DWTS12 Week 5 Power Rankings
WORST THEME NIGHT EVER IN THE HISTORY OF DANCING WITH THE STARS.
I can say with complete honesty that I have never had such a miserable time watching the show as I did tonight. The music? Horrible. The costumes? Terrible. The scoring? Completely assanine. To quote my mother, “Thank god the show was only 90 minutes tonight! I can’t take much more!” And to reiterate something Heidi and I agree upon on Twitter – the fool that thought “American Night” would be a super-duper idea needs to be fired and deported to Mexico (I think I originally said Canada, but Evaine informed us that Canada didn’t want him either 
). Anywho…guess it’s time to face the music…
1.) Hines & Kym – I think the judges must have literally just done some crack before watching this dance, because there was no way in hell it was “his best so far”, or even the best of the night. I thought it was his worst – he barely moved, and the little bit of moving he did do was awkward. Forget any sort of connection to the music – “Proud to be an American” is quite possibly the least sexy, romantic rumba I’ve ever heard on the show. Even Hines & Kym themselves seemed shocked at the judges’ gushing – as if they themselves didn’t think it was that great. I just can’t figure out what the judges’ “angle” is for keeping him at the top week after week…are they gonna pull the rug out from underneath him in the semifinals and tell him he isn’t improving fast enough? Would make for a nice “shock” elim heading into the finals. Or who knows – maybe they just really, really love Hines. Eeee gad…it boggles the mind.*shaking head* Luckily for Hines, he’s got a great score on a night with a decent points spread, and Steelers fans are now voting harder than ever before to counteract the efforts of some overzealous (and idiotic, I might add) Baltimore Ravens fans that are encouraging people to vote for “anyone but Hines” in order to get him voted off. Ha.
2.) Ralph & Karina – Ok, now on the flipside, what is the judges’ agenda for keeping Ralph from getting the top-scoring position week after week? This poor guy seems to have really turned into a punching bag…was that samba great, or Ralph’s best? Hell no. But I think it was underscored by at least 2 points, given the crappy song he was given and the Herculean task Karina had in trying to merge samba with country. He wasn’t terrible, and kept up reasonably well. For once, I was actually thankful for Carrie Ann – she pointed out how hard it was to do what they did, and how it fit in well with the theme of the week. But alas, they are still part of the 3-way tie for last place – and you best believe TPTB are gonna milk that for all its worth. “Early frontrunner tumbles into last place! Can the voters save him from flaming out?” Aaaand cue cheesy graphic of a firework fuse burning out. I’m thinking that Ralph may be getting the lion’s share of the votes, hence the less generous scoring – but it’s also a boon, since I’m fairly certain that his fans are gonna vote that much harder tonight as a result. I’m fairly certain he’ll be safe, but I hope TPTB know they’re playing with fire if they are indeed trying to make things more interesting…
3.) Kirstie & Maks – As nutty & off-the-wall as this foxtrot was, it came at a time in the show when I was really in need of a laugh & some entertainment – and thankfully, these two delivered, and they did so in a tongue-in-cheek fashion that made me think that they, too found this theme night just absolutely ridiculous and did this foxtrot in jest of the theme I love the fact that these two don’t ever take themselves too seriously – I love the bond they’ve formed, and it’s great to see Maks so laid back and having fun with one of his partners. As for the dance – not a great foxtrot, but definitely not the worst I’ve seen, and certainly not low on the entertainment factor. And praise Jeebus for John Travolta – the only person that could have salvaged the show from complete failure, and he certainly did. I think these two took the cake for most memorable performance tonight for me – and people continue to love Kirstie, so I don’t see these two going anywhere with a good score under their belt as well.
4.) Chelsea & Mark – *sigh* Just not sure what to make of these two anymore. I find myself not totally loving their dances, but not totally hating them; and I vacillate between thinking that they could go all the way to the finale and thinking they could be in danger this week. I guess I’m thankful that Mark at least tried to go the traditional route with this one (as traditional as one can go when dancing to a Miley Cyrus song), and Chelsea wasn’t a total failure – she seemed to at least try to get the hip action, and was thankfully aided by those fringed pants that seem to be kind to those who aren’t as skilled in the hip department. It was fun, it was cute, it was fairly inoffensive. I think their voters could possibly rally after last week’s whiplash scoring/critiquing, and their presence in the pimp spot tonight makes me wonder if last week’s stunt generated a lot of buzz for these two…and a good score certainly won’t hurt, either.
5.) Chris & Cheryl – Anyone else notice that the truly “patriotic” songs tonight seemed to get the best scores? I think this may have been a slight case of patriotic overscoring. :-) Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love Chris – he’s funny, he’s cute, and he’s working hard – but this was just good for me…not great. He did seem a bit stiff at times, and when he’s uncomfortable he tends to plaster a smile on his face that can look like a grimace. I probably would have given this a 24…but once again, I think the judges are hellbent on having the whole “it’s anyone’s game!” illusion, so they may have tacked on an extra point or two for good measure. Bah…I dunno. I like Chris, and I want to see him do well – but I want to see him really earn a good score, and not just get handed one for the sake of excitement. We all know what happens when some couples get undeservingly overscored – they stick around longer and don’t improve. But I’m glad Chris has Cheryl, because she does seem to be pushing him. Between their high score and their combined fanbases, these two are gonna be safe for at least 2 more weeks.
