Last night was the finale of Season 8 of Project Runway, a show I have watched since the middle of Season 4. This season has had the most drama (much of it was oddly boring) and the finale was no exception. The final two were Mondo and Gretchen. Mondo was the odds-on favorite based on his previous designs and the fact that he was a fan favorite to boot. Gretchen was the recipient of much venom from the public due, largely, to the fact that she came off as a self-important know-it-all and bully. I would argue that she wasn't so much of a bully as her partner in crime (turned enemy), Ivy.
All that having been said, Gretchen was also edited in such a way as to magnify her already glaring shortcomings. I don't think anyone put words into her mouth, but the additional half-hour provided the producers with some extra time to fill and her runway melt-down during the team challenge was just too juicy to pass up. So, basically, she was shown, through an entire season, as being someone to despise. Whereas Mondo not only produced amazing clothing, he had personal revelations out the wah-zoo.
The winner was decided long before last night, and I believe there was an attempt by the editors to soften Gretchen's image in the later episodes, but viewer vitriol was not to be so easily squashed. What resulted was the most upsetting win since Jeffrey in Season 2.
It certainly didn't help that Gretchen's final collection was an olive-drab and poo-brown parade of dingy granny panties, bare mid-drifts, and harem pants. Out of 10 looks, she sent a full 3 of them down the runway with bottoms even Lady Gaga wouldn't wear. Gretchen: granny panties are not pants.
The judging was the absolute worst. Michael Kors and Nina Garcia were firmly on "team Gretchen" while Heidi Klum and Jessica Simpson were the voices of reason. Kors and Garcia praised Gretchen's accessorizing and said they could "see" the woman who would wear her clothes. There was nary a mention of her monotone (which is what was supposedly Michael C's downfall one week ago) color palate. One week ago they were very concerned that her looks were too down-scale, Nina said she needed to find some heels STAT. I'll let you in on a little secret... the clothes are exactly the same, she just put some of the girls in heels and slapped on some bronzer. Somehow that garnered her the win.
On the other side of things, the only negative Nina an Michael could say about Mondo is that he didn't listen to them and tone down his collection and remove one dress they didn't (but Heidi did) like. Simpson pointed out that she could pair any number of his pieces with items from her closet for a subtler look. Nina had the audacity to say that it wasn't her job to style the looks (although she did want him to style them the way she dictated). And I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure that as the Fashion Director for Marie Claire, that IS her job (or the job of someone who works for her). Any fashion editorial worth its salt will mix-and-match pieces from various designers to achieve the desired result. Pardon my french, but the whole thing was bullshit.
As usual, many fans of the show are threatening to quit watching, but with all the changes since moving from Bravo, they may be telling the truth this time. As for me, I'll wait and see. When the winner was announced my heart dropped, but I was pretty quickly filled with a feeling of apathy. Mondo and Gretchen will both either succeed or fail based not on the outcome of this show, but on their output in the future.
I have a little trouble pardoning your French but agree 110%. On Friday when I described Gretchen's line to a colleage, I said three of the models wore what could be mistaken for ladies underwear- not the cute bikini kind but the kind women my age wear. Didn't the youngest contestant almost get voted off in week one for similar "shorts"?
ReplyDeleteI loved Mondo and his clothes. Gretchen made women look bad. Very little talent and nasty.