"SEE YOU LATER, DECORATOR"

Is exactly what I would have said if BRAVOs TOP DESIGN was a terrible knock-off of it's mother PROJECT RUNWAY. Instead, I am hooked on this reality drama. It's amazing what a better budget can do, since the similarly themed HGTV DESIGN STAR bombed creatively last year. As for Bravo's now-trifecta of reality wonders (RUNWAY and TOP CHEF being the other two), it nearly rivals RUNWAY in entertainment value. The challenges are fun, the judges are inspiring (though none of them are Simon Cowell-mean). I hope host Todd Oldham gets a little more engaging, but for the time being he makes a pleasant Tim Gunn quasi-clone. As of this blog entry, nine designers remain. As each person leaves, the head judge adioses with 'see you later, decorator'. That part is a little cheesy, I admit. But overall TOP DESIGN feeds my jones until PROJECT RUNWAY returns.