By Jeff Long
The show starts with three days before the runway show. The designers still have their helpers! Tim comes on the first day surprises them -- they get $500 to go to Mood. They all joke about how Swatch, the Mood mascot, has gained weight. That was fun.
Back in the workroom, Amanda and Michelle are really on the same page, which makes Stanley sad because he has Richard. Patricia looks like she's flailing and Layana is worried that she doesn't even have twelve looks for the runway. We get the chance to catch up with Season 10 winner, Dmitry. He tries one of his dresses on Heidi, which looks OK. He tells us that he has admirers from all over the world but only names Germany and Australia. He's perfectly nice. I don't know why I'm picking on him, except that Australia and Germany do not a world make. Heidi tells him that she is always there to support him and it's really kind of sweet to see.
We again see that Patricia has a lot of work to finish. The show separates the hair and make-up consultations, which gives a nice perspective on how each is really different. Based on his critique, Stanley has to ask for help from the experts and it's really kind of cool to see. The same with Patricia. The hair guy recommends incorporating horse hair into the hair of the models and it looks really cool and modern. Tim consults and warns Michelle agains all of her accessories. She has a cool moment where she says that, if you listen to every criticism, you would walk the runway with a bowl of oatmeal. That's not untrue.
Tim tells Stanley that his collection is looking vintage. I can't tell if he's listening or not. Patricia is having problem. Her collection is not cohesive and it seems really lucky that she has someone as vocal as Layana working with her, because she is immediately translating Tim's critique into real time change. I feel like the relationship between Tim and Patricia has been one of the neat things of this season. She really seems inspired by the things that he recommends.
OK, this show Devious Maids that Lifetime is advertising? I don't know what to say. It's either a boon for Latina actresses or horribly offensive.
At one point, the helpers leave and Tim introduces new visitors! Patricia's kids, Margeaux and Gabriel, are there to see her and it's so sweet I can't stand it. I think maybe they are twins? And Margeaux is a freaking KNOCKOUT. Manny and Cyril are there for Michelle and are incredibly impressed by what she has made. Steve is there for Stanley as well as his mother. Her name is Lovie. I can't stand it! How adorable is that? It's also sad to think that she just lost her daughter a year ago.
Tim tells everyone that they will have a little time to work backstage the day at the fashion show. He tells them that Michael Kors will be the guest judge. Then, he gets emotional and tells them that he has never seen the strength of character that he has on this season. Stanley still has a ton of work to finish. It's looking scary. Michelle, though she never stops talking about Stanley's lack of preparation, helps him pack his stuff for the fashion show. That night, Michelle tells Patricia that she doesn't think he can even have a fashion show. Wow.
It's looking right now that Michelle is a shoo-in. With two hours before the show, Stanley employs his backstage sewers to do A LOT. It's so weird. I'm not sure what happened to him, aside from the dyeing mishap he had while at home. Michael Kors walks the runway with Heidi, Nina and Zac. Tim says to a camera that he has never seen anything like how Stanley is unprepared.
What has happened to Lifetime? There's an ad for A Sister's Revenge and the tagline is "Payback is a blond." I can't decide if that's brilliant or not.
Michelle's show is great, with an emphasis on tough fabrics worked into really pretty silhouettes. Fabio is in the audience! I'm not sure how I feel about Patricia's collection. It's certainly original, though in some sort of dated sense? Some of it is truly extraordinary though. She really edited herself with styling and I wonder if Layana had a lot to do with that. There's Melissa beside Fabio! I miss her.
There's a commercial break before Stanley's show, to capitalize on the tension that has been built up about his lack of preparedness. Does Jewel not know that there was already a movie about June Carter Cash? Sorry guys, the Lifetime ads are bonkers tonight. But, SHIT, y'all, the reunion show looks like it's going to be off the freaking CHAIN.
Michael tells the designers that he saw very distinct points of view from everyone. Michelle really sells her wolf motif to the judges. Her bleeding heart sweater is loved by everyone. Nina seemed to really love her collection and she loved the modular quality of a lot of her looks. Michael and Zac hated her final gown. Michael thought that she was just feeling like she needed a gown in the collection and she copped to doing that. Zac picks on her for not being as cool as she thinks she is and I love it.
Michael loves Patricia's lumberjack look! However, he thinks that a lot of her stuff looks like the art teacher on an acid trip. God, I've missed him. Heidi says that the audience loved her collection. It feels like Heidi is defending her appreciation for Patricia from Nina's disdain. Nina thinks that she needs to clean up her silhouettes.
Shit, Michael KILLS Stanley's final look. He says it's Betty White on Dancing With The Stars. Ouch.
From the judging, it seems that Michele's victory is an afterthought. Man, Stanley's downfall is kind of a surprise, considering his how well he did throughout the season. Nina is NOT into Patricia. Stanley is out. Patricia is… out. Michelle wins. You know, I really think she is awful, but her clothes are fine. Bring on the reunion.