DWTS11 Finale Power Rankings
And then there were 3! I’ll try to keep this as brief as I can so that everyone can get back to voting, but man – I loved 2/3 of tonight’s performances. Thought Jennifer & Derek and Kyle & Lacey both really brought their A-game tonight – Bristol, while not terrible, felt pretty lackluster up to such high-energy performances from the other two. I know everyone’s been having trouble voting – I have too. I’ve been getting a busy signal throughout the duration of the show on the phone, and my connection to the ABC website keeps timing out – I’m guessing it’s getting inundated right now. But everyone keep trying, I promise it is worth the effort! 🙂 Gonna do the rankings in reverse tonight…just to build up suspense, y’know 😉
3rd place: Kyle & Lacey
I know some of you are slack-jawed right now, but unfortunately, I think the Bristol voters might be able to overcome the measley 4-point spread between her & Kyle. It stinks, but I could see it happening…although I really enjoyed both of Kyle’s performances immensely tonight. I think what I’ve come to appreciate most about Kyle is his ability to get into the character of every single dance – he can be energetic, silly, dramatic, suave, romantic, aggressive, and tonight – just COOL. Really enjoyed the redemption foxtrot – glad they ditched the kitsch and decided to go the sexy, slick route, although there’s one thing about Lacey’s foxtrot’s that still bugs me a bit: they just seem soooo SLOW. But still – a really nice, cool foxtrot. When I saw them decked out in hip-hop gear for their freestyle, I kinda groaned – the last time Lacey did hip-hop for a freestyle, it didn’t pan out so well; however, was pleasantly surprised that Kyle took to this one like a fish to water and was 110% in it from start to finish. This is kid is just so darn LOVABLE. I really wish it would come down to he & Jennifer in the final two – and hopefully I will be proven wrong – but I have the sinking feeling he & Lacey will fall to 3rd place. But man, what a great run this season from the kid that I didn’t see coming!
Runners-up: Bristol & Mark
I’m not holding any punches tonight – watching her dance tonight just confirmed to me why I’m so disappointed she made the finals: she has improved little since day 1, and I don’t even get the feeling she wants to be there anymore. Seriously – between the way she dances and the way she acts in packages, I just don’t feel like she has any fight left in her. And when it comes down to the finals – I want people who are HUNGRY for that trophy. Heidi & I commiserated on Twitter over that jive – definitely not the caliber of dancing we want to see in the finale, and definitely not 9-worthy. No, she didn’t mess up or forget her choreography; but her feet barely left the ground. So low-energy, and I felt like Mark was dancing circles around her. The smile was nice, but that was about it – nothing felt memorable to me and overall it just felt like she was strolling through it. The freestyle – oy. On paper, it seemed like a really good idea – not too fast, a dance that Bristol is good at (tango), and a character that she can channel fairly easily…if only she tried. Again, I felt like she was barely moving, and seeing her try to channel a murdering temptress from the 1920’s just felt…awkward. I actually felt sorry for her for a moment – something like “Why would Mark pick this when she’s clearly so uncomfortable doing it?” Then I realized it – what other choice did he have? She just simply didn’t have the technique, energy, character, or charisma to carry off anything more energetic. Props to Mark for trying – but it was ultimately up to Bristol to stand and deliver, and I don’t think she did. However, if her fans are as rabid as they claim to be, she may have enough support to close the gap between her & Kyle. But I’m keeping my faith in humanity that they won’t be able to surpass…
The winners: Jennifer & Derek
Wow. This woman went out GUNS BLAZING tonight! Total commitment to both dances, great technique, and best of all: a wonderful attitude. The past two weeks, it’s been pretty refreshing to see Jen just kind of let go and truly enjoy the experience, and I think it’s worked in her favor – she seemed at peace tonight, but somehow still bound and determined to win. Totally redeemed herself in the paso – dramatic & simple, and sooooo on-point it’s ridiculous. And I think my mom (don’t you love how Heidi & I refer to our moms for material? :-)) put it best about the freestyle: “I think the freestyle is all about moments that make your jaw drop.” And boy, did she have those…splits! Jumps! Spins! Grinding on the judges table! Even a little comedy – had to grin at the “I carried a watermelon” bit at the beginning. And I loved it that she seemed like she was (pun intended) truly having the time of her life while she was doing it – such joy. I think these two deserve to win, and have a decent shot in it. Good grief…I think I actually might cry if Jennifer doesn’t win. I feel even more strongly about her this season than I did Nicole last season!
And with that, I conclude the power rankings for season 11 🙂 Better get your fill of debating this one, because there won’t be another one till March! Let’s hear it: after such a crazy season, how do you guys think things will shake out? Will the best dancer win? Will the “most improved” win? Is Armageddon upon us? 😉 Talk to me!
I agree with you Courtney!
Kyle & Lacey brought the energy tonight and he has improved technically. Tootsie Roll worked for them and the foxtrot was much better. I so love when the couples can choose their song – obviously this would be better than trying to foxtrot to Charlie’s Angels music
Bristol’s jive before was probably her worst dance, so it was going to be easy to improve from that. And she did. I did like that she really performed and projected the character out to the crowd, more than she has before in the fun, upbeat dances. She was also on time, but the attack and sharpness of movement needed in the jive wasn’t there. The kicks were very low and weak. And the character improvement she did show was still so uneven to Mark- he was really overdoing it in the jive tonight. It shouldn’t have matched Kyle’s score. The freestyle- I do really get why he would give her a tango and any sultry movement would be considering daring and branching out for her. But trying to do an iconic dance was probably the mistake- they should have made it more generic and their own.
Jennifer & Derek were the best tonight for me. Again, I LOVE that they can choose their own music at this point. That was one of the problems with their paso before- the song wasn’t suited to the dance. I don’t like most pasos to rock music anyway, but I really didn’t think the song they were given before made it for them. This classical piece was perfect for them and showed off her technique. Derek just tends to make a great paso too. And I think they went the perfect route for the freestyle – some DD references, and a sassy fun upbeat number with lifts in her range. I love that her joy is coming through again.
I do think it will be Kyle third, Bristol second, Jennifer first. I really wish Kyle second and Jennifer first….but as long and Jennifer & Derek win I will be happy.I have enjoyed more of her dances this season than any other couples dances. Dialidol and this site poll are both making me hopeful! Keep voting everyone!
LOL to the Armageddon being upon us! That is exactly right. ROTFLLLL Courtney!! Awesome review as always!!
Ok, here’s how I review and rank them tonight;
1st place; Jennifer and Derek all the way! a “10” for BOTH dances. ON FIRE, POWERFUN, FUN, PURE PERFECTION! Loved the Dirty Dancing song…seeing those moves again sealed it with a kiss. I just loved everything about them tonight. Defying 50 and a neck injury in every way. I just loved it!
2nd place: Kyle and Lacey. I would have given their first dance an 8. I thought it lacked some oomph and the entertainment factor Kyle usually has. But, it was still good. However, his second dance was outstanding. A “10”.
3rd place – Bristol and Mark. If I was a judge, I wouldn’t have given them more than a 6 or 7 for each dance. The first dance was heavy footed and lack luster. She didn’t even hardly dance in the second dance….she was pulling on a rope and running for the most of it. And when you play back the dancing in a cage, I wanted to ask Carrie Anne,”WHAT DANCING”? All she did was twirl her hair and stand there. The power just isn’t there when compare you them to Kyle and Jennifer.
