Ink Master (2012–…): Season 13, Episode 1 - Rep Your Region - full transcript

Teams built with artists from the country's four regions, West, South, Midwest and East arrive to battle. Only the strongest artist will survive the turf war earning a one hundred thousand dollar prize and the title of Ink Master.

ouncer: This season
on "Ink Master,"

Teams built with artists

from the country's
four regions

will go to battle.

- The turf war
starts right now.

narrator: West...

- The west is crushing it
right now.

The other teams know that
we're good at tattooing.

narrator: South...

- I gotta have you
as mentally strong as possible.

We gotta represent the south.



narrator: Midwest...

- We are the Midwest,
and as far as I'm concerned,

[bleep] the rest.

narrator: And east...

- Nobody's paying attention
to the east right now.

We're gonna come out
of nowhere.

- I'd rather be underestimated.

narrator:
They'll fight to prove

which turf reigns supreme.

- I follow what
my team told me.

- Is a team gonna win
this competition?

- No one seems
to [bleep] listen.

- I listened to you today!
- No, you--

narrator: And only the
strongest artist will survive.



- There's no way around it.

You're probably getting
knocked out.

- I 100% disagree.

- You can.
- And that's your right.

- But when the competition
gets tight,

it's gonna get messy.

I mean,
we ain't even started yet.

narrator:
Earning a $100,000 prize...

- The second you think you know

what's happening
on "Ink Master,"

you don't know anything at all.

narrator:
And the title of Ink Master.

[dramatic music]

[dramatic music]

¶ ¶

- Welcome to New York City.

[cheers and applause]

Since 1886,
the Statue of Liberty

has welcomed immigrants
to this country

from all across the world.

She stands
as a symbol of hope,

freedom,
and the American dream.

- America, baby.

- And all of you come here
with one dream in mind,

and that's to win $100,000,
a feature in "Inked Magazine,"

and the title of Ink Master.

- Yeah.
- Whoo!

- Let's go.

- However, you will not
be able to do this alone.

- What?

- You will form four teams

based solely on what region
of the country you call home.

- What?
[all speaking at once]

- West.
- Where my west siders at?

- West side!

- People from the West Coast--
they're hustlers.

They have to be
just to survive out there.

I know that they're gonna
have the drive it takes

to get to the end.

We got it.
- Midwest.

- Hell, yeah, all right.
- [bleep].

- Yeah, Midwest!

I love my Midwestern people.

There's friendly faces,
easy smiles,

Midwest work ethic.

It's gonna be a lot better
than I thought.

- South.
- Whoo, dirty south!

- Y'all better watch out.

Everyone thinks
that most people from the south

are dumb hillbillies,
but it's not true.

I'm an artistic hillbilly.
[laughs]

- And east.
[all cheering]

- Home turf.
- That's right!

All right, well,
the [bleep] East Coast team

better be pretty strong 'cause
I know we don't take shit

on this side of the country.

- You are on a team.
You will have to work together.

- I play the other side.
Only one of you can win.

- Mm-hmm.
- Who's it gonna be?

- All right, let's see
what you guys are made of.

- There's one returning artist
on each team.

Take advantage
of the knowledge they have

just from being
in this competition before.

Just getting used
to this environment

is the biggest learning curve
that you need to tackle

right off the bat.
- I got you guys.

- And the turf war
starts right now.

- Man.

- Because we are moving
directly into

your first elimination tattoo.

- What?
- Shit.

- Today you must each tattoo
whatever state it is

that you call home.
- Oh.

- This is gonna be rough.
I hate state tattoos.

- Now, your tattoos
must include

the shape of your state,

but everything else
is completely up to you.

- I hope no one has Maryland.

- Maryland is
a crazy-shaped state.

This competition
is killing me already.

- You'll have six hours,

and you can tattoo
in any style.

- Get ready.

- Your canvases
are completely open

and have been
randomly assigned.

There is one more thing
you should know.

- Yeah, always something.

- No matter
where you came from,

your tattoos must
speak for themselves

because these tattoos
will be judged blind.

- Oh, what?
[all speaking at once]

- It's great that
it's blind critiques.

I mean, there are
four returning artists,

and this way,
it shows the rest of the room

that there's
no playing favorites.

It shows you
how brutally honest

that this competition can be.

- Fail to impress us,
and you will be eliminated.

- Not me.
- Good luck.

- All right, let's go.

East coast?
- Yeah, East Coast.

- Where you from?
- Uh, New York.

- Yeah!
Look at that right there.

- Yeah.

- You should use that
in your reference.

¶ ¶

- Yes!
Oh, my God!

- Damn, this is dope!
- East coast!

- Daddy's home.
- East, east, east side.

- We've got 20 artists
divvying up into four teams...

- West side!

- Based on different regions
of the country.

- Dirty south.
- We're about to represent.

That's what I'm saying
right here.

- Grouping people
according to their region...

- West coast!
- Yeah, dude.

- Yeah.
- Let's win this, guys.

- They are gonna have
at least a common goal of,

"We're from this part
of the country.

