It's sad that Josh Adam Garcia (aka JAG) lied about his past. I liked him. He is entertaining and talented. He would have made a fine television host. Now -- who do you want to win? Amy or Rory?

How about all three of them win a trip to the arena, where they'll be fought over like table scraps by a pride of lions, a herd of water buffalo, and one lone crocodile?

From the get go, Amy has been the only contestant who struck me as someone who would actually be a good food network host. She's articulate, composed on camera, and seems to know a fair bit about food.

She even LOOKS like a food network host (whatever that means, but still...)

Rory, on the other hand, not so much. Although she nailed the Rachael Ray challenge, she hasn't impressed me much through the course of the show.

The thing that makes this final "showdown" a little less interesting, though, is that the two women have essentially the same "point of view."

I mean, can *you* tell me the difference between "backyard bistro" and "the gourmet next door?"

I hate Rory. She is totally phony, and I fear her massive teeth. That is all.

I hate that the show has so deliberately upped the DRAMA! levels this season in a transparent attempt to capture some of the heat from the more successful Bravo show Top Chef. Even the ominous music cues sound the same! I also dislike how bitchy the guest judges have been to the contestants, though I do think this particular crop of competitors has been especially scorn-worthy. The episode with Alton Brown actually made me hate him a little, and I lurrve Alton Brown! Gahh! They should just cancel the season and give Nigella Lawson another show. At least we'd have some nice eye candy.

Whoever wins, it can't come too soon. Emeril needs some rest. Just how many shows can so few stars do? Rachel's got at least three, Giada's got two, and Paula, well, much as I love her, the Deen family vacation was the last straw.

I, too, was rooting for JAG. He reminded me of one of my students. Maybe they could give him a second chance? The other two seem so bland.

(My favorite foodie's still Anthony Bourdain, and he's on the Travel Channel.)

I liked JAG too. And judging from some of the discussion over at TWoP, it's not entirely clear whether he actually "lied and said he had served in Afghanistan," as FN claims (or at least strongly implies), or merely "didn't correct the producers when they mistakenly assumed he had served in Afghanistan." (Not that the latter is excusable, either, but perhaps it's not nearly as offensive as FN is making it out to be.)

Of the two remaining, my vote goes to Amy. More for her performance in the "Iron Chef" challenge than anything else--she was the only one of the four at that stage who did well at the cooking and at the commentary.

Did you guys know that Rory has already been on a reality show before this? That's how she ended up in Texas. I just thought that was weird. And yeah it sucks about JAG, he was a perfect fit and I would have liked a personality that does latino food. I also find it baffling that he would lie about all that stuff since it really wouldn't have made a different. I mean, there were 2 other guys that had never even gone to culinary school.