All language subtitles for Ink.Master.S16E08.en

[Male Narrator] Previously on
Ink Master...

Most people are ready
to throw me under the bus.

You're a strong player,
one of the best,

if not the best.

So it'd be dumb not to, right?

[music]

[Narrator] The flash challenge
forced a divide amongst the OGs.

Young Guns, because there are
only two of you remaining,

you now have the power
to even the playing field.

Shit.

We're gonna choose James.

I do not want to be
in the bottom again.

I'll use my fucking teeth
if I have to,

to chew away at this block
of crap to make art.

The OGs pulled off a bunch of
different tricks with texture,

but then James
and the Young Guns

really showed some
stark contrast.

The winner
of the flash challenge is

the Young Guns and James.

No, just high fives.
Just high five.

Sorry, guys.

[Narrator] In the elimination
tattoo...

I fuckin' knew it.
I know he took a shot.

[Narrator] New school monsters
scare the competition.

I'm excited to do some color.

We're excited to see some color
from you.

I am shitting myself.

[Lucy] My canvas
is rolling around.

He struggle with the pain.
This is nightmare.

[Narrator] In the elimination,
Jade, Lucy, and Stephanie

were the bottom three.

With Stephanie's tattoo,
the contrast is there

and the new school is there,

so Stephanie's
off the table for me.

Jade's might be simple
and just a little cutesy design,

but there's things in Lucy's
you just can't take away.

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

[Narrator] Six artists remain.

But only one will earn a
$250,000 prize,

and the title of Ink Master.

[theme music]

-Well, Lucy's gone, sadly.
-Fuck.

She's been a fucking
strong competitor,

but just this one tattoo
tripped her up.

That's all it takes is one.

That was my first time being
at the bottom,

and I don't ever want to be
on the bottom again.

I think you've been
the only one

that hasn't been
on the bottom so far.

Yeah, that's crazy
to think about, actually.

-[James] It depends, right?
-There's still time.

-Are you bragging?
-[Anthony] There's still time?

[music]

It's actually quite insane
how close we are.

We've got a few battles
ahead of us, I think.

I wonder what everyone's
thinking about us.

They're probably thinking
that we're like, teamed up,

but I've never coddled you
my whole life.

You know that.

You coming up in tattooing,
I didn't treat you any different

than anyone else who worked
for me.

I treated you like an equal.

And it's the same
in this competition.

Of course.

There's no way you should
deserve to win

if I'm fucking pampering
your way through.

If we're in the right position
to help each other out

because we have an alliance,
that's different, right?

-[Anthony] Yeah.
-And you know might beat you.

We hate losing.

Yeah, I don't wanna lose
to anyone.

Coming into this, we knew one
of us was gonna beat somebody.

-Yeah.
-That's gonna be me beating you.

You can dream.

[music]

[music]

-Three stations.
-Ruh-roh.

Welcome.
Six of you remain.

Four OGs and two Young Guns.

That's it.

But the fight to outlast your
competitors is harder than ever.

Bring it on.

This is your final
flash challenge.

Oh, shit.

Gotta make this one count.

This week,
we're testing adaptability.

We're testing adaptability
this whole time.

In order to elevate your art,
you need to be able to adapt

to new materials and mediums.

If you can't do that,
your art's never gonna evolve,

and you're never gonna grow
as an artist.

Today you must create not one,
but two different works of art

on a single pane of glass.

[music]

How is that gonna work?

Working on a four foot
by four foot pane of glass,

you must paint one side
of the glass with one image

and the opposite
side of the glass

with a completely
different image.

-That's not it.
-There's some kind of twist.

But much like this competition,
not everything is as it seems.

As always.

Your two images must share
the same negative space.

-Oh, shit.
-Wild.

You will have to adapt
your designs,

so the silhouettes match,

so when your glass canvas
is rotated,

an entirely different image
appears on the other side.

How do you make two separate
images with the same outline?

Like, I don't--
I don't get it.

The challenge of the day is
to use the same silhouette

with two completely different
pieces of art.

[DJ] Whatever image is
on the front side of the glass,

we wanna see something
completely different

in the back.

Make a cool image,
something that blows us away.

And don't shatter
under pressure.

[Joel] One artist will work
on one side of the glass

while the other artist works
on the other.

Oh, shit.

You will compete
in teams of two.

OGs, since you have
four artists remaining,

you must decide as a group
how you will divide your team.

You wanna be with your baby boy?

Hey, I'm open.
I'm easy.

Let's split them up.

I'd love to work with Stephanie,
but we can't chance the Texes

winning the skulls.

