DWTS 15, Week 3 – Power Rankings
Well, it was a pretty loose definition of “Iconic Dance Week” – it was really more like “Pick an Iconic Dance with music you like and just reuse that” week. There were gimmicks galore, and the judges giving quite possibly the MOST crack-addled scores I’ve ever seen – so basically, enough to give me a headache…which didn’t help other things going on in my household tonight. Oh well…I’ll get on with it, so I can hopefully get it over with soon…
1.) Shawn & Derek – Rules be damned – I like this routine, dammit! And just as I suspected, Len backpedaled on his challenge to the couples to “push the envelope”, and docked them points for breaking hold…fickle much? Oh well – this was fun, high-energy, had a lot of great technique, and I thought Shawn & Derek appropriately fulfilled Len’s request to “show us thing we’ve never seen before”. The trampolines enhanced the routine, rather than detracting from it – which is more than I can say for some of the other couples’ routines. Overall, I think the judges must be getting a pretty decent share of votes, because the judges will gush about how great their routine is – and then will score is relatively harshly. They must not be too afraid of her being a shock elim…but this crazy low-balling has GOT TO STOP before someone good is shockingly eliminated.
2.) Apolo & Karina – Best routine of the night for me, yet again – and yet again, GROSSLY underscored. Seriously, WTF does Apolo have to do to get a decent score from the Three Stooges??? Balance a ball on his nose while doing the samba? Juggle flaming batons while holding Karina in a star lift? This is getting BEYOND ridiculous. Apolo & Karina danced a foxtrot that was about as close to perfect as anyone got tonight – no fumbling, perfect timing, beautiful lines, smoldering chemistry, and an intriguing concept & choreography – and they got the same score as a crazy desperate guy that hung from the ceiling like Tinkerbell, a girl who dances about as delicately as a Mack truck, and a guy who almost dropped his partner. Oh, and only 1/2 a point more than a guy who brought a donkey as a prop. I feel like I’m taking crazy pills, people!!! Like Shawn, the only thing I can think of is that they are see Apolo as such a threat (between his dancing & his fanbase) that they’re trying to handicap him a bit by underscoring him. I guess you can consider this my official endorsement of Apolo & Karina as the ones to beat this season – I’ll toss a few votes Drew & Helio’s way this week, but after they’re gone? It’s all Team OhYes for me… 😎
3.) Kelly & Val – I gotta say – Kelly is doing FAR better than I would have expected. Obviously the chemistry with Val is there ;-), but for the first half of the routine, I actually believed Kelly as a dancer – she was steady on her turns, was moving big, and had great musicality. Then about halfway through the routine, reality kinda kicked in and Kelly seemed to lose focus – and that’s when some of the wobbling began. I think she may have gotten a little dizzy trying to spot her turns (and it was actually a pretty damn good attempt), and never quite recovered from that – she seemed to get a little off-time and disoriented, and although she did a good job of soldiering on, she never seemed to regain the confidence and groove she had in the first half of the routine. Overall, I liked it – but I think Kelly’s got some serious work to do before she actually deserves a 27. I’m wondering if Kelly’s not quite generating the buzz they expected her to – and thus they’re trying to give her a leg up. Guess I just can’t fathom how a routine that got that sloppy scored higher than the two best routines of the night for me. I like Kelly, but that was overscored.
4.) Melissa & Tony – I do have to commend these two on one thing – they did a lot of basic samba steps, and also managed to pick a theme that didn’t seem to steal focus away from their actual dance. And really, I liked the routine, overall – Melissa’s legs looked great, the energy was high, and I feel like it was a nice homage to JR’s samba. However – Melissa still seems to move really softly to me. She was shaking it – but she seemed to be shaking it GENTLY. And her arms, while pretty, didn’t really seem that impactful. So at the end of the day, I’m just kinda left without a whole lot to say about these two – other than the fact that they, too, were overscored, and maybe aren’t getting the love the judges feel they deserve…hence the cushy score to shield them a bit from elimination. Another couple that I don’t really have any beef with – but I just can’t really get excited about, either.
