Shihrah: Princess of Powertubing chimes in with a recap on last night’s episode of America’s Next Top Model ("The Girls Go To Phuket") — For those of us who have been waiting around hopefully since day one to see the departure of The-Undiscovered-Supermodel-cum-Inventor-of-Strange-English-Words (hello … analystical?) Jade, this week’s elimination leads, once again, to bitter disappointment.  Admittedly, there were a few times when we came pretty close to sending her packing – the second week, when she took the not-up-to-par magazine cover shot in profile and ended up in bottom two with Wendy; the fifth week, when her twirling drag queen Cover Girl commercial performance landed her in bottom two with Mollie Sue; the seventh week, when her fake tearing up at judging landed her in bottom two with Brooke; and then last week, when her constant I-know-better-than-you-Tyra/Nigel/Miss J/Twiggy attitude led to a spot in bottom two with Furonda.  But what can we say?  Despite the arrogance and the making up words and the bullying insecure Asian girls and the looking like a drag queen and all the rest, apparently THE GIRL CAN MODEL (Nigel’s words, not mine), and the Queen of Bottom Two is now in Final Three. (continued after the jump)

(continued before the jump) This week is go-see week, and our intrepid Top-Models-to-be are sent on a merry-go-round of go-sees with five of Thailand’s top designers.  But before they can take off on their tuk tuks, they must first meet with Thai designer Pichita Racksajit to learn that “Thailand is a land of smiles.  If you smile on your go-sees today then everybody will like you”.  The girls are also told that they will be judged on 4 criteria during their go-sees: observance of Thai social customs (the aforementioned smiling, and taking off your shoes when entering someone’s home), general appearance, runway walk, and model portfolio.  With strict instructions to return at 4:30 pm, the girls are sent out into the wilds of the go-see jungle.  Of course, the second that Pichita warns the girls not to be late, we who know the formula of ANTM so well can guess that there will be time-management troubles coming up ahead.

On their go-sees, all the girls seem to be doing about equally well/poorly.  Each has her own troubles.  Sara is still walking and posing stiffly, Jade is her usual non-smiling intimidating self, and Danielle struggles with frizzy hair in humid Thai weather.  My favorite go-see belongs to Joanie though.  When she shows up at lingerie brand Boudoir, she is told that the designer is looking to do an Alice in Wonderland-themed show, replete with giant plastic animal heads that the models must wear over their heads, with coordinating lingerie.  Joanie gamely steps to it, and ends up with a two-foot wide cartoon head over her face, which actually goes perfectly with the hideously ridiculous/ ridiculously hideous purple and yellow ruffled bustier and panties that she is given to wear.  Just when you think that things can’t get too much worse for Joanie, Jade shows up to witness the humiliation.  Which leads to another opportunity for insulting the competition and flattering herself, when Jade tells us, “I don’t think Joanie has a lingerie body at all … I DO.”

On their way back to meet their 4:30 deadline, all four girls run into trouble with traffic.  Bet you at that point they were wishing that instead of the Thailand-is-a-land-of-smiles speech, they had gotten the Bangkok-is-the-land-of-traffic-jams speech instead.  Everybody ends up being late to the meeting, but none more so that Jade, who turns up an hour and ten minutes late, with nary an apology to be heard.  As punishment, Pichita decides that none of the girls can win the challenge (we are told that Danielle would have won) and returns all twelve racks of designer clothes that would have gone to the challenge winner.  Hey, if those racks were filled with the likes of the purple and yellow ruffled combo that Joanie was wearing earlier, than that’s really no loss to Danielle, I say.  Anyway, apparently, in spite of the 4 stated go-see criteria stated earlier, it was really only the unstated criteria of punctuality that was counting.

