CNTM Week 5 – Yugge raises her game (December 1, 2015)

So many double-entendres come to mind when you hear “Join us as we get wet on the way to finding out who will be the Caribbean’s Next Top Model,” at the beginning of week 5. (Hint: they’re doing a swimsuit photoshoot.) But I’ll let you come up with those on your own.

Host Wendy Fitzwilliam said this week’s challenge was about continuing to strengthen core and balance. The challenge was stand-up paddling with legendary Bajan waterman, Brian Talma. “It’s all about the core, the arms, the balance, and also the whole body, because you’re out on the water and you’re moving. If you can stand up, you can paddle,” he said.
Well some of the girls promptly proved him wrong. Hindsight is always 20/20 and Yugge (St. Vincent & the Grenadines) lamented the fact that she hadn’t gone with some of the girls to do the stand-up paddling the day before. But she had a good reason, and one that’s all too common in the Caribbean: she can’t swim!
Syndey (Cayman Islands), Linda (Puerto Rico) and Mackella (Jamaica) had practiced before and were really confident. The girls had to do two heats of four each and the final four raced each other. As expected, Yugge kept falling off her board. Kittisha (Grenada) kept trying not to fall off, because she couldn’t swim either. Sydney ended up winning the challenge and the prize of two swimsuits.
One piece, two piece, hot, spicy or sweet? was the Wendy mail message, which left the girls speculating about a swimsuit challenge in KFC or Cheffette!! But no, it was on the beach and the girls were asked to be pretty, sexy and also athletic.
Mackella and Lia (T&T) struggled, and the photographer, Risée Chaderton, was disappointed with Mackella especially not being able to show off her height. She was however impressed with Nicoya, saying that she was able to use her body as an art piece. Chaderton was impressed with the girls overall, saying they responded well to the brief they were given.
Talma was guest judge at the judging panel, along with Fitzwilliam, Richard Young and photographer Pedro Virgil. The judges loved Nicoya’s photo, although Virgil said he would have loved a little more eye contact. Fitzwilliam called Kittisha’s photo beautiful but asked for a little more effort, and Young said she was one of the few girls who laughed during the shoot.
Yugge’s photo showed a beautiful vulnerable feminine power, according to Fitzwilliam, and Talma called it an amazing shot. Mackella was the first to get a bad critique this week from Fitzwilliam, who said she needed to work harder at the business of photography. Virgil reminded her and the rest of the girls that they should be conscious of every component of their body during a shoot.
The judges approved of Lia’s shot, calling it edgy and sexy. They also told Linda that she exuded strength, confidence and power. Young said Sydney’s photo was easy Caribbean, but the judges were a bit disappointed because she hadn’t brought more movement to the shoot.
Yugge won best photo of the week, and Wendy congratulated her about stepping it up as asked. Next was Nicoya, followed by Lia, Linda, Kittisha and Ayanna (St. Lucia). Sydney and Mackella were in the bottom two and, as much as Wendy said she hated sending people home, in the end Mackella was eliminated.
The drama continues next week, as the girls go on go-sees and do a photoshoot with, gasp, snakes!!!