Task: Create a frozen dinner and marketing campaign
KOTU: Joan and Clint, led by Herschel
Athena: Annie, Melissa, and Brande, led by Jesse
Eyes and Ears: Joe Kernan from CNBC and Ivanka
Outcome: Athena wins for a more innovative dinner
Fired: Herschel, for an uninnovative dish and a complicated dessert. His charity, Alternative Community Development Services (no website, try 1320 W Camp Wisdom Rd, Dallas, TX 75232) which provides a variety of services for the Dallas community, gets nothing from this show that I know of.
Donation: $20,000 for Long Beach Education Foundation, which funds education for the industrial arts.
Annie gives that big fat check to Ken Bacon from Refugees International. He is thrilled by huge amount, the biggest check they've ever received.
The task is to create a new meal and marketing campaign for a frozen dinner product line. The execs want something that tastes great and is convenient and healthy.
Jesse agrees to lead Athena. He says "the time is right." Duh. Herschel will lead KOTU - Joan doesn't want Clint to be manager again.
Athena prepares
Annie does the research and discovers that a meatball dinner is the best seller on the company's regular menu, and there's no meatball dinner on the healthy menu yet. A lot of turkey meatballs are dry, but she knows how to make 'em moist. Jesse doesn't think the idea is sexy enough.
Melissa gripes about Annie's meatball idea and suggests chili or soup instead. Brande wants meatloaf and mashed potatoes.
Annie suggests having gluten-free pasta with the meatballs, because gluten-free foods are a growing market.
Jesse tells us he's resigned himself to accepting Annie's ideas. (I don't hear any ideas from him.) He says they'll try all three dishes. To avoid conflict, he'll have Melissa stay with him and work on the campaign while the other two will cook.
Melissa is happy at first to be working on the marketing, but Jesse ignores her or trails off when she asks him what to do. She's not even sure what the campaign is.
CNBC's Joe Kernan comes by to ask what their dinner is. He's skeptical about the gluten-free meal and assumes it will taste like crap.
Annie's in the kitchen. She's fast with a knife and makes Brande come over and see how quick she is. Brande tells us she finds Annie irritating; she talks a lot. Annie tells Brande and the chefs that she's the total woman: she cooks, raises kids, works hard, and gives a good blow job.
Jesse says the meatloaf is good, but he doesn't like it. They all like the chili, but it induces some farting. Jesse doesn't like the meatballs as much as the chili, but Annie and Melissa prefer the meatballs. Brande loves the chili, but says you can just get that out of a can, while this stuff is different. To avoid a big debate, Jesse chooses the meatballs.
They brainstorm names. Melissa suggests "Triple-Plate Turkey Meatballs," and Annie quickly agrees. Awwww, they're getting along! It's like Hands Across America!
Brande asks about the campaign and presentation. Jesse just says "we're good" and sends them home. Annie tells us she feels locked out.
KOTU prepares
Herschel does the research and finds that skinless chicken breast is popular on the company's existing healthy dinner menu, so they should offer that. Clint says he's not so sure about adding yet another chicken dish, but Herschel says it's what the customers like. Clint tells us he's keeping his debating down to nil because of his reputation for arguing, so he offers his wife's recipe for ginger soy chicken.
Herschel doesn't eat meat, so he doesn't really know much about this stuff, but he runs a food company. Go figure.
Ivanka visits KOTU and they tell her about the chicken. Ivanka thinks Herschel might be right, but her dad would never eat soy ginger chicken.
Herschel wants to add a parfait for dessert, with yogurt and berries and such.
Clint and Herschel bicker about making the yogurt for the dessert. Clint has some concern about thawing it. I'll be honest, I'm not sure what the problem is, because they have professional chefs there who could surely offer advice on this matter. Herschel gives Clint grief for arguing.
Clint wants to cook the chicken. Like Annie, he is fast with a knife. The soy ginger sauce is much, much too salty. Joan says it's like drinking a glass of soy sauce, or soy sauce garnished with chicken. Clint balks at changing the recipe. Joan suggests adding orange juice. (Blood oranges, yum!) They're all happy with the result - Asian Orange Chicken.
