The eleventh cycle of America's Next Top Model premiered on September 3, 2008, and was the fifth season to be aired on The CW network.

"[1] The prizes for this cycle were: Approximately the first half of the competition took place in Los Angeles, moving the show back from New York City where it was held last season.

The CoverGirl of the Week contest was replaced by a new segment called Top Models in Action, focusing on former alums post-show careers.

[3] This cycle included a first for the series – having a transgender contestant named Isis King participate and qualify for the final fourteen.

[4] The inclusion has been noted as an "unprecedented opportunity" by Neil Giuliano, president of GLAAD, a national LGBT media advocacy group.

The next day, they visited Magic Castle, a private club for magicians, where judges Nigel Barker, Paulina Porizkova and the Jays conducted one-on-one interviews with the contestants.

Isis impressed Nigel with her knowledge about how to flatter her face in certain light, while ShaRaun left the judges cold by constantly introducing herself in the show.

Isis also shocking everyone in the show that she can bring a powerful photograph, while Marjorie, Joslyn and Elina also received unanimous praise for their photos.

Elina won the challenge, and received a handbag full of the featured jewelry for being the best, as well as the unaired prize to do some work with the brand.

While most of the girls also impressed the judges, Brittany's photo was deemed average (but Tyra was convinced that she can earn a million dollars doing catalog modeling) and Analeigh was criticized for overthinking the shoot, which showed in their picture.

Isis' plain appearance at the judging panel and uninspiring close-up photo landed her in the bottom two with Nikeysha, who was eliminated for an unsatisfactory photo, together with her overly-verbal personality and an admonishment for her very thin body and she continued to talk, even after getting eliminated, and was heard still talking as the credits rolled.

But in a twist, as she was about to announce their makeovers, an evil witch (Miss J) appeared and gave her an apple, which turned out to be 'poisonous' as Tyra then fainted.

As some added pressure to the situation, Holmes herself was present for the shoot, and Jay Manuel held back all critique and direction.

While many received positive feedback, Elina and Joslyn struggled with the shoot, as did Isis, who was awkward in the pool because she felt uncomfortable wearing a swimsuit.

At judging, Clark's huge improvement inspired everyone in the place, as she produced a super strong photo with very fierce eyes.

Analeigh also improved significantly from the last week, finally using their ice skating ability to create a photo with strong, fierce eyes.

Sheena's photo was deemed by Tyra as an "Asian warrior that is going to kill you", while Lauren Brie impressed for the third consecutive week.

The girls met Paulina Porizkova at an empty warehouse for a challenge teach, where they were taught how to make an oversized outfit that will fit them well and carry off the pose.

Samantha was admonished over physically altering the dress’s look, while McKey's creativity won her the challenge and the reward of 50 extra frames at their next photo shoot.

Marjorie's dramatic photo received unfavorably great praise, with her reward win earned her a very clear first call-out.

The judges perceived Lauren Brie's personality as being washed out, while Sheena was criticized for her overt sexual appeal and her presence being a model.

This was the recap episode featuring some never-before-seen footage, including Samantha being left without a bed at the start of the competition, an argument between Elina and Sheena regarding animal rights and respect for others' beliefs, McKey cooking meals for the girls because she felt left out, Sheena losing her hair during her makeover, the girls admiring Nikeysha's talent for rapping, a night out at Red Pearl Kitchen in Hollywood, a bee attack (with McKey saving the bee after it is hairsprayed by Clark), and Hannah talking about her life in Alaska and "Alaska Pixie Dust."

This was immediately followed by a challenge in which the girls wore green bodysuits to mask their bodies via greenscreen, while modeling clothing for Petro Zillia, judged by Ann Shoket.

Conversely, Joslyn was told that she overacted, but overall, she was lauded for pulling through and doing the commercial despite being very ill. McKey was surprisingly criticized for having a mediocre performance (despite having previous strong photos).

However, in a shocking elimination, though she was called a "survivor," Joslyn was axed for her declining performance, but was told that she could survive the modeling industry without winning the contest.

When the girls arrived in Schiphol Airport at Amsterdam, they were greeted by Holland's Next Top Model host Daphne Deckers.

The girls then went to the Red Light district for yet another challenge, this time posing as store-front models selling various designers' dresses.

While Marjorie was singled out as the best girl, McKey and Samantha won the prize to appear in several runway shows in Amsterdam International Fashion Week because of their teamwork.

This time Tyra was the photographer and took two pictures of the models – one with no makeup, and one with edgy and glamorous styling, with a warehouse background.

McKey's photogenic look, edginess, diversity and strut were acknowledged as well as Samantha having commercial appeal while simultaneously delivering high fashion photos.