Original subtitles

On the last episode of Ink Master, Return of the Masters.

This is what I do.

I do a lot of mini stuff.

In the Flash Challenge, Anthony dominated the other coaches again.

With my technical application and the support of my team, these other guys don't stand a chance.

The winner of today's Flash Challenge is Anthony.

I don't know what else I got to do.

I feel like I should have won that.

What are you going to do on this finale, bro?

Are you going to lose on that one too?

You guys can take your advantages and shove them right up your .

In the elimination tattoo, Team DJ and Team Steve felt the heat.

Just a little choppier in there, bro.

You got to smooth it out.

I got the triple moon goddess, and I'm freaking out.

I hate brushing tattoos.

There is trauma in my tattoo.

I can only hope that somebody else up more than I did.

In the elimination, Deanna, Jeremy, and Frank were the bottom three artists.

Deanna.

It just gets so dark that you lose what shapes are going on there.

Jeremy.

Look at the lips on either girl on the profile.

They're not finished.

But on application day, he has the best application.

Frank.

The red snarl.

You missed today big time from the drawing to the finish.

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

Seven artists remain, but only one will earn a $100,000 prize.

and the title of Ink Master.

Why am I not respected in this house, dude?

Why are you putting out even close to your best work?

My problem is it takes me longer to design .

Then you've got to simplify it so it doesn't take you longer.

Some girl wants an orange with a straw in it.

You give her an orange with a straw in it.

Not an orange with a straw in it with a galaxy and a pegasus flying over and frogs underneath

it.

Well, it just depends on what the ask is.

It doesn't matter the ask.

It's the same principle.

I tried my hardest on this tattoo, and it wasn't good enough.

You're not giving me a .

right now, because it's not just you.

I got a lot on the line for this.

I'm trying to help you win 100 grand.

You better be trying to help me win 100 grand.

That's the way this works.

We brought home tattoo of the day.

You said you were going to take it, and he took it.

I owe it to having the best coach, man.

We're the only team that all the members have tattoo of the day.

You guys are also giving me something to fight for.

We're the strongest team.

We've been the strongest team.

Now they're coming for us.

I can feel it.

Every time we are successful, the target gets bigger, and they're going to be doing everything

they can.

Keep your .

on the swivel.

Let's just be ready for it.

Welcome.

The pressure of this competition is higher than ever.

Make it to the end, and you will earn $100,000, a feature in Inked Magazine, and the

title of Ink Master.

And for this flash challenge, your success is dependent on each other.

Coaches, you must once again work side by side with your teams.

This week, we're testing composition.

Composition is creating balance.

It's creating flow and a focal point to draw your eye throughout the picture.

Today, you must create an amazing design out of an unruly medium, melted

wax.

That's crazy.

First, using tape, you will stencil a design onto a four foot by seven foot canvas.

Then you will strategically spread colored granulated wax on your canvas.

Using butane torches and heat guns, you will melt the wax to create flowing fields of color.

When the tape is removed, an impressive work of art will be revealed in the negative space.

Negative space means that's the space you're not even touching.

But it has to be part of the art piece, which means it has to flow.

It has to balance.

It has to show depth.

It's just as important as the pieces you touch.

Win this challenge, and your team will have the power to assign all of the human canvases

in the elimination tattoo.

You have six hours, and your time starts now.

Let's go.

Melting wax, finding a composition and a know-how of how to work with the wax is going to

be tricky.

What I have in mind is birch trees, and I'd like to incorporate three black wolves.

When I think of candle wax, too, you can always carve into it.

You can carve the trunk arc into it.

I like the idea that's going to sound like a lot, but we can do it because we're all working

together.

Being a difficult medium, if everybody's not on the same page, we could see a disaster.

When you're thinking about a tattoo and you're thinking about putting it on a body, but with

this, think of it more as fine art.

DJ and Josh are amazing tattooers, but composition is taught in fine art schools, which I've

been to.

Like, what do you think in more fine art?

Maybe like a woman's face, like, spitting out butterflies or something.

Let's do that.

We've shot ourselves in the foot for going too crazy.

This is the one time I'm trying to tone us down.

