PR9EP14: Finally.....The Finale

It's over. Finale! Finally.
So, there's no challenge to set up, no morning drama to report, no Little Velvet Bag to eff things up. The only change, and I think it was done to ensure that the winner chosen is the winner everyone--and by everyone, i mean the producers--wanted, the designers were given an extra $500.00 to spend at Mood on whatever they want and to make whatever they want, which is odd, considering they'd already spent the initial $9,000 in PR bucks. I didn't much care for it because it reeked of fixing the outcome, but, why don't we just let 'er rip......


KIMBERLY
After the critique of the Final Four, in which no one got the boot, Kimberly is regrouping. And she's taking the extra 500, and the little pink bubble butt skirt, and is thinking, Reboot. I think it's a smart move. Bubbles might be good; hot pink bubbles, not so much. 
Of course, however, mini-disaster strikes and the black fabric for the new bubble isn't the same weight as the pink, so it's tossed out and the pink is back in.
Back in, as well, is Kimberly's habit of becoming totally scattered when Tim comes by and not being able to fully explain what she's doing or why she's doing it. But I think that's all part of the 'Well she or won't she win' edit, even if we already knew the answer to that question.

As for her collection I liked the urban-ness of it. I liked the bold bright colors, though they hinged on a little too bright. But I hated the chunky shoes she chose. 
Her whole collection seemed disjointed to me, because, in one step, it went from bold and bright colors to this very chic ivory outfit that I thought, while it was gorgeous, seemed like it was from another collection. 
I still  however, loved her black sparkly gown, which seemed most suited to be shown in an Ebony and Ivory show and not in a Bold Bright Brooklyn Girl collection.
Kors liked that Kimberly listened to their critiques and restyled her girls, and lost some of the clunkier accessories, i.e., the handbags. He loved the black gown, but the flowy long dress with the pink mini-skirt underneath looked like a huge mistake. 
Still, he called Kimberly exuberant and glamorous and kickass. Which she is, and probably will be, if she can just settle.
Guest Judge, L'Wren Scott--oddly enough, pronounced Lauren Scott...which means I will change my name to B'Wob, though still call myself Bob--loved the blue shiny dress that opened the show, and loved the pink dress with the cutouts, though she liked it best without the jacket.

Heidi loved the ivory number, but thought it didn't fit in with the others very well, and wanted to see more of that design style. She still hated the bubble skirt, especially since it was paired with a bubbly top. Too.Many.Bubbles! Nina thought it was great, all-around, and loved the sexy backs; Kimberly is bringing the sexy back back. She also adored the modern black gown.
Still, and I think we all knew it, Kimberly is the first one Auf'd. But, for someone who, through the first several shows, got the Almost Invisible Edit, it was nice to see her make it to the end.

VIKTOR
Viktor, who has been super-confident all season--bordering on obnoxiously arrogant, at times--believes that his collection is just perfect as it is, though he agrees it does need some editing. 
But then he took that extra five C-notes and went sheer crazy at Mood; and by that, I mean, he bought all the sheer fabric he could get his hands on and then created another, separate, mini, collection of sheer madness clothes.
It was overkill, and I think it may have sealed his fate. Even Tim was shocked by how much of his original collection he simply tossed aside like it was garbage.
He even ditched the evening gown he showed last week with the white leather-and-pearl jacket. I thought that dress was gorgeous, if a wee bit transparent. But he repalced it with another evning gown that was totally sheer. 
Hello Granny Panties! And Bra!
Big mistake. Huge. I don't know who would wear such sheer things, or wear they might be worn. It seemed to have been done for the shock value, but there was less shock and more shrug.
But I liked his collection, it was chic and sophisticated. And it fit his Mexico/NYC aesthetic in the prints and the kind of urban rocker chic-ness of it all. Best of all were his prints, that he designed himself.
And I was so happy he took that zippered leather skirt off that one print dress--though he kept that dress and it showed beautifully--and then created another outfit, of the sheers, to show off the leather. This one outfit, I think, needed the sheer fabric, and the combination of leather and see-thru was cool.
And Kors loved the prints as well. And, once more, he admired Viktor's abilities to tailor an outfit and show a polished collection. But, like me, he thought the sheers were too much; who wears that? It was too showy.
L'Wren loved the prints also, and especially on the first look, which screamed New York woman to her. She thought his collection had a cool vibe, but that, again, the sheer looks were a misfire. I kept thinking, Why didn't you line them?

WHY!!???!!!
I need to stop taking all this so seriously.
But Heidi, of all people, because I disagreed with her most, got it right. It was two collections. The chic prints and the tough girl sheers. Hard and bitchy or glamorous; pick one, Viktor, and run with it. And Nina--Goddess bless Nina Garcia--was the first, and only judge to suggest that Viktor should have taken some of those fabulous, totally Viktor, prints, and used them with the sheers; as a lining. As a coverup. Something. 
To my amazement, because I thought he'd win, but it's all about shock value and show for the PR producers, Viktor was given the second Auf'ing.


