MasterChef season 8 episode 6 review: Lamb chopped

On Wednesday night’s MasterChef episode, we saw the end of a story arc. Alas, that story arc was the story of Sam. He seems like a very nice guy, he really wanted to do well, but he may just be one of those people who wasn’t right for this competition and all of the emotions that are associated with it. He’s probably an excellent cook at home and nothing worked out all that well for him here.

After Wednesday night’s new episode, it was very clear that it was time. He struggled when it comes to carving the lamb chops in the butchery portion of the task, and then struggled again replicating Gordon Ramsay’s version of it. The strangest thing was that he almost tried to psych himself into thinking that he made a really good dish when it obviously looked so different than what Gordon put out there. Then again, we do feel for him; it must be difficult to be routinely put down over the course of a season and made to think that you’re lacking in some capacity. Sooner or later, you want to have that win. We understand why he wanted to take that step forward.

It’s ultimately hard to say whether or not his lamb dish was better than Newton’s tonight, given that they both had the same flaws: They were both undercooked and not prepared properly. Newton put on too much mustard, and Sam didn’t have the right mixture of bread crumbs and everything else that went into the coating. This was a cumulative move more so than anything else; Sam has struggled for weeks, and if he continued on he’d probably continue to this season. Newton does still have some hope of being able to turn things around a little bit.

The episode was broken down in such a way that there were technically only six home cooks who actually had to prepare something tonight. The other contestants, after completely the butchery part of the task, were declared safe and sent up to the balcony.

The biggest issue with this episode

It wasn’t terrible, but it did suffer mightily from Gordon overload. We love Chef Ramsay as much as the next guy, but watching people replicate Ramsay dishes on the regular isn’t that exciting. The joy of this show as opposed to Hell’s Kitchen is that you’re actually watching on a regular basis here people doing something a little bit more creative. If you’re just replicating other dishes, you’re missing a big element of what makes the show stand out.

Creativity is key in the MasterChef kitchen, and it should be for the show, as well. This was there at the start of the season, but since that time we’ve started to see things start to go a little bit by the wayside. Grade: B-.

What did you think about this episode of MasterChef?

Be sure to sound off on the subject in the comments below! Meanwhile, head over to the link here in the event you want to get some further news and updates on the show, including exit interviews. (Photo: Fox.)