"We want to show
the rest of the world

that we know what we're doing."

- Midwest, baby!
Whoo!

- I'm ready.

Let's kick their ass
and their ass and their ass.

Midwest for life!
- That works.

¶ ¶

- I'm your human canvas, Chris.
- Hi, how's it going?

- Pleased to meet you.
- Nice to meet you, man.

- It's a Florida tat.
For sure.

- It's gonna
represent California.

- Hey, I know you're busy.
Really quick.

- This isn't my first time
in this competition.

What if you do the state
inside the big crab shell?

So there's a shit ton
of pressure on me.

The judges are gonna
expect a lot from me.

They know what my work
looks like.

They know what I'm capable of.

Last time, I had to fight
to get on a team.

This is not the time
for a repeat.

- I'm gonna draw, like,
some background.

- Dude, they hate backgrounds.

My team's also
relying on me too.

- Tell me what
I should do different.

- I'm being pulled
in all sorts of directions.

Tilt it.

- All right, artists,

you have six hours
to tattoo your state,

and your time starts now.

- All right, let's go.
All right.

- Let's do this, man.
- Let's do it.

- Oh, yeah.
- Let's have some fun.

¶ ¶

[tattoo machines buzzing]

¶ ¶

- I used to always want
the outline of New Jersey,

like, on my hip when I was,
like, a thin teen girl.

There's so much pressure
from the outside world.

You have to look like this.
You have to speak like this.

Like, no, dude.
I'm unapologetically here.

I'm a plus-sized woman
and I'm curvy as [bleep]

and I'm ready.

We're gonna knock this
out the park.

You do not want to mess
with this queen.

¶ ¶

- How you doing, man?
- I'm chilling.

- That hand looks smooth.
- Appreciate it, bro.

I'm gonna die with a tattoo
machine in my hand, you know?

I was in a low point--

just constantly
in and out of trouble.

Found a career of passion
that's gonna last me

the rest of my life.

Tattoo artists say it
all the time.

Like, "It saved my life,"
but it saved my life.

- All right, guys.
Four hours remaining.

This is four hours.

¶ ¶

[tattoo machines buzzing]

- Do you need any sandpaper
to, like, take it off?

I have some.
- Why would I listen to you?

Get back to work.
Check out your team.

- They're doing good.
Don't worry.

- She's not even
on the East Coast, huh?

- No, she's West Coast.
- That's [bleep] up.

Invading our space, man.

- She's always
invading my space.

- [chuckles]
- Everywhere I go.

I turn around.
There's Angel.

- I could draw
before I could write.

I was always drawing.

Last time I was
in this competition,

I had a lot to prove
just to myself that,

you know,
I was a good tattooer

and I could stand with giants.

I went to film school
for a couple of years

and I had already
started tattooing

and I kinda realized
at that point

that I was probably
born to do this.

I think everybody else
should watch out.

¶ ¶

- Originally from Cuba.

Since then, man,
tattooing full time.

When I came to this country
six years ago,

I had zero English,

and I still
was asking for a job

shop by shop with some people
translating for me.

- What's Cuba like?

- Shops are not even legal.

I had to overcome the struggle
and I'm here now.

We're gonna take it all home.

[rock music]

- What made you get
into tattooing?

- I didn't want
to be a dentist.

- [laughs]

- My folks really
pushed academics

so I decided
to pursue dentistry.

Two years in and I was like,
"This shit is not for me."

I'm an artist to the core,

and art was what I gravitated
towards for myself.

It was what made me happy.

- Oh, man.
You're killing it.

- I feel like black and grey,
I just get more done in a day.

- We're gonna do great
as a team.

- Uh, I like that.

¶ ¶

- I feel like I'm the only one
over here doing color.

I guess I've got my work
cut out for me.

I'm gonna do something creative
with the state

instead of confining.

- I love the cuts in the wood.
That's really cool.

- Thanks.
I think it's sick.

I mean, I'm from Oregon, so--
[laughs]

I kind of am like
a tool monkey.

I do it all.

I like to think
outside the box.

I like to think about
what other people

aren't going to be thinking
of because I know

that's gonna set me apart
from everybody else here.

¶ ¶

- Three more hours.
Three hours left.

¶ ¶

- Like, you think you know
what you're talking about

and what you're doing
until you're put to the test

day in and day out.

I kinda made me so much
of a better tattooer,

and you put up or you shut up.

And I'm not that good
at shutting up.

I play this game
with integrity.

I just choose not
to be a dick, you know,

as a daily life goal.

Just don't be a dick.

The biggest thing is just,
you know,

trusting in who you are
and what you know

you bring to the table.

From there, you just get
in there and you fight.

¶ ¶

- I should be a considered
a threat in this competition

because I know how
to get along with people.

I can use that
to my advantage.

I have three step kids--
four of my own.

Seven total.
- Oh, wow.

- Don't feel like
just because I'm nice

that I won't take you down
if I have to, 'cause I will.

This isn't a [bleep] game.

It's a competition.
I'm here to win.

I'm literally gonna
get somebody eliminated

with a square.

That's the goal here.