The girls brush off their disappointment and head to the island paradise/tsunami devastation area of Phuket for this week’s photo shoot - which ends up being for a real client, producing a real ad that will run in Elle Girl.  The girls model Op swimwear on the beach, with “noted fashion photographer, Nigel Barker” doing what he does best.  I must say, it was nice to see a bit more of Nigel for a change.  Too bad the photo shoot ends up being pretty much a typical scantily-clad girls at the beach sort of deal – which is nice, but a bit of a letdown after we’ve become so used to the usual dangling girls upside down with rotting fish and fishnets ANTM hijincks.

At judging, Tyra welcomes the girls, saying, “You’ve been all over this country haven’t you – Bangkok,  Phuket … and now Bangkok again.”  Uh, I’m hardly a geography expert, but I think that you need to go to more that just two places to consider yourself as having been all over the country.  All of the girls end up having good pictures, though Danielle is criticized by the judges for having a too-sexy men’s magazine pose not quite suited to Elle Girl.  Sara’s picture definitely showed a huge improvement over her previous work.  Joanie’s picture is so good that even Miss J exclaims he absolutely loves it.  Jade, though – gotta hand it to her – ends up taking the strongest picture, and gets props from photog Nigel.  Sara and Danielle end up in bottom two, and Sara is sent home.

Up next: SEASON FINALE

Copyright On Posing

Shihrah: Princess of Powertubing checks in with a recap on last night’s episode of America’s Next Top Model ("The Girl Who Is Rushed To The Emergency Room") — Clearly, with the departure of Nnenna last week and the sudden illness of a certain other strong competitor at this crucial point in the game, this week was Joanie’s week to shine on ANTM – and boy, did she ever. The golden girl just couldn’t seem to do anything wrong – and there’s nothing like one girl doing well in a competition to bring out the insecurities and cat’s claws in another girl. And of course, we can always count on our beloved ANTM producers to capitalize on any tensions in the house and magnify them to greatest advantage. Feud of the week belongs to Joanie and Jade, who trade barbed comments and witty putdowns in person and over the best-loved forum of the confessional (aka talking s*** behind each other’s backs). Best digs actually come within the first five minutes of the show opening, where Jade calls Joanie two-faced and speculates that if she were to go on model castings in New York, people would just laugh at her. We can only assume that Jade is talking from personal experience here. Joanie fires back, saying that “when I’m sitting next to [Jade] all I smell is b****.” Oh, how we love Joanie and that sparkling wit.

For the girls’ challenge this week, they are taught the art of traditional Thai dance, and judged how well they can perform their newly acquired skills in a showcase before a live audience. Instructor Patravadi Mejudhon tells the models that in Thai dance, a woman’s gesturing hands will rise no higher than her eyes, and a man’s no higher than the eyebrows, since anything higher denotes arrogance. Jade, via confessional, thanks the instructor for this little bit of advice, saying, “thank you for letting me know because I don’t have an ounce of arrogance in my body.” Forget traditional dance, the girl’s already got the art of irony down to a T. (continued after the jump)

(continued before the jump) In the dance performances, Joanie really shines, bringing poise and elegance, as well as real Thai dance moves, to the stage. She ends up the winner of the challenge. Jade, who looks more like a drag queen than ever in heavy (and unevenly applied) blue eye makeup and her gold Thai costume, unfortunately increases the whole drag queen effect with her mannered and stiff contortions onstage. Sara, as usual, is doubly plagued by her height and lack of confidence and turns in a fairly lackluster performance. Furonda, however, is the highlight of the evening – instead of Thai dance, which she admits to not remembering much of from the lesson beforehand, Furonda showcases an interesting combination of “hoola, club, and everything else,” as described by Joanie. She’s not very good, but she certainly is funny and gets lots of laughter, as well as the loudest applause, from the audience.

Danielle, unfortunately, is absent through this whole challenge, because she had to be hospitalized for what turns out to be a case of dehydration and food poisoning. ANTM certainly pulled out all the editing stops with shots of her having to be carried out of the house in a state of intense pain, emitting pitiful moans, all underscored by dramatic and tense music. It’s great how the show’s producers never try to manipulate us, or anything. Danielle is a fighter though, and leaves the hospital against medical advice so that she can compete in the photo shoot. Hey, the girl said goodbye to The Gap – no way she’s going to let a little thing like illness send her home at this stage.

