Hell's Kitchen

Reviewed by:
Robbie Throckmorton

The Skinny: Gordon Ramsay, England's meanest, most foulmouthed chef, throws 15 novices into his made-for-TV kitchen to compete for a dream culinary job and lucrative prize. (This year's reward is the executive chef position at Ramsay's new West Hollywood restaurant, with a salary of $250,000.) Bad food, yelling, and crying ensue.

The Good: With his fearlessness and brutal honesty, Ramsay is still our favorite person on television. Since the prize this season is a job at his own restaurant, Ramsay has turned up the heat even higher (if that's possible) on this group of wannabes. The first episode finds Gordo bouncing "rubber chicken" off the wall and threatening to shove one contestant's wacky chef's hat "up his ass sideways."

The Bad: Many of the contestants this season seem to be duds. Sure they make themselves easy targets for hilarious outbursts, but at this point we find it hard to believe these are the 15 best undiscovered cooks in the country. Also, the production this time around feels a bit overblown from the very beginning, including a prosthetically disguised Ramsay riding along with the chefs on the way to the kitchen.

What Not to Do on an Interview:
After tasting a competitor's introductory signature dish, Gordon gave his most outrageous insult ever: puking into a nearby trash can. Way to make a first impression, noob!

Watch, Ignore, or Read a Book Instead? This one's always worth a watch, if only to see Ramsay's fits of rage. Let the flames begin!

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