Booker's version of that line had one more word in it.
Ivelisse struggles with a surprise obstacle course because she's too small, so it just happens Rey Misterio is a special guest to speak about being too small. He should've spent his time teaching Christina to jump. She doesn't do that so well (both height and timing) on a leapfrog, and Ivelisse runs right into her, straining a hamstring. The two have issues, are horrible in a skills challenge, and look to be in the bottom three.
Lucky for both of them, Ryan continues to be an idiot who might as well be carrying a neon sign saying "cut me". DeMott hates him, Trish is getting sick of talking sense into him, and Booker nearly murders him. Ryan has a chance to save himself in a skills challenge, but goes back to habits they all hate ("indie mentality" is said.)
Martin wins the skills challenge and is clearly at the top. Trainers think Luke is not progressing, Luke is starting to do some fine arrogant promos about being disrespected. He's totally blindsided by being in the final three with Christina and Ryan.
John Salley appears. He was available. Tough Enough team loses to dwarfs. I know they're supposed to be called dwarfs, because that's what Luke says and Luke is playing up to everyone, production people included. The point of all this was little playing basketball on TV and also Booker T yelling things on TV.
The bottom three discussion includes Austin making fun of Christina's inability to leapfrog and dancing, Luke reveals he's been trained by Tony Atlas (OH NO!), Luke tells us he loves himself, Austin mocks Luke and his upturned collar, and Austin doesn't want to talk to Ryan again. He won't have to: he drags it out, but Ryan is finally cut. Ryan blames his nickname for being cut and vows to see Steve Austin backstage at a WWE event. Enhancement talent, I guess.
Next week is Jeremiah suffering, people falling off a rope course, and Ivelisse maybe quiting due to her injury.
What a fantastic episode! I love seeing the cracks in Luke's mental stability when he loses challenges, and even better this week when Austin cold shoulders him. The best part (besides Austin calling him a dipshit several times) is the line Luke gave.
"you have to love yourself before you can love others"
Luke may be a narcissist who (if my one semester of Introduction to Psychology has taught me anything) hides behind his obsession with his physical perfection and ability to make up for a large insecurity of being overlooked. He may even have a history of self-hatred countered with this superficial perfection complex. I'm reading way too into the guy, but seeing him inching further and further into a breakdown is just too engaging.
Also, greatest elimination segment from Austin. EVER!
Originally posted by Mystic Gohan 2003Ryan got cut before Eric? Unbelievable.
Despite the show's theme, "toughness" is not a major criteria. Personality, carriage, and industry appreciation have eliminated some folks who could have lingered. Honestly, when the model quit, I think they should have brought back Matt with the provision he step up in a big way.
Ryan reminded me a lot of the contestant Al Snow chastised for mumbling under his breath. I think Eric managed to hold on because he's smart enough to eat his frustrations. But he has to show something soon doesn't he? Are they really going to let the big guy coast because he's the big guy?
"To be the man, you gotta beat demands." -- The Lovely Mrs. Tracker
I think they could have done a better job of showing Ryan's "indie mentality". I remember the goofy selling a few eps back, but don't remember much else that was THAT bad.
Austin was hilarious this week.
"Are you eyeballin' me boy?"
"Shut up!" (When Luke wasn't even saying anything.
Originally posted by Scottyflamingo I think they could have done a better job of showing Ryan's "indie mentality". I remember the goofy selling a few eps back, but don't remember much else that was THAT bad.
The thing i noticed most about this week is that (against my initial expectations having never watched the previous seasons) it's the first time the veneer of kayfabe they kind of keep over everything has really been a detriment to the clarity of their explanations when discussing everyone's development. If they could just say the word/phrase "oversell" then things would seem a lot less mysterious.
It was a strange bottom 3. Skidmarks was in the top 3 earlier on in the show. They raised his hopes and dashed them quite expertly.
Originally posted by 2P4EThe thing i noticed most about this week is that (against my initial expectations having never watched the previous seasons) it's the first time the veneer of kayfabe they kind of keep over everything has really been a detriment to the clarity of their explanations when discussing everyone's development. If they could just say the word/phrase "oversell" then things would seem a lot less mysterious.
I think it was last week we heard Trish yell about making the gestures bigger during the ringwork segment. It is subtle. That element was also the major reason Matt was cut; Luke projected a bigger personality during their match.
"To be the man, you gotta beat demands." -- The Lovely Mrs. Tracker
I got that vibe too with the preview but I hope not. She is so hot.
Hm. Myself, I'm finding Christina Crawford rather attractive. I'm not so hot on the Torrie Wilson midget.
This was the most balanced week yet for showcasing the trainers. Booker and Trish got a lot more face time than usual, Bill was Bill, and the final part, the elimination was all Stone Cold. Probably the best elimination yet for Stone Cold calling Luke a dipshit, saying he can leapfrog higher than Christina, and when he walked over to Ryan, sighed, and walked away. I also agree with Christina that Luke couldn't handle the locker room. He'd be in wrestlers court so fast and so often, it'd make his popped collar spin.