5.) Sabrina & Louis – As expected, Sabrina hit every step with a sledgehammer in this paso doble – and I think she may have backslid in week 1 territory a bit, when she was hitting everything so hard that she actually got a little off-balance. There were a couple steps that came out looking kind of wonky, and I don’t know if Sabrina just didn’t hit them right, or if they were just odd to begin with. I was actually a little underwhelmed by the choreography, on the whole – Sabrina was hitting it hard and with a lot of attack, but the steps themselves were just…meh. I feel like she could have handled something quite a bit more intricate, and instead Louis gave her stuff that just felt more kindergarten-y to me. Relative to everyone else tonight, I actually think Sabrina was scored about right – and I think she ought to be safe from tomorrow’s double chop-chop. But Louis has got to reign in all that energy she dances with…ooh wee.
6.) Gilles & Peta – Now for a couple that I must CONDEMN instead of commend for their choice of theme – ok, was it just me, or did the bit with Gilles suspended above the dance floor have absolutely NOTHING to do with the tango that followed, and just kinda looked odd & out-of-place? It was a stunt for stunt’s sake – and I hate those. Add to that the fact that the choreography of the tango was just kinda ho-hum & ordinary for me, and Gilles was just being kind of a d-bag again, and I’m left unimpressed by this one. Gilles should be frustrated – with himself, because that desperation to win is seriously starting to mess with his actual dancing. And he should be happy that the judges were feeling rather benevolent tonight, because I really would have given this routine more like a 23 or 24. But I did see a glimmer of hope tonight: the dew seems to be wearing off the rose a bit where Gilles is concerned, for the judges. They seemed less hesitant to critique him tonight than they did in weeks 1 & 2, and I think he may have realized he was getting a little carried away. Or at least I hope he realized he was getting carried away…
7.) Kirstie & Maks – Sorry, but as highly amused as I was to see Maks doing the Mick Jagger chicken strut around the ballroom in some absurdly tight pants and a wig that would make the Beegees jealous, I found that the real star of this routine was Maks – which kind of defeated the purpose of the celeb being the focal point. 🙂 Maybe Kirstie wanted it that way, perhaps to detract from the fact that she really wasn’t moving much at all – but I just kind of found the whole thing to be more style than substance. I think part of the appeal of the original was that it was a terrible dance, but Carson did it with such gusto and personality that it became a showstopper. This…was less of a train wreck, but felt a lot more low-energy, too. They weren’t messing anything up, and everything was on-time…but it just felt half-assed to me. Like they were dancing it for camera blocking instead of the actual performance. Was it fun? Sure…but I was just left kinda wanting more. Kirstie’s more than likely got the votes to survive tomorrow’s elimination, but I think she should really start focusing more on the content of her routines…because at this point, I feel like Bristol actually has more difficult steps than she does. Yikes.
8.) Emmitt & Cheryl – For someone that came out as strong as he did the first week, I feel like the Emmitt we saw then has been replaced by a much lower-budget generic one…that hasn’t had the same zing the past two weeks. I guess this routine was kind of fun to watch…in the same semi-trainwrecky way that Kirstie’s was. But like Kirstie, I just feel like Emmitt’s not quite operating at 100% – he’s having fun, and he’s not really doing BAD, per se, but he’s also just not up to par with the likes of Shawn, Apolo, Sabrina, or even Gilles. I think the troupe guys at the table in the background were more of a distraction than an enhancement, unfortuantely (expect to see them in the cheese…fer reals), and they actually seemed to be more energetic than Emmitt himself was. But I did get kind of a kick out of the pencil slide he did at the end 😛 Do I think Emmitt’s safe this week? Yeah. Is he living up to the hype I saw about him in the pre-season? NO WAY. He, like Kirstie, also needs to step it up if he wants to stand a chance up against the powerhouses this season. Charm will only take him so far!