This week’s photo shoot, which is for the Venus Vibrance Razor, takes place in the jungle, atop elephants. Jay tells the girls that he wants to see the contrast of smooth legs against rough elephant skin and promptly sends the models off to shave. Danielle goes first and does very well, though having to contend with dizziness, nausea, and a nervous elephant. Jade brings the stiffness that she displayed onstage during the Thai dancing to her posing atop the elephant. It’s a shame her shoot doesn’t go well, because Jade actually really likes elephants – they remind her of dinosaurs, “because they are in the dinosaur family.” I think that ANTM really does a lot to dispel the stereotype that models are dumb – and here is Jade undoing all that good work. Furonda ends up being a bit awkward on the elephant, coming up with a variety of odd poses. Joanie is awesome and really serves it, with creative and beautiful poses – which Sara then promptly copies, as she goes immediately after Joanie. Unfortunately for her, she looks nowhere near as good as Joanie with her purloined poses and the copycat behavior really comes back to bite her during judging, when the judges find out and give her a strict talking-to.

At judging, the unthinkable happens – EVERYBODY ends up with a good photograph. Despite my love for Joanie, I personally think that Danielle had the best pic. Joanie gets props for her strong overall performance this week, Danielle gets props for fighting against the pain during the entire shoot, and Sara is allowed to stay despite her copycat behavior. Furonda and Jade end up in bottom two, for all the usual reasons that the two have been in bottom two before. But just when we thought that maybe this was finally the farewell we’d all been waiting for, Furonda gets sent home. Hmm. Who’s thinking that Jade may actually end up making final 3 at this point?

Coming up next week: FINAL THREE

Shihrah: Princess of Powertubing is back with a recap of last night’s episode of America’s Next Top Model episode "The Girl Who is a Model, Not a Masseuse" — Is it just me, or is there something a little lackluster about this season of ANTM? Sure there’s crazy Jade, and all her crazy “I’m so humble and so beautiful” talk. Sure, there are the obligatory catfights (Jade vs. Gina, Brooke vs. Nnenna), the dramatic fainting spells (good acting, Tyra), the pain and bloodshed (Joanie’s 4 pulled teeth, eek), the catty and derisive remarks (aka judging panel). Yes, there is all that, and yet, something still feels missing to me. Is it just that we all still miss Janice, even though she’s been gone a while? Is it the lack of even the slightest hint of anorexia/bulimia/alcoholism this time around? Is it absence of the lesbian love interest storyline that Kim so helpfully introduced last cycle? Or is it just that the endless parade of “haven’t we done this already” photo shoots and the inexhaustible product placement opportunities that the show is now made up of has really and truly failed to produce a Top Model contender that we can really root for? In other words, where is the fierce?

Well, that’s it for my philosophical ponderings on the fate of ANTM. Back to the nitty-gritty. For their how-to-be-a-top-model lesson this week, the girls receive media training from Vanity Fair columnist George Wayne, who interviews each girl and tries to push her buttons by asking the “tough questions”, which pretty much amounts to him saying mean things to each girl and seeing who gets ticked off. When he challenges Danielle to spell the word “cantankerous” I really hoped she would get cantankerous and deck him but she kept her cool and laughed it off. Despite this fabulous show of restraint on Danielle’s part, however, Nnenna takes home top honors from the challenge for her implacable calm in the face of Mr. Wayne repeatedly calling her “snobby”. (continued after the jump)

(continued before the jump)  On the home front, we are treated to scenes of female bonding between Jade and Nnenna, who, surprisingly, seem to have become bosom buddies. True friendship, or just a case of “keep your friends close, and you enemies closer”? Danielle, meanwhile, is still engaged in an ethical struggle over whether to lose The Gap and stay, or to stay true to her own beliefs and go home. Over the phone, Danielle’s mother reminds her of the fate of the girl from Texas who wouldn’t get her hair cut - it’s like that story is now the urban legend aspiring models’ moms tell their model children to make the kids behave. It’s really not much of a fight – Danielle surrenders and returns to the dentist. The Gap is closed, more or less. Ok, the dentist caps Danielle’s two front teeth in a way that still leaves a gap, but it is a mere shadow of its former self.

