Project Runway: The Horror

I don't know why I didn't think to blog about Project Runway before. I watch it every week and I definitely have STRONG opinions about what happens. But this week was a drama doozy that has hefted me onto a Project Runway soapbox.

For the sake of full disclosure, I'll admit was on team Bert from day one. His story broke my heart and the garments he brought to the audition were simple and elegant and beautiful. But I am not longer on team Bert. I suppose it was naive of me to think that because Bert has been through so much heartache and loss in his life he would have more compassion and empathy for his fellow human beings. Nope. Uh-uh. Not even close. I was shocked and disgusted by his petulant and childish behavior toward his team during the challenge, but especially during the runway critique where he fist-pumped and laughed his way through his teammate's critiques. It was a disgusting display.


Moving on, Bert was not the only one who chose to be awful to his fellow contestants. Josh M. gave Bert a serious run for the money by being dismissive and cruel to his fellow teammate Becky. He basically used and abused her sewing skills and didn't let her contribute to the the design aspect of the team design challenge. It was awful to watch. Unfortunately his behavior was rewarded when this boring 90s reincarnation co-won the challenge. I mean, boxy knitwear with a racer stripe? It wasn't great in the 90s and it's even worse in this supposedly "fashion forward" seeking reality show. Barf.

Josh M.'s "winning" look.


But I did think that the other co-winner deserved his win. Viktor treated all this teammates with respect, they communicated well, and they made a cohesive and sporty collection. Viktor's winning design has a nice balance of hard and soft and is casual enough to wear with tennis shoes (which was part of the challenge), but could be worn with sandals or heels to change the look a bit. He should have won outright, but unfortunately for the world, I don't get to decide these sort of things.

Viktor's winning look.


Last but not least, there is Anya. Anya was cast on the show even though she claimed she had been sewing for only four months. And for some reason the judges LOVE her, even though she consistently sends the same thing down the runway. I respect Anya for her determination and her vision and her hair, but I am angry that they are glorifying the fact that she has no sewing skills. True, you can be a designer without sewing skills—it happens every day—but Project Runway REQUIRES that their contestants sew their own designs. Turns out Anya has had sewing help from her fellow contestants on almost every challenge. If those judges can't see that Anya's a one-trick pony (she uses the same racerback design on everything), I'm not sure if I can trust their "authority" as judges. (P.S. Josh M.'s dress that won was actually Anya's design and, of course, the back has her signature racerback.)


Until next time, rant done.