Ink Master’s Best (& Worst) Freehand Tattoos ✍️

0:00 Check out my competition here.

0:01 Oh, man.

0:02 That's a Steve tat-tat.

0:03 It is.

0:04 It was this or kittens.

0:06 I was going either way.

0:06 Fuck yeah, man.

0:07 That's cool.

0:08 Me picking Steve is 100% tactical.

0:13 Nobody else in this competition has the fucking

0:15 balls to step up and do a freehand tattoo.

0:19 So I'm taking Steve on just so I can show off.

0:21 [TENSE MUSIC] DAVE: Anthony and Jesse,

0:27 your teammates determined that you were the weakest.

0:30 You must now face off for survival.

0:34 You've each been randomly assigned a canvas,

0:36 and your canvases are completely open.

0:39 The subject and style of your design is completely up to you.

0:43 However, to prove your adaptability,

0:45 you must draw your tattoo directly onto your canvas's skin freehand.

0:51 Whoa.

0:52 DAVE: You cannot use any stencils,

0:54 and you must draw from scratch with no reference.

0:58 Freehand and no reference?

1:01 Jesse has made a name for himself being an illustrator

1:03 and coming up with images off the top of his head.

1:06 I'm [BLEEP] screwed.

1:07 JESSE: This is exactly what I need because I want to do something crazy.

1:11 I want to do what I do.

1:12 This is my comfort zone.

1:14 DAVE: You have six hours to tattoo, and your time starts now.

1:20 Let's get it on.

1:22 CHRIS: Jesse Smith and Anthony Michaels could easily make it to the finale.

1:25 One of them's not.

1:26 I specialize in little critters.

1:27 Rabbits, squirrels.

1:28 I do the googly eyes and teeth.

1:30 These two tattooers have such a different background.

1:33 We can do, like, a traditional eagle or Something.

1:35 That's cool.

1:36 That would surprise the judges because they wouldn't expect that.

1:38 CHRIS: Typically, experience is everything,

1:41 but there are times where inexperience creates hunger and creates drive.

1:45 ANTHONY: I know the judges wouldn't expect it,

1:46 either, but I'm gonna murder this [BLEEP].

1:48 We'll have to see how Anthony does going

1:50 up against a veteran that knows all the tricks.

1:56 I'm just drawing right now, seeing what comes out.

1:58 This is the first time in this competition that I've

2:01 got a piece of open skin to do whatever I want.

2:03 I'm taking advantage of it.

2:04 I can't even figure out what Jesse's drawing.

2:06 I can't, either.

2:07 Nobody knows.

2:08 JESSE: This tattoo right here is a game-changer.

2:10 If I win, then I've knocked Anthony out, one of the strongest competitors,

2:13 and I have an easier path to the finale.

2:15 I'm ready to show these guys what I'm made of.

2:17 [TENSE MUSIC] ANTHONY: I screwed up the American traditional clipper ship.

2:23 I have to redeem myself.

2:25 I'm tattooing a freehand eagle across the shoulder blades of my canvas.

2:28 I'm out for blood.

2:29 I'm creating something that's badass.

2:31 OLIVER: Anthony has taken a big risk

2:33 in a huge shoulder-to-shoulder eagle on this guy's back.

2:37 I don't normally tattoo this style,

2:39 and I figured I'd push myself a bit, you know what I mean?

2:41 OLIVER: Staying black and gray with it?

2:42 ANTHONY: No.

2:43 OLIVER: No?

2:43 No.

2:45 JESSE: I'm [BLEEP] going for it.

2:46 OLIVER: What Jesse's doing is his own made-up character that there's no rules.

2:50 There's nothing to hold him to the fire on this tattoo.

2:53 All right, guys, you have four hours remaining.

2:55 [TENSE MUSIC] Ooh, damn.

2:59 I think right now, Anthony's balls might be bigger than his head.

3:02 He wants to impress the judges, but I need him to maintain control so that we

3:05 can make it to the end like we planned.

3:07 I would just really, really, like,

3:09 concentrate on making sure your fades are perfect.

3:12 Make sure your [BLEEP] is technically on point.

3:16 JESSE: Everybody's helping Anthony out.

3:18 Nobody's trying to help me out.

3:19 Make sure you do tough clubs.

3:20 I got three on top and then one on the bottom.

3:21 I have four.

3:22 Yeah, three on top, one on the bottom.

3:24 I'm not competing against one person on this tattoo.

3:26 I'm competing against five.

3:28 I'm pretty sure it's three and one.

3:29 JESSE: But you know what?

3:30 Adaptability is being able to take a bad situation and make it good.

3:36 My dad was in the army.

3:37 I grew up all over the world.

3:38 I've had to adapt every time I've moved.

3:40 I was always exposed to a bunch of different artists,

3:42 and I pulled a piece from every artist I've ever met,

3:44 and that's where my style comes from.

3:46 Now I'm all alone, and I'm getting to do what I want to do.

3:49 Anthony's in trouble.

3:52 Everybody's gonna help Anthony because Jesse's

3:54 tattoo is coming straight from his head.

3:56 It's not gonna be very easy to critique.

3:57 I think he should tell them I did

3:58 an eagle because he eats little googly-eyed creatures.

4:01 Anything you say about it,

4:02 he could just explain away in some imaginary fairytale story.

4:05 JESSE: This particular guy lives in the chaotic sea, preys on skipper fish.

4:10 I don't know why Anthony's choosing to do

4:12 traditional today when he doesn't do traditional.

4:14 Maybe he's got a point to prove.

4:18 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

4:22 That is it.

4:23 Time is up.

4:23 Machines down.

4:25 No more ink.

4:27 Down to the wire.

4:29 Good job, dude.

4:30 It's badass.

4:31 You can't get a more different approach on each one, you know?

4:33 Pretty crazy, man.

