Tuesday, November 20, 2007

The Fans Revolt - Where is Tim's Take?

Everywhere you turn, Runway fans are asking the same thing: where is Tim Gunn's blog? Where is his podcast??

It almost doesn't matter what subject we post on BPR these days, someone inevitably asks if we know where these immensely popular features have gone. Our repeated attempts at getting to the bottom of this with our friends at Bravo have only elicited a cryptic response from Andy Cohen and a stock answer from one their press reps that "...Bravo is working on pulling all the elements of the brand new "Project Runway" site together...".

Don't you think it would have been nice for Bravo to get the site pulled together before the new season launched? It's not as if they haven't had enough time. Bravo has had more than a year to plan since S3, primary filming on S4 was completed months ago and the premiere date was set weeks in advance. And yet the Season 4 site didn't go live until well after the premiere last Wednesday, missing some of its most popular features with no explanation.

Meanwhile, we are being encouraged to check out the plethora of other blogs available at BravoTV.com. Let's see what they've got: there's Nina's blog; the "Burning Questions" blogs from Simone, Ricky, Elisa, Rami, Christian and Victorya; former contestants Alison Kelly, Daniel Vosovic, Malan Breton, Nick Verreos and Laura Bennett; the poor PA blogger who apparently wasn't allowed to tell us what her name was, and for some odd reason Lauri from "Real Housewives" is featured front and center on the Project Runway blog page.

Borrowing shamelessly from Tim: that's a whole lotta look...

Joining Tim Gunn on the missing bloggers list this season is Michael Rucker, who built a cult following last season with his insider dirt and irreverent humor. We also miss Andy Cohen's campy, fun "Watch What Happens" online after-show.

And good luck trying to download episodes online. NBC Uni has severed its ties with iTunes and recently launched its own poorly reviewed video download source, NBC Direct. Oh, you can see "Poker After Dark" there, but no Project Runway. For a network that frequently flaunts its reputation for innovative online content, these are glaring, inexcusable holes in the lineup for its franchise program.

But let's be honest: its Tim's Take we miss the most. His blog and podcast were the perfect complement to the live episodes and fans flocked from all corners to read and hear what he had to say. Bravo has dropped the ball and as usual, the fans are left to suffer.