Posted in: TV | Tagged: gordon ramsay, Hell's Kitchen

Hell's Kitchen Season 23 Review: "Ketchup" Before Thursday's Finale

Before tonight's final round, we have thoughts to pass along as well back on the 23rd season of FOX's Gordon Ramsay-hosted Hell's Kitchen.

FOX's Hell's Kitchen is almost at the end of season 23, but before the finale airs and one brilliant head chef walks through that door and into success, here's a recap of everything that's led to this point ahead of this week's finale episode. Naturally, spoilers for the season are ahead (including the final two). You have been warned…

This season's theme is "Oops! All Head Chefs," and it's been relatively obvious that the cast of 18 head chefs are all competent and know not only how to cook but also the ins and outs of running a kitchen. Let it be noted that in the signature dish challenge, not a single chef used boxed pasta. Take note, future contestants—this is how it's done!

Challenges were a delight to watch as the dishes were creative without being try-hard or needlessly over-the-top, likely because everyone already earned a head chef job and weren't trying to prove they could be real chefs. While winning Hell's Kitchen is an honor, having security in who you are and your culinary talent makes for much more competent chefs and better television. This feels like what the "40-somethings" team from season 21 was intended to have been, though obviously, that didn't turn out that way.

The first handful of chefs to go home always feels like cutting the dead weight, but in this case, with the standard being higher this season, it felt like we jumped into a regular season much later in the competition, more or less. There was overall less petty drama and "back of house bickering" than in past seasons, though that doesn't mean there was none. Most of this season's drama between chefs stemmed from beef in the kitchen, but even then, it seemed to lack the vitriol and staying power grudge-wise – either that or it just wasn't focused on the way it was in past seasons. Either way, it makes for a much better edit and a stronger season with strong rewatch potential.

Despite the opening service being awful, with both teams being kicked out relatively early on, for the most part, services this season felt like they ran relatively smoothly (as smooth as an overstaffed competition-based Hell's Kitchen service can run), with chefs on both teams recovering rather quickly. There were still rough nights, especially early on, but compared to seasons with regular cooks as contestants, it was a breath of fresh air actually seeing a service completed successfully by episode 3.

In the end, Kyle, Egypt, and Hannah made final three (just edging out Whit, which is understandable with how she lost her cool at the last second in service). It was close, but in the final challenge, Kyle's menu scored nearly perfect and Hannah's menu just beat out Egypt by one point, meaning it's a Kyle vs Hannah finale.

The finale for Hell's Kitchen season 23 airs on February 6 on FOX – and streams the next day.

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