4:35 Jesse was smart doing something that he loves to do, big-eyed crazy creatures.

4:39 Your muppet's got "toofeses." I don't know what the hell it is.

4:42 Well, they can't get you on anatomy because

4:43 nobody knows what the [BLEEP] that thing is.

4:45 But I think it should be way more saturated than it is.

4:48 Jesse's supposed to be the color guy.

4:49 Go figure.

4:50 [TENSE MUSIC] DAVE: Today,

4:53 you faced off to prove your adaptability by freehanding

4:56 your design directly onto the skin with no reference.

5:00 Jesse, let's start with you.

5:02 [TENSE MUSIC] So what we looking at here?

5:06 JESSE: This is a oco-bunny fish.

5:08 It's pretty much straight from my head.

5:09 OLIVER: It's a very creative tattoo,

5:10 but at first glance, it's a little bit confusing,

5:12 the way the body turns around the back and what's going on.

5:15 Are those supposed to be stitches that are

5:17 holding the thing together in the back?

5:18 Yeah, this particular character, he's been through some bad times.

5:21 He relies on the pattern on his sides to attract

5:24 other fish so he can have a meal for the day.

5:26 It makes me sad to know that he probably won't

5:28 last that long because he can't move like a normal fish.

5:31 That thing's crazy.

5:32 OLIVER: I think it's a great creative approach.

5:34 There are some areas that are really shining— the nose,

5:36 the fang, the little textures that really stand out strong.

5:40 But there's some saturation issues, some muddy colors,

5:42 like the orange spots that look scratchy and unfinished.

5:45 And there's some areas that I think could have

5:46 been a little brighter instead of that pale yellow.

5:49 Overall, it has a more muted, washed-out feel.

5:52 Well, Jesse, there's no doubt about your creativity.

5:54 But then looking at the consistency of the outline,

5:56 you have a lot of different line weights.

5:58 You have some areas where you get a little gray,

5:59 or you have some thickness where it looks like you had to pick up in some spots.

6:03 Overall, you did a really cool image.

6:05 This is gonna boil down completely on both sides of the table to technicalities.

6:10 Anthony.

6:14 This isn't really the most traditional eagle in the world.

6:17 ANTHONY: I wanted that feel.

6:18 I know there's so much more about traditional tattooing.

6:21 There's so many rules involved.

6:22 So I wanted to be a little looser but keep some elements of traditional,

6:25 being the black, and I tried to simplify the design as much as I could.

6:29 But have you drawn a lot of these eagles?

6:30 No.

6:31 OLIVER: Drawing an eagle like this from memory, very risky.

6:33 Just going from nothing and coming up with an aesthetically pleasing look,

6:36 I think it's a great take,

6:38 but there's some questionable ways you did the feathers in the wings.

6:41 ANTHONY: I didn't want the wings to look so uniform.

6:43 OLIVER: I shouldn't be able to see the feather lines go all the way to the base.

6:47 That black should be black enough

6:48 to where those lines disappear into the blackness.

6:51 CHRIS: Where, to me, things get short is the color.

6:53 I don't love the brown stripes off the yellow in talons and in the wings.

6:57 It doesn't speak to me as powerfully as everything else in the tattoo.

7:01 [TENSE MUSIC] DAVE: All right, it's time to go to the judges here.

7:09 Which artist is going home?

7:10 OLIVER: I feel like there's some technical problems with both these tattoos.

7:13 CHRIS: We will all agree that both have some kind of anatomy issue.

7:16 We all agree that some areas of each of the tattoo are light.

7:20 Where I would say that there's a gap would come down to outlines.

7:24 Definitely Anthony's tattoo has a much stronger outline.

7:27 Looking at it line by line, pass by pass, stroke by stroke,

7:30 the finesse that's in that outline, that is what's really strong.

7:35 DAVE: In terms of overall readability and maybe just taking it up a notch,

7:40 Anthony may have stepped a little bit further out of his comfort zone.

7:43 OLIVER: Anthony took the big risk.

7:45 He did a tattoo to win the.

7:46 Final choice to go home?

7:50 OLIVER: I gotta vote for Jesse.

7:51 My final decision, Jesse.

7:55 Jesse.

7:57 DAVE: The judges have decided.

7:59 Jesse, you do not have what it takes to be Ink Master.

8:04 Please pack your machines and close shop.

8:07 [TENSE MUSIC] This week, you must freehand a tattoo.

8:15 Drawing directly on the skin without a stencil is the ultimate test of artistry.

8:20 You'll have three hours to freehand your designs and then six hours to tattoo.

8:25 Based on your work, one shop will be out, and your drawing time starts now.

8:32 Lalo, what's our strategy?

8:33 I'm very excited to tattoo.

8:34 OK.

8:35 I think you're amazing at drawing.

8:36 OK.

8:37 Other than the background, I wouldn't go crazy.

8:39 We don't need to overcomplicate it.

8:41 Oh, look who's talking about not overcomplicate it.

8:45 I'm just trying to make it simple.

8:46 LALO: Me too.

8:47 PICASSO: My approach is to do something

8:49 simple and very readable for Lalo to tattoo.

8:51 All he has to do is follow my lines and really make this amazing.

8:55 CHRIS: The person whose drawing has

8:57 to quarterback the tattoo throughout because they see

8:59 the vision and they have to translate that to the person that's inking it.

9:02 PICASSO: Anytime you do something I don't like, I'm gonna go [HISSES].

9:05 For this challenge, we decided it's best if I

9:07 just walk away and let Lalo do his thing.

9:09 Sometimes we don't work very good when we're sitting over each other's shoulder.

9:13 Do us proud, Lalo.

9:14 LALO: Don't worry your pretty little head, I got it.

9:17 Please don't screw this up for us.

9:19 You see how it's, like, darker gray there, and then it fades out?

9:22 Oh, I see what you mean.

