It was close, but Houston native Cesar Galindo survived another week of The Fashion Show: Ultimate Collection. He landed in the bottom two on Tuesday night's episode and I thought he was a sure goner since the other guy (David Caldwell) has a crush on another contestant (Dominique Pearl David) and the show has been playing up their flirtation.

But the judges realized Galindo was the better designer, even if he had an off night.

"What's worse — a talented designer who stretches himself too thin," host Iman said in her imperious comic tone, referring to Galindo, "or a talented designer who didn't stretch himself far enough (Caldwell)?"

This week's challenge — produce weekend getaway looks from objects from a lost and found — was uninspired, so it's no wonder the clothes were so bad. The previous week's challenge, where designers made gowns for the Real Housewives of Orange County and New Jersey, was much more lively (and the ultimate in Bravo cross promotion).

In that one, Galindo had whipped up a Scarlett O'Hara champagne gown for a daughter of one of the housewives — I guess there weren't enough real ones to go around — and liked the fact that her breasts were real. The judges didn't approve of that gown either, but fortunately for Galindo, there were gowns much, much worse — which says a lot because how can you design a gown for a client with no taste?

I thought the judges were unfair to Galindo's team, the House of Emerald, this week because they at least attempted to create a collection that someone would actually wear on the weekend. Galindo made three of the five pieces in the collection — a sparkling leopard top and palazzo pants made out of a bedsheet plus two one-piece bathing suits. I thought a turquoise suit with ruffles was dreadful while the judges hated the orange suit which I actually liked. I suspect no one in New York wears color, so that's why they wailed over the bright shade.

The opposing team, the House of Nami, won even though their all-black collection seemed more suited for a haunted house than a week at the beach. It was redeemed only by a dress that David made from a black umbrella and matching coat, which the judges picked as the only outfit in both collections with any redeeming value. David is so darn weepy, though, so expect to see the tears flow in next week's episode since her love interest is off the show.

Another crybaby, Cindy Ayvar, whined throughout much of the episode that Galindo didn't respect her although it seemed obvious that she is an inept designer. "I'm baby sitting a lot of people," Galindo said at one point. "Unfortunately, this is what I do."

The only relief from this tedium came from the show's breakaway star — Calvin Tran — a seasoned designer who is so over-the-top catty that, even though he shared the bottom rung with Galindo and Caldwell, I knew that there was no way that he would be sent home.

Memo to Bravo: Tran deserves a show of his own. He could out bitch any of the real housewives.