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Ratings, ratings ratings... They kept all three so they could string along the whole viewing audience for another week. If they had wanted to eliminate someone, they could have with no qualms. Having worked in the field of live video production, the first challenge was unfair and should have been tossed out. The contestants were not on an even playing field with the types of challenges assigned to them, and the coaches (Flay and Fieri) did not provide the same level of help. Flay's was much more useful. He even did the first section of the promo as an example for Aaron. I didn't see Fieri flying through the air with a wine bottle between his teeth. Good thing Lisa wasn't afraid of heights. Then there's Adam, the showman who bombed the easiest challenge of the three. These results should have been tossed.

Having said that, I'll reiterate what Susie or Bob (same to me) said at the end during judging... "This is the FOOD Network". Wow! They remembered! I think Lisa clearly won the food challenge, even though the judges liked Adam's pork chops best. She had a diversified menu with a beautiful presentation. Granted, she burned half the pork and had to reportion her fish. Many chefs could have made the same mistakes under time constraints and working with unfamiliar equipment like improperly calibrated ovens. But Lisa has demonstrated throughout the competition that she can really cook. I was shocked when she started singing. That could have gone either way. But they wanted to see more of her personality and they got it, surprisingly out of character.

Adam smoked any meat he could get his hands on. If you didn't like that very predominant taste, you would have skipped his buffet. He did show creativity constructing smokers, but as he said, his best efforts at cooking involve smoking. His presentation was ok. I'd toss him out because of his one dimensional approach to cooking and his continued propensity to bite off more than he can chew. He lucked out on this one.

Aaron, sweet Aaron... he bombed this one big time. I've seen better buffets at Ponderosa Steak House. They were told to create something Vegas-style which to me translates as over-the-top. Three pasta salads??? Please... Even though he fared well during the walk and talk challenge, when left to his own devices, he made a no-sense presentation and sounded like his mouth was full of marbles. Initially, I thought he was crying again about his runaway son. Say bye-bye Aaron.

So I guess we'll all tune in next week, if only out of curiosity to see what tortures the judging committee can conjure up for the final elimination. My money is still on Lisa unless they're sent to a rodeo to prepare ribs and funnel cakes.

I watched the Mad Men marathon and it was great!! I'm so over all reality shows and most of what is shown on Food Network. The one show I haven't seen a dozen times is not re-run - the episodes of Anne Burrell I missed. The "stars" that get under my skin always, always, always seem to be on and I immediately turn them off. If there's nothing else on and they show this latest episode of As The Contestants Turn, I may watch and root for Lisa, or maybe Aaron. Yawn.

*PerkyMac-I spent waaaay too long watching Mad Men yesterday too! so awesome. and I love the throwback food that Betty feeds her family.

As for TNFNS, I usually catch it on demand during the week...just like DJ Dedd, when I saw the previews for this week and the "unprecendented" twist, I figured they'd let all three stay. Im looking forward to this lisa singing part, though! As for my favorite, I sort of feel ambivalent about all of them. Honestly, I've felt sort of "meh" about all the contestants this season. There's no one I really hate and no one that I'm truly rooting for.

Relative to earlier episodes, I didn't think this one was too bad. I only cringed for about 15 minutes this episode. The two FN VPs gave unusually coherent advice and advanced their vague objective a pinch. I also thought the entertainers in costume was a nice touch. Their presence was actually understated by FN (not in terms of camera time but in terms of laughing at themselves).

I think Adam has no credibility as a personality or as a cook. Lisa is my favorite but I can't see her distinguishing herself on FN. Aaron cooks pretty uninspired food (though quite flavorful, apparently) but is a mess in front of the camera.

I really wanted them to say, "this is unprecedented....you're all off."

We the viewers get to pick a fan favorite--which is one reason Lisa is still campaigning to us bloggers, long after the winner was chosen.

Amy Findley, last year's winner, is a charming and intelligent chef with good camera presence, but she got a terrible show at a terrible time and after one season she said no thank you and moved to France with her family.

I am going to eat cold breast of crow with remoulade myself, after enjoying Lisa's Reba-ish vocals and marvelling at her skills.

For more on TNFNS, please see my blog, Annie's New York Eats, at http://www.annienewman.typespot.com

@iz - it was on from noon until 1 a.m. and I watched every episode! Brings me back, way back. The kitchens, the aprons, the food, the grocery stores, not to mention hair and clothes, cars, toys. And it's really well-written. I caught a couple of time related errors, but most aren't as ancient as me.....haha. I could see my parents, me as a kid and a little bit of me as an adult, even though it's before "my" time. 16 Emmy nominations, too!

http://www.amctv.com/originals/madmen/

@iz - write my full name at gmail dot com