Top Chef 6/12/25--"Finito" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: There was one last Quickfire, making risotto in Milan. They asked the chefs to be creative and that it didn't need to be “traditional”, and so Cesar and Shuai didn't make rice but vegetables. Then Tom got pissy about it, but you can't ask them to not be traditional and then be mad about it. After this, we had a progressive elimination challenge. The chefs had to make a polenta dish, a beet dish, and a Gorgonzola dish. Bailey re-made the bruleed Gorgonzola everyone hated the last time, but I guess did it well and stayed in the competition, sending Cesar home. I know the internet has decided if you don't like Bailey you're sexist, but I simply do not want to hear from someone who uses phrases like “big-time yumbo” to describe their food. (click for more)

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Top Chef 6/5/25--"Viva Milano!" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: No Quickfire, but some time to forage in the woods for foods to make one last Canadian dish. Shuai won, because he is great at taking the ingredients he's given and matching them to his own style. Even though Bailey didn't cook her beans properly, everyone decided she did a better job than Massimo. I did see some people assuming Massimo didn't fulfill the challenge, but he did. He just foraged wild mustard and the judges told him that was too boring. Honestly it felt like they decided he wasn't moving on and they just came up with something. He met the challenge so they had to come up with “we wanted you to forage but not mustard”. (click for more)

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Top Chef 5/29/25--"Foraged in Fire" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: everyone went to Calgary so we can justify the “Canada” label. The Quickfire was a pancake breakfast, which was cute but too many people made cornmeal hoecakes. Shuai won because he is surpassing Tristen as the frontrunner. Then everyone had to make beef and berries, because of the Calgary Stampede. The editing leaned heavily on Tristen's “narrative” and insistence on making pemmican because otherwise how is he going to honor anything. But Massimo “cooked from the heart” or whatever so he won. I need him to understand “umeboshi” is a specific thing and not a technique. In general people who tried to cover up their berries were in the bottom, but because Bailey did well in the Quickfire and Cesar and Lana did not, Lana went home. (click for more)

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Top Chef 5/22/25--"Calgary, Yahoo!" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: Cesar returned from Last Chance Kitchen, and immediately won the Quickfire. Both challenges were about Montreal, but they didn't even leave the Top Chef Kitchen to go to Whole Foods. They made a fake bodega with everything labeled in French, and everyone had to make something from convenience store foods, which is what Cesar won. The Elimination challenge was about rooftop gardens and seasons. Shuai won by making hot pot and having a personal story about it. There's a side plot about Tristen cooking with “narrative” and Massimo not, or being soulless or whatever. Which is why he didn't win, I guess. Cesar did poorly in the Elimination challenge but the judges told him that since he won the Quickfire, he was safe. Vinny ended up being eliminated for making “aggressive” consomme and not putting garnish on all of the plates. (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 12, 5/15/25

 

Welcome to Leg 12! Last time, on I Should Just Yell At My Wife The Whole Time, 4 teams raced from Strasbourg to Porto. Carson and Jack, who got to be knights for a day, finished first, and Han and Holden kept their relationship strong and finished second. A misstep by Alyssa and Josiah at the train station put them on the same train as Jonathan and Ana, who passed them to finish third, and Alyssa and Josiah were eliminated. And then there were three: Carson and Jack, the gay Dungeons and Dragon streamers and best friends who have come back from being over an hour behind all the other teams and have four first place legs under their belts; Han and Holden, the siblings that have never won a leg, but their good natured sibling relationship always keeps them in the game; and Jonathan and Ana, the married couple who always seem to be in an argument, but have finished first on three legs and are generally strong at finishing tasks. Who will win The Amazing Race 37? (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 11, 5/14/25

 

Welcome to Leg 11! Last time, on We Can’t Be The Only Ones Who Are Lost, 5 teams raced from Naples to Strasbourg. Han and Holden, who were saved by non-elimination in Naples still struggled, but ultimately it was husbands Brett and Mark, who in fact were the only ones who got lost, were eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 5/15/25--"From Dep Till Dawn" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: the Quickfire involved mussels, which wasn't that bad actually, but it was time for Tom and Gail to appear and start tasting Quickfires and “factor” the Quickfires into Elimination performance. Which just means that if you do well at the Quickfire you have immunity. Case in point, the Elimination challenge. There was a very dumb tie-in to the new Mission: Impossible movie, and some stunts, and making a dish with “a stunt”. It ended up just like the “chaos” challenge where the challenge is so poorly defined that no one follows it. Massimo won because he made salmon en croute and you can't look at it before you serve it? But a risk is not a stunt? Whatever, then Cesar went home for weird flavors. But Lana won the Quickfire and she was in the bottom, but immediately safe. And Vinny froze his tartare into a solid block, which no one could eat, but he was in the top for the Quickfire so he survived. (click for more)