Joan and Clint work on the marketing. Clint recalls that the execs said that the Customer Service Manager is important. In his idea for an ad, a CSM shows up at Clint's tour bus with some meals.
Herschel tells us Clint loves to be out front; the heck with him and Joan. Joan gripes to us that Herschel is supposed to be the project manager, but Clint is deciding the campaign.
The judging
Joan explains the KOTU meal to the execs. It's an East-meets-West, worldwide meal. Orange soy ginger chicken, sweet potatoes, french green beans, 480 calories. Clint explains the marketing campaign and talks while they eat, oh God he was serious about the tour bus ad, he's describing it to the execs while they eat. How are they not gagging?
After KOTU leaves, the execs discuss the meal. They like the flavors, but they aren't sure about the yogurt with fruit and think it will require special handling and extra packaging for the toppings.
Jesse gives the Athena presentation. Gluten-free pasta, and vegetables instead of breadcrumbs in the meatballs. Light tomato-basil sauce. It looks AWESOME. Apple crisp for dessert. (Gluten in the dessert? Gotta watch out for that.)
Afterwards, Brande tells us she still finds the marketing portion to be lacking. Maybe because there was no campaign whatsoever. The execs noticed that too.
The postmortem
Herschel thinks Joan did a better job because she stayed on task, unlike Clint who took over the cooking when he was supposed to be doing the campaign. (He politely doesn't mention that Clint's campaign sucked too.)
Clint says he had reservations about offering another chicken dinner. Herschel says he didn't hear him voice his opinion. Too bad - I did. Clint also voiced concern about using regular yogurt, which wouldn't freeze and thaw well. Herschel says Clint's not telling the truth. (This is not the first time Herschel has denied something that happened right in front of him and caught by the camera.)
Jesse thinks he was a strong leader. Annie says he was good in only "some aspects." He didn't take suggestions. Melissa says it was polite but tense between Annie and Jesse. From the peanut gallery, Joan tells Melissa not to bother because they'll just deny it.
Trump asks if Jesse's an intense person, he seems so low-key, practically a stiff. Why is Sandra Bullock in love with him? There is some snickering.
Joe (CNBC guy) says the execs thought Athena's dish was innovative, but there was no marketing campaign.
Ivanka says the execs liked the taste of KOTU's meal and it was healthy, but the dessert was too complicated.
They liked both, but they liked Athena's more. Athena wins, and Jesse gets 20K for the Long Beach Education Foundation, which funds education for the industrial arts.
Annie crows to Joe Kernan, "I told you the gluten-free would work."
In the boardroom
Clint says he doesn't know what he would have done differently if he'd been project manager, because they didn't explore any other dishes besides the chicken. Herschel says again that Clint didn't protest against the chicken.
Joan says she wanted Herschel as PM because Clint is too stubborn. Trump changes the subject and asks why she hates Annie so much. In the suite, Annie complains that no matter what she says, Joan will always reply "she's a bitch." That's an interesting remark from Annie, because Annie's the one who called Joan a bitch at the end of the last task in the same episode. Melissa keeps her mouth shut.
Joe from CNBC changes the subject back to the task, thank you. He asks about the marketing campaign. Herschel says Clint made himself the star of the campaign. He insists he likes Clint. Clint claims that he likes Herschel too, but they misunderstand each other. Ivanka says there are weekly arguments about Clint not listening to the team or the PM. Clint says that offering an opinion before the decision is made is a legitimate way to support the PM. Trump says Clint doesn't listen.
In the suite, Jesse tells his teammates that he was the first to recommend firing Clint.
Joan cries again for the second week in a row when asked who should be fired. Trump says Herschel was responsible for the chicken and the dessert and couldn't control Clint. Much as he loves Herschel - and he loves him a lot - Herschel's fired. His charity, Alternative Community Development Services (no website, try 1320 W Camp Wisdom Rd, Dallas, TX 75232) which provides a variety of services for the Dallas community, gets nothing from this show that I know of.
Joan gives him a hug and says she's going to write his mother a letter saying what a great man he is.
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