America’s Next Top Model 3, Episode 9: A Tokyo We Will Go!

Last week, Yaya won her third straight challenge, and the other girls began to look worried. Eva’s confidence was shaken by a photo done with a spider on her face, and when it seemed like Toccara had given up and lost the personality the judges loved so much – they sent her home. Six girls remain, and who is going home this week? Find out now!

We begin this week hearing the girls talk about what they would change on their bodies. Norelle says she has always wanted collagen lip injections. Everyone seems to be talking about their flaws, and Nicole says she wishes she had thinner thighs. Ann knows she has potential in the competition, but has been in the bottom two three times now, and it’s bringing her down. She says she doesn’t understand why the judges say Nicole has no personality because she’s so funny. Nicole tells the camera that she has plenty of personality, but just doesn’t put it out there the way the other girls do, and therefore, people can’t pick away at her. Yaya is confident about the competition, but doesn’t want to brag since it’s so easy to get big headed. I LOVE MY YAYA!

Tyra mail this week tells the girls that they have to prepare to die, and be ready in the morning. The girls aren’t sure what’s going on, and the next morning they get in the car and arrive at a theater. The meet Sande Shurin, who is the owner of the acting studio they are in. Today, they are going to learn about acting, and do what is called a “cold reading.” Yaya is really excited, as is Nicole, who has done a little acting in the past. First though, they must access the emotion in their bodies. Norelle is nervous because she has never done acting and lives in her own world. The girls are told to just go with it, and sit in a line with their hands on their chest. Amanda says she sees roses and rain, and starts to cry when an image of her son is there too. Aww. Nicole says the first thing she saw was inappropriate, so she had to tell Sande she saw nothing. Ha! Nicole made me laugh for the first time this season! Norelle is just confused.

When they are finished finding the emotion, we move to the second part of training. There is a hospital bed there, and Norelle says she’s isn’t a good at dying. Nicole thinks she has this one in the bag. The girls will have to read with a star actor, who turns out to be Taye Digs. All the girls look happy, especially Eva, who has to go first. Her role is to pretend she is dying and has a couple of minutes to express her feelings to her lover. Eva does a good job, even though she has to read some really screwy words. Nicole doesn’t do too badly either, and improvises when she doesn’t know the words. Norelle starts laughing in the middle and doesn’t make a good impression. Ann does a lot of messing up too. Yaya is excited and looks like she is doing well. We see more shots of Nicole and Eva messing up. Taye tells the camera that he loved the vocabulary and the whole script – which tested how the girls improvise.

It’s now Amanda’s turn and she looks like she really IS dying! As each of the girls dies, Taye covers them with a sheet. Not Amanda though, since after she dies, she accidentally moves her head, confusing Taye. Everyone laughs. Once everyone is finished, they all enter the room and Sande and Taye tell them how they did. They say that Eva blew past some words, but stayed in it. Norelle is obviously a beginner, but has some quality. Ann had good projections, but must be more conversational. Yaya did a great job all around, while Amanda has to learn to be more connected to the script, since she died twice. Then, Sande goes to reveal the winner, when the girls remind her that she skipped Nicole. Sande acts like it was a mistake, and says Nicole needs to be more sensitive. Damn, that’s not good for Nicole – getting forgotten!

The girls are told to watch the screen for the winner, and it’s Yaya! When Taye calls for the nurse, in comes Tyra! Tyra and Taye do some reading and rhyming, and at the end, Tyra tells the girls to pack their bags because they are going to Tokyo, which makes the girls erupt! Eva is so excited and Yaya is told that her prize will be that she gets to ride to Tokyo in luxury class, with one girl. Yaya chooses Amanda and says the other girls have to get ready to leave, and will spend the 14 hour flight in coach. The girls don’t care and everyone is celebrating.

Everyone gets home and starts to pack. Ann says it’s going to be crazy and Norelle is very nervous. Ann doesn’t like to fly and is scared. She remembers her flight to Jamaica when she flipped out. Yaya is psyched about luxury class, while Norelle, Eva, and Ann plot to be the final three and nickname themselves “pink positive.” Everyone dances around in the airport as they get ready to leave.

