America’s Next Top Model 2, Episode 3: I’ve Got the Model Blues

Previously, on America’s Next Top Model 2, the girls got some runway training from everyone’s favorite runway guru, J. Alexander. Camille and Yoanna got in several confrontations with nobody really coming out on top. Shandi struggled to stay in the competition, especially with her walk, but it was Bethany who was eliminated, mainly due to the way she couldn’t learn to position her body and downplay the size of her boobs. Speaking of which, if you haven’t read my (interview with her yet, I suggest you check that out.

Enough about last week though; that’s the past and I’m sure you are not here to read about that. We begin this week with Shandi and how much she hates her walk. She also thinks about how close she came to being eliminated and knows that she has to be one step above the other girls. Sara isn’t sure where Shandi fits in with the rest of the girls, but knows that “not so good-looking girls” need to be in magazines because they make everyone feel pretty. Yeah, Sara isn’t very shallow now, is she? As Shandi practices her runway walk, Catie gets up there with her and takes over. Xiomara fills us in that sometimes Catie has to be the center of attention, but she still loves her to death.

Over on the side though, Heather is sitting there by herself. She feels like she doesn’t fit in even though she is a sociable person. There are too many cliques, and it seems to her that all the girls have at least one person they feel close too, so she feels left out. This leads us to see a conversation she is having with her mom, telling her about how she always feels like the other girls are drowning her out when she speaks. Heather has never been away from home like this and misses her mom, who is her best friend.

Aww, our first piece of Tyra mail this week. It says the girls have 8 minutes to head out and meet Tyra at a salon called Tricomi Hair Salon. When they get there, Tyra tells the model wannabes that each one will be getting a whole new look. Catie states that she doesn’t care what they do to her hair; she will be fine with it. I love foreshadowing. Jay Manuel is there as well to show the girls some quick make up lessons on fixing up the eyes. Each girl will also get her nails done and her teeth whitened.

Tyra then tells the girls what will be done to each of them. Catie looks a bit twiggy, so her hair is being cut and colored platinum. Sara is going blonde as well. Mercedes is getting a new wild look, while Jenascia is getting her hair cut to make her look taller. Xiomara will be getting some waves and April is going dark. Camille is told she better start taking those braids out because they are gone. Shandi will be going platinum blonde as well and will be hooked up with some contacts. Heather is told she is going “more blonde” and that’s it. This is too funny. Heather is basically ignored and it annoys her that people are going to think she can’t look different. After she is done, she doesn’t even really see a difference, and quite honestly, I don’t either. Mercedes says the whole thing is painful and takes some getting used too. Yoanna shows off her new hairdo, and it looks really good, actually. Jay is also going around giving the girls some tips on their makeup. Jenascia butts in saying that they are playing the tall card with her again, and it’s pissing her off. Sara, the ghetto fabulous model wannabe that she is, doesn’t understand why the other girls are complaining because all this is free. She loves her look. I bet she does - the last time she probably had all this done to her was when she had her stint on Jerry Springer because she was stealing the man of her sister or mother. I swear, this girl acts way too ghetto and has no personality. Oh, and is it me, or does she contradict everything she says. She says she hates the cattiness and the drama, yet she uses every moment she gets alone with the camera to talk trash. I don’t get it.

Tyra compliments Camille on losing the “hoochie nails” and really likes what has been done with her hair. Camille feels sexier and younger. She looks it, too. Yoanna feels that sometimes Catie is more sophomoric than the other girls. Catie really hates her haircut right now and feels bald. It really isn’t that short, and she just said she was up for this and didn’t care. Now, here she is crying and making a big deal. Jenascia doesn’t feel bad for Catie because she was told by Catie herself that she can turn the tears on and off whenever she wants. Tyra tries to console Catie when she goes on and on about how she looks like a boy. My favorite quote this week comes from Tyra when she says: “You aren’t a boy, Catie. You still have titties and booty.” Oh Tyra, you are so good with words. Heather is still worried that people in the future aren’t going to see her as flexible because her “new look” doesn’t really look all that new. Shandi looks really good and gets her contacts. April looks really different and Xiomara looks much more girly and says she needs to work on being sexier. Mercedes looks amazing, as usual.

Back at the loft, Catie is on the phone with her boyfriend. He asks her about the hair and of course, she starts crying. He tries to console her but it’s no use as she continues to cry. Honestly, it really doesn’t look that bad. She knows this, and tells the camera that she just as to ease into it. In the dining room, Heather is eating a pickle and Yoanna asks if that is all she is eating. She offers her some of her sandwich, and Heather notes that Yoanna is different from the other girls and actually cares about her. I swear, the foreshadowing in this episode is too funny.

