#when bakers are still massively struggling during the final episode there is something wrong with the competition itself

[theoptimisticdaydreamer]

Now that the season is over and everyone is released from the constraints of the bake off tent, things need to be discussed.

The final highlighted an epidemic within bake off that has honestly been growing ever since it moved out of the BBC.

Which is that bakers are never given enough time to complete the tasks set for each challenge. 

Challenges get ridiculous and more difficult year after year as if they are trying to one-up the year before (which is not what bake off is about). 

The judges have become very subjective in their judgments. It is very biased and not at all fair and cohesive.

The hosting has felt very stagnant and the hosts (mainly Matt Lucas) fail to deliver on their entire purpose which is to uplift the spirits of the bakers. The hosts help set the entire tone of the show for the bakers themselves apart from when their bakes are being judged by Paul and Prue. Their “comedy” and their dialogue has really fallen flat and so instead of being lighthearted, they contribute to making the atmosphere even more stressed and tense. 

This is not a professional baking competition. This is not Masterchef 2.0. This should be a celebration of home bakers. And its veering further and further from that core purpose.

Everything essential to home baking which is flavor and flavor only is being overshadowed by all of these other criteria. They are being judged on creating dishes that they have never made before and will never replicate in a million years at home. 

What value is this serving?

You are not teaching them any valuable skills to take home and use with their families - simple things they can make in a short period of time that will taste delicious.

Instructions for the technical never include essential information and the judges just expect them to know all of these niche details- completely forgetting that they are all AMATEUR BAKERS who bake at HOME and who have busy lives. 

Baking is their hobby, it is a love language, it is not their career.

It is increasingly evident that Bake Off is setting up their contestants to fail and purposefully creating situations that bring out the bakers’ stress and anxiety.

I don’t watch bake off to see people fall apart over cake. I find no enjoyment in watching them struggle.

Bake Off has remained special to me because of the atmosphere between the bakers. The baker community.

I love it for the fact that the bakers are never competing against each other truly and help each other out at any given moment. The warm cozy vibes. 

That spirit is not found in any other baking show. Period. It is unique and so precious.

But that spirit is being overshadowed by the rotten framework of this new Bake Off.

There needs to be a fundamental restructuring of Bake Off before it loses everything that makes it special.

#gbbo #bake off #gbbo 2022 #gbbo commentary #something needs to change #this is ridiculous #not giving the bakers enough time or enough information #expecting more out of the bakers every single year #stop trying to one up the previous year #this isn't masterchef #this isn't a heavy duty competition between professionals #this is a warm calm competition between regular people who bake on a sunday morning because they want to #to these bakers food is a love language #not a competition and not a career #stop purposefully stressing these bakers out #stop your subjective judging that is biased and unfair af #it has to be said this wasn't a very good final in terms of execution #and that is the fault of the parameters of the challenges #none of the showstoppers looked showstopping #when bakers are still massively struggling during the final episode there is something wrong with the competition itself #also the hosting needs to be adjusted to be of value to the bakers and to actually be funny #lower the perceived stakes #bring back the educational value #bring back Mary Berry Mel and Sue