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When chefs get the chance to compete on Top Chef, they know they will have an intense experience. After all, past chefs have had their love lives ruined and been accused of stealing food. Sadly, those are only two examples of how things can go wrong, since even Padma Lakshmi revealed what she hated about hosting the show.

Given how hard competing on Top Chef can be, it would be great if the reality show's many memorable chefs didn't have to deal with bad judges. Despite that, Tom Colicchio once revealed that the show had a terrible guest judge and why he thought they were so bad in the role.

Tom Colicchio Told Andy Cohen That Chef Mike Yakura Was The Worst Top Chef Guest Judge

As of the time of this writing, 21 seasons of Top Chef have aired on Bravo, which means there have been hundreds of episodes. Over that time,...

Contestants on Top Chef have faced controversies onscreen and off, including harassment claims and unfair treatment by producers. Chefs risk burns and cuts on reality shows, but severe head injuries should not be part of the competition. Show producers pressured a chef with a serious head injury to make career-altering decisions without proper support.

There have been many onscreen Top Chef controversies, like when a chef was accused of stealing someone else's food and serving it. Unfortunately, something that many fans don't know is that there have also been several behind-the-scenes scandals.

For example, Padma Lakshmi claimed she was harassed on set and one competitor claimed the show's locations disadvantage some chefs. According to a competitor from the Top Chef: Just Desserts spin-off, the show's producers also have a history of being cruel to the chefs.

Top Chef: Just Desserts' Seth Caro Revealed How Heather Chittum Was Treated After Her...

Peacock is opening the Bravo vault and bringing back classic shows beginning Monday, April 15.

Fans of The Real Housewives franchise will have more shows to watch as several spinoffs become available on the streaming service.

The Real Housewives of Atlanta has been the franchise to produce the most spinoffs, such as when cameras followed Nene Leakes getting married with the I Dream of Nene: The Wedding special. Kandi Burruss also got her special as she tied the knot on TV.

Kim Zolciak left Rhoa, but cameras continued to follow her and her family as she married Kroy Biermann with Don’t Be Tardy for the Wedding, which ultimately evolved into Don’t Be Tardy for the next seven seasons.

The Grande Dame of The Real Housewives of Potomac, Karen Huger, also scored a spinoff that followed her family reunion.

Peacock will also have the first and only season of The Real Housewives of D.C.,...

Peacock wants to get nostalgic with some of Bravo’s most famous past titles, including ‘The Rachel Zoe Project,’ ‘Million Dollar Listing’ and more.

The 2023 strikes from Hollywood’s biggest actors and writers’ unions were eminently avoidable, but studios chose to play hardball with union reps and force work stoppages. TV networks and streaming services are just now getting their scripted titles back on screens, but Peacock is pulling a move that might make audiences think the strikes are still going! This month, Peacock will be adding over 15 titles pulled from the pile of unscripted reality shows from Bravo’s past; old fan-favorites like “The Real Housewives of D.C.” and many more are coming to the platform in April.

Newly imported Bravo titles will begin arriving on Peacock on April 15. Sixteen titles have been announced for the rollout, and Peacock pledges that more will be included. Peacock is already home...

We love these products, and we hope you do too. E! has affiliate relationships, so we may get a small share of the revenue from your purchases. Items are sold by the retailer, not E!. Can't decide between pie and cake for the holidays? Why should you have to? This year, have your cake and pie and eat it too with the delish turducken of desserts, the Christmas PieCaken! The PieCaken is the creation of chef Zac Young, who has been named one of the Top 10 Pastry Chefs in America and is known for his final four finish on Top Chef: Just Desserts as well as appearances on Cooking Channel's Unique Sweets and Food Network's Halloween Baking Championship.  Zac's original Thanksgiving PieCaken...

James Beard Award-winning pastry chef and former judge of Top Chef: Just Desserts Johnny Iuzzini has been accused of sexual harassment by four former employees in a lengthy new Mic report.

Two pastry chefs and two unpaid externs who directly reported to Iuzzini at the famed Jean-Georges restaurant in New York City between 2009 and 2011 alleged a culture of sexual harassment perpetuated by the now 43-year-old chef.