JOSH CRAWFORD

Eyebrows in place, hair shellacked. Josh Crawford gave us the schizo show. 
And I'm not talking, yet, about his clothes. With his extra $500, Josh raced to Mood, and to the Neon Section, which I think is hidden in the back.....like in the 1980s back...and bought Neon Green fabric. I.Don't.Get.Him.
He likes shine and glitter and plastic, which doesn't say fashion as much as it says costume, or, as Tim noted, crazy. Tim said the girl that Josh designs for doesn't know if she's uptown, or downtown, or even in this century.
His collection was crazy. 
Why does he take these sorts of urban colors, of blacks and grays, even though they are neoprene fabrics, and then toss in hot pinks and nuclear greens? And then adds bits of plastic? 
It's like he's two people, which is clear in how he's portrayed on the show. He constantly bitches about how hard he works, and how much he needs this, and how much he's lost--oh lordy, he doesn't even have a job to go back to if he doesn't win this thing--but then he does the mini-breakdown and tear-fest and I miss my, Mom. 
I don't want to sound callous, but between his assholiness and his Mama Can You Hear Me moments, it was a mess.
And Heidi called his collection  a mess, er, mesh, of hard and soft, and that's Miss Crawford; she's a hard bitch, or she's a soft puddle. Either way, it's an act I ain't buying.
And I ain't buying his collection either. It was as odd as his dueling personalities. 
That tuxedo tail dress seemed like a joke to me. And those green lace-up shorts? WTF and OMG. But his simple black dress, in neoprene, was very cool looking, as were his gray-and-black coats. The joker striped tank was stupid, and the gown with the plunging neckline and the plastic epaulets was ridiculous.
Heidi loved his collection and loved the green shorts. [Note to producers: send Heidi to style school]. Kors called Josh schizo, with the colors and the plastic and the neoprene and the chic urban dresses. L'Wren loved the purple dress, perhaps because she hadn't seen it in orange? And Nina, well, she liked his clothes, because she could see them in an editorial fashion shoot. But could she see anyone in America wear them? I think not.
And, since no one else did, I'm gonna say it, since no one else did, that first number that opened his show, the purple draped one? It was an exact replica of the orange draped number he made for the bird challenge, complete with the chain detail in the back, Why wasn't he called out for that? Who knows?
And luckily, the judges saved us from a Josh win and Auf'd him at the very last second. That was worth the wait.

ANYA
She was a mess, kind of like her designs. Her original collection was a disaster and should have sent her packing. Of the three looks she showed last week, the judges thought two of them were hideous. 
And yet, surprisingly enough--or maybe not so much because maybe these things are decided long before the finale--she makes it through.
And she takes that extra $500 and buys yards and yards and yards of black-and-white prints, and then, in the two days left before the tents, she creates an almost entirely new collection. 
Now, don't get me wrong, I like Anya, but I think that extra cash stash was given out just so Anya could make a collection and then be named the winner.
The Underdog, The Come From Behind Gal. Miss Last Minute.
I like her. And I like her collection. It's pretty. Pretty one-note. It floats and flows. it looks like the beach. I get it. And I liked that she did listen to the judges and change out the shoes. her clothes are sandal clothes.
But, wouldn't it have been nice to see tropical also done urban? Or tropical done more diverse? Maybe mix in some solid colors with the patterns. or do some of that structured thing she was doing at the end. anything to mix it up.
I will give her props for tossing out the awful black bathing suit and hideous puke brown cover-up that she showed last week. Her new swimsuit and cover-up, in a cool B&W print was much improved. And that first dress was, for me, the best thing of all four shows. Sexy and cool and elegant.

But I will take her down for that one look, in the black-and-white print, with the lone high neck. it looked like a turtle-nicked-caftan. No, it just looked ugly. And she had the nerve to put it on the model who also got the win. 
Sidenote: The winning model gets all the food you can east in a lifetime, which is a small tin of Altoids and some cigarettes.
Heidi likes Anya's vibe, and the amazing fabrics she uses. But, rightly so, she noted that, out of ten looks, eight had the same neckline. It's nice, and it's Anya, but it could have been more. Maybe of Anya didn't always wait until the last minute to get to work, she could have been so much better, and more deserving of the win.
Plunging, flowing, tropical. Pretty. One-note. 
Kors also loved that first look, because it had movement and edge and glam and sex, without the slutty. Kors seems fixated on slutty. That's all I have to say about that. But he feels Anya needs to push it more because not everyone wants Tobago Love.
L'Wren also loved the prints , but doesn't think it was a collection that all women could wear; it was too taste specific, eh, L'Wren? Or was it too one-note? 
Nina, yawn, also loved the fabulous prints, and adored the new swimsuit, but wondered if Anya would be able to translate her Caribbean vibe to every day women, or find a niche in the retail world.
One-note. Too taste specific. Similar necklines. It went from worst to first?
Congratulations Anya, you are the winner.
M'kay.


LAST RANT
I think the extra five hundred wasn't fair. Viktor really didn't need it, though he misused it. Josh didn't need it, though he neon'd it. Kimberly didn't need it, and it doesn't seem like she even used it. So, it was just for Anya? So she could fix her catastrophe and "earn" the win? Not fair, Lifetime, producers, Heidi.
Even with his two-sided collection, I thought Viktor had the best designs and should have won. Don't get me wrong, I loved Anya's stuff, but, well, seen one? Seen 'em all.
I do, however, think this was a good season of the PR. Drama and bitches. Good fashion and bad. The wrong one wins. But hey, to each his own. I do know that i will be sitting, remote in hand, and DVR set, when the PR All-Stars take the stage.
One word: Mondo.