I can draw a girl's face well.

If you can draw it, I will be a laborer on this one.

All right, let's do it.

I'm quarterbacking this game.

You want this straight up?

We'll turn it vertical, and she wants to draw on here.

This is finally a challenge where my teammates can actually rely on me.

What do you want to do?

I think do a nice iconic fold image.

Flag would be perfect, dude.

White stripes, white stars.

Silhouette, skyline with a space of negative around it.

But I mean, do you want to go that simple?

It's safe, and we can make it look clean.

It's safe, bro.

Can we beat the other teams, man?

We're going for the win.

I know.

It's down to two, so if we lose a skull pick, it's a done deal.

Steve, dude.

Take your own advice.

Reign yourself in.

You've been telling me that I've got to go simple this whole competition.

Now I'm finally doing it, and you're going crazy with ideas.

Simple is smart on this one.

What the you guys are going to do?

I think it'll be cool.

You know what I mean?

Whatever.

I like it.

Let's go.

Let's do it.

Pain in the ass, huh?

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Do you know where the line of the tree is?

Really?

So with having an extra player in our team, we decided to go with a more complicated design.

But this medium is a pain in the ass to work with.

Blending all those colors and everything is tricky.

Sorry, Jay.

I got some blue in here.

Oh, no.

And controlling how much heat gets to it and how far it spreads is an insane nightmare.

No way that's coming off.

Dude, we should have done it when it was a little bit warmer.

You have three hours to go.

The tear ducts have to be even.

That looks pretty damn close.

Dude, .

The thing that I've been learning is that DJ's a coach for a reason.

What?

I know.

To show great composition, you need more than one element.

So we're going to scatter these butterflies throughout the piece to evenly compose it.

I want to get, like, an old from the judges.

We're a man down from last week, but it's not holding us up.

Josh is pretty much good at everything.

Deanna's got some weak points, but she's worked her way out of them.

I might have two advantages in this finale.

This is so ambitious, guys.

3,000 black buildings.

Hold on, stop.

I kind of thought we just black in the top and let it rest drip down.

There's only seven people left, and only three make it to the finale.

It's crucial to get these advantages.

Yeah.

Seven people left, and only three make it to the finale.

It's crucial to get these advantages.

Yeah, once we drip it, it'll be way cooler.

I'm not going to just back down or lay down.

And if you want me off, it's going to be a fight.

That's pretty dope, dude.

I really had my doubts in the beginning.

You're laughing at her in a piece.

I've got to be honest with you, I wasn't feeling it.

Down, down, down, down, down, down, down, down.

Hey, we've got to hurry.

We've got to hang this up.

Hey, Torch.

Hurry, hurry.

We did three wolves in the beginning and letting the wax dry.

But now peeling off the tape, chunks are just flying off.

I mean, it's ruining our whole design.

How much time?

Like none.

Four, three, two, one.

That's it.

Time is up.

Hey, ours looks by far the raddest.

And theirs is just .

It's so boring.

The shading and the flag kind of looks like clouds.

I think it's cool, man.

All right, time to critique your work.

Team DJ, you're up.

Your use of butterflies in the foreground was really a smart play, because you have so much

depth in the background that your negative space is a really neat effect.

It would have been a lot stronger if you left the butterflies completely stark.

Yeah, we debated that.

The color blends and fades that you get here between the red and the brown.

And having the different color fields all playing into each other really do cater to a painterly

style.

You guys do something that's definitely artistic.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Yo, I thought Team DJ had this in the bag until they added these butterflies and these weird

boogers all over the face.

You guys killed it today.

Next up is Team Steve.

It's a very simplistic take, but yet has a nice balance to it.

Looking for composition in this piece, you have the silhouette of the cityscape at the bottom

and then the flag in the background with a lot of negative space.

And you do get a lot of tones.

You do get it to look like a runny painting.

It's a very bold, strong move.

You feel an immediate response, a knee jerk.

It does spark emotion and does register a feeling with people.

Thank you.

I am super proud of my team, and especially Jeremy.

I mean, me and Rolly were kind of lost, and Jeremy pulled us through.

I think we got a winner.

Team Anthony.