9.) Bristol & Mark – For as terrible as their rehearsal package was (and how dumb they were for picking the famed “futuristic paso doble” to recreate) – I actually don’t think this was the worst routine of the night, in terms of technique. I think Kirstie & Emmitt (and maybe Helio) have that one covered. When Bristol’s actually trying (and NOT breaking rules), she’s actually not bad – I felt like she moved more than both Kirstie & Emmitt, and with more conviction. But man – after seeing that package, the mood on the dance floore between Bristol & Mark was positively CHILLING. As in “I don’t even want to look at you, get this f%$ker away from me!” chilling. And unfortunately, I think that may have negated really any positives they had in terms of technique – even though they were chess pieces and were supposed to be at war, the mood didn’t feel warlike & aggressive to me…it felt sullen and detatched. All that aside – I’m left a bit uncertain about how the big blowup is going to affect Bristol & Mark’s chances of surviving the elim…if it even affects it at all. Part of me thinks it may actually garner some sympathy votes – part of me hopes it turned enough people off of Bristol completely, so that she tumbles into the bottom 2. But I’m preparing myself to see her sullen face yet again next week – although I’m hoping that whoever picks her dance sticks her with jive. Mwahahaha…
10.) Helio & Chelsie – Another couple that should thank their lucky stars that the judges were feeling benevolent tonight – although in the end, I doubt it’s going to matter much, since it’s a double elim tomorrow night and I’m pretty sure these two will make a repeat appearance in the bottom 2. Helio’s a complete joy to watch – that big goofy grin as he’s bouncing around in his zoot suit just makes me all warm & fuzzy inside 😀 But on a night where everyone was pulling out all sorts of bells & whistles & crazy choreo, is a “just ok” quickstep with pretty safe choreography (and a rather noticeable gaffe) going to be enough to keep him safe? I don’t know. He might get a bit of a surge in votes from his appearance in the bottom 2 last week, but I’m not sure it will be enough to keep him out of the bottom 2. I’m leaning towards no, and that makes me sad 🙁 But I think Helio has had the right attitude about this season – have as much fun as possible and don’t hone in too hard on the win. You listening, Gilles?
12.) Drew & Anna – I think this is one couple that just kinda got dealt a crap hand this whole season – not much love from the judges, some chemistry issues, and just some bad logistics (running order, music, etc.) I think tonight was a bad night to go first – even though I generally enjoyed their cha-cha, and liked that they didn’t seem to let the props dominate it. Drew did get a little bit sloppy at times, and I think he & Anna may have gotten out-of-sync on some of the open choreography, but I definitely like it more than at least 3 of the other routines I saw tonight. But in the end, will it really matter? Doubtful, considering that 3 of the 4 couples comprising the bottom 2 in the first two weeks were “middle of the road” couples that did neither good nor bad – and tonight, Drew got kinda low-balled. At this point, I think he may be a bit out of his element – and maybe it’s time for him to go. I still think there are 2 (maybe 3) other contestants that should be leaving BEFORE him, but I’m getting to the point where I’d hope that his scores would be improving a bit more. Oh well – it’s been fun, Drew. You seem to have brought out a more laid-back Anna 🙂
So what did you guys think of “Iconic Dances” night? Love it? Hate it? Who’s going home???
Totally agree with the order.
after te show I actually hate Gilles. his ego is out of control. Apolo going to see Helio was a slap in Gilles face.
I just love Gilles and Louie face after Shawn’s dance, so fake and so funny.
SHAWN AND DEREK AMAZING, love this two so much, even more now if it is possible. KAriana and Apolo icome second for me.
What it is going with Sabrina, she was such a better dancer back in season5, choreo was just bad and she was messy.
Melissa was overscore, she is to light on the dancefloor.
I agree with most of it. Gilles is falling to pieces so to speak feel so badly for him because there is no need for that behavior since he is a good dancer.
I beleive Bristol had the worst dance of the night and was over score
Helio was overscore after being pointed out to him that he made some mistakes
Gilles over scored
Final note the sheating is so evident tonight
And agreed Apolo was under soored tonight which have me with the feeling that he is pulling in way more of the public votes than anyone.