I'll partner with you.

If the Texes have the power,
then anything and everything

will go wrong.

OGs, how are you gonna
divide your team?

It's gonna be myself and Pony.
And James and Steph.

Try to split up the Texes,
it's smart because putting us

on one team,
we'll fucking crush it.

But us splitting up,
one of us gets the skull pick.

We're still helping
each other out.

[Joel] The teams are set.

Win this flash challenge,
and the two of you

will have the power to assign
all the human canvases

in the elimination tattoo
together.

This is the big one.

Lose, and you will be forced
to adapt to whatever skulls

your competitors throw at you.

-I'd rather win.
-Yeah.

You have four hours.
And your time starts now.

[music]

So what we have here is a piece
of glass.

[DJ] Today is not the day
to leave the glass half empty.

I want to see the glass full
of good art.

So we have--
Are we working with--

-A square.
-Pretty much.

-Yeah, it seems square shaped.
-Four by four.

[DJ] This is the last flash
challenge for these artists.

They really have to impress us
to get those skulls.

I wanna remember all the rules.
Composition, contrast, and flow.

[DJ] If these artists don't show
good adaptability

in this challenge,

then their dreams of becoming
Ink Master will be shattered.

On one side I think
we should really play up

the super girlie element, and do
like, a negative space part.

Big, cutesy, bubbly like,
happy frog.

I really wanted to cling
to the idea of, like,

when people see you and stuff,
they just see like, skirts

and, like, prettiness.

And on the other side,
that heart would actually be

the opening
of this really grotesque

kind of bear inside the mouth.

Yeah, I like that
contrast a lot.

Two totally different imagery.

There may only be two of us,
but we did send an OG home

last week.

We're still a force
to be reckoned with.

Don't underestimate us.

Octopus tentacles can go
in so many different ways

that I feel like a flower's
a little bit more stagnant

and we don't have as much room
to play with the way

-these petals move.
-But--

-Can we do that?
-We can just silhouette leaves

-coming in the background.
-Perfect.

Steph and I have totally
different styles of tattooing,

so actually working with Steph
could work in our favor.

If someone sees something
on one side

and they don't expect
what's on the other side,

they're pleasantly surprised.

How do you feel about
leaving a gap, like, all glass

all the way around,
like, the outside?

We're creating, like,
a frame within a frame.

-What was your original idea?
-I don't know.

I was just gonna see what
you had in mind first.

So I was just thinking
traditional rose,

but we can shape it any which
way with leaves and whatnot.

All of us know that Pony's
not the most creative guy,

so I was gonna make him
put on some blinders,

lead him by the bit,
and let's do this challenge.

You have your rose.
If this is the leaves,

then I can do a fucking Hanya,
and do, like, a fucking horn

or something, you know?

[music]

We both start drawing
and we get our flow down.

You just start doing yours
and I will figure out a way

to mimic my flower.

[music]

I'm gonna have a lot of texture
on my side.

Do you paint at home?

[Jade] In high school,
I painted a little bit.

It's been a minute.

I'm a little nervous because
I know with, like, the bear,

she's gonna be able to render it
super realistic and great,

but with this frog,
painting is not my strong suit.

So I'm extra panicking.

Maybe having my side be more
graphic.

I think it could look really
cool with, like, the paint.

So, super like, color blocky.

It could be, yeah.

Artists, there are three hours
remaining.

All right, here goes nothing.

[music]

I can't wait till my son gets
old enough to where I can do,

like, fun painting projects
with him.

[music]

[Anthony] Nothing beats
essentially looking into

Pony's eyes
while you're doing painting.

[music]

So I have a big, long, swooping
petal that comes up right here,

but that's right where it would
cut through, right here.

James got his design on the
glass as fast as possible.

And, now I'm the one who has
to adapt my design to his.

[Stephanie] The octopus
tentacles can move freely

and it'd be easier to adapt an
octopus to a flower.

Just a constant battle
right now.

How's it going?

I'm going over white
with light blue,

so I can't really see much
of a difference.

We can always add shit
to this whether it be thorns,

or throw a little sticker
on there somewhere.

Obviously, my American
traditional's not gonna fit up

exactly with the Hanya,
so I'm making little characters

and stickers to fill up
all those awkward spaces.

I wonder if I should've
went white first

just to block all that in there.

[Anthony] That's your call, bud.
I don't know.

[Pony] It's just tough.

Two hours remaining.

[music]

Are you enjoying your first
real painting session?

Um, I am struggling a lot.

-Aw, just block it in.
-[Jade] Okay.

I am dead-ass struggling
right now.