*Looking so forward to everyone thoughts.
Courtney, thanks for your take on Mark basically going with the only freestyle option he could. Still, I was feeling bad for Bristol – she was light years away from being able to carry it. And Mark looked like he was a ping pong ball or super ball bouncing all over in their first dance – and she looked like concrete – especially when he pulled her on the floor. Ugh. I keep thinking nothing surprises me anymore but if Kyle comes in 3rd I will be thinking that this show is just too goofed up. Sorry to sound like such a downer but the thought of Bristol making the cut to the final two blows my mind.
Courtney you’re the FIRST person who has actually said what I’ve been thinking and nobody else has said this – Bristol has NOT REALLY improved from the beginning. Everywhere I keep reading that she’s improved so much, blah blah, but I never felt that was the case. I was pleasantly surprised the first night she danced that she got through it and I still have that feeling when I watch her 3 months later. Have seen no visible improvement really. She did not bring it tonight, and the repeated references to ‘the haters’ was just immature. I also take issue when she says “i have every right to be here in the finals’. Uh, Nooooo. You’re in the finals because of a voting bloc, period. Anyway, back to positivity. Kyle and Lacey were great as usual and he does get into the character so so well. They are truly adorable and if the winner is for most improved, then it’s definitely him. But Jennifer KILLED it tonight..clearly the best dancer and that is who I hope wins, THE BEST DANCER.
Bristol MUST NOT WIN. Not only was her dancing meh, it’s clear how simple the choreography was compared to the other two, so you can barely even say she’s improved. No, totally undeserved if she wins.
Having said that, I feel bad for her. Would YOU still want to be there after all the crap people are saying about her? The judges are trashing her in interviews, Tom is mocking her on-show, even vapid Brooke is like “wow, this is a SHOCK that this person is voted off as opposed to SOME PEOPLE, wink wink nudge nudge.” I think I’d just call in sick if I was in her position, never mind try to win!
I don’t think she’ll win. Here: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/tvblog/2010/11/dancing-with-the-stars-math-ma.html they break it down (sort of) why she can’t win. I noticed this evening that they said the judges’ scores are half of the final score (I didn’t realize they were still doing that). I can’t think that the voters will be able to close the gap between her and Jennifer. And if they do, maybe WE’RE the crazy ones. But I don’t think so 😉
I can’t believe that Bristol got a 27 for that jive. It was better than the first, yes, but still, egads. Heaviest legs and feet I’ve seen for that high of a score. It should have gotten 7’s. Her freestyle was the right way to go, as I don’t think Mark could compete doing anything else. But it was a lot of running and not a whole lot of dancing. She just looked so much worse than anyone else up there.
I really liked Jennifer’s Paso, the beginning with Derek directly behind her was excellent. However, I don’t think she is as “powerful” in her paso as they say she is. Something about this and her tangos that I don’t really think are as good as they could be. Very good, but not amazing. I still enjoyed it, although I definitely preferred Gilles’ paso to the same song (I think it was anyway). Her freestyle was also enjoyable, but it didn’t wow me. I didn’t smile as much as I think I was supposed to. Maybe I just don’t like Jennifer as much as I just happen to love Derek’s choreography. I mean, I like her and she’s obviously talented and naturally gifted, but I have a feeling that if she wasn’t paired with Derek that I wouldn’t like her as much as I do. Or something.
For me, Kyle’s foxtrot was very nice, maybe one point overscored but I liked it a lot. But his freestyle was the best of the night, in my opinion. I have to hand it to Lacey, she’s done a lot of bang up performances this season. It was fun, inventive choreography, played to his strengths and was the most memorable of the night. I don’t think he’ll win, but I do hope it comes down to him and Jennifer. Both of them deserve to be there.
Bristol’s jive was pretty basic, and didn’t have a lot of jive content. I’m shocked Len didn’t dock her for all the “messing about.” I don’t get why they praise her as much as they do. I agree that her freestyle wasn’t up to the standard of a Broadway production, but that’s not the problem. The problem is that her freestyle, or any of her dances, have not been up to the standard set by the other contestants.
I thought both Kyle and Jennifer had really fun freestyles. In any normal season, one of them would easily won, but this season has been far from normal. I have hope though.
I’m SO disappointed in the judges tonight!!! They just did what they always seem to do, phone it in. They should have stayed at home, they were completely useless! HOW could they score Bristol’s jive the same as Kyle’s Foxtrot?! Makes me SOOOOO mad!!!
I’m also frustrated with ABC tonight, can’t get through online for the life of me! Anyway, I have to admit, I thought Bristol’s freestyle was truly her best dance and Mark really worked it the best he could.
Hope the situation and ABC gets settled so I can VOTE, otherwise I will be really seeing red!
Well, I hope court’s wrong.:-) but she’s probably not. I will tell you what though, my mom voted for the first time ever and is very proud. 🙂 she thought bristol was a big whinny baby.
I was so pissed after bristols first score – they scored her easier than Erin and Evan! Disgusting. I don’t know what they’re playing at, but that spread ain’t enough. VOTE!!! Maybe she’ll get an 8 rank and another 25 tomorrow. That would be a 15 point spread. Maybe that would do it.
Gosh i know everyones ticked because the judges are bring so easy on Bristol but it AINT just her. They are also scroing Jennifer BETTER than Nicole last season, Theyve given her perfect tens for every dance sice her Rumba! There is no way shes better than Nicole! NO WAY! And Bristol did good tonight but not Evan and Erin good! In sorry but if we can all comment on how they’re kissing Bristol’s butt then I feel I can comment on kissing Jennifer’s aswell and maybe or maybe not Kyle. They’re just scoring easier this season. And not on just Bristol.
Could it be that they went “easy” on Bristol tonight because they plan to be a little more ruthless tomorrow night when no one can vote and do “payback”? 🙂 Just wondering. Because Bristol really should come in 3rd. Mark did a good job with what he had to work with.
I dont want Bristol win, of course, BUT she does improved from week 1 (and wasn’t hard to see it). Her personality shined more. BUT not as good as Kyle and Jen.
Bristol was AGAIN, overscored. =/
but I just came here to say that I’m having problems to vote from Brazil. Does anyone out USA have the same problem?
I’ll keep on trying – and votting for Jen and Kyle.
Sorry Zack, but you’re wrong – it’s all relative and Jennifer is the best this season, she should be getting 10’s. By comparison, Bristol should be getting 6s. Bristol is the worst finalist in DWTS history, bar none.
Zack, but If the judges are overscoring Kyle and Jen, they are over-over-overscoring Bristol.
Carlie, I can’t buy this theory… I think the judges will overscore bristol again tomorrow (today? It’s already tuesday here in Brazil… hehehe).
Part of the problem, for me, with Kyle and Lacey, is that I just don’t find hip hop freestyles to be that entertaining or challenging. That’s just me. But Jennifer? Dude, she carried a watermelon. 🙂 That was really a brilliant stroke on their part – that and the song. They didn’t touch the big, iconic one, but it was a definite tip of the hat to DD. Brilliant. And Derek managed to put some pretty impressive moves in there – the woman had neck surgery a year ago and she’s doing a better freestyle than kids less than half her age? Even if she doesn’t win, everyone will say she should have.
Thanks Courtney for the post always a great read.
