Welcome to The #Content Report, a newsletter by Vince Mancini. I’ve been writing about movies, culture, and food since I started FilmDrunk in 2007. Now I’m delivering it straight to you, with none of the autoplay videos, takeover ads, or chumboxes of the ad-ruined internet. Support my work and help me bring back the cool internet by subscribing, sharing, commenting, and keeping it real.
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[This is a podcast episode newsletter. They’re different than the regular ones.]
The guest? Rachel Fisher from Hollywood Crime Scene. The show? The Top Chef Frotcast Post-Show. This week, all-star guest Rachel is helping me and Joey break down episode five of the first season of Top Chef (it premiered back in 2006!). Rachel was a Top Chef virgin before we asked her on the show, but she has since seen the first five episodes and now she’s hooked. Let that be a lesson to any of you non-Top Chef-watching #Content Report subscribers (PS, I love you!).
Seriously though, this show was watchable as hell straight from the get-go and nothing has driven that home like watching these old-ass episodes. This week’s episode is “Blind Confusion,” which debuted the now de rigeur “Blind Taste Test” quickfire challenge. Which in this case was unfortunately won by Andrea, one of my all-time least favorite contestants. OH MY GOD, WHY IS SHE STILL HERE?!?
She got kicked off in episode two (which was already a gift! she should’ve been gone in week one!), then got brought back when Sylvia dropped out to take care of her dead father, and then she somehow landed in the top three last episode. This episode, she managed to win immunity in a blind taste test challenge (aka a non-cooking challenge!) and so we’re stuck with her for yet another episode. This even though she doesn’t seem particularly interested in the challenges, this competition, or even food in general. She strikes all of us as a “food is fuel”-style person, and as food TV enthusiasts, we hate those people.
Luckily there’s also Stephen, one of the all-time great reality show characters, plus human cartoon character Miguel and constantly-flustered Dave. We love this gang. In this episode, they make fusion Latin-American food in San Francisco’s Mission District. Asian ingredients on a taco?! Can they DO that??
Please to enjoy, and check out our sponsor Blackwood Distilling. (Their bourbon and rye are really good, and I’m not just saying that because they’re our sponsor).
Top Chef Frotcast Post-Show S1 Rewatch Episode 5, with Rachel Fisher