This week’s theme was “Tenacity,” which some contenders initially had trouble grasping. The lack of understanding was highlighted when the guest judge — Max Adler, who plays the aggressively closeted Dave Karofsky on Glee — stopped them in the middle of their Homework Challenge, a performance of La Roux’s “Bulletproof.” He basically said that they sucked (nicer than that, of course) and told them to start over and really push themselves to exit their comfort zones. I thought they all looked stupid trying to pass off half-hearted aggression and snarling as being “tenacious,” but Marissa won (for the second week in a row) because she was the first one to get violent and kick a chair (although Alex was the first one to get physical with one of the other contenders).
This week’s group video was a mash up of “Under Pressure” by David Bowie and Queen, and “Ice Ice Baby” by Vanilla Ice. During the video the contenders would have to endure getting a slushie to the face, just like the kids from New Directions. Many of the contenders had trouble in the recording studio; Hannah couldn’t handle the high expectations when she was yet again asked to rap, Samuel almost snapped under the pressure when he realized this is a competition (what?), and Marissa admitted to not practicing all her parts enough. Adding to the already high stakes of the shoot, the contenders had to learn elaborate choreography. Hannah, the dance-aphobic, wasn't thrilled because the choreography involved sliding around on the floor. Alex aptly and bluntly put her feelings into words: "Fat kids hate floor work." Despite her trouble with the moves and the rap, Hannah yet again pulled off an amazing performance during the shoot.
This article appears in Jul 21-27, 2011.