Oh, For The Salad Days Of The Old Matchstick

cheshire_davidHello, I'm back! With the seasons of the two other shows I've been recapping complete (Surreal Life) or pre-empted for the baseball playoffs (Prison Break), I've had a mini-vacation for this past week. And what did I do with all my free time? When I wasn't bailing out my basement (thank you nine straight days of rain!) or reading (ha ha, just kidding... Gotcha!), I tried watching the phenomenon that is Laguna Beach. I lasted all of five minutes... I simply just don't get it. Here's what I learned: That Stephen kid is a tool, that Jason mook is an illiterate buffoon, that Kristin chick has the ability to look condescending at the drop of a hat, and well, that I hate all of them. So I'll stick with highbrow fare such as The Apprentice: Martha Stewart. And this week, with candidate Jim still infecting my television, lowbrow is the new highbrow.

Ah yes, Jim, the guy who has an over-the-top statement regarding just about everything in life. The guy who is so ridiculously passionate about every mundane detail within the show, but didn't seem to care too much that his wife delivered a baby girl during taping. Immediately, Jim mourned the loss of sad-sack Dawn last week by pantomiming a neck slice while intoning, "Dawn is gone!" Lucky for Jim, he's not playing in the NFL as that is an offense worthy of a $20,000 fine these days. As if that weren't scary enough, suddenly the phone rang! OH MY GOD! THE PHONE! With a look of sheer terror frozen on the faces of Bethenny, David the Silent Croatian, and some bland blond from Primarius, Carrie sprinted across the loft to answer it.

OH MY GOD! IT'S LIMEY JULIA ON THE PHONE! (Get it? She's British AND she looks like she's always sucking on limes. Damn, that's good. It's LimeyJulia from now on... Must add new word to spellchecker.) There was some concern over the call, because LimeyJulia said Martha wanted to see everyone in the conference room pronto. But they had just left the conference room! What monumental event warranted their immediate return? Had Charles finally lit his stupid cigar? Had Alexis awoken from her slumber? No, Martha had simply decided it was time to reshuffle the teams, as Matchstick's losing streak had left them with a distinct numbers disadvantage.

phone-rings

Using a convoluted method, the new teams broke down as follows: Jennifer, Howie, Sarah, Carrie, Bethenny, and Jim were the "New Primarius." Ryan, Dawna, Amanda, Leslie, David, and Marcella; the "New Matchstick." I know, I'm thinking the same thing right now - "Jennifer? Dawna? Sarah? Who?" Turns out they are three of the random women that have been on PrimeRealEstatius all along. Who knew? Honestly, I watch this show more closely than pretty much anyone (it being my duty and all) and I can't for the life of me remember anything consequential said or performed by those three. And Jennifer is only noticeable because she's the only non-Caucasian on the show. (Unless you count the elevator kid with the stick we catch a glimpse of at the beginning and end of every show - I don't know about you, but I want to know about about the Elevator Kid) Now that the teams were completed, a tired Martha said, "I will say adieu and I will say goodbye." Not content with her odd bit of redundancy, she then broke into song, "So long, farewell, Auf wiedersehn, adieu! Adieu, adieu, to yieu and yieu and yieu!" If only.

Both teams were full of optimism that night when last-picked Jim decided to be an idiot again. Kissing his paltry biceps he noted, "I'm the strongest person on this team." Then he went off on some rant about how he's the "Desperado" on the team and how he simply "needs to win for his family." Oh, you mean the family that is one daughter larger now than when you last saw them? I especially liked the touch of him showing off the ultrasound picture of his new daughter - the one that was actually a week or so old at that point. Am I wrong for thinking the birth of a child should supercede a stunt casting on a reality show? Because there is no way in a billion years Martha would hire an ADD/ADHD buttwipe such as Jim.

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Comments (34)

The Dogg Pound:

Sg-Dub. I was hoping for a reference to Martha's timeless line "I want to focus on my salad." Oh well, you can't win them all.

Jim is the only reason that I'm watching this subpar show. As annoying as he is, he is the only interesting (read: crazy) character, so I'm somehow hoping he sticks around for a while. BTW, did anyone else notice when he slapped Leslie's ass before they left the loft? He's so nuts, but he's so reality-TV gold.


On another note, how can one install Quicktime with a pop-up blocker preventing any new screens from coming up?

