The Block 2023 episode 13 recap: Why the judges are over their working

It was a weird one on The Block as two teams are punished for following orders, and one team who spent the paltriest amount of money on their room comes within half a point of winning over big-spending fellow contestants.

It’s Leah and Ash and Kristy and Brett who cop it from the judges for doing what they’ve been told to do, namely, a work-from-home space.

“I think they’ve taken work from home too literal,” judge Shaynna Blaze says of Kristy and Brett’s $29,919 space, featuring a desk, open shelving and two facing chairs. “This feels like a commercial office.”

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Steph and Gian’s room was a simple but effective work/media room with a TV behind sliding panelling and two desks spaces. Picture: Channel Nine

Marty Fox takes issue with their planning. Kristy and Brett are the only team with a front yard acting as a back yard. It will be their main outdoor area and will house their pool.

He thinks this room, which overlooks their future pool, would have been better used as an extra living space/guest bedroom.

“The front of this room is overlooking a pool, and I’m standing in a study?” he says. “I’m not sure this is doing them any favours.”

Judge Shaynna Blaze described Brett and Kristy’s room as being like a commercial office. Picture: Channel Nine

He thinks a sofa, a TV and access to a deck and the pool would have been a smarter choice.

Luckily though, there’s room for a queen-sized bed and the cabinetry they’ve installed could easily be used as wardrobes, so future buyers might at least see the room as an extra bedroom.

Leah and Ash have painted themselves into more of a corner.

After a horror night of rain, in which their ceiling collapsed and water poured through every bulkhead and downlight, they still manage to present what can really only be a home office.

The placement of a magnificent art deco-style fireplace, double doors and lack of wardrobes doesn’t really give buyers too many other options.

Leah and Ash presented a working from home space that was too working from home. Picture: Channel Nine

The judges love the pricey $37,728 room itself and are impressed they still delivered something after the apocalypse.

“This is glamazon,” Shaynna says of the sea green walls and 3m photographic print. “I love it.”

But then Marty Fox points out they have effectively turned a potentially four-bedroom house into a three-bed, while their neighbours have a minimum of four bedrooms, and in some cases, five.

“We’re in a family area and you don’t have a single bedroom on the ground floor which means that technically this is a three-bedroom home, because the studio needs to be rearranged to pull the bed down,” he says.

“Again, they’ve taken working from home too literally,” Shaynna agrees.

The feedback for Eliza and Liberty isn’t too much better, but it’s still leaps and bounds better than last week, prompting Eliza to deliver a frankly disturbing series of hip thrusts.

The judges’ feedback for Liberty and Eliza’s room wasn’t exactly effusive, but it wasn’t terrible, and that’s a win as far as the Melbourne sisters are concerned. Picture: Channel Nine

They were also badly affected by the rain, with their wallpaper slipping off their wall and paint sliding away, but their $27,051 room is described as a “good version of the ‘90s, and the ‘90s is so in right now” by Shaynna Blaze.

They’ve made a bedroom, featuring that same photographic print as Leah and Ash, replica grass cloth wallpaper in ocean blue, wall panelling, a desk and an LED mirror. They’ve also presented “700 Post Its” as Eliza says, telling judges to ignore the water-damaged wallpaper and not to touch the waterlogged powerpoints or turn on the short-circuited LED mirror.

Again, they’ve tried to do too much. The desk is too wide to act as a make-up table, so the reason for the LED mirror above it is unclear, and the inclusion of guest chocolates in the styling further muddies the waters.

Darren Palmer is unhappy with the use of replica grass cloth wallpaper, given the high-end nature of the suburb and the houses they’re creating.

“If you can’t afford to have a $500 roll of grass cloth paper, which is fine, then I wouldn’t replicate it with something that doesn’t have that texture,” he says.

The judges also think the Slim Aarons-style photographic print is out of place in this room, but would be perfect for the poolside studio from last week.

Still, nobody said they would have been better presenting an empty room, so the girls are happy with their lot.

The competition for first place is between Steph and Gian, who spent $22,380, and Kyle and Leslie, who dropped a measly $13,917.

Being this week’s cheapskates nearly paid of with a win for Leslie and Kyle. Picture: Channel Nine

They’ve both created rooms which could be used as working from home spaces, media rooms or guest bedrooms.

Steph and Gian have two desks book-ending a wall-mounted TV behind sliding panels, a sofa and homemade mood board artworks.

Lesley and Kyle’s room has a freestanding work station and shelving unit, two sofa chairs and matching ottoman and TV surrounded by artwork.

Darren Palmer is over the beams Steph and Gian have put in all of their rooms, pointing out they make the ceiling seem lower.

Steph and Gian won for the second week in a row. Picture: Channel Nine

And all the judges notice Leslie and Kyle’s failure to install skirting boards, but they both win big with the judges, with Steph and Gian scraping through by half a point for their second win in a row.

By the time the points are read Leah is only just holding it together and disappears to the toilets to sob.

1 Steph and Gian 26.5

2 Kyle and Leslie 26

3 Kristy and Brett 24

4 Leah and Ash/Eliza and Liberty 22.5

Ep 11/12: Dangerous near miss as Block home’s ceiling collapses

Ep 10: ‘A***hole real estate agent’ — new judge cops massive spray

Ep 9: ‘Better if left empty’: Block judges deliver brutal feedback

Ep 7/8: Real reason Block team is shielding their windows

Ep 6: ‘Don’t speak to me ever again’: Rogue dad brings Block drama

Ep 5: Block team gets dad to help, accused of rule breaking

Ep 3 & 4: ‘Secretive and fake’ — Battle lines drawn over Block agents

Ep 2: Stumble out of the blocks: Team demolishes wrong room

Ep 1: ‘Fugly as’: Contestants unimpressed with Block houses

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