Thanks Court and I agree with you in so many areas tonight.
1. Derek and Shawn – One word: OMGGGGGGG!! This dance was so crazy GOOD!!! Show stopping and what DWTS is all about! It was “ICONIC” in every sense of the word! I could care less about the rules. Let these two loose and let them FLY! Go Derek and Shawn! They wowed me completely in every way. UNFORGETTABLE! 30++++
2. My second fave: Val and Kelly!! They came out with guns blazing. They were fierce, romantic, sexy, and full of technique and beauty! Kelly just needs the time to practice and belief that she can do this!!! And then there is Val who is pulling out all of the stops this season with such fierceness. 28
3.Apolo and Karina – Wow, I just loved these two once again. Apolo was passionate. The choreography was so clever. I loved their arm movements and how they intertwined. So classy and full on charm! 28
4. Emmitt and Cheryl – So much power and compassion. The move at the end will be iconic. He’s so likable and always a charmer. 27
5. Peta and Gilles – I loved this Tango. They came out with such intensity and passion. Full of power and cool tricks. There was an issue with his steps though at times. 26 (YAY Peta’s hair is long again.)
6. Sabrina and Louis – They came out with so much intensity, but, like Carrie Anne, there weren’t any cool tricks. Still a super and powerful dance. 25.5
7. Tony and Melissa – I just loved these two. Their tricks were amazing. But, when they weren’t doing tricks, Melissa seemed scared and some of their steps weren’t in unison. Still so fantastic though and amazing. They should be proud. She’s such a little spitfire and full of personality. I love how she lights up Tony. 25
8. Kirstie and Maks – Kirstie is the cha cha queen and she proved that again tonight. So entertaining. Maks was such a hoot too. I agree how he looked like “Rambo”. LOL Great, full on fun dance. 24.5
9. Helio and Chelsie – They were great, but, yeah, they messed up on the trick. It was still a really good dance, but a little weak at the same time. 24
10. Drew and Anna – They were great and they were full of power and fun, but, I didn’t connect with the sexy part. I also didn’t think they were in unison several times. 23.5
11. Bristol and Mark – I don’t know what to say. Bristol might not have been that bad tonight and she was better than last week, but, what did she really do but fling her arms around? I agree with Carrie Anne how she lacked expression. There wasn’t any intensity or a fire in this Paso like there should have been either. 22.5
As for who is going home. I’m going with Bristol and Drew!!!
I thought the same thing…whoever picks a dance for Bristol ought to pick jive or rumba…she can’t do hot & sexy nor can she do kicks and flicks.
The scoring of Apolo is pissing me off.
Back to voting :))
Derek and Shawn were Ah-mazing!..number one..
I thought Melissa was overscored..Some of the tricks looked forced and desperate to me..they were trying for something they couldn’t quite pull off, and it looked messy. I do think she is a good dancer/performer, but she is so light, not much versatility.
I would like to know more about why Mark missed rehearsal..they just skirted right over that..does anyone know anything about that?..seems fishy.
Also, I am on the Gilles is getting on my nerves bandwagon..I thought he should have won his season..this time around, I don’t know if I would be too sad to see him go..
OMG I loved this episode my favorites
Kirstie and Maks-I effing love them my face was hurting so much from smiling Maks looked very very good he looked alot like Mick with a mix of Nikki Sixx
Val and Kelly-WOW WOW WOW
Shawn and Derek-I never remember his dances but i will with this one
Gillis and Peta-Great dance but he needs to relax a little bi.t
I hope these four couples are called safe early especially Kirstie and Kelly.
I trust your opinion 100% but I hope you’re wrong this time and that Bristol goes home! It was good for her, but I can’t believe the judges didn’t say anything like “it’s not up to par for the season” because you know they would for anyone else.
I enjoyed Drew’s dance and I LOVE Anna, but I feel they haven’t been up to par either. Kelly was fantastic though, and I’m so excited about that.
Courtney, I can’t believe how fast you get this out with eleven dances to rank!
