The Real Reason This MasterChef Finale Is So Historic

Season 11 of the popular Fox cooking competition was dubbed "MasterChef: Legends" and lived up to its subtitle by trotting out legendary celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse in the season premiere (via Guilty Eats). Not everyone has agreed that this season, which concludes tonight (September 15), deserves the "legends" label (see Reddit), but Season 11 is undoubtedly historic. The reason has nothing to do with Lagasse, or any other man who has appeared on the show this time around. For the first time ever, "MasterChef" can boast a group of all-female finalists (via MLive).

"MasterChef: Legends" started by handing out 15 white aprons to the starting slate of contestants — home cooks who would be challenged to make chef-quality dishes under the judging eyes of hosts Gordon Ramsay, Aarón Sánchez, and Joe Bastianich. After contestant Alejandro (you'll find it's first-names-only in a lot of the "MasterChef" coverage) was eliminated in the most recent episode, per FoodSided, only three were left standing to battle in the finale: Autumn, Kelsey, and Suu. 

The gimmick motivating "MasterChef" is that it's a top-tier cooking competition show featuring home cooks rather than professional chefs. Autumn, one of the three female finalists in "MasterChef: Legends," is a bartender from Boston, according to Parade. Kelsey is a physical therapist from Indiana, and Suu's resume suggests a strong food background — she's a food blogger from Houston who specializes in Burmese cuisine.

With Autumn, viewers were less interested in her cooking and more curious about how she broke her foot and why her Boston accent faded as the season progressed (via Distractify). Suu inspired some Reddit hate, with one poster calling her "fake" and another Redditor labeling her a "robot." The crowd favorite on Reddit appears to be Kelsey, who is the predicted winner in one post. "Seems like she's getting a winner's edit," one Redditor said, "and the pregnant mom/fierce competitor angle is a nice play for a MasterChef."

One thing's for certain: A woman will win "MasterChef: Legends."