#cycle24ranking

[antmrankingsfr]

13. Maggie Keating

Poor Maggie, she got so much hate by the judges in a so short ammount of time. She definitely didn’t deserve to be the first out this cycle, though it probably was better for her, if that does mean that the judges only would have bashed her more otherwise.

I totally get that the fact she had a tendency to put on an act could irritate others, but the way it was pointed by the show was just too much. I would stand by saying she was just cast to be a filler, and that in the cycle of « diversity », the pretty white blond girl (Liberty already filling their role of the villain conservative one) needed to be kicked out first to put emphasis on this overall message. So you guys will understand that I believe she was unfairly eliminated in the first panel.

The reason for that is very simple ; her photo was just ridiculously strong for an elimination picture, it was hands down one of the best of the week. The fluidity of her body language was perfectly fitting of the concept, and I’m kind of amazed that she managed to pull off a good photos while she seemed like a mess on set. And she must have performed well despite what we saw ; I believe they were determined to eliminate her first, so had she produced only one bad pictures, they certainly would have shown it in panel. On the other side, her garden couture shot was her weakest. She kind of got lost in the dress, but the photography still did her a major desservice as the photo has been taken wierdly far from her and I don’t understand why they added smoke on her set and not in the other girl’s ones. Sabotage ? Possibly. Even then, she was serving a convincing fierceness with her face, that we already saw in her promo shot. In the end, it showed Maggie was able to bring different kind of energy on set, to adapt to different concept, and to do it successfully, so she could have grown as one of the strongest photo models of her cycle had she stayed longer.

It was harder for me to find other reasons to place her any higher, as she was cut so early on and didn’t got enough time to see her modelling abilities. Her walk seemed fine but that’s about it. But her photos showed enough promise and versatility to consider not placing her at the bottom. So, with her photos being overall better than Ivana’s and her apperance being more polished than Liz’, Maggie found herself sitting at the 13th spot of my ranking.

[antmrankingskd]

Cycle 24

My call-out orders for the twenty-fourth cycle, including individual call-out averages for each model. The first callout average listed is just for the weeks the model competed in (doesn’t include Avant Garden). Only the 4 girls who remained in the competition at the time of the Spider photoshoot had their call-out factored into this average (Kyla was technically 1st, Shanice 4th). The comeback contestants do not have the Spider photoshoot call-out factored into their first average. The average in parentheses includes the Avant Garden audition photos and factors in everyone’s Spider photoshoot call-out.

[antmrankingskd]

1. Jeana

My call-out average: 2.67 (3.07)

Panel call-out average: 3.45

Jeana was a dominant force in Cycle 24. I was immediately taken by her beauty right at the audition episode; her look was extremely unique and she looked amazing both with and without a wig on. I had a feeling that she would be photogenic and she proved me right again and again. Her portfolio was arguably the best of the entire cast, narrowly beating out Khrys for me personally. I gave her 5 total FCOs, tied for the most of any girl, and it blows my mind that she only received 1 from the judges (which was shared with 6 other models so that barely counts in my book). Her Pride Week and Dripping Gold shots are some of the best of the entire cycle, and she also knocked my socks off with her Maternity Shot and Trademark Video. The only picture of hers that I didn’t like was her strangely robotic Horror Story shot, and it wasn’t even too bad. She never once landed in my bottom 2 and only placed below 5th on two occasions. The only real critiques I can give her book is that she sometimes became too pose-y with her movements and also could’ve provided more variety with her facial expressions. However, those are minor complaints; her overall portfolio was magnificent and I was always impressed by her knowledge of what angles worked best for her gorgeous face. Jeana was also the queen of the runway. Her walk was by far my favorite in the cast; I remember my jaw literally dropping when I saw her strutting during the teach with Stacey McKenzie in Episode 2. She just had so much swagger and confidence that made her an immediate standout on the catwalk. I think the biggest hindrance to Jeana is her lack of height; however, she did an excellent job of elongating herself in a majority of her photos and her standout appearance helped to counteract her petite size. Jeana was fantastic, well-rounded model. She had an amazing runway walk, a superb portfolio, and an alienesque look that translated both in person and on film. She should’ve been another clear candidate for the win; in addition to being a consistently strong performer, her petite stature and alopecia made her fit the cycle’s theme of including atypical models. I wish Jeana had gotten more credit during her run from the judges, but I thought that she was the best all-around model of Cycle 24 and I’m happy to place her at the top of this ranking.