I'm just trying to get
this paint on there

and make it look somewhat
like a frog.

Dude, my looks like
a fifth grader did it.

[music]

Your entire side is full in,
so you've met the challenge.

I have not met the challenge
on my side yet.

The flower's cool.

But it needs to be kind of big,
like, proportionate size

to these ones.

In order to win this thing,
I gotta get Stephanie to relax.

Okay, all right.
Draw it and I'll change mine.

I got an idea.

She needs to get out
of her head.

She's overthinking it.

Oh God, I have so much to go.

We win or lose as a team, so...

I need to stop focusing on,
like, such smooth lines

and get all these
shapes matching.

Yeah.

One hour left.

[music]

Oh, this thing looks dark.

But in a good way.

Don't you fucking drip on me.

[music]

[Joel] Five, four,
three, two, one.

That's it.
Time's up.

No more paint.

Okay.

You got a bunch of paint
on your forehead.

Oh, it's really cute.

[Jade] It's so bad.
It's so bad.

Yours is so good.

[Joel]
It's time to critique your work.

All right.
Let's do it.

Stephanie and James,
you're up first.

[Ryan] I would never guess
what's on the other side

by looking at either side.

I love the composition
of the flower,

how it rolls off of the canvas,

the flow and the curls
of the petals.

It's really elegant.

This octopus is sick.
So much movement.

The composition's great.

I like how there's points that
are coming really out at you 3D,

and then it kind of dissipates
as it gets back.

The piece is really balanced
all the way to the border.

It feels framed.

You guys really
completed something

and adapted well
with each other as a team.

I was thinking we have
the best composition.

And flow.

Pony and Anthony, you're up.

Oh.

I do like the mixed style of the
ghost and the smiley face

on top of the traditional rose.

But I didn't know if it was
a potato back there.

[Ryan] It's like an orange
strawberry or something.

It's just a little confusing
as to what everything is.

We can turn it around
and look at Anthony's.

Let's do that.

The Hanya's really cool.
I love the color.

I love the blends.
Anthony led the way.

And then Pony kind of just

shoved everything
into that shape.

His is so good
and mine's like, so bad,

so it's got a lot of contrast,
I would say.

I mean,
there's contrast there,

but the challenge
is adaptability.

Dammit.

Young Guns, you're up.

That's sick.

That thing is gnarly.

Scary beary.

Wow.

[DJ] Happy land.

I think I'm more scared to go
to this world.

Me, too.
Me, too.

[Nikko] It's really happy.
It's almost too happy.

I love the texture in the frog.
It feels velvety.

And to me,
the eyes are real menacing.

This thing's looking at you
like, come on in.

You know what I mean?

And it knows what you're gonna
get into.

The bear is bad ass.
The tongue is insane.

[Ryan] I love all of
the splatter

of all of the spit coming out.
The texture is really good.

And the cut-out in the middle
of the throat being a heart,

I think is a really ironic play
on the whole scene.

This by itself, I think would be
a little bit rough,

but knowing what's
on the other side

makes this thing
100 times better.

I could not disagree more.

This is like,
avocado two point O.

I think it's a total suckerpunch
because that bear is so crazy,

this is allowed to be so simple.

That, to me is why
this thing works.

It makes me smile
every time I see it.

I think you should just do
avocados for a living.

Fuck realism.
I'm just gonna do avocados.

It's time to determine the
winner of the flash challenge.

James and Steph, they both used
such an unexpected shape,

such unexpected composition,

the negative space was so well
thought out that each side,

though not related,
was just surprising.

[DJ] But less
unexpected imagery.

Amazing octopus, amazing flower,
but dare I say, boring to me?

I kind of like the Young Guns.

I can hear music with the frog,
de-da-de, you know what I mean?

And then there's
this little heart,

and these little children are
walking right up to that

heart of that frog
ready for happy land

and they slide down this thing
into a pool of blood.

I think it's a whole story
combined.

Well, you can't just say
it's part of the story--

I'm with it.

-Because it goes from simple--
-You're making me like it more.

Oh, my God.

I mean, art's supposed to invoke
some emotion.

And I definitely feel an emotion
about this frog.

We're arguing about it.

That's what I like about it.

I guess.
I guess.

There's something exciting
about that basic frog,

turning it around and there's
the crazy, terrifying bear.

So, my vote is
for the Young Guns.

My vote's for the Young Guns.

I'm still gonna go
with James and Steph.

They showed the best
adaptability at creating

two entirely different
pieces of artwork

with that same silhouette.

That's two votes
for the Young Guns

and one vote
for James and Stephanie.