9:24 It's a little bit lighter off that shoulder.

9:25 DAVE: Wow.

9:26 Did you do this?

9:27 JESSY: Mm-hmm.

9:28 ALLISIN: Jesse drew the full rendering of this image.

9:30 It's like I'm working off a stencil.

9:32 I feel like we're gonna bounce back from last week, so I'm ready to get it done.

9:35 It looks [BLEEP] good, man.

9:36 You're killing it.

9:37 Told you we were gonna make a realism artist out of you yet.

9:40 I'm like a proud mama right now.

9:42 I'm a little disappointed in House of Monkey.

9:45 Only because I know Picasso is just a [BLEEP] monster.

9:49 It's cool, but he's just so much better than that.

9:52 LALO: Picasso?

9:53 Yeah?

9:54 LALO: You want to take a look?

9:55 [TENSE MUSIC] He is going crazy.

9:59 That color palette makes no sense whatsoever.

10:03 LALO: Don't be nervous.

10:04 It's a good day at House of Monkey.

10:05 PICASSO: We were supposed to have a nice

10:07 amount of black and a simple color palette.

10:09 We didn't need all this blue.

10:11 Lalo, you had one job.

10:14 The colors, man.

10:17 DAVE: Today, you had to prove your artistry.

10:19 House of Monkey.

10:22 Picasso did the drawing, and Lalo tattooed.

10:24 I like the drawing a lot, but my only problem with the tattooing is the colors.

10:28 OLIVER: The problem with this tattoo is this big,

10:31 scratchy baby blue bubble on the top

10:33 and this light green that's not finished in these cactus.

10:36 It's not solid.

10:37 It's not smooth.

10:38 Just a lot of sloppiness.

10:40 [TENSE MUSIC] Pins and Needles.

10:46 Jessy drew, and Allisin tattooed.

10:49 OLIVER: It's a very clean, very deliberate, beautiful drawing.

10:52 I love the detail in the feet and the tree,

10:55 the face of the vulture, the soft shaded background.

10:58 CHRIS: You guys did a great job here.

10:59 Welcome back.

11:00 Thank you.

11:00 Thank you guys.

11:01 [TENSE MUSIC] DAVE: The judges have decided that the best

11:05 tattoo of the day goes to Pins and Needles.

11:10 Based on your work, one shop will be packing their machines.

11:14 The judges have decided, House of Monkey,

11:16 you do not have what it takes to be Master Shop.

11:19 Please pack your machines and move out.

11:22 [TENSE MUSIC] Coaches, today, you must face off.

11:28 Win the face off, and your team is safe from elimination.

11:33 [BLEEP] Let's go, Steve.

11:35 This week, we're testing proportions.

11:38 For this tattoo, you must freehand your design

11:41 directly onto your canvas's skin without a stencil.

11:46 What?

11:47 What?

11:47 What?

11:49 STEVE: Freehanding tattoos on the skin is insane.

11:52 To show proportion, usually you have a reference and you stencil it.

11:55 That way, it's perfectly proportioned.

11:57 To freehand it ups the game so much.

12:00 DAVE: Head to your stations.

12:02 We will send in your canvases.

12:03 [TENSE MUSIC] What's the easiest way to show proportion?

12:08 In something that's proportionate to itself.

12:10 I'm thinking any kind of face with a hand.

12:12 It's up to me to win safety for my team.

12:15 We need it the most.

12:16 I'm coming into this week one artist down.

12:18 I cannot lose another artist.

12:20 You have six hours to tattoo, and your time starts now.

12:26 All right, measure the bottom.

12:27 It's a little over two fingers.

12:29 Two and a half fingers.

12:30 That's why I want to draw it like this so I know.

12:32 See?

12:33 A portrait is literally the hardest thing to freehand.

12:36 This is my chance to show the other team,

12:38 the haters, the [BLEEP] talkers, why I am an Ink Master.

12:41 It's a very risky move, but it shows a lot of balls.

12:44 We don't give a [BLEEP] what they do.

12:49 Look at the— on the right-hand side, the glasses on Steve's piece.

12:54 Every single line is [BLEEP] up.

12:59 People from "The Dream Team" are coming over here being like,

13:02 Steve's old and he's a dinosaur.

13:04 This [BLEEP] is about to whip all y'all asses.

13:06 The other teams can say what they want about Steve,

13:08 but at the end of the day, they don't know what they're [BLEEP] with.

13:12 DAVE: Coaches, today, the fate of your team was completely in your hands.

13:17 Let's see how you did.

13:18 Steve, let's start with you.

13:21 Very smart play using anatomy as a way to show proportion.

13:25 Anything that's remotely off, anatomically speaking,

13:28 is gonna scream lack of proportion.

13:30 OLIVER: That hand out in front of the face and the glasses,

13:32 the pipe, the hand holding it keep proportion and tell exactly what's going on.

13:36 It really played well.

13:37 Thank you so much.

13:38 It was awesome watching him draw this.

13:39 Did you guys help him do all those lines that don't line up?

13:42 Are you talking?

13:43 Because we were talking.

13:43 On the glasses, there's lines that didn't line up.

13:45 On the cuff, there's lines that overlap, underlap.

13:47 In the ear, there's lines that go right straight through it.

13:49 If somebody can draw a portrait on skin

13:52 and knock it out like that, I'm listening.

13:53 Until I see that, shh.

13:55 DAVE: The judges have decided the best tattoo of the day goes to Steve.

14:01 All right.

14:03 Boy.

14:04 That means Team Steve, you are safe from elimination.

14:07 Yes.

14:09 We are stress-free right now.

14:11 Steve kicked ass.

14:14 Welcome to the faceoff.

14:16 Deanna, Roli, Jeremy, and Jason,

14:20 this is your last chance to save yourself from elimination.

14:24 To prove you deserve to stay in this competition,

14:27 you must draw your tattoo directly onto your canvas's skin freehand.