In first class, Yaya and Amanda have a toast, recline, and eat some ice cream, while we see the other girls in coach looking very uncomfortable. Enough about that though, the girls arrive in Tokyo and it looks amazing! Ann is relieved that she fell asleep on the plane. Amanda says it was a long flight, and the girls meet their guide and board their van. Nicole thinks Tokyo is crowded and hot, just like NYC. They stop at a shrine and the girls go inside. Out comes Tyra, who says she brought them there to see the fashion capital of the world. They will do a ritual of purification and ask for favors from the gods. Umm, okay! Each girl claps and bows, and off they go!

Eva appreciates the culture and wants to be more well rounded. Norelle sees Hello Kitty and gets VERY excited. She’s such a kid – it’s actually endearing. The girls get to their hotel and it’s basically just a bed, as they find out they are staying in a “capsule hotel.” Basically, their bed is the size of a coffin, with a curtain to close for privacy.

They agree to stay positive, and read their Tyra mail. It says to be ready in 30 minutes. The girls quickly get ready and walk to their next shoot to find Jay Manuel waiting for them. He tells them that top models fly and go straight to work and that’s what they will be doing.

He reminds them that the other day they learned about acting, and today they will have a cold read for a commercial for Campbell’s Select soup. The kicker is that they have to do it in Japanese. Norelle tells the camera she can barely speak English. They meet their director, who doesn’t speak English and has an interpreter. Each girl is told the concept of the commercial, and are expected to speak in fluent Japanese. Everyone scurries off to study their lines.

As the girls are studying, Yaya is just hoping she doesn’t embarrass herself. They try to explain what to do to Yaya and she starts her script and messes up. However, she pulls it together nicely and finishes it the second time and is told her Japanese sounded great. Eva is next and does her thing. She doesn’t look like she’s enjoying herself and messes up. She messes up again and again and again. She starts to think the director is getting offended and is taking a very long time. It’s not a pretty site. When they tell her she is done, she knows she failed since she never got though it once. Ann is third and actually does the Japanese part perfectly. She looks really pretty too, and it looks like everything came together nicely – even the director says he was impressed.

Eva bitches about the commercial in the makeup room. She says her pictures are great, so hopefully someone else who takes bad pictures will go home. Ann asks if she means either her or Norelle. Ann then hears Eva say that she hopes Norelle messes up big time. Eva wants to talk to Ann, but Ann is having no part of it. Eva tells Ann that she did really badly, and Ann tells the camera that the roles are switched because she did well. Nicole is doing her commercial now and she says she’s more nervous than she has ever been. Ann still can’t believe that Eva wants Norelle to do poorly. Nicole goes and messes up the first time, but rebounds and does it all on the second try.

Norelle goes right after and messes it up left and right, of course, making her very frustrated. She’s confused and tries again, but knows she did a bad job. Next up is Amanda and she looks really weird. The interpreter says her Japanese is very good, and as she starts singing, the director looks confused. After everyone is finished, the director says they did a good job and gives them a letter. It’s Tyra mail, which tells them to get ready to meet the judges tomorrow because someone is going home.

Back at the hotel, Eva says there are a few panels left and things are different, since there is literally no room for mistakes. She dotting her i’s and crossing her t’s. The girls get in their capsules and go to bed for the evening. As they talk, they look like The Brady Bunch in the beginning when they are all in those squares looking at each other. In the morning, the girls get up and Yaya says she shouldn’t be going home this week, and if she does, she should have a talk with the judges. Norelle is very nervous, and Nicole says she has no idea who is going home.

The girls enter the judging room and Tyra welcomes them. They take their shoes off as Tyra tells them that they will make their 9th cut in determining who will be America’s Next Top Model. She reminds them of the prizes and reintroduces them to the judges, who came all the way from the United States. Also, our guest judge this week is Yente Yoshie, the director of the commercial, along with another interpreter. The girls will be evaluated on their commercial and a test. The test will be to act out a commercial for a Japanese food – something they don’t know.

Ann goes first and talks about the product, then tastes it. It’s obvious the food isn’t good, but she swallows it. Nicole talks about the food and tries it too. She says it tastes like a pickled plum, but she gets it down. Amanda goes next and tires it. You can tell she isn’t fond of it either. Eva is next and when she tries the food, she tries to make it look good, but you can tell she isn’t happy. Norelle goes fifth and you can tell she is gagging, but still gets the food down.