6.) Romeo & Chelsie – This was the one performance tonight that really made me smile Seeing Romeo out there jumping around excitedly brought back shades of the joy I got from watching Sugar Ray dance – I knew Romeo would really get good once he was able to let go and really enjoy himself out there! This was actually a pretty good foxtrot – traditional enough to please fuddy-duddy Len, but with enough exciting open work to make it memorable. I think Romeo’s excitement may have gotten the better of him a few times, but overall it was a pretty clean, consistent perfomance. The only problem I’m seeing with these two is that Romeo seems to be blooming a bit late - I’m not sure enough, quick enough, to really rally people to vote for him. He doesn’t have the fanbase of favorites like Hines, Kirstie, or Ralph, and he doesn’t seem to be getting quite as good scores as Chris & Chelsea. I’m hoping he busts some major moves in the next few weeks to stick around!
7.) Kendra & Louis – I believe my exact words upon seeing this “foxtrot” (note the quotations) were something along the lines of “WTF is this???” I counted maybe 8 bars of actual foxtrot in this dance – the rest was just a silly mess of cheesy jazz hands with a little bit of polka peppered in. The judges got on Karina’s case for not having enough samba in her samba – yet Louis got away with murder on this one. The little bit of foxtrot that was there was done pretty sloppily – perhaps that’s why Louis kept them in open position most of the time. Don’t even get me started on Kendra’s fake drama in her package, or her constant blathering about her bodily functions – it’s just digging her deeper into the hole she’s been digging since day one. Do I think these two are in danger? Yes. Can I say definitively that they’re going home tomorrow? I wish 
But I think their few-but-fervent voters could save them again, and instead we could lose…
8.) Petra & Dmitry – Now the scoring seems to have set up a possible Petra/Kendra bottom 2 (I highly doubt Ralph is going to be in any sort of danger of not getting the numbers), but I worry that in the end Petra is just not going to be able to scrounge up the votes to beat Kendra. And it really stinks, but I think she may have finally been scored appropriately for the first time in a few weeks – it just unfortunately happened during a week where she got the same score as 2 more popular contestants Her quickstep wasn’t terrible, but she just looked soooo stiff and wobbly – and slow. Had this dance gotten much slower, she would have just been doing a foxtrot. Petra fans, take heed: if I were you, I’d vote with all of your might tonight. Go create several new online accounts to get your votes in, because I worry that it could come down to the wire and Kendra might be able to eek out another week on the show – and I think we’re all pretty sick of hearing about her period by now So please…let’s all cross our fingers, and do a little booty-shaking dance to the DWTS gods and pray that it’s Kendra sent packing!
Phew! Glad that’s over…I’m glad to be able to put DWTS behind me tonight, and I’m hoping that they trash American Night permanently and NEVER bring it back again. Am I the only one that hated tonight? Let me know! Oh, and a few quick PureDWTS PSA’s for this week: as many of you know, Heidi is out of town, and may or may not be able to get her “by the numbers” post done for tomorrow. I may step in to assist, but let’s cross our fingers that she does it, because she’s just so darn good at it Also, our server has a 30-minute outage scheduled for sometime between 10 PM – 5 AM Mountain time tomorrow night - this likely won’t affect those of us in the Eastern & Central zones (unless you’re a night owl), but it could affect those watching out west. If you can’t get on the site – don’t be alarmed, just wait a little bit and keep trying…we promise we aren’t shutting down. At least not without a fight
I agree here on pretty much all fronts. This was the only dance from Hines I wasn’t feeling at all. But his fanbase is far too large for him to go anywhere, good dancing or not. He’s going to make the finals almost guranteed for me, and at this point, I wouldn’t be the least bit upset if he won. I liked Chelsea’s dance, and she’s my favorite, but her hips were not so good. She tried to move them, but they need big work, because she’s still got a Rumba to do (if she makes it long enough), and she’ll need hips. Other than the hips, I think her dance was overall pretty good. Perhaps overscored by 1 or 2 points though. Ralph was underscored, a big problem was the song, he could’ve done way better had he gotten a Samba song. It’s hard for me to go on, I’m just going to put it this way: American Week should NEVER happen again.
EVERYBODY!!! PLEASE!!! Vote for Petra!! Not even because you are a Petra fan but because if you dont, you’re probably going to have to sit through another week of Kendra and Louis. We are all sick and tired of them. Please vote for sweet Petra!
I don’t even KNOW if I can do a ‘by the numbers’ tonight because I’m still in awe of the Hot Maks Butt. Holy jamoley that’s one beautiful piece of work! And Courtney, I think you got it right – they were just as WTF about this week’s um… theme… as the rest of us and they played it for sheer entertainment! I was certainly entertained and since I downloaded the video, I will be entertained again and again and again!
As for the rest of the scoring… I just don’t get it. As you know, I’m not a huge Hines fan, but I did think it was his best dance yet – at least I enjoyed it the most, but I didn’t think it was worth a 27. And let me just say, those 9s the judges were tossing around like the patriotic confetti… well, really? NINES??? Of the top of the leader board, I only thought that Mark and Chelsea deserved their score and honestly, I thought it was the best dance of the night. But you know… everyone’s mileage may vary.
