Riding Coattails: Class Versus Crass

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Well, there was no “unclarity” (to use Elizabeth’s ludicrous verbal invention) on The Apprentice this week. Once I saw that she was the randomly selected as project manager, I knew she was toast. No one liked Elizabeth. They found her annoying, overly analytical, and difficult to manage. The fact that she was ushered out of the game without one last chance to argue her case beside two other team members was fairly harsh, but in light of the situation, I can’t say that I disapproved of Trump’s decision to instantly drop-kick her into the nearest cab.

Although Elizabeth took the bullet for the Apex for this week, I have a feeling they were destined to lose no matter what. Their militaristic approach to the task of recruiting for the New York Police Department was a horrible idea and ultimately failed to comply with the guidelines of their original assignment. True, it pulled at emotional strings, as advertising guru Donny Deutsch requested, but they were simply the wrong ones: fear and aggression. Not to say that fear can’t be motivating. Hell, I half the things I do in life are driven by a desire to avoid being yelled at. Which is why I’d never last five minutes on this show.

Speaking of staying power, I’m pretty surprised that Raj is still in the game. In the boardroom, everyone kept commending Raj for taking a firm stand behind the military theme, which confused me. The idea clearly sucked and Raj made it even worse with his puerile machine gun noises and generally prickish behavior. When the team arrived at the police training headquarters, Raj was obviously living out some little boy fantasy of playing with tanks and helicopters, which I found lame. I like him less and less as time goes on. And what the hell happened to his cane?

Chris is another player with a strong tendency to be a real dick. I can’t believe he said to Elizabeth, “It’s not a friggin’ tampon commercial.” Yeah, and it’s not Full Metal Jacket II, either. What an insensitive jerk-off. He’s probably refuses to hold Raj after they make love every night, too. I can just tell.

Andy was wise to leave the sex element back at the suite. He admirably stood up to the pressure of his teammates to turn Mosaic’s ad campaign into a Bud Light commercial and it paid off. I was extremely impressed with the job he did this week and very pleased that my initial predictions about his abilities are holding water. I wonder if the rest of the players will finally see that they need to stop underestimating this kid.

Andy did so many things right as the project manager. First, his idea for the tagline, “When was the last time you…” was simple and very effective. Secondly, he stood up for his ideas in the face of opposition, particularly from Maria, who accused him of lacking focus at the beginning of the project. And finally, his decision to give Kelly his way by letting him present the group’s ads was smart. Although he’s only twenty-two, he’s mature enough to see that sex is not the only way to get people’s attention.

On the other hand, I’m not sure if Kevin feels the same way. He actually referred to one of the scenes Apex was filming as “the money shot.” I’m sure his mother enjoyed hearing that. His confrontation with Elizabeth was downright painful to watch, mainly because it so plainly illustrated Elizabeth’s inability to directly answer a question. I still believe Kevin will go far, but I now see that he has a temper and he needs to control it.

I was a bit skeptical when I saw the preview for next week’s episode. Stacie J., Jennifer C., Bradford, and Rob are coming back? Ay, chihuahua. Sure, it will create a good scandal, but does Trump honestly want to give these people another chance? More importantly, do they deserve it? Out of the four, I’d say that the only who probably does is Rob, since he was barely in the game long enough to show anyone what he could do, except be “underutilized” (another example of atrocious, anti-Shrunk and White vocabulary that keeps popping up on this show). Everyone else screwed up too badly.

But I have to wonder if this is a sign of things to come. Will Pamela, John, Stacy R., and Elizabeth come crawling back down the road, too? Although they’re all compelling characters in their own right, I can’t help but feel that they had their chance and they blew it. If Trump were really serious about finding the best person for the job, he wouldn’t allow such a hyperbolic plot twist. Then again, the whole point of the show is to perpetuate the myth of the Donald. The fact that he gets a new employee out of the deal is secondary.