¶ ¶

[tattoo machines buzzing]

- I definitely
bend toward the weird.

The blanket term that I use
for my style is magic shit.

It would be like if a wizard
had a discount store,

like, the things
that you would find in it--

I don't know.
I like weird things.

- The odd, weird things.
Yes, yes.

- Yeah.

Most people on the coast
tend to think

of the middle country
as boring or simple,

but we are anything but.

¶ ¶

[tattoo machines buzzing]
- So when somebody asks you,

"What's the most random tattoo
you have,"

what are you gonna say?
- I have a potato.

- I have a potato.

I got into tattooing
when I was 17.

My family,
they were like,

"What the [bleep]
is she doing?

Like, go to college."

But I've become
the reliable one

because I'm very goal-oriented.

Like, I know what I want
and I'm gonna do it.

Well, if this doesn't
make people smile,

then I will boycott
potatoes forever.

¶ ¶

- This is it, guys.
Two more hours.

¶ ¶

- That looks really good.
- Thank you.

- I like it.

- They like to see
a lot of black.

The second time coming back
is gonna be a lot better for me

because I understand
how to play the game

and that's a huge part
of this competition.

- It's a good thing
I didn't do oil derricks.

- Yeah, we've got--we've got
these bitches everywhere.

- Well, hope you lose,
but it's a great tattoo.

- Thanks, man.

I've always been
a sarcastic prick,

so this competition
just makes sense for me.

I know how to play
mental games

and I enjoy doing them.

What state is that?
'Cause I don't know.

I have to find out what bugs
each individual artist

and I have to just
keep pushing their buttons.

- That's coming together
pretty nice.

- Yeah, I'm gonna put

a bunch of white highlight
up in here, too.

- Oh, don't do it!

- Why?
- You know they hate white.

I wouldn't do it.
- They hate white?

- They hate white.
I'm telling you.

- Yeah, the last thing I'm
gonna do is listen to that guy.

Watch me put my white in here.

¶ ¶

- [chuckles]

[tense music]

[tattoo machines buzzing]

¶ ¶

- All right, guys,
this is your final hour.

One hour left.

¶ ¶

- Okay.
- You good?

- We're gonna make it through.
- Okay.

- I'm freaking out.
You know who's from Texas?

Oliver and Jason.

- You decided to do pink here?
- Does it look pink?

- Definitely hot pink.
- That's not hot pink.

- I'm saying it's close
to hot--it's close to hot pink.

- I'm experiencing
extreme anxiety.

It's hard to breathe,
much less tattoo.

He told me it was hot pink.
The bottle says red.

- It's red.
- I was like, "Okay, bro."

Well, whatever.

I've had to push through
adversity my entire life.

I do not give up easily.

If I can be a single mom
and an entrepreneur,

I can do anything.

¶ ¶

[tattoo machines buzzing]

- Okay.
- I'm sorry.

I think I'm starting
to twitch a little bit.

- I have zero problem with you.

You probably have
more problems with me

than I have with you.
- [laughing]

- I'm from the south
so, you know,

I throw a little spice in it
here and there

just to shake things up,

'cause I would hate
for my work to get confused

with anybody else,
and you know

it's only one person.
That's Money.

I'm always coming through
for you.

¶ ¶

- I'm gonna win
this competition.

I'm, like,
the most competitive person.

You know, is it a race?
I'm gonna finish first.

I dropped out of school,

I have no high school diploma.
No GED.

I've made a name for myself on
just hard work and dedication.

People either
love me or hate me

but at the end of the day,
they're gonna know who I am.

Yeehaw!

- You're not gonna be a
team player and scream yeehaw?

- I'm not screaming yeehaw.
There's no [bleep] way.

There's a couple trash talkers
on my team,

but they can back it up,
especially Jason,

and I feel that's gonna
be an advantage to our team.

Man, I've been watching this
competition since day one

before I even had facial hair.

I was a little baby Jordie.

I'm so excited.

The mint green is gonna
bring it out so much.

If I [bleep] this up,

I'm gonna get sent home
on the first day,

and that's the one thing
I don't wanna do.

I wanna show that Miami--
we know how to tattoo.

¶ ¶

- Five, four, three,

two, one.

That is it.
Machines down.

No more ink.

- Just lay back and relax.

- All righty.
That is it.

You got yourself
a New York City tat.

[tense music]

- Hey, do me a favor.
- Yes?

- Help me with geography
'cause I'm really bad at it.

- Okay, what you got?

- Okay, so we got east.
- Yep.

- West.
- Yep.

- South.
- Yep.

- And mediocre.
- Medioc--no.

- Are you trying to put that
on the map?

'Cause I looked
and I didn't see it.

- I appreciate
that you're here,

but I'm gonna appreciate
more when you're not.

- Oh!

- All right, artists,

hopefully, your first tattoo
was enough to prove

that you deserve to be here.

Let's head back to the shop
for the blind critique.

[all cheering]
- Yeah!

¶ ¶

[grungy rock music]

¶ ¶

- Oh, wow.
- Oh, shit!

- [shouting]
- South!

