| The Girl Who Is Special | |
|---|---|
| Cycle 4, Episode 11 | |
| |
| Air Date: | May 11, 2005 |
| Viewers: | 5.55 Million |
| CoverGirl of the Week: | Naima Mora |
| Previous The Girl Who Flops in the Mud |
Next What the Girls Did That You've Never Seen Before |
| Gallery | |
"The Girl Who Is Special" is the eleventh episode of Cycle 4 of America's Next Top Model. It first aired on May 11, 2005 and garnered 5.55 million viewers.[1]
Episode[]
Now that the girls have made it so far into the competition, Brittany and Keenyah are solid friends while Naima has that in Kahlen. While they’re more comfortable with each other, they are also more likely to call each other out for things that bother them. The girls then read a piece of Tyra Mail: “In this modeling competition every step counts. Be ready to leave at 9:45 AM.”
The girls are brought into town and shown into a clothing store called G’mbo Urban Ethnic Clothing, where they are greeted by the shop’s owners, Bebe and Mandela. They are a proud South African brand who draws inspiration from their homeland and its history, both natural and political. The girls go with them to a nearby township that is considerably more run down than Cape Town, which has the girls reflecting on status and wealth.
Challenge[]
At a community center in the township, there is a group of people waiting for them on a stage. One is Jackie, a jazz art dance coordinator who is with her dance company. Today they will be learning about rhythm and dance. Each girl is paired up with an instructor to learn some moves. Naima loves to dance and thinks of the connection between modeling and dancing. Brittany flubs a bit but says in high spirits. Kahlen is a bit more uncomfortable with the moves she's shown to imitate. Keenyah feels a connection to her heritage and receives special attention, and Naima feels shunned even though she has African heritage as well. After they finish with their workshop, they’re challenged to perform their steps in front of the audience. There is also a special guest judge: Miss J. Alexander. Alongside the dance company dances alongside each girl, they take a turn having a solo dance. Miss J asks the audience who they think is their favorite, gauged by the volume of their cheers when he says each model’s name. Naima gets the overwhelming victory cheer. She gets an extra 30 frames on the next photoshoot; she chooses Keenyah to get 20 extra frames; Keenyah gives Brittany ten extra frames; Kahlen does not get any. The next Tyra Mail contains a rather cryptic message: “46664. Be ready at 11:00 am.”
The girls are taken to a new locale on a boat. They arrive at Robben Island and are introduced to a tour guide named Modise. This is the site of a political prison where Nelson Mandela was held for almost two decades. They are shown into the facility where they will be mock prisoners and given numbers as their identity–that is when they learn that 46664 was that of Nelson Mandela when he was there. Naima gets to open the door of Mandela’s actual cell which miffs Keenyah because she thinks she as the only black model should get that honor. When they return home from their excursion, they find a piece of Tyra Mail: “Are your feet as heavy as your luggage? Find out tomorrow at 8:30 AM.”
Photoshoot[]
The competition moves on to an ostrich farm. While Mr. Jay is there to tell them that, no, they will not be riding the ostriches, they will be doing a 1940’s-inspired shoot for Caress Sensational Smoothing Body Wash. The girls are supposed to be aristocratic women who are vacationing in Africa. The real challenge is to see how well they can dance and move for their frame. Johan Wilke is the photographer of the day, who encourages them to relax and be themselves. Three male models are then brought out who will be dancing with the girls in their shoot. They get to know each other in hair and makeup, and one of the models, Bertini, even asks for Keenyah’s phone number before they’ve begun, which she shrugs off. She’s a bit more preoccupied with the weight she’s gained and tells herself that she is sticking to her diet; the other girls do not think she has changed any habits and it is no wonder that she’s gaining weight.
Naima is first to shoot, and she feels the pressure to perform because everyone knows she has a background in dancing. For her extra 30 frames, she tries more of a showgirl pose rather than her typical ballerina poise. Keenyah is next and as they get started, Bertini moans in her ear and touches her in a way that makes her feel so uncomfortable that she interrupts the shoot. He is told by Mr. Jay not to touch her and they finish the shoot. Keenyah is left worried about how it will go but remains steadfast in her belief that it was not her fault. Brittany feels a bit awkward in her movements as she doesn't really know what to do with her own body and the bodies of the men around her. Kahlen feels that she doesn’t have anything going for her going into the shoot and while it was awkward it could have gone worse.
Later on the girls meet the male models that they posed with for dinner. They immediately recount the details of the shoot and Keenyah calls out Bertini for behaving inappropriately. Brittany defends him, saying that she had a great time with him. The whole dinner is awkward and they fight over the bill at dinner as Keenyah didn’t bring any money. Brittany and Keenyah go at it on the ride back to the hotel and continue in the room, fighting about this week’s events and Keenyah’s selfish behavior. Naima is folded into the conversation as her blackness is called into question because she got to open the jail cell and that upset Keenyah. Kahlen is affected by the yelling and removes herself. With little time to cool off, they then read a piece of Tyra Mail: “Tomorrow you will meet with the judges. Only three of you will continue on in hopes of becoming ‘America’s Next Top Model.’ One of you will be eliminated.”
Judging[]
The panel reconvenes to make the competition’s 11th cut. The judges are Janice Dickinson, Nigel Barker, Nolé Marin, and the guest judges of the evening are Bebe and Mandela of G’mbo Clothing. The girls are challenged to dance together in front of the panel and then strike a pose at Tyra’s cue, kind of like musical chairs. They perform several rounds of this and the judges then join to dance too before the girls receive their critiques.
- Brittany: she holds back too much while dancing and Nolé wonders where the bubbly Brittany is; she takes a great photograph for some poses, but the shots with more movement were not great
- Keenyah: she made sexy moves in her dancing but her outfit is not up to par for the judges; there’s a good photo with some disconnect which she blames on Bertini, but is told she needs to stand up for herself
- Kahlen: she was stiff and uncomfortable dancing for everyone to see; her photo came out well, but she still struggles with showing sexy
- Naima: while her dancing was good, she seemed to be holding back; she stepped it up for the photo and commanded the scene
Call-Out Order[]
| Call-out | Model |
|---|---|
| Best Photo | Keenyah |
| 2nd | Kahlen |
| Bottom 2 | Naima |
| Eliminated | Brittany |