow -- so rude. Paul explains that black and white are not in used in Korean weddings, but Calvin says that he can go to Koreatown and get something there if he wants traditional.
They go to the workroom to make mood boards. Cesar is excited. Eduardo is making the dress for Johanna. Dominique says that Cesar and Eduardo are a powerhouse team but she's not intimidated. Cindy tells Calvin that he has to be nicer to their clients but he says he talked to them the way they wanted to be spoken to and she doesn't need to teach him how to talk.
Isaac enters to consult. He likes Dominique and Jeffrey's mood board. Dominique has designed, per request, a simple dress, but Isaac thinks it's plain. She says she is thinking of lining it with gray, to match the suiting material that Jeffrey will be using. Jeffrey is making Bermuda short and a tailored jacket. Isaac says to make it unexpected.
Eduardo and Cesar announce to Isaac that their girls aren't going the traditional route. Isaac warns Eduardo to control the hemline. Cesar says he is going to go with a boyish look. Isaac says to focus on a finely tailored jacket.
Cindy tells Isaac that their boys are big. Calvin says he's making a traditional Korean wedding gown. Cindy announces that her junior year of college was last time she made men's clothes. Isaac tells her to think of the tailoring and GO FOR IT. She's worried about working with Calvin and wishes she were working with Eduardo.
After a brief sojourn to purchase fabrics, they get started in the workroom. Cesar says that he is lucky that Andrea has no boobs in regards to his jacket-making. Eduardo doesn't like the mustard that Johanna likes, but he's still going to use it. Dominique's dress is linen. Jeffrey says he and Dominique have similar tastes.
Cindy's guy has 48-inch waist, which is a big change from the 24-inch waists for which she's used to designing. Calvin doesn't even know what a traditional Korean gown looks like, so he's making it up. I guess if you don't know what they are at all, it's best that you don't care about your clients feelings anyway. Dominique says she and Calvin aren't speaking and we see evidence of the coldness between them.
That night, at the apartment, Cindy says to Jeffrey and Dominique that the real challenge is working with Calvin. Dominique says he's a miserable person. Calvin stomps around without speaking to them and says the competition is about him now, whereas, before it was about...?
Cesar talks about losing his partner and his ordeal with hospitals and what legal marriage would mean for couples like him. And, we find out that Jeffrey, at 26, is a virgin! He thinks it's not such a big deal, but isn't even really sure why he's still got his v card. Cesar tells him he's going to be a whore when he starts to do it.
Cindy is worried about her jacket fitting Eric. Jeffrey thinks she's over-thinking it. She likes what Calvin made but is worried that it might offend Paul, because of it being such a departure from the traditional.
The couples come in for a fitting. Johanna is very happy with her mustard dress! Christina loves her linen dress too! Dominique wishes David were there to enjoy this, while we wish he were there for us to enjoy David. She says that everyone else is making costumes and she and Jeffrey are the only people making actual bridal clothes. To prove her point, Andrea tells Cesar that she wants paisley pants. He tries to steer her towards a stripe, but she's sticking with the paisley.
Cindy is happy and so is Eric. Calvin says the boys look like two pandas. Paul is worried that the kimono-style robe that Calvin has made is not Korean. Calvin screams some half-intelligible nonsense about not doing what he wants because he's not a seamstress from China. The boys say privately that Calvin has no class or style. Eduardo observes and says that Calvin's behavior is not surprising. This is true. Cindy is feeling a little confident and decides to take in the jacket. As she's sewing, she says she'll never forget this challenge.
Here we are at the day of the show. Uh oh, Cindy's jacket is too tight. Either she took it in too much or Eric went overboard at a cake testing. Calvin snaps to action and helps resew the jacket, which Cindy acknowledges as an extraordinary show of teamwork. They get Eric dressed just in the nick of time.
Johnny Weir and Rachel Zoe are the guest judges. Do we have to let him be a personality that we all listen to? Anyway, the show begins and Bridgette is out first. The suit is great, especially considering her figure is not the very easiest to work with -- meaning she has a figure. Jeffrey finds it very beachy and loves it. Christine comes out wearing Dominique's dress and looks simple yet nice. Dominique is very happy. The couple twirls at the end of the runway and it's very cute. Dominique and Jeffrey look on from backstage with ecstatic expressions on their faces.
Andrea comes out wearing Cesar's suit and I think she looks AWESOME. It's like a zoot suit mixed with Ralph Lauren. Love it. Eduardo's dress is great too. He's happy with Johanna's performance on the runway too. She gives it a lot of flare. Cesar says designers should never be safe. Well, he lived by that today.
Cindy is happy that Eric looks so pleased to wear her garment on the runway. That's very sweet to focus on that. The actual garment is a disaster. The kimono that Calvin made looks pretty cool. He thinks Paul looks handsome, though he didn't get what he wanted. Calvin has tears in his eyes or at least he says he does. Cindy says she sees no reason why there shouldn't be same sex marriage. What a relief.
Afterwards, Isaac introduces the judges, including our guests. Isaac liked the effect of couples, which he thought made the mini-collections naturally cohesive. They will talk to couples, whose input will matter greatly in the judging. Rachel loves Dominique's dress as well as the suit. Johnny loves it too, but thinks there should be more wrinkles. That's stupid. Sorry, it's linen. My experience is that linen always kind of does what it wants. Isaac thinks the designs have no signature and could have been purchased in a store. Christine says that Dominique listened to her and what she wanted, but Iman says a good designer can show you what you didn't know you wanted.
Calvin tells the judges point blank that he shut Paul down during the consultation and Rachel likes that he spoke his mind. She does warn him against creating a bad reputation for himself. Paul says that he could be serving sushi in the outfit Calvin made for him, though he acknowledges that it's slimming. They hate Cindy's look, because it's a complete disaster. Rachel doesn't like that the jacket and pant fabric don't match, but I think maybe she was going for a tux look? At this point, it really doesn't matter because it's a complete train wreck.
They hate Cesar's look... which is stupid. That suit is the ridonkest. Rachel loves Eduardo's dress and the color. She says the shape is very salable as well. Johnny loves the flower on the dress and says he wants to rip it off and throw it on the ground and roll around on it. No one thinks he's clever for saying that. Isaac doesn't think it looks like a bridal gown and maybe he's right, but what to do?
It's time for the winner of the challenge to be revealed and it's... Dominique! She says to everyone in the room that she's ecstatic. Isaac says that Christine looking great in the dress was what put it over the top.
Now it's time for the losers. Jeffrey can stay. He's wearing a caftan? I didn't notice that earlier. Eduardo can stay. Iman says that Calvin acted like a bridezilla. Don't move. Iman says that Cesar shouldn't have let his client go with paisley but, he can stay. Cindy can't move either, which is really no surprise. It's also no surprise that Cindy is out of fashion. She interviews that she's sad to be walking away. Iman hugs her and tells her very close to her face to stay on her course and Cindy starts crying. It's always so sad to see people lose these things. Iman hugs her tighter and Cindy thanks her for being so nice to her. She says she imagined herself winning the competition and she carries garment bag down the street and says that she's going to keep shooting for her dreams.
Jeff Long is a writer/performer in Brooklyn. He can be reached at jeff.long75@gmail.com
What are people saying about your favorite shows and stars right now? Find out with Talk Without Pity, the social media site for real TV fans. See Tweets and Facebook comments in real time and add your own -- all without leaving TWoP. Join the conversation now!