I TOTALLY agree with your rankings, unfortunately I also think Bristol will beat out Kyle 🙁
I think that Bristol’s Jive was overscored and Kyle’s foxtrot did miss a bit performance but his freestyle was awesome deserved a 30 and Jen was amazing as usually.
Heidi if Jennifer is getting all tens than so should of Nicole.
judges scores percentage:
Jen=35,71%
Kyle=33,33%
Bristol=30,95%
Wow – I really enjoyed both Kyle and Jennifer tonight, but I think Jennifer really killed it. Even my kids, who have been rooting for Kyle, think Jennifer deserves to win after her dances tonight.
Same old, same old with Bristol and the judges. Sure, they have placed her third, but without much spread and terribly kind comments. There is no way that anyone on any other season would have gotten all 9’s for that jive done in molasses. I guess she got 9’s for smiling. I also thought her freestyle was overscored. Carrie-Ann gave her props for whipping her hair! I well understand why Mark tried the Bob Fosse style with her. She certainly can’t do anything fast – why can’t the girl move it? – nor can she do real lifts or flips. My kids called her lift “leaning”. Just exasperated with the judges and Bristol tonight.
Jennifer’s flying lift was awesome – we loved it!
I am looking forward to tomorrow night’s favorite dances and the instant cha-cha. Will the judges comments be any more informative?
Yes, Nicole should have. Jennifer should have too. Bristol was terribly overscored. As usual. Disgraceful.
Interesting, just watched Skating with the Stars. Thought the show was well done and surprised how good the skating was. I liked the co-hosts. The judges there—and I know it was only the first show—were quite harsh. A lot of 4, 5 ,6s and pointed commentary. More like real judging??
When you call Bristol whiney–are you aware that she and her baby have had death threats,that they hired lots of extra security people to drive and be with her all week, that people attending tonight and their cars were checked, etc., plus people ridiculing her all season for being fat, pregnant, and unwed mother . . . .how would that make you feel when you were supposed to be learning 4 new dances and being at your best? She just turned 20 years old and has to deal with all that plus other pro dancers being mad at her. Please . . . .the fact that she’s continued trying is a tribute to her character. If you don’t think she’s as good as Jennifer, fine, but you don’t have to be rude to someone who has been tortured all week—that’s why the judges were kind tonight when they spoke to her. You people are so insensitive you should be ashamed. Why are you like that?
I feel that Bristol was very over scored tonight. Her jive was not on the same level as Kyles dance and should have received a lower score. And for her freestyle Carrie Ann was going on and on about her dancing in a cage. So what? She barely danced for a few seconds in a cage…big deal. I am for Kyle winning, but if Jen wins I won’t be upset because she is a good dancer. I just feel Kyle has been consistent, no drama, upbeat, funny, positive, and really brings personality to each dance.
Thx, Barbara, I appreciate you saying that. I wonder how many people could deliver dances like that when recieving DEATH THREATS! Ita amazing! She is soooo tough and so is Erin Andrews. Very true, Barbara!
Oh please. Bristol has been treated kindly all season, tonight was not a new thing. Fact is, she can’t dance as well as the others. All the other crap doesn’t mean she should get the trophy. Jennifer had 4 surgeries in the last year and is 30 years older than Bristol and still danced better. Yet people bitched that she was talking about her injuries too much. Why does Bristol get a pass? She shouldn’t.
I agree that Bristol was overscored. Not only should she have received a lower score than Kyle, it is incomprehensible to me that she got a higher score for that jive than Jennifer got for her “killer jive” in week 2!
Kyle is fun to watch, but if dance ability and improvement counts for anything, Jennifer should win.
BTW Zack, the judges sort of painted themselves into a corner with no option to giving Jennifer all 10s. When they give Bristol and Kyle 9s and 10s and then Jennifer performs better, what else can they do? If all their scoring was true to the performances, she might not have better scores than Nicole.
What a great night! I watched DWTS and just finished watching SWTS which I enjoyed more than I expected to! I just think they need to replace that Laurianne judge but anyway back to dancing.
I actually thought the freestyles were better this season than last season. Kyle and Jen killed it! If I’m not mistaken, didn’t Baby actually not even dance to that song in DD? I think that is when she walked into the staff area with the watermelon and then danced to the next song with Johnny. Genius idea to choose that song for Jen tonight! No bar had been set.
My only nitpick with Jen and Derek was that I thought parts of the paso reminded me of Evan and Anna’s from last season. When he’s pulling her along the floor and the part at the end. Even Derek’s costume reminded me of Evan’s, especially the shirt. I just thought that was odd since it was Anna’s choreography unless she was helping them this week and not on camera. Otherwise, I still think they were the best and at this point I think they’ll win.
Bristol’s jive was better but I was wondering why she was wearing flats? Is that allowed for a non-freestyle?
I only was able to get through via phone 1st 10 minutes of the show:(
I haven’t any seen any ‘confirmed reports’ of death threats. How do you have this kind of information? A letter with talcum powder yes, but where was it stated there was an actual death threat in the letter? Maybe the person wanted to say here is some talcum powder because you stink? ok, joking aside, I try to keep in mind she is just a kid and I do feel she is caught up in something way beyond her control and as much as she is benefiting from her mother’s status, she is also victim of that same status. She has been taunted by people mercilessly and we can’t blame her for judges and voters having kept her in the competition. What we can blame her for is spewing hatred herself. As of Friday on her twitter page she had spewed some hateful comments to Brandy, Mel B, Maks and Jennifer..unsolicited I might add, after having checked those people’s tweets. After the talcum powder scare that night, she locked up her page and I don’t blame her. But she is calling out “haters” yet I wish you could have seen the hatred she was spewing on her own twitter page. I guess the judges had to walk a fine line and erred on the side of caution..if they gave her the scores she really deserved, they might have been attacked for that as well and unfairly so..I could just see people calling them out “you’re only giving her low scores because of who her mother is and you’re democrats” Either way they would be attacked. I blame ABC/DWTS for putting her on the show in the first place..a fun dance competition turned into a political melodrama and they should have forseen the ramifications and the implications ahead of time for putting the daughter of a very polarizing political figure on the show.
You must not have read my post very well—I never said Bristol should win, never said she was better than Jennifer, but only said to cut her some slack as far as being RUDE. The death threats were considered serious. The FBI was investigating, including the white powder in the envelope. That would all be very depressing to me and any other people who are honest. She is only 20 years old. Like I said, why are you people like this?
Barbara, all most of us have been saying is that she didn’t dance nearly as well as the others and that she was terribly overscored. If you’re NOT saying she should win, then what is your problem?? I don’t see ANYONE here being excessively mean to her. Just stating the facts – she didn’t dance as well as the others. Period. Yes, she was whining – but according to many so was Jennifer for a few weeks there and Jennifer’s had bigger issues than Bristol.
And Jessica has a point with not seeing confirmed reports of death threats.
The thing is, most people don’t just “hate” for no reason. There are definitely crazy people out there, but most people just don’t like her dancing. She beat out plenty of better dancers, and gets much better scores than she should, yet she seems ungrateful and doesn’t realize how lucky she is to even be on the show in the first place. This show used to be fun, and it’s not anymore. That’s my problem. I don’t care who her mother is, or if she’s an un-wed teen mom, or for any of those other reasons.
What I said is there’s no use writing rude things at Bristol’s expense just to be entertaining when you could be more tactful with your critiqueing, i.e., constructive criticism is fine, but not making fun of people just for laughs!!
