The problem comes from the show’s editing, which suggests producers couldn’t resist Elmi’s “bad boy makes good” narrative and climbed over a fair outcome to get to it.
Elmi isn’t much of a villain early in the season. He’s the average Top Chef redshirt, hovering in the middle of the pack thanks to his competition’s egregious mistakes. But in episode 13, “Oui Si A Challenge,” Elmi steps in to fill the season’s villain vacuum.