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Top Chef 5/8/25--"Cooking on the Edge" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: it was Restaurant Wars. Teams were completely selected with random draw. The Nonna restaurant side was very behind on prep, so all their food suffered and Paula, who was executive chef, did a ton of extra work. On the other side, Phora discovered Tristen's dad had passed away, and they rallied around him. Tristen won, while Paula was sent home. (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 10, 5/7/25

 

Welcome to Leg 10! Last time, on We Put the Fun in Funicular, 5 teams raced to Naples, Italy. Han and Holden had a rough start, but Carson and Jack also made a lot of mistakes. Ana, having worked at Domino’s, made short work of the pizza challenge and finished first, while Han and Holden finished last, but were not eliminated! Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 5/1/25--"Restaurant Wars" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: instead of the dumb Quickfire where you had “one pot meals” but you could wash the pot between ingredients, we had a different way to advertise the dish detergent sponsor. Everyone got a dirty dish and had to make that dish. It was dumb but less obnoxious than stretching the definition of “one pot meal”. Henry won by making oatmeal dumplings with glutinous rice. Then everyone had to make pizza because of reasons. The contestants were supposed to be “controversial” but I don't think they cared that much about it. Tristen won by making anchovy ranch, and Tom pretended he did not understand the concept of ranch dressing. The bottom three all made bad pizzas in the sense that they were soggy or the crust was not good. Henry was trying to save money and only bought one bag of flour, so he had to use rice for his crust and the judges said it wasn't pizza. So Henry was eliminated. (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 9, 4/30/25

 

Welcome to Leg 9! Last time, on The Greatest Comeback Story Ever, 6 teams continued racing through Bulgaria. Alyssa and Josiah went for the Express Pass, which required them to walk on hot coals. Carson and Jack were able to make up a 90 minute delay while Han and Holden struggled. Brett and Mark finished first, while Melinda and Erika were eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 8, 4/23/25

 

Welcome to Leg 8! Last time, on Driving Three Hours in the Wrong Direction Is Preferrable to Searching a Haystack, 7 teams raced from for the first time to Bulgaria and encountered self-driving for the first time in the race. The Gaymers drove themselves three hours south instead of east, bouncing them from first to worst. Jonathan and Ana parked wrong and got themselves caught in a ditch. Melinda and Erika rightly U-turned the brothers, who U-Turned the siblings, and then got stuck looking in a haystack for a bracelet while the Gaymers caught up and passed them. And Nick and Mike were eliminated at the Detour. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 4/24/25--"You Wanna Pizza Me?" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: A dumb Quickfire which at least confined the product placement to the Quickfire so we didn't have to deal with Chipotle in the main challenge. Tristen didn't make Mexican but a rice bowl thing so he won. The Elimination challenge was to make a progressive tasting menu revolving around pickles, and also in teams. Massimo won because he's extra of course. Shuai accidentally threw away a bunch of Henry's garnishes and pickles, so Henry had to scramble. He and Shuai both ended up in the bottom, and there was some discourse online that Shuai should have quit, but they ended up eliminating Katianna instead for weird cucumber seed pudding. But it did seem for a minute like they'd get rid of Henry for not enough pickle flavor. (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 7, 4/16/25

 

Welcome to Leg 7! Last time, on I’ll Have High Tea With The Hot French Pastry Chef Anytime, 8 teams raced from Indonesia to Dubai. Teams jumped out of airplanes, and the Gaymers took the Fast Forward to land in first place. In the meantime, The Jeffs decided not to take a certain train, which landed them in a footrace with the Brothers to the mat, which Nick and Mike won, so Pops and Jeff were eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 4/17/25--"Pickle Me This" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: Bailey returned from Last Chance Kitchen, and then contestants were paired up to learn dishes from various ethnic restaurants. Then they were supposed to put their own spin on things and serve a food festival. Bailey and Tristen won, by making olive caramel or something. Bailey almost lectured everyone else on being true to themselves but settled for kissing up to the guest judge. Kat and Corwin, two strong competitors, wanted to get salt cod but couldn't find it and used regular cod instead. They ended up making soggy fritters and were eliminated. (click for more)

