A Question Of Numbers

As Fashion Week quickly approaches, the Project Runway brass has us guessing once again as to what the end game for Season 5 will be. Unlike previous seasons, the schedule and episode plan have been clear from Week 1. The big question: how many designers will show at the filming of the finale in Bryant Park on September 12?

There are five challenges remaining on the broadcast schedule, two prior to the Fashion Week finale filming and nine designers still on the board. Here are the most popular theories on how this is going to shake out:

• The Major Mass Chaos Theory: single eliminations on Episodes 8 and 9 with seven designers showing at Bryant Park, four of those as decoys.
  
• The Minor Mass Chaos Theory: single elimination on Episode 8 and a double elimination on Episode 9 with six designers showing at Bryant Park, three of those as decoys.
  
• The Bravo Doesn't Care Theory: three or four show at Bryant Park with no decoys, spoiling the eliminations in Episodes 10 - 12.

Each of these theories has its own level of plausibility, advantages and disadvantages. Let's explore those in more detail.

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