I really like the texture you got in the trees.

I mean, it's a really realistic look.

As far as composition goes, it's pretty plain.

Just a ton of trees equidistant almost all the way across the background.

There's so many vertical lines up and down.

I can't help but just read a barcode.

Are they looking at the same I'm looking at?

I mean, you have foreground, middle ground, background, and you can see it all.

And made out of wax?

I mean, come on.

Give us a break.

All right, judges, it is time to determine a winner.

Because of the layout of Team Anthony's, there's nothing that breaks the stripes.

I think that one is the one that is out.

My decision will be between Steve and DJ.

I agree.

The actual composition of face, which is a stark image with butterflies over the top, has

more of a balance to the whole piece.

I'm going to play with DJ.

But for this challenge, we're looking at negative space.

So my vote is for Team Steve.

Thank you.

There's nothing compositionally pleasing about that piece across the board.

I want to see emotion when I look at an art piece.

Just when I look at it, evokes emotion.

That's what art is supposed to do.

Can any of you three explain composition?

Can you?

Case in point.

With Steve's, it's a lot of use of negative space.

And a really stark, bold, thought-provoking image, to me, is cool.

So we have one vote DJ, one vote Steve, Oliver.

I'm going to go with Team Steve.

Yeah!

The judges have decided the winner of today's flash challenge

is Team Steve.

The smart move to go simple and bold in a lot of negative space made for that stronger, more

legible image.

Everybody swung for the fences, but the simplest design won.

I've learned my lesson, the more you give, the more they judge.

Congratulations, guys.

You'll have the power to assign all human canvases in the elimination tattoo.

Team DJ, they just think they're better than everybody.

They're sore winners.

They're sore losers.

But guess what?

The judges don't think you're that good, and neither do I.

And you can all head back to the loft.

This is going to be fun.

That's some remedial ass .

You win like bitches, you lose like bitches.

You've got to finish this thing.

I'm trying to get through it, man.

I'm losing it.

Ink is everywhere.

It's a day.

I'm just going to ask again.

Do any of the three of you have an answer for what is the definition of composition?

You know what the description is?

We got the sculpting.

So the answer is you have no idea.

The answer is we don't have to explain .

What part about that was compositionally correct?

The judges.

Pick the winner.

I didn't pick the winner.

Dude, you knew it was a difficult medium, and we chose something we could finish.

You didn't even have the shadows on a flag right.

Come on.

You had a shadow and a negative right next to it.

Why do you constantly complain?

You win like bitches, you lose like bitches.

Because it's full and you know it.

Deep down inside, you know it.

And you pride yourself on art.

Was that bull ?

You guys could have done better, man, but they .

played the game.

You know what we just did?

We just got another skull to hand you.

We are going to chew these skulls up and spit them right back at you.

And we know what composition is.

It really worked well today for you.

Welcome to the elimination tattoo.

Thank you very much.

In this competition, every move you make is important.

One misstep, and you will lose your shot at earning $100,000 and the title of Ink Master.

Coaches.

Don't forget, each artist from your team that you coached to the finale earns you the power

to call a shot in the master face-off for $100,000.

Never forget.

Today, you must put your composition skills to the test and create negative space

tattoos.

Just as negative space can transform the way you look at things, you must change your perspective

and create a masterpiece

out of what is not there.

Say that in English.

Negative space is purposely leaving something untattooed.

Just tattooing an image like you're used to, you're just flipping it and just tattooing the

background instead to cut out your image.

All right, guys, negative space tattoos.

We're not talking about making a design that has some negative space in it.

You're basically going to have two images in one, your space and then some image that comes

forward out of the negative space.

So the focal point of your tattoo is what's negative.

Coaches, after the elimination tattoo, you will meet to deliberate and choose one artist to

put up for elimination.

Let's meet your canvases.

Team Steve, you won the flash challenge.

You now have the power to assign the human canvases.

Remember, advantages are not easy to come by, so choose wisely.

Our strategy is to target Deanna and Jason.

They're the strongest for the flash challenges.

We've got to take them out.

We're looking to get done.

A negative space wolf howling at the moon inside a tree scene.

