The Apprentice: Los Angeles—- 04.22.07 (aka The Season and Series Ends Here)

Posted Apr 22, 2007 by Chris Kuhn

Updated Apr 22, 2007 at 11:07 PM

Who will the Donald select tonight? It’s the evening of the season finale (and most likely, SERIES finale) of The Apprentice (NBC/Sundays) since no one I know actually watches the show on a regular basis anymore. Do you? If not, catch up with me here for a play-by-play of this evening’s live episode. I’ll be blogging as I watch this week. So let’s get this show rolling.

I previously made my predictions that there would be two women vying for the prize and certainly Nicole and Stefani are still in the race. But I had no idea we’d go into the final show with four candidates. It’s fairly safe to assume that Frank has no chance on Earth getting the job. He’s loud, brash, pushy and often annoying. His similarities to Trump are uncanny. I can’t see him selecting someone so in-your-face. If I were picking the final two, I’d easily pick James as my ultimate winner with Stefani getting the silver medal. I’m not sure Donald will narrow it down to two or just select among the four. I think he’s more drawn to Nicole’s energy and charisma over Stefani’s silent but steady race.

There’s fireworks at the Hollywood Bowl and it’s time for a recap of this year’s bizarre have and have-not season in sunny California. We’re reminded of some of the goofiest moments from this season. Carey’s bizarre swimsuit choice, Michelle’s decision to resign and the love thang between Nicole and Tim. Oh boy.

The four remaining candidates make their entrances. Stefani’s hair is much darker than we’re used to, Nicole looks a bit more sophisticated tonight but James and Frank haven’t changed a bit. What’s Frank wearing—- a fish suit? I think I just noticed it shimmer. Yikes. Way to look less slithery and slimy, Mr. Salesman! The Donald announces that he will be firing two candidates tonight and then selecting his final Apprentice. The audience sounds pumped and ready to go and look who that is in the audience…why it’s former winner Kendra, Randall and Shawn (sigh, say something, anything…I love that accent!)

The other candidates return to chime in about their favorites. Olympic athlete Angela says she likes Stefani and James, so vote for one of them. Way to make that strong commitment we can always count on from you, Angie baby. We get to watch those horrible Renuzit ads that both duos created last week – they are equally unimaginative, unfunny and unmemorable. As the Donald grills the contestants, it appears clear that he has no idea who he’s picking tonight but I have a hunch that he’ll let audience reaction influence his decision. I’m convinced that Trump wants to make a decision the audience will cheer wildly. So I’m predicting that Stefani and Frank will get knocked off first.

Trump gives us a peek at the two jobs he’s offering: one is a fancy new Caribbean resort and the other, two new skyscrapers in Atlanta. Not surprisingly, Stefani and Nicole are ready for the islands and James and Frank want to build skyscrapers (with Frank getting an unexpected chuckle from the audience as he admits his lifelong dream has been to erect skyscrapers). But who will get that big chance?

Okay, it’s time to find out who’s getting knocked out of this competition. In a swift kick in the butt, the Donald fires Frank and Nicole. Wow! James or Stefani will be declared the Apprentice. I’m shocked that my two remaining favorites made it to the end. We get to see their personal stories and learn that Stefani is tough at work and in her personal life, doing karate chops. Does she have a family or any friends or is she a robot? Hmmm. Maybe Trump will want a 24/7 hard-nose workaholic. Then, there’s James. He came to America as an immigrant to discover the American Dream and abandoned a lucrative job to start his own company. He’s married with two adorable kids, one of whom does a mean Trump impersonation. After watching these two TV packages, I’m sensing that the Donald is picking James. There’s really no argument to pick Stefani and have a good story. James would be a much more audience-friendly choice. Let’s see.

It’s time to do the hiring and during the final statements to both candidates, Trump almost gives it away as he tells Stefanie that he’s concerned about her flying under the radar all season but that he’ll find out. Hmmm…what does that mean? You know exactly what that mean. He turns to James and tells him - “you’re fired” and it’s official. Trump hires his second woman after six seasons. So, look out Dominican Republic residents - hard-as-nails, karate chop kicking Stefani is heading your way.

What did you think of tonight’s big finale? Does anyone out there even care? I cared about it…three seasons ago. I was hoping he might say this year it will be the Apprenti (in reference to whiny Randall of season 4) and pick both of them to handle the two separate jobs, since they each showed interest in different job environments. But that would have been too classy and positive a message to send.

So there you have it. Trump makes his decision and NBC puts this horse out to pasture. Adios, Donald.