Jeana was a polarizing figure and had one of the most drastic changes in edit of any contestant I can recall ever seeing on ANTM. In the first half of the cycle she was clearly someone we were supposed to root for. They highlighted her struggles with alopecia and she even inspired Law and Drew to talk about their weight loss journey/image and vitiligo respectively at panel. She had a quiet confidence and was generally likable. Then around Top 7 week the script got totally flipped. Jeana was suddenly a pariah to both the judges and her cast mates. I’ll admit that she had an unlikable arrogant streak and came off as ruthless at times, but the show really played up those aspects of her personality towards the end. The fact that she was technically eliminated three(!) times was ridiculous; the only time an elimination would’ve possibly made sense would be if she had lost to Khrystyana in the end. Jeana was really screwed over by her edit and I can’t really blame her for being bitter and calling out the show after the fact.

[antmrankingskd]

2. Khrystyana

My call-out average: 3.31 (3.21)

Panel call-out average: 3

Along with Jeana, Khrystyana absolutely crushed it in Cycle 24. I’m confident in stating that she is by far the strongest plus-sized model to ever compete in the series. She was probably the most consistent contestant of the cycle. After the first three weeks she never placed below 5th in my call-outs and didn’t land in my bottom 2 or 3 until the final week. The only time she ever disappointed me was her Trademark video (and maybe the Paper Spread, but that seemed like sabotage), otherwise she continuously churned out strong performances. I gave her a grand total of 5 FCOs, tied for the most with Jeana. She was extremely versatile with both her poses and facial expressions, and I was always super impressed with the infectious energy she often brought to the photoshoots. She could be regal (Avant Garden), theatrical (Horror Story and Pride Week), emotional/vulnerable (Raw), commercial (Pantene), you name it. Her portfolio was just outstanding and easily the second best of the cycle. Khrystyana was a strong competitor outside of photos/videos as well, but at times she may have been overhyped. Even though I personally wouldn’t have given her all of her challenge wins (6 total), it’s impressive that she holds the all-time record for the series. Khrystyana had a very good runway walk as well. However, she was consistently lauded for her walk from day 1 when it wasn’t fully deserved and I wouldn’t have given her the win in either of the runway challenges. She had the tendency to rush and bopped her head too much at times; with some coaching her walk could’ve gone from good to great, but it just stayed at the same level the entire time. I’m not sure if her in person look was necessarily the most striking either when compared to some of the other girls, but she was obviously still stunning and modelesque. Overall, Khrystyana was in the top tier of contestants this cycle and it was devastating to see get her get eliminated at the time and in the way that she was. The panel had been on her train all season long and in the final couple weeks they just abandoned her in favor of Kyla. Even though I have Khrystyana ranked second (it’s basically a tie between my top 2) she would’ve been a perfect winner for what this season stood for. Being a 32-year old plus-sized model who performed insanely well the entire time should’ve made her a shoe-in to claim the crown, but I think that the cycle’s sponsors/prizes (which were allegedly fully revealed very late in the game) were more suited for Kyla. Khrystyana is still a winner in my heart, and I love that she’s been consistently getting a ton of work after the show!

Khrystyana is clearly the fan favorite of the cycle not just for her modeling skills, but for her personality as well. She was absolutely adorable, hilarious, and upbeat. I loved the way she seemed to be a good friend to everyone in the house and supported all of her fellow contestants. It was heartbreaking to hear her backstory involving sexual abuse, but it was inspiring to see how she grew and pushed past that to become a true role model and a voice for girls who have gone through similar situations. If Khrystyana had won I have no doubt that she would be one of the most beloved and well-regarded champions in the show’s history.