As consolation, however, drag queen Ty-ra and real Tyra tell the girls “YOU’RE GOING TO THAILAND!!!” Huh? Thailand? What? Doesn’t she mean Milan/Paris/Tokyo/Other Legitimate Fashion Capital? Tyra then explains that Thailand does, in fact, have a thriving fashion scene, and even hosts their own fashion week. Danielle is completely consoled, saying, “Forget the gap, sucka, I’m going to Thailand!” Gotta love that spunky spirit. Once in Thailand, the girls are taken to a spa, where Nnenna and Jade get to taste the rewards of Nnenna’s challenge win – having the rest of the girls serving them like palace slaves. Furonda introduces her one-finger massage to the staid repertoire of Thai massage, invented out of necessity since she has to massage Nnenna but doesn’t like “touching up on people.”

For their photo shoot this week, the girls are taken to Bangkok’s famous floating market, where they must pose as “ The Catch of the Day” (i.e. mermaids hanging upside down from tangled fishnets amidst dead fish) in a shoot for Banana Boat Sunblock. During the shoot, Danielle channels sexy mermaid to perfection even though the smell of dead fish makes her throw up a little in her mouth. Nnenna turns in a noticeably lackluster performance, while Jade impresses Jay with her soft and pretty posing. Looks like that keeping your enemies close strategy is working out pretty well for Jade. Furonda complains about the stinky water and nasty fish, and can’t wait to be done so that she can return to the trailer where there is AC. Joanie, who looks gorgeous even hanging upside down in great pain, is self-conscious that her boobs will fall out of her bustier, for fear of offending the modesty of the Thai women around her. Props for Joanie and such a rare display of cultural sensitivity on a reality show – almost makes up for that time Yaya spit out the cured plum in front of the client in Tokyo.

At judging, the judges say pretty much all the same things to each of the girls that they have been saying all along. Blah, blah, bland, bland, bland. All the mermaid pics are pretty good, though none are spectacular (again, Where is the fierce?) – with the exception of Nnenna’s picture, which is really pretty bad, with bland facial expression and awkwardly held arms. As expected, Nnenna and Furonda end up in bottom two. So who at that point was already bidding goodbye to Furonda? AND THEN the inconceivable happened. THEY SENT NNENNA HOME. And then, in voiceover, we hear Nnenna’s voice saying, “I’m surprised the I’m the one going home.” I guess that’s what you get when you allow evil Jade to work her weird, mysterious voodoo magic over you. I take back my earlier comment – clearly, Jade is fierce.

Joanie had the chance to sit on the lap of male model Alex Rankovic. "Yay!! I’m lucky!!"  Alex modeled with Joanie as her ventriloquist, aka puppet master, in last night’s America’s Next Top Model episode "The Girl Who Has Surgery".  More pictures in the gallery!

 … or the new Nudity?

Shihrah: Princess of Powertubing weighs in on last night’s episode of America’s Next Top Model episode "The Girl Who Has Surgery" — Every season on ANTM, there is a moment that I like to think of as the Uh-Oh moment. By this, I mean that there is usually a moment when one of the girls stands up and says, “No, I will not do it. I won’t and you can’t make me, Tyra.” That’s when you think, “Uh-Oh. She’s going home.” And she usually does. Remember cycle one when blond sweetheart Shannon and Bible-toting Robin both refused to strip down and get covered in axle grease for the diamonds photo shoot in the Paris Buddha Bar? Remember cycle five, when beauty queen Cassandra wouldn’t trade her long locks for the modern-day pixie Tyra envisioned on her? When you think about it, the Uh-Oh moment almost always happens in connection with cutting hair or taking off clothes, but this season, we have something new thrown into the mix. Here’s my question: are teeth the new hair? The new nudity?