In response, Iuzzini told Mic — in part — in a statement, “I am shattered and heartbroken at the thought that any of my actions left members of my team feeling hurt or degraded. More importantly,...

“The Millionaire Matchmaker” made waves in America and now the popular reality television show is getting fans in the UK. “The Millionaire Matchmaker” stars matchmaker to the rich, Patti Stanger. Stanger helps her clients find love, no matter how tough the client happens to be. In one of the episodes shown on ITVBe, Stanger helps the winner of “Top Chef: Just Desserts” find someone who shares his love for pastry. “Top Chef: Just Desserts winner and pastry chef Yigit Pura asks Patti to help him look for love as he works on his dream of opening up a patisserie in San Francisco. Patti then meets millionaire Johnny Simon in his [ Read More ]

The post Watch The Millionaire Matchmaker on ITVBe’s FilmOn Channel appeared first on Shockya.com.

It's a girl! Top Chef: Just Desserts host Gail Simmons and her husband Jeremy Abrams welcomed their firstborn child, daughter Dahlia Rae Abrams, on Sunday, Dec. 29, E! News confirms. "She weighed 7 lbs., 3 oz.," Simmons' rep says in a statement. "Mother, father and baby are doing wonderfully." Simmons, a special projects manager at Food & Wine magazine, announced her pregnancy in July. She and Abrams, who heads up music programming business Audiostiles, wed in 2008; their nuptials were featured in Martha Stewart's Real Weddings magazine. The new parents live in Brooklyn, New York. When Simmons filmed Top Chef: New Orleans (currently airing on Bravo), she kept her pregnancy...

Padma Lakshmi's little girl is getting a playmate! Top Chef judge and Top Chef: Just Desserts host Gail Simmons is expecting her first child with husband Jeremy Abrams this winter, her rep confirmed Tuesday to E! News. Simmons, also special projects director at Food & Wine magazine, tied the knot with Abrams five years ago in a farmers' market-themed wedding. And the contestants on Top Chef: New York had to cater her bridal shower, natch! Simmons' first child will join a Top Chef family that includes Lakshmi's daughter, Krishna; Tom Colicchio's three sons; and Top Chef Masters host Curtis Stone's 1 1/2-year-old son, Hudson, with...

Birthday shoutouts go to Justin Hartley (above), who is 36, Greg Louganis is 53, Sara Gilbert is 38, Oprah is 59, and Ann Jillian is 63. We're just barely into the season, but Showtime has already renewed its Sunday lineup of Shameless, House Of Lies, and Californication. Top Chef: Just Desserts winner Yigit Pura has unveiled a new line of wedding cakes and pastries for same-sex couples. Well, of course it was too good to be true.Liza remembers Cabaret Sports Illustrated readers will get a surprise this month on Page 48.

Below you can see the Nsfw music video for "This Club Is A Haunted House" by Sharon Needles.

Via Towleroad comes this lovely video celebrating The Place in Modesto, CA.

Below you can see Anderson talk with high school student Jacob Rudolph about coming out, and his inspirational hero George Takei. You can guess what happens next.

Below you can listen to Rachel, Quinn...

"Millionaire Matchmaker" is back for Season 6 this January.

This season, which premieres on Thursday, January 10 at 9 p.m. Est, Patti Stanger returns not only to help rich men and women find love, but she is looking for love herself. In the process, she discovers new information about her birth parents that affects the way she looks at relationships. Clients this season include Denise Richards' dad, former Match Box Twenty guitarist Adam Gaynor, "Top Chef: Just Desserts" winner Yigit Pura, Olympic speedskater Allison Baver and retired NFL punter Mitch Berger.

The premiere features Daniel Negreanu, a 37-year-old pro poker player and Brian Holloway II, a divorced heir who's a bit of a mama's boy.

Take a look at the exclusive supertease below.

"Millionaire Matchmaker" is back for Season 6 this January.

This season, which premieres on Thursday, January 10 at 9 p.m. Est, Patti Stanger returns not only to help rich men and women find love, but she is looking for love herself. In the process, she discovers new information about her birth parents that affects the way she looks at relationships. Clients this season include Denise Richards' dad, former Match Box Twenty guitarist Adam Gaynor, "Top Chef: Just Desserts" winner Yigit Pura, Olympic speedskater Allison Baver and retired NFL punter Mitch Berger.

