[Televisionary]

Am I the only one who is suffering from Project Runway ennui? Last night's episode of Project Runway ("Transformation") did little to cure me of my lingering symptoms: a decided lack of interest in most of the contestants, withdrawal from the drama and energy of last season's contestants, and a feeling that we've seen this all done before. Sigh. I can't be the only one who is looking for the sort of sweeping vision and innovation of Christian among a pack of contestants who seem mostly destined to be forgotten as soon as the end credits roll on the Bryant Park finale. And it definitely has seemed like a forgone conclusion for quite some time now that the final three designers would be Jerell, Leanne, and Korto. In fact, the only shred of excitement I had for the series came from the scenes for next week's installment, in which it seems like spoilt Kenley finally gets her comeuppance at judging. That, in my opinion, is worth tuning in to see. Last night&#

Sigh. I found last night's episode of Project Runway ("What's Your Sign?") more infuriating than enjoyable. After all, it hearkens back to my complaints from last season's avant garde challenge : why do most of these designers not seem to understand the term? Before we get into any specifics, let's define avant garde so there's no confusion. The term avant garde (literally advance guard or vanguard) refers to works that are experimental or innovative and pushes the boundaries of what is typically accepted as the status quo. In fashion, it refers to works that are quite literally fashion-forward or representing ideas or styles that haven't been seen before. Last season, during the avant garde challenge, duo Christian and Chris turned out what is to date one of the all-time best Runway designs , a floor-length ruffled dress with a train and an enormous oversized collar that screamed couture. It represented vision, drama, flair, and execution skills.

Last night's episode of Project Runway ("Double O Fashion") SHOULD have been an exciting, thrilling hour of television. After all, the designers had within their grasp fashion legend Diane von Furstenberg, a truly amazing prize (the winner will get their design made and sold by von Furstenberg to American Express card members), and high-end fabrics the likes of which they rarely ever see (and after the "innovative" Saturn challenge from last week , you'd think they'd be champing at the bit)... so why was it such a lackluster performance from most of them? I thought for sure that the designers would rise to the occasion and present some awe-inspiring designs on the runway, given that Diane von Furstenberg was a guest judge and was involved in the actual prize itself. If you're looking to establish yourself as a high-end designer, this is THE challenge to win, possibly just as important as getting that show at Bryant Park. But, alas, most of the desig

If there are two things that you can always depend on with Bravo's Project Runway , it's that there's bound to be drama (and tears) and that eventually there will be a challenge that is much more about product placement than actually tasking with designers with creating breathtaking work. Last season has it's Hershey's candy-inspired challenge; this season has the Saturn. Yes, I know that product integration (or to quote the esteemed Jack Donaghy, "product intergortion") is here to stay and a vital part of bringing advertisers' messages to the audience in the age of fast-forward-capable TiVos and generic DVRs, but I hate when it's so blatantly obvious as it was during last night's episode of Project Runway ("Fashion That Drives You"). (For another example of OTT product integration, check out Vitamin Water's presence in the first three episodes of next season's Gossip Girl .) In any event, there were a few designers who did r

I have to say that I am getting more than a little disappointed in the designers on this season's Project Runway . As a group, they've yet to really wow me with their collective designs and this week's challenge should have pushed them to new and exciting heights... but instead most of their garments left me bored. And boring should not be a word used when there are drag queens on the runway... On this week's episode of Project Runway ("Good Queen Fun"), we saw the return of the affable Chris March to the series to introduce this week's OTT challenge: to create a garment that embodied the persona of a drag queen. A tough challenge, to be sure, but one which virtually gave the designers carte blanche to be as wacky, subversive, and in-your-face as they wanted to be. What they couldn't do, however, was be boring, make a normal dress, or fail to make a statement of some kind. And yet that's what a lot of the designers ended up doing. Terri should hav

As much as the designers might loathe it, I do love when Project Runway forces its contestants to work together to design a garment. While the results might sometimes be truly awful, the process does sometimes produce some truly mind-blowing creations (I'm thinking of Chris March and Christian's pairing last season). So I was curious to see how this latest crop of designers would fare in their first team challenge on this week's episode of Project Runway ("Welcome to the Jungle"). Were the results runway-ready or just plain also-ran? Let's discuss. Brooke Shields stopped by as this weeks' guest judge/corporate synergy icon as the designers were tasked with creating a look for Shield's character Wendy to wear on Season Two of the NBC drama Lipstick Jungle . (I loved the way the designers seemed to silent acknowledge that they had never heard of the series, nor that it had been given a second season order.) In an echo of the Sarah Jessica Parker challe

In the latest cross-promotional opportunity on the series, Brooke Shields, late of NBC's femme drama Lipstick Jungle ( and previously of FX's Nip/Tuck) , guest judges on this week's installment of sartorial showdown Project Runway . Will the designers be able to please the stylish star with their fashionable designs for powerful business women? Or will they end up stranded in the jungle with too many animal prints and 1980s accessories? Shields is no stranger herself to high-end fashion herself or drama, as shown by this clip, where she pays an "unexpected" visit to the designers at Parsons. And if that weren't enough, another sneak peek at this week's episode of Project Runway , as Tim checks in on the designers in his own inimitable style: Catch Project Runway tomorrow night at 9 pm on Bravo. What's On Tonight 8 pm: NCIS (CBS); Summer Olympics (NBC); Beauty & the Geek (CW); Wipeout (ABC); House (FOX) 9 pm: Big Brother 10 (CBS); Reaper (CW

