‘Project Runway’ ~ Why Isn’t It Rocking My World Anymore?

Whoa is me, once upon a time ‘Project Runway’ mattered to me.  It was the sort of show that if someone didn’t watch it I would spend the next half hour telling them why they should be watching it and if that didn’t work…I tore my clothing and proclaimed they were dead to me.  Since debuting in 2005, the show changed the makeup of reality television for the better.  Granted, it could be argued that the premises of giving dating shows to rejects of a Flavor Flav reject just makes reality television more of a cesspool; ‘Project Runway’ did something remarkable in that it married, at least for me, competition by professionals with life in the bubble resulting in living in close quarters and high stress.

                There were a few factors that made ‘PR’ work over other reality shows; for one the contestants themselves seemed to have a bit more on the ball intellectually than your average reality show participant (see the link between Flavor Flav and reject above).  These folks had an awareness of pop culture and history (of which fashion is a major indicator of various elements including social status and mores) as well as displaying senses of humor that was often much more funny than whatever sitcom the major networks were spewing out.  Further, for most of them it was about the competition and not the game.  The subtle difference is that a competition is about bringing your best to the table to compare with others bringing their best, as opposed to trying to maneuver a position where you take advantage of an opponent either through emphasizing a weakness or deceiving them (a la ‘Survivor’).  Does anyone remember when Wendy Pepper in the first season pulled that sort of BS, it all came down to both the contestants and the TV audience not liking her – especially when Kara Saun (who I still adore) told Wendy that her antics were costing herself her soul (I don’t remember the exact quote).  That right there made ‘PR’ a class of its own.

                Another factor that separated ‘Project Runway’ from other shows was that the contestants had a guru in Tim Gunn who was a virtual unknown to the wide majority of the American public…now he is a fashion God (bow down all who are undeserving).  Fashion has often been portrayed as trivial, but Gunn never treated it as such, and due to his professionalism and obvious intelligence, many people who didn’t take the clothing industry seriously before now saw how the thought and risk involved with fashion shows and why now it seems various cities around the globe try to stand out by having weeks proclaimed as ‘Fashion Week.’  BTW, Cleveland has a fashion week, who knew? 

               Another secret about Tim Gunn’s success is that he tells the truth about a designer’s outfit.  He will tell them if he thinks it is a “hot mess” or if he sees potential in it.  Unlike someone like Simon Cowell who often says nastier than need be comments for entertainment value, Gunn’s critiques weren’t done to cut someone’s self esteem down to a nub in order for the TV audience to chuckle. 

                Other elements that helped ‘Project Runway’ become a phenomena were Heidi Klum (her German accent has become downright cute) and the other judges, Nina Garcia and Michael Kors.  For an inane reason one of my daily mantras is not to bore Nina.  Most of all the show was fun and it took its audience to New York and gave us who were not enamored with the city before a reasons to understand why NYC is the hubbub of American fashion (and I’m including both continents in that statement).  The challenges were great and not only brought out the creativity of the designers, but often left the audience inspired.

                And then came the fall.

                Unhappiness reigned between ‘Project Runway’ and their network, Bravo.  Until ‘PR’ came around the biggest hit that Bravo had was ‘Queer Eye for the Straight Guy,’ which was a great show but if you saw it three times you basically got tired of the concept.  ‘PR’ took the network up to a whole new level and quickly Bravo became the darling of anyone who would use the word ‘darling’ in a sentence.  It was a happy marriage for at least five seasons and then like all glamorous couples, something went wrong and it all started to decay and Brad Pitt left Jennifer Aniston for Angelina Jolie.  ‘Project Runway’ cheated on Bravo with Lifetime.

                Yes, that Lifetime…slut.     

                Sure Bravo tried to romance ‘PR’ back into the fold but apparently it had been ignoring its most popular show and ‘Project Runway’ could no longer thrive with the disrespect (the Weinstein Company who produced the show wanted more money).  Thus, like children of divorce, we the audience innocents had to cry in our over-stuffed Teddy Bears while Bravo and ‘PR’ bickered in court with each throwing lawsuits at the other.  Finally, a détente was reached and the audience had a choice between moving to Lifetime with mom or staying at home with Fab Dad and his new program, ‘The Fashion Show.’