The premiere features Daniel Negreanu, a 37-year-old pro poker player and Brian Holloway II, a divorced heir who's a bit of a mama's boy.

Take a look at the exclusive supertease below.

Castle investigates a murder at the Sci-Fi Con...

but why is guest star Ed Quinn dressed in such a baggy costume?

News

In a surprising development, Fox has cut back on its order for the Becki Newton/Scott Foley comedy, The Goodwin Games, reducing the series frist season from thirteen to seven episodes and suddenly halting filming. Usually, that's a sign that the network doesn't have a lot of confidence in the show, but in this case there's a plausible alternative — with The Mindy Project getting a 26-episode season and Ben & Kate getting 19 episodes, Goodwin's first season was cut to match the needs of the Tuesday night lineup.

Is the sitcom spin-off dead? The failure of The Farm makes it look that way, especially since CBS doesn't seem to be looking to extend the life of its older hits with a Frasier-style (or Joey) spin-off.

EW has the first...

Nearly four years after it was first announced, the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory musical helmed by Sam Mendes (pictured) has set a date for its London debut. EW has confirmed that the show will premiere at the London Palladium in June 2013. Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, the Tony-winning partners who wrote the music and lyrics for Hairspray and Smash, will create new songs for the stage production.

Scottish playwright David Greig will take inspiration from Roald Dahl’s 1964 novella to write the book. One Man, Two Guvnors’ Tony-nominated designer Mark Thompson will create costumes and sets, and Peter Darling (Billy Elliott,...

Ron Ben-Israel may be a renowned pastry chef in real life, but as the host of Food Network’s cooking show Sweet Genius, he terrifies me. At The Daily Beast, you can read my latest feature, "The Creepiest Man on Television," in which I discuss just why Ben-Israel freaks me out and review his Food Network show, Sweet Genius, a bizarre and often head-scratching mishmash of styles, tones, and freaky weirdness. The scariest man on television is obsessed with cakes. Ron Ben-Israel, the host of Food Network’s bizarre culinary competition series Sweet Genius, absolutely terrifies me. Watching the show reduces me to cold sweat, imagining that Ben-Israel has forced me into the Saw-like confines of the Sweet Genius set, where I must bake a génoise while he cackles eagerly at my misery before murdering me. Sweet Genius is a variation on the network’s highly successful Chopped: Four chefs...

Reality TV judging: It’s important. I can only commit to a TV talent show if I believe there are tough, fair-minded judges keeping the circus under control. Since we’re headlong into enticing seasons of The Voice and American Idol, the time is right to reflect upon the best judges in reality TV history – the ones who boast authority, smarts, sass, and fearsomeness. Oh, and some evil too!

10. Nina Garcia, Project Runway

The glamorous Marie Claire editrix has no time for fashion with a less-than-editorial edge, and she’s regularly the most intimidating part of a panel that also includes the fire-breathing Michael Kors and the perpetually aloof Heidi Klum. When she’s not dispensing displeasure at the drop of an accessory, she’s sighing with the kind of amazing contempt that warranted Meryl Streep an Oscar nom in The Devil Wears Prada.

Best Quote: While critiquing Santino Rice’s horrendous,...

Gail Simmons, a "Top Chef" judge and the host of "Top Chef: Just Desserts," recently talked about the future of food TV at the South Beach Wine and Food Festival. Simmons notes that thus far, food programming has hooked non-foodies; the next logical step is education.

"Now we've got them eating, we've got them talking about food, we've got them wanting to cook and wanting to go out more and recognizing chefs and recognizing how much great work they do, now we can sort of educate them on what they're actually eating," said Simmons. Such heavy material would also have to be entertaining, she conceded, adding, "So how do you make smart TV about food that is also really fun and interesting and that you can get people excited about?"

What do you think of Gail Simmons' predictions about the future of food TV?...

For nine seasons, Top Chef fans have known Gail Simmons to be a thoughtful and incisive judge, a dessert enthusiast (she does host Top Chef: Just Desserts, after all) and a friendly, familiar face. But for Simmons, being a TV personality was never in the cards. In fact, after graduating from college in Montreal, neither was a career in food - initially. In her new book, Talking with My Mouth Full: My Life as a Professional Eater, Simmons shares "the story of my life - so far - and the mentors and the adventures I've had along the way," as...