Also Bristol says and it was later confirmed that she does not do Twitter at all. She does do Facebook, but there are some untrue things out there. Maks and others have been Twittering negative things about Bristol all season which I saw myself, but Maks denies.
For some reason, I had a strong inkling that Jennifer and Derek were going to do a freestyle to Do You Love Me. When I heard she was going to be on, I figured there was no way she was going to do I’ve Had the Time of My Life, but I figured she would do a song from Dirty Dancing. Then I remembered the British version, Strictly Come Dancing, the winner Chris Hollins and Ola Jordan did a freestyle to Do You Love Me and then I was positive she would do it to that song. Overall, I enjoyed the freestyles, except Bristol’s. Strange song choice and freestyle.
Who is picking on Bristol just for laughs?? What is rude? Where? Show me? Because I don’t think that’s actually happened here. We don’t like her dancing, some think she’s been whining, most agree she’s been over scored – where is the being mean just for fun??
Sorry, I am not a Maks fan at all but he’s NOT been tweeting bad things about Bristol at all – that’s a fairy tale that Bristol made up in her head. The only thing that I’ve seen Maks say is that she should enjoy it more – TRUE. She should. ANYONE can look at Maks’ tweets to see what he’s said. Go do it now and show me one where he said anything terribly negative about her. Provide a link.
Amen Kelsey.
Mark and Bristol have both said that they were just so happy to have gotten to the finals, just so they could dance and have FUN! They also said they would be just as happy if Jen or Kyle won and that Mark would be picking them up to celebrate, and vice versa. Mark said he looked forward just to the FUN of taking the plane to New York with those two specific couples because he knew they wouldn’t be acting weird about who won. Please be more careful of other people’s feelings. Mark and Bristol never claim to be the best dancers, but their fans think they are very ENDEARING, and the 50/50 voting score allows and even encourages a popularity vote. Also the DWTS Executive Producer has given a statement saying NO ONE is cheating because the computers delete duplicate entries, etc. Mark was asked to take down his Twitter account because of all the hatred. Please remember this is just entertainment and supposed to be about FUN.
I know Mark Ballas is getting paid to do a job, but I imagine he will be glad when this gig is over. He must be terribly frustrated with the entire situation. Mark not only has to train someone who has zero performance and dance background, he is training someone who fights him every step of the way.
Listen to her packages……..they are one long string of No, No and more No’. “No, I can’t do that” or “I’m afraid I can’t do that” or some other kind of “whine report”. Negative, negative, negative…….that’s all we’ve heard out of her all season long. Is there one positive bone in her body? However, look at the example in her mother, who is famous for referring to the “haters”.
What are you talking about Barbara?? What does that have to do with anything at all? You keep changing the subject. Mark was NOT asked to take down his twitter account, he did that voluntarily, so don’t know what you’re talking about there. As for it being entertainment and being fun – well, that’s not really up to you to decide. It’s not for you to decide what is entertaining and what is fun. As for feelings – well, Bristol put herself in the public eye by coming on the show. Risk of the job and all that. But beside all that you still haven’t told me who HERE is being mean to poor little Bristol. Saying she can’t dance doesn’t quite cut it, since we’ve said that about a lot of the dancers.
In other news, Bristol will probably win because Derek and Jennifer fans haven’t been able to vote for hours. What MORON decides to have two shows in the same night that asks that you vote??
What a great night of dancing! I was entertained by everyone and I am so happy that my faves, Jen and Derek, really kicked ass tonight! Jennifer really is a badass! LOL! Just wanted to respond to Heather (post #28) who wrote that their paso doble seemed similar to Evan and Anna’s. All the dances have standard recognizable steps that I’ve seen performed by more than one couple on the show during different seasons. Mark also did that same move of him pulling the woman across the stage during his PD with Sabrina. Joey Fatone had the same move with Kym. Same thing with the walking on the knees move in the paso. I saw similar moves in Brooke’s and Nicole’s pasos. But Jen totally killed it tonight and everything looked aesthetically good to me, so I’m happy. 🙂
Much earlier in the season Maks tweeted some negative things after an elimination. Mark immediately asked him to stop and he did. Mark’s tweets were deleted pretty quickly, and when I checked yesterday Maks had deleted his, and I don’t think he said anything again until after Brandy was eliminated, but believe me I did see it way back.
I would just ask you to be fair about who you blame for this situation—remember, they say Bristol has been Ratings Gold. ABC knew what they were doing, and they are the ones who set up the 50/50 vote. Mark and Bristol are as surprised as we are about the eliminations.
Heidi, for what it’s worth, TMZ claims Mark was told not to tweet by the producers because they felt it was making the situation worse. TMZ also claims the letter had death threats to Bristol. Again, it’s TMZ so don’t know if it’s worth anything, but the information is on their site.
Don’t you people ever get tired of bashing Bristol Palin?
The ratings are not any higher than they were last year at this time – higher than last season, but the summer season is always lower. The ratings this season are not shocking – no matter how often people try to say that, some of us actually look at the numbers. As for being fair – we’ve been talking about her DANCING. How is it unfair to say that she can’t dance? How is it unfair to say she’s been overscored?? You keep changing the subject – but where were we being mean to Bristol?? Should we all give her 9’s just to be nice?? And how is that fair to the people who can actually dance?
I follow Maks AND Mark and I’ve not seen Maks tweet anything about Bristol – I would be the first to call him on it if he did. And if Mark was told not to tweet – So WHAT? What does that have to do with anyone here? And death threats – again, we should give her all 9’s because she got death threats? And if not that we should all be nicer to her? Well, show me where we’ve been overly mean to her first.
You may get your wish, Barbara, since the Derek and Jennifer fans haven’t been able to vote for hours. But don’t expect me to be nice then.
There’s been an “unexpected hitch” with online voting all night! Whatever that means! Would it be better to call it a night, and just vote like crazy in the morning? Or will it still be slow? I haven’t even been able to log in for a few hours now.
I guess we’re getting a test run of what it would be like if Sarah Palin ran for President! That could make things a little scary. DWTS obviously put Bristol on the show for ratings, but they probably didn’t expect it to get this out of hand.
FYI, I just got through to vote online. Keep trying… 🙂
I haven’t been able to vote online either, so how do you explain that? (Everything isn’t a conspiracy.)
Magnolia, I actually agree with you about how Bristol complained this past wk only, but I think she just couldn’t handle the security and danger to her baby, etc. Mark has said in the past she doesn’t ever complain. I really think her best dances were last week. . . .
Princess Heidi, I got my ratings info from the DWTS Exec Producer’s and another exec’s statements, so what can I say?
Just be kind.
Let me just say this first.
If Bristol had some performance background then I think she would have done much better this season. She has natural dance ability and I think that if she had that backghround people wouldnt be shooting their tv. I mean seriously, Like why would you do that. Yes I agree that her performances weren’t up to par with Kyle and Jennifers routines tonight.
Kyle, What can I say? He’s just a giant bundle of joy to watch, I just love him. I think that Len should have given him a 10 for his freestyle.
Jennifer, I loved that paso doble. I’m seeing another emmy nod for derek. And her freestyle was just out of this world. I was really worried that they werent going to be able to pull it off because of her injuries but I’m so thrilled that they did.
And DEREK, he’s a FREAKING GENIUS!!! Like OMG he never dissapoints in any of his freestyles. THEIR AMAZING, and I really hope they win.