Oh, I get that.

I'm looking to get Medusa on my shoulder with flowers around it and negative space snakes

in the hair.

Medusa sounds insane.

A mountainous scene with trees and clouds, and the negative space is the sign for I love you.

Mountains, trees, and an I love you symbol?

Those things don't even go together.

I'm going to get a negative space bear with the backdrop of a forest and a galaxy sky.

That's a tough one.

Yeah.

Black and gray are color.

A little bit of both.

That's a lot of things going on, man.

It's impossible in six hours.

It's a lot of work.

I'm looking to get a black and gray graveyard with negative space tombstones.

Where are you putting that?

Kind of under this on my forearm.

Um, like in the ditch?

Yeah.

You don't want to move it?

Like, maybe put it somewhere else if it was a better idea?

Not really.

Tombstones in the ditch of your arm.

It's a complicated area, and the skin's very thin and sensitive there.

I think it'd be hard to really get stuff saturated without overworking the skin.

Whatever they want to give me, I'll tackle.

Game over.

All right, guys, what do you want to do?

Graveyard scene with negative tombstones.

It's blowout city.

A bear with a woods and galaxy.

Yeah, that's a nightmare.

The I love you sign, that's a tough one.

It's a whole bunch of .

You did it?

All right.

Team Steve is definitely coming for us right now.

At this point in the competition, us having the most artists, we have the biggest targets

on our backs.

I just hope my team is ready.

Canvases.

One by one, please read the artist's name on the bottom of your skull.

Rolly.

I got you, bro.

What did she want?

The Medusa one.

Jason?

Right.

There's already so much work to go into the Medusa, I don't know that there's a tattoo that

I can pull off.

Like, I love this thing.

That's the hardest thing.

Josh?

Right here.

That's what he wanted.

This feels like more of a gift than a threat right now.

I like to do nature things, and then composition, a landscape is the easiest way to show that.

What do you want?

Negative bear with the forest.

Daniel.

Yes, that's me.

Team Steve is really gunning for me on this one.

I got a bear, a forest, a full galaxy.

It's way too much.

Huang?

I got to.

Elbow pit.

Graveyard with negative stones.

Deanna?

Hey.

I give the graveyard a tattoo in the ditch.

Of course, it was a target.

Jeremy.

You'll have six hours to show composition by creating negative space tattoos.

Good luck.

How are you?

How are you doing?

Good.

How are you?

Today we're looking for negative space tattoos.

Some of the snakes are going to have to be negative.

We're looking for the actual negative space to be the heart of the tattoo, so everything around

it has to accent it and flow with it.

How do I create a negative hand without lines?

That's the tricky thing with the fingers.

You can't put those fingers in without them being lined.

We're basically looking for any silhouette that they put in to be defined by whatever background

they choose.

So I wanted a black and gray graveyard, kind of like wrapping around down here.

If I could take like a space like your form, that would be great.

There's about seven people left.

I'm trying to do the best tattoo possible.

All I need is a canvas that'll trust me in doing some really cool .

I trust you, of course.

Cool.

That's awesome.

I'm excited.

Basically, what I want is the top of the tattoo to be like a galaxy.

And then it drops down to the forest.

Multiple bears, if possible.

But as far as this is only like a six hour tattoo by itself.

Innovation is key here, so.

This is crazy.

Would you be open to just starting with the trees?

Like I said, I want galaxy.

There is no winning this one.

I might as well just pack my right now.

I'm going to clean it up, but.

What's negative now?

The octopus.

The octopus is negative.

Yeah, and the anchoring.

I'm going to do, like, a black in the center just faded just out.

Why is the octopus a negative?

The reason the thing is negative is because that's what your eye is drawn to, because it's

the contrast against that negative image.

So if you have two negative images.

That's why I have this, too.

Yeah, exactly.

That's how it's supposed to be.

I did both ways.

Yeah, what are you going to negative on an octopus for?

Just showing you guys.

Calm down.

You're wasting time not doing stuff that hits a challenge.

OK.

He's creating a negative octopus on a negative anchor.

I don't even know what that means.

OK, artists, you have six hours to create a negative space tattoo.

