The Apprentice 5: Why Allie and Roxanne Lost

Part of the problem was that neither of them really focused on the long-term, as encouraged by the sixth rule. If they had, it would have occurred to one of them that, hey, only one could win and they should consider playing individually to show their own strengths. Then again, considering they actually seemed to think they might be able to convince Trump to not fire either of them, maybe they figured the could both win together.

Even if that’s the case, Roxallie still should have recognized that the only way to get hired is by showing they deserved to be there, not by ganging up on other people. However, ganging up seemed to come naturally to them, so maybe that’s how they live their regular lives too.

The seventh rule is really where they blew it. Yes, I’ve already pointed out a number of things they did wrong, but if they had won this challenge, Trump would have seemingly had little choice but to put them in the finale. The problem is that they didn’t have the foggiest idea how to perform in this challenge. It was like Tammy predicted when she was fired – they couldn’t handle a task that wasn’t sales-related.

The main problem was that Roxallie got it into their heads that they knew what the Embassy Suites workers wanted better than the workers themselves. Allie, in particular, blew by thoughts of functionality and went with her impressions of style. Roxanne went along for the ride, barely saying anything to the contrary.

How many times was the key point raised that functionality was more important than style? Allie thought it was just the reverse, which indicates to me that she’s never had a job where she actually had to work. Actually, it kind of sums up Allie throughout the competition: style over substance.

To make matters worse, not only did Allie fail to understand how important functionality was, she also seemed to miss the point that the employees themselves were deciding. I mean, did she really think a doorman wanted to go outside in the cold and rain (or snow) in a short-sleeved shirt? Lee and Sean, meanwhile, figured out how to incorporate style while allowing that same doorman to be comfortable no matter what the weather was like.

In short, Roxallie completely blew the challenge. The votes were horrendously lopsided, and I’m surprised it was even as close as it was. I can only think some people felt sorry for them.

The eighth rule says to be creative, but not insane. The “insane” part hadn’t come into play much this season, but Roxallie brought it right out here. Really, insanity is about the only explanation for the designs they created. They were trying to be creative, but didn’t realize that creativity had to have boundaries. While they muttered to each other about how the guys only made subtle changes, that was exactly what the Embassy Suites employees wanted!

Ninth is the admonition not to be one-dimensional. Tammy said it best when she talked about the two on tasks that weren’t sales related. Even on those that were, I wouldn’t exactly call Roxallie geniuses. Still, if they had been, it wouldn’t have been enough to save them. As the rule notes, “Trump is not looking for just a salesperson. … He is looking for a leader who can provide creative thoughts.” And no, changing a chef’s outfit to khaki is not the kind of creative thought he’s looking for.

The final rule tells players to use common sense. If Roxallie had been using theirs (presuming they have any), they would have realized that they were going way overboard in their last challenge. They would have understood the numerous hints about functionality. They, frankly, would have had a clue. But they didn’t. ‘Nuff said.

So despite all the complaints I had about their leadership, the way they ganged up on people, and the overall manner in which they behaved, those were not the reasons Roxallie were fired. Instead, it was simple and to the point. They utterly failed to understand the task. If this had been a real job situation, where a company was trying to figure out which bidder would win a contract, they would have blown it because they were more interested in imposing their ideas rather than listening. Then again, that pretty well sums up the way they behaved the entire time, doesn’t it?

Despite what Trump suggested, he didn’t fire Roxallie for fighting with one another. Their fates were sealed when they so totally blew this task. Indeed, that is why Allie and Roxanne lost.

If you haven’t already, be sure to check out these other recent Apprentice articles:

David Bloomberg is the Editor of RealityNewsOnline and can be reached at RNO@pobox.com.

Be sure to sign up for our e-mail update so you can stay informed about new articles on the site! And take a look at the rest of the site. You can find all of our recent articles on this show at our The Apprentice page and take a look at our sections on Survivor: Exile Island and American Idol 5. You can even buy reality show stuff at our Reality TV Store!

For more news about The Apprentice, be sure to check out SirLinksALot: The Apprentice!