Tom Colicchio: Top Chef 2

By JULIETTE ROSSANT Once upon a time, there was Terminator: then came Terminator 2. Sometimes, the sequel beats the originator. Last season, we saw Top Chef: this season comes Top Chef 2 -- hotter yet more informative, a real improvement on last season's original. Starting this Wednesday, October 18, at 11:00 P.M. ET on Bravo, you can see one of Television's little miracles, as producers Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz of Magical Elves manage to make better of what was one of the better if not the best Food Reality TV shows of last season. Superchefblog had a chance to look at the first two episodes, courtesy of Bravo TV, and this is what we find: The Good: Challenging, diverse food challenges Good guest judges, including Hiroshi Shima of Katana and Ming Tsai Good discussion between judges Snappy food photography Best looking Sears kitchen ever (Kenmore PRO) The Bad: Same old Reality TV fake comic-strip personalities Same old Reality TV contrived conflicts Over-excited camera that jiggles it even more than sex-object-wannabe Marisa Churchill Look for more fun judges in the upcoming weeks, including guest judges like Eric Ripert, Suzanne Goin, Michelle Bernstein, and everyone's favorite bad-boy Anthony Bourdain (whose own book-inspired Reality TV show died a painful death -- see previous article). Let's see if head judge Tom Colicchio makes his own presence more strongly among so many competitors and guest judges than he does in the first two episodes. The most important ingredients, however, are the basic contents: The food challenges set before the competitors are entertaining in themselves -- like a visit to a weight-loss camp The food challenges often include not just challenging ingredients but also those which manage to involve viewers along with competitors in the creative process. After all, what do you do with offal? The show is in fact about good food and good culinary teaming, not comic-strip personalities In short, Bravo TV has come up with a Food show served up as a Reality TV show that is in fact carefully scripted. The producers treat the show as scripted materials, and the audience reaps the reward. Know-nothing Reality TV junkies will get sucked in with some up-front personality hype, but they will soon forget that rubbish as they are sucked into the meat of the show. Food Network, watch out: Bravo TV (rather than PBS) may be the channel to undercut the multitude of less-engaging Reality TV-style shows that make up much of your content. And they've got major sponsors like Food & Wine, Sears, and Glad. (But, hey, Food Network, don't give up. There is plenty of room for even better shows - shows about cooking). Superchefblog sees such compeition as very healthy on the bottom line, which for Food Television audiences means that Top Chef 2 is worth watching. (Get a sneak-peak taste with this video.) Other reviews: Washington Post Boston Globe New York Daily News Boston Herald Arizona Daily Star St. Petersburg Times NBC Today Show Sun-Sentinel Newsday Newsday Charlotte Observer Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Reuters (The Hollywood Reporter) The Herald Orlando Sentinel Philadelphia Inquirer Denver Post Previous articles: Top Chef 2: Already Casting Top Chef: Harold Dieterle Won Top Chef: Tom Colicchio [Food Television - complete] Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, blogging, food blogging, top chef --> back to superchefblog