My vote goes to...

...the Young Guns.

I love the way it read.
I love the story it told.

The judges have decided the
winner of the flash challenge is

-the Young Guns.
-Thank you.

That was crazy.

Congratulations, Young Guns.

You will have the power to
assign all the human canvases

in the next elimination tattoo
together.

[Jade] That's fucking wild.

Head back to the shop
and get ready for the next

elimination tattoo.

[music]

Fucking frog.
It was so bad, it was good.

[music]

Well, I think we all here
have a common enemy

in this competition.

James.

-Am I wrong?
-Is he wrong, Steph?

-I'm 100% in to take out James.
-[Cat] All right.

I think Anthony is almost
as strong as James,

so in my mind the two of them
are the biggest competitors.

[Pony] Absolutely.

Skull picks,
as far as that goes,

the hardest ones, you know
who those three are gonna go to.

This really could be the pivotal
thing that changes everything.

[music]

At this point in the game,
I consider us targets for sure.

You'd be stupid not to.

We just have to save our own
fucking ass today.

And let everyone else
take themselves out.

Yep.

[music]

Welcome.

Only five artists stand between
you and $250,000,

and the title of Ink Master.

We're so close.

As the number of artists
in this competition goes down,

the pressure goes up.

Today, you must create a tattoo
on a very prominent

part of the body.

What's it gonna be?

The face.

I don't even know where
to start,

what would be easy or hard.

You must use adaptability
to create a design

that flows seamlessly
from the side of the head,

down the bony jawline

and onto the fleshy
part of the cheek.

I got some of those.

The skin of the face
is really delicate.

Go too hard,
you're gonna blow out lines.

Go too light, doesn't go in
and tends to get overworked.

Really gonna have to adapt
and pivot.

Everyone needs to really
dig deep and do the best tattoo

that you can possibly do
because you're changing

someone's identity forever.

This is serious.
It's on someone's face.

You can't hide that.
This is no joke.

Remember, the team whose artists
wins tattoo of the day,

will form the jury of peers.

That team will deliberate
and put one artist

up for elimination
regardless of team.

If one of the OGs take this,
they're putting one of us up.

We need to win this.

Let's meet your canvases.

[music]

Young Guns,
you won the flash challenge.

You have the power to assign
the canvases together.

Here we go.

What are you looking to get?

A black and gray
realistic grim reaper

riding an armored horse
holding a scythe

starting on my sideburn,
going over my ear,

and onto my neck.

It's way too many things
for such a small area.

No thanks.

I would like a neo-traditional,
colorful chipmunk

with bright orange flowers
on the left side of my head

going over my ear onto my
sideburn and up to my temple.

Black and gray traditional
dagger going through a skull

starting at the temple,
going down the sideburn,

and ending at the jaw.

Black and gray,
fine-lined feather mandala

from my temple down
to the back of the ear,

and down the sideburn.

Mandalas are supposed
to be super clean, simple,

and pack a punch.

All the feathers is gonna make
it look really messy.

Black and gray,
illustrative Nordic wolf

starting from my sideburns
wrapping around my ear.

I want black and gray,
realistic flowers and butterfly

going from my sideburn
up to my forehead,

down to my jaw
and going onto my ear.

-Can we see the area?
-Yeah.

This one, honestly,
seems right up my alley.

I love florals.
I love black and gray.

Are there any standouts for you
of what you would want?

The last one, the flowers.

[Cat] The flowers
with the butterfly?

That'd be pretty.

[Cat] What is worrying me
is that

she had a little bit
of breakout.

I feel like I have a light
enough hand that I can work

with her skin and stuff,

especially since I have worked
on the face before.

So I'm leaning towards that one.

I don't want this canvas
to go to somebody

who won't be able to do it,
or will give her a bad tattoo.

So I really want
to take this on.

There's also the fine-lined
mandala feather.

I thought you were gonna hop on
that one because you do, like,

delicate black and white work.

I just can't, like,
visualize it right now.

Jade and Cat don't exactly
have the best track record

when it comes to the skulls,
so hopefully,

if they're gonna fuck up,
they shoot themselves

in the foot and don't aim at me.

Okay.

[music]

Canvases, one by one,
please read the artist's name

on the bottom of your skull.

-James.
-You're in good hands.

This is a kill shot, but I'm not
going out without a fight.

-Stephanie.
-That's me.

I love animals, the chipmunk.

-Pony.
-That'd be me.

-[Anthony] The skull and dagger.
-Fuckin' A.

Anthony.

Sweet.
I love animals.