- Talking about right here.
- Definitely feeling this.

- Midwest.
- Oh, my God.

It's beautiful.
- Look at this station.

- East Coast
in the building, bro.

- Check it out.
- Dominate.

- Gold coast, baby.
- You guys ready?

- All right, guys, let's get
into these blind critiques.

- It's happening.
[overlapping chatter]

- Oh, shit, let's go.
Let's get in.

- Hell, yeah.
- Bam.

- Oh, man.
- Screens of doom.

- Time for
the blind critiques.

These guys had
to tattoo their states.

Let's bring up
the first tattoo.

California.
- Oh, that's mine.

- Instantly recognizable.

- Just the way the palm tree
closest to us

is a black silhouette,

and the palm trees going off
in the distance get lighter,

that's a hard trick
to pull off.

- This artist shows a lot of
promise for what's to come.

- Cool.
- Nailed it.

- Let's bring up the next one.
- Oh, that's mine.

- I don't recognize the state.
Do you?

- Nobody knows
what Oregon looks like.

- Oregon.
- It could be Oregon.

- This is a really
great design.

The wood grain
and the textures

really speaks
to the artist's ability.

- Cool.
- Next up.

- Oh, shit.
- California.

- It's very legible--
big, bold outline,

but if you zoom in
to the bridge...

- Yeah.
- Yowza.

It's not the definition of
tight and clean detail at all.

- Let's look at the next one.

- Ah.
- Nevada.

- Oh, shit.
Here we go.

- The actual quality
of tattooing

in this thing is nice.

- That highlight
down the center

of the closest cone to us
is done with meticulous care.

- It's gorgeous.
- I appreciate it.

- Next tattoo.
Another black and gray.

- All right, California.

- It's mine.

- The drawing is not bad,

but the technical application
is really

one of the worst ones
of the day.

- And at the right side
of that palm tree

up there
is a big blue blowout.

- I strongly disagree
with all of that.

- You can disagree
all you want,

but fact of the matter is
they're telling you how to win.

- Let's have a look
at the next one.

- Mm-hmm.

- That's me.

- Oklahoma is "OK."

- I think it's really
beautifully laid out.

- The black is as dark
as the outline

so it looks super clean.

- [bleep].

[laughing] Dude!

- Let's have a look
at the next tattoo.

- Idaho.

- Oh, my God.
That's mine.

- The pancake itself--

- It's a potato.
- Potato.

- It's a potato?
- Oh!

- Idaho's not really
known for pancakes.

- Yes, it's a potato.

- I literally thought
that was a pancake.

- [bleep] me.

- I really like
the rich black in this tattoo.

What I don't like
is all the white.

- I mean,
I advised her not to do it.

- Let's bring up
the next tattoo.

- All right, here we go.

- Would never guess that

that was even
supposed to be a state.

- I would say Colorado,

but it's very difficult
to tell.

- It's just a little bit
of a weird gray square

around a horse and then,
"Oh, I got an idea.

"I'm just gonna put five
random leaves at the bottom

and it'll all tie together."

- That was brutal, man.
- Yeah, that was rough.

- Let's take a look
at the next tattoo.

¶ ¶

Way more recognizable
as Colorado.

- Looks very smooth and I like
the black and gray shading,

but the actual details
in the mountains--

I don't get the idea of this
big, huge mountain range.

I just get a couple
little small hills here.

- Those do not
look like mountains.

That is a freaking ocean scene.
- What are you talking about?

- I can see a sky in there.
- No.

- Let's have a look
at the next one.

- Deep dish.
- It's a deep dish in Illinois.

- The sauce looks like
it could be a garment.

The oozing cheese--
it's just yellow drips.

You gotta make things
look like what they are.

¶ ¶

- Let's bring up the next one.

North Carolina.
- Here we are.

- This one has a lot of really
chalky look to it

because none of the colors
saturated.

In a competition setting,

none of this tattooing
is gonna cut it.

- Damn.

- Moving along.

- Here we go.

- Louisiana.

They made everything in the
tattoo out of four colors,

so it's strange.

That shape of the state
gets lost.

- Moving on.

Texas.

- My fellow statesman
letting me down.

- What have I done?

- I think those are supposed
to be bluebonnets

but it kinda looks more like
cauliflower or something,

and it's weird 'cause
the star would be white.

I don't know why they're
putting blue in the star.

It's strange.

- It's not the worst
in the room.

- Next tattoo.

- Flo-rida.
- Okay, here we go.

- Definitely have no clue
what's going on

with the little thing down
at the bottom.

- I'll be addressing the Cuban
section of the tattoo.

[all laughing]

- That's a little Cuban coffee
in the bottom,

but the outline around the cup
is so wobbly.

The simplest parts
of the tattoo

are the parts that really
need to be hit home.

- I mean, as long as Chris said
it was a Cuban coffee.

He knew it right off the bat,
so I'll take that.

- Let's take a look
at the next tattoo.

- Texas.
- Texas.

- Oh, there we go.
Oli, talk to me.

