The Masked Singer recap: Grandpa Monster revealed as controversial internet star
Warning: This article contains spoilers about The Masked Singer season 5 episode 4.
As the popular adage goes, "When one Masked Singer contestant walks away, another replaces him dressed like a crab." That's how I remember it, at least?
Tonight, Grandpa Monster was eliminated, and Group B's first Wildcard, the Crab, crawled in to wow the panelists.
The spry senior performed first, lighting up the stage with Joan Jett's "Bad Reputation." And for this week's on-stage clue, he presented his first crush — Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
Then, the Piglet gave us boy band vibes with his rendition of Andy Grammer's "Good to Be Alive (Hallelujah)." And his first crush clue turned out to be Meg Ryan. Ken Jeong guessed NSYNC's JC Chasez, while Nicole Scherzinger went with Austin Mahone.
And because there was a knight shown in the Piglet's clue package, Robin Thicke guessed Jordan Knight while Jenny McCarthy went with the New Kids on the Block member's brother and bandmate, Jonathan Knight.
Black Swan then killed her performance of Shawn Mendes' "In My Blood," and revealed her first crush was D'Angelo. Because of the contestant's impressive pipes, Scherzinger guessed she was Demi Lovato. Other panelists inferred Black Swan went through family troubles because of her clue package, so Thicke went with Ashlee Simpson, while Jeong earned some sad claps and a Jar of Shame bill for his Lindsay Lohan guess.
Then guest host Niecy Nash, who we wish would stick around forever, had some fun revealing childhood photos of Scherzinger and Jeong, as well as their first crushes. The Pussycat Doll actually said Jonathan Knight was her fave back in the day, while the comic was infatuated with Winona Ryder. The entire segment was worth it just to see a photo of Jeong back in the day.
We resumed performances with Chameleon, who commanded the stage with his smooth and steady delivery of "21 Questions" by 50 Cent featuring Nate Dogg. Afterward, Chameleon revealed that his first crush was Salma Hayek.
"We understand each other, Chameleon," Thicke responded. Okay, easy there, Cheetah print.
Chameleon's tall stature and rapping prowess, plus clues about his fashion-forward side (and penchant for cheese, apparently?), had Jeong saying Iman Shumpert, Scherzinger guessing Dwyane Wade, and McCarthy turning to 2 Chainz.
Then, it was time to reveal the crustacean that Cluedle-Doo referenced a few weeks back — the Crab!
Last week, Group A's Wildcard contestant Orca was a bit underwhelming for this so-called "game-changing" season, but Crab clawed the spotlight with a truly passionate performance. He tugged on our heartstrings with his cover of Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine," and this was after a clue package full of references to experiencing loss and tragedy.
Why is The Masked Singer making us teary eyed on a Wednesday night?
Both Jeong and Thicke thought Crab could be former New Edition members; the comedian went with Bobby Brown, while Thicke guessed Johnny Gill.
Finally, it was time for eliminations. Upon hearing that his time was up (on the show), Grandpa Monster theatrically fell onto the floor. If he was actually an elderly celeb, he would've broken his hip by now.
The panelists then revealed their first impression guesses from Group B's first episode. Most of theirs weren't too embarrassing. Thicke stuck with his initial prediction, Johnny Manziel; Jeong had Emmitt Smith but went to Kevin Hart; and Scherzinger guessed Cam Newton before settling on YouTuber Jake Paul. Meanwhile, McCarthy guessed Morgan Freeman. You read that right. Maybe this is karma for making all those "Ken Jeong wrong" jokes?
Hearing the sheer ridiculousness of that guess, Thicke had to walk away in disbelief. McCarthy eventually settled on WWE star the Miz, but I hope her bad guess haunts her for the rest of the season.
Grandpa Monster then unmasked himself to reveal controversial YouTube star and Jake Paul's older brother, Logan Paul.
Emma McIntyre/Getty Images
Some of Grandpa Monster's clues applied to both Paul brothers, like the "bad reputation" line from episode 2. The shooting star in a spiderweb imagery also worked for either, as the two are "web stars." And tonight, the boxer dog and selling out arenas clues could've referred to either sibling's boxing and touring careers.
The Logan-specific references seemed to be the 6.2 ton weight (his height is listed as 6'2") and the chalkboard with x's and o's in the shape of a six, as he was a star football player in high school and first got famous off Vine, the six-second video sharing app. The "star pupil" factoid also applied to the older Paul brother, as he claimed to have had a 4.7 GPA in high school. Additionally, he studied engineering at Ohio University on a full academic scholarship, according to one article.
Then, the castaway clue in Grandpa Monster's second package tonight could be a nod to the Castaway-esque comeback video Paul made following his widely criticized decision to film in Japan's Aokigahara forest, known as the country's "suicide forest."
After his unmasking, Paul told the panelists that "singing is so scary for me."
However, "being in this costume, ironically, as restrictive as it is, you feel so free in here," he added. "It was a lot of fun. But Imma be honest, guys, I never stood a chance, what am I doing here?"
He also said he was rooting for Black Swan to win, before he gave one final performance of "Bad Reputation."
Next week, Group B returns to battle it out for a place in the Super Eight, and another Wildcard contestant enters the competition for a chance to steal a spot in the game.
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