This week, the girls engage in some good, clean fun at the dentist’s office. Most of the girls are there just for a routine whitening session so that they, too, can have unnaturally sparkling white teeth to go with their unnaturally long thin legs and unnaturally long shiny hair. Joanie and Danielle, however, are in for something slightly more drastic (and for our viewing pleasure) much, much more painful. Danielle is offered the chance to get rid of the big gap between her two front teeth, but takes a firm stand that The Gap stays. Danielle loves The Gap. The Gap is part of who she is. I don’t love The Gap and think that The Gap, when taken together with her hangin-in-the-hood accent, makes Danielle seem on first impression (and first impressions, we all know, is what really counts in modeling) like a much less classy girl than we all know she actually is. I don’t love The Gap, but I love that Danielle loves it, and if Danielle wants it to stay, then I want it to stay too. And quite frankly, this little incident kinda makes me love Danielle. (continued after the jump)

ANTM Cycle 3 winner Eva Pigford, Manhunt’s Kevin Peake  and former ANTM judge Janice Dickinson pose for a quick pic together.  (Pictured in gallery :: Joanie as a ventriloquist’s doll, Sara as  a teen doll, Furonda as a rag doll, Jade as a mannequin, Brooke as a glamour doll, Nnenna as a baby  doll and Danielle as a marionette.)

(continued before the jump) Joanie, on the other hand, is offered the chance to get rid of her snaggletooth, which has already been brought up as an issue in several judging sessions. No moral dilemma here – she jumps at the chance to correct her hillbilly teeth (her words, not mine). Poor girl ends up getting two teeth pulled (on camera!) and 12 teeth “ground down to pencil point” so that all her front teeth can be capped with fake pearly whites. Whole process takes 2 days (first day pulling/grinding session lasts a full 12 hours) and an awful lot of camera time. End result really does look amazing though. And you really have to hand it to Joanie – even though she is exhausted from getting home from the dentist’s at 5 am (and in incredible pain), she manages to pull off two amazing pictures from both the model-cum-doll and Tyra-made-me-cry photo shoots this week.

At judging, Danielle’s decision not to have her teeth changed really comes under fire from the judges, who tell her in no uncertain terms that she can’t be an ANTM with a Cover Girl contract, and keep The Gap around too. On the one hand, I get the point that having a big gap between your two front teeth can make you a less versatile and hirable model, especially if you want to model for Cover Girl. On the other hand, how many people told Lauren Hutton to get rid of her gap? And how many more told Cindy Crawford to get rid of her mole? And really, hasn’t Danielle turned in a series of amazing pictures so far (Snow Black? Marionette Doll?), even with The Gap?

In the end though, its Jade and Brooke who end up on the chopping block. Brooke is up for her usual “hasn’t taken a single good picture even though she has such a beautiful and interesting and offbeat face” problem. Jade is up for being phony at judging and getting caught out by the judges. Jade actually won this week’s challenge for being the most immune to harsh criticism doled out by the mean actress-pretending-to-be-model-booker. As a reward, she got to have her mom pop out of a big box and stay with her for a couple days, which, according to the other girls, really let everyone see a new softer, warmer side to Jade. During judging, Jade tries to show this newly vulnerable side to the judges too, by tearing up and trying to talk about her emotions when the judges critique her crying picture. Judges aren’t buying the uncharacteristic display of emotion, and Nigel points out that many of the girls seemed to be rolling their eyes when Jade was crying. Haha. Tyra calls Jade “somebody that was very fake”. Ouch. Unfortunately, it’s Brooke who ends up getting the boot. Even though I can’t really be on Brooke’s side after her “go back to Africa” comment to Nnenna last week, and I don’t think she takes good pictures, I really would have rather seen Jade go away.

