The Apprentice 2, Episode 5: The Price is Right

The candidates gather in the suite, and the women of Apex seem a bit worn out from the battle in the boardroom. Sandy tells Kevin that it was brutal. Ivana says that she agrees with Carolyn’s assessment that it’s pretty pitiful that the women can’t get along with one another. Lil Stacy and Elizabeth return, so everyone knows that Jennifer C. got fired. Lil Stacy declares, “The witch is dead,” and one of the guys asks, “Which witch?” Hee!

If you thought the arguing would end after the boardroom, you’d be wrong. Elizabeth accuses Sandy of spending the day with Jennifer C. building a case against her and Lil Stacy. Sandy says that Elizabeth’s constant crying was unprofessional. Hey, they’re both right! Pamela watches all of this from her unique position as the only woman not on the fractured, losing Apex team. In an interview, she says that as a woman, she wishes the all-female team would do well, “but I’m a competitor first and a woman second.” As a result, she’s rooting “not for uteruses,” but for her own team to win. Wouldn’t it have been awesome if Apex had named themselves Uterus instead?

The Trump phone rings, and a shirtless Chris answers it. I rewound my Tivo to confirm that Chris is indeed sporting at least one nipple ring, and I shudder. The teams are to meet Trump at UPS. Chris tells us that once again, Mosaic chose their project manager at random, and that he was the lucky winner.

The teams gather at UPS. Trump breaks it down for them: the women have been decimated over the past few weeks by a lack of leadership and some ugly infighting. In an attempt to turn things around, he’s sending Pamela, a woman whom he resepects, who has a winning record, over to Apex to serve as project manager. The sides will now be an even seven men against seven women. He adds that the women all hate each other, so it won’t be easy for Pamela. Pamela says goodbye to the men of Mosaic and joins the other side.

Trump tells the teams that QVC is a huge force in retailing – they sell over 100 million items a year, and in turn, UPS ships 54 million packages for them. The teams will head to QVC headquarters in Pennsylvania, choose a product, and sell it on the air. The team with the highest gross sales wins.

The women board a bus for West Chester and QVC. Pamela tells them in no uncertain terms that things will be different from now on. She doesn’t want to hear “That’s not how we used to do it.” After all, “Whatever you used to do isn’t (bleeping) working.” She informs them that she will be bossy and bitchy, and that’s just the way it’s going to be. She says she doesn’t really know any of them and doesn’t know any of their old conflicts, and furthermore, she doesn’t care. Maria says in an interview that Pamela’s line of speaking really offended her. She says she doesn’t need a lecture from someone her own age on what is and isn’t appropriate. I’m not so sure about that. Pamela is definitely not going to win any friends with the way she’s talking to Apex, but their track record makes clear that they really need a kick in the pants to change things. Maybe it’s time for some tough love.

Pamela asks the team what tasks they’d feel comfortable taking on. Maria immediately says that she is excellent at public speaking and sales – she’d like to be on camera. Lil Stacy starts to interrupt, and Pamela chews her out, saying that they need to stop what they’re doing and listen to each other. Judging from the last episode, it seems like this is a bit of a problem for Lil Stacy. Pamela says that she’s determined to whip Apex into shape.

It’s time for the Trump Lesson of the Week already: “Price It Right.” Trump gives us a mini lecture on the laws of supply and demand and the importance of pricing items just right. As he gives us the lesson in a voiceover, he talks to Bill on the phone about Bill’s Chicago project.

Over at Mosaic, Raj says it’s crucial that they win this task. If they lose, Trump will be all over them, wondering if Pamela was the key to their success. He’s probably right – that sounds like something Trump would ask.

Apex quickly chooses their product – the It Works cleaning block. Maria and Jennifer will be on camera. Sandy will handle set design. Yeah, way to stick your neck out there with a really visible and challenging task, there Sandy. Elizabeth and Ivana will be in charge of the script, and Lil Stacy will work with legal. Pamela adds that they need to start thinking about pricing right away. In an interview, Ivana notes that even though Pamela has allocated tasks for everyone else, she hasn’t given herself any responsibility, which seems unfair to her. What’s Pamela in charge of? Well, I’ll tell you, Ivana – she’s in charge of everything. If the team loses, even if you punch Donald Trump in the mouth, Pamela’s going to be in the boardroom and will risk getting fired.

Lil Stacy suggests they choose a “medium price point.” Pamela asks her if she has a recommendation or not. Stacy says that $19.99 is an easy number, and Pamela asks again if she has a recommendation. Stacy tells her not to talk down to her, which is funny when you see the visual of the very tall Pamela talking to the very tiny Stacy. Pamela says in an interview that Stacy’s perspective is different since she’s a lawyer, not a business person. Until you’ve been in business, you just won’t understand the mindset. Pamela decides that Stacy shouldn’t be the one to choose the price point, and takes that responsibility for herself.

Mosaic chooses the Delonghi panini grill, a sharp looking kitchen gadget. Kevin says that product and pricing are the keys to winning this challenge. Kelly is working out the pricing, and things they should sell the grill for over $70. Raj disagrees – he thinks that it takes too much of a leap for the customer to decide to spend $70, and that they’d be more successful at a lower price point. He and Kelly argue back and forth over it, and in an interview, Raj says that he thinks Kelly wants to be the de facto leader of the team. By allowing Kelly to set the price, Raj thinks Chris is ceding too much power.