And your time starts now.

OK, so just stand right there.

Let's go, guys.

Good luck.

For this elimination round, it's negative space tattoos, and we're testing composition.

You like that spot?

Yeah, just the hair.

What I want to see out of this challenge is just a really clear, definitive use of the negative

space to really define what your image is.

That is good.

A lot of times we see artists overthink the challenge, and they just end up trying to go overboard.

I like marker a little bit more this way.

Thinking clearly about what the challenge is and finding the most simple, bold way to hit

the challenge is the smartest way to play this game.

Steve thinks that he gave me a hard skull pick, but I talked my canvas into moving that tattoo

from her ditch to her forearm.

I am so confident on this tattoo.

All this you get mine, because those are just solid chunks of black.

Yeah.

You know what I mean?

Keep that edge really clean.

Cool.

I'm ready to step up and show I'm as good as the top guns in this competition.

Damn, dude.

Smooth.

After winning tattoo of the day, finally, I'm feeling super confident, super comfortable.

This is a new feeling for me.

showing off, dude.

It's not good to show off, man.

In this, in Ink Master, I think it's good to show off.

I think I actually found my groove 100%.

Smells good, dude.

I'm stressed about this thing.

Just because of how dry skin is, they go over like three times into like a smooth shade.

It was like soaking it up a lot, or what?

A long time ago, I got burned.

How long ago was that?

19 years ago.

Because of that, this leg gets way drier than this leg?

Yeah, that's what he was describing to me, so.

I mean, this leg's pretty dry.

You got snake skin on that bike.

I know how to do perfect line work.

And even with the one past line, this thing's looking overworked.

Fine, I'll talk to him for one second.

I'm trying everything.

I'm slowing down the machine.

I'm switching needles.

Everything in this tattoo is going wrong.

He's the driest skin in the ..

I understand that.

So you need to ease up because those tree trunks, they're pretty deep in there.

So be gentle.

A lot of ointment.

A lot.

Roger.

You and I have been going on our teams pretty hard.

These guys have been kind of sitting on the sidelines.

Just for sheer numbers.

I've got to go out there.

I don't give a man.

Now it's down to everything counts.

Everywhere that goes home means something.

Everybody that stays means something.

It's time to get them in the fight.

Yeah.

My team's been swinging this whole competition, you know?

Giant target.

so-called the strongest players, and one that said he could beat anybody in the house that

doesn't need a coach, so just by proxy, the rest of your team's gonna pay a price.

If you can't get to him, you get to everybody below him.

That's war.

I got handed the I love you ASL symbol in a mountain scene, and I'm struggling.

You gotta finish this thing.

I'm trying to get through it.

It's just so much little in this little spot.

My piece doesn't flow the same way everyone else's does.

I'm questioning everything I've done, and I'm losing it.

Ink is everywhere.

There's streaks on my face.

The mental game is the worst part of this thing.

Two hours remaining, guys.

Two hours left.

Jeremy is chaotic.

He's got the ship's wheel and the anchor a negative.

Then he's got the tentacles going all over the place.

I asked him to put everything inside the octopus, and he didn't.

Steve thinks my design is too busy.

If you over detail it, it's going to be out of control.

He thinks I should have gone simpler with this, but it's important for me to show the judges

what a Jeremy Brown tattoo really looks like.

Hey, what about little highlights on these little bolts?

You really want to with that now?

As usual, Jeremy's like all over the place.

The design looks crazy, and Steve is pissed right now.

I mean, he's just not listening.

Why not just do the anchor?

I don't know.

He liked it.

On the other hand, with my tattoo, I'm taking Steve's advice on this, tattooing something

simple, clean, and just hitting the challenge.

It's basically pull off that line, you know what I mean?

And that's the best way to do it.

Am I tripping, or is that composition?

No.

He took two elements and composed them together, but it's not like, that's great composition.

It's just wolf and wolf.

And Jeremy's is.

I think there's bad composition on both of them.

Jeremy should have left that thing completely negative and not tattooed it.

This.

is your final hour.

One hour to go.

Do you think I can get another snake here negative?

All of a sudden, Anthony's worried that I don't have enough negative space in my tattoo.