NEXT WEEK :: Danielle is back at the dentist. Will she or won’t she???? (I think she will, though I wish she wouldn’t). Weigh in with your thoughts!!!!

We have our very first contributor to JustJared.com!  Please give a warm welcome to the darling SHIHRAH :: PRINCESS OF POWERTUBING. (She watches TV for days.) Shihrah will be giving weekly recaps of the remaining episodes for America’s Next Top Model :: Cycle 6 (since I’ve been failing to do so as of late). Drum roll please!!!!!! [cue recap]

We open with a truly heartwarming and inspiring scene: Jade The Undiscovered Supermodel in absolute floods of tears. She starts blubbering about being in the bottom two at elimination (again) and my recently-warmed heart quickly freezes over with all-too-familiar hatred and irritation.  

From Jade’s heartbreaking anguish, we quickly move to sweet, so-wrong-she’s-right (talk about the back-handed compliment) Brooke, who’s busily bad-mouthing Nnenna.  Seems like Brooke is slightly less than pleased with the way Nnenna almost fell over laughing when they showed Brooke’s Cover Girl commercial at last week’s judging.  ANTM producers kindly provide visual reminder of this little incident by flashing back to last week’s footage, where Nnenna is laughing indecently hard – though in her defense, I laughed pretty hard at Brooke’s commercial too (but I was sensitive enough to do it in the privacy of my own home).  In addition to the mocking laughter, Brooke is also pissed that Nnenna is on the phone all the time with wussy boyfriend John, preventing all the other girls in the house from using the one phoneline. In fact, lots of the girls seem to be slightly peeved with Nnenna and her phone-hogging, challenge-winning, good-picture-taking ways.  (Continue reading after the jump, pictures in the gallery)

(Continued from before the jump) Next day, out pops Miss J., who announces that s/he is there to teach the girls how to walk using accessories – jackets, gloves, and other such tricky little sartorial items. Brooke doesn’t have an easy time of it and when she clumsily drops the clutch, the camera quickly cuts over to Nnenna, who is cracking up again.  Miss J. then teaches the girls how to twirl and swirl.  Jade does her usual drag queen/Undiscovered Supermodel thing, Danielle redeems herself from the last runway tripping embarrassment, and Sara walks and turns like she is on glass stilts.  All this is done to the accompaniment of Miss J. in the background saying inspiring things like “make that skirt do the dance of the seven veils”.  Oh, Miss J. – how many of these models do you think are die-hard fans of Oscar Wilde the way you are?

The girls are hustled to another location, where they meet “the swirlers” Richard and Ron Harris, who, frankly, look exactly like Tweedledee and Tweedledum in weird orange and black capes, or rather, as Joanie describes them, “Count Dracula meets a hairdresser.” Famous runway coaches Richard and Ron show off their skills to the girls in a demonstration I like to think of as “swirling in tandem”.  The lesson yields about the same results as the earlier twirling lesson taught by Miss J.

Back at the house, tensions continue to rise between Nnenna and the rest of the girls over access to the phone.  While complaining to one of the other girls about Nnenna, Brooke falls back on tried-and-true racist insult: “Go back to Africa if it’s so damn great.”  Ah … the old go-back-where-you-came-from attack … brings back fond memories of the schoolyard for me.  Brooke, that was so wrong, it’s just wrong.  Tension culminates with Brooke calling Nnenna a b****, and then immediately regretting it.

Tension breaker: Tyra Mail reads “Sashay Chantay.”  Huh?  Leslie worries over her “duck booty” walk (so-called by Miss J. during her casting session), and Sara stresses over navigating the lean, mean 6’1” length of her body down the catwalk gracefully.