                Although the sixth season of ‘Project Runway’ was filmed during the autumn of 2008, it was shown until recently because of the legal disputes.  ‘The Fashion Show’ was shown earlier during the summer and my mother taught me that if one can’t say anything nice one shouldn’t say anything at all.  So…

                I was all excitement when I knew that my ‘Project Runway’ was returning with everything that made it popular in the first place.  Heidi – check, Michael and Nina (who was fired from ‘Elle’ but landed on her feet with ‘Maria Claire’) – check, Tim Gunn – double check.  Of course I was worried that the show had been dragged to Los Angeles, but in the past many of the most talented designers had come from there so I wasn’t too concerned.  Yet I should have been.  The thing about L.A. is that it is a western city and as a western city it is spread out.  As a city that doesn’t have the history of New York it has more than its share of landmarks, yet these landmarks are small and well a little kitschy in comparison to the city in the East.  Even in shows where is shouldn’t matter where the competition takes place, such as ‘America’s Next Top Model’ it does matter.  The major and prestigious fashion opportunities are in New York – and L.A. is the place where fashion designers and models go when they didn’t make it you know where. 

                The location isn’t even the only thing bringing the show down.  The fact that this season was filmed last year feels like such a cheat.  It’s hard to get really emotional invested with the designers (none of them stand out personality wise) when everyone knows that their tension has come and gone – these people know who wins and the audience is left feeling a bit like the kid riding the short bus.  Now that I think about it, it was this shared anxiety that the audience had with the designers that made the show even more compelling.  Usually the program would start to be televised before the finalist designers would be able to show their clothes in the tents.  Now there is a sense of seen it and done it (like the challenge that involved last year’s Emmys or when Rebecca Romijn came in all pregnant even though the baby she was pregnant with is probably walking) even if that isn’t really the case.

                To further add to the frustration, is when the program has too many guest judges because Nina and Michael seem to have gone into a witness protection program.  Nina had been gone so long I thought I would soon be seeing her face on a milk carton.  See, that is the issue with filming the show in Los Angeles versus NYC, even if it is more convenient for Heidi who shares her life with musician Seal and their kids, the heart of the fashion industry is in New York ergo I imagine that it is tougher for Michael and Nina and even Tim Gunn to drop everything and catch a plane to fly out to the left coast for a taping.  Well maybe not Tim Gunn, but I have to be honest and say that a Tim Gunn in the Hollywood sunshine isn’t the same as a Tim Gunn strolling around Parsons…he just looks wilted and in need of a tan.

                Most of all, and I’m going back to the family allegory I was using before, I don’t like ‘Lifetime’ as my new stepmother.  I don’t think that she quite gets no matter how much I like her meatloaf I just don’t like her cooking overall.  In other words, it is the commercials.  The damn commercials that never stop with the special ‘Army Wives’ episodes and promotions for Georgia O’Keefe movie I’m not interested in watching.  BTW, I don’t care who you have playing O’Keefe your network mangled the Coco Chanel biographical movie with Shirley MacLaine and once you do that, you don’t get second chances with me.  The fact that the commercials go on and on with self-promotion has worn this audience viewer to, well, write this article.  I get it already, I’m watching Lifetime!

                Of course the other twist to having ‘PR’ on Lifetime is that the models have their own half hour program (a dessert if you will, following the entrée).  I know that there have been critics hollowing over ‘Models of the Runway’ but I don’t think it is so bad.  I always sort of wanted to know what the models thought about the designers, especially when they were traded or abandoned by one or several.  The problem with this show is that there is nothing for them to do.  As many a fan of  ‘ANTM’ knows, there is no down time for fledging models.  If they aren’t walking on the catwalk than Tyra and the Js have them in tank with a shark (a petite shark perhaps but still a shark and the models have to sign waivers that they aren’t menstruating just in case the shark is trigged into a feeding frenzy because of menstrual blood – I know you think I’m kidding but I’m not).  I’m not suggesting that ‘Models of the Runway’ should dangle the girls from ten story buildings in hopes that a fashion photog captures something fierce on their faces (in between their screams of terror) I’m saying that if Lifetime is going to invest in a show about models give them something to do besides doing nothing.  If nothing is going on then limit the show to every other week or something like that.   

                So in summary, here are some ways for ‘Project Runway’ to regain my heart: 1. Move back to New York.  2. Film the next season quickly because you don’t want to leave your fans hanging as you have done between the fifth and sixth seasons.  3. Lifetime, you have a lot of new viewers to your network, don’t bore them with your left over shows.  Think what programs the demographic of people who watch ‘PR’ are best to promote – hint, not the folks who watch ‘Army Wives.’  4. Don’t bore your audience.  Do something with ‘Models of the Runway’ or ditch it.  I think it could work with a few edits, but if you can’t figure it out then drop it.

                There I have said all that I have meant to say.  In truth I could never completely leave Tim Gunn, I just, I just, I just want the passion back. 

Westerfield © 2009