It's definitely a huge risk right now to listen to my coach.

My only concern, she's going to have just this random gray shading.

Because I have to make the shading dark enough that the snake will hold.

The household I grew up in was incredibly unhealthy for me.

Art was always my outlet.

Any time I found myself in a situation or flooded with certain emotions or something, I was

really dependent on it.

It was like a band-aid for life.

So in this competition, I need to trust in my natural artistic abilities.

That's it.

Machines down.

Time is up.

No more ink.

All right, you want to check it out?

Yeah.

You can tell from a distance what it is and all of that.

Oh, that's awesome.

It's clean.

Like it?

Yeah, dude.

I like it too, man.

Oh, yeah, look at that.

Oh, man.

I'm not feeling too good about this tattoo.

This guy came in with rough skin.

He's leaving with rough skin.

I might be in the bottom, but at least my composition hits the challenge.

Woo!

Jeremy's tattoo, two negatives don't make a positive.

That thing looks like .

I'd like to see you go home.

At least this dude could put a needle in his skin.

No, absolutely not.

You're crazy.

Crowning somebody Ink Master means that they can switch their direction and make lemonade

out of lemons.

And I don't feel like you're able to do that.

You feel like you're able to do that yet.

Daniel did a bad tattoo, so what you think doesn't matter.

Ink Master's about going for it.

Swinging for the fences.

Yeah, he did something different today, and he chewed up the skin.

You're not trying to tattoo the day, trying to win it, trying to be Ink Master.

That's just it.

It doesn't matter what you guys want to see.

I know what I want to see.

That check for 100 grand.

Today, you were being tested on composition with negative space tattoos.

Let's see how you did.

Team Anthony, you're up.

One.

Juan, I really love this tattoo.

It's super powerful.

It's a great composition.

The way you have negatives coming in and then stark black images right behind those negatives,

it creates a strong border, and it's really well balanced.

You threw some really nice detail in this thing.

I really love the detail in this thing.

I really love what you did with these vines wrapped around the trees there.

What I love about this is the really soft lighting that you have coming off of the moon, going

back into the night sky, really giving this thing a sense of depth.

That is a really strong play here for you.

Jason.

I love the illustrated face.

I love the dark blacks in the areas of the eye, the nose, the lips.

But these snakes are really thick.

One thing that would have made this a little more interesting is making more snakes thinner.

Oh, OK.

What would have been a really nice touch as well is having that tongue come out of the top

snake's mouth and really play with that shape and make that really work on the contour of

the face.

Those kind of things and this negative ask, that's a big help for your piece.

Next up is Daniel.

The composition is very stale and very stagnant with just the silhouette of the bear in the

center.

The bottom.

It is really jacked.

He just has wispy little lines here and there to infer water and then just random marks of

shading.

And there is countless areas of trauma to this skin.

He said he had a burn on the whole entire leg.

I've never experienced that type of skin.

Crowning somebody Ink Master means that they have the idea of how to work through all of the

different skin types.

And somebody who, on the fly, can switch their direction and make lemonade out of lemons.

And I don't feel like you're able to do that yet.

Team Steve, you're up.

Rolling.

Compositionally, it's simple.

It's readable.

It's legible.

I love the details you have in the nose and in the mouth of the larger wolf.

You definitely used the negative space and you didn't clutter it.

My only issue with the tattoo is that you're very tonal.

It would be really great to have some light around here to separate the face from the neck.

Start trusting that light tone.

You have the technical ability to be a lot better.

Jeremy.

Technically, this thing is really strong.

But as far as composition goes, you've got straight on diving helmet, straight on anchor,

right on top of each other.

And then the tentacles come straight down.

And then they both go out on the side.

There's no real flow that interacts with this anchor.

It just gets really hard to see what's going on.

You have eight tentacles.

You show six.

You had an opportunity to incorporate the other two.

It might have been to your service to show a little bit more of that thing flowing.

Team DJ, you're up.

Josh.

The negative space that you put in here showing off and depicting the hand immediately resonates.

But I wish there was a little bit more sky.

Right now, it reads as though that little hue was put there, just so you could get the finger

to read.