Food Informants is a week-in-the-life series profiling fascinating people in the food world. We hope it will give you a first-hand look at the many different corners of the food industry. Know someone who would make a great Food Informant? Tell us why.

Gail Simmons is a trained culinary expert, food writer and dynamic television personality. Since the show's inception, she has lent her expertise as a permanent judge on Bravo's 2010 Emmy-winning hit series "Top Chef," and is host of "Top Chef: Just Desserts," its pastry- focused spin-off, which just completed its second successful season.

Gail joined Food & Wine in 2004 and directs special projects for the epicurean magazine. Prior to Food & Wine, Gail was the special events manager for Chef Daniel Boulud's restaurant empire. She was born in Toronto, Canada and moved to New York City to attend culinary school. She then trained in the kitchens of legendary Le Cirque 2000 and groundbreaking Vong restaurants,...

"Top Chef" alum Gail Simmons and Fabio Viviani played "Plead the Fifth" on "Watch What Happens Live" (Weeknights., 11 p.m. Est on Bravo) Wednesday night and gave some surprisingly candid answers to host Andy Cohen's questions.

When Cohen asked Simmons, the host of "Top Chef: Just Desserts," who the most overrated celebrity chef is right now, she grimaced and said "Oh, I hate that question," before dropping a bombshell: "I guess I have to say Paula Deen."

Deen has attracted a barrage of criticism since she announced that she has Type 2 diabetes and is promoting a Novo diabetes drug.

In a less controversial, but equally honest "Plead the Fifth" moment, Cohen asked "Top Chef" fan favorite Fabio which judge's opinion he cared least about, he picked frequent guest judge Anthony Bourdain.

He and Bourdain got into it after the "Layover" host was rude about one of Fabio's dishes. Bourdain later apologized for upsetting Fabio,...

"Top Chef" alum Gail Simmons and Fabio Viviani played "Plead the Fifth" on "Watch What Happens Live" (Weeknights., 11 p.m. Est on Bravo) Wednesday night and gave some surprisingly candid answers to host Andy Cohen's questions.

When Cohen asked Simmons, the host of "Top Chef: Just Desserts," who the most overrated celebrity chef is right now, she grimaced and said "Oh, I hate that question," before dropping a bombshell: "I guess I have to say Paula Deen."

Deen has attracted a barrage of criticism since she announced that she has Type 2 diabetes and is promoting a Novo diabetes drug.

In a less controversial, but equally honest "Plead the Fifth" moment, Cohen asked "Top Chef" fan favorite Fabio which judge's opinion he cared least about, he picked frequent guest judge Anthony Bourdain.

He and Bourdain got into it after the "Layover" host was rude about one of Fabio's dishes. Bourdain later apologized for upsetting Fabio,...

It’s been a little over a year since San Francisco resident Yigit Pura won the first season of Bravo reality competition series, Top Chef: Just Desserts and was also voted fan favorite by the viewers. Since that television exposure Pura has been wearing many hats. While holding down his day job as Executive Pastry Chef with Taste Catering & Event Planning, he also signed on as a Bravo website blogger when the second season of Just Desserts aired in late summer. Plus, he appeared regularly at Lgbt-related benefits and fundraisers, and he's starred in a series of Cooking Channel videos with fellow gay pastry chef Zac Young.

Now, thankfully for us, he is shedding his shirt and being doused in rainbow sprinkles for a 2012 calendar benefiting Meals On Wheels.

To talk about the calendar and to see if there’s more television in his future, Pura put the oven on...

As told to Nuzhat Naoreen.

I haven’t been . I don’t know how often they’re done, truthfully. It seems to me like progressive dinner parties would require you to have a lot of staff because if you are in charge of dinner, it would be hard to be eating the appetizer at someone else’s house and then going to your house for dinner. I mean it would take a lot of organization, advanced planning or, a staff of chefs like the Top Chefs to pull it off.

When you’re cooking for clients it’s not about...