I’ve been following Maks’ Tweets since the beginning of this season, and he has not tweeted anything negative. In fact, he doesn’t often talk about any of the other folks on the show..just him and Brandy, and Tony because he is his best friend. Some talk back and forth about football with Kurt. So really, the rumors really need to stop. Let’s keep it tuned in to the dancing and stop the slander and libel…it is very unattractive. If you don’t like Maks, that is your business. But really, it’s best to speak truths and opinions, not make stuff up to support your position in disliking someone, and pass it off as fact.
Was able to get my votes in by logging in at the main ABC site, then going to the DWTS section. GO DEREK AND JENNIFER! 🙂
However, on a positive note, let me say that I find the Power Rankings to be very helpful. I particularly like the posting you do where the number of votes are needed to overcome someone else. I still don’t understand how you do that, but it sure helps put it all in perspective. Thanks for your work all season.
I had problems voting at first, but eventually got all my online votes cast.
Conspiracy is your word, Barbara, not mine. You’re projecting. Again. Big deal where you got the ratings from – I got them from published sources like Nielsen, which actually COUNT. Since you’ve been taking lots of liberties with the truth you’ll have to forgive me if I don’t believe you. Be kind? Show me where I’ve been more unkind to her than anyone else. Saying she can’t dance doesn’t count – that’s a pretty solid reality.
[…] 2: Check out the power rankings from the DWTS season 11 finale. Also, be sure to vote in our Pure DWTS Season 11 Winner […]
And yet Bristol and Mark still feel they’ve been underscored, upset they didn’t get all 9s with freestyle.
Well hello bad ass dancing mama!! Jennifer Grey was so amazing. I just sat there with my jaw dropped- just completely stunned and kjlkajfk ajdkf! She was so good. Watching her embrace this journey and just live through each dance has been an incredible experience.
If you haven’t voted already… go vote for Jennifer and Derek! They deserve to go home w/ that Mirror Ball Trophy tomorrow!! 😀
Figamentation, I totally agree with you again.
I loved Jennifer & Derek Paso but I couldn’t help reminding Gilles & Cheryl’s one on the same perfect song for a paso and I prefered Gilles & Cheryl.
Their freestyle was great but it reminds me a lot of Brooke’s one and I would have preferred a little more steps and a little less lifts.
Kyle and Lacey’s foxtrot was great, and their freestyle was amazing even though, as Len, I’m not a great fan of boogaloo’s dancing. Best freestyle of the night for me.
Bristol’s jive wasn’t good, she didn’t deserve more than 21 for it, but it was better than the monkey’s one and she was overscored for both. Mark should’t have chosen a so well known number for her freestyle, she was not that bad but so cold and not on the same timing as Mark on their “hat & chair” part. He could have done a good tango, without any references.
Didn’t have any trouble to vote online with the time difference 😉
wow, so many comments.
i didn’t love the song, but lacey and kyle’s freestyle was cute. i thought their foxtrot was underwhelming. i agree about it being too slow. he seemed so into the technique there was less personality. it was ok.
jennifer and derek were very good. i like that they included both the watermelon and the famous dirty dancing lift in an altered form.
We wouldn’t even be reading or writing these comments if a polarizing political element weren’t introduced this season. Tom was interviewed (the video is on this site) and he said something to the effect, “If you separate the political aspect, AND I’M NOT SURE YOU CAN, not-so-great dancers have made it far in previous seasons.” Yes, Tom. Listen to what you are saying. The political cannot be separated and we’ve been subjected to the exact oppposite of a “feel good” dancing and entertainment program from day one. I just want to say to Tom and ABC and DWTS, “Thanks for nothing.”
I’m not quite sure why all of the Bristol fans here have developed such an acute case of hypersensitivity all of a sudden – no one here is being rude or cruel. So far, all I’ve seen are pretty level-headed comments regarding her dancing (which was not up to snuff), and the fact that she seems very negative in her packages. No one is attacking her family, her personal life, her appearance, etc. So what, is Bristol completely off-limits to any sort of criticism, be it objective or subjective? Puh-lease.
Well I managed to get in one phone vote last night, after 2 hours of trying on both my home phone and 2 cell phones to get through. I hope the busy signal I was getting means that Jen & Derek fans were voting their asses off, and not just some glitch in the system! 😀 Got my online votes in this morning with no issues…so anyone that was having problems last night, I recommend getting your votes in before 11 am EST…you shouldn’t have any issues.
I loved Jen’s dances last night! Her paso rocked and her freestyle was amazing. On a side note, I am so glad they didn’t use “Time of My Life” and her answer to Brooke was perfect. Kyle was a mixed for me. His foxtrot was good but not too memeorable but his freestyle was my favorite dance of the night. As for Bristol, her jive was really good but not good enough for “9”s. Her freestlye impressed me though…….can’t wait to see what SNL or Joel Mchale has to say about her dancingi n a cage lol. As of right now Jen has this wrapped up in my opinion.
If Jennifer’s neck injury is/was as bad as she keeps saying it is, then how in the world is she doing what she’s doing? Doesn’t add up. You can’t continually complain about something and then come out and do all these moves like it doesn’t matter. Irritates the crap out of me.
Oh Buttercup don’t get me started on Mark in particular. Geeezass. The boy should be thanking his lucky stars to have gotten the scores he did (and he should look at Carrie Ann’s @’s because she was taking some hell last night for their scoring). Is he completely deluded or what? Or is this just him being supportive of Bristol?? What? Someone help me out here. I was outraged over his scores too!! But for the exact opposite reason!!
Miss P – I think the problem with their freestyle was that long cloth thing, and it was just so slooooowww and not particularly well executed. As for Kyle, I appreciate his energy and his personality, but I have to go with Len on not liking the hip hop. Derek and Jennifer’s freestyle was amazingly clever. If you’re a huge fan of Dirty Dancing, you will recognize lots of little tips of the hat to the movie, but it didn’t bash you over the head with it. Clever, clever, clever.
About the only advantage of being an overseas fan is that internet voting was no problem early this morning (UK time) though it is not good now. Have only been able to watch the clips on youtube, but think Jennifer won the first round hands down. That was an amazing paso with beautiful lines whilst the foxtrot was a bit less memorable and Bristol’s jive lacked fizz and sharpness.
The freestyle round was more difficult to call for me. Could see where Mark was coming from and boy did he work his socks off, but Bristol just didn’t sell it for me. Not a massive fan of hip hop, but thought Kyle was a brilliant performer and it made me giggle. Derek is a fabulous choreographer and thought the concept was brilliant – the whole watermelon thing was hilarious! I actually thought the lifts were fine (especially given that Kyle and Bristol didn’t do many). Whilst I would happily watch Derek dance all the time (lol) I would have liked to see a bit more actual dancing from Jennifer – given that she is by far and away the best dancer in the final, I thought they could have done a bit less gyrating on the desk and a bit more actual fancy footwork. For sheer dance ability it’s Jennifer and Derek all the way for me, but I can see where Kyle fans are coming from. I am putting my trust in the American public that this show will be won by the best dancer or the funniest performer rather than the most notorious competitor. Let’s hope the judges have had their rose tinted glasses removed for the final rounds tonight. Go team Jennifer and Derek!
Jay, you’ve said it in a nutshell. Whether you like it or not, whether it was intended or not, politics was injected into the show by the producers. The Palins are an incredibly polarizing family – there isn’t too much middle ground on them. And, fair or not, crap rolls down hill – as the saying goes.
