Episode Recap: Intergalactic Congress

Ben is gone and it SUX. But the artists can’t let it get them blue – they have to focus up and win this sucker. It does sting, though, that the very next challenge is an Intergalactic Congress challenge, a la Star Wars – just think of all the “Ben” Kenobi jokes they could’ve made! Some cheer comes from the prospect of getting their hands into clay and making some aliens. Each artist gets a dossier of their intergalactic delegate, complete with name, title, and background. But when it comes to the look of the delegate, all restrictions are off. This is an alien challenge, after all!

Tyler digs into his dossier for inspiration and finds that his delegate’s planet is covered in a liquid diamond ocean, giving him inspiration for a crustacean elder with horn-like protrusions reminiscent of diamonds. Emily, whose dossier tells the story of a protector of an idyllic planet, initially imagines a gorgeous princess. She soon abandons that idea in favor of something outside her comfort zone: a tough, military male. Midway through sculpting, she hits a creative impasse, and when she forgets to apply slip to a blender mold and has to throw the pieces out, she nearly gives up. Her erstwhile partner is there to help clean out her mold and bolster her morale.

George is also having a tough time with the Solo path. He needs a Han…d. He doesn’t want to be in direct competition with one of his bestest buddies in the world! He takes out his disappointment on the clay for a while, until he realizes he has two choices: give up, or give it his all. He pep talks himself and jumps back in the creative flow. He and Cig keep the good feelings flowing by wearing coordinating short shorts – nothing like cute wardrobe and pasty thighs to bring friends closer.

Logan may be the only one comfortable with this new way of creating – he’s been partner-less for a minute. His dossier is on a cleric, so he starts sculpting a cowl that resembles a bishop’s hat – but after wrestling with the clay for a while, he loses his appetite for this low-hanging fruit. The shape he employs is subtler, and he’s much happier with it.

Since Evan’s character lives in an impoverished chieftainship, he envisions a rotund chief whose rolls of blubber show his affluence and corruption. He’s loving the way the sculpt is turning out, but when he applies the face to his model, he realizes he’s glued it on crooked. For this heavy piece, he used a lot of glue and it’s too late to lift it and re-apply. He hopes the judges will overlook it and focus on what he did right… but they don’t. He didn’t develop the shapes well enough, and this is his final makeup on All Stars. Arrivederci, Evan!

Tyler’s early and continued inspiration set him on a good path. He wins the first individual challenge. Way to go, Tyler!