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In the second season finale of The Face, which aspiring model would win the competition? Find out in my final The Face review for Season Two.
On last week’s episode of The Face, it was a shocking elimination that no one saw coming. Felisa Wiley, from Naomi Campbell’s team was up against Rachel (Ray) Clanton from Lydia Hearst’s team in the elimination room. When asked why she, not Ray should stay in the final three, Felisa shocked Anne V by telling her that she didn’t deserve to be in the final three, opting to walk away from the competition. It not only took her out of the running but it also left Ray, who could have been the one sent home, in the competition.
The minute Ray returned to the room, I knew Naomi was going to be on Anne as to why Felisa was sent packing. Fortunately for Anne, Naomi learned of Felisa’s decision from Ray, who shared that the young woman decided to leave on her own. When Anne did come into the room, Naomi refused to hear anything that she had to say, clearly angry and disappointed that Felisa didn’t fight to stay.
I See… You See… The Girls Have a Go-See
In the final episode, “Who Will Be The Face?” the final three girls, Afiya Bennett, Ray, and Tiana Zarlin meet with Nigel Barker to learn what was next for them before the big reveal of who would become the winner of the Frederic Fekkai brand, as well as having a feature in Elle Magazine. Each girl would go on a go-see, where they would meet with Frederic, who would interview them. The ladies would be dressed in designs by Katie Gallagher.
THE FACE — Finale — Pictured: Modeltestant Afiya meeting with Frederic Fekkai on her final Go See — (Photo by: Steve Fenn/Oxygen)
Frederic would be looking for several things that would determine his decision: poise and confidence, not just in their body of modeling but also their personality. Each of the girls had their talk with Frederic, and while Tiana and Afiya both at times seemed to be caught off guard or stumble on what to say, Ray, who clearly did her homework in knowing a bit more about Frederic, was the one who had the best time with him. She showed her personality by making a connection with him (she mentioned how she learned how his father didn’t want him to be in the hair business, comparing to how her parents didn’t want her to model).
When Frederic met back up with Nigel to give his observations and thoughts, I agreed on his about Tiana. I love Tiana and thinks she’s poised, polished and shows a great personality, however, when Frederic said at times it’s as if she’s trying her best to give him the best answer. Afiya, cute as can be, just stumbled at times and was uncertain of how to be around him and Ray, just wowed him to pieces. She’s slowly breaking out of the underdog role and could easily snatch the whole competition if the other girls aren’t careful.
The Girls Give Face in Final Photo Shoot
Are there any America’s Next Top Model viewers out there? If so, then many who watched the earlier (much earlier seasons) of the show will remember seeing fashion photographer Gilles Bensimon on the show. He’d always be the one that Tyra would have doing the very last photo shoot with the remaining two competing models. Anyway, moving on to this show, he was on set to do the photo shoot of the girls. Not only was he there, but so were Frederic and their coaches. Before they were to take to the set, Anne, Lydia and Naomi each gave pep talks to their girls on doing their best for their last shoot. Things definitely got tense on set. Ray was out of her comfort zone in most of her poses and it wasn’t until Lydia soothingly talked to her, did she get out of her nervousness to pull off some great pictures. Afiya, too, was on the stiff side. Every picture that I saw, she was giving fierce, rather than soft. She tends to show her emotions in her face and it wasn’t until near the end that she softened her facial expressions.
Tiana is the most focused model out of the group and she has the ability to turn things around rather quickly. She truly does remind of my Audrey Hepburn in a lot of her pictures. Her facial expressions just show a lot of emotions and she really does know how to smile with her eyes. The minute things wrapped up for the models, it was Frederic’s turn to talk back with Nigel, who was curious to know if he had someone in mind to win.
The Final Three Do Their Thing on the Catwalk
In the final competition of the evening and competition to announce the winner, the models, along with their coaches, dressed in Roberto Cavalli to take to the catwalk. Let’s just say, the supermodels were showing all how it was done. Anne and Naomi especially. It’s something about how they command the entire catwalk when they walk, and I loved the way the dress Anne was wearing was flowing side to side as she moved.
Both Frederic and Bobbie Myers, who is the Editor-in-Chief for Elle magazine were both there to see the show. Bobbie shared with Nigel that she would be looking for the model that would have a strong and forceful nature and who could draw people in with her personality. Frederic said his model would need to be need to be the ‘global woman’ who has self-confidence.
Ray opened up the show and she has advanced into such a beautiful walker. When we first saw her in Bryant Park, she was stiff and didn’t give the best walk. She keeps calling herself the underdog, but I don’t see that at all in her. She’s pulled herself out of that title and is excellent competition for Tiana and Afiya.
Tiana just has this natural grace about herself when she’s walking on the catwalk. She had that same confidence from day one and it has carried right into the finals. I loved the design of her Roberto Cavalli dress, the sequins were beautifully done. It’s so hard to say who you want to really win because all three of ladies have earned their spot in the competition.
Lastly, Afiya closed out the night. I loved the top portion of her dress. It was elegant without being too revealing. The only thing I didn’t like was that she wasn’t smiling at all during her walk. She looked fierce but it would have been great to see her smile from time to time to give a little softer personality. Regardless of that, Afiya looked gorgeous on the runway and should definitely be very proud of herself.
THE FACE — “Who Will Be The Face?” Episode 210 — Pictured: Modeltestant Tiana and her Supermodel Coach Anne V after Tiana is announced ?The Face? of Frederic Fekkai — (Photo by: Steve Fenn/Oxygen)
The Girl Who Becomes the Face of Fekkai Is?
Frederic gives Nigel his thoughts on the girls overall performances; the go-see, the photo shoot and the runway show. He said that while Afiya was graceful and at ease on the catwalk, she didn’t once crack a smile. He felt her facial expression was too severe. Ray, meanwhile impressed him on her drive and determination but felt the photo shoot wasn’t one of her best. On the runway, she displayed a great attitude and had excellent confidence. Lastly, I was very surprised to hear that Frederic didn’t think that Tiana would last in the competition after her first make-over. He was impressed by how much she’s grown in the competition.
Once all three teams were on the catwalk, Frederic shared with all in attendance who would become the face of Frederic Fekkai. The winner of the second season of The Face was Tiana. Not only would she become the face for the Fekkai brand, but she’d be meeting up with Elle to do her feature story. Frederic said that she’d be spending 12 months working with him.
Although Afiya and Ray didn’t come out as the winner of the show, these two ladies have shown so much grace and poise throughout the competition. It’s a plus for Afiya, too, because she was the only one throughout the show who has not stepped foot into the elimination room. I hope that we all get to see these two ladies in the near future continuing their dreams of being in the modeling world.
This second season of The Face was the best season. I do hope that Naomi is thinking about doing a third season of the show, hopefully keeping Anne and Lydia on for the next go-round. Fingers crossed that another season happens.
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