- Well, there's some
of the shape of Texas,

wild take on anatomy
of the rose,

and this one petal that's
over the top of the state

overtakes the shape
of the state.

- And, man,
that little haze color

that's not solid
to the outline--

I think the name of that color
is light bruise.

- Damn.
That hurt.

- That's not what I thought
you were gonna do for--

- I did simple.

- Moving along.

- Oh, here we go.

- Is there a shape
of a state in there?

- It's Massachusetts.
- Oh, Mass.

- I do see it now.

- Design-wise,
it's a little weird,

but the black
that's in the sails,

it's solid,
it whips out,

it's all consistent.

Best done black that
we've seen today for black.

- That tattoo kind of
makes me a little nervous

about traditional ink.

- We'll see if we get one.

- And next tattoo.

- Oh, [bleep].

- Oh, that's the garden state
right there.

- That's right.
- The black outline is black.

It is deliberate.

I like the fade on the bottom
of the tomatoes.

Solid black to solid color.
- Super nice.

- Good job.
- Thank you.

- Next.
The blue crab of Maryland.

- There we go.
It's mine.

- This one has
a lot of problems.

You have color that overruns
the black outline

and then you have the outline
where the black

doesn't push up
to the outline.

All these shades have landed
on top of each other,

blend in brown
and blue and green,

and just overworked
the death out of it.

- It looks like a crab
got run over by a tire.

- I need you to chill.
Where are you from again?

The west?
Come on, son.

- We are from the west.
- Wait.

Wait a minute.
- Leave us out of this.

- Well--
- We do good tattoos over here.

- That's the south.
[all laughing]

- Next up.
Massachusetts.

- Color.
Blending is really rough.

Nothing looks saturated.
A lot of outline problems.

- I'm gonna say that
this goes beyond jitters.

- [exhales sharply]

- Let's look at the next one.
New York.

Lady Liberty.

I like the concept
and obviously,

I like how this
fills the space.

- The outlines just look like
they were done in a bumpy car.

Jacked.

- You know what makes me really
happy about this tattoo?

That lets me know now
that you are no competitor

in this competition.
- I wouldn't say that.

I mean,
this is the first round.

- It is the first round.

If it was the draft pick,
his ass would get left at home.

- Well, that's it.
20 tattoos.

Let's rank these things
and see where the chips fall.

- All right.

- Jason, you talk
a lot of shit.

- I--I said from the beginning
that I was gonna do

a Mid tattoo,
and that's exactly what I did.

- Why the [bleep]
are you gonna come in here

and do a mid-tattoo, though?

- You play the game the way
you wanna play the game.

I'll play the game the way
I wanna play the game.

- You're a sneaky [bleep].

[tense music]

- Your color's jacked up.
There's no way around it.

- I'm gonna have
an anxiety attack.

- We ain't even started yet.

- I actually wanted
to say something

before we move forward.
- No, don't do it.

¶ ¶

- Today you had
to tattoo your state,

and based only on your work,

each of your tattoos have been
ranked by the judges.

- [exhales sharply]

- One by one the top 12 artists
will be revealed.

- I actually wanted
to say something

before we move forward.

- Okay, go ahead, bud.

- I'm actually bowing out
of the competition.

¶ ¶

- Oh.
- What do you mean?

- Why?

- I mean, we haven't
even started yet.

- Yeah, I know, dude.

- You can't run away
from the things

that make you uncomfortable
because your biggest moment

of growth is gonna be
in the moment that you think

you can't make it,
so make it.

Don't quit.

- I just don't wanna crank out
any more tattoos

that I'm not happy with, so--
- Dude, you can do this, dude.

- You're looking at it as,
"I may [bleep] this up again."

Why not look at it as,
"I may crush it"?

- Just give it a chance, bro.

Please don't turn your back
on us, dude.

- I'm good with my decision.
- Let him go.

Let him go.

- [bleep].

- If you wanna excuse yourself,
you're welcome to.

¶ ¶

- I'll see you guys around,
dude.

[bleep] crush it.

- Let's make a pact.
No one else is quitting.

- No.

- You guys are all here
to show who you are.

This is all about your will,
your drive.

That's it.
Stand strong.

- Yeah.

- Let's move on and focus
on what we came here to do.

- Yeah.
- Let's do it.

- I'm gonna have an anxiety
attack in this bitch.

- One by one,

the top 12 artists
will be revealed.

- Okay.

- If you made it into
the top 12,

you are safe from elimination.

- [bleep] yeah.

- Shit, all right.
- Fingers crossed.

- [exhales slowly]
I'm so nervous.

- Let's reveal the number one
ranked tattoo.

¶ ¶

- [whistles]
- Yeah, Angel.

- Angel, congratulations.
- Thank you.

- Way to come back
and just own it.

- Thank you.

- Angel, please go ahead
and have a seat.

- [exhales sharply]

- Let's bring up
the second ranked tattoo.

¶ ¶

- [chuckles]
[applause]

- From the Midwest, Frank.

- I'm glad to see you
sitting in the second spot.

- I'm stoked on it, man.
- Please have a seat.

Let's have a look
at the third ranked tattoo.