I really worry for Petra. I’m worried that there are a ton of pimply-faced little teenage boys out there who just read Kendra’s Twitter and vote. They don’t bother to watch the show. You know? I just don’t know how she gets away with the shit she says! And Carrie Ann being all almost apologetic over her on the mark remarks from last week…. boggles my mind. My only guess is that they want to keep the one that generates the headlines around instead of the happy, smiling, pretty girl who makes no waves. And I don’t think Dmitry’s fanbase is anywhere near big enough to help her out.
What a clusterfluffer of a night. Louis looked ridiculous, BTW. And I really thought that Ralph should have gotten higher scores. He wasn’t great, but he was better than the other two tied for the bottom with him.
My fave of the night? Kirstie and Maks by FAR.
The best of the night? Chelsea and Mark IMHO.
Yes American night was a horrible idea, guess you can blame British producers. Ralph and Karina’s dance was so embarrassing to me, but I blame the song. And I still think Hines got the worst Rumba song in history.
Well,
I’m actually worried about Kirstie for the first time. That dance is not going over well in general and dialidol has her virtually at the bottom in all their measurement categories. Dialidol busy percentages have been pretty good at pointing out the bottom this year.
WHY oh WHY didn’t ANY judge mention that Kendra didn’t do a foxtrot????? What is going on???
Chelsea and Mark are terrific, I admit it. But, they just annoy me for some reason. It’s probably my own issue ….. but still, I don’t enjoy them at all.
This theme had to be the worst ever on this show. Courtney, you said it! It was so hard to feel a lot of the dances. The producers should have known better.
My rankings (but, this is hard becaue of this theme);
1. I liked Romeo and Chelsea the best tonight. He was smooth and confident. Gone is the worrying about being cool. He was graceful. He was feeling it and having fun. He was a true “dancer” tonight. 9+
2. Hines and Kym – Len described this dance the best. It was like we were watching “Officer and a Gentlemen”. His footwork was a little stiff about 3/4 through it. But, he was charming, smooth, and cool as always. 9-
3. Cheryl and Chris – Same as above! A total charmer, smooth, and full of class. I loved his lines and he improves every week. I love his attitude. 9-
4. Mark and Chelsea – I always feel like Mark is trying to grand stand and show off versus executing a good dance. It takes away from his partner every time. But, it was still really good. They continue to lack the likability factor. 8+
5. Kirstie and Maks – How I loved the skif with John Travolta. Way Fun! Maks was just way hot in those leather pants. Kirtsie was a little stiff in some of the dance. But, it was still a super and full of personality and entertainment. I love them so much and all my votes will continue to go to these two (with a couple thrown Petra and Ralph’s way too). 8
6. Petra and Dmitry – I loved this dance. Yes, Petra had some foot issues. But, her ‘spirit’ says it all always which is so key whenever someone is dancing. I love them! 8
7. Ralph and Karina – This pains me to put them so low. But, this dance was weak and not him. It felt so odd. I blame this on the rotten theme night. But, why did Karina have to do a Country dance to this song and make him a cowboy which made it all that much worst and unconvincing. 7
8. Kendra and Louis – Ok, Kendra was much better. But, I thought the choreographing lacked and was dumb. I couldn’t stop staring at Louis Abe Lincoln beard either. Eeek!! Even still, they were a lot better and atleast she listened this week. 7 (I hope these are the two to go home)
I have to agree that americana night sucked. Seriously, why must we have themed weeks? Its getting to be a little much! As for Louis and Kendra, WTF! That was not a foxtrot, that was a march! They marched around most of the time in their horribly cheesy outfits. Sigh. I was so ready for them to be my favs because I loved to watch “the girls next door” and because I like Louis. But idk what the heck he’s been doing with Kendra this season. Too hard of a routine, too hard of a routine, too hard of a routine and them wham! This simplistic, marching mess. Ugh. Should be interesting to see how it all works out tomorrow night!
I think with Ralph it’s just a case of storyboarding. They’ve been tearing him down and now he can have a “comeback.” I thought Karina did a good job with the choreography considering the circumstances, so I don’t think a lot of the critiques were necessary.
I was too distracted by Kym’s fringe to notice Hines, but that song was awful, and I definitely don’t think that was his best dance. The whole dance just felt disjointed. This theme night, like many of the others, was a bad idea. The only ones who I think it really worked for was Romeo and Chelsea.
You aren’t alone Courtney. I am a huge fan of the show and this was the worst thing they have done in recent history. I can’t remember every single episode of the show so I can’t fairly say worst ever…but close. There were only a few music selections that in any way meshed with the dance style. It set everyone up for failure! And then the scoring was ridiculous.
Ralph was totally slammed. He wasn’t the best tonight, but certainly didn’t deserve to be tied for the bottom. I do worry for him- I like Karina but she isn’t used to having partners that could really be good enough AND popular enough to win. She’s used to having to pull gimmicks and I want her to push his technique or he might not have a real shot at winning here. He must improve the sharpness and the lines and hands still. I really like him so I hope he does!
Chris was good, but slightly overscored. I don’t have much else to say about him really tonight.
Petra had some good and bad in the dance tonight. She is so likeable! But she screwed up noticeably a couple of times and still the same score as Ralph?