As told to Nuzhat Naoreen

[As a contender on Top Chef Masters], I was on the other side for awhile, but you know judging is definitely a lot easier. It doesn’t have the stress of actually cooking. Time constraints aren’t my problem anymore. Before this, I guest judged on Top Chef: Just Desserts, so I was familiar with the format. There’s not much hazing on Top Chef. Tom runs you around naked through Hollywood, but that’s about it.

There are a lot of people, so figuring out who’s who and what’s about to come up has been a challenge. Also, sometimes...

For the first time, Simon and Kate manage to record in the same room, which is very exciting indeed. On the quick-opinion docket: Suburgatory, South Park, Top Chef: Just Desserts, Big Bang Theory, Community, Parks and Recreation, the “premiere” of Beavis and Butt-head, It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, The League, Prime Suspect, Supernatural, Chuck, Boss, the Allen Gregory pilot, The Amazing Race, Kate’s take on The Walking Dead, The Good Wife, and finally How I Met Your Mother. Homeland is, predictably, back in the spotlight this week, but Happy Endings joins it thanks to its stellar Halloween episode. Finally, Craig Bevan of Movies You Should See joins us for a DVD Shelf segment on everyone’s favorite cult UK pop-culture-addled comedy, Spaced.

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Johnny Iuzzini kept criticizing Sally Camacho for having sous chef Orlando make her showpiece, but she doesn't think that cost her the Top Chef: Just Desserts win. "I fell short on my plated dessert and if I had executed what I had planned, I would have won," Camacho tells TVGuide.com. The pastry chef couldn't finish off her spheres as she planned in the end. How did she run of time? Find out. Plus: See what else she had to adjust on the fly.

Read More >...

Our top moments of the week:

14. Worst Homage: Susan struggles in her "super-edgy" community college art class on Desperate Housewives when the instructor asks the students to paint a nude model. When Susan's teacher points out her discomfort, Susan goes a little a lot overboard to compensate for her nerves — and comes to class naked when she misinterprets something her teacher says. The scene would be funnier if it wasn't almost an exact retread of her accidental nude streak in Season 1.

13. Can't Have It Both Ways Award: Top Chef: Just Desserts' Sally chooses showpiece master Orlando to make her showpiece for the finale — based on her design, of course. At Judges' Table, Johnny Iuzzini lays into...

Read More >...

Chris Hanmer can sum up his Top Chef: Just Desserts win in one word: unbelievable. "It feels unbelievable to just not have to bite your tongue and hold it in any longer," he tells TVGuide.com. "I can finally talk about it! It's just unbelievable." Hanmer, who owns The School of Pastry Design, triumphed over Matthew Petersen and Sally Camacho, the latter of whom relied on sous chef Orlando to make her showpiece — a point Hanmer drove home at Judge's Table. Does he think that put him over the edge? Find out. Plus: See how his daughter is doing.

Read More >...

Matthew Petersen took a risk and it didn't pay off. Far from a showpiece specialist, the Top Chef: Just Desserts finalist opted to make a sugar showpiece instead of a chocolate one — which he was familiar with — in the finale, only to have head judge Johnny Iuzzini criticize him for taking the gamble. "I needed to do that to have a chance," he tells TVGuide.com. "It's not something I do. I make plated desserts. I don't make showpieces. ... But I was totally stoked [with how it turned out]. It was standing! It looked good and more importantly, I was proud of it." See what else he has to say about being the underdog, why he didn't want sous chefs and blowing Gail Simmons' mind with speculoos.

Read More >...

Filed under: TV Replay

It all came down to a final face-off between the final three on 'Top Chef: Just Desserts' (Wed., 10Pm Et on Bravo). With $100,000 on the line, as well as a feature in 'Food and Wine Magazine,' the contestants were definitely feeling the pressure.

!!Spoiler Alert!!

For their final challenge, they had to make a dessert that represented someone important to them, as well as an entire table of desserts for display. Aesthetic presentation and flavor were equally important, as this was their last chance to impress.

 

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On your TV this Wednesday: a Survivor shocker, many sitcom tricks and treats, and frightful times for Shawn, Gus, Ben and Vivien. As but a supplement to TVLine’s original features and reporting, here are 12 programs to keep on your radar.