14:34 ANTHONY: What?

14:35 That's crazy.

14:36 DAVE: You cannot not use any stencils.

14:40 I don't freehand on the skin, ever.

14:42 For me, when it's perfect on paper,

14:44 that's when it goes to the skin, and that's when I tattoo it.

14:47 One little mistake, and I'm out of here.

14:49 DEANNA: I love doing freehanded tattoos.

14:52 I've done it a lot.

14:53 This is my time to shine.

14:55 DAVE: You have six hours.

14:58 And your time starts now.

15:01 Get them, girl.

15:02 This is your challenge.

15:03 What all areas are open?

15:06 I've got my whole right leg, whole right arm in the back.

15:09 OLIVER: If an artist has never freehanded a tattoo before,

15:11 there's definitely a big learning curve.

15:14 I was thinking about freehanding an owl on there.

15:15 I want to up my game, so it's making it harder for these guys to catch up.

15:19 MAN: Owl is my spirit animal, anyway.

15:20 Do you like— ooh, let's do it.

15:22 I've been waiting this whole competition to do something anywhere near my style.

15:26 And finally, in this challenge, I get to do that.

15:29 I'm gonna show everybody what a Jason Elliott tattoo is.

15:32 JEREMY: They already did Hannya masks.

15:33 Would it be dumb to do?

15:35 Whatever you want to do, just do it.

15:38 JEREMY: I'm thinking about doing a Hannya mask because I

15:40 know I could draw it and tattoo it in six hours.

15:43 They don't care if they just did a Hannya mask?

15:44 Why the [BLEEP] would you care?

15:45 This is the last tattoo you do ever, make this the one you want to do.

15:49 Yeah, yeah.

15:50 I'm taking a huge risk with this tattoo.

15:52 Team DJ just did it,

15:53 but I know I could do a Hannya mask that could keep up with DJ's.

15:57 He can tattoo.

15:58 It's just his design sometimes is questionable.

16:00 ANTHONY: Yeah.

16:01 And he'll have to figure that out.

16:03 DJ: He's just picking something that I mean, it was just done.

16:05 Well, the funny part is you got two guys that are

16:07 technically really good at tattooing and designs suffer a little bit,

16:12 and two people that can really design and their tactical suffers a little bit.

16:15 So who's gonna outdo who?

16:20 DEANNA: I freehand a lot of home, so this is really cool.

16:23 I'm the only one in the room that's freehanding a face.

16:27 Damn, she's good.

16:28 DEANNA: Nobody has the balls to do that.

16:30 If anything is off, a face can look real weird, real fast.

16:35 It's gonna be a cool little piece, dude.

16:37 But I'm taking that risk because if I pull it off,

16:40 it's gonna blow the judges' minds.

16:41 She's excited.

16:44 DJ: She's gonna knock out these boys, that's why.

16:46 Take them out by the ankles.

16:47 [TENSE MUSIC] JASON: I'm feeling really great right now.

16:53 ANTHONY: You having fun now, huh?

16:54 Yeah.

16:55 There's no way that this tattoo is gonna put me in the bottom.

16:58 I mean, it's bold, it's slick, and it's fresh.

17:01 Any chance of going home today?

17:02 No, bro.

17:03 Not even.

17:04 I mean, the only one that's getting close to you is Deanna,

17:07 and her black is not solid.

17:12 DEANNA: Dude, hang in there.

17:13 You're twitching.

17:15 My canvas has been twitching this whole entire time.

17:17 You got it.

17:19 In a freehand tattoo,

17:20 you're already really worried about not wiping away your drawing.

17:23 Now I have to worry about my canvas moving around.

17:26 All right, guys, two more hours.

17:29 JASON: That's nice.

17:30 I like that.

17:31 Thank you.

17:32 It feels like me and you are probably gonna kill it.

17:34 DEANNA: Really?

17:35 JASON: Oh, yeah.

17:36 DEANNA: Why just us?

17:37 What's wrong with theirs?

17:38 JASON: Ours just look better.

17:40 We're just— we're better tattooers.

17:43 JEREMY: What a surprise.

17:44 Deanna did a lady face and a rose again.

17:47 Show us something different.

17:50 With this tattoo, I'm showing that I do every style known to man.

17:54 It looks exactly how I drew it.

17:55 The color is bright.

17:56 The linework is bold.

17:57 There's no way I'm going home.

17:59 DAVE: Today, you faced off by freehanding your design directly onto the skin.

18:04 Based on your work, one of you will be packing your machines.

18:09 Let's start with Deanna.

18:13 Deanna, I really like this tattoo from you.

18:14 It's really delicate.

18:15 It's really feminine.

18:16 There's a touch of sexy to it.

18:18 I also think it's really balanced.

18:19 I like the fact that you were able to draw this on to the skin with a pen.

18:22 Thank you.

18:23 CHRIS: You shine here in the way the tattoo ends.

18:26 OLIVER: I wish that you did have some different textures instead

18:28 of just stippled out liner shade look that it has to it.

18:31 It's a good tattoo.

18:32 I think it could have been a great tattoo.

18:33 [TENSE MUSIC] Next up is Jason.

18:39 One of the things that I like about today is

18:42 that we're seeing your own style for the first time,

18:44 and I really like this style.

18:46 CHRIS: You did a great job making this thing dynamic on the skin.

18:49 Drawing it in the position that you drew it,

18:51 it looks fierce because it's looking at you, but it could be going after prey.

18:54 It has a messy, perfect harmony.

18:56 This is definitely the best overall tattoo that you've put out here.

19:00 Thanks.

19:01 Next up is Jeremy.

19:06 How did you feel about getting this challenge today?

19:08 I'm very limited to what I can really draw, like, on the spot.