I liked the feel of Romeo’s dance but it was overscored. His lines were odd and he wasn’t all that smooth like a foxtrot should be- his character was smooth but his movement bounced around a lot. And the tongue out thing just was odd too though I think he was just getting into it. I actually enjoy hm and Chelsie dancing together though. I don’t think he would be enjoying the show as much with any other partner.
Kirstie was ok tonight. I must say it is so nice having a season of NOT wanting to punch Maks! I love this Maks. His attitude changes like the wind with every partner and she has brought out his good side! Anyway, it was super cheesy fun during a horrible night. I was still surprised just how cheesy Maks played this dance, but hey I think he’s actually enjoying a season for the first time in awhile. Kirstie has good qualities in her dancing but it was too far away from foxtrot for me. Score was about right.
Hines was SO overscored – it was his worst dance to me! Certainly not a bad dance but definitely not a 27. And hey, I am from Baltimore and a Ravens fan, but I even recognize that Hines is good. I have enjoyed every dance until tonight. Can’t say I will vote for him but I won’t campaign against him:)
Kendra was just eh. I generally find myself disliking Louis’ choreography. I have for many many seasons. I think his work for pros or kind-of pros (a la SYTYCD) is good but for amateurs it’s just blah. I know she is trying but her attitude mixed with the sensitivity is just not winning me over either. Her time to go I hope….
Chelsea was good. I think Chelsea and Mark’s personalities mesh well on the dance floor. Mark has been creative this season for better or worse and I mostly like it. But I think he’s gotten more and more showy and opinionated though as the seasons pass and I tend to like his personality less each time. I honestly think he wants the Derek role but doesn’t quite pull it off. Derek generally has a better way of combining technique/traditional dance moves with creativity in a way that pleases people and the judges – in my opinion anyway.
First time posting on here this season. I couldn’t resist venting, I love this show and I was so not entertained tonight:( It’s been interesting to have a season without a designated ‘ringer’. As far as frontrunners of the season, Chelsea and Hines have the strongest combo of technique and personality on the dance floor this season so far. My personal favorites though are Ralph and Chelsea though I tend to really enjoy each of the others at times too…well, except Kendra…..
Courtney, I think you’re spot on for tonight.
My one issue: Kirstie will sill need votes to make sure she’s safe. Never assume! The show mentions the lowest point scorers, which can get people to vote. If people rally for Petra, Kendra, and Ralph, Kirsite could be screwed. She and Maks have my votes.
Here, here, Amy! I totally agree. My votes went there too.
Oh for the love of god – how often do we have to debunk Dial Idol for people to get it? Don’t worry about Dial Idol people!!!! It doesn’t work for DWTS – if they ever get it right it is pure coincidence.
This was just a terrible show. I wish they would quit with the theme nights AND the 50 different dances in one night!
The music was awful….the worst I have ever heard. I didn’t think any of the dances were great….how could they be with those songs! The songs did not fit the dances…I felt sorry for all of them.
My fave this season is Kirstie. I didn’t think the dance was great, but it was fun to watch…the ONLY dance I enjoyed watching. It is such a joy to watch Kirstie and Maks interact…they crack me up! Maks ain’t too hard on the eyes either! Love them.
I love Hines, but thought this was his worst by far. I could not believe his scores…too high. The scoring was just crazy tonight! But the whole show was crazy, and not in a good way.
Yes. Worst theme EVER.
I didn’t even see the whole thing but I liked Petra from what they showed in the recap because she was wearing gold and my eyes were so hurt from all the red/white/blue costume crap.
And Kendra just seemed to be doing a whole lot of marching. Even though she is far from my favorite, I was still happy to see her having a seemingly good time…
I hope they never ever do this theme again. Terrible, and the dance choices, aside from Foxtrot made no sense. They wanted American, why was no one doing swing/jive? To be honest, I think they need to lay off the theme nights. One of two a season is okay, but this one was just too much.
Worst theme night I can recall. Definitely the worst music ever; most selections did not fit the dance they were assigned to do.
Disappointing season overall and that is sad because I really like most of the celebrities. I do not understand the judges’ scoring AT ALL.
Gosh, I hope Petra will make it over Kendra.
Zach…I forgot to say that I gave votes to Petra. She is the sweetest thing and so beautiful. I really enjoy watching her. I so want Kendra to go!!!!!!!!!
I haven’t watched this show in earnest for like two seasons (because I was working nights as a ballroom dance teacher, oddly enough) and as much as I enjoyed breaking down the routines with a legitimate understanding of what was going on, overall… I thought my eyes might start bleeding. Why? Why? Why? American night? For real? This was awful. Awful
And you know, I think they all knew. Pros, celebs, judges, Tom… maybe not Brooke… but the rest of them. Yeah, they all knew it was ridiculous.
I am in agreement with everyone about the theme. It was awful and very unenjoyable to watch.
I really don’t like Kirstie. I think everyone just likes her because of her personality (which actually kind of annoys me) and she is one of the most recognized celebrities on the show. Her dancing has not been very good any of the nights, she’s had like 2 mishaps (I can’t remember anyone else having any but I probably just don’t remember them). I really don’t enjoy watching her and want her to go home.
