The Apprentice, Episode 7: Duped!

Back in the suite, Omarosa bemoans her injury, saying, “I’ve had a headache for three days.” Appropriately, she is wearing a tank top that says “Princess” on it, since she seems to think that she is one. Katrina says in an interview, “Omarosa got a bump on her head and created a drama series about it, whereas Heidi found out that her mom had cancer and was so classy.” Wow. Well said, Katrina. And speaking of Omarosa’s supposed injury, I’m fairly certain that it was hugely exaggerated. If she was really and truly hurt on a construction site, especially while surrounded by TV cameras, don’t you think she’d go to a hospital? After all, it’s not exactly like she had a paper cut; this was a supposed head injury.

Nick says that he’s not nervous at all about going to the boardroom. “Maybe it’s a positive attitude, maybe it’s crazy,” he admits. Katrina is sure her team will win and looks forward to rubbing Troy’s face in it. She says that the only way his team might win would be by pure luck.

In the boardroom, Trump immediately asks for the results. Carolyn reports that Versacorp impressed her with great renovations, then rented the apartment for $1,650, a ten percent markup. Bernie (filling in again for George) says that Protégé did even better, renting their apartment for $1,525, a 27% increase. Protégé wins!

Katrina stops the celebration, telling Trump, “Troy did not play by the rules of the game.” Troy says that’s not true, and, “[Katrina] got emotional and attacked me personally.” Katrina says that she was not emotional; she was not hysterical, and she was not crying, but she did get stern with him like she’s doing right now. Katrina asks Trump if he would ever do business with someone as shady as Troy. Trump says that he’d like to say no, but that sometimes it happens because you can’t always know who you’re dealing with. Trump tells her, “Business in New York is a tough deal.” Sometimes in business, you get duped. Katrina says that never in her life has she been duped. Trump incredulously responds, “You’ve never been duped? I have.” Katrina insists that she has not, and that Troy will not be the one to do it. The rest of her team agrees that Troy did not dupe them… until Tammy chimes in from the back row, “I think we were duped.” Katrina shoots a death stare in her direction.

What was Katrina trying to accomplish by telling Trump that Troy behaved unethically? Her team had already lost – was she looking to get Troy’s team disqualified? I don’t think so, and several of the other writers here at RNO agree with me. What seems more likely is that Katrina felt very vulnerable after this loss. She is, after all, a hot-shot real estate agent who should have been able to win this challenge. Because she didn’t, she probably thought – with good reason – that there was a good chance she’d be fired. By immediately telling Trump about how Troy behaved, she was trying to deflect attention from her own responsibility for the loss. Also, if she really does think that Troy is sleazy, she might want Trump to know it for future consideration.

Nonetheless, Katrina’s plea is unsuccessful – Versacorp must return to the boardroom, where someone will get fired. Protégé’s reward is a trip to Trump’s country house in Westchester for a picnic lunch. Trump asks to speak to Heidi alone.

Trump knows about Heidi’s mother’s illness and offers to send her home if she wants to be with her family. Heidi says that she and her mother have agreed that she should stay and keep working. She asks that he not hold her personal situation against her when making future decisions. Heidi thanks him for his concern. In an interview, she says that her conversation with Trump was very comforting, and that he treated her like a friend.

Protégé heads for their Trump-tastic reward. Trump’s country house is a fifty-five thousand square foot monster. The candidates enjoy hot cider, fruit, and cheese on the grounds of the estate. Amy toasts, “the first of many victories.” You’ve got to wonder what other Trumpy rewards Trump has up his sleeve because, let’s face it, eating cheese on the ground outside of his house isn’t the most thrilling prize in the world. Couldn’t he send them to one of his casinos?

The defeated Versacorp heads back to the suite. Katrina and Ereka are livid about Tammy’s telling Trump that they were duped. Katrina hisses, “What the hell was Tammy thinking?” The team gathers for a meeting, and Bill asks Katrina if she’ll tell them in advance which two people she’s taking to the board room. She doesn’t answer him, and Bill says they’ll love her anyway. In an interview, Katrina says that Bill was responsible for negotiating the rent. Ereka says the same, and thinks that since they didn’t rent the apartment for as much money as they could have, Bill shoulders some of the blame. Ereka then tells Tammy, “There was no duping going on.” Tammy tries to let that sink in. In an interview, she wonders, “Will it be me? Will it be someone else? I don’t know.” Yeah, but you know what? I bet it’s one of those two choices.