19:11 It usually takes me a day or two to draw something perfect,

19:13 so this is something I could draw that was easier

19:16 for me to actually pull off a tattoo that's finished.

19:18 There's a lot of things going on here.

19:20 Instead of making it a long, slender face, it's really short and really wide.

19:24 But what's throwing me here is the way you choose to color this thing.

19:27 You put the yellow as the light source, but the light source is everywhere.

19:31 But then the front of the face isn't yellow.

19:33 OLIVER: This is a lowrider panel paint job.

19:35 You got red stripes and red panels and yellow stripes and yellow panels.

19:38 I don't really like the color placements.

19:41 Just the fact you don't count the bottom teeth in between the canines,

19:46 that's just mind-blowing to me to have seven teeth.

19:49 But they're all straight.

19:50 Yeah, straight to the garbage.

19:51 That's where those go.

19:52 I give him credit for going for it.

19:54 You could play safe day,

19:55 but he really swung for it and obviously missed a little bit here.

19:58 But he's got a fight in him.

19:59 You know, people don't think he's fighting

20:00 because he's quiet and he keeps to himself.

20:02 But the dude's fighting.

20:03 DAVE: All right guys, it is time to determine who's going home.

20:08 Are we agreed that Jason and Deanna are safe?

20:10 You good with that?

20:10 CHRIS: I'm good with that.

20:11 I think Roly's was pulled off with more finesse than Deanna's.

20:14 CHRIS: Roly's shark can't swim.

20:15 If the animal can run, if it can swim, if it can slither, OK, it's real.

20:19 Shark, not swimming.

20:21 That's that.

20:22 It's honest, fair judging across the board.

20:25 I'm seeing the problems that you guys have with Jeremy's tattoo,

20:27 but also as a canvas,

20:29 if I got a shark that was all out of whack, I'd be a little bummed out about it.

20:33 CHRIS: Roly's black and gray, Roly's line work,

20:35 I think technically, Roly is stronger, but for me, if we go to Jeremy's,

20:40 the problems I have are light source, construction, composition.

20:44 It's a complete miss.

20:45 For that, Jeremy.

20:47 DAVE: The judges have decided.

20:48 Jeremy, you do not have what it takes to be Ink Master.

20:53 Please pack your machines and close shop.

20:57 For this faceoff, you must draw

20:59 your tattoo directly onto your canvas's skin freehand.

21:03 No.

21:05 [BLEEP] I'm [BLEEP].

21:08 Everything I love to do is realistic, and it's really hard to freehand realism.

21:13 You have five hours, and your time starts now.

21:18 JESS: I'm doing a traditional rose and a crying heart.

21:21 Depending on how time's looking,

21:22 I might even do a realistic eye inside the crying heart.

21:25 With color?

21:26 JESS: Yes.

21:26 Yeah?

21:27 Nice.

21:28 JESS: This is totally outside my wheelhouse,

21:29 but it's definitely something I know I can draw off the top of my head.

21:33 You got to splay them leaves a little bit.

21:35 Otherwise, they're just two of them pointing at each other.

21:37 JESS: Are these spread enough, or do you think?

21:39 CHRISTIAN: No, no, I'd do one this way, one this way.

21:42 You never want them going the exact same direction.

21:44 JESS: If I'm gonna do such a simple design,

21:46 that means I need to execute it flawlessly.

21:50 Oh, dude.

21:51 Super cool.

21:52 CLEEN: You better make them bulletproof.

21:53 Jess is doing a traditional ass [BLEEP] rose right now.

21:56 Not even I'm going traditional right now, and that's what I like to do.

21:59 [TENSE MUSIC] Freehand, it's 100%, like,

22:04 my favorite way to even approach tattoos.

22:07 CHRISTIAN: I do like your skulls.

22:08 I think they're cool.

22:09 TURK: Thanks, man.

22:10 If I'm gonna get to do whatever I want, well,

22:12 I'm gonna do something that makes me happy as hell.

22:15 Cute dead stuff.

22:18 DAVE: Today, you faced off by freehanding your design directly onto the skin.

22:22 And based on your work, one of you will be packing your machines.

22:26 Turk.

22:29 It's a pretty sick tattoo, man.

22:30 A really nice job on the wood grain in the planchette.

22:33 You have this really heavy,

22:34 bold outline around the perimeter of the planchette and around the skull.

22:38 And just how precisely those end, where the cigarette breaks out,

22:41 where the smoke comes in and goes out, it's very deliberate and really clean.

22:44 Thank you.

22:47 Sick.

22:48 Tiffer.

22:51 OLIVER: It's a very unique drawing.

22:52 I love the color play in the rope.

22:55 I love the design of the rope.

22:56 Good color theory throughout.

22:57 Dude, this thing is [BLEEP] weird.

22:59 TIFFER: It's cool, though.

23:00 DAVE: It's cool.

23:01 Great job, man.

23:02 Appreciate it.

23:04 Killed it.

23:06 Jess.

23:08 OLIVER: It's very stale.

23:09 This choice to just do this open skin heart with just this true gray in here,

23:14 really taking it away from what you'd expect

23:16 to see in a traditional style tattoo of this nature.

23:20 CHRIS: The rose has very different, very weird shapes for the exterior petals.

23:25 Not what you want to present on a day where you're drawing for your life.

23:30 DAVE: It's time to determine who is going home.

23:33 CHRIS: Today, Jess's is the one that sticks out as the true bottom.

23:37 My vote is also for Jess.

23:38 The judges have decided.

23:39 Jess, you do not have what it takes to be Ink Master.

23:44 Please pack your machines and close shop.

23:46 [TENSE MUSIC] Artists, your coach's shot at $25,000 is riding on your shoulders.

23:58 They're known for creating one-of-a-kind tattoos that perfectly fit the body.

24:03 And today, you must do the same with a freehand tattoo.

24:08 Oh my god.