I do wolves almost every week.
Thanks?

Cat.

Jade.

That's me.

You will have six hours
to create a sideburn tattoo.

If you fail to adapt,
you will fail to move forward

in this competition.

Good luck.

-Hey, my name's Stephanie.
-Max, Pony, nice to meet you.

Head tattoos, let's go.

Any like, forestry creatures,
I love tattooing.

So I'm like--

Like, I'm over the moon that I
actually got you as my canvas.

Would it make sense to have a
chipmunk eating a blueberry?

Because you have the blueberry
plant right there?

Yeah. Oh, totally.
That'd be so smart, actually.

Um, so I know you want a reaper.

And a horse and a scythe,
I think.

We can't do all that.

Having a reaper riding
an armored horse,

you need a huge area.

This ain't for the side
of the face.

The main thing I would
definitely hope for is just,

like, the armored horse.

That was like my main, uh,
one I would like, love to get.

Because I was hoping you'd
just do the reaper and scythe.

That would be cool.

I could show you
a couple of drawings.

See how cool it looks when
you just do a head and that?

You have to be able to show
your canvas what needs

to be done in a tattoo,
not just tell them.

I really love like,
the cowl on him and everything.

[James] Once you have
the canvas's trust,

you open their mind
to cool new ideas.

And that comes with experience.

So you trust me
and we'll get this fuckin' done.

-I trust you.
-Okay, buddy?

-Stoked, man.
-Thanks, man.

What was your like,
vision exactly?

So my vision was to have
feathers like come up

and then maybe have, like,
a feather wisping

to incorporate it
with the sideburn.

Mandalas are so, like,
precise and exact,

and feathers are just
more organic and wispy,

so, like,
I'm having a really hard time

visualizing how to incorporate
that in with a mandala.

Would you trust me
to design this tonight

and show you tomorrow?

I need time to like,
mull over it and like

play with a bunch of
different options.

If I don't figure this out,
I'm going home.

[music]

[music]

Hey, brother.
How's it going?

-Want to see what we're doing?
-Yeah.

Oh, man.

[Anthony] We're gonna do
something like that.

[Man] That's so killer.

I redrew it 'cause I think it's
gonna fit better and readable.

-[Man] Hell, yeah.
-You down?

Yeah, let's do this.

The hardest part is gonna be
shaving your fucking head.

It'll frame your face
really nicely,

and be really like, delicate
and look really good like, right

-in your hairline.
-[Woman] I like that.

-Let me show what I've got.
-Okay.

That's the mandala and they're
slowly turning into the--

These guys kinda, kinda out
of place a little bit.

I just think they look
kinda blocky.

Just maybe make those
look more feathered?

You think if I just make them
not so wide that could work?

That could work.

-Let me adjust this.
-Okay.

Artists, you have five hours
to prove your adaptability.

And your time starts now.

All right.
Game time.

This is a scary-ass challenge.
You're tattooing someone's face.

You're changing
their appearance.

Okay, head nice and straight.

[DJ] You can cover up
any other tattoo.

You can't cover up the face.

[Pony] Fits like a glove, man.
That thing's perfect.

[DJ] These artists have to show
great technical skill

on a part of the body
that's always seen.

The skin on the face is
different than

other parts of the body.

So you have to be mindful
of what type of skin

you're tattooing.

Much better, 110%.
Thank you.

You have to fit the flow
of the face.

Yeah, that looks beautiful.

[DJ] This isn't the
minor leagues anymore.

There's only six artists left.

These artists really need
to step up to the plate

and hit a homerun on this one.

Nothing to it, but to do it.
Right, buddy?

[music]

What does your family think
about face tattoos?

I didn't tell my dad.

I got my mom's opinion.

I told her while
she was working

so that she couldn't uh,
say much.

I'm super nervous
what's gonna start happening

when I start tattooing.

Even shaving is getting it
to be red and enflamed.

Has your family been supportive
of it?

Uh, not always,
but they definitely are now.

Both of my parents
were immigrants

when they came to this country.

I'm actually first generation
born in the U.S.

My dad was, like,
pretty strict and hardcore.

And then he had people at his
work saying like,

"Oh my gosh,
I follow your daughter.

Did you see what she did?
You must be so proud."

I have a big,
massive Mexican family.

They are all rooting for me.

-You ready?
-Yeah.

I want to make them proud.

[music]

[Stephanie] I'm way more
delicate right along the face

because the tissue's
different right here.

[Woman] You can feel
the 14 years experience.

I'm gonna show adaptability
in this tattoo

by incorporating
her existing tattoos.