Yaya is last and does a great job with the commercial, but when Tyra tells her to taste the food, Yaya spits it out, making everyone gasp. The judges aren’t happy at all, and Yaya says she was gagging and had to spit it out. Janice asks what it tastes like, and Yaya replies that it’s like nothing she’s ever had before. Now it’s time to look at the girls’ commercials.

Eva steps up first and they look at her commercial. She tells the camera that you never know who is going home. Janice says that she looked like a rap star, and everyone laughs. They liked her during the test, and in the commercial she looked great. Ann is up next and they look at her commercial and feel that she needs to hold her face more. Nigel says that she looked great and he was impressed. Norelle goes next and sounds really bad with her Japanese. She did a good job in English, says Tyra, but bad in Japanese. Janice compares her to a drunk, but loved her in her test this week.

Amanda is the next to go, and they aren’t fond of her commercial at all. Even Amanda says she looks like a potato with ears. They feel that she talked too fast. Yaya goes next and they look at her commercial and think it was too long. Nigel says she looked fantastic though. They address her test this week and Nole’ says that it was disrespectful to spit out the food. The director agrees and says it’s bad for the client.

Tyra says it’s time for the judges to deliberate, until everyone speaks up that she forgot Nicole. Wow, this must really suck for Nicole – two times in one week she has been forgotten! Tyra calls her up and they look at her commercial and say she looked great, but needs to do some research to sound better. Tyra also says that she isn’t very memorable – which explains why she forgot her. Now it’s time for deliberation!

Nole’ feels that Norelle really came though and Tyra says she looked cute, but almost gave up on the commercial. Amanda has to get over her eyes, while looking and acting better – she’s not good for commercials. Ann was very likable today, and Tyra says it’s a shock because she’s a leader tonight. Yaya was okay and has a great personality, but Nole’ was disappointed. Tyra agrees. All the judges feel that Nicole is very pretty, but they expect more from her. Tyra says she needs her to connect more. Eva was horrible in the commercial, but in front of you she smolders. They love her.

The girls walk in and find Tyra standing there. Tyra tells them that she only has five photos. The first name called is Ann, who is told that they never would have thought she would blow the rest of the girls away. The next girl called is Eva. Tyra tells her they called her second because of her voice, and that she has a great sound and tone. Norelle is called next, and told that they think she is adorable and looks breathtaking. Hmm, I have no idea who is going now!

Amanda is called next, which leaves MY Yaya and Nicole, who both step up. Tyra says that she only has one photo, and the girl not called must leave immediately. Nicole is told that it’s important for someone to be memorable. Some of the other girls might not have done as good a job as her today, but they had something about them that made them stick out. Yaya is told to respect the product, and that this is not the first time she has insulted the product. Tyra tells her to be humble and likable. The girl called is… MY Yaya! Tyra tells her to go out and find a slice of humble pie. Ouch! Nicole heads out as she starts to cry, as do the other girls, who all rush over to embrace her. Everyone is sad.

Nicole tells the camera that she didn’t stand out, but she did her very best. Norelle is breaking down, as are the other girls. Nicole feels that no matter what anyone says, she didn’t give up, and the experience was amazing. It was good and bad because the good part is that she got there, but the bad part is that she isn’t going to be America’s Next Top Model. We see her walk off into the streets of Tokyo.

Next week, the girls are still in Tokyo. Norelle struggles with life in a foreign country, while Ann confronts Eva about wishing mean things on Norelle. Everyone seems to turn negative, with Ann saying that she’s not sure if she likes Eva anymore. Here’s how I’m ranking the girls – and you’ll be shocked at my new placement:

Eva
MY Yaya (I still love her)
Ann
Amanda
Norelle

This means that I think Norelle is the next girl going home, but I really wouldn’t be shocked if it is Amanda or Ann. I guess we’ll find out next week!

Phil Kural is a recent graduate from Temple University, with a degree in journalism. You can reach him at pkural@gmail.com with any feedback that you may have.

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