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Judging the CoverGirl print and commercial shoots together, Anya and Whitney rightfully earned their Tyra-given spots in the final two. In her LashBlast commercial, Fatima looked easy and breezy, but spoke too fast. (''Her lookin' so perfect, coupled with her being robotic,'' Mr. Jay had said, ''made her look a little not human.'' ''If that was a toothpaste ad,'' said Nigel, ''it would be fantastic.'') Anya was so nervous and overwhelmed by being in Tyra's ''Top Three Baddest Chicks Club'' that she broke down in tears in the makeup chair. She couldn't pronounce arrivederci, but damn if she wasn't saved by her natural charm and a well-timed gust of wind through her hair. (Paulina said it best: ''She has moments where it's convincing and where it's honest. All together, yeah, it's a total wreck. But in little installments...'') Whitney's take was well-received on set, but I have to agree with Paulina that it was still a little too Miss America: ''And yes, I will feed poor orphans right after I have done this lash.'' Still, a larger-than-life presence is better than an artificial one. (Though seriously, who would sound natural telling someone she's ''on a get-noticed lash blast''?)

I was more than ready for Fatima's tearful goodbye — I didn't need to be told again how much I should relate to her. (But of course, I'm happy she's been so empowered by the experience and hope she inspires others.) So, on to the final two segments of the competition. First came Whitney's and Anya's blink-and-you-missed-them Seventeen magazine cover shoots, photographed by Nigel, in front of the largest American flag I've seen since I went to a PBR (Professional Bull Riders) event at Madison Square Garden and they dropped one from the ceiling to the dirt floor. They flashed three mock covers for each model (for the July issue of Seventeen), and after hitting the pause button, I'd have to give this round to Whitney. When she's on, she has such a beautiful, expressive face. Again, she picked the right time to shine.

NEXT: Stomp it to death


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