I'm matching the leaves
and adding a blueberry.

-[Woman] Do you travel at all?
-[Stephanie] I do guest spots.

I haven't been as active
because of having babies

the past few years.

I've had two kids
in the past three years.

A lot of my time is dedicated
to that.

[Woman] And do you have
a great partner?

[Stephanie] My husband's
extremely supportive.

He's an amazing dad.
I'm so lucky.

Being here is making me kind of
really appreciate how lucky I am

to have the family I have.

I'm not gonna let them down.

Four hours.

[music]

The Young Guns
clearly shot at me.

I need to show them
with this tattoo

that I'm not easily fazed.

And I'm gonna be here
till the end, like it or not.

Looks like you're headed
in the right direction, right?

[James] You gotta keep
your head on a swivel

when you're in
this tight competition.

The dad jokes,
that's all I have, man.

[Nikko] I know.

-Do you have kids?
-[Nikko] Yeah, I got three.

-Oh, really?
-[Nikko] Yeah.

My daughter just graduated.

Actually wants to learn
how to tattoo.

[James] Cool.

It's pretty cool to see you
and your son and stuff.

It's inspiring.

I'm pretty lucky
he's not an idiot.

It's a weird place
to be in having to

go up against your son
in any competition.

I want Anthony to win.

I wanna be proud
of what he can do,

but I also wanna win.

So as much as I'm conflicted,

I'm still keeping my eyes
on the prize.

This is part of the more
extreme challenges

'cause of placement.

I've had people tell me,

"Oh, you're just riding
Daddy's coattails.

That's a big shadow,
big shoes."

That's why I'm here.

I'm technically an OG,
you know, I'm like,

I kind of see myself
as a Young Gun.

It's an ingrained skill with,
like, James being my father.

I don't wanna play it safe.
I want to impress James.

I put that on myself,
though, right?

I'm the son looking
to the father,

the apprentice to the mentor.

But, I also feel like him
teaching me everything,

I don't wanna let him down.

Good tattoos go home now.

I'm just trying to make sure
that I do the best good tattoo.

There are three hours remaining.

[music]

Look at you.

I'm trying to make the cleanest
tattoo possible.

I know everybody else
is going crazy with it.

[Ryan] It's your favorite style.

[Pony] I genuinely love it.

And color in the hilt
or anything?

I might play around with it
and see if maybe, like,

-some red splotches behind it.
-Clean.

[Pony] Yeah, there's nowhere
to hide.

One hour left on the clock.

Were you pretty nervous
when you heard the ask?

Yes. I was like, "Wow, I've
never done this before."

Welcome to Ink Master.

I feel like newer tattooers
are very adaptable,

and just kind of learn
on the fly,

learn as they go.

What's your experience
behind tattooing?

Honestly, I don't have a huge
art background.

I got BFA in contemporary dance.

With dance, I'm very fluid
and soft, and free moving.

And I feel like that also
transitions into, like,

the way I tattoo
because my tattoos come out

very soft and flowy as well.

You do a lot of these,
like the mandala stuff?

Um, I've done a few, yeah.

There's a lot of really fine
little dots within this mandala.

I really wanted to show, like,
this fine, detailed dot work.

But they're literally blending
in with all the hair.

I'm literally, just like,
figuring it out as I go.

[music]

You've got this.

Almost there.

Five, four, three, two, one.

That's it. Time's up.
No more ink.

-Fucking done.
-Awesome.

Now you get to reap the rewards
of my hard work.

Boom, I still got it.

Oh, my God.

I love it.

If you don't win,
there's a problem.

I love it.

-[Jade] You like it?
-I love it.

Dude, that's fuckin' sick.

[Pony] Thanks, man.
I love it. I'm kinda jealous.

Six people left
and three at the top,

three at the bottom?

I think it's possible that
anybody here

-could be in the bottom.
-[James] Dun, dun, dun.

[music]

[music]

Today, you were being tested
on adaptability.

You had to create a tattoo
on your canvas's face.

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

Let's see how you did.

Stephanie, you're up first.

I freakin' love this tattoo.
Beautiful, bright.

All of the leaves are flipping
and moving in the same ways

as her pre-existing tattoos.

Taking these other tattoos
and connecting them,

that really takes some
adaptability to

make 'em look really seamless.

[DJ] I love the flowers.

I love those little buds that
come down in front of the ear.

This piece fits the side
of the head really well.

[Ryan] This is hand's down my
favorite tattoo you've done.

This is rad.

Thank you.

Pony.

This tattoo is sick.

The lines are super clean,
bulletproof.