Whoever thought of this theme and then approved all these songs, needs to be fired. I mean who the hell chose Hines song?? God Bless The USA to a Rumba?? Like what crack are you smoking?!? Music was just all wrong. Just one of the worst nights on DWTS that I Can remember
Chiming in briefly because I’M VOTING HARDCORE FOR PETRA!!!!!!!
Zack, come on buddy, let’s do this! And Kirstie fans, SUPPORT YOUR GIRL TOO! I worry that she may be losing momentum or is in the “safe zone/elimination area” . I let my Kirstie friends know that they can’t count on me this week because I’m voting for Petra to death!
GO PETRA!!!!
Thank you, Court!!! Youre the first one to articulate my feelings about Hines!!! <3 I just didnt feel his dance tonight. Who does a rumba in a sailor suit? I mean, I guess Kym more than made up for him in the nekkedness department with her outfit
haha. But, I worry for Ralph's scores. And Petra's votes. And DWTS in general for that matter. I pray this theme is not a sign of what's to come. Fingers crossed!!
Great post Courtney. I agreed with pretty much everything you wrote, especially the part about Kirstie and Maks. Loving those two, although I don’t think her dance was her best ever as Carrie Ann claimed, but it was memorable in regards to the ridiculous theme night. After the amazing classical week (IMO), I just think any other theme is gonna look like crap in comparison. And Kendra….I hate that woman! I didn’t have a problem with her when I first found out she was doing the show. I was neutral, but after hearing her complain and whine every week about something, it’s like “Then go home already if you hate it so much!” Ugh…I’m gonna be so upset if sweet, beautiful, gracious Petra goes home before that petulant child!
I’m glad to see I’m not the only one who disliked the american night, at first I thought it was because I’m not american
Here’s my ranking
1. Romeo & Chelsie, they were so charming together ! I enjoyed Chelsie’s choreography a lot (and her dress too)
2. Hines & Kym, Chris & Cheryl, Chelsea & Mark. I’d say that they are all “good but”. Hynes & Kym were good but boring, Chris & Cheryl were good but totally forgetable and Chelsea & Mark were good but with no hips nor shoulders for Chelsea
5. Kirstie & Maks, they were not better than Ralph & Karina but they were fun to watch. I loved Maks imitating Lenny Kravitz
6. Ralph & Karina, what a terrible song for a samba ! Though I appreciated Karina’s efforts, there was not a lot of samba and Ralph was quite stiff
7. Kendra & Louis, I still don’t like the girl but her “dance” was agreable to watch even though (and because) there was not a lot of foxtrot in it
8. Petra & Dmitry, she’s so sweet but her posture was screaming “hold me tight, I’m gonna fail”
Is Sabrina back and dancing with Romeo? She needs to remember that foxtrot is a sooth dance… she still atacking it tooo hard… =p
Hated America Night! Love Hines, but wasn’t feeling his dance at all! I thought I had missed something re: judges’ comments until reading the comments here. Thought that way abut Chris and Cheryl too. Loved Kiristie and Maks tonight. It wasn’t the best dancing, but so entertaining. Dance Doctor was funny too! I didn’t like Kirstie’s costume though. She’s not ready for the tight fitting pants yet.
I guess it wasn’t a big problem cuz I couldn’t keep my eyes off Maks! Yummy! I think Ralph’s scores were a bit lower than they should have been cuz he went first – not that I loved it, because I didn’t. I just want to forget about the whole night! Sorry for being so negative! Brooke looked good and Romeo was charming! 
On another thread, I mentioned that while in the celebriquarium, Louis reminded me of a leprechaun in one of my kids movies, and I figured out the name of the movie… When he looked straight at the camera, to me, he looked like the guy in the green #50 uniform in the first 2 minutes of this clip:
A question for the technical purists: Isn’t it still a lift after the music starts to swing your partner from the raised stage to the dancing level? Happened twice (Ralph and Karina, Kirstie and Maks) without a word from Carrie Ann, so maybe that’s not technically a lift.
Horrible night overall, all the way from Ralph getting hosed to Hines getting a 27 on a less than stellar performance, and all points in between. If you’re going to have such music, make it the “anything goes” performance (i.e., contemporary). That’s what Kendra’s performance was anyway – reminded me of a junior high variety show act, just not done as well.
Courtney, thank you for your comments about Hines! I totally agree! I have nothing against the guy at all except his overzealous fans, but I just didn’t see it last night. Carrie Ann going on about the hip action-WHAT hip action? I didn’t see it. Definitely overscored. Felt so bad for Ralph-a samba to Sweet Home Alabama?GAG! How is anyone supposed to pull that off? I’m thinking its Petra or Kendra-hoping like all get out that Kendra takes a walk. I’ve given up being objective when it comes to her and I’m sick of seeing her on my screen.
After watching the show, MY RANKINGS ARE:
8) Kendra: Idk what that was but it sure wasn’t no foxtrot. costumes were interesting though.
7) Petra: I liked it BUT I think she can do wayyyyyy better.
6) Romeo: I liked it but I think he has a lot of potetial that is just starting to show.
5) Mark and Chelsea: I hate the song but they did a nice job. She is definately a darkhorse to win it all if she contineus w Mar to not think out the box so much.
4)Chris and Cheryl: This was underscored. I saw it and thought straight 9s but still awesome job.
3) Ralph: Did’t quite understand why he got the scores he did since the song was given to them but whatever. He really did a good job.