Oh, look! More Tyra mail. Basically, it hints that the girls will be timed on how fast they can do their faces. They meet up with Jay Manual again and he fills them in that they have to give their eyes that smoky appearance he showed them the day before. He shows them a picture of Tyra with and without makeup, and without it, she honestly looks like a battered wife. The catch with all this is that they have one mirror, one set of brushes, ten sponges and ten sets of eyelashes, not to mention only one makeup pallet. The girls have ten minutes to look the best, and whoever does will win a dinner at the loft with 3 mystery guests. The losers will have to shop, prepare and serve the dinner.

The girls are told they need to show their hunger to win this thing, but Xiomara isn’t down with the dash to the mirror. On “go,” the girls run to the mirror with Ms. “Bling Bling” Camille, getting right up front as usual. Xiomara is pissed that Camille sticks her butt out so nobody can get in, but Camille tells the camera that she is not there for friends. Everyone is pushing, trying to get some mirror room. Shandi is near the light and notes that she is feeling extremely hot. When time runs out, the girls line up for Jay’s inspection. April is looking good and impresses Jay. Shandi didn’t have the fade going on. Yoanna is told she looks really good, while Xiomara doesn’t have the smoky look. Catie is told she looks good too, and Camille is told she messed up some but of course, she refuses to believe this and shakes her head no. Heather didn’t do so well, either. After Jay and some other judge quickly discuss everything, they agree that nobody was perfect, but the closest overall, was Yoanna. She is told she can pick three other girls to have dinner with and she chooses Sara, Xiomara, and after some hesitation, April. Heather is a bit shocked because she thought she was closer to Yoanna, but guesses not. The funny thing is, Yoanna reached and looked at Heather, and then went and picked April. Even Heather saw that, and that’s why she got pissed.

By this point, Shandi is getting warm and dizzy. She collapses. The girls all rush around her to try and help. Yoanna thinks that Shandi’s blood sugar is low and runs to get her something to eat. Shandi slowly sits up and tells the camera that she is feeling a little better and knows she has to get more sleep and food in her body. She doesn’t want this happening again.

Heather is back at the loft now and calling her mom again. She tells her about Shandi collapsing, and how she and some of the other girls have to serve the challenge winner’s dinner. Yoanna is thrilled that she won, and even happier that Camille has to make her dinner. The three mystery guests arrive for dinner, and it happens to be the three male IMG models from the episode one "Garden of Eden" photo shoot. The girls get some info from the guys on what it’s like to be a model for IMG and how much they like it. During dinner, Yoanna asks Catie for more veggies for her salad. Catie goes in the kitchen and apparently uses some of Camille’s vegetables for Yoanna’s salad. It doesn’t end there. Camille lectures Catie that she needs to ask before doing such a thing because they are HER tomatoes. Catie, on the other hand, feels that Camille needs to get over all this. I’m not so sure how I feel on this. I mean, if it was Camille’s food, Catie should have asked. However, it’s a tomato; this shouldn’t be the end of the world.

Heather is bitter that she has to serve Yoanna because she is being completely ignored. Not even a thank you from one of the girls. She goes outside with Catie to talk, and then tells the camera that she feels close to Catie because she feels like Catie understands what she is going through right now. Then, guess what? More Tyra mail! The girls get a clue about their next shoot and find out it will have to do with their fears and phobias. Shandi gets some food and sleep before the shoot so that she can do her best.

The next morning, the girls arrive at a nasty, dilapidated factory. This place is a mess. Catie sees some big holes in the floor, which lead to the ceiling, and is terrified. They have to do an action fashion shoot, while suspended in midair over these holes. Catie immediately freaks out. She doesn’t think she will be able to do this. Each girl gets their hair and makeup done and Catie is calling her dad, crying that she is so scared. What a surprise – Catie is crying.

April is up first. She gets suspended and has no problem doing the shoot. The photographer is impressed. Shandi goes out there and does her thing. Sara is a bit scared and facially, she is having issues. Yoanna is out there next and is fine with the body movements but can’t get it right in the face. Heather is up and she looks like Christina Aguilera from the “Lady Marmalade” video! She does pretty well, but is told several times by Jay Manual that she needs to shut her mouth so they can get better shots. Jenascia looks great and seems to be having fun. On Camille, Jay says that she seemed to get worse as the shoot went on. Mercedes had good energy and attitude. Catie is supposed to go next, but Xiomara sees she is scared and opts to go first. She knows Catie is petrified and wants to set a good example for her by being strong, even though she herself is also scared. She does okay, but feels she didn’t have Jay there to direct her because he was comforting Catie. Xiomara than takes Catie by the hand and stays there the whole time, encouraging, her as she finally makes her way to the suspension contraption. Jay talks her through as well and she quickly gets it done.