I like your really dramatic,
heavy, black shaded areas.

It blends and holds to that
traditional style.

I had something to prove
on this one, I feel like.

This canvas is gonna look bad
ass for the rest of his life.

Just a straight up, bold,
simple, bad-ass tattoo.

Anthony.

[music]

It has a cool expression.
It fits really well.

[DJ] I like that really
aggressive front fangs

on the face, but these
very repetitive shapes

that you brought
down the muzzle,

it throws off the proportions
of the wolf.

It kinda creates this wider,
almost bear muzzle.

The one thing that gets
a little confusing for me,

it's either spit or like,
saliva, or lightning.

Like, I wasn't sure
what you were going for.

More saliva sort of thing.
Yeah.

[Joel] I don't think you needed
as many negative spit streaks.

The top one kinda distracts you
from the texture of the wolf.

[Ryan] There's just a little bit
of issue with readability

with those textures right there.

[music]

Cat.

I do like the flower
in the center.

It's got nice,
light contrast in it.

Beautiful depth
in the butterfly.

Super dope,
but the butterfly

and the daffodil look
completely separate.

The daffodil looks
unfinished to me.

I just wanna take the top
two forget-me-nots

and just flip that part
of the stencil.

[Joel] I just feel like those
flowers are just not necessary.

It just looks disjointed on top.

Jade.

There's a lot of good areas
in this.

You have your blacks solid
and it's not overworked,

but parts of it should be
a lot heavier.

As it heals, those thin lines
on the head

are gonna get really faint.

I really don't like
the feathers.

The way that,
that bottom feather ends

cuts off her jawline
about an inch too high.

And because the feathers
are so light,

they aren't really matching
with the black-work feel

of the mandala.

I was struggling
trying to figure out

how to add them.

[Nikko] They look like
a forced afterthought.

That's what they feel like.

[music]

James.

This is a bad-ass tattoo.
It fits the head really nice.

I like this pose.
I like the hand on the sideburn.

And all the little details you
put in the skull and that big,

open light source at the top
creates this cool cut into it

and it doesn't block out
the whole thing.

Super smart.

The teeth are really cool.
There's like, this nice,

little highlight on each tooth
that's really beautifully done.

This is a sick tattoo.

[music]

Judges, it's time to determine

who had the best tattoo
of the day.

James's is just super graphic.

[Ryan] My favorite part about
this one is how the entire thing

perfectly fits the shape
of the head.

I mean, Stephanie's tattoo,
the design, the colors.

And the way it works
with the other tattoos,

it really is a shining moment
for Stephanie.

It's a great tattoo.

I personally like
James's tattoo better

for just the design
and the graphics,

but when I think about the
challenge with adaptability,

Stephanie slightly edges out
James's tattoo.

My vote is for Stephanie
to have tattoo of the day.

My vote's for Stephanie.

My vote's for Stephanie.
Woot, woot, woot.

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

Stephanie.

Thank you.

That means this week, the OGs
will form the jury of peers.

You must deliberate as a team

and put one artist
up for elimination.

Head out and we'll call you back
when a decision has been made.

[music]

[music]

I feel pretty happy.

No.

On the other hand,
it's sad that the Young Gun's

skull picks didn't
really do fuck all.

You're not wrong.
I definitely fucked up today.

[Pony] I think it might have
slightly worked on Anthony.

I feel like I risked a lot
in my design.

I took it a little further.

Well, sometimes that bites you
in the ass.

[music]

We're here as a jury of peers
to decide which artist

we want to put up for
elimination.

I'd say let's start with Jade.

I don't mind the
feather idea behind it,

but she approached it not in
an aesthetically pleasing way.

I just don't understand where
she lost her imagination

with this piece.

It just seems so just mandala,
three leaves.

I haven't seen any imagination
from her at all.

It's clean lines.
She's good at that.

We can't take that away
from her.

She's good at what she does.

All right,
who else are we thinking?

Well, Cat.

She's really the only
other option.

Just those two leaves coming
down, it looks like a fork,

two prongs going out.

[Stephanie] That bothers me
the most.

[James] The composition.

[Stephanie] Those two sticking
straight out, so dark.

As far as, like,
retaining legibility,

five years from now,

I don't think Cat's
is gonna be strong at all.

I know. I think Jade's
is gonna last longer.

When you look at Jade's,
there's just really nice,

negative space throughout
the whole thing.

And Cat's tattoo,
it just has, like,

really awkward negative spaces.

It's a tough one, guys.

[music]

Shit, that was a little brutal.