8 pm World Series Game 6 (Fox) | Barring a possible rain-out, the action returns to St. Louis with the Rangers looking to seal the deal. Or do the Cards have a bit more fight left in ‘em?

8 pm Survivor: South Pacific (CBS) | One tribe is shocked, I tell you, shocked, when one of their players makes a risky move that...

This week, on the Televerse, Simon and I talk manly men and fairytales, as we discuss the pilots of Man Up!, Grimm, and Once Upon a Time. We go through our week in TV, with looks at Ringer, Suburgatory, Modern Family, Happy Endings, South Park, Psych, Top Chef: Just Desserts, American Horror Story, The Big Bang Theory, It’s Always Sunny…, The League, Supernatural, Amazing Race, The Walking Dead, Enlightened, and Himym. Then we spotlight The Good Wife‘s latest, “Marthas and Caitlins”, as well as Homeland‘s, “Semper I”, and we close out the show by welcoming comedian Jim Bruce from The Paul Goebel Show on to the DVD Shelf to talk about Joan of Arcadia.

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Morgan Wilson could be in store for a whole other kind of just desserts. The runner-up of last year's inaugural season of Bravo's Top Chef: Just Desserts has been indicted on felony child pornography charges. According to the Star-Courier of Plano, Texas, the 38-year-old Wilson was originally arrested on Dec. 10, 2010, following an investigation by undercover officers. According to police, Morgan was flagged after his computer received three alleged child porn images via peer-to-peer networks three months earlier. An attorney for Wilson, Roy L. Merrill, declined to comment. Authorities traced the file transfers from Limewire to his IP address, according to the indictment. A search of his...

A finalist from the first season of Top Chef: Just Desserts has been charged with possession and intent to distribute child pornography. Morgan Wilson, 38, of Plano, Texas, was indicted on three second-degree felony charges and could face up to 10 years in jail if convicted, the Plano Star-Courier reports. Wilson, who was a controversial and hot-tempered contestant on the Bravo show, prone to angry outbursts, was arrested last December after undercover investigators received file transfers from his computer that allegedly contained images and videos of children as young as toddlers engaged in sexual acts. He was indicted earlier this month and...

How tough was it for Orlando Santos to get the boot from Top Chef: Just Desserts one week shy of the finale? "Between Judges' Table and the stew room, I think I had completely lost every feeling that I had," he tells TVGuide.com. "When I got to the stew room, seeing everyone just brought back the emotions and all the effort and time it took to get me where I was. It was very, very difficult. When I left off-camera, it was even harder, just walking away knowing I was so close to the finale, and I just broke down."

Santos was shown the door for his dessert-in-disguise paella — the critique of which he found "a little disturbing." Find out why he disagreed with the judges, if he considers himself this season's villain and why he worships Cat Cora.

Read More >...

Filed under: TV Replay

This week proved to be such a fun challenge, we went straight to the elimination challenge on 'Top Chef: Just Desserts' (Wed., 10Pm Et on Bravo). Each of the four finalists was asked to pick a country, and then tasked with making a dessert that looked like a dish from that country.

By dish, of course, the judges meant a main course, so they had to disguise their desserts as traditional meals. What a brilliant challenge to really see who's a master of desserts. And it proved tough for the competitors.

 

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This week, on the Televerse, Simon and I change up the format and end up talking our heads off. We go through our week in TV, with looks at the Last Man Standing pilot, Ringer, American Horror Story, Suburgatory, Modern Family, the Psych premiere, Top Chef: Just Desserts, South Park, The Big Bang Theory, Parks and Rec, It’s Always Sunny…, The League, Prime Suspect, Supernatural, the Boss pilot, Amazing Race, Enlightened, and Himym. Then we spotlight four of the week’s strongest shows, Homeland, Fringe, Community, and The Good Wife, and close out the show by welcoming Sean Ingram from Previously On to the DVD Shelf to talk about The Larry Sanders Show.

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Reality show competitions are very stressful. And by the time you get down toward the end, your nerves are often frayed. That's probably why three of the remaining five contestants on 'Top Chef: Just Desserts' (Wed., 10Pm Et on Bravo) got their drink on with a classic game of 'Never Have I Ever.'