Next morning, the girls show up at a church.  Upon entering, Jade blesses herself with Holy Water and I’m pretty sure I heard a hissing sound when the water touched her skin. Hissssssssssss. The girls meet Roy Campbell, a fashion and special events producer, who tells the girls that they are about to participate in a church fashion show, where they will be expected to show off the best of their swirling and twirling abilities.  The best walker and winner, who will be determined by judges Lloyd Klein (fashion designer) and Sol Rafael (jewelry designer), takes home a $25,000 diamond ring.  Personally, I think that Joanie totally rocked it with her attitude and great turning, but Jade, who was really working her black cape like a diva grim reaper, ended up winning.  She then chose Furonda to get the second prize of a $10,000 diamond ring, and Furonda picked Nnenna to receive the third prize $8000 ring.   

Second Tyra Mail mentions having “stomach krumps”, and for a moment I think that ANTM producers can’t seem to spell any better than Jade (remember the whole ANTM does not stand for America’s Next Top Best Friend incident?).  Next day, however, my faith is restored when we learn that the girls are shooting ads for Payless Shoes and will be working with Tommy the Clown and his krumpers.  Jay Manuel helpfully explains to the girls (and us) that krumping is a new form of movement, a high energy dance much like break dancing. Ok …..  After hearing about the latest challenge, Jade is immediately happy and confident, telling us, “Jade can dance”.  Oh, Jade, how your humility shines through at every juncture ….

Jay tells Furonda that “if you don’t bring it, your black sisters are going to shame you.”  Judging by her dancing in the clips, I would guess that Furonda has quite a bit of shaming awaiting her when she goes home.  Then, despite Danielle’s modest claim that her friends call her a white girl back home, she ends up doing very well and impressing Jay with her moves.  According to photographer Trevor, Brooke “has a killer body but she went off into stripper poses.”  You say that like it’s a bad thing Speaking of stripper moves, Jade gets on set and really starts getting down.  She grabs a water bottle and starts splashing the water over her chest while dancing.  Wet t-shirt contest, anybody?

JUDGING! In the final challenge, Tyra has the girls show off a signature walk and do a smooth, balanced turntable turn on the way back up the runway, both of which Tyra demonstrates with admirable aplomb.  The girls do slightly less well with the walking and turning.  Nnenna, surprisingly, probably had the worst turn of all.  Or maybe Sara.  Or Leslie.  Actually its kind of a toss-up since everyone was so bad.

CRITIQUES! Miss J. tells Jade that she doesn’t look like she’s krumping in her Payless photo shoot – she looks like she’s humping.  Yikes!  Nigel tells Sara that she looks like a tank coming down the runway.  He then tells Furonda that she definitely has a signature walk, whether you like that walk or not.  Brooke is told that she has a bad walk, though she did manage to take a good picture, big jaw and all.  Joanie gets the highest praises from the judges, with Tyra telling her that she has a totally soulful signature walk and a great pic to boot.  Leslie is told to stick her head out like a turtle to counteract her duck booty problem – although personally I think that could go either way, it could counteract the duck booty or just make her end up with duck booty and turtle neck.

DELIBERATION! Sara and Leslie are in the bottom two, both for bad runway walks.  Sara is tall but awkward, and Leslie lacks both posture and presence.  In the end, Sara stays, and Leslie goes home with seven girls remaining. Still wish it were Jade going home this week, though. Better luck next week.

THE GIRL WITH TWO BAD TAKES (Episode 606) :: The models learn improvisation at legendary LA comedy workshop The Groundlings, then have their skills put to the test by Nick Cannon. One model’s attempts at comedy stir controversy. One model is selected to film a role on Veronica Mars, and some models appear in a public service announcement about HIV prevention. The girls are also challenged to successfully deliver a mostly-improvised CoverGirl commercial in only two takes. Commercial director Mike Rosenthal serves as guest judge, and special guests include improv coach Jeremy Rowley and HIV/AIDS educator Marvelyn Brown.