Big contradiction when Len tells the celebrities to go “outside the box”, then cuts them for doing so (Shawn and Derek). I postulate that if Shawn had a year of strictly dance training she would be outstanding as a pro! She is a world-class athlete with musicality already – maybe she should consider a second career! (Can you imagine her on SYTYCD with her ability, let alone her fan base?)
Loved Val and Kelly, and she got all our votes tonight, but she did lose her place after all the spins in the middle – like she got dizzy for a split second.
Could not believe that Helio and Chelsie got 8.5’s after their mess-up. That implies to me that they would have gotten 9’5.s without the incident, and that was not what was going to happen.
A fair departure tomorrow would be any two among Bristol, Kirstie, Drew, and Helio.
Derek and Shawn were awesome and I even understand them taking a point off for breaking the rules….but Len…giving them an eight in comparison to the others who got eights….well that was just plain stupid…I try hard not to complain because Len is Len….but it seems every season we go through this with Len underscoring Derek by at least one point and sometimes two…I just don’t think there was any comparison with some of the other dancers who had similar scores. I liked Apollo wish wish wish Bristol would be gone..what a pity party that was…Gilles…something is different with him this season….he is just not as likeable….I really like Helio….but worried about his fan base…..could be big surprises tomorrow.
AGAIN, Apolo is getting underscored. He and Karina were fantastic. I loked that they had a different tone from all the other dances.
Shawn and Serek, just explosive. Really entertaining.
I am officially done with Gilles. His pretentious bitching about Apolo using his routine as his iconic inspiration was the last straw for me. Apolo took Helio using one of his dances for what it was, flattering. He was cool and encouraging to Helio. Gilles was a pissy little bitch. I’m done. I can’t believe this is the same man who was so humble and nice his first season. What has happened to this guy in the last few years? Or was he always like this and I let my lust for him the first time cloud my judgement?
I shouldn’t read your summaries before I watch – it gets me ‘len grumpy’ before watching the first dance.
I guess I’ll never understand the scoring for true dance ability versus showmanship. Kirstie and Maks were fun to watch, but dancing at an 8 level, not so much. Others get lower scores for much better dances. Frustrating….
Poor Drew. He has been dealt a crap hand. If they didn’t want him back, why ask him? He’ll get all of my votes, but it’ll probably mean nothing.
Melissa was totally overscored. They want her around more than they want Drew. Why? I don’t know. She doesn’t excite me.
What was with Gilles being all offended that Apolo picked one of his dances? Compare his reaction to Apolo when he found out about Helio doing his quickstep. He was proud; Gilles was bitter. I would love it if Gilles were one of the people leaving tomorrow, but that’s not going to happen.
Not believing that fight Bristol and Mark had. It seemed so fake and so staged.
I really want Bristol and Kirstie to get the boot tomorrow. But it’s probably going to be Drew and someone else.
amazing job courtney, your turn around time is so quick.
I thought it was a really enjoyable nigh of performances
drew & anna – I feel for the guy because he tries, but this was all kinds of clunky. he can shake it though, and I thought it was an appropriate creative choice
gilles & peta – I like these two, but i feel like there should be more spark between them. He is so worried about the dance that he doesnt really connect with peta that well. I agree with the out-of-sync energy comment. Hope he can pull it together because that would be a waste of such visually stunning couple
melissa & tony – i just love to see tony happy and smiling. I thought it was fun and technically fine, but it was still kind of light and forgettable.
apollo & karina – i these two are in a great position. I thought it was an amazing concept by apollo and very well danced. I will say i didnt get sensual from apollo…i got it from karina, but got a more silky smooth vibe from him-not that there is anything wrong with that, just kind of expected more.
kelly & val- welcome to dwts Valentin, damn i cant believe i never paid attention to you before. I had to watch this twice because on first watch, after val’s first hip swivel, I couldnt tell you what kelly was doing. On second watch, wonderful choreography. It was intricate and had a nice mix of aggression, passion, sophistication, and softness. Kelly got lost a couple of times, but girl has improved leaps and bounds and their chemistry is crazy.
