America's Next Top Model: Here's The Initial Rankings - Ranking The Remaining 11 Rankings and Commentary by RTVC Senior Staff Writer Jacob D.
March 18, 2010
This week's episode of America's Next Top Model brought us the continuation of last week's episode plus another episode of competition and drama.
Picking up where things left off last week, the 13 models were thrust into a nude photo shoot and most struggled to get their bearings.
At the first judging panel of the season, Andre Leon Talley joined the panel as a permanent judge and Miss J's replacement and each girl was critiqued on their first photos.
The judges really liked Jessica and voted her's as the best photo of the week.
On the flipside, the judges were not so pleased with Alasia and Gabrielle and though they were put off by Alasia's booty photo, Gabrielle was eliminated for leaving an underwhelming impression.
In the second competition episode, Alasia's loud personality got on a lot of the girls' nerves and a confrontation erupted when Ren told her to shut up.
Speaking of Ren, she questioned her sanity and whether she made the right decision by joining the competition.
The girls received walking lessons from Miss J that centered around pace and timing.
The girls then took part in a runway challenging, modeling Rachel Roy's designs, and Alexandra gave a notable performance by falling twice.
Moving on to positive things, Brenda ended up being named the winner.
The next photo shoot saw the girls taking beauty shots on a rooftop while dealing with wind and water.
At judging panel, Raina's fierce photo left the judges floored and she was named the best of the week.
Naduah and Ren were singled out as the bottom two and though Ren's uneven early performance left the judges worried, Naduah was eliminated for wasting her edgy look on over-the-top and forced classic poses.
Raina
Current Ranking: 1 - Previous Ranking: None
If Naduah hadn't bombed so badly so quickly, I would've ranked her first as the one to beat. Her look is so edgy and strong, making her stand out in a big way, and I liked her personality even if she was a bit discombobulated. However, with her out of the way, I needed someone to step up and claim first place and Raina did just that. Her face is one of, in not THE, most stunning of all the girls, providing her with such a great look. Heck, I don't know if we've seen any girls comparable to Raina in any previous cycle. That's not to say Raina is the best girl the show has ever seen, just that I don't remember seeing anyone else like her and that's a good thing. As far as the competition, she has rocked it so far and is in a good position to do some damage, possibly being a frontrunner. I can't wait to see what else Raina can do!
Tatiana
Current Ranking: 2 - Previous Ranking: None
Tatiana hasn't been featured much in these first two episodes, but she has already received attention for her beautiful look. Her first photo drew lavish praise from the judges for its fierceness and her second photo got my attention with her ethereal beauty. I think Tatiana could be a dark horse/spoiler to whatever frontrunners pop up , if not be a frontrunner herself, provided she keeps up this momentum and shows more personality.
Jessica
Current Ranking: 3 - Previous Ranking: None
Jessica started off really well in the competition with her photo being named the best of the bunch after the first photo shoot. She didn't fare as well in the second photo shoot, but going off of her initial look, so commercial and girl-next-door, I'm surprised that she's been able to adapt to the high fashion proceedings so far. For showing that she has potential and catching the judges' eye this early, Jessica takes a high perch on my scoreboard.
Angelea
Current Ranking: 4 - Previous Ranking: None
I'm surprised to find myself ranking Angelea so highly because I don't really like her and feel her look is too rough, too harsh. Even so, she surprised me and the judges with a pair of soft, feminine, graceful photos, though her second photo didn't go over so well with the panel. One thing I worry about is that she's trying to give the judges what she thinks they want more than who she really is and would like to see her give some edgier, stronger photos here and there to even things out. Still, for this week's ranking, she places well for being a pleasant surprise. Well done!
Krista
Current Ranking: 5 - Previous Ranking: None
Krista didn't do so well in the first photo shoot, turning in a rather static and flat photo. However, even then the judges loved her for her strong personal presence. Then, she reversed course and turned in a stunning photo in the second photo shoot that left the judges raving. Overall, I think Krista has one of the most striking looks in the bunch and could be a contender as far as presence goes and that's always a big plus in this competition.
Brenda
Current Ranking: 6 - Previous Ranking: None
Brenda is a bit of an anomaly to me right now. She has an interesting look, but I'm not sure if her makeover really does it justice. It almost seems a bit too severe. She did well in the first photo shoot and earned the judges' praise, then won the runway challenge in the later half of the episode. Then in the second photo shoot, she struggled and photographed older than she looked. I'm not really sure what kind of model she is right now or where she fits in so I'm going to take her current track record and split the difference by ranking her in the middle of the pack.
Anslee
Current Ranking: 7 - Previous Ranking: None
Though Anslee has earned some praise from the judges for her photos, I keep forgetting she's in the competition which isn't a good thing. I feel this puts her in something of the same boat as Simone, recognized as lovely though mostly seen as wallpaper right now, but I've ranked her above Simone because the judges seem to have noticed her more.
Simone
Current Ranking: 8 - Previous Ranking: None
To me, Simone isn't much of a factor in the competition right now. She's lovely and takes some nice photos, but she hasn't really done anything yet to break free from the pack, personality or modeling-wise.
Alexandra
Current Ranking: 9 - Previous Ranking: None
Ouch. Alexandra is having a rough time! Her first photo was lovely, but incredibly awkward, especially in her pose and body positioning. Then came episode two and she just tried way too hard at each turn. She was too bouncy and forced in her runway lessons, fell down twice in the runway challenge, and pushed too hard in her second photo shoot. As such, she is coming off a bit desperate at the moment and may be in danger of losing her way. However, I think she has potential and while her competitiveness could work against her, if she can rein it in and use it to help her instead of hinder her, she could go a long way in the competition, though even if she improves she still has the ANTM stigma of being the plus-sized model, another obstacle for her to work around.
Alasia
Current Ranking: 10 - Previous Ranking: None
Alasia is really have a tough go of things right now. She's so aloof and all over the place that her performance is the very definition of 'hit or miss.' Her first photo left the judges split with only Andre being her voice of support. As such, she barely escaped elimination. Then, she was very much a loose cannon on the runway, in my opinion, and had trouble really registering in the second photo shoot though her second showed some progress. I think that of everyone, Alasia needs the most work right now and may be a bit too green at the moment.
Ren
Current Ranking: 11 - Previous Ranking: None
Ren is a beautiful girl with an interesting, unique look and style. In the first photo shoot of the season, she really delivered and looked quite model-esque. However, the second competition episode of the season really saw her taking a turn for the worse. Going by what happened to her in this episode, I would've ranked her last even if she had a better photo and weren't in the bottom two. Ren almost completely lost it this week. She allowed the pressures of the other girls get to her and seemed to seriously consider quitting and walking away. She has what it takes to be a model, but if she's so quick to fold under the pressure, how much can she really hope to do in this competition or this industry? Ren will need to grow thicker skin and get her act together or the question of her elimination will not be 'if,' but 'when.'
Naduah
Eliminated
Gabrielle
Eliminated
Jacob D. is a twenty-something native of Austin Tx who spends his time
listening to music, posting on Austin based messageboards, playing
video games, and watching TV. Jacob also enjoys reading Shonen Jump,
Garfield and Calvin & Hobbes strips, playing Texas Hold 'em, drawing
cartoon chickens, and tending to his neopets. Though shy in real
life, he loves to sound off on his favorite shows and enjoys
interacting with other fans.
You can contact Jacob at Jacob@RealityTVCalendar.com
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