Jade takes things too far at an improv hosted by Nick Cannon in tonight’s episode of America’s Next Top Model. OUCH! She raps, "My name is Jade.  The Ace of Spades. Furonda, my dear. I know is your skin is bumpy but my skin is flawless.  And you look really lumpy."  Ooooohhhhh.   Joanie comments, ‘But no one else took it there. No one else was like, "Yo Jade, you look like an 85-year-old woman.’ "  Ha ha ha.  Watch American’s Next Top Model :: Cycle 6 tomorrow night at 8PM ET/PT on UPN.  Many more screen caps in the gallery!

SPOILER :: Word around town is that Ferocious Furonda will win this season’s guest spot on UPN’s Veronica Mars.

Mollie Sue rags on Nnenna rapping, "Your walk is good, you might not
 fall.  But your head’s as shiny like a big rubber ball."  Be sure to watch
 Joanie git down wit it, definitely one of the highlights of the episode.

Sara serves up a drink alongside her Covergirl makeup while
Brooke has a little panic attack before her first shoot.

Interview Snippet :: As she anxiously struggled to get through her very first scene on her very first day on the set of her very first movie, Take the Lead, Yaya DaCosta was taken aside by the film’s ever-smoldering star, Antonio Banderas, who, in his native Spanish, offered words of encouragement. "He said, ‘You know, every actress who’s ever had her first scene with me has gone on to become very, very successful,’" recalls the 23-year-old Harlem native.

From losing a contest on the catwalk to finding her footing with the foxtrot, she’s bringing the heat to ballroom dancing’s latest big-screen twirl.  Interview Magazine spotlights  actress/model Yaya DaCosta (runner-up from Cycle 3 of America’s Next Top Model) in their latest April 2006 issue.  Full resolution image in the gallery and entire article after the jump!

Yaya DaCosta

As she anxiously struggled to get through her very first scene on her very first day on the set of her very first movie, Take the Lead, Yaya DaCosta was taken aside by the film’s ever-smoldering star, Antonio Banderas, who, in his native Spanish, offered words of encouragement. "He said, ‘You know, every actress who’s ever had her first scene with me has gone on to become very, very successful,’" recalls the 23-year-old Harlem native.

Despite the fact she was standing across from one of Spain’s most celebrated exports, it’s still easy to understand DaCosta’s anxiety. Growing up in upper Manhattan, she had wanted to be an actress her whole life and nurtured the kernel of that dream since the age of 4, attending various neighborhood after-school programs, where she learned to sing, dance, and perform. She was eventually accepted by the prestigious La-Guardia High School of Music and Art and Performing Arts (the Fame School) but instead opted for the family business: education (her mother was the founder of the Central Harlem Montessori School, and her father, a college professor). DaCosta followed her two older siblings to boarding school in New England before attending Brown University. "I had always intended on acting at Brown," says DaCosta. "But between classes and having a job, it just didn’t work out." Instead, she studied languages, increasing the number she speaks to four (English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French), majored in international relations and African studies, and developed a plan: "I figured I would graduate and head to New York or L.A. and give acting a real shot. If for some reason I didn’t make it, then I’d have my degree to fall back on."

Things didn’t exactly work out that way. DaCosta was persuaded by her sister and college roommates to try out for Tyra Banks’s reality show, America’s Next Top Model, was accepted, and ended up finishing the third season as runner-up. Soon after, she was signed by the Ford Modeling Agency and did her first bit of onscreen performing in a short film by Isaac Mizrahi called Supermodel Hero before landing a part in Take the Lead. The film, which also marks the feature debut of music-video director Liz Friedlander (R.E.M., Gwen Stefani, Counting Crows), is based on the life of Pierre Dulaine and tells the story of a former professional ballroom dancer (brought to life by an almost effortlessly smooth Banderas) who volunteers to teach a ragtag group of kids at a rough New York City public school—including one particularly fleet-footed 17-year-old girl from New York, played by Da-Costa. Given the actress’s own background, it’s no wonder that she feels like she was born for the part. As for whether she’ll ever have to fall back on that degree: "I don’t know," she says. "I’m not counting on having to use it—I’ve been blessed by Antonio Banderas."