kirstie & maks- Maks made this routine for me too. i couldnt stop laughing. it was fun but definitely not technically noteworthy
sabrina & louis – this was the biggest fail of the night for me, because it was such a big step down from the original. I blame both of them, why pick such an iconic piece and add nothing absolutely nothing to it. louis choreo seemed uninspired, they definitely did not have maks and mel chemistry, and louis choreo brought the bulldozer back out of sabrina. there was no ebb and flow.
emmitt & cheryl- this was fine and somewhat entertaining, but i do agree with the fact that emmitt is coasting. Its fine at the moment, but he’s gonna have to step it up.
Helio & chelsie – this guys smile just lights up a room. I had fun just watching him have fun. I liked it stumble and all.
bristol & mark – I guess this was an improvement dance wise, but there was such an awkward cloud hovering over the entire routine. I understand marks frustrations, but if he did indeed miss a practice, thats highly unprofessional.
shawn & derek- this was an AMAZING….freestyle, because im not sure i would really call that a quickstep. Although I technically think it should have been docked more points (breaking hold, flips, lifts, an entire broadway number in the middle), a part of me is glad that it wasnt. Oh, and i love shawn johnson
Peta did not look happy when Gilles was talking in the beginning of the package.
What about the costume that according to his twitter he design for her, talk about trash, she was waring lingerie with a cap, just wrong. go away Gilles.
Ever since I saw him and the bratpack for the first time at YLWs, I’ve been squarely in the “Derek Hough is overrated” camp. I squiffle with Heidi over it all the time.
But, I have to give credit where it’s due. The quickstep-ish thing they did tonight (I mean, it really wasn’t a quickstep) was *magnificent.* Shawn Johnson’s strength and athleticism are spellbinding. They made one of DWTS’ iconic dances themselves tonight. There hasn’t been a dance like that since season 10.
So, Derek, kudos. And Shawn as well. That was astonishing, even though I’m sure Mark Ballas actually choreographed the whole thing. That must be why he missed practice with Bristol, right?
oh and I think drew and helio are leaving with the wild card being sabrina
I thought this was a great show. I enjoyed all the dances, with one exception. 😉 Shawn and Derek were awesome! Loved Apolo and Karina, as always. Kelly and Val are so hot together, thought it was a great Paso. Kirstie and Maks are so fun together, wish we could have seen Carson giving them tips!
I really hope Bristol’s on a plane back to Alaska tomorrow night…but I don’t think she will be. 🙁
Thanks for the rankings!!!
Heh. Mark Ballas WISHES. 😀
There was a hell of a lot of quickstep in that “non-quickstep”, Steve, but I know it nearly killed you to admit that was a great dance. Over rated? Yeaaah…right. Derek proves me right at least once a season – and this season he’s going to break his own record for great dances, I’m thinking.
For an “iconic” show, the whole thing seemed like a bit of a flop to me. Shawn and Derek DID have a great routine and IMO were the only ones who actually pulled off anything iconic. That said, Apolo and Karina were actually my favorites of the night and I echo the rest of y’all in saying their scores were positively slashed by the judges. They deserved much better. As for the rest of the couples, color me underwhelmed.
…though I did enjoy watching the clip from Mark and Bristol…
Drew will probably go home on tuesday. Im not sure about the other. I feel Sabrina might have a shocking elimination. She’s in the middle of the pack.
I’m sure where Bristol’s votes are coming from, so am not putting her in the “danger” zone, though I hope she is… 🙂
That said, I think Drew, Helio or Sabrina might be in danger. I don’t think these three have the large fanbases.
Correction to my last… NOT sure where Bristol’s votes are coming from.
Why do I keep thinking that Gilles and Peta are a re-run of what we all complained about in Cheryl and William last season- just emphasize the sex appeal over everything else?
Forgot to say, Shawn is fearless!
And how come we haven’t seen Carson around? Is he on another gig or what? Miss him!
Great recap and analysis, as always, Court.