Some elements were forced.

It looks a little cut and paste, but overall, you hit the challenge.

Thank you.

Deanna, I love this tattoo.

The fact that you used this

as the border.

That really sets the mood.

You already know that there's something dark going on.

Your ability to get this gritty, soft, smooth texture from the black to the gray shading has

that black and white horror film look to it.

It looks really smooth.

The way the trees break into this image and spider across, the darkness is really cool.

The composition has a really nice balance to it.

Thank you.

OK, judges, time to determine who had the best tattoo of the day.

I really like Deanna's tattoo.

Conceptually, the layout.

For me, Deanna's is great.

But Juan's, that cat, just really stands out.

Juan's rich black and that gray behind it.

This is the stage of the competition where that little thing can edge one out of the other.

For that reason, I'm going with Juan.

My vote's for Juan.

The judges have decided the best tattoo of the day goes to Juan.

Congratulations, Juan.

Woo!

Coaches.

Remember, you must deliberate and put one artist up for elimination.

You can all head back to the loft.

I can't believe I did this.

I let down you guys.

You're not even close to letting me down, because I know what you're capable of outside of

your ambition and just your drive alone.

The person who was really inspiring me to even come here was my brother Michael.

He was really struggling to try to make something of his life.

And he finished college.

He was going to pick up his first paycheck.

These two cars.

and he tried to swerve out the way and hydroplanes in a tree and passed away right there on

the spot.

He was definitely the light in my life.

And that is my life.

And that is what I'm lacking in my life at this point, ever since he's gone.

Like, the fact that you can work so hard and lose it all like that is just beyond me, dude.

And to come here and try to risk it all, that's what I'm doing for him.

You know, I want to show that I can

I could prove not only myself, but to him that I could be the best.

If you're holding him here, he's with you.

He's watching.

Don't lose sight of that.

I'm moving off.

I'll get you done.

Today, my choice is Jeremy.

Design, composition, missed it completely.

It's really confusing to my eye.

Knowing composition, you'd be able to just move those tentacles and redraw them to fit a better

shape.

We're battling because he wants to do everything, or he wants to do nothing.

And there's no middle ground.

But at least it's technically done well.

I'm a technical guy.

I got to go with Daniel.

He's having a lot of issues with trauma.

He doesn't know how to work with his skin.

It's beat all over.

Yes, Daniel's inexperienced.

And it's the second time he's had this issue with application.

But I feel Daniel has just so much more to bring.

I'm just going to stick the way I've always stuck.

I'm going to go with Daniel.

My choice for the bottom is Jeremy.

So today we're testing composition with negative space tattoos.

Who's in the bottom of the pack today?

Daniel's definitely in the bottom today.

When you have really dry, brittle skin, the last thing you want to do is take a really fine

needle and drag it over that brittle skin.

What we're seeing from Daniel at this point is a lack of experience.

that keeps coming up.

Let's talk about Jeremy's tattoo.

His technical application is better than Daniel's.

Yeah.

Yet Daniel's reads better than Jeremy's.

I agree.

The anchor stands out strong.

So that negative part of the challenge, he hits it.

But the composition is where he totally loses it because the legibility of this tattoo goes

down.

The confusion of what's happening in this tattoo goes up.

As for a third, it's got to be between Jason and Josh.

I would say Jason.

Look at those huge oversized snakes.

They're gummy worms with dots on them.

You're very true about that.

That part is not flattering.

We're going to be getting into this part of this competition where there is no more middle.

You're either on the top block or you're in the bottom.

Well, the coaches are deliberating right now, and they have to choose one right now, and they

have to choose one of these artists to put up for elimination.

I can't wait to see how that shakes out.

Yeah.

You're definitely going to the bottom.

Dude, my tattoo was much cleaner than yours.

Technically way cleaner.

Six tentacles.

You invented an animal that doesn't exist.

All right, coaches, who are you sending down for elimination?

Coaches have decided to put Daniel up for elimination.

All right, we'll see Daniel, Jeremy, and Jason in the bottom.

We'll see you and the coaches downstairs.

Fight.

That's all you can do down there.