Here we are, back at the loft again. Tyra mail tells the girls that they will meet the judges tomorrow to see who the next eliminated girl will be. Nobody seems to know who it may be. Catie is worried that it will be her. They walk into the elimination room and Janice gasps at their new makeovers. They are reminded of the prize and introduced to the judges again. Our special judge this week, Jay Manuel, tells the girls they will go through a makeup test where they will go fix themselves up as either 50’s glam, 60’s Mod, 80’s punk, goth, or futuristic. They had back to the loft and quickly return.

Shandi does goth and they like it. They look at her shot and love that, too. Yoanna is 80’s punk but the judges aren’t feeling it. They feel that her photo this week works very well though. Mercedes goes with futuristic, and Tyra tells her she wants more “prettying” next time. Whatever that is. They love her photo this week. Heather goes for 80’s punk, and the judges feel like her makeup needs work, not to mention her shot, to which Jay yells out they took many but most weren’t that great. Sara goes for 80’s punk too and the judges love it. Her picture is just “good.” Jenascia goes for futuristic and is met with mixed emotion from the judges. They like her shot, though, and think it makes her look taller. Xiomara is goth and the judges tell her she looks like a mime. They also aren’t feeling her shot at all. In her own defense, she tells the judges that Jay couldn’t help her because he was busy talking to Catie. This disappoints Tyra, who tells Xiomara that she has to realize Catie is looking out for herself and that Catie’s photo will probably look better than hers because she had the attention. Sure enough, Catie is next and before she even gets judged, she tells the judges that Xiomara did get some of Jay’s attention. Janice puts an end to the bickering and demands Catie’s photo, which all the judges are very impressed with. As the girls walk out, the judges laugh about all the drama.

In the waiting room, Catie is crying – again. Sara and Yoanna don’t feel too bad for her because apparently, this is a twice an hour thing. Xiomara is plenty pissed and wants Catie to pick a character – either she is nice or a bitch. The judges deliberate and all express their views on how Catie has a meltdown every ten minutes. They aren’t feeling Xiomara’s photo at all. They love Mercedes and adore Shandi’s transformation. Camille didn’t look so great this week, Yoanna has an amazing face, and Sara is gorgeous, but has very little personality. How true. April is Janice’s favorite and all the judges are torn on Heather. Jenascia is critiqued again for being short. Do they expect her to just be tall one week out of nowhere? Give me a break.

After some voting, the girls are brought back in. Tyra has 9 photos for the girls. The one left out will be eliminated. The first name called: Shandi. She is followed by April, Yoanna, Mercedes, Sara, Camille, Jenascia and Catie. That leaves us with Xiomara and Heather. Heather is told she needs to stop looking so “teen” because that is what her shots are reflecting. Xiomara gets lectured and scolded for not crying out to Jay when she was taking her shots and that she has to learn to be the center of attention sometimes. We find out that the one person staying is… Xiomara. She immediately begins to cry as Heather hugs the other girls and heads back to the loft. She is stunned that she is going home and felt that she is prettier than most of the other girls. Even though she may have been trash to the judges, she will be another mans treasure. Oh, I bet she will. And that, ladies and gentleman, is where we end.

Next week, it’s a pleasant surprise for the girls as last seasons winner, Adrianne, stops by to meet the girls. Not only that, but it looks like Catie has had enough. Oh, and Mercedes is coping with a serious illness, or someone at home is. I didn’t really get it, but either way, she’ll be crying next week.

First off, I’m sick of the tears. If Catie cried one more time this episode, I would have had a heart attack. I don’t think Heather should have been the one to go home this week. It should have been Catie. I’m sorry, but she is just way too emotionally unstable to be in this thing. Heather had an amazing photo during week one and her shoot last week was average – much better than some of the others. Her shot this week was good too and I really don’t understand why she was eliminated. Oh well, that’s the breaks. I’m still rooting for Jenascia, Xiomara and my ultimate favorite – Mercedes. However, I’m really starting to like Shandi as well, and I hope she goes far. Well, that’s it for me folks! Can’t wait to do it all over again next week.

Phil Kural is a senior at Temple University, and can be reached at pkural@temple.edu.

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 America’s Next Top Model page and take a look at our sections on Average Joe and Celebrity Mole. You can even buy reality show stuff at our Reality TV Store!

For more news about America’s Next Top Model, be sure to check out SirLinksALot!