¶ ¶

- Yeah, Jessa!

- All right, win for the east.

Please have a seat
next to Frank.

Let's move on to
the number four ranked tattoo.

¶ ¶

- Yeah, there we go.
There we go.

- All right, Hiram.
Las Vegas, Nevada.

You are safe.
- Thank you very much.

- Let's bring up
the number five ranked tattoo.

¶ ¶

- Hell, yeah.
- Bob.

- Bob.
- Bob, congratulations.

West coaster.
- [exhales sharply]

- The sixth-ranked tattoo.

¶ ¶

- [exhales]

- Yay!

- Jimmy, congratulations.
- [laughs]

- Please have a seat.

Let's bring up
the seventh-ranked tattoo.

¶ ¶

- Wow.
- Jordan, congratulations--

the Midwest once again.

Let's move on
to the eighth ranked tattoo.

¶ ¶

- West side.
- Raul, California.

Congratulations.
Please have a seat.

Let's see
the ninth-ranked tattoo.

¶ ¶

- [exhales sharply]

- Jordan,
great state of Florida.

Congratulations.
You're safe from elimination.

Let's see who came in
with the tenth-ranked tattoo.

¶ ¶

- Oh.
- Colorado.

Jerrel, congratulations.
Please have a seat.

Let's take a look
at the 11th-ranked tattoo.

¶ ¶

- [exhales]

- From the Midwest,
Kelly, congratulations.

All right, we have 11 artists
sitting comfortably and safe.

We have eight artists
standing before us.

One spot remains for safety.

Let's bring up
the 12th-ranked tattoo.

¶ ¶

- Shit, yeah!

[clapping]

- Just squeaked by.
Money Mike.

- My heart beating fast
as hell, man.

I'm just happy to be down here.

- Congratulations.
Please have a seat.

And that means that all
12 spots for safety are full.

- There's people sitting there
that have blowouts,

that have [bleep] up line work,
that have poor saturation.

I didn't leave my kids
and come up here

to make an ass of myself
and have other people

do mistakes when I didn't

and sit down here
at the bottom.

- Well, let's see your tattoo.
- Go for it.

That's not jacked up.

- My man,
your color's jacked up.

There's no way around it.
- I 100% disagree.

- You can.
- And that's your right.

- Look at the Parkway tattoo
and look at your tattoo.

There's a vast divide
in how the color's put in.

- It's one solid shade of red
where I went in

and actually add texture
and different colors.

- Listen, the point is
that your bird

could look like this tomato
if it was applied different.

- Clean and solid
versus scratchy and weak.

- All right, your opinion.

- You did a tattoo
that's actually prettier

than some of the ones
sitting down,

but it's not
technically as solid.

That is your fault.
Not mine.

- I like that you have passion
and you love this tattoo.

- Yeah, I'd much rather
hear you fight back

than see you quit.

- Man, I'm gonna be honest,
man.

It's an emotional
roller coaster for me,

but, uh, I promise you
this ain't over.

I came out here
to go to the end.

Y'all will have
to drag me out of here

with [bleep] chains
before I leave.

- Good.
- Then let's move forward, man.

Congratulations
to the top 12 artists.

You are all safe
from elimination.

- Happy to hear that.

- The rest of you will have
one final chance

to save yourself.

Tomorrow,
all seven of you must face off

tattooing patriotic tattoos.

You'll have six hours to tattoo

and your canvases
are completely open.

- [bleep] yes.

- The style and design elements
of these patriotic tattoos

are completely up to you.

- All right.
- You got a brand new start.

Leave us no questions.

Let your artwork
speak for itself.

- This is your last chance
to prove that you deserve

to be here to fight
for the title.

Good luck.

¶ ¶

- I don't want help
from anyone here.

- Then you're gonna [bleep]
go down quick.

- I wanna show everyone
who they're [bleep] with.

- I see things
going south from here.

ock music]

¶ ¶

- That's badass, man.
- Solid, simple.

- My mentality on this
is leave no man behind.

I'm definitely gonna
do whatever I can

to help my team
get that safe spot.

I looked around the room
and a lot of people

are going really big,
kinda complicated,

kinda wonky.

- We just gotta knock them off
one by one.

- You just gotta make sure
it's the best tattoo

you've ever done.
No pressure.

- Yeah, right?
[all laughing]

[rock music]

¶ ¶

- All right,
artists,

this is your last chance
to avoid elimination.

You have six hours
to do a patriotic tattoo,

and your time starts now.

- Yeah, all right.
Let's do it, dude.

- For the face-off,

the bottom-ranked artists all
have to do patriotic tattoos,

but other than that,
whatever style,

whatever imagery--
it's wide open.

- Bam.

- We need this to come out...

¶ Perfect ¶

- Knowing that you're in the
bottom is definitely a blow.

These artists have
to shake that off

and just do what they do.

If you can't adapt,

you're probably not gonna
make it very far.

- Team East side.
- That's right.

- I think they're
gonna kill this.

- I think so, too.
- Yeah.

- I think they're prepared

and they got their
team behind them.