From an entertainment standpoint, it was a good night. I found most of the dances entertaining.
From a competition standpoint, it was a bit of a bust. Too much variation in how the “push the envelope” guidance was interpreted both by the couples and by the judges.
The Olympians ruled the night again for me this week with two very different but equally amazing performances. Hope they are absolutely killing it in viewer votes to offset the ridiculous scores the Stooges are handing them. Apolo is very Zen; I would be doing a “Bristol” if I was dancing that well and getting nit-picked and low-balled by those fools week after week.
Bristol and Kirstie should be going home, but my gut says it will be Drew and Helio instead. It is what it is.
Sueb I agree with you…let’s put this in perspective…Len gave Kirstie and Maks the same score he gave Derek and Shawn…really…and then he says he is fair…
Just want to say I love this board.
About tonight, all I can say was WHOA! Everyone stepped up their games. All the female celebs were great, Kelly was amzing, brough her A game tonigh, so did Sabrina & Melissa. The guys were great also, felt sorry for Helio for stepping on that dress, nice to see Apolo came to see them (they are buddies in real life). I felt Apolo’s dance was the most passionate, Gilles’ the most drammatic, Emmit’s the most colorfull and Drew’s probably the most overlooked because he danced first. They were all great tonight. BTW to fans that think their teams were underscored, not to worry, they will get even more fan votes because of this. Final thought: Apolo & Karina looked great together, always had one of his arms around her like a real couple.
since next week its dances rarely done on the show i hope Bristol gets the jitterbug image her trying to keep up with that fast footwork and performing. overall a good night a few wtf momements like the donkey i dont know y Emmit chose that, Giles seemed to desperate for 10, I was expecting more from Kristy and Maks considering she cha-cha 4 times her season and though Bristols choice hindered her besides that i liked it
Can I just say how HOT was Val’s solo in the beginning of the Pasa, that was amazing , but too short.
Iconic:
Shawn – Reminds me of Nicole & Derek quickstep, which is also iconic, IMHO. I think Derek is polishing her performance skill early this season instead of just dancing steps, which is a good move.
Apolo – This is a very different foxtrot which automatically makes it iconic. I think Karina should follow Derek and polish Apolo’s performance skill too because he can be out of character sometimes.
I also love Kirstie & MAKS (!) and Drew & Anna. I think producers want Drew gone because I notice when he did this one trick on the floor, the camera was on Anna! What the heck?
Will be gone tomorrow: Drew & Helio 🙁
Loved the night, loved the write-up. Shawn and Derek rock my (DWTS) world.
Apolo has the correct attitude toward a competitor re-doing one of his dances: “I’m honored.” Loved Apolo’s statues!
Tony and Melissa had some unique tricks. She can do anything — well, not totally anything like Shawn, lol. I voted for them, and will do so every week until they are gone. I want to keep them around, and I worry that she doesn’t have a huge fan base.
My favorite Kirstie and Maks dance ever. I laughed out loud, in a good way. Couldn’t take my eyes off Maks all evening, in every balcony shot. I liked his strut. Fun, fun, fun.
I don’t know who will be going home, but I’ll make a prediction anyway. I think that Helio and Drew’s fanbases have rallied for them, and they will be safe. Going home will be Sabrina and Louis, and Gilles and Peta. And both for the same reason: they are being humorless putzes! Sabrina’s ‘following the rules’ teachers pet attitude plus a dance lacking in creativity add up to not much fun. Gilles hostile attitude toward having one of his dances re-done was off-putting. We shall see.
A fun night of pretty adventurous dancing and staging. Good times.
Jeff, jitterbug would be good for Bristol, but what about the lambada instead? 8-o
(Different Ashley than #7)
All my opinion, of course….
Derek and Shawn were AMAZING! I love seeing how fantastic Shawn moves. She has a stocky build similar to Sabrina but Shawn looks so much more graceful, elegant, refined and powerful whereas Sabrina is just forgettable to me.
