"Project Runway" recaplet (5.11): Rock & Roll Runway

We’re coming down to the pointy end of the competition on Project Runway. Last week we said farewell to the token straight guy, Joe. That leaves just five contestants.

Heidi comes strutting down the runway at the beginning of the show for the model selection. She’s twirling her velvet chip pouch and looking uncharacteristically frumpy in her gold brocade skirt.

It has been awhile since the contestants got to select models, so out of the remaining 8 girls lined up in their black teddies for inspection, 3 must go home.  Heidi pulls Kenley’s name from the pouch first, and Kenley shocks everyone by changing models. Her original model looked completely devastated. You expect that sort of ill behavior from Kenley, but surprise, mousy Leanne gets to pick next and she poaches Suede’s model Tria! As Suede would say (and in fact does), “Suede is not happy.”

Back at Parsons, Tim Gunn comes in and tells the designers they’ll be designing for each other this week. And can I just say this seems horribly unfair? I mean if you get Leanne or Kenley or even full-figured Korto then you still get to do women’s wear and really don’t have to go out of your comfort zone. But what about the poor soul who gets stuck with Suede? Not only does that mean you have to do menswear (something none of the designers seem comfortable with), but you have to do menswear for someone who isn’t exactly a clothes horse.

Korto gets stuck with Suede, and she is not happy about it. 

After Tim tells them who will be designing for who, he throws out another twist – they  have to base their designs on a musical genre.  Here’s the breakdown….

Suede is designing a Rock & Roll outfit for Jerell
Kenley is doing a Hip Hop outfit for Leanne
Korto is doin a Punk outfit for Suede
Jerell is doing a Pop outfit for Kenley
and finally, Leanne is doing a Country outfit for Korto

The designers then huddle with each other to hash out design concepts. Right away problems surface with Kenley’s design for Liane. Kenley has a very broad notion of what “Hip Hop” is and is not receptive to Leanne’s suggestions.

Says Kenley: “I want to do something that looks good on her. I’m not going to make her look like a fool.”

Uh it’s not as if the girl needs any help in that department. Next thing, we cut away to an interview shot where Leanne is doing an embarrassing freestyle rap.

Yo Kenley’s gonna make an outfit for me-uh
she better not make it look like it's from 1950-uh
Holla!

Note to self: NEVER attempt to rap on camera. Unless you’re, say, Eminem that sort of thing never works out well.

Mood

The designers head off to Mood for fabrics and again it seems like the big point of conflict is Kenley. She chooses a festive floral print for part of her “hip hop” outfit. Tim Gunn expresses concern that it’s not hip hop enough (try at all!).  Kenley sticks to her guns as she always does, completely ignoring his concerns. The rest of the designers just roll their eyes at Kenley. It’s like they are all silently rooting for her to fail. Smirks Jerell during an interview cutaway, “I just don’t think that there’s anything hip hop in Kenley’s bag of 50’s style dresses.”

Back in the Workroom

Kenley looks to be heading towards disaster with her design, but across the workroom Leanne has magically transformed Korto into a country and western star. Initially, Korto was very skeptical of a country and western outfit, but the minute Leanne slips the cowboy boots on her feet, Korto is two stepping around the workroom and humming Shania Twain.

Later, Tim comes in to do his regular inspections. (I always hate that he waits to do this until late in the day when the designers don’t really have time to make drastic changes to their designs.) He looks around the room and doesn’t really have a problem with anyone’s work until he gets to Kenley.

He looks at her high-waisted, tight Capri pants and tiny jacket and innocently mentions that he thought the hip hop look was “oversized and loose.”  Kenley blows her top. “No! That’s like 80’s hip hop!”  Right, so according to Kenley hip hop artists are now wearing high waisted, high water Capri pants. She’s designed a pair of “gangsta clamdiggers.”  

Kenley basically waves Tim away and, something unusual for Tim, he gets a little peeved with her:

Tim: You know I’m just trying to understand your vision here. If you could eliminate the sarcasm and facetiousness maybe it would help.

Apparently that’s a tall order for Kenley. She giggles nervously and says nothing.  The rest of the contestants all roll their eyes again – they know that you never disrespect Tim. Even if you disagree with him you never disrespect him.

(Later on during the show they run one of those text message polls asking whether viewers thought Kenley was disrespectful. A full 88% said yes.)

More and more it’s looking like Kenley will be going home this week.

The Fittings

Everything seems to be going smoothly at final fittings and hair and makeup except for Kenley’s fitting for Leanne. Looks like those gangsta clamdiggers Kenley was so proud of are giving little Leanne a rather obvious case of cameltoe.

Kenley:  Okay, so there’s a little bunching in the crotch. But not anything the judges would notice.

Yeah right.

The Runway Show

Korto totally rocks Leanne’s country outfit. To my mind this was arguably the hardest design brief (Korto in country?), but somehow it works.

Kenley comes out in Jerell’s pop outfit. She totally looks like an out of shape, brunette Britney Spears.  (Which is to say she looks exactly like a brunette Britney Spears)

Then comes Leanne in Kenley’s “hip hop” outfit. Oh this is a total disaster. It looks like something Laura Petrie would wear on The Dick Van Dyke Show, only Leanne is half-heartedly throwing in some gangsta moves while simultaneously shielding her cameltoe from the judges.

Cut to guest judge LL Cool J’s face. He’s totally smirking.

Then comes Suede in Korto’s punk outfit. Remember I said that having Suede as a model would be a disadvantage? Well I take that back. The guy totally gets into the “punk” persona and really sells Korto’s amazing design. The artfully bleached  jeans are a particular high point. Suede actually looks far better than he usually does on the show.

Lastly, Jerell comes out in Suede’s rock & roll outfit.  It‘s not ugly, but it’s a little too put together and polished to truly be rock & roll.

The Judging

The winner is no surprise. Korto takes it for her very impressive punk outfit. But I think she owes a big thanks to Suede for selling it so well on the runway.

The bottom two are Kenley and Suede. Kenley’s outfit is truly ridiculous and she talks back and whines to the judges. Meanwhile, Suede’s outfit was a little boring but clearly well made and at least flattering on Jerell. So who goes home? Suede!

Whaaa? Kenley really deserved to get the axe this week. But clearly she makes for great TV, and overall she’s probably been more consistent than Suede, so maybe the decision makes sense.

So that leaves Kenley, Korto, Jerell and Leanne. Which three will get through next week and go on to Bryant Park? I think Korto and Jerell probably are a lock, which leaves Leanne and Kenley fighting for that third slot.  

As annoying as I think Kenley is, she’s very talented when she’s in her element (namely vintage 50’s fashion) so I’m sort of hoping she survives and Leanne goes home next week. What do AfterElton.com readers think?