The Dogg Pound:

OK, this officially sucks. I successfully downloaded Quicktime, but now the links to the videos have been replaced by empty white boxes. I want to re-watch the Wishbone commercial and the Rubble Man videos at least 100 times, damnit!

mountain girl:

"Primarimariquitecontraryius" - This one's my favorite so far!

Here's hoping that the previews for next week are setting the scene for Jim's inevitable and fiery demise. I can't wait to see that douchebag get whats coming to him.

I thought the witty/half right conversation between Charles and Jim referred to Charles calling Jim a half wit (which is a very generous gift to someone who markets salad dressing with 4 letter words to moms with tots in tow). Moron.

Jeremy:

Yeah, I thought it was was a "half-wit" reference, too. And quite funny.

Btw, Jim did NOT slap Leslie's ass; he had balled up a napkin or something like that in his hand and was tossing it aside as they walked out the door together.

They made it *look* like he was slapping her ass, those sly dogs. By the MAGIC OF TELEVISION EDITING! WHOOO! ;-)

And I hate Jim too. Like Omorausauras, he's not fun for me to watch; just kinda sad and scary at the same time.

Zharak:

Every good show needs a good villain and Jim perfectly fits that bill. He's mean, witty and to his credit, he seems to be a workhorse on tasks

PS - That ass slap shot on Leslie was hilarious.

Zharak:

Goddamit Amber, you ruined it for me!

I liked my ass-slaping Jim much more than the non-ass slapping Jim.

pc:

i loved martha's freakish laugh as she welcomed the team on the pier. it's my new ringtone.

wishbone:

"You're just not working for me" is the best firing catchphrase Martha said yet. She should stick with that one if Trump doesn't fire her.

The retaurant where they filmed that commercial at must've been non-smoking.

Since this was David, and since David is a weird dude, I shudder to think what was causing him to grin like that. Did he get a boner and was really enjoying the feel of the corduroy? Did he just kill a hobo? Did he lay a noxious fart and blame it on LimeyJulia? Only Silent Croatian knows - and you damn well know he's not sayin.'

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Comedy gold, thank you. My personal favourite was Ryan elbowing Carrie in an attempt to answer the phone first. And it really did look like Jim was slapping Leslie on the ass on their way out of the boardroom - oh well.

I can't believe she fired Jennifer over Jim. Question: are you allowed to not use someone on your team if they are being disruptive? Seriously, Jim is nuts. If I was the PM I just wouldn't want to deal with him.

steph:

I used to be able to tolerate the producer influence in the decisions on who gets fired - but this week was ridiculous. Martha wouldn't hire Jim to be her lawn boy, much less employ him in her corporate world. Blech blech blech -

chronic:

First time watching it, and couldn't believe what Jim got away with in the boardroom. Trump would've shut down that asshole in two seconds. Jen handled herself well, and Trump would never have allowed Jim to interrupt and insult her like that completely unchecked. And that wink! Well, that should have been enough to get him fired.

Don't know if I'd watch again, Jim is no Toral.

Shoe-in:

Jim's instability is still one of the only reasons for me to watch this show, so I didnt mind that he was around for another week.

But why am I so obsessed with the animatronics of Alexis ? I think they should replace her with the chick who played Martha's daughter in that Lifetime movie they are showing every other day.

Robert:

Couple points:
I think the team with the store in CT had the advantage over Yonkers, because it was after all Yonkers.
As for Jim, he has gone beyond being entertaining to just annoying and crazy. He now takes away from a show that is sort of good in its own right.
The fact that poor Alexis leaves the house having Martha as a mother should be commended.

skillet:

Jen's reaction was completely normal, and not confronting him without someone he recognized as having power over him was probably the best thing to do. Gah, both Apprentices drive me nuts with this idea that project managers, who are never viewed as superiors by team members, should control nut jobs they would never hire if they had the choice.

Martha should have fired him just for the skeevy wink. I wish I could find humor in his behavior, I just can't, it's too over-the-top. Much like Jonathan Baker.

