America's Next Top Model Week 12: And Then There Was One

Tonight is the night our winner is crowned. The final three contestants are Annaleigh, McKey and Sam. The show begins with the girls receiving Tyra Mail announcing the Covergirl commercial and giving the girls the script for the shoot. On set Mr. Jay announces it's not only the commercial shoot but the photo that is taken today is the picture that will be used in the national campaign. Mr. Jay then announces there is a special guest that has been through what the girls are going through before. Enter Whitney. Boring and ultra blond, Whitney tells the girls about Wet Slicks Amaze Mint Lip Gloss, what the girls will be selling in their commercial. Obviously Whitney isn't working which is why she can spends weeks on end waiting for a cameo on ANTM in Holland.

The theme of the commercial, which takes place on a boat is three girls having fun spot a boy and chat him up then one girl ends up kissing him. Sam is first to deliver her lines, the first of which is in Dutch. Sam is low energy and boring which is a departure for her. Next up is McKey. Remember she bombed at the last commercial shoot. And she's doing it again. By take three she pulls it together and gets the lines out albeit shakily. Annaleigh brings up the rear. As the commercial begins she completely freezes. And begins to cry. "I saw my dream just kind of go down the drain," the 19-year-old figure skater, whose last Covergirl commercial Tyra deemed the best in show history, said afterward. It was sad.

Why these girls blow it in the end zone I'll never understand. I mean they know they have to do a commercial! With that behind us Jim De Yonker who shoots all the Covergirl campaigns comes to set to shoot the final 3. First is Sam who Jim finds boring. Annaleigh knows how to work her body but doesn't have a face. As Jim points out there is more to modeling than coming up with great poses. And then there is McKey who Jim singled out for being "cuckoo in the head." "I love that," Jim said. "She's definitely unique."

We fast forward to panel where the girls are introduced to the guest judge. And wow is he unattractive. This winning streak of cute Dutch boys has seriously ended. Dashed are my dreams of a country full of Hollandese hotness. The two last girls standing will be walking in Addy Van Der Krommenacker's runway show. Try saying that three times fast. The Covergirl commercial is shown for the first time. It's super cute cut together. Individual evaluations start with Sam. Nigel says she was distracted by herself. Addy says she looks great but she looked insecure. Her final photo is pretty but Tyra pronounces her smile not modelesque. It's Annaleigh's turn and we see her falter and fall apart. Tyra calls the commercial painful. Of her photo Paulina pronounces it a commercial head shot. Ouch. McKey's commercial is super cute but she speeds through it. McKey's best picture was "the first shot were any of the girls actually looks like a model," judge Nigel Barker says. The girls are sent away so the judges can deliberate.

We get the final "My Life As A Covergirl" commercial which is a recap of all the broing Whitney commercials of the past season. The best thing about this being finale night is we won't have to see Whitney not work again. Which actually means we'll never see Whitney again because she isn't a model and won't book a gig that has nothing to do with ANTM ever.

Back at panel the judges begin this evenings first round of deliberations. Paulina says Sam has a great smile and a great personality. Annaleigh the panel says doesn't have the face but can really walk. McKey has a great face but as Miss Jay points out she does have a bit of that Lurch thing going on. Can she walk? Well we're gonna find out as she's the first name called. The bottom two are Annaleigh and Sam. Tyra hits the line; "Two lovely girls stand before me but only one will be joining McKey at the fashion show this evening..." Tyra tells Annaleigh that she is the best poser in the competition but her face is commercial. Tyra then tells Sam she is really commercial so why was her Covergirl commercial so blah? And when the name is called it's Sam. Sam is a finalist and will be walking in the fashion show.

A tearful Annaleigh is sent packing. And I called it. The final two are McKey and Sam. They are spirited off to the shoot for the cover of Seventeen magazine. From there they are shuttled over to the hilly, hot pink runway that Mr. Jay set up for Dutch designer Addy van den Krommenacker's fashion show. It's a very long runway and the girls will have ample time to show whether they can or can't walk. Both girls look stunning in their first looks and the show begins. Oh and btw the clothes are stupid. The runway is hot and the girls literally have to run up the highest hill and then walk down stairs. This is much more difficult than it seems. Tyra comes back and congratulates the girls and we're off to final panel.

The judges are announced as are the prizes. A contract with Elite. A spread and a cover with Seventeen magazine. And a $100,000 contract with Covergirl cosmetics. The judging begins with McKey. Miss Jay likes McKey's runway walk. Tyra says McKey "didn't just serve dress, (she) served face." Nigel says McKey needs to be a touch more elegant walking in heels. Paulina loves McKey's long legged gait. Onto Sam who Nigel says came out and looked fantastic. Miss Jay says Sam "did absolutely exquisitely." Tyra tells Sam that she could see Sam's nervousness in the way she held her mouth.

We now get my favorite part of the final panel, the head to head photo comparisons. 1st week the girls relied on modeling 101 says Nigel. These pics showed potential. The swimwear competition was next and both girls shined. It was the week after the make-overs. Now on the Amsterdam photo shoot. McKey killed that photo. Her legs went on forever. Now it's the Tyra shoot where the girls did a natural shot and a glam one. Sam's natural shot stands out as one of the best photos of the competition. Tyra calls McKey's editorial shot amazing. Sam's editorial shot where she is staning on tip-toe stands out for me as the shot of the season. The girls file out and the judges begin final deliberations. How bittersweet, my favorite show is about to end for the season.

Deliberations begin with Tyra announcing that they have two real models in the running. "They're both really nice girls, but it's not a personality contest alone," says Nigel. Sam looks like your quintessential catalog model but can turn it on as an editorial model is the consensus from both Paulina and Tyra. "I said earlier in the competition that I didn't see a star," Nigel said of McKey. "I saw a star today." Neither one has a great runway walk but McKey has the better runway body. It's a tough call side by side as they are both really pretty, very sweet girls. But there can be only one winner.

The girls file back in and on a rainy night in Holland two teary girls stand before Tyra with the dream of stardom written on their face. Tyra doesn't draw out the suspense. America's Next Top Model is McKey. McKey runs up to Tyra and picks her up as they hug. Tyra goes over to Sam and congratulates her and tells her to "go out there work it and kick ass." In her exit speech a tearful Sam says "I never saw myself as a pretty girl. I don't ever see myself as a pretty girl. But now I do." I must admit I got a little choked up. McKey screams and yells and leaps into the air. She says that since she was 15 she tried to model but never got anywhere and this was it. If it didn't work she was done. And a dream comes true.

What an ending to a great season! McKey is America's Next Top Model. Until next season readers I'll miss you.