The boys had so much fun that Carlos was certain that he, Matthew and Orlando would be in the bottom tomorrow, simply because they were so wasted. Plus, we learned that they all want to punch Johnny in the face -- Orlando wants to twice!

 

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The Televerse is back with its latest episode and it’s chock full of Breaking Bady goodness. This week, Simon Howell and I talk through our week in TV from Tuesday to Monday with looks at Ringer, Glee, New Girl, Raising Hope, Suburgatory, Modern Family, the South Park premiere, the American Horror Story pilot, Top Chef: Just Desserts, The Big Bang Theory, Community, Parks and Rec, How to be a Gentleman, It’s Always Sunny…, the League premiere, Prime Suspect, Supernatural, Fringe, The Amazing Race, The Good Wife, Homeland, How I Met Your Mother, and the Enlightened pilot. Then we spotlight this week’s Breaking Bad finale, “Face Off” and look back on Season Four as a whole with guest host Rick D from our own Sound on Sight podcast. Check it out, then come back and tell us where you fall on the great Skyler debate!

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Two people went home this week on 'Top Chef: Just Desserts' (Wed., 10Pm Et on Bravo). In a surprise twist, the contestants were told that the loser of the doughnut challenge at the top of the show would be eliminated right there.

!!Spoiler Alert!!

Katzie was devastated when Megan was sent packing after her glaze was too crunchy. Luckily for Katzie she wouldn't have to suffer the competition alone for long. The contestants were next split into two groups of three and tasked with creating a chocolate showpiece.

 

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The Televerse is back with its latest episode. This week, Simon Howell and I talk through our week in TV from Tuesday to Monday with a few more pilot reviews and looks at Ringer, New Girl, Glee, Up All Night, Free Agents, Modern Family, Top Chef: Just Desserts, The Big Bang Theory, Community, Parks and Rec, the Office, the Archer finale, Person of Interest, Supernatural, Fringe, the Doctor Who finale, the Amazing Race, the Good Wife, and How I Met Your Mother. Then we spotlight this week’s contentious Breaking Bad episode, “End Times”, and finish up with some Quantum Leap talk, with guest host Rich Smith from Movies You Should See and the rest of the Simply Syndicated podcast family joining us at the DVD Shelf.

Errata: In the DVD Shelf, I reference something discussed on The Firewall and Iceberg Podcast and mistakenly credit The Paul Goebel Show. My bad!

The Beastie Boys' Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz showed up on last night's episode of "Top Chef: Just Desserts," to say some bad words and generally liven the place up. He also filmed a bit for Bravo's site, in which he makes what he calls a Pb&J roll-up. What starts out all normal-like descends around one minute in into Adam "massaging" peanut butter, jelly and Nutella into the bread with his hands. Gross, but probably also delicious. Enjoy!

Alex Pettyfer on the set of Magic Mike

(JustJared has more photos)

Happy 43rd Birthday to Ricki Lake, 44th Birthday to Faith Hill, a belated 77th Birthday to Sophia Loren, and Happy 21st Birthday to Allison Scagliotti. Speaking of, below you can see a preview of the October 3rd Season Finale of Warehouse 13, with gay Agent Steve Jinks freaking out.

Speaking of Syfy, Sam Huntington tweeted this pic, which I hope is from the set of the new season of Being Human.

Playbill.com has a review of the all-star reading of Dustin Lance Black's Prop 8, as well as interviews with the cast. Below you can see a preview of Joy Behar's chat with Jane Lynch, which will air tonight at 10 Pm Et on Hln.

Ratings are in for Tuesday night, and The New Girl was a huge success, becoming Fox's biggest sitcom debut in a decade.

This episode of Top Chef: Just Desserts opens with the Cheftestants being told by Gail they deserve a break and get to go to a movie. Yeah, right. I noted to myself that if any of the Cheftestants weren't immediately thinking Quickfire Challenge, then they were complete and utter morons.

Turns out all of them, except Matthew, are morons, or at least the producers want viewers to get that idea, because in a voice over we hear Matthew saying he's thinking Quickfire and all the concessions he's buying are as ingredients for the upcoming Challenge. He then dryly notes that everyone else is busy stuffing their faces with their popcorn and soft drinks. Clearly, he's thinking immunity.

