Episodes 10, 11, 12 Previews

[April 30 UPDATE: Added to the end of this post... Episode 12 preview and a new spoiler.]

Orthodox Apprentice candidate Dan Brody was fired weeks ago, but Lee Bienstock is still very much in the running for the job. Here's a preview of the next two episodes.


Episode 10: Monday, May 1, 9:00 ET/PT

The eight remaining candidates travel to Long Island to put together grand openings for two new Hair Cuttery Salons. One locations is in Oceanside, about 6 miles from the Bienstock home in Lawrence, NY, and just one mile from kosher food. The other salon is in Carle Place. Hair Cuttery is using this episode to promote their plans to expand nationally with new franchise locations. New York entreprenuer Stuart Katzoff heads a group of investors that has agreed to open 40 salons on Long Island. Hair Cuttery CEO Dennis Ratner is expected to answer Trump's weekly introduction, "Your name please..."

The team with the most revenue from the one-day grand opening event wins and collaborates with legendary composer and songwriter Burt Bacharach at New York's Steinway Hall to create an original song. The losers sing a different tune in a particularly heated boardroom.

Sean admits to a crush on a Synergy teammate (previews point to Tammy), while one of the project managers decides to sit back and get her hair blown out. From earlier information, we know that the PM getting the hair done is on Gold Rush, so it must be Charmaine Hunt. Tarek Saab has not been project manager since Trump selected him for the first task.

The Apprentice cameras were rolling as Scotland Minister Jack McConnell met with Donald Trump in Manhattan on October 25. This coincides with the filming of this episode so Mr. McConnell could make a cameo appearance. That would be poor timing for the Minister since he's been taking some heat the past few days for his meetings with Trump.

Posted yesterday on Trump University's Lessons Learned blog:

What will happen next week? As we enter the final weeks, Lee has entered the top rank of contenders. Sean looks weaker after his halfhearted defense of Andrea, who fell fast and is now gone. New shakeups are sure to occur in the weeks to come, and we can hardly wait.

Episode 11: Monday, May 8, 9:00 ET/PT

The candidates relive their younger days by putting on a tailgate party during a college football game. One team creates a spectacle with an eating contest while members of the other team dress up as cheerleaders. The winners wine and dine in the country, while the losers face a fierce boardroom.

At least one team performed their task prior to the Rutgers University homecoming game against Naval Academy on October 29, 2005. They were promoting blooming onions from Outback Steakhouse.

Randal Pinkett (winner of Season 4) was in attendance at the game. He graduated from Rutgers and his wife is the Senior Alumni Relations Officer for the university's Alumni Association. The big question is if Randal's appearance at the game makes it into the episode. Season 4 was airing while Season 5 was filming. In October, Randal knew he was in the final two, but he hadn't been hired by Trump yet. The Season 5 candidates wouldn't know anything about Randal since there's no television in the suite.

Donald Trump also made an appearance at the Rutgers-Navy game.


Spoiler:

Tammy, Allie and Roxanne will not be fired on Episode 10. We know from the Survivor Sucks board, that they were still in the competition for Episode 11.


Episode 12: Monday, May 15, 10:00 ET/PT (special time)

The final five Apprentice candidates are challenged to create an in-store display for the Microsoft Xbox 360 videogame console at Wal-Mart. One candidate feels they are being undermined by their team, while the other group worries that their display will not be completed in time. The winners take a private jet to Hollywood and get a chance to appear in a movie, while the losers face off in the boardroom.

Tammy Trenta will watch this episode at her high school, Bishop George Ahr HS. Advance tickets are $10 each ($5 for current students). All proceeds go directly to the high school's alumni association and to Tammy's Theresa Kathryn foundation.

Does this mean that Tammy's on the show beyond Episode 12?


Spoiler:

Three candidates will be gone in the next two weeks (Episodes 10 & 11). It's the only way to get from the eight candidates at the start of Episode 10 to the five candidates at the beginning of Episode 12.

Orthodox Apprentice: Episode 9 - Lee is 2-0

In Episode 9 of The Apprentice, Lee Bienstock volunteered as Gold Rush's project manager, ended the team's 4-task losing streak and upped his record as PM to 2 wins with no losses. As the remaining Orthodox Apprentice candidate, Lee is getting plenty of airtime, fueling speculation that he could make it to the final two.

Our lee-cap of tonight's episode:

• Upon returning to the suite, Lee made a point of telling the other candidates that he likes Leslie a lot and that it was difficult for him to fire her. (Has he already taken over Trump's job?)

• Then Lee told Charmaine Hunt that he's not mad at her for advising Trump to fire him.

• In the first few minutes of this episode, we get a sense of Lee's true character. He doesn't personalize what happens in the boardroom, he loves his teammates and he doesn't hold a grudge. (Leviticus 19:18)

• We also get a sense of Lee's savvy. He doesn't want to piss off any of his teammates or create any enemies.

• Lee proceeded to inform his teammates that he needs to be project manager to save his ass from being fired. Tarek looked surprised since he was probably expecting to take on that role.
  

• Mr. Trump introduced the Ameriquest executives to the teams with his now-standard line: "Your names?" This episode had the weakest tie-in ever between a sponsor and a task. Ameriquest had almost no presence during the episode and their role was limited to a logo on the back cover of the souvenir brochures. Does anyone even know what Ameriquest does? Does this Super Bowl commerical help?
  

• Trump told Lee that he barely escaped last night. Lee didn't think it was so close. This brief exchange was significant because Trump and Mark Burnett blew the cover off their fictional 16-"week" job interview.
  

• Two epsiodes ago, Lee predicted, "If we lose, Lenny will be fired." TRUE
  

• Last episode, Lee predicted, "If we lose, Leslie will be fired." TRUE

• This episode, Lee predicted, "If we lose, I'll be fired." TRUE???

• Viewers were given the opportunity to vote for who they want to fire. During the Eastern time zone airing, Lee took an early lead with 27% of the votes.
  

• Gold Rush started selling brochures at Battery Park and Lee declared, "This is all out war!"

• Gold Rush easily won the task and Lee gave us another great quote: "Winning - best remedy for feeling like crap!" (Now available on men's and women's t-shirts.)
  

• As we had been reporting for more than two weeks, the winning team went to Bedminster, NJ to play golf with Vijay Singh. And Tarek drove like a pro.
  

• During the Eastern time zone airing of the episode, the final viewer vote was 31% for Andrea Lake. Trump agreed and fired her. Lee came in second with 22% of the vote. Allie was third with 11%. (Can anyone post the CT and PT results when they're available?)
  

• Donald's final words: "Good job, kids."

• Our final words on this episode: "Donald Jr., you're fired!" (Wasn't he awful?)
  

Other random notes:

• This earlier post has a preview of some upcoming episodes.

• Reminder: The 2-hour finale will air on Monday, June 5, live from Los Angeles.

• A belated happy birthday to Allie Jablon's mother. It was three weeks ago. Yes, she's Jewish.
  

• Since tomorrow is Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day), this is an appropriate time to commend Allie's mother for her work on the Columbia (SC) Holocaust Education Commission.