Nailed It!: Nailed It! Season 4

April 6, 2020 8:31 PM - Season 4 (Full Season)

Nailed It! returns for a fourth seasons with guest judges Matt Walsh, Adam Scott, Fortune Feimster, Gemma Stafford, Christina Tosi, Valerie Gordon, Rachel Fong, and Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas.

• "The One with the 90's Theme" - Fortune Feimster
• "Indiana Fails and the Temple of Slop" - Gemma Stafford
• "Chariots of Failure" - Gabby Douglas
• "Jungle Bungle" - Rachel Fong
• "Howdy, Failure!" - Adam Scott
• "The Big Bake Theory" - Valerie Gordon
• "I Do ... Hope I Don't Fail" - Christina Tosi

posted by Gary (9 comments total)

I forgot the first episode in that list. "Let's Get Lit" with Matt Walsh.
posted by Gary at 8:33 PM on April 6, 2020

The episode with Rachel Fong contained my favorite bit of the season with the deadpan delivery from Nicole:

Rachel: Jacques, how do people normally check if their cakes are done here?

Nicole: They buttercream it and then they put it on a plate and they go, "Nailed it!" and then we eat it and go "This isn't done."

My second favorite bit quickly followed with the very not deadpan Panic Button response.
posted by Gary at 8:37 PM on April 6, 2020 [6 favorites]

We all agree we want to be best friends with Nicole Byer, yes?
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:33 PM on April 6, 2020 [7 favorites]

I am being 100 percent serious when I say that this very morning, after the giving the preschooler her third stern talking-to before 9:00, I stopped, closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and imagined myself briefly as the guest host, and I just absorbed Jacques' resignation and Nicole's chipperness, and things were better for a little while.
posted by Etrigan at 6:11 AM on April 7, 2020 [5 favorites]

I binged this last night and it was SO what I needed. Jacques Torres....I just want to hug him. When he explained that the show gives him a chance to actually teach people, I melted.

But whose idea was it to have them make a root beer flavored cake? I can't imagine that ever being tasty.
posted by miss-lapin at 9:18 PM on April 7, 2020 [1 favorite]

Oh also the rocket cake is less than a foot smaller I am!
posted by miss-lapin at 9:25 PM on April 7, 2020

But whose idea was it to have them make a root beer flavored cake? I can't imagine that ever being tasty.

That's actually a good lesson from this show. When the challenge has fillers like jam, applesauce, or ice cream the results end up pretty tasty. When the contestants try to use extracts it ends up being too weak or completely overpowering.
posted by Gary at 10:18 PM on April 7, 2020 [1 favorite]

If it's a show like GBBO then yes using those kinds of extracts are in the game. But Nailed It? C'mon now, that's just unfair.
posted by miss-lapin at 2:30 AM on April 9, 2020

Nailed It is intentional failure. They’ve had good bakers review the show and the time limit means even a very very good baker would struggle to complete the task in the time allotted. It’s not about succeeding, it’s about failing with grace and laughter. That’s how the show avoids cringing and despair - no one can win in the classic sense.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 11:58 AM on April 11, 2020 [3 favorites]