I guess my sister and I are the only ones who totally did NOT like Kyle’s freestyle. It was way too cheesy for us. That being said, I wouldnt mind at all if Kyle won tonight simply because he came out of nowhere and did great and put his all into it. I love to see someone enjoy ballroom dancing and even when Lacey was super tough on him, yelling at him in practice, etc., he never lost his good attitude. No, I wouldnt mind if he won at all tonight. I just really did NOT like his freestyle. lol! P.S. I wouldnt mind if Jennifer won either tho Derek sometimes gets on my nerves. Her paso before (and even this one a little bit) looked frantic because he made it that way….you can do paso without being so hurried; my sister commented during the dance that she was afraid he was going to hurt her as he was going way too fast for her and almost seemed to be pulling her along the entire time. I feel that he put her neck at risk more often than he should have this season rather than backing off. He’s a great choreographer so IMO he could have still pulled off great routines without putting her at risk.
I was disappointed last night. Disappointed that Jennifer and Derek didn’t wow me. Yes, I really loved their paso, it was much improved – not perfect – but where else could the judges go seeing as they’d overscored the others by at least a point. As for their freestyle? Ehn…. It was busy, busy, busy and Jen, to me, was often just on the wrong side of having control. She looked unsteady at times, nearly flaily. I wanted to be blown away, but I wasn’t. (I was also disappointed that they went the DD route which they’d said earlier this season they wouldn’t go but I guess I understand why they thought they had to.)
Bristol did okay, not spectacular, but okay. Her scores should have been reversed though, I thought and a digit lower. And jeez, guys, what’s Mark supposed to do? Throw her under the bus? He’s got to support her and be positive. Give the kid a break, will ya? He’s had one helluva job to do this season and I think he’s done it VERY well.
In my opinion, Kyle won the freestyle and hence the night. IN MY OPINION. And it kills me, because I really get bored with that old school hip hop dancing, but man, he and Lacey NAILED it. (And for once I figured Carrie Ann could actually give a somewhat expert opinion.) I thought their foxtrot was pretty damned good too. Not the best of the season, but definitely a triumph for them after their first go ’round with it. *g*
Anyway, the whole show was… okay… not spectacular, not edge-of-my-seat, not overly memorable, really. Sorta like the rest of this season has been.
Again, I am failing to see where anyone has been rude about Bristol OR Mark. All I see are people giving him props for working with what he was given, and objectively commenting that perhaps such an iconic dance wasn’t a very wise choice. I’m beginning to think that no one is able to say anything even remotely negative about Bristol or Mark without being accused of being “rude” or “throwing people under the bus”. Good grief, this season is whack.
Courtney, I never accused anyone of throwing Mark under the bus, what I said was – in response to comments about how he can say what he’s been saying about his partner and their dancing – is that, what is HE expected to do? Throw his partner under the bus and say she hasn’t improved, that he thought maybe they should be scored higher in certain situations etc…
As for the rude comments? I guess they could be in the mind of the reader. What sounds rude to one doesn’t sound rude to another. What I CAN say about that is that none of the comments on this board come anywhere NEAR the viturperative and nasty comments I’ve read elsewhere about Bristol. Which is a good thing!
Evaine, I’m sorry, but Mark is on overdrive here. It’s quite strange actually – he wasn’t that way (as far as I remember) with other contestants he had that didn’t fare well. Was he? I honestly don’t remember this type of behavior from him. Maybe he’s crushing on Bristol or something. He’s just over the top on his criticism of the judges and his reactions – that nasty imitation of CAI springs to mind, but his facial reactions last night too. Why can’t he tone it down? I find it very, very strange. I sincerely curious as to what is different this season for him.
Palin Pressure. I think that’s what’s different. This level of controversial partner has never been seen before in DWTS. Tom Delay – the other political type contestant? Nowhere NEAR the lightning rod for controversy as Bristol. I gotta tell you, I wouldn’t want to be in Mark’s shoes for anything.
We’re in complete agreement there, Evaine – I was telling someone here the other day that if they manage to win, I will feel sorry for both of them. Very sorry. I saw a LOT of “Vote for Bristol to show Liberals what it’s about” or similar last night – you wanna talk about unfair to Bristol?? Putting all that crap on her and making it even MORE political – by making her their poster child they drew fire that they might not have gotten otherwise. She might have gotten it, but the right wing made it so much worse for her. Now, if they win, that’s ALL it will be about – not at all about the spin she and Mark are trying to put on it – it could be ugly. Screw that – it WILL be ugly. And it won’t be the “liberals” who did it either.
Thanks for clearing that up, Evaine. I’m glad this site has remained fairly level-headed compared to some of the truly cruel stuff out there. I guess I’m just completely befuddled as to why, after last night, it seems like any remotely negative talk about Bristol or Mark is off-limits to some people. Literally, I have no idea what’s going on – I don’t think we’re being any different in our commentary that we’ve been all season, and I don’t think Bristol danced any better or worse last night than she did all season. Criticism of Jen & Derek and Kyle & Lacey seems to be ok, but oh – we don’t dare say ANYTHING about Bristol or Mark, lest we get called out for being “rude” or “harsh”. Nothing personal against you…I just have no clue what the hell happened between last week and this week that has so many people so sensitive about constructive criticism of Bristol. Yet another reason why this season is whack and I actually can’t wait for it to be over – so much funky stuff going on that it’s getting hard to watch and comment on. Thank god it’s over after tonight, because I’m not sure I could hack another week of this nonsense! 🙁
But really, wouldn’t y’all have wanted to be a fly on the wall during the last few weeks’ production meetings? *g*
I’m afraid poor Mark has been drinking the kool-aid of underdogitis. You can be an underdog, but you must be entertaining. Bristol was not in any way shape or form entertaining. The ribbon dance in the cell was lunacy, just another lame attempt to hide the flaws. And why oh why would Mark make Bristol do any Fosse moves when only really really good dancers should ever attempt Fosse. Seemingly simple never is. And the Jive was going to go no where, I think dancers everywhere know that Jive for celebrities is
Kyle and Lacey’s hip hop was a lot of fun, but like on SYTYCD with really strong dancers, it’s an interesting stat that hip hop more often than not gets you the boot not the win. Hip hop is so stylized and so of a pop culture moment that it’s really really tough to pull it off on this show. Lacey did so much better with Kyle than she did with Lance however. And I’m sorry, but Lacey needs more work in Ballroom. That Foxtrot wasn’t really Kyle’s fault.
I have a theory about this season, and I’m just going to put it out there. The judges have over-scored Palin in an unbelievable way. I’ve never seen something so glaringly obvious. Which makes me think that they deliberately kept her around for controversy and ratings only. Propping up the score kept her far longer than she should have stayed.
Palin was news on CNN and other political news shows in the way that Tom Delay only wishes.
Yes she had a big enough fan base to keep her on, but it was conveniently helped by inflating the scores while underscoring others.
I’m hoping that Bristol gets the boot. Yes she’s improved but I want to see fun and entertainment and she doesn’t have any of that. She’s come out of her shell and I applaud Mark for a job well done. However, her dances were overscored and she deserved at best 8’s.
Yah Evaine – I can only imagine the pandemonium in those meetings. “WTF are we gonna do?! Do we try and manipulate scores? Votes? Do we let things play out as they may? AAAAHHHHH!” I don’t envy anyone involved with that show right now. They’re walking a very fine line.