[antmrankingskd]

3. Kyla

My call-out average: 4.38 (4.5)

Panel call-out average: 4.17

Our Cycle 24 winner comes up just a little short of claiming her crown in my ranking. There’s no doubt about it, Kyla had a insane amount of raw potential. She had the height, a great body, and a strong and unique face. Despite the promise she showed, her run was far from spotless. She became more consistent towards the end of the competition, but in general her trajectory was something like this: one disastrous photo followed up a few consistently good to great weeks before crashing back to earth with a weak performance, rinse and repeat. When looking at my call-out chart I noticed that she was always either in my Top 5 (more often my Top 3) or in my bottom 2. Her worst moments (Pride Week, Paper Cover, and dear lord that Maternity monstrosity) were all dismal. However, her highest points were often sensational; her Horror Story, Raw, and Spider shots are all among the best of the cycle, and she also turned in strong performances in both of the video shoots as well as the Gold and Parachute photoshoots. Overall her triumphs were more numerous than her failures and she ended up with an inconsistent but still strong portfolio that I don’t think people give her enough credit for. The biggest reason Kyla’s book lacked consistency is that she didn’t completely have her angles mastered. It’s weird because some of her best and worst shots were delivered straight on. As beautiful as her face was she had to get the angle exactly perfect or her features just wouldn’t photograph well. I think the biggest source of frustration for me is that the way the judges evaluated her. They ignored or undervalued some of her high points, gave her free passes on some of her low points, and then massively ramped up the pimpage in the final weeks to justify giving her the win. The feedback was just never consistent with what she delivered. Outside of photos/videos, Kyla was a good runway model. At the start her walk was fine, but totally unremarkable. However, she improved with every outing and really impressed me in the go sees fashion show. I’ll admit that her final runway walk could’ve been better, but she still did a decent job (I could tell that she was fighting her nerves). I’ve said before that I totally understood why Kyla won the season: she fit the prizes and showed progression in the competition, plus she was very bookable. I was impressed by her transformation from total amateur to a real model both in her walk and her photos. However, she just didn’t have a strong enough track record to beat either of the girls in my top 2. I’m definitely proud of the way she’s been killing it with her post-show career lately though!

Kyla was one of the most likable girls in the cast for me. She rarely got into conflicts and I liked her fun, laidback demeanor. At the same time, I didn’t get a lot of substance from her. It kept getting hammered home that she was an activist, but not enough explanation/backstory was provided to make me intrigued about that aspect of her life. Other than that and her past brain trauma we didn’t really get a substantial story for her, especially for someone who ended up winning their cycle. Still really like the girl!

[antmrankingskd]

4. Rio

My call-out average: 5.64 (5.5)

Panel call-out average: 3.9

Spots #4-7 were basically impossible for me to rank, they could pretty much go in any order and it just came down to personal preference after my latest viewing of the cycle.

Rio is a truly unique case. I’m not sure if there’s ever been a girl who was literally my favorite personality at the start turn into my least favorite in the entire cast by the time of her exit. At the beginning she seemed so chill yet full of both confidence and charisma. Then the Patrick Starrr challenge happened. It was downright embarrassing to see her rant about the “universe aligning” and deserving to win the challenge solely because of that. Then she chose to attack Sandra simply for being pretty and came off totally delusional in the process. She followed that up by making rude comments about the brawny male models’ bodies in the Gold Paint shoot. Her and Jeana seemed super tight, but once the comeback week rolled around Rio completely dumped that friendship and became totally unhinged at the prospect of someone taking her spot (I can understand her frustration there, but the girl went full blown crazy). By the time of her exit I was so glad that she was finally departing the show.

On to Rio’s performance. A big reason that Rio made it this high in this ranking is her look and potential. She had a lot of modeling potential at the start, and the makeover Tyra gave her was phenomenal and enhanced that even further. Her walk was also very good, which helped her to get the most castings during the go-see challenge. She just had a very strong presence that she brought to most photoshoots and the catwalk. As for her portfolio, it was pretty decent. She started off strong since her Avant Garden shot, Maternity shot, and Trademark video were all fantastic. From that point on she began to slip down my call-outs each week, with the sole exception of her Paper Cover (a polarizing shot that I really liked!). However, even though Rio didn’t place too high most weeks she didn’t really take many bad shots. The only major missteps in her book were her Horror Story, Raw, and Parachute shots; otherwise her photos were generally solid. The big issue for Rio is that she lacked versatility when it came to her facial expressions. She typically just did the same fierce expression in many of her photos and it it wore thin very quickly. Even though I’d rate Rio’s overall portfolio as being pretty good, she didn’t make any significant progress and most of her best work was at the start; she just plateaued. All in all I think she made it about as far as she deserved; I wanted more when it came to her portfolio but her strengths in terms of her walk, her look, and her book-ability were quite valuable.

