Half the fun of watching America’s Next Top Model is making an early prediction of who you think (or hope) will win. The other half is digesting the unfathomable drama that occurs when 14 high-maintenance femmes are bunking in close quarters. In that respect, Cycle 10 of The CW’s top series came out last night with fists-a-flyin’. Thirty-five girls endured schoolmaster Miss J’s Runway 101 prep course, and 20 finalists were eventually pared down to 13. Tyra decided to add one more model, who turned out to be Columbus, Ohio gal Dominique. Now, where to begin? How about the oddity of those three uncanny look-alikes: Allison, who could be Alyssa Milano’s twin; Kimberly, a less-attractive Reese Witherspoon; and Claire, who’s got the genes of Lilith on Frasier! Somalia-born Fatima has a horrific backstory, but ignited the hot temper of punk Marvita (back after Cycle 9 rejection and therapy). Whitney proudly—and loudly—carries the “Plus-Size” banner; awkward non-conformist Lauren will provide oodles of pity laughs; Anya’s likely to have a sock stuffed in her babbling mouth; and Amis is intent on playing comedian. Can Claire endure two months away from her still-nursing baby? Will overconfident Dominique eat humble pie? Who knows? But at the end of the ride, my Top Two picks to win this New York battle are Allison, who has shown creativity at every turn thus far; and Fatima, who drew comparisons to supermodel Iman. Click here to see photos of the 14 candidates.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 26th, 2008 at 2:04 pm and is filed under Top Model. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.