Susannah Hans
Hans and Susannah, the two most professional, consistent contestants vying to win tonight's final in the Next Food Network Star contest, were eliminated by the judges, a trio of the network's own bigwigs.
Hans is a southern-based chef of European extraction. Those niches are already filled on the Food Network by Paula Deen, Emeril Lagasse and Wolfgang Puck.
Susannah is a nutrition and fitness expert whose specialty is health- and diet-conscious recipes that taste good. That niche is already filled by the shows Low Carb and Lovin' It and Calorie Commando.
The remaining finalists for whom voting is underway as I write this are Deborah and the team of Dan and Steve. Deborah is a gracious, lovely black woman who nevertheless has been inconsistent, inarticulate, and, well, not the most professional. Dan and Steve are a gay couple, occasionally charming, almost always over-rehearsed so they worked well in tandem, giving them an unfair advantage in the timed trials over their competitors. As far as I can tell, there are no black females or gay couples hosting any Food Network shows at this time, but that will change soon.
How utterly predictable! Nothing personal against Deborah, but at least Dan and Steve are entertaining.
