‘Hell’s Kitchen’ review: Is all change a good thing?
When it comes to entertainment, there’s no question that “Hell’s Kitchen” brings it in droves. For eleven seasons now, the show has managed that perfect combination of insanity, curse words from Gordon Ramsay, and occasionally creative cuisine that is something beyond just beef wellingtons and risottos.
However, there are also times that we sit there and wonder whether or they do too much the same, and whether when the producers do change things up, that they are changing up the right things. One example of this? The decision made this season to have some more gimmicky challenges at the start of the episodes, rather than just things that are more cooking-oriented. There has always been some of this, but why do we need to see chefs doing an obstacle course or running a marathon? It feels at times it trivializes the competition itself, especially when the prize is something as prestigious as a place in one of Ramsay’s restaurants.
Meanwhile, we also have so much here that traditionally stays the same time and time again, and it’s nice occasionally to see some change. Someone always messes up the risotto, and someone always overcooks the beef wellington. From one standpoint, we get it in that if you had the chefs cooking the same food every week, it would be harder for the viewers to have that instinctive “oh no” when someone presents a horrible dish to the man in charge. At the same time, why not mix it up a little bit? We are lucky in that there will be some more change coming next week, so we just have to wait around for it to happen.
This episode itself was entertaining in some ways, as Dan and Michael got into a fight during dinner service over timing out the lamb with the garnish, and we also had the unintentional humor that was present in listening to Gordon refer to a chef five years older than him as “grandpa.”
Ultimately, the Blue Team managed to win service in what a bizarre decision, mostly because it was like Ramsay gave them a reprieve for not being awful for a change. Danielle was the chef eliminated, and to an extent we actually get her logical argument that it takes getting used to cooking in this environment with cameras and other chefs around. However, this can’t exactly be something everyone else is used to, either. Oh well. Some things just aren’t for everyone.
What are you thinking about this season of “Hell’s Kitchen” so far? If you want to read our review with Gina, who quite the competition last week, you can do so over here.
Photo: Fox