2) Hines and Kym: I liked it a lot. Kym defiantely/hopefully will get an emmy nod for the choreography suince it was great.
1) Kirstie and Maks: The video montage of the rehersals w Travolta was great. Dude is a hoot to watch. the dance was great. One of her best ones so far. My fav of the night.
Saying that, I think a bottom three of Petra, Kendra, and Romeo will occur. Romeo should be safe (if he goes I will be shocked). Petra will live to dance another day and Kendra will hit the road. Not only for her weird “foxtrot” but since she just is plain annoying and Louis was kinda creepy lookingl ast night. Dude seriously scares me sometimes.
Agreed on the theme. Blah! A RUMBA to “proud to be an American”? WTF?
But, I have to say that I really like Kendra *ducks*. I think she doesn’t really know how to handle live tv, nor how to handle anxiety or lack of confidence–and I like seeing her wrestle with that. I don’t care much for Ralph *ducks and maybe runs*. I know, I know–he’s not a bad dancer and cute as a button, but he irks me. And Petra is sweet as candy, but bores me to tears.
I really like Chelsea, Romeo and Kirstie. Heinz is meh for me. And so is Chris. For DWTS I really want someone to keep me excited and interested, and those first three do it for me. So, if I had to rate:
1. Romeo
2. Chelsea
3. Kirstie
4. Chris
5. Ralph
6. Heinz
7. Kendra
8. Petra
@Lee, It’s only a lift when the judges decide to make an issue of it.
In another season, there was a pro who thought the music had totally ended, it was just fading out, and swung his partner into his arms to carry her over to be judged, and Carrie Ann had total conniption fits, and sat there and berated him for so blatantly breaking the rules, and HOW DARE HE do an OBVIOUS lift, blah blah blah….
In every season except this one, the women could be stretching and during some moves, be a hair’s width off the ground, and Carrie Ann is jumping and swinging her arms and shouting LIFT, LIFT, LIFT, LIFT!!!!
So Carrie Ann has been irking me big time this season, because she’s NOT lift police, and there have been a LOT of LIFTS that normally she would be ballistic about…. And she ignores all except the accidental ones by the ones she’s not so crazy about.
Worst show ever. Hard to watch. I kept wondering if it was just me…and then to check out this post today! Guess that low hum I heard last night was everyone else groaning, too.
Kirstie’s costume was spectacularly bad. Yes, I understand that she’s feeling better every week and, yes, a big gal can dress however she wants. But I swear, the second I saw her I thought of this from the Carol Burnett show. At 2:30 you’ll see what I mean. Sorry. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1kOlWkjEHo&feature=related
Well, I see. I was out last night and the show is on my DVR. From reading all this I’m not sure I should bother watching it. But sometimes you just have to look at the train wreck so I guess I’ll tackle it after work. Any spots that I really, really should fast forward past??
And I agree with Evaine, us Canadians do not want Kendra. In fact if they send her here, I will presonally collect the snow in my backyard and send it down there (yes I have snow in my yard on April 19th)
AMEN Courtney, and LOL @ Courtney’s Mom! That was indeed the most appalling night of DWTS I’ve ever suffered through. Hope the producers are getting an email box full of howling complaints. What a train wreck. If they keep this up, they’ll soon be past the point of no return.
OK. Now that I’ve got that off my chest, I’ll go back and read the rankings.
This theme night was pretty bad. I really felt sorry for Ralph and Karina. The cha cha cha would have it better for the song they had than the samba. Hines was overscored and Chris was underscored. I hope Kendra goes since she’s the only contestant that isn’t embracing this competition.
Good to know I wasn’t the only one just left with a really awful taste in my mouth after last night
I hope that TPTB are hiding their faces in shame today, because last night was an absolute joke – you know it’s bad when the local news even makes a comment about how bad DWTS was last night! Let’s hope they can at least salvage a piece of their dignity for the results show tonight…but then again, that’s doubtful. At least we only have to suffer for an hour tonight.
And people, for the love of Jeebus – DIAL IDOL DOES NOT WORK FOR DWTS. Go read this again, and then go to Dial Idol, click on “Geo Predictions”, and mouse over each state – you’ll find that only 10 states (mostly on the east coast) had people in it that actually used Dial Idol to get their votes in last night, and of those states, most had less than 100 dialed-in votes for the couples they actually had votes for. Are you gonna put your faith in a handful of people on the east coast voting for a handful of couples a few times? You shouldn’t. Any perceived “correctness” is pure coincidence.
I missed the show last night and was upset about it until I read these comments and watched the dances on youtube – WHAT A MESS! Last week was so beautiful, this week I feel like screaming, “My eyes! My eyes!”
Yuck.
I don’t understand how they could have planned a theme week this awful. I mean it was just a wasted week really. Unless Kendra goes home, then it was good for something.
I felt awful for Ralph and Karina. Sweet Home Alabama? Really? Hey TPTB, how about a ballroom dance song? You know, since this is a show about ballroom dancing.
Quick notes: I actually liked Hines’ dance. I agree with Carrie Ann, he makes it look easy. He and Chris were my favorites of the night. I’m worried about Kirstie – she reminded me of Wendy (maybe it was the blue jumpsuit thingy). I thought she lumbered around at times. I’ve always been impressed with how light she seems on her feet – but not last night. And I hope Petra stays. I think she and Dimitri are so pretty to watch on the floor. Not ready for her to go home yet.
