Episode Recap: Beautiful Disaster

If the first thing you think of when we say "disaster" is "fairy," go ahead and count yourself a true Face Off fan. McKenzie sets the stage for this episode's Spotlight Challenge by bringing the final five to the set of Steven Spielberg's War of the Worlds (complete with a crashed plane and demolished buildings) and having them find monitors spread throughout the area that feature different natural disasters: Flood, Wildfire, Earthquake, Avalanche and Oil Spill.

When McKenzie tells them they'll be using their disaster of choice to inspire a fairy character, Cig allows himself a mini-freakout, as fairies are not quite in his wheelhouse. When he gets to make an Avalanche-themed makeup, however, he's able to move forward with a concept he's actually been mulling over for a while.

George is also in unfamiliar fairy territory but Mr. Westmore gives him some key pointers on how to craft his Earthquake-themed beauty. First, don't paint the cracks red (they'll read bloody instead of lava-y), and second, give her a pointy nose and chin but keep the cheeks rounded. George snaps a pic of Mr. Westmore's own apple cheeks for reference and does as advised ... and winds up with a makeup that Lois says reminds her of the fairies of legend. Lah dee dah!

Meanwhile, Dina is having a great time putting together her Flood-themed fairy and cooks up a batch of melted chocolate and corn starch to get a wet, muddy look that will stay put. She strews reeds and leaves all around her fairy and gives the face a bright, white-and-purple paint job to complement the greens and browns of the costume and cowl. Yep, this is a Top Look.

Drew concocts a similar potion (minus the chocolate, plus some glycerin and sorbitol) to make a facsimile of crude oil. He drapes the liquid over a mannequin to create an oil bikini of sorts but realizes at the end of the day that his crude oil is rude oil – his model won't be able to go to the bathroom, sit comfortably or move very much. The next day he uses the mixture on a bodysuit but the effect loses some impact.

Stella is praying for some of the good mold juju she had last week as her Wildfire-themed fairy requires a really complicated sculpt of individual flames licking upward along the cowl and face. On day three, she discovers her cowl is literally falling apart and loses what should have been painting time to patching the cowl back together. The judges critique her blocky paint job and Glenn can't get over the fact that her fairy doesn’t have wings. Despite her best efforts and a cool concept, Stella goes home this week.

Finally, Cig is thrilled to hear the judges call his name as the winner of this week's challenge. He's one step closer to the finale after taking himself from wavering confidence to beautiful artistry on his Avalanche-themed makeup. It's a good day!