Heidi, John, & I were talking about Tom DeLay the other day and comparing his time on the show to Bristol’s as well, mary – I think we came to the conclusion that his time on the show was much less controversial because 1) he bowed out early due to injury, and 2) he was already sort of a has-been, politically. Even the controversy of his indictment was dying down at that point. With Bristol’s tenure on the show, her mother is right in the thick of her political career, and that’s spilling over into the show…and it SUCKS. What was once an entertainment show has now been turned into a political debate. Makes me sick 🙁
Courtney, agreed, Tom Delay left early, with a career on the downturn but for me he was also one of those over-scored dudes. It’s almost as if ABC wants to show the world they are so fair and balanced when it comes to the political right, and they go overboard doing it. I just want to see politics out of the mix entirely.
Ugh I want Bristol GONE already! I voted for Jen all the way and gave a few to Kyle as well online. I liked Kyles foxtrot even if I felt it wasn’t perfect, but it was a great mood creation. I liked his freestyle a lot. Perfect for Kyle and I saw an old costar of his in the audince!!! I freaked out, I was like “it’s Chelsea!!!!!” With Bristol It was nice to see her act in her jive but her feet were sooo slow. And her freestlye…I found myself focusing on how good the band was doing with the song instead…if I looked at Mark I was totally in the mood of the dance and when I looked at Bristol…not so much…and Jen was great! Her paso was great, classic Derek choreo and it was perfect. And her freestyle, while it was perfect, I find a sense of redundancy with Dereks freestyles, I wanna see him take a risk with his choreo because Brookes, Nicoles and now Jens all kind of melt together in my mind…overall, though, great night but I want Jen in first and Kyle in second!!!
Mark seems to HONESTLY believe they’re being underscored, and Bristol doesn’t understand why they’re always at the bottom of the leaderboard and always getting the same comments from the judges (you need to perform more). I think because Bristol had zero dance experience or performing experience coming in, and she’s gone from zero to where she is now, they both say they don’t understand why that’s not being acknowledged and rewarded. Also on what I like to call her “druidic” dance last week, they were upset to not get all 9s because apparently it was a hard song with 15 tempo changes and she stayed on time throughout. No idea if he has a crush on her or just can’t view their dancing objectively since he’s so invested in it. 🙂 Oh and Bristol can’t believe she hasn’t gotten a single 10 all season, as if it’s your reward for making it this far in the competition to be given a 10.
Y’know, you can all kill me if you want, but I didn’t really see what was so special about Jennifer’s dances. I do know that she was the best one tonight and is the most deserving winner (50 years old, people), but I just… couldn’t get into it, for some reason. The paso was much better than her last one (I happened to notice that the move she messed up on was the same move that Derek used in his 50’s paso with Nicole last season) but I was a little bored with it. Besides, I didn’t like their transitions. Her freestyle was a bit reminiscent of his and Brooke’s freestyle during S7, except less difficult.
Kyle… he just kinda had me laughing the whole night. It was kinda weird seeing him doing a foxtrot that required lots of smolder, but I think he pulled it off nicely. The freestyle was so cheesy, but so enjoyable. I was laughing in a lot of part. Although he was a little sloppy in some parts, it was still entertaining.
Bristol’s jive was better than her first, but I don’t think it deserved the same score as Kyle’s foxtrot. She DID look really pretty in her freestyle, though! That was her best dance in my opinion, and the only one of hers that I enjoyed.
Then again… this coming from a girl who calls kissing “lip-rape”, so feel free to disagree. 🙂
Oh, and I forgot to add: I’m going to miss watching this show, since I’m suffering from SYTYCD withdrawals and this show was something I could do in the meanwhile. I won’t have anything else to watch (I miiighhhttt watch Skating with the Stars…) until spring when ABDC comes on. 🙁 I’m gonna miss watching dancing………….
So every couple dances two dances tonight and then they announce who won? Feel free to tell me this has been discussed earlier but I’m assuming that everyone gets two more dances tonight. Are they confirmed? Sorry if I’m covering old ground.
I just wanted to add my two cents on the freestyles since there is some interesting discussion going on here.
Kyle: His FS totally fit him, his energy, personality, general sense of fun about him. I bet a lot of the kids and teens loved it to death. However, this dance also reminds me of the feestyle Lacey did with Lance.So she doesn’t stray too far from the hip-hop tree. I also thought it was funny that in the package it seemed like it was Kyle who picked the song and theme, but when they got their scores he said “Lacey told me to” do it basically. I noticed that some people were saying that Kyle had more steps in his FS than Jen did (therefore he had the better FS supposedly). The way I look at it was that Lacey had to choreograph like that because they couldn’t really do interesting/intricate lifts. I don’t even think there were any lifts. So Lacey choreographed to Kyle’s strengths. But I disliked their costumes. Those high waisted jean shorts on Lacey were a no-no, IMO!
Jennifer: Well, Jen and Derek are my favorites, so I was very happy with what they came up with. Fun, energetic, sentimental, get up off your seat and dance with them kind of freestyle. I had previously read comments on this blog that they were worried about Jen and Derek’s freestyle because it was a foregone conclusion that she would not be able to do lifts. Now I’m laughing because last night I read comments here that thought she did TOO MANY lifts last night and not enough dancing. Obviously, Derek took that challenge and choreographed stuff that work for them and wow the audience. Also, I don’t think Derek would ever put Jen in danger for the sake of his choreography. She’s able to do it or else he’d give her something else to do.
I do have criticisms, though. Derek goes for what works and since he’s won the last two times he’s been in the finals, he just repeated the formula. I actually thought it would have been cool if Derek would have choreographed a mambo/salsa with lifts for Jen since she danced the mambo in DD, but not on DWTS. She also knows how to work those hips.
Bristol: Big sigh. . . decent attempt. But like the judges said, way too ambitious for her capacity. Bristol’s instincts were right. Maybe that’s why Mark is on the defensive since he forced her to do it. The thing that bothered me the most was all the props. Too many distractions from actually dancing… what little there was of it. Mark could have choreographed broadway for her without all the gimmicks and it would have been entertaining. Loved her costume and liked the dancing in the cage, but it was just not up to par with Kyle and Jen’s FS. I blame Mark.
To Poster #62:
I agree with you. I’ve said all along that the constant focus on her injuries was gaining the sympathy vote, even though she and Brandy were clearly the best dancers. Well, obviously they should be because they both have performance and dance experience. From day one, they have tapped Jennifer to win because of the Dirty Dancing nostalgia, with the judges publicly calling her the “chosen one”. That one move placed an unfair advantage in the competition. Again, Jennifer is obviously the sharpest dancer, but fair is fair, and tapping someone as the “chosen one” is not fair. Yes, it’s about entertainment and ratings, but ABC needs to be a little more discreet about some of their plots and plans.
Then, another measure of unfairness to the other dancers comes with the Tea Party voting for Bristol, not voting for her dance ability, but voting for her mom Sarah. Yes, a lot of folks saw improvement in Bristol, and for someone who was not a performer, she danced rather well, but her lack of personality caused her to fall very short. If she could have had the personality and positive attitude of Kyle, I think people would have been much more supportive of her.
The “Bristol vote” has been more like a mini -presidential election of sorts. Plus, Sarah Palin made sure she got her share of the limelight. Like American Idol, DWTS is part talent/majority popularity contest. Between Jennifer Grey and Bristol Palin, the other competitors didn’t stand much of a chance.
