Face Off: The Show, not the Film

(This article includes spoilers about the whole season, so far)

For those that didn't know, Face Off is a reality game show for prosthetic makeup artists. They have to face different challenges related to their field, creating prosthetic and makeups from different inspirations, while being judged by a panel of concept and creature designers. The show is broadcast by Syfy and its third season just reached its midpoint this week.

So, after watching Episode 6 (of a total of 12), here is my take on what has happened so far:

Week One

Working on teams of two, the artists had to create an alien character that would fit on the Mos Eisley Cantina scene from the original Star Wars. A geek's dream. I basically agreed with the judges decision: Joe and Tommy's alien/bodyguard was a mess and the worst of the bunch. Plus, judging from what we see, Joe did behave like a douche. Him leaving the way he did only proved it. On the other hand, Roy and Rod's exoskeleton, and Laura and Sarah's Dagobah bounty hunter were clearly the best creations. The guys surely had the most ambitious creation and they excelled in it, but damn, I really liked the girl's bounty hunter. Really cool concept and execution. (see Roy and Rod's creation here)

Week Two

The artists had to create a pirate character inspired by a specific article found on a treasure chest. I thought that this episode was mostly a mess. IMO, most of the contestants had problems conceptualizing the inspiration. To be fair, some of them were tough. I mean, how do you translate "ship in a bottle" to a character? That said, Roy and Sarah were clearly the superior creations. Roy "dagger" pirate was slick, cool and bad-ass, while Sarah's "sea urchin" pirate was creepy and ghastly. As for the eliminated contestant, even though C.C.'s "barnacle" inspired pirate was weak, I thought Jason deserved the boot. Not only was the concept bad, but the execution was poor.

Week Three

Working on teams of two, the artists had to create a Chinese New Year dragon makeup that could hold its own after an acrobatic dance routine. The inspiration for each dragon was the zodiac symbols of the contestants. I thought that most of the makeups here were solid. I agree that Derek and Tommy's monkey/ox creature was the most elegant and colorful, but I disagree with the judges as far as the "bottom" looks go. I thought that Eric and Sarah's monkey/boar creature was solid, and I also liked the colors from Jason and Roy's rabbit/snake creature. If anything, the one I thought was the weakest was Alana and Laura's goat/rat. IMO, it didn't fit with the colorful inspiration of the Chinese New Year.

Week Four

Each artist had to create an original take on a character from Alice in Wonderland, that was just infected by the Resident Evil zombie virus. I think this is one of the episodes where I've disagreed the most with the judges. IMO, the worst creatures were Sarah's Cheshire Cat and Tommy's Rabbit. Both were a mess. Horrible costumes, poor makeup. They were plain bad. Nicole was eliminated for her take on Alice, which wasn't that great, but I really didn't see it being as bad as those other two. I thought both Hatters were cool, and I would've given Laura the win. But the judges chose Roy, for his Queen of Hearts which, to be honest, I didn't like. It never looked real to me. It looked just like a costume would look.

Week Five

Working on teams of two, the artists had to create an original superhero and a sidekick, inspired by a specific vehicle. Here is another one where I didn't necessarily agree with the judges. Although Jason and Rod's effort was weak, I thought that Sarah's lack of effort was deserving of the boot. She practically did nothing to her character, except from a fake-looking scar, some bad coloring, and a weird eye patch. That said, Jason's character was pretty bad too, but at least he did something. On the other hand, I did like Laura and Tommy's approach, and I could see their concept, even though the judges couldn't. As for Alana and Roy's, sure, they looked like comic-book characters, but I hated the fake-looking flames on the superhero. Overall, I think most of the makeups were weak, but I think that Laura's superhero alone was way above the rest.

Week Six

Each artist had to create an original character with exaggerated proportions, inspired by the video game Dishonored. This last week, I had no major complaints. I thought the two top looks were good, even though I really liked Laura's "weeper". And I agreed with the elimination of Tommy. I think he had something going when he began, but the problems he faced with the gloves, the hair he chose, and some other things, ended up sinking him. As for Derek, even though his "thug" looked a lot like his character from the previous week, I think he embraced the complete look of the video game with the clothes, the proportions, and whatnot. But I still think Laura's character was the best.

So, overall, the show has been pretty good, even if I don't always agree with the judges. I started watching this last season, and I think it's a unique show about a unique profession.

(All pictures belong to Syfy and its affiliates)