- Get it, get it, get it,
get it, get it!

- [bleep] yeah.
- Come on!

- All right.
- [grunts]

- Jake is number one!

- Nothing says America
like a bald [bleep] eagle.

Bold will hold, [bleep].

I've been tattooing
a long time--14 years.

I've had a lot of people
tell me that,

"You'll never amount
to anything."

I can do everything
that you say I can't.

I'm good at what I do.
That's why I'm [bleep] here.

Whoo!

- Jake is far too good
to be sitting there right now.

- Yes.

- Blow everything
out of the water.

¶ ¶

[tattoo machine buzzing]
- Careful with those lines.

Don't go too deep.
- Yeah.

I'm kind of over the team thing
at this point.

I've been tattooing
for 12 years.

I don't need anybody
micromanaging me.

You know, it's like telling

the adult in the room
what to do.

Bitch, I know what to do.

- Just make sure that line's
there where it needs to be

and then if you gotta
shade over it,

you gotta shade over it but--
- Wow.

- I don't like to pull
the line all the way up

because I know I'm gonna
just fill it with black.

- If you don't wanna listen
you don't have to, but...

- We know you're [bleep] good.
We get it.

Keep wearing the same
[bleep]-sized hat.

Don't get [bleep] big-headed.

[tense music]

- You bit off a big one today.

- I'm gonna show everyone
who they're [bleep] with.

I love doing
patriotic tattoos.

I'm gonna come out with a big,

bold Patrick [bleep] Flynn
tattoo,

and I'm gonna
secure that spot,

because I know
I'm a better artist

than half the people
in this room.

- Four hours to go.
Four more hours to go, guys.

¶ ¶

- I've never tattooed
a bell before

or anything that was supposed
to have a reflective surface

and a wood grain
at the same time.

- How you gonna change up,
like, the metals

and the woods on the top?
- Emulating wood is easy.

It's getting something to look
shiny and round that's hard.

I have a chance
to redeem myself.

If they think
I'm gonna back down

'cause I don't have
the most experience,

they have another thing coming.

¶ ¶

- We have over half the south
team in the bottom now.

It's embarrassing.

I went to the bottom but
not 'cause I did a bad tattoo.

I just kinda went
a little safe on it.

I did come into
this competition

running my mouth a lot.

That doesn't mean
I'm gonna stop,

but this tattoo--

it has to match the level
of shit that I've been talking.

- How big is that
[bleep] tattoo?

- That's huge.
- My God.

- More to judge,
more to [bleep] up.

- I see things going south
from here.

- I'm goddamned tickled pink.

¶ ¶

- Two more hours.
Two more hours.

¶ ¶

- Let's give her some space.
She needs a minute.

All right?
We're good with that, right?

- Yeah.
- They're my bouncers.

Am I nervous about anything
in this competition?

Um...

- She just needs
a little bit of space.

- All right.
- All right?

- Yeah, I'm nervous
about all of it.

- Come on, come on.
Let's go over here.

- Especially nervous
of just, like,

[bleep] up a tattoo,
like, big time.

- I got you, girl.
- Yeah, you do.

Thanks, Jimmy.

I do mostly black work.
It's what I love to do,

but in the last tattoo,

I decide to do it in color.

I don't know why.

- It looks good.
- Okay.

Don't tell me it does,
if it doesn't.

- I won't.
Daddy does not lie.

¶ ¶

- I went with an American
traditional tattoo

because it's patriotic.

- If you see anything
that can use cleaning up

and you feel confident
that you can hit it

without causing trauma,
then do it.

- I am a team player
and Jimmy Quarterback--

he gave me a play,
and I ran with it.

- Teamwork makes
the dream work.

- Makes the dream work.
That's right.

- Damn.

I started tattooing
to keep me out of trouble.

When you come from
where I come from,

not a lot of people get here.

I'm not going home.
Not today.

Yeah, the Emac attack.
- The Emac attack.

You know it. You feel it.
You're doing it.

¶ ¶

- Five, four, three,

two, one.

Time is up.
Machines down.

No more ink.

- Oh, I just got done.

- Damn, dude.
That's awesome.

- Whew, man.
- You killed it.

- Yeah.
- That's badass.

- Good enough to keep me
from the bottom?

- Oh, I would imagine
that's good enough

to shoot you up to the top.

- The second you think you know

what's happening
on "Ink Master,"

you don't know anything at all.

- I think everyone
got really scared today

when they seen
what I pulled out.

- I wouldn't go that far.

- I picked up
and kicked everyone's ass.

- Well,
he's thinking about himself.

You know, he said,
"He kicked everyone's ass."

- That's a team player.

- Is a team gonna win
this competition?

There's one person that stands
on that [bleep] stage

and it's them that collects
that [bleep] money

and them that has that title.

- You're just putting a big
target on your back, dude.

You're gonna be a lone wolf,

you're not gonna have help
from anybody,

and you're gonna [bleep]
go down quick.

usic]

¶ ¶

- Today you had to face off
for your survival

creating patriotic tattoos.

Based solely on your work,

one of you will be packing
your machines.

