Top Chef

I am a big "foodie". I enjoy the preparation, the sensations; feel of product (smooshing veal, onions, peppers, garlic between my fingers, and into meatballs, is...soothing), the bouquet of the ingredients, and the finality of presenting a dish that is both visually appealing, and a delight to the palate.
Being from New Orleans, I've also been privy to the enjoyment of some of the very best (in my humble opinion), cuisine to be had in this country.
I'm also a highly competitive sonofabitch at heart, so Top Chef is one of my very favorite programs as of late.
Folks, I am SHOCKED! Marcel and Ilan in the finals?!
Don't get me wrong, I think Marcel has been dogged unmercifully, and without reason from the beginning. His Eddie Munster-on-crack hairdo freaks me tha fuck out, but I think he's been "playing the game", and quite masterfully. He's a pompous lil shit, and I like that! He pisses the others off with his know-it-all-attitude, but that's what he WANTS. His fellow competitors stew (no pun intended), when he expatiates, on and on of, "molecular gastronomy", and they completely forget that he served as a teacher's assistant at the Culinary Institute of America, and that his current title is that of Master Cook. He is however, young, and impetuous.
Ilan, on the other hand, is a line-cook, practicing his art in a New York-based, Spanish establishment. A good line-cook, but a line-cook nevertheless. Most of his dishes are Spainish-infused, and he shows an inability to embrace other tastes and traditions in cooking. I also find him to be obstinate in nature, and that just puts me off my feed.
In the beginning of this competion, my clear choices for the three finalists were Sam, Ilan, and Mikey. Mikey was the on-stage doofus, with all of the aplomb of a T.G.I.Friday's cook, but again, a highly trained chef from a prestigious culinary institute.
Oh well, in the end, and from those left, I really wanted to see Sam (I also wanna fuck 'im nine ways from Tuesday), and Ilan duke it out for the title.
My chin, literally, hit my chest.
I.am. shocked.
Afterthought: Tom Colicchio...you can cum test my palate, any day....with yer tongue!