Next season, I hope they find better women for the show.
I saw an ad for next weeks show and Stone Cold announces that it's a double elimination episode. I have a bad feeling that both women are getting cut
Christina is cute too, but she has her head in the clouds and talks like she's always asking a question. Big turn off to me.
Going totally by looks, all the women are attractive to me except for the first chick booted, and Michelle the Model. Her cheekbones were totally out of control for my tastes.
-- 2006 Time magazine Person of the Year -- -- July 2009 Ordained Reverend --
Actually, only 10 episodes. 8 people left means they can get rid of 2 people next week, cut one more each episode the rest of the way, and still have 3 left for the final.
Their ratings are pretty good and Stone Cold is apparently going to be there for the upfronts or something similar for USA, so I would say next season looks good. Who eyeballs Steve Austin, thats just insane. Luke should send a thank you card for Ryan, because if he wasn't there, I do think he would be gone. Another great episode and I do hope they keep the trainers for next season.
Reality shows are cheap, but if you can get 1 more point with a rerun of a show, that's really cheap. 2.7 in this slot with a 2.3 average suggests there are days of the week where the bar would be a bit lower for Tough Enough, but Tough Enough probably wouldn't fare as well in any other slot. The show was brought back because *USA* wanted to get in reality, so moving to a different station doesn't seem to be an option.
Their problem with Ryan was his hokey "indy" facial expressions and cartoony selling. Like play pro wrestling. Which they'd cut to during the drills when he'd be like "=-O !!!" and Booker would be disgusted. But more that they told him to stop doing that and he wouldn't.
Which does bring up the question of why it airs before Raw instead of after. Standard TV practice is to use the stronger, established show as the lead-in. Especially when you now follow Raw with a Tough Enough rerun anyway. And, inexplicably, a rerun of last week's show. I don't think it could have helped that they moved the timeslot between week one and week two, and in week two, they used the timeslot where week one's episode aired to show...week one's episode again. That's not to say that those programming decisions are responsible for the ratings drop, but they can't have helped.
Anyway, the Ryan storyline was done, so it was definitely time to go. After weeks of Bill as the bad guy, where you could potentially take Ryan's side because DeMott and the bald guy who was cut both decided to pick on him from day one, having Good Cop Booker finally lose it on him was the perfect cap to his "this guy is a dumbass" character arc. I think they showed enough of his goofy selling tendencies, cutaways to Trish telling him to stop doing it and him acknowledging that he was doing something wrong that there was a good enough sense of why they were down on him, but it was interesting to see them work around the subject.
I'd say they're about on pace to cut Eric next, since we've seen the emergence of the other big guy as a pretty solid talent over the last two episodes. It may not speak that well to the other big guy that I still can't remember his name five weeks in, but then again, I only remember AJ being named AJ because I had a "wait, who the hell is THAT guy?" moment with him a few episodes ago.
Austin/Luke carried this one, and all the key moments - "You eyeballin' me, son?!", Austin locking in on his popped collar, calling him a dipshit and yelling at him to shut up even when Luke hadn't said anything - have been mentioned, though "Are you arrogant, are are ya just an asshole?" was top-notch, too. Austin noticing and bringing up the Luke/Jeremiah BFF situation and throwing it back at Luke was good reality TV, and Christina dropping the "he'd get eaten alive in the locker room" card was masterful, as one might expect from the sister of a former MOTY co-winner.
Originally posted by Dr UnlikelyAustin/Luke carried this one, and all the key moments - "You eyeballin' me, son?!", Austin locking in on his popped collar, calling him a dipshit and yelling at him to shut up even when Luke hadn't said anything - have been mentioned, though "Are you arrogant, are are ya just an asshole?" was top-notch, too.
My favorite part was the awkward laugh->mock laugh join-in that was vintage 2001 heel Austin reborn before our eyes. Perhaps inspired by the Alliance reunion that is this show.
Which does bring up the question of why it airs before Raw instead of after.
USA is obsessed with bringing up it's prime time average (and being #1 in cable in that category.) They figured Tough Enough would do something akin to the first hour of RAW when they go three hours, 2.7ish. The hour after RAW would surely do better numbers, but it's not in prime time.
Originally posted by Dr Unlikely and Christina dropping the "he'd get eaten alive in the locker room" card was masterful, as one might expect from the sister of a former MOTY co-winner.
That's Alicia Fox's sister? That family has very good genes. We could be on the verge of female Harlem Heat!
I'll say lower buyrate for this Mania (as Linda, yet again, is well off on her Million Buys prediction for a second consecutive year). I'll go with about 525,000 buys.