America’s Next Top Model 8, Episode 1: Goodwill Hunting

The girls begin the show, and Phillip Block is doing commentary, calling Kathleen a “hoochie with a twist.” She feels she rocked it. Renee is up next and Phillip says that maybe she’s a trendsetter. Dionne has on some flood pants and Brittany is compared to a tomboy. Ms. J. doesn’t like her outfit at all. Felicia has a big winter coat on and Jaslene STOMPS down the runway. That girl has a walk if I’ve ever seen one!

Diana does a good job and Sarah says she isn’t scared of the runway. Whitney has a little red suit on but I don’t really care for it. Samantha goes with a leopard print and Phillip says she’s the “call of the wild.” Jael has a few splashes of color and Ms. J. really thinks she made it work. Cassandra is ready for a day at the beach. And with that, the girls do their final walk – the first runway challenge has been completed!

The girls are gathered for the results. Ms. J. says that they raised $286.50 altogether, which is really good. It is? I feel like 13 outfits should raise more than that! Anyway, the winner, whose outfit brought in the biggest bid, was – Jael! Jael says that she did her best, and Renee tells the camera that the only reason Jael won is because she always shops in thrift stores. Jael signs the check and asks the girls if the still like her. Renee, who is officially a “Jael-hater,” feels that Jael might be acting like she’s such great friends with everyone, but she knows it’s not real.

When the girls get back to the house, Renee finally confronts Jael, telling her that she can’t always be happy and expect everyone to be such great friends. Jael tells the camera that her relationship with Renee is now very stressful, especially since they aren’t going through the same thing, what with Renee having a child and all. You think? Thank goodness Tyra mail arrives. It says that tomorrow the girls will meet with the judges and only 12 will be moving on.

My new favorite, Kathleen, says that you never know what’s going to happen in front of the judges. She feels like the person who goes home first doesn’t really have a chance to compete. In another room, Jaslene comforts another girl (I can’t tell who it is) and tells her not to worry about the judges. It’s out of their hands.

Sarah tells the camera that she is ready for some eliminations and other girls to start going home. Renee talks about how irritated she is with the other girls and how well she wants to do. I really want to like Renee – I really do. She’s making it hard, though.

It’s time to meet the judges! The girls walk into the judging room where they are waiting. First, we have photographer Nigel Barker. There’s Ms. J. Alexander and his snarky comments… and Twiggy. Tyra also reminds the girls of the prizes, which include:

• A contract with Elite Model Management
• A cover and spread in “Seventeen” magazine (I guess it’s no longer shot by Gilles Bensimone, since he wasn’t mentioned)
• A $100,000 contract with CoverGirl cosmetics!

This week, the girls had a very controversial shoot – they needed to make a political statement. Jael is up first. The judges congratulate her on the challenge win and Jael admits that she was nervous that it would change the way the other girls look at her. They look at her photo (pro-life) and feel she had a pretty face and looked attractive, but was trying to be an actress. Jael goes into her song and dance about having a fever and Tyra simply tells her to pull it together. That’s right, Tyra – no excuses!

Natasha steps forward next, and the judges feel she blended into the background in her photo more than actually popping out – there’s no connection. Dionne was the vegan and the judges like the strong face in her photo but don’t think she really gave enough to get the message across – it was just “good.” Cassandra got the message across, though, and they can tell she loves meat. Okay…

Renee is up next with her anti-gun photo. The judges feel she gave a great shot, but they all looked the same. Renee admits that she was scared, and it might have come across as timid or nervous. She is constantly thinking of her son and knows she can do better. Diana is praised for her posing and moving around, but the judges think she looks dead in the face.

Kathleen is up next and she tells the judges that she was anti-fur. When asked by Tyra what her view is on furs, Kathleen says that she “isn’t for animals being killed for fur, but if they are already dead, there’s nothing wrong with making a coat out of them – if they died of natural causes, like humans.” I laughed again just typing that. Twiggy looks horrified and says that fur coats aren’t made from animals that “just die,” and she’s very anti-fur. Shut up, Twiggy. Kathleen doesn’t know!

Tyra says that Kathleen didn’t really understand the concept, and Kathleen agrees. It was explained to her, but she didn’t want to seem slow. [Assistant Editor’s note: Is it that difficult of a concept to get? It’s not exactly quantum physics.] Tyra tells her that if she doesn’t understand something, – ask! They aren’t crazy about her photo and seem to move on quickly.

Brittany was pro-fur and Twiggy loves the mood of the photo. Ms. J. would have like some extra shoulder. Whitney and Samantha step up next and Samantha says they were both fine with the concept of their photo. Nigel says that they didn’t really listen to directions well, but they both did a good job. All the judges praise Samantha for showing neck. Felicia and her straight marriage photo are also liked by the judges. Tyra says it could be in a bridal magazine today. Is that a compliment?