[antmrankingskd]

5. Liberty

My call-out average: 4.6 (4.86)

Panel call-out average: 7

Liberty is probably one of the most robbed contestants of Cycle 24. The funny thing is, at the auditions I instantly thought “oof, this girl is toast.” She was a pretty girl, but nothing about her made her seem like a model at first glance. Well, she proved me wrong right off the bat. Liberty was surprisingly kind of a force to be reckoned with when it came to photos, even if the judges didn’t always give her the full credit she deserved. She wowed me in the Avant Garden, Maternity, and Horror Story photoshoots, and her Pride Week photo was one of the best of that week and nowhere near elimination worthy. Her less impressive efforts (Beauty Sandwich and Spider shots) were a bit pedestrian but by no means awful. The true shining moment Liberty delivered was her Trademark video; she worked every frame and showed a fierce and fiery side I didn’t know she had. It was definitely one of my favorite moments of the cycle. One critique I can give her photos is that she hadn’t quite figured out how to photograph straight on. When profile or semi-profile her face was perfection and her bone structure looked fabulous. However, being direct to camera just makes her face look flatter than it is. The other thing holding Liberty back is her aforementioned lack of model presence in person. I think the makeover helped her out in that regard, but she wouldn’t stand out in a casting against taller girls with more striking in person appearances. Her walk was decent and she did well enough in the bubble runway to be in contention for the comeback spot, but she didn’t excel as much as some of the other girls. Despite those weaknesses I think that Liberty deserved to go much farther in the competition, and she managed to make it this high based on the strength of her portfolio. As much as I loved Liberty’s body of work I just wasn’t as fan of her as a person. I don’t condone her pro-Trump views at all, and her rude comments about redheads due to her makeover and her skewed opinions on feminism rubbed me the wrong way. I don’t really see her as being hateful, just someone with an extremely limited worldview and I hope she learns to grow past that.

[antmrankingskd]

6. Christina

My call-out average: 6 (5.75)

Panel call-out average: 6.33

Christina got a raw deal from the judges. I think she dug herself into a hole with her comment to Law at the auditions about her not liking everybody and vice versa (which honestly wasn’t an incorrect statement, but it wasn’t the time or place to say so). After that point the show painted her as a combative/abrasive person. In fact, I saw a lot of parallels between her and Victoria from Cycle 9, though Christina was a bit more outspoken. A judge would make some rude comment (calling her lazy in the Beauty Sandwich shoot or telling her that she couldn’t pull off a clean face look), and then once Christina spoke up to defend herself they would shut her down. Now I’m not saying that she was a perfect angel by any means. She tended to rub a lot of the girls the wrong way, came off as arrogant pretty often, and struggled with taking in critiques when they were valid. I wouldn’t even say that I liked her personality much if at all. But I also think that the panel was way too harsh on her in general.

Christina was a strong competitor and was definitely eliminated too early. I absolutely despised her makeover, but overall she was very modelesque. Her face was so fresh that I constantly forgot that she was the second oldest contestant, and even though she was on the shorter side I never really noticed. She had two standout moments in the competition; her Horror Story shot and her Spider shot in the comeback week were both phenomenal and showed that she was capable of magic. I would rate the rest of her portfolio outside of those high points as being good overall but nothing to write home about (excluding those standouts she never placed above 7th but also never landed in my bottom 2). Her first two shots plus her Trademark video were good but unmemorable, and her final three pictures had flaws but were still all passable. I also thought that she had a decently strong walk whenever a runway teach or challenge popped up. Christina was surprisingly well-rounded with her look, consistent portfolio, and good walk, and I think she deserved to go deeper into the competition because of that.