The Masked Singer is a fun experience, according to most celebrities I've spoken to over the years, but if there is one complaint many of them have, it's the wardrobe they wear. The costumes are colorful, inventive, occasionally terrifying, and they're often uncomfortable. Contestants have had to wear ice vests to keep cool and have struggled with mobility. Kate Flannery was one of the latest to talk about her struggles and falling while wearing the Starfish costume in Season 11.
If viewers go back and watch Kate Flannery's performances as Starfish by streaming The Masked Singer with their Hulu subscription, they'll see some really interesting movements. I clocked it immediately and wanted to know from the actress if that was her committing to being a humanoid Starfish or movement restrictions from the costume. It turns out, the answer is a little of both:
I couldn't really move my legs. It was almost like having a rubber band at your knees. So I could only take short steps, and my arms couldn't go all the way up. So I was just kind of fighting for movement, and I was so excited by the crowd that I wanted to keep it up. So I was just moving as much as possible. I felt like I really was an animated Starfish.
Issues with movement aside, The Starfish I think is worthy of inclusion in the best costumes on The Masked Singer list. It's so colorful, cute, and fun to look at. Totally in the spirit of the show and a reminder that not every costume has to be super elaborate to be awesome-looking.
That said, it was a struggle to move in, and as I guessed, Kate Flannery did fall down one time while wearing it. Flannery said that while she did okay with it for the most part, the one off-camera fall she did take required a lot of effort to get back up:
It literally took eight guys to pick me up. Luckily, there was a lot of foam [in the costume], so I was fine. I was like, ‘Oh my God.’ But yeah, it happened. I was getting in a place and there was a little lip, and I just, I meant to jump, and I just caught it and I just ate it.
Fortunately, the actress was unharmed, which wasn't too surprising to me. I saw Kate Flannery's Meredith get hit by a car on The Office, so I figured it would take more than a trip on stage to bring her down. Fun fact: Flannery actually filmed that sitcom stunt (via Mashable), which immediately ranks her in my mind as one of The Office's best characters.
Kate Flannery's elimination meant that Goldfish is moving on to the finals, and I'm concerned. The Masked Singer Season 11 still has a problem in that it doesn't have a standout singer who I'd say is better than the rest of the pack, though it does heighten the thrill of guessing who will win. It also has made big singing nights like Queen Night feel a bit lackluster, especially when no one attempts to sing "Bohemian Rhapsody." At least I'm still having fun so far, even if I'm a bit bummed we had to say goodbye to The Starfish after just three appearances.
The Masked Singer airs on Fox on Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. ET. Season 11 is going by fast, so if you haven't had a chance to check out the new season and the latest panel judge Rita Ora in action, now would be a great time to catch up ahead of next week's episode.