Yeah.

Let's do this.

Today, you had to create negative space tattoos.

And based on your work, one of you will be packing your machines.

Let's hear from the coaches.

Guys, why did you vote Daniel to the bottom?

It's always been an issue of application.

And I'll be honest, we really debated it because

If it wasn't for the trauma, this wouldn't be my bottom.

Adapting to the skin was rough.

And I honestly believe if anyone was stuck with this canvas in this area, they would have

the same exact issue.

Anyone was stuck with this canvas in this area, they would have the same exact issue.

There is a way to do a better tattoo than this on no matter what the skin is.

The key ingredient that's missing is experience.

I've only had two years experience where it's like I've been waiting for Jeremy.

15 years' experience, I want to see something that's, like, dynamic and amazing.

You know, I'm waiting for it, and I haven't seen it.

I gave a really clean, solid tattoo.

His is just beat.

How does a beat tattoo beat a technically sound tattoo?

Technically, this thing is beautiful.

The reason you're down here is solely based on composition.

Is it a man in a tentacle suit?

Is it a diver?

What am I looking at?

In this competition, the second I have to ask a question, it's not good for who I'm talking

to.

Make your intention clear.

His technical ability is always on point.

I don't feel Jeremy did the worst tattoo of the day.

Jeremy's tattoos are stale.

He has the same issues every week, and he's not learning from his mistakes.

There's a lot he's saying, but he still can't pull a straight line.

No, that's not true.

He still can't pull a parallel line on the snakes.

It was all wobbly.

Where's this fundamental?

Where's the technical application?

Your snakes don't pull off the snakes.

Once I got the face in there and then seeing the size that it was going to have to be, my

main concern was that I was going to get to the snakes and run out of time.

It has its flaws, but it's appealing.

Judges, it's time to determine who's going home.

Jason, to me, is safe.

I understand there's technical issues with it, but it's bad.

There's technical issues with it, but it's bad.

badass face.

I agree with that.

We're really nitpicking, and we're getting into everybody's work with a fine-tooth comb.

So when we get into Daniel's tattoo, he drew out a badass piece.

But here's these cuts.

I've seen Daniel's canvas.

The skin was and Daniel doesn't even do this style.

But he's progressed so much in this competition that he did this.

Nobody in this room could have done that tattoo in two and a half years.

I'm torn because on technical application, Jeremy wins this.

But it is one of the more confusing things to look at.

Daniel's is applied roughly, but I know exactly what it is.

Different people could have got different canvases, and it could have gone a totally different

way.

But for me, it's Daniel.

My vote's for Daniel.

The judges have decided, Daniel, you do not have what it takes to be Ink Master.

You should be super proud to make it this far with the little experience you have.

And I think now that you've broken out of that bubble, you're going to be like wildfire, man.

Thank you, man.

I really appreciate it.

I know your reason for stepping out of your comfort zone and being here, you know, as your

brother.

You exceeded his expectations tenfold.

Please pack your machines and close shop.

The last few times I talked to my brother, he was telling me, go to Ink Master, go to Ink

Master.

The last few times I talked to my brother, he was telling me, go to Ink Master, go to Ink

Master.

And honestly, I made it so far, I know he'd be super proud of me, and I'm super proud of myself.

Being only two years into the game, I have so much potential.

I'm taking every single ounce, so much potential.

I'm taking every single ounce of knowledge that I learned here, I'm going to put it into my

work, and then there's no stopping me.

On the next episode of Ink Master.

This competition got to your head the minute that you walked in the store.

I'm glad you feel that way, because you're going to look like a joke when you leave, and I'm

still here.

There's not a person in this house nervous about you.

The coaches are in a league of their own.

Now it's your turn to prove that you have the skills to compete at their elite level.

Oh, my god.

Show us why you're coaches.

This is going to be quite a battle.

Don't say I'm excited, bro.

Bro, congratulations.

I'm gonna fight Steve tonight.

I think you should.

I got nothing but respect for DJ, but my nose will blow him the out of the water.

At least I challenge my guys.

They don't need any more challenges.

Your ability to skate through this competition have come to an end.

The odds are getting slimmer.