Let's begin with the Midwest.

Jake, you're up.

¶ ¶

- Hello, judges.
- I like this drawing.

Your outline is clean
and your blends in this--

really, really nice.

Night and day difference from
what you did the other day.

- Thank you.

- East, you're next.

K, let's start with you.

- All right.

It's a very simple,
clean design--

just in-your-face
political statement.

- It's a tough-looking tattoo,

and the layout
and the statement

also holds power within itself.

- Thank you.

- Emac, you're next.

¶ ¶

- Simple and clean.

The area
that's filled-in black

seems very solid black,

but literally,
this is one-hour max tattoo.

You're gonna have to be able
to pick up the pace.

- My job is not to look at
how long something takes you.

I think you do something here

¶to put up
the best fight you can.

- I'm not gonna go down
without a fight, so let's go.

- I like that.
- Thank you.

¶ ¶

Moving on to the west.

Arlene.

- This is a bold, heavy tattoo.

Where you have solid black,
it is solid,

but there's a couple of areas
in your outlines

where you color black
completely over the outline.

If you know an area's
gonna be solid black,

then you don't need
to outline under it.

- I know this.

It's just I was getting
all this advice in my ear

and I know, like,
what you're saying.

That's what I usually do.

- You have to relax.

You're the only one
that's killing yourself.

¶ ¶

- Next up is the south who has
three team members remaining.

Let's start with Patrick.

¶ ¶

- It's a beautiful tattoo.
- Thank you.

- The gradient
that you have here

and the way
that you purposefully

put in your blacks,

having the guts to make a face
that black on the left side--

that's confidence
in tattooing,

and I love, really,
the resilience in you

for coming back
and showing us what you got.

- This is the biggest,
sharpest,

cleanest tattoo of the day
for sure.

- Thank y'all.

¶ ¶

- Nychelle.

¶ ¶

- It definitely has
an unfinished feel to it.

Pretty much
nowhere in the tattoo

you have any really rich,
solid black.

The only place that you did
put it was behind your image.

If your background richness
was in the bell,

it would look
completely different.

Best way to show light
is with black.

¶ ¶

- Jason, you're next.

- The way
this thing's colored, man,

I just have a lot
of problems with it.

The brown's not solid.

Your yellow's
not up to the line.

Your red's not up to the line.

If you're gonna do these
solid fields of color,

they need to be solid
to the line.

¶ ¶

- All right,
judges,

it is time to determine
who's going home.

- Jason has the most
problems technically.

- I can't back that vote.

'Cause I would argue that there
are some tattoos out there

that aren't even competitive.

- It's hard for me, like,
how big and badass

the tattoo Jason did.

But it's also very clear to me

that it's not as solid
as what Emac did.

So did Emac just play smart
and clean?

- Yeah.

For me, I think
that Nychelle struggled.

I'd much rather walk out
with Jason's tattoo.

- I hear you, man.

But I don't see
the proper width.

I don't see the solid black
silhouette.

- Okay, but then let me just
put this to you.

Fundamentally speaking,

Jason's outline
versus Nychelle's.

Jason's saturation
versus Nychelle's

- I know where I messed up,

but I do have
the technical skill.

Not to throw you
under the bus, bro,

but it took your whole team
to help you pull three arrows?

- The challenge.
You gotta meet the challenge.

- Are you gonna be able
to tattoo

the rest of the competition
like that?

- You did not.

- I'm a better--
I'm fundamentally--

- You may be,
but you wasn't on this tattoo.

- I'm not going home.

- I go back and forth,

and I gotta fall down
on Nychelle.

- [bleep].

- I'm just simply looking at
what I'm looking at

and I'm one of three voices,

and my voice stays solid.

My vote is for Jason.

¶ ¶

- Man.

- My vote's for Nychelle.

- [bleep].
- The judges have decided.

Nychelle, you do not have
what it takes to be Ink Master.

- Wow.

- Today it's--
it's the way it fell

and I think you just
got the jitters.

- Please pack your machines
and head out.

- I've gotten
to where I am in life

because I listen to my gut,

and I didn't do that
while I was here.

Thank you.
So when I go back home,

I'm just gonna trust myself
like I always have.

I'm gonna come back
and I'm gonna kill it.

¶ ¶

narrator: On the next episode
of "Ink Master"...

- This turf war
is just getting started.

- Time's ticking.
- Jason's so full of shit.

- We gotta establish
that we are not a team

that they need [bleep] with.

- Yeah, we're gonna
go to war together.

- Yeah, we were in the bottom.

There's only one place
that we can go.

You guys think
you're at the top?

There's only one place
you can go.

- I see you, Jason.
I see you.

- At the end of the day,

it's every man and woman
for himself.

- You got one good critique

and now you're back
to acting like an asshole.

- We're a team.
Don't you wanna [bleep] hear me?

Or do you wanna
just yell at me?

- I don't trust you and
I think you're a [bleep] liar.

- It is just a nightmare.
- What?

- You're probably
getting knocked out.

- We're gonna need
a miracle here.

That was rough.