It was to be the showdown of the century. Every episode led up to this one moment: the battle between the cocky, British tabloid editor Piers Morgan and backstabbing, former Apprentice contestant Omarosa.
The Apprentice has seen four years of challenges, disputes and “You’re fired’s.” Now in its seventh season The Donald upped the ante with 14 headstrong celebrities left to duke it out in order to win money for charity.
In episode 10, teams Hydra and Empresario compete to sell the most art for the most money at the prestigious Moti Hasson Gallery in New York City. With Piers (Hydra) and Omarosa (Empresario) as team project managers, the battle between these two is on. Their volatile personalities and dislike for the way each other deals with people has caused a vicious rivalry between them since day one and has resulted in several verbal squabbles. The two are ready to go head-to-head.
It was impossible to envision what this episode would have in store. Sure there would be arguing and name-calling but to what extent? As the teams planned their strategies, both Piers and Omarosa remained in their respective corners; however, Omarosa seemed a bit more concerned with what Piers was doing than trying to come up with a strategy of her own. Being one of the more important challenges of the season, Omarosa definitely needed to focus on her game-plan so as to not land in Trump’s hot seat.
As the teams set up their art galleries, it seemed as if a heated altercation would arise as actor Stephen Baldwin of team Empresario began snooping on team Hydra, but nothing exciting came of it. Very disappointing. At the 20-minute mark this episode was looking to be a dud. Then the buyers came. Surprisingly, Empresario sold the most art initially. Omarosa obviously looked excited as Piers began to sweat. But their good luck faded fast as patrons quickly turned to team Hydra’s art. The customers bought plenty and team Empresario didn’t sell another piece. Supermodel Carol Alt of team Hydra even stole a few of Empresario’s customers. Piers knew victory was his.
In the board room, Trump said that Hydra creamed Empresario in the “biggest slaughter” in Apprentice history. Hydra sold 14 of 20 paintings for $164,000 while Empresario only sold three of 13 paintings generating $7,000. This was indeed a “personal win” for Piers. In the final 10-15 minutes, Piers kisses a cowboy while Omarosa calls Piers a “homosexual” and characteristically throws her team under the bus (something she is quite famous for). In the end, Omarosa lost because of poor planning and a consistent losing streak. Even though Trump said he’s a big Omarosa fan, it was time. Finally, after 10 episodes Trump fired Omarosa.
Secretly, we all wanted her fired. Everyone was just waiting for the day and it was certainly an “edge of your seat” moment. But it was almost bittersweet. Sure it was priceless to finally see her get the axe, but no longer would Apprentice fans witness Piers and Omarosa’s sensational antics. Omarosa thought she had it in the bag. She thought that if she blamed her teammates, and did a little name-calling, she could saver herself as she often did. Not this time. At some point, the childish backstabbing had to stop and Trump realized she was just not worthy any more.
As a whole, the episode lacked in the intense drama it was expected to have. There weren’t nearly as many low blows throughout the entire episode as the previews lead on. However the boardroom more than made up for it. No one could have predicted Omarosa calling Piers a homosexual. She really must have been running out of ammo.
The rivalry between Piers and Omarosa had been stewing all season. Whether you were rooting for Omarosa or Piers, it was obvious that Trump made the right decision in firing Omarosa. She is notorious for finagling her way out of situations and putting the blame on others. That’s why viewers love to hate her. We desperately want to see her get fired, but at the same time we want to keep her on the show to see what ridiculousness she will come up with next.
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Monday, April 28, 2008
Verbal Smackdown 2008: Piers vs. Omarosa
"American Idol" going strong in seventh season
While some reality series grow stale by the second episode, Fox’s mega-hit American Idol remains fresh even in its seventh season. This week’s pair of episodes, which featured songs by John Lennon and Paul McCartney for the second consecutive week, proved once again that the show remains exciting and unpredictable.
Tuesday’s performance show featuring the eleven finalists tended to drag a bit due to its two-hour length, since the singing portion of the show only took up about 20 minutes of air time. Nevertheless, it is the interplay between the judges, Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell, the host, Ryan Seacrest, the contestants, and often the crowd, that frequently provides the show with some of its best moments, as was the case on Tuesday night.
When the often acerbic Cowell told the first singer of the evening, Amanda Overmyer, that she is beginning to lack variety in her selections, Overmyer fired back, much to the delight of the audience, that she wants to perform songs that best suit her Janis Joplin-like rocker style. Cowell quickly reminded her that she was not famous yet, and that she should heed his advice. Shortly thereafter, Cowell also came into conflict with two of the favorites in the competition, Carly Smithson and David Cook. Cowell suggested that Smithson’s rendition of The Beatles’ classic ballad, “Blackbird,” was overly indulgent after her performance was praised by the other judges. He also labeled Cook as being overly “smug” following his rock performance of “Daytripper.”
On this evening, there were several performances that the always perky Abdul even criticized. Michael Johns’s arrangement of the Lennon-McCartney masterpiece “A Day in the Life,” was criticized by all three judges. However, it was Abdul who made the moment unforgettable with her analysis that Johns’ poor performance must have been because he was working with an earpiece for the first time. When the host Seacrest asked Abdul to explain what she was talking about, Johns revealed that he was not even wearing an earpiece, much to the obvious amusement of a smirking Cowell.
However, if all of the contestants are bad enough to be strongly criticized, American Idol would not have the seemingly limitless fan base it has. Syesha Mercado’s heavy vibrato on “Yesterday” and David Archuleta’s simplified take on “The Long and Winding Road,” were met with adulation from the both the judges and the studio audience. Cowell went so far as to call Archuleta’s performance “master-class.”
American Idol’s continued credibility derives from the long list of successful recording artists the show has fostered like Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood. Viewership and voting numbers remain high because the show enables the viewing audience to learn the contestants’ back stories. They become emotionally invested in the result through their own participation and knowledge. The quality of the contestants (Season 7 is one of the best in this aspect) continues to bring viewers back, and though the quality of the judges and the host can be disputed at times, they really appear to be having fun. As a result, the viewer at home does too.
The Wednesday night result show often provides almost as much drama as an episode of Grey’s Anatomy. When the contestants learn whether or not they will get to stay another week, Seacrest asks for the audience to become silent and the lights to be dimmed. One by one, the contestants are forced to learn whether they will be in the bottom three or whether they are “safe” for another week.
Most of Wednesday night’s episode was filler that included a group sing-along of Beatles classics like George Harrison’s, “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” and the filming of a new Ford commercial featuring the Idol wannabes, however Idol watchers are almost forced into tuning in because the show remains unpredictable in the manner in which it eliminates its contestants.
The elimination is always done at the end of the program, like it was on Wednesday night when Amanda was sent packing, but the Idol producers pack just enough surprise into the show that it forces viewers to watch the entire program. One really shocking moment was the early revelation that Carly Smithson was among the bottom three vote-getters, despite the critical acclaim of the judging panel for much of the competition.
Many shows have tried to replicate Idol’s immense success, but Idol producers caught lightning in a bottle six years ago, and the show’s greatness has not waned with time.
