By now we’ve established that Top Model has improved in its current cycle. There’s been very little house drama, the clothes have been divine, and the photo shoots are realistic and simple. It’s made for some very good TV, especially since all the normalcy has been peppered with the occasional outrageous challenge or ridiculous quip from our hostess. But as many leaps and bounds as Top Model has had this cycle, one can only wonder…
How can it keep improving?
Yes, as good as Top Model has been this cycle, it can indeed be better. I’d like to see there be better prizes for winning challenges and top photo. While winning jewelry, dresses, and make-up is always a plus, what about the girl with the best photo that week receiving a one-on-one photo shoot with that week’s photographer to help bolster her book? For, say, a runway challenge, how about the winning girl/girls earn themselves a spot in that designer’s next show? I know the show has done stuff like that with Seventeen Magazine, for example, but I think they could keep pushing this even more to even better results. Obviously they won’t be able to do anything too major, i.e. a cover, but it’d be infinitely valuable assistance in seeing what the real world of modeling is actually like. Additionally, it’d give extra incentive to do well on a week to week basis.
Top Model also needs to establish an identity for itself. The show has been tied to Covergirl for so long and I think that with the shift to high fashion, their partnership should have ended. I know, I know, Tyra says that the top models of the world should be able to sell you mainstream make-up just as easily as they sell you the most ornate of couture gowns, but how often do you see the upper .1% of models doing commercials for make-up lines and all that? I have nothing against Covergirl and I’ve always enjoyed the final commercial/photo shoot for their respective campaign, but if the show is serious about becoming high fashion, they need to fully commit to that. Tangentially, this includes casting issues because how are you going to cast very commercial looking girls and then eliminate them for being…commercial? It’s the same thing when the focus was on more commercial modeling and the judges eliminating girls who weren’t very commercial. Having a focus one way or another is not an issue for me, but make it clear to everybody and get the best of the best in that particular style of modeling.
I’d love to see the judges participate more in the show. Yes, all the judges lead extraordinarily busy lives, with Tyra’s ever growing empire, Andre’s prestigious position at Vogue, and Nigel’s photography career, but sometimes I feel a lot of disconnect between them and the show. Tyra especially used to be so much more involved with the girls in the show and I kind of miss her presence. She’s obviously still there and there’s always a random shoot here or there between her and the girls, but take cycle 2 for example. The girls were doing a shoot emulating famous women and Tyra wasn’t the photographer this time around, but she was there simply coaching and lending moral support for those who needed it. What about a photo shoot coordinated by the judges? Or one where the judges simply come by to help coach? Or even, going out on a limb, something putting the judges in the photo itself?
Going off of that, the panel needs to expand. No, I’m not for bringing in new people, but having it just be Tyra, Nigel, and Andre feels a little empty. I’ve always contended that the J’s need to be a permanent fixture on the panel and that the show needs to ditch the guest judges. If one of the J’s needs to be absent, maybe bring in a guest judge, but the main people who need to be judging these girls are those who are there throughout the entire journey. Tyra gets random notes from Mr Jay at the photo shoots, but it’d be much fairer to have him there to be able to explain things and give his own perspective on a girl’s performance. I know you’re probably thinking that having five very outgoing people on the panel would be hideous and hard to watch, but look at past cycles. You can’t tell me that watching Janice Dickinson and Nole Marin make snarky comments to one another wasn’t some seriously good stuff.
Top Model has sort of a “reputation” for not really producing any top models. There are a ton of alumni who are working models and doing wonderful things in their respective industries, but the show hasn’t produced any Tyras, Christys, or Lindas just yet. While one could argue that the modeling landscape has changed tremendously since their heyday in the 90s (look at magazine covers and make-up commercials for evidence of that), I think some of it has to do with the girls simply not being as prepared as they could be to enter modeling world. Going back to my point about prizes, how cool would it be to see the girls who book go-sees actually work the jobs being offered? It’d allow them some serious connections and they’d get firsthand experience at what it takes to be a model. While Tyra has done a fair job in terms of talking about the business side of things, most notably with the contract stunt from cycle 3 (I believe), I think some of these girls need even more attention/advice. You can have all the natural talent in the world, but if you don't know the ins and outs of the machine, you won't last long and someone like Tyra can give them some serious inside information as to how to survive and thrive in the modeling world. I know we don’t see everything that goes on, so it could be an advice clinic on the set of Top Model, but it’d be nice to see these girls soaking in things from people who have been in the industry for years.
I don’t want this to sound like I’m bad mouthing Top Model or that I think it’s bad. On the contrary, I’m a total fan of the show and there’s nothing better than a Top Model season marathon. I see how it’s improving and I think it has the personnel to be even better. It’s almost like a parent-child relationship; you only want the best for your child and I only want the best for Tyra and company. But trust me, even though they can improve on things, I’ll be watching every baby step they take.
Top Model airs tonight at 8:00 on the CW.
I figured out how you stopped having black girls as ANTM, by making sure none make it to the end. I had respect for you but that is all gone now. You are just like any other black person who made it,pretending that you want to help and putting your foot on their neck all the time. I hate your show and will not watch any more.
Er, the cycle before last had a black winner (Krista). Two cycles before that there was Teyona. Also: Saleisha, Danielle, Naima, and Eva. That's six out of sixteen. Jaslene was Latina, so that leaves nine white winners. Two of the times a white girl won, the other finalist was black, so that means that eight out of sixteen cycles had a black finalist. If you included the third place contestant (since they are in the finale), I'm pretty sure the number would go up more.
Regardless, whilst ANTM could certainly do a little bit better in terms of the number of minority girls they cast, it's disingenuous to say that they have "stopped having black girls as ANTM" and they make "sure none make it to the end."