24:10 Drawing your design directly onto your canvas's skin,

24:13 it must flow with their body.

24:15 With no stencil to guide you,

24:17 your composition must be perfect or your tattoo will be an unappealing disaster.

24:21 I'm so scared.

24:23 I'm so annoyed.

24:24 I just hate everything about freehand.

24:26 It's so hard to get proportions right.

24:28 It's really pissing me off that I have to draw this on someone's skin.

24:32 I don't like it.

24:33 You'll have seven hours to freehand

24:35 your design directly onto your canvas's skin.

24:38 Fail to impress the judges, and you'll be packing your bags.

24:41 Good luck.

24:42 I'm gonna shave you and get your back prepped.

24:45 And then I'm gonna play with some stuff on your back and see what happens.

24:50 LAURA: I love drawing these things.

24:52 Damn, girl, you almost done.

24:53 MAN: She is a speed demon.

24:55 LAURA: Growing up, I didn't have a whole lot of friends.

24:57 It was just, like, this weird kid.

24:58 Drawing was a way for me to escape that reality and put myself in a new one.

25:03 MAN: Nice.

25:04 I like it.

25:05 I got the OK, so I can start.

25:06 [TENSE MUSIC] It doesn't work.

25:12 I'm getting nowhere on the back.

25:14 If I put the flag there,

25:15 it's not really gonna show great composition if there isn't a reason for it.

25:19 Where the flag would have to come, it stops weird.

25:21 It's not, like, working.

25:23 If you do calf, it's just gonna be a better area to do it.

25:26 You're gonna get what you want and still be able to get a awesome piece.

25:32 Yeah, let's do it.

25:33 Your calf?

25:33 OK.

25:34 Rock it, girl.

25:36 OK, I feel like I can breathe.

25:37 Now I have to redesign this entire thing.

25:39 Get drawing.

25:40 ASH: I just want a final design to look at when I'm done, you know?

25:42 Why you gonna draw it on a piece of paper again?

25:44 Draw it on the calf.

25:46 That's your paper.

25:48 I am learning so much.

25:50 They call me, like, the queen of the bottom because,

25:52 like, I've done a lot of styles that I don't.

25:53 At home, I do black and gray realism.

25:55 That's what I do.

25:56 Ash, shut up.

25:57 Keep tattooing.

25:58 I know.

25:58 I'm the worst.

26:00 This is why, like— I was like, when you're talking, you ain't tatting.

26:02 So shut it.

26:03 I'm always like, do, do, do.

26:05 I don't need your stories.

26:06 You need to get your ass finished.

26:10 Today, you had to freehand your design directly onto your canvas.

26:14 Women's team, let's start with you.

26:16 I hope they call me first.

26:17 Ash.

26:19 I was just kidding when I said I wanted to go first.

26:22 This really bold, really heavy black style plays well.

26:25 But compositionally,

26:26 doing the handcuffs and the skull would have been the best thing for you.

26:30 You overwhelm yourself with so much flag and so little stars,

26:34 so much choppiness and unease that you take away from all

26:38 the nice work that you do in the skull and in the handcuffs.

26:41 Flags are tough.

26:43 Laura.

26:47 OLIVER: Great illustration.

26:48 The way the tentacles flow and create such a dynamic silhouette.

26:52 I love the rich darkness of the tattoo.

26:55 In the webbing, that little hit of light purple with the skin break and then

26:59 coming in with that red really gives that a nice iridescent look and feeling.

27:03 For how much tattooing you did, it looks really nice.

27:06 Thank you.

27:08 Good job.

27:10 DAVE: Judges, it is time to determine who had the best tattoo of the day today,

27:14 Today, I think, Danny, Laura, those are the two stunners of the day.

27:18 DAVE: Those are my two favorites.

27:19 My vote is for Laura.

27:20 Thank you.

27:21 DAVE: You showed a nice flow here.

27:22 And I just love the color and the detail you put into this thing.

27:25 I'm gonna go ahead and go with Laura.

27:29 DAVE: The judges have decided the best tattoo of the day goes to Laura.

27:34 All right, guys, time to determine who's going home.

27:37 CHRIS: Ash's looks like a cover-up.

27:39 The top triangle, because it's so out of sort,

27:41 just that section looks like you covered something.

27:44 My vote is for Ash.

27:48 OLIVER: My vote is for Ash.

27:49 OK.

27:51 DAVE: The judges have decided, Ash,

27:53 you do not have what it takes to be Ink Master.

27:56 Please pack your machines and close shop.

27:58 Thank you.

27:59 Bye, guys.

28:00 Bye, Ash.

28:01 [TENSE MUSIC] If you want to join the league of winners,

28:06 you must prove that you can match or even beat their skills.

28:10 Damn.

28:11 Shit, dude.

28:13 JOEL: For this elimination tattoo, each of the Ink masters will pick a style.

28:17 Oh.

28:18 You must tattoo in one of the styles called by the Ink Masters.

28:24 While you tattoo your canvas, the Ink Masters will also tattoo at the same time.

28:30 Oh.

28:31 Head to head.

28:32 Head to head.

28:33 JOEL: In critique, your tattoo will be directly compared

28:37 to the Ink Master's tattoo in the same style.

28:40 Fuck.

28:41 No pressure.

28:42 Steve, what style do you pick?

28:44 Want to have some fun, so black and gray surrealism freehand.

28:49 Wow.

28:50 What?

28:50 Freehand surrealism.

28:51 Let's see what we got.

28:52 Let's have some fun.

28:53 Skulls and demons and shit.

28:55 That's it.

28:56 That's it, man.

28:56 You will have six hours to tattoo.

29:00 The styles have been set.

29:02 The subject matter is entirely up to you.

29:04 Your canvases are completely open.

29:07 Head to your shops, and we'll send in your canvases.

29:09 Good luck.

29:11 Hell yeah.

