EPISODE NINE

HOME SHOW

Engaging in their favorite post-boardroom pastime, the candidates in the suite debated who would return and who would be fired. The door opened and all speculation was put to rest - Erin and Chris walked in and everyone realized that John had been fired. In an interview, Angie said she wasn't surprised that Erin had survived another boardroom. She said that Erin was smart, knew how to talk and, Angie added, "It doesn't hurt, that you know, every time you turn around you see her ass."

At a Magna team meeting, Craig reminded the others that he was the only one who hadn't been Project Manager. Craig said that his time to lead had come. Then Craig took the unique approach of reading something to the team that he had written called "The Company You Keep." Craig said it would help everyone understand him better. But in an interview, Tana admitted she had no idea what the essay meant. After his dramatic reading, Craig led the group in prayer as everyone held hands. In his own interview, Alex said that the team liked Craig, but just didn't understand him. He said that Craig didn't speak clearly or communicate ideas effectively and Alex warned that those issues could spell big trouble for the team.

Magna and Net Worth met Donald along with two executives from Home Depot, Jose Lopez and Christine McVeigh, and learned that for their next task they would put on their own do-it-yourself clinic at a Home Depot store. Their clinics would be judged by Jose and Christine based on product involvement, customer involvement and originality. The winners would be rewarded while the losers would take another trip to the boardroom where someone would be fired. As always, George and Carolyn would be along to observe.

Angie volunteered to be Project Manager for Net Worth, saying that she felt like the Home Depot was the happiest place on earth. But during their brainstorming session, all Erin did was apologize, saying that she didn't know anything about Home Depot. In an interview, Angie was not thrilled and said that you don't have to shop at Home Depot to contribute on the task. In her own interview, Erin had no problem admitting she was out of her depth: "As a former beauty queen, I know what a crown is - but I don't know what crown molding is."

Magna had its own brainstorming session and Craig suggested a clinic about building and decorating a storage trunk. He said you could involve both customers and their children. Tana voiced concern that many stores sell pre-made storage boxes. She worried that the idea just wasn't creative enough. In an interview, Alex echoed the same concerns and called the idea "boring". Tana told Craig that she couldn't get passionate about a box. Frustrated with his team, Craig made the executive decision that their clinic would be about the storage trunk. When Craig was gone, Tana, Alex, Bren and Kendra commiserated. Tana was sure that Net Worth had a more creative clinic idea and soon, she feared, someone on her team would be hearing the words, "You're fired."

At their Home Depot store, Net Worth continued to brainstorm. Stephanie suggested creating a mobile kitchen island for their clinic - basically several shelves on wheels. Angie liked the idea. But when Stephanie and Chris tried to actually build one, they ran into all kinds of problems. For her part, Erin played with a level. In an interview, Angie called her teammates "pathetic" and "morons". Finally, after giving it another shot, Chris and Stephanie managed to put a working model together. Angie said it was "cute" but thought that there was one problem: it took the team seven hours to build.

Craig had his own set of problems on Magna as his team wasn't behind the product he had chosen. The others mocked the project by calling it "the box." Bren said that if Craig didn't like "box" they could call it a "pet coffin." In an interview, Craig said he knew that his team wasn't happy with the project, but that it was time to move forward. When they were alone, Alex and Bren pulled no punches. Alex called the project "the dumbest idea" that he'd ever heard and slammed it as "uncreative." Kendra and Tana said they didn't understand what Craig was talking about most of the time. So, Craig began to prepare for the clinic by himself. Later, Craig pulled his team together and accused members of having bad attitudes. Eventually, he got everyone to recommitt to the task. Although they may not have liked the trunk idea, everyone agreed to make their clinic the best it could be.

On Net Worth, Angie said that Erin had not been involved on the creative side and that she didn't know how to use a hammer, so Angie put Erin in charge of promotions - which meant Erin tried to gather Home Depot shoppers to attend the clinic. Angie, Stephanie and Chris presented the project to the patrons as they built a mobile kitchen cabinet. Stephanie told the Home Depot shoppers that one of the great things about the project was that they could have it done in fifteen minutes. Unfortunately, it was taking the team much more than fifteen minutes to build the cabinet - especially after factoring in the problems, like when Chris put the base shelf on upside down. Jose noticed how long it was taking the team to build the project and a customer commented that it looked too complicated.

At Magna's clinic, Craig and the others set out trunks in various stages of completion. Kids decorated a few of the painted trunks on display while the adults learned how to build them from scratch. The clinic was hands on, literally, as Tana helped children put their painted handprints on one of the trunks. In an interview, Kendra admitted that Craig was right on the mark with the box - it was simple, engaging and involved the whole family. She admitted that they hadn't given the idea the respect it deserved. Bren said that while Craig was brilliant, he had a hard time getting ideas across.

Finally, with both clinics over, everyone met to learn who had won the task. Jose criticized Net Worth for not involving the customer enough. He said that the team missed the do-it-yourself aspect of the clinic. On the other hand, Christine showered Magna with praise. She said that she had never seen a clinic that involved parents along with children. Plus, she said, the clinic inspired customers to buy products. The clear winner was Magna! For its reward, Magna, whose members were walking on air, would literally walk on air. They would board a 727 and experience weightlessness during a special flight offered by a company called Zero-G. Net Worth would stay planted firmly on the ground and return to the boardroom where someone would be fired.

In the suite, Angie planned her boardroom strategy. Even though she was convinced that Erin would survive because she "created some kind of electricity with Trump" and because she was "flirtatious and pretty," Angie was determined to bring her in to face the firing. But Erin wasn't worried. She said that every time she enters the boardroom, she's "poignant" and "accurate," while her teammates "talk themselves into the grave."

Decked out in flight suits and shades, the members of Magna Corp strutted onto the tarmac and into the G-Force One, a specially-modified Boeing 727-200 cargo aircraft approved by the FAA to conduct weightless flight. And soon, the candidates were floating around onboard as if they were in outer space. Everyone had a great time and Kendra called it the "coolest reward." But Kendra also admitted that no one besides Craig really deserved to be enjoying it.