The finale is upon us, and I will already say now…none of these three are ready to be stars. Adam was ready to be a star this season, but each one of these final three have serious flaws that could really hinder their careers. But there is someone I think could handle it a tad better than the others.
3. Jessica Tom- Jess actually came back very strong. She had an amazing final four performance and shot a pretty good pilot. I think Robert Irvine really put some fire in her. That being said, returnees don’t usually win. And in Jess’ case, she didn’t have the best journey in the competition, and when she did poorly, she did VERY poorly. I think she’ll come up short, though she does win most improved.
2. Manny Washington- Manny is great to watch, but I just don’t think he’s entirely ready for a show on the Food Network. His food has been solid, but his presentations have been hit or miss. His final pilot was probably strongest of the three, but Duff literally told him what to say. Manny isn’t ready to be the guy in charge. But he did well enough to come in second place I think.
1. Christian Petroni- Christian is our winner, I think. A) He was my pre-season pick for first out, and as we saw with Jason last year, this seems to be a recurring theme. B) He has been the most consistent one of the season. The only thing holding him back is when he steps outside his comfort zone. And stepping outside his comfort zone is really opposite of everyone else’s. His comfort zone is being natural and charismatic. His downfall is when he has to stick to the rulebook and follow the checklist. In his case, the bite seems to be the hardest part. If he can channel all that natural charisma and just nail down the technical stuff, he’ll be fine. He’s probably the strongest one there.
It shoulda been Adam, but here we are. Christian still hasn’t sold me, but his consistency and charisma should make him the big winner.