Project Runway’s New Format Is Seamlessly Bad — and It Can’t Make It Work

Does Project Runway realize that we’ll return every week?

I’ve already devoted myself to not only tuning into this season despite not having seen it in years, but watching it to completion.

Why? Because I’m legitimately invested in it. That’s why Project Runway needs to stop undermining itself and trying to manipulate viewers at the same time.

We’ll be back next week. Can you please stop with the cliffhanger endings?

The first time seemed like a standard hook that was necessary for the drama, but now it seems they’ve committed to this new formatting, and it’s atrocious.

This editing is an absolute nightmare that has somehow managed to suck out all the joy and personality of this series — you know, what made people tune in for two decades in the first place.

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And they’ve instead manufactured the heck out of it, so that it feels like a shell of what it used to be.

The formatting does not fit.. It’s a malfunction at its absolute finest, and ironically, instead of masking that it likely returned with a shoestring budget, it’s merely highlighting it.

This season has fewer contestants. It feels like even less because they spend their limited time barely giving us a glimpse into their personalities and only focusing on the same four people.

The twins, Ethan/Utica, and Veejay, are always onscreen. You can usually find them in a battle of the wills, vying to see who can come up with the snarkiest, sassiest, and most memeable content to stir up the most drama.

Everyone else is just there. Sadly, this, combined with the fact that the judges cannot even remotely hide their bias, merely telegraphs who will likely win the season by the end.

But some of the appeal of Project Runway used to be actually getting to know these designers as people, investing in them and their respective stories, and connecting with them.

Following them on shopping trips to get products and fabrics for their designs used to be a highlight. Hell, even those vulnerable and sometimes drama-filled and scandalous moments that followed hard-core hard choices were revealing and more insightful.

Now, we barely get to know anyone, who they are, and what they stand for, because Project Runway shortchanges us on the journey.

We don’t even spend as much time in the workroom as one would expect. It’s as if Project Runway can’t even figure out how to make itself high fashion on a budget.

If they can’t do it, why are we watching contestants struggle to do the same?

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The series also has the glaring absence of its staples. A Tim Gunn-less version of Project Runway would always feel like we’re missing out on something, but Christian Siriano has his own unique presence that mostly works.

But there’s a distinct lack of mentorship that no longer exists on the series. Sure, the designers are so arrogant that they often fail to heed or even invite criticism.

However, even the criticism doesn’t feel constructive anymore. It’s like the contestants and judges are in a battle for who wants to star in the preview clip for the next episode, and that’s it.

Who can say the sassiest, meanest, or most shocking thing from the episode?

I love Law Roach’s addition to the series because who hasn’t fallen for his designs and how he dresses Zendaya? She slays every time she steps out on a carpet.

And he has no filter, which can be fun, especially when he’s humbling someone who needs it. Bitchy? Oh, he’s definitely that, but it’s standard fare to have a more critical judge in the brood.

However, he also feels like the only judge who single-handedly has beef with some of the contestants. Even in the amusing moments, his bias is overwhelming.

Did he really think Yuchen’s terribly constructed soccer ball outfit won that creativity challenge? Or was he trying to ensure that he didn’t accidentally choose someone he doesn’t like or vibe with on some unusually personal level as the winner?

Putting the least-experienced JUDGE at the forefront of this established series doesn’t work as well. Yes, even if that person is the acclaimed Law Roach.

We no longer have that balanced tone that pulls a judging session together. Heidi Klum feels like she’s phoning it in when she’s there, and there’s no real word or acknowledgment when she isn’t.

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Nina Garcia is gone more than she’s there, and even not mentally and emotionally there when she is physically there. Her presence feels more like a courtesy than a desire, and it’s reflected in the muted criticism she delivers during the judging session.

And it’s as transparent as day that this is a Disney production, as they’ve clumsily inserted ways to showcase that often with various themes.

Hey, there’s nothing wrong with a little commercialization, but they don’t play it out well either.

What good is having Abbott Elementary stars make a cameo in the workroom if they weren’t going to stick around for the runway and to see the final pieces?

Chris Perfetti and Lisa Walters are iconic in their own right and would’ve been fabulous judging on a panel. My excitement for their appearance was all for nothing in the end. Boo. Hiss.

Full-blown missed opportunities of excellence left on the cutting room floor.

These are the things that are throwing longtime Project Runway viewers off.

The series doesn’t have to be as fabulous as it was two decades ago. Realistically, we can make peace with that.

However, this new format is a faux pas. Can we bid it adieu now? Auf Wiedersehen? Goodbye, and good riddance?

It’s not working.

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