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Top Chef 4/10/25--"Line Cook for a Day" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: we had “trivia” questions for everyone, but they were just to get ingredients to force people to use. Corwin won, which was whatever. I liked Kat making a fried Nutella sandwich. The Elimination challenge was to take “iconic Canadian desserts”, deconstruct them, and make savory dishes. The two with the easiest time, in my opinion, got what is basically figgy pudding, and promptly used all the spices to make Afro-Caribbean food. Tristen made lamb fat madeleines and won. Zubair overcooked his duck and then was sent home. (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 6, 4/9/25

 

Welcome to Leg 6! Last time, on We’re Not Really a Threat!, 9 teams continued to race through Bali. Teams encountered a live Double U-Turn, in which Jonathan & Ana and Scott & Lori were the targets. Carson & Jack, however, think they flew under the radar. Brett and Mark finally pull out a first place win, and the Double U-Turn does what it should and takes out a strong team in Scott and Lori. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 4/3/25--"Top Chef Trivia" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: for the Quickfire, everyone had to make Jamaican patties, or at least their spin on them. Katianna won by making bacon and kimchi. Then everyone had to make a cold dish using an ingredient that had something to do with a hockey term. I don't know anything about hockey, but I did read somewhere that most of those slang terms were bullshit and there were actual food-related slang terms that the producers ignored. Katianna made cold noodles with licorice flavor, which were perfect cold, and she won the Elimination challenge also. Anya failed to make good ice cream and cake, which was supposed to be for the ingredient of “eggs”, so she was eliminated. (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 5, 4/2/25

Welcome to Leg 5! Last time, on Let’s All Run a Giant Circle Together Around This City, 10 teams made their way from Kyoto to Bali. We are introduced to the Driver’s Seat, which Jonathan and Ana use to give themselves the least amount of weight on the Roadblock, and then choose to use the Express Pass instead. Teams are irritated, but power through. The Vegas Gays have major taxi trouble, but they are strong at tasks so they manage to do better than Bernie and Carrigain, who are eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 3/27/25--"Best Served Cold" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: We got two stereotypical food challenges out of the way. The Quickfire was the poutine challenge, which everyone should have seen coming. Like Shuai, who practiced fondant potatoes at home because he knew he'd have to make poutine and won the Quickfire. The Elimination challenge was a team challenge to make brunch dishes with maple syrup. Zubair won, for making fried chicken with maple. The same fried chicken that he used to start his restaurants. Bailey made tarts but she screwed up the filling and then had both honey and maple and then underbaked them, so she was eliminated. (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 4, 3/26/25

Welcome to Leg 4! Last time, on Shrines and Temples and Paper, Oh My!, 11 teams raced through Japan from Osaka to Kyoto. Ana scores the Express Pass for her team, which needs to be used by Leg 5. Han and Holden stage a comeback, while teams struggle on a hard Detour task. Ultimately, Scott and Lori finish first and the dating nurses Courtney and Jasmin continue to have taxi issues and are eliminated from the race. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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"The Joe Schmo Show" 2025 -- episode 10 "The Greatest of All Time"

 

Previously on “Joe Schmo”: We finally got down to the final two people. Ben, who doesn't know this show is faker than usual, and Maya, his supposed “ride or die” BFF. Maya managed to win the challenge, even though she forgot one of the answers she was given, and then she had to make a choice. Get rid of Jessica, who is a third wheel and also straight up didn't do like, half the challenges? Or get rid of Ben, who is far more deserving but also might beat her in the final jury vote? The jury told Maya that if it was her vs. Jessica, she would win with all of the votes. Ben even told her no hard feelings, so of course she got rid of Jessica. (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 3, 3/19/25

 

Welcome to Leg 3! Last time, on Sometimes Working the System Is Better Than Arguing, 12 teams raced from Hong Kong to Osaka, Japan. The Lumberjacks and the Mother-Daughter team managed to get a better flight while the Besties argued. Ernest struggled at the intersected Roadblock with Mark, but they eventually got through. Jonathan and Ana got the first place finish they wanted, and even though the siblings argued, they managed to show up before Ernest and Bridget, who were eliminated. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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Top Chef 3/20/25--"Brunch a la Boulud" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: We began “Top Chef: Destination Canada” which seemed to be a usual season of Top Chef. The Quickfire asked everyone to get in groups of three to make random dishes, and the winners got money. Immunity is only for Elimination Challenge wins. We had five regions of Canada, represented by five sets of ingredients, and each group had to pick one. It was a good challenge, honestly. Vinny won, which is fine because he seems to be a good chef but I find him annoying is all. Mimi screwed up all of her components of her dish and was sent home. (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 2, 3/12/25