However, ABC scored a major ratings bonanza, even though the “Palin controversy” turned into negative controversy. If I were an advertising sponsor, I would be jumping for joy right now.
As much as I’m firmly against voter fraud or vote manipulation, at this point, between the outrage over the invasive TSA body scans and enhanced “pat downs” paired with the upcoming holiday, I think a Bristol Palin win would push people over the edge. Again, as much as I’m against vote manipulation, if I were the producer at ABC, I might consider handing the trophy to Jennifer or Kyle, whether they actually win or not. People have gone crazy today, and a Bristol win would not be in ABC’s best interest nor would it be in Bristol’s best interest. That win would haunt her for years to come. Let’s face it, a crazy man has already shot his TV over Bristolmania. Years ago, we could call shows like this entertainment, now it has become a war between the Left and the Right.
Yep, you are correct, Jay – 2 more dances for each couple tonight: their “favorite” dance, and an instant choreography cha-cha. The votes have already been cast, but the scores from these 2 additional dances will still count towards the overall score of each couple – and Heidi & I are thinking it may serve to put a bit of the power back in the judges’ hands, should the voting get, shall we say, “interesting”. The way I understand it, the favorite dance will be scored the way any other dance is scored – out of 30. However, I’ve heard different things about the instant choreo dance – I’ve heard it will be scored normally, and then I’ve also heard that it will be scored in a way similar to the Argentine tango competition last year (30, 28, 26). Not sure which it will be. I’m thinking that Jennifer & Derek will do their Argentine tango for their favorite, Kyle & Lacey will do their jive, and Bristol & Mark will do their tango. Total guesses, but they seem like the most likely choices.
Courtney: Thank you for explaining and for naming the dances (your best guesstimate). I’m about to say something that I appreciate is touchy but, God help me, if Bristol isn’t pregnant she’s got to watch it going forward in life. Tonight, she can stay low to the ground so to speak, with a tango and cha-cha. But, I’ll feel better if I see Mark flip her around. Sorry, but I just had to say it.
Jay, are you saying you think she’s pregnant AT THIS MOMENT? Oh good GRAVY, that’s ALL this crazy season needs!!
I’m sorry! I just hope I’m wrong, really.
Jen & Derek = V Waltz. I think the A Tango may have been too good to live up to again 🙂
Buttercup, I think Mark may have lost it and is feeding Bristol’s feelings of entitlement. It’s like two people stuck together in this delusion where you’re handed good 10s just for staying on time. Jaysus.
Hmmm…interesting, Buttercup. I originally wondered if they’d go the emotional route and do the Viennese waltz, but someone made the comment that it wasn’t technically as strong at their AT and also had a risky move that Carrie might interpret at a lift. But it does make sense…they really did choose their favorite. So should I assume your silence about the other two indicates they’re correct? 😉 You don’t have to say yes or no…just say “tootsie roll”. Haha 😛
Entitlement is so not sexy. I think Bristol & Mark may be under the impression that making it to the finals = mad love and inflated scores from the judges. Ooh wee.
Ya know, I think maybe it’s because I have never liked “Dirty Dancing” (I know, sacrilege!) that maybe I just don’t care about Jennifer Grey as much as I thought I would. Maybe that’s why I didn’t love (only liked) the DD homage freestyle, although I do think that some of the lifts were boring (the one where he carries her halfway across the floor). I have tried to enjoy that movie but I just can’t. Yet I have always loved dancing. Go figure.
However, I LOVE hip hop, and tootsie roll is one of my favorites. So maybe that’s why I enjoyed Kyle’s? Or maybe I just haven’t cared for the personality that Jennifer has shown. Her post dance interviews are always awful (even blaming Brooke for a good deal of that). Only Derek seems to salvage this partnership for me. Well, that and Jennifer’s obvious ability to look wonderful on the dance floor (but I still maintain that she looks small and unintense in her paso’s and tangos). I guess the more that this season has gone on, the more that I’ve felt that to be the case. LOVE Derek, only kinda like Jennifer.
Just an add on that I think that Jennifer will still win, and I won’t be down about that at all, although I think Kyle is definitely my favorite part of season 11. I think he has a great future.
Was Jennifer’s freestyle costume a lot like both Brooke’s and Nicole’s (except with a skirt instead of capris)?
C – Bristol correct I believe. I’m not 100% sure, but I think we may have a whole lotta tango goin on. 😉
Well absolutely Derek went with the formula, but it’s a winner for him, from the tear-away outter wear to the neon sparkly reveal, it has been seen before. At least with the nods to Dirty Dancing it wasn’t a complete re-dux. And certainly I’ve noticed that Jen isn’t able to do the tricks that Brooke or Nicole could do, but she still managed to make it entertaining and fun, and those hip isolations were awesome! Freestyles are never what I call “polished” maybe that’s part of it’s charm.
But totally what made Jennifer stand out was her Paso Doble. How exacting was that dance! She was picture perfect, beautifully rendered. I do associate Habanero with Gilles and Cheryl’s Paso Doble and that was a sensation. But, Derek really up’d the stagecraft. I do love how Derek created the dark mood of the red and black, that’s actually a pretty cool interpretation of Carmen.
I don’t know, I hope Jen and Derek do their AT, the split leap was in fine form last evening on the Freestyle 🙂 And it made me think it was worth putting in a few Tango lifts in the Free to prep for tonight. VWaltz was a long time back, but, that’s okay too… I just think going from a 29 to a 30 with the AT is an easier leap of faith than going from a 24 to a 30 with the VWaltz… they already gave Jen a huge increase on the redemption dance. 10 points. I think that’s the first time they’ve ever done that.
Wouldn’t Bristol and Mark do their Paso? That was their highest scoring dance, wasn’t it?
Well Heidi, I’m a huge fan of DD and enjoyed the beginning with the watermelon and all the other hints, but their freestyle still disappointed me a little bit, maybe because I was expecting something more (and she was quite unsteady at times).
As for Bristol & Mark, the cloth thing didn’t bother me that much, maybe because after having seen Donny Osmond freestyle with so little dance, I was expecting the same with them but I do agree with you it was not well executed
I still want Jennifer & Derek to win, it’s just that I prefered Kyle’s freestyle even if I’m generally not a big fan of hip hop
i gotta say i thought the cloth looked really cool. i thought mark really did his best. on the one hand, bristol doesn’t emote, so dramatic music like chicago can underscore that. on the other hand, the music is so strong that it can compensate for her emotionlessness because it can both overpower her and she doesn’t have to capture anything subtle. mark is good at letting his partners evade subtlety, like when he and shawn johnson pretended to hit each other in a tango so she’d look angry enough. ordinarily i’d find that to be contrived, excessively literal choreography, but i think mark did that to compensate for shawn’s sweetness, which is clever form a competition perspective. i thought the chicago freestyle was the best routine they could have done. i’m glad they didn’t do the hyper musical route that most people do because they’d just pale in comparison to other groups (which they did anyway.)
Bristol madea great move doing her tango again (i had a feeling it was between that and her paso but the paso wasn’t too long ago so maybe it would have been too fresh in the viewers mind?). On the other hand Kyle might have mad a huge mistake. If he would have done his paso, argentine tango, or samba (but maybe he wanted to use a serious dance since they have the cha cha thing tonight too…idk if that was his reasoning though) he would have gotten better scores tonight (at least thus far). Finally, Jen was amzazing!!!!!!