Yeah, I've just been, like,
waiting to fall at some point

in time.
It feels like,

how long can you realistically,
like, just keep climbing?

So it obviously just,
like, sucks.

Yeah.

I mean, I left my baby at home
to come here.

Since then, he's turned six
months old. He's gotten teeth.

He's learned to sit up
and do all these things.

And I don't wanna, like, come
back without it being worth it.

I think you're safer than me.
It's been hard.

Everyone has so much
more experience.

So I think I get, like,
in my head a lot.

I didn't have, like,
the confidence going into it.

I guess I've second-guessed
myself a lot.

Being a Young Gun,
there's just, like,

a lot I don't know.

You've had a lack of confidence
this entire time

and you're in the top six?

You can't second-guess
yourself anymore.

I believe in you.
I think you can do it.

I think you have tons
of potential.

I think you actually
have it in you.

[music]

Today, you were being tested
on adaptability.

Stephanie, which artist is
the jury of peers

putting up for elimination?

We, as a jury of peers,
have decided

to put Cat up for elimination.

[music]

The judges have decided
the second artist

in the bottom is...

Jade.

[music]

The third artist
in the bottom is...

Anthony.

[music]

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

Anthony, you're in the bottom
because your tattoo lacked

readability and parts of it
looked disjointed.

[Anthony] I got too
tweaky with it.

I got too excited and just kind
of went a little too overboard.

But I showed
composition, contrast.

I think, flow, energy.

I still came up to the challenge
I was asked.

[music]

Jade, you're in the bottom today
because the feather element

of it didn't necessarily flow
with that mandala.

I think I was just
so tunnel vision on

trying to include
everything that she wanted,

I just didn't take a step back
and kinda look

at the whole picture
further away.

But I'm at least glad
I got some clean lines in there

and, like, a solid mandala.

Stephanie, why did the jury
put Cat in the bottom?

When it comes to Cat's tattoo,
the flow of the piece,

that piece that
comes onto the forehead,

kept standing out to us.

I tried to adapt
as much as possible

and really think about
what this is gonna look like

for her with her hair coming in,
or that's gonna fit her face.

And I'm still set on
the decision that I made

to take this canvas.

I knew Jade, especially
for her first tattoo,

probably shouldn't have
taken this one.

And I knew that it was going
to be more difficult.

So you took this canvas
so Jade wouldn't?

Well, she was originally
considering it, but I said,

"That's not a good idea
if this is your first time

trying to tattoo this area."

So you said, "Take the mandala

"with seven million
straight lines.

"That'll be easier for you than

what you're comfortable with at
home."

[music]

It's time to make a decision.

When I look at them
all three together,

I see a little bit more
tricks in Cat's.

When I look at Anthony's,

I see some weight
and aggression.

And it definitely
fits the canvas.

Jade's, if it was
just that mandala,

and those feathers
weren't there,

it'd be a totally
different outcome.

It's hard for me to look at
a tattoo sometimes

when I feel like the weight is
heavy on the front

and it's not balanced.

Especially with the mandala,
where it's balanced.

My vote is for Jade.

My vote's for Jade.

Jade, my vote is for you.

There's just little slip-ups
in your design,

and unfortunately,
on this day,

they're major slip-ups.

[Joel] The judges have decided,

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

You outgunned and outlasted
a lot of great artists.

And for the amount of time
you've been tattooing,

for you to get up here
and do what you've done,

I am really impressed.

Part of me's super happy
to have, like, made it this far

'cause I don't really have
an art background or anything.

So when I get out of here,
I wanna learn more about

illustration,
painting and everything.

Use it as fuel for your fire.
And you're gonna burn so bright.

Please pack your machines
and close shop.

[Jade] This competition was
super important for me

because there were so many
people who didn't even give me

the chance in the beginning.

Like, all those shops
that said no to me.

I had something to prove.

Bye, guys.

And even though
I got eliminated,

I did pretty well.
Look at where I am.

I made top six and only with
three years of experience.

Imagine I come back in like,
10 years, I'll fucking kick ass.

[music]

[Narrator] On the next episode
ofInk Master .

This is a double elimination.

Whomp, whomp, whomp.

You got some whacky shit
up there.

[Stephanie]
This challenge is wild.

Instead of one turd,
I got a turd pile.

I'm sorry.
I'm losing my mind right now.

Let the fun begin.

[Cat] I need to pull out
all the stops.

[Pony] This tattoos's gonna
remove any doubts that

I'm the most technically-sound
tattooer in the room.

[Joel] The three artists
with the highest rankings

will secure a spot
in the finale.

Let's go.

[music]

[music]

[music]

[music]