Doreen:

she compared David to the "Shehshure" (as in Cheshire) Cat - oh Martha, how you confound and fascinate me...... Priceless! I laughed out loud at that one, especially since I live in Cheshire and no one pronounces it like that.

jash:

martha even makes "adieu" sound snooty by twisting it into "ahd-jew"

that commercial was the worst thing i have seen in ages...alexis probably has been hoping she'd get more independent work and then she screws it up with her lack of personality!

what was also interesting about stew leonards is that if this were the donalds apprentice you would have seen stew leonard himself so the donald could ask "how the shop is going." in marthapprentice however, that is forbidden as stew leonard is a felon himself (taxes) and that pesky rule of felons being unable to collude with one another. ha!

sweetleaf:

Ok people, I think it is pretty obvious to us all that im is playing the role in which he was cast. He still should have been fired. He is a total ass, and his "sales pitches" were UNbelieveable. Whatshername Proect manager should have been scared to pull him, but really. It was unfathomable that she leave him out there to sell. Also, that lady shoving the Wishbone in peoples carts was hilarious! What a psycho! I would be super pissed if anyone shoved crap in my cart.

jash:

well in all fairness i can understand jen's concern.

with a powederkeg like jim, she risked pulling him off the floor, jim going ballistic, the manager coming over (after their first warning mind you) and going gordon ramsey on their collective ass yelling "SHUT IT DOWN!" and not being able to sell any dressing.

of course should that have occured, jim would undoubtedly been sent packing. god jen was an idiot.

sweetleaf:

"im" in my last post is none other than Jim. The J sticks on my keyboard.

reality'slut:

sg-dub - Your plays on the "Primarius" name sure are worth the 18 day wait between recaps! Rock on!

Taradash:

Martha has finally made me sick. She is just keeping Jim to keep her show, and if she tries to push her new book just one more time......

Im done with watching this show even Donald has criticized it

Martha pretends to be Donalds pal. while she thinks her show is better. sorry prisoner #159

Donalds show blow this away and I think Her show will be cancelled before it ends due to poor ratings and /or Alexis finally killing her loon mother


Im finally cured of MARTHA and thats A GOOOOOOD THING!!!!!!!

You forgot to mention that Asian Vinaigrette is also great with kid's cereal.

Best line from the show was Leslie shouting to the customers "Does everyone have their second and third bottles?"!!! It cracks me up just thinking about it.

tv freak:

"Because there is no way Martha would hire an ADD/ADHD buttwipe such as Jim"

What the heck is wrong with ADD people. There are many celebrities who have learning disabilities. Just because they're different doesn't mean it can be used as an insult. It's very offensive to disabled people. I know. I have ADD.

bdos88, if it's like Trump's show, you can. Trump asked Wes why he didn't 'fire' (sit out) Maria on the episode that they both got fired.

Tootie:

So I took the time to watch Martha Behind Bars this weekend and I must say I was confused by the casting of an attractive woman to play Alexis. She wasn't mannish at all and I got all confused.

Casey:

sweetleaf:

I thought the look on Leslie's face was hilarious when she was told that customers were abandoning the extra bottles of salad dressing throughout the store. She looked really shocked that they would do such a thing; after all, the nerve of them taking the extra bottles out of their carts when she had sneaked them in there in the first place. She is horrible.

I used to think that Leslie was a good candidate, but now I think she is just a couple sandwiches short of a full picnic basket. *

(* I know that was lame; I just couldn't think of another Martha-type insult at the moment.)

Krystal:

What monumental event warranted their immediate return? Had Charles finally lit his stupid cigar?

LMAO!!!
I finally saw the episode today and it was worth it, I thought Jim was gonna get fired but nope..oh well theres always next week!
off-topic: Can I expect a recap for prison break tomorrow in honor of the 3 week hiatus? :P

Mrs. Petersen:

"Because there is no way in a billion years Martha would hire an ADD/ADHD buttwipe such as Jim." Seriously! Martha is way too picky to have an asshole/spaz around her. I really can't believe she didn't fire him. I hate it when a reality show becomes all about one person's screw-ups and not about the actual competition. And the way he became the total yes-man in the boardroom was just sickening. Well, maybe that is why Martha kept him.

CF:

"It's very offensive to disabled people. I know. I have ADD."

Clap...clap...clap..clap, clap, clap. Brav-o. How brave to speak out.

tv freak:

I can't tell if that was sarcastic, CF, but if it wasn't, then thank you. I thought I'd get flamed for that.

dg:

Ok, just watched the "doggy/celeb" auction episode and am still wondering why Alexis is even there???? I mean did she even speak 4 words on tonight's episode? Well, at least we did not have to look at those "man-sandals" from the suite episode! LOL
Her "role" on this show is just awkward...bizarre! Is this a Halloween feature?

martha:

Anyone know where to buy the Rosemary Lime Vinaigrette in the Western US?

rosy:

Hi, Does anyone know where I can purchase the rosemary lime dressing. I checked all the local grocery stores and they dont carry it. Please let me know. THanks

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