 

Welcome to Leg 2! Last time, on Fourteen Teams Is Really Pushing the Envelope, 14 teams started Amazing Race 37 and raced from LA to Hong Kong, China. Racers encountered a new element in the Fork in the Road, which is essentially a Detour with two different endings. Gaymers Carson and Jack finished first in the lion dance option, and it was a three way race for the end of that leg, where retired firefighters Mark and Larry were eliminated. Newlyweds Alyssa and Josiah finished first in the Chinese Opera option, and it was stairs at the beginning of the leg that slowed sisters Jackye and Lauren down, eventually leading to their elimination. Who will be eliminated. . . next? (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 1, 3/5/25

 

Welcome to Leg 1 of The Amazing Race 37! We are informed by Phil’s voiceover that this is a season of surprises. The Fast Forward is back! The Express Pass is back! The teams are going to have once in a lifetime experiences! There will be emotions! There will be tensions! The camera careens to the roof of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, and the teams run across the roof. (click for more)

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"The Joe Schmo Show" 2025 -- episode 9 "The Triumvirate"

 

Previously on “Joe Schmo”: Ben returned to the competition, and the producers decided we could finally hear from Danielle. This whole time, Danielle has been a weird crunchy granola person who talks about gut health and how you're just a tube and all natural remedies. We've seen none of it and frankly the show would have been better with more nonsense from Danielle and fewer interviews with the producers about how everything has to go perfectly or the show is ruined. Anyway, Jessica “ruined” her hair with one of Danielle's all natural oils or something, and then we are led to believe that this would prompt Jessica to put forth effort and win a challenge so she could get rid of Danielle. Briefly Maya was up for elimination and frankly that would have been the smarter choice but this is the storyline, I guess. (click for more)

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TAR 37, Recap Leg 0, 2/26/25

 

Welcome back to the Amazing Race! It’s season number thirty-seven. It’s been a full year since out last one, and we’re finally taping episodes without COVID restrictions! Oh, and I brought Toyouke along for the snark. Aren’t you lucky? We’ve read the bios and watched the videos, so let’s get to this shall we? (Toyouke: “I’m very annoyed they don't have good bios or individual videos this year.”) The fourteen (!) teams for TAR37 are (click for more):

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Top Chef 3/13/25--"Across Canada, We Go!" summary

 

Previously on “Top Chef”: Kristen had her first season hosting, and it went very well. The show was in Wisconsin for whatever reason, which was odd. This season is in Canada. “But wait! Isn't there already a “Top Chef: Canada”?” Yes, there is a whole version of Top Chef in Canada already. I don't know. (click for more)

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"The Joe Schmo Show" 2025 -- episode 8 "A Hairy Predicament"

 

Previously on “Joe Schmo”: the producers decided that eliminating Ben and having him come back via “Redemption Island”/”Last Chance Kitchen” rules would be a good move. And it was, in general, except for the part where it sounded like this was one plot point they had from the start. They rewrote a lot of the show, but this part was always in there. And then they acted like they had to scramble last minute to build “Losers' Loft” and bring back all the actors and get them back into character, when they knew this was coming. Also last week I said Barbara wasn't there (the woman who was eliminated immediately after the first challenge) and that if it was me, I'd be suspicious. Then I just now realized, Jonathan Lipnicki wasn't there either and no one said anything. Anyway, of course Ben returned, and then Braxton and Chastity were eliminated so that Ben could be in the Final Four with Maya, Danielle, and Jessica. (click for more)

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"The Joe Schmo Show" 2025 -- episode 7 "One Flew Over the Losers' Loft"

 

Previously on “Joe Schmo”: Ben had a meeting with the supposed creator of this supposed show, Mr. Danish. Mr. Danish was of course weird and cryptic, so Ben immediately assumed this was on purpose to mess with him. Then there was a puzzle challenge, which Braxton won. Chastity got a “makeover” which was basically some makeup and she and Braxton got very close. Ben finally figured out she'd just replaced Trevor with Braxton in her power couple, which was not good for him. The elimination came down to Ben and Chastity, and of course then Ben was eliminated. On the way out, Mr. Danish showed up again and said that it wasn't over yet. Or something else cryptic I guess.(click for more)

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"The Joe Schmo Show" 2025 -- episode 6 "The Enigma of Testacles"

 