Jay, the clip at 2:30 is hysterical!!! Actually makes Kirstie look pretty good!
Your analysis is 100% on point! I went from watching one of my favorite shows ever (classical night) to this abomination. The song should always serve the dance, not the other way around. You’d have to be a magician to choreograph a samba to Sweet Home Alabama, a Foxtrot to American Woman! And can we please stop making excuses for why there’s no passion in the rhumbas? It’s because their having to dance them to crappy music!! And how can Len complain about dance choreography not being “proper” and then give Hines a 9? There was no passion, no hip action and barely any movement. I’ve never been so disgusted at the end of an episode of DWTS.
Jay, the Carol Burnett clip was a hoot…and yes, I agree, Kirstie’s outfit last night did look similar…Overall I didn’t like the theme either…lousy music selections..Let’s hope they don’t do that again…I thought Ralph and Karina did well for the song they were given…A samba to Lynyrd Skynyrd…give me a break…Hines was overscored ..I usually like him but last night he seemed wooden. Overall a real crummy show..John Travolta was the only bright spot….and shirtless Maks.
Way to kitchy for me…a parody of DWTS. Bring my show back! Kendra and Louis marching to Uncle Sam – I would have killed him. Cowboy Samba? I was putzin’ around and my husband said – isn’t DWTS on? Enough said.
Yep last night has me questioning wether ABC is ran by the apes or not. I have bad memories of watching Planet of the Apes as a kid so not fun for me. At. All.
I’m no dance expert, but I’ve been watching this show since season one and I’ve learned a few things. I think the dedicated DWTS viewers have become relatively dance-savy as is evidenced by the comments on this site. Everything about last night’s show was an insult to fans, and in many cases, contradicted everthing the judges have said in the past about what makes for a good persformance. I do hope ABC gets and earful!
Courtney, this post is spot-friggin’-on. The whole night left me confuzzled…
Hines’ facial expression looked like an odd mix of “I’m having fun, and happy to be here”, with a dose of “Lord, I hope she doesn’t head-butt me again”. There was quite of bit of Kym dancing around him, with him standing still. And as @Buttercup has said, the worst Rumba music ever. Oh, and can we talk about a lift??? I got it, “Office and and Gentleman”, but when you end the song by carrying your partner around?Overscored by 2-3 points, IMO.
Poor Ralph… he has become a punching bag. Another case of bizarre music – Ralph put it best in their video package when he said a New York guy and a Ukrainian girl dancing a Brazilian dance to a song about Alabama… sheesh! Having said that, I did notice a lack of hip action, and his hands (once again) look funny. But he didn’t deserve the thrashing he got from the judges.
I thought Chris and Cheryl were underscored. I liked his V. waltz, thought it was elegant. I don’t know how long Chris will last, but I hope he hangs around a while – seems like he has a great attitude, is giving it his all, and is having fun. He’s also fun to watch.
I also enjoyed Romeo, but the stuff they did out of hold was a tad too much on the cheesy side for me – also, did anyone notice Romeo’s tongue sticking out while he was doing that? Looked like one of the guys in the dance troupe…
Overall, I’d like to see (a) the person who thought up “Americana Night” get banished to a Siberian work camp, and (b) the three DWTS judges on an episode of that A & E show “Intervention”…
OK, I’ve read the rankings and all the reviews, and it’s all been great therapy.
Here’s my executive summary:
The Good: Smokin’ shirtless Maks (Kirstie could have been wearing a tutu and I wouldn’t have noticed). The Pasotrot wasn’t particularly good, but I loved the way the “new” Maks ran with the utter ridiculousness of this theme week.
The Bad: Poor Ralph going early and getting spanked with comments and low scores he didn’t deserve for the cowboy Samba. IMO it was better than the overscored/overgushed, hipless, passionless Rumba from Hines. Hines’s best dance? Not even close (and both he and Kym knew it).
The Ugly: Uncle Sam-Louis doing the Foxmarch with Kendra who was trying to act like she was having a good time. Can we please have her march off the show tomorrow?
I feel a bit sorry for the couples who managed to eke out decent performaces because they were completely overshadowed by the awfulness of the night.
Gawd, I’m so confuzzled that I can’t remember what day of the week it is. Let’s not wait for “tomorrow”, send Kendra home TONIGHT!
I don’t think Hines’ costume did him any favors in the hip movement department. IMO, the long cut of the coat actually covered up hip action instead of enhancing it. On the other hand, that wasn’t exactly a fringy-pants kind of song…
After watching some of the after-show interview clips, it seemed to me that most of the couples were pretty confuzzled about the night too!
And BTW, say what you will about him in a DWTS role, Donny Osmond on GMA, disagreeing with the judges and calling Louis and Kendra out on their marching around the stage was GREAT!
@mmc – I HATED all of Hines costume and thought it didn’t do him any favours at all! And the hat looked better on Kym afterwards, by a mile! Poor Hines.
Courtney I’m gonna agree the John Travolta added life back into the show. I had a feeling Kirstie would have him show up on the show at some point. I loved their dance would have been a better freestyle number but what can you do. Oh and I’m pretty sure she was having Maks channel Jimmy Hendrix.
