Friday, May 08, 2009
The Fashion Show
I've already been asked once what I think of The Fashion Show on Bravo, and I suspect I may be asked again (btw, how are you, Drew?) so here are my thoughts:
The show has exactly one really good feature: the weekly runway shows have an audience of buyers and industry people, and the goal is saleablility. This brings a great dimension of audience comments and puts a sharp point on the purpose of the show. Can you sell it? The kiss off expresses the point: When you're eliminated, Isaac Mizrahi tells you "we're not buying your design." The show can definitely do a better job of reinforcing this philosophy, but I think it will get there.
That the show is a near-exact copy of Project Runway is a given almost not worth commenting on. BUT. There are a lot of problems:
The hosts are weak. Isaac Mizrahi is an interesting personality, but he's at least as well known for his string of crash and burn projects as he is for the current success of his Target line (and his other line, but really, Target). And who is Kelly Rowland again? She has no personality as a television host and no creditials in the fashion industry. Going to a lot of shows as a "celebrity" is not enough. There is a line there--Victoria Beckham and Mary-Kate Olsen are legitimate fashion players. People notice what they wear. I had to pause and try to remember who Kelly Rowland is at all.
Having the hosts serve as mentors as well as judges does not work at all. No real mentorship in the design process can come when the designers are concerned that what they say in the workroom will be carried into the judging panel.
They announce the winner before they deliberate, and the deliberation to determine the loser looks like a huddle in the hallway. If forces us to focus on the bad stuff and passes over the good stuff.
I'll probably watch it anyway, but so far it's pretty lame.
The show has exactly one really good feature: the weekly runway shows have an audience of buyers and industry people, and the goal is saleablility. This brings a great dimension of audience comments and puts a sharp point on the purpose of the show. Can you sell it? The kiss off expresses the point: When you're eliminated, Isaac Mizrahi tells you "we're not buying your design." The show can definitely do a better job of reinforcing this philosophy, but I think it will get there.
That the show is a near-exact copy of Project Runway is a given almost not worth commenting on. BUT. There are a lot of problems:
The hosts are weak. Isaac Mizrahi is an interesting personality, but he's at least as well known for his string of crash and burn projects as he is for the current success of his Target line (and his other line, but really, Target). And who is Kelly Rowland again? She has no personality as a television host and no creditials in the fashion industry. Going to a lot of shows as a "celebrity" is not enough. There is a line there--Victoria Beckham and Mary-Kate Olsen are legitimate fashion players. People notice what they wear. I had to pause and try to remember who Kelly Rowland is at all.
Having the hosts serve as mentors as well as judges does not work at all. No real mentorship in the design process can come when the designers are concerned that what they say in the workroom will be carried into the judging panel.
They announce the winner before they deliberate, and the deliberation to determine the loser looks like a huddle in the hallway. If forces us to focus on the bad stuff and passes over the good stuff.
I'll probably watch it anyway, but so far it's pretty lame.
