Project Runway Recap: Season One, Episode 4: Designers on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown.

The boys at Project Rungay are blogging season one on DVD and are watching every Wednesday night. Other Eric and I finally watched it on Wednesday this week (we usually don't get to it until the weekend). Anyway, here's the episode:

Heidi: "This challenge is about rock and roll."

Designers: "Oooooooh!"

Heidi: "I know, right? You're going to be designing a new look for Sarah Hudson!"

Who?

Heidi: "Sarah Hudson! Believe me, by fall 2006, when you are watching reruns of this season, she is going to be a huge star! Huge!"

If you say so. The designers have to pitch Sarah on their ideas. Here's a quick sampling:

Nora: "Girl in a blender."

Kara: "Princess hit by a bus."

Austin: "Penguins on fire."

The ideas all sound a little violent to me but what do I know from rock and roll? Kevin, Austin, and Jay are chosen as team leaders.

Kara: "Musicians are used to male designers so this doesn't surprise me. Have I mentioned that I worked with Eve?"

The designers are really getting on each other's nerves in the work room. Everyone wants Robert to get away from them; he's wrecking Jay's sewing machine; he's pushing sewing needles farther into people's fingers. Austin finally has enough and beats the shit out of him.

Kevin leaves the room for five minutes. When he returns, his teammates, Nora and Alexandra, have misplaced the dress, burned all the pattern pieces, filled the room with trash, and are sitting in their own excrement.

Kevin: "What the hell happened? I was only gone for five minutes!"

Nora: "Everyone stole our pattern pieces."

Everyone: "We didn't steal your stupid pattern pieces."

Nora (sobbing hysterically): "Oh my god; I can't believe you would say I accused you of stealing our pattern pieces. I never accused you individually of stealing; I accused you collectively of stealing. I'm just devastated that you would take that the wrong way."

We are treated to the first musical number from the series: Vanessa's beautiful rendition of the "Nora's Losing It" song. It may not be up to the standards of some of the numbers from season two and the choreography needs a little work, but it's pretty good and should definitely be put on the album.

OK, the outfits look remarkably similar. They all have poofy, shredded skirts. It's all a pretty cliched rocker look. Although I found Jay's skirt to be really pointless and stupid, his outfit overall was clearly well constructed and looked good. Obviously he wasn't chosen as the winner. Kevin wins with the most boring of the three garments. Austin's Little Bo Peep look was so anti-rocker that it almost transcended rock and roll to the highest (or pink) level of goth. I think if he had done something different with the styling of the hair and makeup this look might have worked.

We then have to endure the excruciating agony of watching the designers vote each other off the island.

Austin: "I can't do it; no, I refuse; I'd rather die; oh, alright, Vanessa."

Wendy: "I'm just going to arbitrarily say Austin because he's a better designer and poses more of a threat to me."

Vanessa: "I think Vanessa should be sent home. Wait, why did I just say my own name? God, I'm screwed."

Heidi: "Vanessa, we would have sent you home anyway, but you sure made it easier for us by picking yourself. Nora is in so that means you are out."

Vanessa: "Yeah, I figured that out; I may not know how to sew but my powers of deduction are very sharp. Are we done here? Because I have things to do."