29:12 I tattoo fast, so.

29:13 Oh, really?

29:13 I tattoo pretty fast as well.

29:14 STEVE: Super fast.

29:15 You like skulls and stuff?

29:16 STEVE: A little bit.

29:17 CREEPY JASON: I also like skulls and stuff.

29:18 I'm definitely coming after you today.

29:20 STEVE: I didn't even know anybody would pick it.

29:21 I like freehanding, man, so doing it against you,

29:23 it makes it even more fun for me.

29:25 Let's have some fun, man.

29:26 Just rip it up.

29:26 I'm planning on killing that monster right there.

29:28 STEVE: I hope so.

29:29 Woo.

29:30 All these Ink Masters have strengths and weaknesses.

29:33 I absolutely think one of us can meet or beat them.

29:35 Check out my competition here.

29:37 Oh, man.

29:38 That's a Steve tat-tat.

29:39 It is.

29:40 It was this or kittens.

29:41 I was going either way.

29:42 CREEPY JASON: Fuck yeah, man.

29:43 That's cool.

29:44 Me picking Steve is 100% tactical.

29:49 Nobody else in this competition has the fucking

29:51 balls to step up and do a freehand tattoo.

29:55 So I'm taking Steve on just so I can show off.

29:58 Badass piece, man.

29:59 CREEPY JASON: Yeah, thanks, dude.

30:00 Appreciate it, man.

30:01 STEVE: Man, everybody's fucking crushing it.

30:02 That's how it's been, dude.

30:03 Only good tattoos going home.

30:06 Today, you had to tattoo in one of the styles called by the Ink Masters.

30:11 If you were able to beat or match the Ink Master, you are safe from elimination.

30:18 Creepy Jason, you tattooed in black

30:21 and gray surrealistic freehand called by Steve.

30:24 Before we critique your work, let's check out Steve's tattoo.

30:28 Fucking evil, bro.

30:29 You really nailed it.

30:31 When it comes to texture and depth and contrast and how

30:35 you're building this deepness to everything that gets thrown back,

30:39 the further you look back, the more depth it gets.

30:41 And that's the cool part.

30:43 I love the little bridge of the nose and the subtlety

30:46 that you made it look like it's almost broken underneath the skin.

30:49 NIKKO: I'm a fan of horror tattoos like this.

30:51 I think it's badass.

30:53 That's a sweaty hand.

30:55 All right, Creepy Jason, let's see how you did.

30:59 I like there's a delicateness to it.

31:01 I love how you threw the web in the back.

31:03 I think you smashed this, dude.

31:04 Awesome.

31:05 There's a lot of little intricate stuff, like,

31:07 in the eyes and in the eye sockets.

31:09 Inside of the skull, you have all of the creepy, dirty, dingy web stuff.

31:15 Then the body of the spider almost looks

31:17 like it's that really thin exoskeleton sort of cocoon.

31:21 JOEL: Judges, did Creepy Jason match the master?

31:24 RYAN: Texture for texture, quality for quality,

31:27 Creepy Jason definitely matched the master.

31:30 NIKKO Creepy Jason, I do think you matched the master.

31:32 Jason matched the master.

31:34 Woo!

31:36 Creepy Jason, you matched an Ink Master, and you are safe from elimination.

31:39 Thank you, guys.

31:40 Appreciate it.

31:41 That's a good job, Jason.

31:43 Angel, Holli, and Pon, none of you were able to match the master,

31:49 and one of you will be going home.

31:54 This is your last chance to save yourself from elimination.

32:01 The three of you must face off.

32:07 To prove your adaptability,

32:09 you must draw your tattoo onto your canvas's skin freehand.

32:16 Fuck, man.

32:17 Yes!

32:17 Oh!

32:18 That's a tough one, man.

32:20 I was totally gonna suggest that, too.

32:23 Tomorrow, you will have six hours to draw onto the skin and tattoo.

32:29 Your canvases are completely open,

32:31 and the subject and style of your design are completely up to you.

32:36 Fail to prove you're worthy of the title, and you will be going home.

32:40 Oh, man.

32:41 Good luck.

32:43 MAN: This thing's gonna look so badass when it's done.

32:45 HOLLI: I'm very excited.

32:47 Drawing time is included in the six hours, so I gotta fucking boogie.

32:51 RYAN: I love a challenge like freehanding.

32:54 You have one shot to really commit to this piece

32:57 of art and draw directly onto human skin.

33:01 CREEPY JASON: I fucking hate it when people watch me draw.

33:03 ANGEL: I know.

33:04 It's pretty bad.

33:05 CREEPY JASON: Is she ever gonna get that fucking paw looking right?

33:07 Nobody knows.

33:10 RYAN: Lots of artists are great tattooers,

33:13 but not every tattooer is a great artist.

33:17 I don't know what I was thinking the other day.

33:18 I just did, like, a lady head with a snake.

33:22 Being a mostly realistic artist,

33:24 I almost never do freehand because I'm a very calculated tattoo artist.

33:28 I'm so anal about my stencils.

33:32 The last thing I want to fight

33:34 for my life in this competition is a freehand challenge.

33:38 I do draw funky shit.

33:39 WOMAN: Gotta keep it exciting.

33:41 Absolutely.

33:43 Little cat butt cheeks.

33:46 What do you think of this design?

33:47 I think it looks like a pug.

33:48 Whether or not Pon can duplicate it, yet to be seen.

33:52 I personally don't have a lot of faith in the guy as a tattooer,

33:55 so I guess will find out in a couple of hours.

33:58 See how much he's fucked it up.

34:02 Are you doing golf commentary?

34:04 Yeah.

34:05 Hey, Jason, you know what you could do?

34:06 You could go fuck yourself.

34:09 Creepy's coming over here, playing his fucking mind games.

34:12 This is the closest I've ever been to elimination in this competition.

