Whoa, a post NOT about Christian Siriano?  What’s come over me? 

Oh, yeah, that’s right - Another obsession:  America’s Next Top Model.  This is one of the rare shows I watch that I wish were on two - three times a week.  Then again, I loves, loves, loves Tyra Banks, so if she’s on board, I’m on board.

This is the first season, though, that I’ve seen so many kind of unfortunate makeovers. I say kind of unfortunate instead of bad because the girls are still beautiful - I just think they were even more beautiful before the hair color and scissors.  

Take Anya (above), for example.  She’s still a beautiful model and, personally, I think she has become one of the front runners.  But, I think she was positively striking as a brunette.  On the last episode, when Nigel Barker was photographing her, however, she was working an amazing Marilyn Monroe thing that worked beautifully, though!  When she’s wearing lipstick and eyeshadow, I admit the blonde hair looks gorgeous on her.

I loved her reaction when she was told she’d be nude.  Most girls freak at that point but she was like, “Oh, wow! Cool.”  Love that.  I’m always kind of annoyed when girls panic over the issue - I mean, if they’ve ever watched the show, they know it’s a distinct possibility.  Don’t become a contestant if you don’t want your ta tas to be seen.

Another girl I thought was MUCH better before was Claire (right), who I adore by the way.  I love this girl’s spirit, her face, her walk, her style, her personality (though I think she pushed things with Dominique - sure she can get under your skin, but only if you let her), and her love for her family.  Look at her mouth the next time the show’s on.  If it’s not the most gorgeous mouth ever to be worn by a model, it’s definitely in the top three.  She has the face to pull of the incredibly short hair, but I don’t know why they made her a blonde.  She’s still gorgeous, though.

And then there’s Dominique (below, black V-neck top and leggings)…what’s up with this girl?!?!  She seems to totally enjoy pushing people’s buttons but panics when they don’t enjoy the experience.  As soon as they fight back, she melts down.  She’s beautiful and takes absolutely amazing pictures - I’d love to just see her chill the hell out.  Love her or hate her, you have to admit her pictures are usually amongst the best.  The bone structure on this girl is just crazy beautiful.

Her makeover isn’t quite as unfortunate as the rest.  I think she probably looks as good before as she does after.  Again, her problem isn’t her looks or pictures - it’s her ‘tude.  I wish Tyra kept a closer eye on what goes on in the house, she could probably help them figure their moods out and play like nice little girls.

 Dominique, especially, seems to be bothered by something or another.  I actually feel sorry for her sometimes.  I can’t stand to see anyone ganged up on, and Claire, Lauren, and Whitney all at once going after her was uncomfortable to watch.

Lauren’s another one that kind of needs to calm the heck down.  Where’s all of that fire when she’s standing in front of the judges? Beautiful model, but geez.

 Stacy Ann and Fatima are two more of my favorites (they’re the beauties below).  Fatima’s actually one of the models who, in my opinion, the makeover benefited.  She’s so gracefully beautiful.

I thought Stacy Ann was even prettier before, but she’s still a total doll.  I love her face and her voice is verrrry pretty.  I also like her runway walk. 

She and Fatima kind of get lost amongst the other girls, though.

They need to start standing out instead of blending in.  Make a little noise, girls! 

 

A lot of Top Model faithfuls have said that they were greatly bothered by this past season as well. Each agreed that the bullying of Jenah and Heather was anything but entertaining. As two different blog readers pointed out, the judges kept telling Jenah to smile more, lighten up, etc…but during the taping of a would-be Cover Girl commercial, when Jenah laughed and played around at the end (making the cutest commercial, imo), Tyra said she was making fun of the whole thing!

Something that everyone else is saying, also, is that all along it seemed that Saleisha was being set up as the winner….like the judges wanted her to win all along. With the new revelations by E Online (below) - I’d say the show has given itself a big black eye.

However, sharp-eyed fans soon dug up footage showing Saleisha walking the catwalk in an ANTM cycle-six fashion show, as well as appearing on the runway in an episode of The Tyra Banks Show.

Saleisha apparently had even more previous modeling work which should have excluded her from the show:

Viewers also found that Saleisha had appeared in a nationwide Wendy’s commercial that aired in 2006, seemingly in violation of an America’s Next Top Model eligibility rule that states would-be contestants “must not have previous experience as a model in a national campaign within the last five years (including, but not limited to, appearances on television and print advertisements).”

Most people are pretty outraged - I’m just really disappointed.  I’ve always loved this show so much, and now it seems like a set up.  It makes me wonder how “set up” the other seasons were.  Hopefully….there was an oversight, but the fact that Saleisha was on both Top Model AND The Tyra Show?  Come on.

Here are some hot recent pics of one of my all-time favorite models, the ridiculously beautiful Tyra Banks.  Love the dress, the silver bag, and the shades…but most of all, I love the lady behind all of them.  She’s one of the few (precious few) celebrities that I actually respect. She has brains, beauty, guts, and a spirit that refuses to do anything but soar.

Pretty much love that.