Hey Apprentice fans! I hope you all enjoyed Sunday's episode. This week started with a particularly interesting performance by Arsenio, who, normally quite calm, was flying off the handle and enraged by his issues with Aubrey. The drama continued between Lisa and Dayana... and quite frankly, I was concerned with Lisa and Dayana being in the same room. Lisa continued by beating down Arsenio for his comments about Aubrey. Given these explosive dynamics, I was very much looking forward to the task ahead, which was for Entertainment.com... quite fitting!
This week, the teams were tasked with creating a 60-second commercial for Entertainment.com. As we delivered the task to the teams, Dayana stepped up rather quickly without consulting with her team, causing one of probably a hundred eye rolls from Lisa. On the other team, Teresa quickly volunteered to lead Aubrey, Clay, Arsenio and Paul Sr. Given the drama last week, I was hoping that Teresa could maintain control and bring home a win considering her first loss as PM was by $14 dollars.
The teams split up, and Lisa was less than thrilled to be "stuck" with Lou and Dayana. However, as the day went on, once they formalized their concept, Dayana and Lisa seemed to be working well together. Perhaps it took Dayana stepping up as PM to control the situation and hopefully earn her keep for another week in the Boardroom. Over on Team Unanimous, Paul Sr. stepped into a new role, losing his cut off T-shirt and jeans and adding a nice pullover sweater. I thought it was pretty clever to utilize the talent that they had available, and it seemed that the team was getting along well. Their concept however pushed the envelope, which concerned Teresa, but they went ahead with it anyways. If that is a criticism from the executives, then Teresa's head may very well be on the chopping block.
Team Forte's concept was going well, and they seemed to all - shockingly - be enjoying themselves! Lou however did feel hurt that his ideas were not being utilized, although it looked to me that he may have been trying to compensate for his lack of computer skills. Dayana put him to work on banners, but he did not know how to execute, contributing very little to the team. It seemed that Dayana was in control, but the major elements were driven by her much more outspoken teammates, Lisa and Penn. Interesting tactic and I was curious to see how it all would unfold in the Boardroom. Lisa's opinion of Lou was further solidified on this task, and I knew that she would have a lot to say to my father when asked how he performed on this task.
As Teresa and her team headed to the editing room, I was concerned about their timing. As usual, the clock was getting the best of them, and I truthfully didn't think they would have time to finish. They finally were able to put something together though that looked great. Aubrey voiced a few very large edits that, from a timing perspective, could not be made. Clay was thinking that this could have been another strategy for the Boardroom. As every season goes by, it's interesting to watch the moves that are made as the competition gets tougher. All of the team members are constantly analyzing each other's every move and strategizing as to how to avoid those two words in the Boardroom.
The teams made their presentations, and I thought both did a great job. They were different types of commercials but both were entertaining. It was time for the Boardroom where Ivanka and I would deliver the ultimate feedback from the executives.
We began the Boardroom this week with my father asking Dayana if she had a weak player, and she ultimately responded that it would be Lou, a common thread for the past couple of tasks, aside from Week 5 when he danced his way into a win. There was a lot of tension between Lou and Lisa, Lou threatening that if Lisa was a man he would have thrown her through the wall for calling him a loser. Not a great look on either side. Lisa however did change her opinion of Dayana and almost... complimented her? A far cry from earlier tasks.
Over on Team Forte, it was much more peaceful than last week, and they all seemed to get along, not calling out any particular team member for not stepping up. We showed off the teams' videos and discussed why Dayana didn't put herself in the video. Lou chimed in that he suggested it, with Lisa firing back that he only speaks up while in the Boardroom. From that moment on, I knew that Lisa had it out for Lou during this Boardroom and would not let him get away with any notion that he put in his standard "110%" for this task.
When we asked the teams who they thought had the better commercial, generally out of hard work and pride the teams almost always choose their own commercial or work. Well, not this week. Lou actually stated that he liked Teresa's commercial better. I knew that we would certainly be discussing this in further detail if Dayana's team lost. We delivered the results, and ultimately the judges felt that Team Forte, led by Teresa, had a better commercial. It was a great win for Teresa and the NephCure Foundation, an incredible cause. My father excused Team Forte from the Boardroom and it was time for Lou, Dayana, Lisa and Penn to battle it out.
Considering that Penn had to leave during the task for a prior commitment, Dayana did not feel that he should have to stay in the Boardroom. So he was safe and headed back to the war rooms. Between Dayana, Lou and Lisa it was a tough choice. Dayana was the PM, and when you lose the task as a PM, much of the burden falls on your shoulders. However, Lisa being very vocal and constantly controlling the creative process could make her at fault this week. Overall though, it was clear that Lou did not contribute very much, and his comment about preferring the other team's commercial showed huge disloyalty. Each week, Lou prides himself on being a team player and yet this week he displayed just the opposite. Growing up, my father emphasized loyalty as being immensely important, and especially in our company, that is something we will never waver on. I think Lou is a great guy with a lot of fight, but unfortunately this week he showed a side which would not take him on to the next week.
I hope you all enjoyed this week's episode. Looking forward to next week already; the competition gets even tougher, and the celebrities left will continue to fight tooth and nail to be the next Celebrity Apprentice. Please share your thoughts with me on Twitter www.twitter.com/donaldjtrumpjr and on my FB page www.facebook.com/donaldjtrumpjr