Although the title of this post is "It" show, I'm not sure that's the case anymore for Project Runway... After so much damage made to the brand with lawsuits, the move to Lifetime and Los Angeles, something has changed in our perception of Project Runway.

While watching the 1st episode last night, I couldn't keep thinking about this difference - it lost the glamour, gloss and the appeal of exclusivity the fashion world has, which drove people to watch the show at the beginning. It provided us a sneak peek behind the curtains of what magazines are so good in guarding. Once it looses that appeal, it just becomes another reality tv competition, just like Top Chef and many others - well made and interesting for people who care about this niche, but not more than that. Lindsay Lohan presented as a guest judge just proves this point - she might be still considered a celebrity by some (although hasn't produced anything meaningful besides tabloid headlines in years), but Lindsay is not a respected fashion figure (please forgive me, but her line of leggings doen't make her one).

Another issue with Project Runway is lack of characters development. Obviously like any tv series they have to keep the same format, but I feel the main characters we see every season could use a bit of an update: Heidi Klum and her almost robotic hosting (can someone please change her script once in a while?), Tim Gunn and his caring persona (it's sweet to see him helping designers to overcome challenges, but we need to see more aspects of Tim's personality) and obviously the judges - Michael Kors and Nina Garcia, which aren't as sharp as they were in the first seasons.

Overall, Project Runway will have to step up its game to get back on the A-List, even if this requires making some serious changes. I would be excited to see some innovation in challenges (red carpet challenges couldn't be more boring), in guests brought on the show (I'm sure they can do better than Lindsay) and especially in pushing the designers to create greater pieces (I do miss Austin Scarlett's letuce dress some times)....