"Face Off" Recap: "Siren Song"

Written by John Edward Betancourt

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

I've always had incredible respect for special effects makeup artists. The work they do is nothing short of spectacular and difficult and there was even a short time I dabbled in the field myself as more a hobby than anything and it gave me a greater appreciation for the craft as a whole.  

But for me it remained just that...a hobby. Writing is what I truly love but my respect for these intrepid artists, and yes it is a form of art, has never diminished. These guys and gals in the business work hard and for anyone who has ever wondered what the process or the work is like, they need not look any further than Syfy and the awesome show Face Off.  For those unfamiliar with the show, this is a reality style competition where amateur makeup artists come together from across the nation to show off their skills in weekly challenges, eventually of course crowning a winner that snags a bevy of prizes and a shot in the mainstream market.  

It's a show that's been on for nine seasons and one that I've watched religiously over the years, but only recently decided it was time to write about because well...it's an awesome show. The competition is hosted by McKenzie Westmore and judged by Hollywood makeup legends, Glenn Hetrick and Academy Award Winner Ve Neill and Creature Concept Designer Neville Page and their input, along with mentor Michael Westmore (another makeup legend in the business and McKenzie's dad) make for some incredible pieces of work on the show and last night's episode "Siren Song" was no exception. 

In fact this week's episode was extra special, since last week's season premiere featured no eliminations what so ever, leaving the team intact to climb aboard the USCGC George Cobb and set out to sea to begin concept work on this week's Spotlight Challenge...taking a beautiful, but deadly species of sea animal and turn it into a modern day siren. Now what I've always loved about this show is the fact that we see the entire process beginning to end, giving these creations a certain level of emotional attachment for the audience and the artists.

It makes the anticipation of seeing the final creation on stage all that more magical and sometimes you're so vested in a particular artist or their plan for the week that you find yourself disagreeing with the judges but this week there was none of that for me. Kevon and Meg truly pulled off the best siren of the night, one that was haunting and terrifying but gorgeous enough that you could not look away. But it should be noted that since no one went home last week, two artists had to go home this week and Sidney and Omar were the team whose makeup simply did not make the cut and once again I fully agree with the judges here, it just did not inspire.  

Either way, another wonderful season of Face Off is underway and I'm looking forward to next week's episode since it happens to be the 100th of the show and it looks like people will be getting married...in full prosthetics. Until then.  

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