The folks over at Bravo have a pretty nice thing going with their family of reality shows. They've managed to carve out a little niche, and it seems to be working. The newest member of the family, Shear Genius, wrapped up its initial run last night, awarding $100,000 to the stylist that was a cut above the rest. It was an interesting season. I think the show falls just short of its big sister, Project Runway, but it's still a solid premise, and well worth giving another go. Jacklyn Smith, as host of the show, holds her own when compared to Heidi Klum. And both of them are a step above Padma Lakshmi on Top Chef. Unfortunately, Shear Genius really loses some ground when you compare Rene Fris to Tim Gunn. Enough about that though, the winner is after the jump.
It all came down to a big three way finale featuring Daisy, Anthony, and Ben. Each of the contestants was charged with the task of telling a story with three hair-cuts. And they would only have three hours to complete the task. I don't know what the obsession with time limits is in reality shows. It's almost setting the contestants up for failure. That was kind of the case here, as I think the time limit was the ultimate deciding factor in who won.
While Daisy has been the leader of the pack for most of the season, she dropped the ball on this challenge. She ran out of time, and one of her styles suffered for it. Given more time, I think it would have been a very close call. Ben was something of a surprise just by getting to the final. He probably improved more than anyone else in the competition, coming into his own at just the right time. He had a very nice group of styles, but also struggled with the clock, leaving the back of one style questionably finished.
That left Anthony, the 40 year old stylist from Hertfordshire, England. He was steady through the whole competition and used his time wisely, delivering three very good entries and taking home the big prize. I had picked Daisy to win it all, and probably would have given her the nod despite the one unfinished style, based on the complete body of work. That said, Anthony is a deserving winner, and this was a nice end to a good first season. If you missed it, don't worry, this is Bravo. I'm sure the whole season will play again 78 times by the end of the summer.
Giveaway Monday: That '70s Show The Complete Series Stash box set
Giveaway Monday: Back to You season one DVD
Six shows that I am watching pretty regularly this season
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-31-2007 @ 9:38AM
ann said...
i havent watched the last 3 episodes. when i tuned in to watch the last one...i see these 3 left standing. i was like what????? they were not worth being in the bottom 3. mabey daisy. it should of been tyson, tabitha, and dr. boogie.
boring boring finale.
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5-31-2007 @ 9:43AM
Steve said...
ann,
you can't really speak unless you watched the last three episodes, since that's where everyone else got eliminated. Trust me... if those three didn't deserve to be there, the three that you mentioned definitely deserved to be let go when they did.
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5-31-2007 @ 9:52AM
Jim said...
No. Bravo crowns ITS first Shear Genius.
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5-31-2007 @ 10:07AM
ann said...
steve,
i watched it all but 3 to know who had talent and who didnt. they all had talent but the 2 guys left were not that great. should of been 3 different ones.
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5-31-2007 @ 1:15PM
Dave said...
You do have to watch the whole season to judge. Yes Boogie and Tabitha were good but they had personality issues which plays a big part when you are a hairdresser. I actually thought Tabitha was the best one but she had this obsession with Tyson which was her downfall.
I thought Anthony was very good and deserved to win. Ben came on really strong in the end but you didn't see that so you judgement comes from the first part of this season. I don't care if one person was fantastic on the first 7 shows. If they suck on the last 3, then they are out. Boogie acted like he was better than anyone else. But again you didn't see that.
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5-31-2007 @ 3:35PM
sweetsixteen said...
check out exclusive coverage from the official finale party of "Shear Genius" -
http://www.myitthings.com/Yuli/Post/entertainment/It_Event/My__Shear_Genius__moment/82531200701483829.htm
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5-31-2007 @ 3:40PM
Steve said...
In case people come back...
Yeah, what was up with Tabitha's Tyson issues? Wasn't there an episode of Project Runway that ended in a similar fashion (guy tries to throw his partner under the bus for a bad design)? In that case, though, I think that only one person got thrown off.
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6-01-2007 @ 12:30AM
Al said...
Check out another great shear genius site
http://sheargenius.nexxus.com
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6-01-2007 @ 9:35AM
PB said...
Actually, I like Rene enough. There's just NOT another Tim Gunn out there...he's one of a kind.
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6-12-2007 @ 10:51PM
Tammy said...
To the person that said that the bottom three did not deserve to be there. Just for your info, if you are a hairstylist and watched the show, you will know that they were awesome. They all had their own unique talent, which everyone knows that each ;hairdresser has their own special talents, I can guarantee you that personality plus specialties in doing hair are both so very important. Ben so deserved to be there, in fact, I own a salon in Highand Indiana which is a few minutes from where Ben is currently working, and I would sure let him cut my hair anytime, because his personality is great and I can so tell that he listens, and many stylist do and don't listen Think before you speak.
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