Previously on “Joe Schmo”: the writers decided we needed a challenge that Ben would win. “But wait!” you say. “Didn't they do that last week?” They did. But he bombed that so they tried again, but this time with a physical challenge. Ben finally won, and then they knew he'd get Trevor and Chastity to be nominated, so they got Trevor to be as much of a dick as possible. I was skeptical that this would work, because Ben has shown he votes strategically and not just for people who bother him. But it did and Trevor was sent home. (click for more)

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"The Joe Schmo Show" 2025 -- episode 5 "The Ascent of Nicodemus"

 

Previously on “Joe Schmo”: the writers decided we needed a challenge that Ben would win. But they chose a challenge based on riddles, then acted shocked when Ben was bad at mental challenges. As if they didn't know he was more confident in physical challenges. Come on. Anyway, the plan was for Ben to win, but he choked big time. They had to scramble and have Maya win, so Ben knew he was safe. Then Jessica “betrayed” him, played a token, and put Braxton up for elimination. Ryan ended up going home, not either of the siblings, which upset Ben because of betrayals or whatever. (click for more)

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"The Joe Schmo Show" 2025 -- episode 4 "Think Inside the Box"

 

Previously on “Joe Schmo”: There is at least one storyline that has been scrapped, because the writers told the rest of the cast that the only thing they are doing today is “the woodchipper bit”. This is a bit where Charles Michael snaps and throws Ryan's stuff in the woodchipper as part of their “prank war”. So they concocted a whole fake challenge and got Ben to go inside so he can't see the start of the thing and then he came out to the woodchipper running and Charles Michael throwing stuff in there. Everyone just stared at Ben instead of reacting. Ben, meanwhile, brought up the excellent point of how exactly this happened, how did Charles Michael have time to go get Ryan's stuff and destroy it without anyone stopping him, why isn't anyone stopping him now? Everyone just stood there and then scrambled with a garbage story that a rouge producer (who has since been fired) put the luggage next to the woodchipper. Anyway, Maya was given an Advantage Token so when Ben and Charles Michael were up for elimination, she could save Ben. Then Trevor was put in his place, Chastity ended up making the decision, and Charles Michael was eliminated. (click for more)

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"The Joe Schmo Show" 2025 -- episode 3 "It's All a Prank on Me"

 

Previously on “Joe Schmo”: Now that Ben has supposedly bought into this deception, the producers needed a way to isolate him from everyone. Really, an excuse for him to be alone so they could have meetings. So Ben was made the “Goatkeeper” because of course there is a real live goat. The challenge was to run out onto a narrow walkway over the pool, and then get a bell and then bow down to the goat. Your bows were recorded by you smashing your forehead into a platform and then smashing the back of your head into another platform. This was fixed so Braxton would win, but supposedly no one expected Ben to try really hard. They also were blindsided when Ben told his alliance not to vote for Ryan, who was annoying and threw the challenge so poorly everyone knew he did it on purpose. He told them to vote for Chastity and Taylor, to break up that alliance. We were told the writers had to rewrite everything to account for this, since if Ryan was nominated, Ben would know someone turned on him. So their solution was to have Agnes be eliminated, a person in his alliance, which resulted in the same thing: Ben is looking for traitors. Why couldn't they just let Ryan go home if the result (Ben being paranoid) is the same? Who knows. (click for more)

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"The Joe Schmo Show" 2025 -- episode 2 "The Golden Goat"

 

Previously on “Joe Schmo”: we rebooted the franchise, but somehow it just wasn't the same. Did they not go far enough? Can you bring back a fake reality show after nearly 25 years of “real” reality shows? Are my standards too high? Ben is just a blue collar guy from Baltimore who hunts and fishes and is single. He's on “The Goat USA”, a “spin-off” of a supposedly Korean game show that everyone pretends they have heard of. It's got just enough “Squid Game” for you to notice but not enough to sue. The elimination ceremony is called “The Sacrifice” but I feel it is not dumb enough for my satisfaction. Jonathan Lipnicki (yes that one) is playing a douchebag child star and is the first one voted out. Don't forget Barbara, though, who randomly hit a button and was the actual first person out. Which promptly caused Ben to declare her “100%” an actor. (click for more)

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"The Joe Schmo Show" 2025 -- episode 1

So “Joe Schmo” is back on television. The articles about this premiere made it sound like this is a new idea, as if this isn't the fourth season of this show. But I guess part of how the show works is you need to wait between seasons so everyone forgets this show is a thing, or else people are too suspicious. (click for more)

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