34:15 I don't need this shit right now.

34:17 Oh, there we go.

34:17 We got the first dip.

34:18 WOMAN: And action.

34:21 [TENSE MUSIC] CREEPY JASON: Fucking A.

34:31 Awesome.

34:31 Yeah, that looks good, those little lines.

34:33 WOMAN: Love the skullet.

34:34 The fucking skullet, bruh.

34:36 WOMAN: Yeah, it's a whole vibe.

34:38 HOLLI: I chose to do a snail because you

34:39 can get a lot of cool textures with them.

34:41 They flow really nice onto the body.

34:43 And I wanted to do a skull with a mullet because I fucking love mullets, man.

34:48 I like weird stuff morphing into other stuff.

34:52 They wanted to see my artistry, and they wanted to see who I am.

34:55 I don't know how I can do that any more than with this tattoo.

34:59 ANGEL: I just want to get to the part where I can

35:00 button shit up 'cause some shit just goes in sloppy when you're freehanding,

35:04 and you gotta clean it up.

35:06 Don't forget about those eyes, remember?

35:08 ANGEL: I'm not trying to fuck that up again.

35:09 I know they're bringing it, so fucking here I go.

35:12 It's that time.

35:13 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

35:18 That's it.

35:19 Time's up.

35:20 No more ink.

35:21 Whee!

35:22 We made it.

35:24 I think that's it.

35:25 PON: There's no such thing as a bad pug, just difficult pugs.

35:28 And this was definitely one of those difficult pugs.

35:33 Today, you had to face off with a freehand tattoo to prove your adaptability.

35:37 Based on your work, one of you will be packing your machines.

35:42 Let's see how you did.

35:44 Pon, let's start with you.

35:48 For freehanding this tattoo, it's big, it's strong, it's powerful.

35:52 The color is super, super solid.

35:54 It has a ton of personality.

35:56 It's really cute.

35:59 I was questioning the horns.

36:01 One horn is pushed all the way back of the head,

36:04 and then one horn is coming out the middle of the head.

36:06 That other ear is tucked behind.

36:08 So in my head, it made more sense, like, it was coming out from right there.

36:11 RYAN: I will say, there were a couple of little areas

36:13 where it looked like you whipped just a little too far,

36:16 but it's a really good tattoo, Pon.

36:18 Thank you so much, guys.

36:19 They hit him hard, huh?

36:21 Angel.

36:23 You knocked this tattoo out of the park.

36:26 The face on it is awesome.

36:28 The eyes, just the white highlight, perfectly set in there.

36:32 The piece missing off that fucking ear.

36:34 It's like this caterpillar's been wrestling.

36:36 RYAN: Artistically, your knowledge of anatomy on an animal

36:39 that doesn't even exist makes me believe it does exist.

36:43 Those feet are adorable.

36:44 I just feel like you really needed an extra hour and a half to finish it.

36:49 NIKKO: I wish you would have just either did

36:51 more in the belly or left it completely blown out,

36:53 like, nothing there because it would read a little bit better.

36:58 Fuck!

37:01 Holli.

37:04 I like your snail.

37:05 I like the creativity.

37:06 I like the skull shell biting into it.

37:08 I like the mullet.

37:09 This is a fun tattoo.

37:10 I let myself be a little bit freer than I normally allow myself.

37:14 The most impressive part is the head of the snail.

37:17 You created this really cool shine right in the center of it,

37:21 and the complementary colors that come off

37:23 those little antennas, it was right on.

37:25 This was a different artist that did this tattoo today.

37:29 I see so much growth in just this one piece,

37:32 but the right side of the tattoo looks like that was done by the new Holli,

37:37 and the skull and mullet on the left was done by the old Holli.

37:40 You went in, and you lined every single piece of hair with black, black, black.

37:45 And it's the only place on the tattoo that's done that way, technically.

37:49 And so it separates it from the snail.

37:53 This is the hard part.

37:55 Time to determine who's going home.

37:57 AMI: We have to make a decision between three great tattoos.

38:00 Yeah, for sure.

38:01 Look at Angel's cat.

38:03 Anatomically, guys, that illustration is insane.

38:07 Tattoo-wise, I mean, it's a little soft.

38:10 AMI: I would have been blown away,

38:11 and the second question would have been, when are you gonna get it finished?

38:15 The skull in Holli's is also unfinished because it doesn't

38:19 tie into the beautiful snail that she has on the right.

38:22 So if Angel's is looking unfinished, then so is Holli's.

38:25 So they're neck and neck in that.

38:27 And when we look at Pon's, it has an anatomical error.

38:31 The horn that you put in the back bothers me.

38:33 It should be in the front like the other one.

38:35 It would make the thing look more symmetrical.

38:38 Tough.

38:40 Who's going home?

38:42 RYAN: I mean, it's obvious all three

38:43 of them raised the bar for themselves today.

38:46 I can't send Angel home with that sort of illustration,

38:49 and I can't send Pon home with that technical tattoo.

38:52 I can't.

38:53 So unfortunately, my vote— is for Holli to go home.

38:59 NIKKO: It was so close.

39:01 But my final decision is for Holli to go home.

39:05 I can't get past that horn, Pon.

39:07 It's a huge mistake.

39:08 My vote is for Pon to go home.

39:12 That's two votes for Holli and one vote for Pon.

39:16 Ami?

39:17 AMI: Pon, it's so solid and done so well.

39:20 And Holli, you pulled out every fucking trick

39:22 in the book to try to make this happen.

39:24 This is the best tattoo you've done, and it's definitely creative.

39:30 I have to go with the technical.

39:32 Holli, I'm sorry.

39:33 My vote is for you to go home.

39:35 JOEL: The judges have decided, Holli,

39:37 you do not have what it takes to be Ink Master.

39:41 Please pack your machines and close shop.

39:43 [TENSE MUSIC]