We Rooted for it to Happen, We KNEW it Would Happen: Yay, CariDee!

We Rooted for it to Happen, We KNEW it Would Happen: Yay, CariDee! by Roxanne McDonald

The audience favorite for weeks in a row, CariDee rightfully takes the America’s Next Top Model win.

We voted for her a number of weeks in a row (well, at least two) as the favorite model. She was the season seven model with the most first call-outs. And the blogs and forum boards reflect our love of the fresh and fun new model—who is regarded as “spunky” and “friendly” (yes, you can be the antithesis of the stereotype of a beeyatch-supermodel…), who is the best bet prediction by others, and because of whom many are carefully but jubilantly rejoicing that “it’s about time a blue-eyed blonde wins!”

While the headlines praise the twenty-one-year-old

photographer from Fargo, North Dakota for beating out the “pouty” Melrose, they are being too nice, too politically correct: rather, the headlines should read with much stronger language. Melrose was cruel—to less than self-assured young women like Anchal. Melrose was bullish—interrupting dinner conversations to talk about, of course, herself more. And Melrose was bossy and invasive, controlling and telling the others how to do everything from walking to cooking to dressing.

Now, the antagonist’s reasons for deserving not to win are surely not the reasons the protagonist should win, granted. But CariDee held her own and came through with necessary skills, with poise, and with a darling sense of humor and humility. Remember her playful nudging of Nigel that

backfired, and how she humbled herself to apologize not only in person to him but at the panel level, in front, of course, of all America? Remember how she made the best of ridiculous shoots such as the floating boardwalk, wherein most girls bellyflopped but CariDee, as she stumbled and tottered, instead winked at the camera? Remember how she did the floating angel shoot in the frigid pool with hypothermia and without pissy retort? Remember her screwing up a few times of late and taking the panel’s criticism with nods and blinks—as opposed to eye-rolls and attitude?And oh yeah, CariDee isn’t too fat or too thin or too anything (not even too ambitious or too animated)—her body size and image as important as her countenance for “modeling” for young girls who are killing themselves over having an ounce too much of flesh…. Brava. It is about time a blue-eyed blonde won, just as it is perfect timing for the good girl to win over the mean. CariDee English joins the ranks of excellent past choices for America’s Next Top Model winners, sparkling all the way to the go-see and contracts along with Adrianne Curry, Yoanna House, Eva Pigford, Naima Mora, Nicole Linkletter, and Danielle Evans. CariDee English, congrats!
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