But the producers pull a fast one on Matthew and us viewers because not only is there not a Quickfire, we're getting the best Elimination Challenge ever: recreating the wonderful moment in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory...

So shines a good deed in a weary world. I can’t believe they hadn’t done this yet! In honor of Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory’s 40th anniversary this year, Top Chef: Just Desserts issued a “Pure Imagination” challenge for the contestants to create their own edible “World of Wonder” a.k.a. Wonka’s Chocolate Room. Some of the original cast — the actors who played Veruca Salt, Violet Beauregarde, Mike Teevee, and Charlie Bucket (Peter Ostrum, pictured at right) — were on hand to taste the confectionery rainbow and lament the absence of Augustus Gloop. It’s just...

Filed under: TV Previews, Celebrity Interviews

'Top Chef: Just Desserts' is not a new show. However, Season 2 feels like a completely different program compared to the first season. Nobody can attest to that more than 'Just Desserts' host Gail Simmons.

"The first season of a show, you want to test the waters and it's always a bit of an experiment to see what works and what doesn't," Simmons told AOL TV. "I think, as with 'Top Chef' the original show, we learned that we wanted to up the ante every season and that's what we did."

Compared to last season's wide array of dessert makers -- from more basic bakers to quirky pastry chefs -- Simmons said the Season 2 contestants are more focused, high-level pastry chefs.

"It's not so much about getting desserts onto a plate, or plating desserts," she said. "It's about constructing imaginative masterpieces that are edible.

It's back! After taking the summer off, my Friday column has returned. I'll pause while the cheers and and tears of joy subside. What's that? Those aren't tears, just late summer allergies. Hey, I'll take what I can get.

Actually, the column won't be weekly since I'm afraid I just don't have time for that. But I will try and bang it out a couple of times a month and it will focus on specifically communicating with our most loyal readers, the Ae community. Here I'll explain upcoming changes to the site, answer reader questions, work out my longstanding grudges against certain actors. You know, the usual!

So earlier this summer, I wrote about how at this summer's Television Critics Association Press Tour, I was covering all kinds of shows and interviewing all sorts of folks even if the show didn't have something specifically gay or bisexual, and/or the...

The Extra Dessert Delights Awful Product Placement Quickfire Challenge

With this episode of Top Chef: Just Desserts we're kicking off a new, shorter kind of recap. We're calling it a SnapCap, and it's designed to give you our quick take on what went down on some of our favorite shows as soon as possible after they've aired. We've even created a graphic scale to illustrate just how we'd rate an episode based on five different aspects.

Some things like Beefcake, Heart, and Challenges are pretty self-explanatory. AfterElton Bait will tell you how gay a particular episode was and, since this SnapCap is for a reality show, we're including a Trainwreck Quotient because, well, reality shows are so often giant trainwrecks. Isn't that why people really watch?

Let's get started! Here's how I'd rate last night's episode of Tc: Jd:

Beefcake: Given that this is Top Chef and not Survivor or Amazing Race,...

Filed under: TV Replay

'Top Chef: Just Desserts' (Wed., 10Pm Et on Bravo) kicked off with a $25,000 prize on the line. The Quickfire Challenge was to come up with a small dessert that packed enough flavor to inspire a flavor for Extra Gum's Dessert Delights line.

!!Spoiler Alert!!

The winning flavor was pancakes with strawberries, elevating Craig to the front of the pack. As an additional reward, he got to pick team captains for two teams heading into the next round. He chose himself and Amanda.

 

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Tonight's episode of Top Chef: Just Desserts adds a little British spice to its sweet mix. For the elimination challenge, the cheftestants were split into two teams that had to present Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Lisa Vanderpump, her husband, Ken, and their furry sidekick (Jiggy not ex-bestie Cedric) with a dessert table for their restaurant Villa Blanca's second anniversary party. In need of some extra opinions (and mouths), costars Taylor Armstrong and Kyle Richards, along with Lisa's daughter, Pandora, joined in on the festivities. "Lisa, she loves pink. So I thought it would be a nice surprise to turn Villa Blanca into Villa Rosa for one night," Ken shares with the teams...