For an American themed night they should have done some American dances…swing and jitterbug would have worked well and Ralph and Karina could have done the country two step.
@Amanda, I was seeing more Jim Morrison in Maks than Jimi Hendrix, but whomever was being channeled, it worked for me.
Hey, I liked Donny Osmond on the show
Anyway – yeah, what more can be said? To have risen to such highs on Classical night, only to plummet to the depths of this atrocity. The worst episode, ever. No doubt about it. I am pretty easy to please (I don’t mind the theme nights, although I didn’t lock Rock Week because there was no balance in the performances). But this will forever stand out as an abomination.
I really enjoyed Romeo and & Chelsie’s dance – that’s two weeks in a row where they were near the top for me. I think he has the encore, which is good cause it was the only one of the dances that wasn’t an embarrassment.
Poor Ralph. I thought they did a great job, considering how awful the combo of the music and dance was. I’m sure he’ll be safe.
I loved Petra’s dress. I do think she was scored fairly, and I fear for her. I so prefer her to the nutcrackin, grammar school production that Kendra & Louis pulled. What the hell was that? He must have been pressured, either by himself or Kendra, to go easy on the choreography this week. I think my cat could learn those steps and perform them with more grace than Kendra. Yikes.
Hines was soooo overscored. I enjoyed Kirstie and Maks – he always makes me laugh (I know people think this is a new thing, but he’s been funny for years, maybe not this relaxed though). I like how Travolta covered up his recently exposed bald head/bad toupee with a hat. Smart move.
I liked Chelsea and Mark – yeah her hips are terrible, but I feel for her – she otherwise puts on a great performance. For me she embodies the character better than anyone on the show, except maybe Ralph. As always, I think Chris Jericho might be the total package – nice routines, good execution, great personality.
This is the first episode in the history of DWTS that I will not be rewatching.
@Cidra and Amanda – I’m only a few years younger than Kirstie and I definitely felt a Jim Morrison vibe going on. I will say though, that with the sunglasses there was a bit of Lenny Kravitz there too. Which, you know, is pretty sexy too.
@Fig! Yes on all you said about Maks! This is not new – maybe more loose? But not new.
And Donny was my pick back in season 9, was it? – but I know not everyone felt that way.
And c’mon, you’re not going to watch the Maks Butt of Hotness again? How can you not??? *LOL*
I was wondering… Why CAI doesn’t mention lifts this season? Then I remembered that Tony is not there. Kym did a total lift ( music was still going on)
Why Len didn’t like Romeo taking his jacket last week but this week said nothing this week to Maks? That’s coz KA is the chosen one this season.
Am I the only one who didn’t like Maks and KA’s dance? The fat actress and her low-priced russian gigolo was…. (better not say)
And is it legal for Bruno to solicit prostitution?
I just found out that I will miss tonight’s episode as well – we have guests visiting – will someone post the results, please?!
Ah Jim Morrison that’s the other person I was thinking of but couldn’t think of the name.
I find that I enjoy the show more when I’m just watching for the entertainment purpose. It never fails that Tom will say something hilarious or Bruno will just be the over the top in his judging. After 12 seasons they need to revamp some of the rules just to allow the pros to be more creative.
I liked Hines and Kym’s dance, very much. I thought he was deceptively smooth and loved all the elements like the sliding doors, opening out, good basics.. Dudes often look, ahem, less than masculine doing rumba walks and I thought he did a great job. Hated the music. I muted it and played the theme from Officer and a Gentleman and it works!
Evaine to Fig: “And c’mon, you’re not going to watch the Maks Butt of Hotness again? How can you not??? *LOL*”
ROFLLLL – Maybe Fig won’t, but I will…over and over and over again. When I’ve finally watched my fill for the moment, I’ll reset the DVR to right before K/M start their dance so it will be ready for the next viewing.
@Amanda and Evaine, I’m about a decade behind Kirstie, but Jim Morrison’s voice sure could “Light My Fire”. His face and hair were nice too, but Maks has a body that beats Jim’s all to pieces. His chest, those arms, that bum in black leather…C’est Magnifique!
I totally agree with all of you about the Worst Theme Night EVER!!! Now I totally adore Hines, but I thought this was his worst dance and still don’t understand the raves from the judges. As for Ralph I think he was underscored. Such a tragic song choice for him!
I have to disagree about Chris. I thought his dance was lovely. I thought he looked like a real ballroom dancer with his posture and his rise & fall on the steps. Very graceful.
This is such a tough season! There are so many good dancers for a change, and I have way too many favorites. Right now my votes are going to Ralph who’s underscored and Chelsea (because I’m afraid of her experiencing what Sabrina did and going home too early.) I would like Kendra to go home now though, thank you very much!
One last aside: I’ve never been a Maks fan, but goodness he looked hot last night. <- insert blush here!
Eh, I’m not a butt girl (arms, chest and hair for me, please). However, Maks does make it damn hard not to notice his ass. Even my exbf said so, lol. That being said, Maks has those other qualities as well so it all works out
I have been reconsidering my boycott on rewatching that episode. Sometimes you just wanna watch the train wreck, over and over and over. Just thinking about Kendra’s dance last night makes my eyes roll into the back of my head.
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