I wasn't even planning on watching Season 2 of Bravo's "Top Model" rip-off. I was so disgusted by the behavior of almost all the models by the end of Season 1, and so frustrated by the way the show was run, that I basically wrote it off as soon as it ended last year. Then when I saw the cast for this season, and I especially wanted nothing to do with it. Apparently genuinely ugly/trashy people can be supermodels now? Because that's the only explanation for the fugliness that defines most of this season's 16 contestants.

But you know what? After getting sucked into last night's episode following the pointless "Top Chef" reunion, I ended up liking it even more than the premiere of "Top Model." I know! I'm as shocked as you are.

I give most of the credit to the massive changes they've made to the talent and the formula. Season 1 co-host/judge Nikki Taylor is out, replaced by Australian model Nicole Trunfio, who is now the girls' mentor. (I'm ambivalent about this switch; Taylor's sleepy voice was annoying, but Trunfio seemed awkward and clueless last night. And also: who?) Tyson Beckford stays on as the host and male mentor, but is not on the judging panel. That has been completely overhauled, and now features rule-breaking model Jenny Shimizu (good, although she barely said a word last night), insanely dressed photographer Perou (he's a bit of a dick, but I like him), some bitchy guy named Marlon (no idea), and superstar fashion designer Catherine Malandrino. That last addition to the panel is a mistake. Love her clothes, and I even found her charming during her guest stint on "Project Runway" Season 3, but last night she was virtually unintelligible in her critiques. You could see the poor model she was scrutinizing trying to translate her heavy French accent into comprehensible English.

But the biggest change, and what might actually keep me watching the show this season, is that the viewing public no longer decides who gets eliminated. YES! That was the biggest flaw with this show last season, as week after week contestants with very real modeling potential (Jacki, Stephanie, and especially Shannon) were sent home while Ben and Ronnie were pushed through because of a primarily gay audience that was crushing on their totally fake showmance. (I would add that Ronnie is a decent catalogue/runway model, but he's just not versatile. Hot as hell, but he had no business making it to second place.) By letting the judges decide who stays and who goes we have a shot at an actual modeling competition this time, and that excites me.

What does not thrill me, however, is that most of the decisions made by the judges last night were pretty suspect. At episode's beginning the models were paired off to model together for a bizarre glass-box-lifted-by-a-crane shoot. Photographer/judge Perou picked the winner and gave it to stunning Salome, who was definitely very good, although I think Sandhurst got robbed. He DEFINITELY got robbed on the final catwalk, when the episode win and immunity were given to Jordan, who is a) really common looking and b) annoying as all hell. I concede that she did a great job working a very difficult dress, but I just can't stand the girl, and I don't see the potential. Sandhurst, on the other hand, was amazing throughout the episode and is definitely the front-runner at this point.

The other bad call was who got cut. It came down to three guys, inexperienced pentagon-faced Colin, terrifying androgynous Chris, and pugnacious beefcake Ken. And of course Ken got the shaft. It was inevitable. He wasn't great in the photo shoot, he was beyond stiff on the runway (but, as Shimizu pointed out, what an ass), and during the measurement taking he was told point blank that he was nowhere near model shape. Ken has a mug - big chin, his nose is kind of jacked - and a football player's build, with a distinct layer of chunk. That is to say, he is totally my type. So it pained me when he got cut first. But at least he didn't have to lose any weight (I find the overly "cut," scrawny guys kind of disgusting) and can go on being the delicious hunk he is.

All that aside, I don't think he deserved to go home before Colin, whose wobbly walk is among the worst I've ever seen, and creepy Chris, who is wholly unattractive whether he's trying to be a boy or a girl. He makes my skin crawl, and he's a terrible model to boot. Please get him off my screen, show...