Before getting into specifics about this week's episode of Project Runway ("Rings of Glory"), I want to pause for a brief second to urge tanorexic Blayne to get some help. Like serious psychological counseling. Anyone who is tanning themselves every other day has some deep mental issues to deal with and he seemed to be suffering from withdrawal in this week's installment as he bemoaned the lack of self-tanning into the production's rigorous schedule. I think we're talking intervention time here, people. The constant tanning may have affected his design sense, his language abilities (it could explain the use of the invented suffix "licious" after every word), and his very sanity. But in all fairness, I thought that this week's challenge--delivered to the designers by guest judge/Olympian Apolo Anton Ono--was an innately tricky one as they were tasked with creating an outfit for the US Olympic team's female members to wear during the Opening C

Is it too soon to want to shake some of these designers already? I'm talking about this season of Project Runway on Bravo (the very last season of Project Runway on Bravo, to be specific); unlike previous years, I am distinctly getting the feeling that some of these "eccentric" designers were definitely cast for their quirkiness (speaking in the third person, adding "licious" to every word, being obsessed with leather) more so than their design abilities. Sure, Suede's dress last week was absolutely amazing but if he doesn't stop referring to himself in the third person, I am going to start to root for him to be auf 'd right away. (Yes, it bothers me that much.) And the less said about Blayne the better, in my book. On this week's episode of Project Runway ("Bright Lights/Big City"), the designers were tricked--rather easily, I might add (don't these contestants watch the series?)--into thinking that they were off for a night on

Okay, here's the deal: just a few quick words about last night's episode of Project Runway ("Grass is Always Greener") because then I literally have to dash out the door to start the drive down to San Diego for Comic-Con. (If you never thought you'd see the words Project Runway and Comic-Con in the same sentence, it's a day of miracles.) This week, the designers had a pretty tough challenge, designing a cocktail dress using only "green" fabrics, considering the narrow timeframe involved and a Project Runway first that had the designers' models actually buying the fabrics and trims. While these ladies might look lovely, they didn't seem to know the first thing about fashion, many of them picking out fabrics that wouldn't really work as a cocktail dress; no less than three of them picked the same awful brown satin that gave me the heebee-jeebees just looking at it. Ick. Some designers are already starting to irritate me to the point that

While another season of sartorial showdown Project Runway has begun on Bravo, it marks the very last time that the series will make its debut (not to mention its trademark blend of catwalks and catfights) on the cabler as it will move next season (set to launch in November) to Lifetime. Last night's season premiere episode ("Let's Start From The Beginning") offered a look back at the very beginning of Runway with a challenge that was a virtual flashback to the first challenge ever on the series, even as it introduced 15 contestants to the fabled world of Parsons, Atlas New York, and, well, mentor Tim Gunn. So far, there are very few designers that I am impressed with, especially as I didn't feel like they really took their first challenge to heart: armed with $75, they had 30 minutes at grocery store Gristede's to pull together supplies to create an entire ensemble back at Parsons. Would the designers stick to fabric substitutes like tablecloths? Or would the

Bunim-Murray will replace Magical Elves as the executive producers of Project Runway when the series jumps from its former berth at Bravo to new digs at Lifetime for its sixth season. I can't say that I am particularly pleased with the news. I think that executive producers Jane Lipsitz and Dan Cutforth have done an incredible job over the last four seasons with Runway and they leave some pretty big shoes to fill in terms of quality and content and I've yet to see that Bunim-Murray can really pull off a series of this magnitude. Bunim-Murray's previous collaborations with Lifetime include America's Psychic Challenge , so I'm a little concerned that quality will suffer when the series shifts nets; production will also move from New York to Los Angeles for the sixth season, though judges Heidi Klum, Michael Kors, and Nina Garcia, along with mentor Tim Gunn, will return next season. The fifth season of Project Runway , the last under the watchful eyes of Magical E

While it might sound a bit jaded, it always feels good to be proven right in this town. In the past week, two of my casting scoops ( Olivia Williams on FOX's Dollhouse , Bobby Cannavale on ABC's Cupid ) have been confirmed by the trades and it feels pretty darn good to be vindicated, especially since many people were, shall we say, doubting my sources. Speaking of scoops, Televisionary reader Cinemaniac got wind a few weeks ago about a major deal brewing at cabler Lifetime that he referred to as a "game changer." While I was puzzled at the time by what sort of business pact would really alter the cable landscape (especially emanating as it was from women's niche programmer Lifetime), it's all now immediately clear in light of yesterday's announcement. Lifetime, in case you haven't heard, has managed to close a five-year deal that has effectively poached reality series Project Runway from its perch at Bravo, which developed and made the series the jew

Say what you want about Christian's haughty attitude (though it was tempered remarkably with serious nerves this week), but that boy's collection was, to borrow a well-turned phrase, fierce. I knew that Christian would take home the top prize on this season's Project Runway because how could the judges, including guest Victoria "Posh" Beckham, not reward the elaborate stylings of a 21-year-old wunderkind whose young age belies a true visionary? Out of all of the contestants at the beginning of the season, Christian was the one to beat this season and it's only fitting that the fierce designer--a former student of Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen--wowed the 2000 assembled guests at the Project Runway show. I was very happy that the final three designers were Jillian, Rami, and Christian, each of whom brought a different aesthetic and ideal to their collections. While all talented, these three couldn't be more different from one another and it was t