I’m so happy for Tony and Val scoring well. I think Tony is such a good man (I know, that has nothing to do with dancing). I’m happy Val is doing well and getting recognized more. I think he’s very talented in more than dancing and I think and hope he goes very far in his career(s).
Gilles and Bristol????? Holy psychosis Batman! Someone call a shrink. How incredibly ungracious and childish these two are. News flash, it’s an entertainment show. Lighten up!!
wow, derek and Shawn’s dance was fantastic! incredible. Loved karina and Apolo too, i really really hope they make the finals. Peta is rubbing me the wrong way anyway, and Gilles is just too much…
Shawn and Derek’s dance was outstanding! What really is amazing is how well she keeps up with him! Can’t wait for the encore tonight. I think its going to be Drew and Helio, but hopefully Bristol will go.
I HOPE Derek and Shawn get the encore, I think BOTH CAI and Len underscored them! Bruno gave them the right score, IMHO! And Mark Choreographing for Derek…um, I doubt it. Derek is the BEST choreo the show has ever SEEN!!! It just won’t be the same without him! In my opinion, that’s why they paired Derek with Shawn as she gives him his best chance to win a 4th and final Mirrorball!
I would LOVE to see Bristol and Kirstie go home but I truly think it’ll be Drew and Helio. Bristol and Kirstie’s powerful fanbases and those of their Pro’s will be hard to overcome!
My favorite dance was Apolo and Karina and I thought they were underscored yet again. A close second was Shawn and Derek’s dance, and I don’t think the scoring was fair because the challenge was to present something new and to wow the judges, which they really did. I also liked Val and Kelly. Pretty much any of the others could go home and it wouldn’t bother me but I hope it’s Bristol and either Drew or Helio.
Thank you Courtney for these detailed and spot on IMO rankings! Shawn and Derek were awesome!!! I am worried about his back though. He did look tuckered out, as someone else mentioned. For that reason (his back), I’m not sure I want them to get the encore, but of course they will and should. Really liked the subtlety of Apolo and Karina’s foxtot – stunning. I agree that Melissa’s dancing is too soft. I really think Bristol and Kirstie are the weakest dancers left, but with their fan bases, I think it will be Helio and Drew going home tonight.
My thought’s of week 3:
Melissa and Tony-It’s no shock that Melissa’s tecgnique is still the bomb, but I agree with everyone else who says that she was too soft last night.
Gilles and Peta-He just seems A LOT more cocky this season, I just wish he would get “Sabrina Bryan’ed”
Drew & Anna-Drew seems like he is an all around good guy, but I dont really feel any chemistry between him and Anna. But, I did think their Cha Cha was awesome!
Apolo & Karina-They by far had the most original and memorable routine. It might of not gotten 10’s or the highest score, but I still think they will be the top 3, if not win.
Kelly & Val-Kelly has really proved herself to me. I didn’t really expcet her to do good at all this season. The other couples need to watch her, because she is improving so much every week.
Kirstie & Alley-In my opinion, when Kirstie was on season 12, her best dance was the Cha Cha. I know that Kirtie is a year or two older, and last night her Cha Cha didn’t keep up to par. Still thought it was memorable.
Sabrina & Louis-I actually thought that the judges underscored her. I know she had that one little mess up with that trick with her leg, but I still thought she did really good. It was nowhere near her season 5 paso, but I think she should have at least gotten a 27.
Emmitt & Cheryl-I’m still not impressed with this guy. I get that he was the personality and what not, but I just dont think he is a great technical dancer.
Helio & Chelsie-I felt so bad when Helio slipped on Chelsie’s dress. I actually thought they were going to get 9’s or even a 10 before that. I still think Helio will be in the bottom 3 tonight.
Bristol & Mark-Obviously Mark would want to be with Sabrina or Shawn over Bristol anyday! When Tom said there were 2 big announcement’s, I was sort of hoping that one of them would be that Bristol was withdrawing from the compeition. But anyways, she is going to be safe this week, unfortunally.
Shawn & Derek-Supposidly they danced a Quickstep. I call what they did a freestyle with a couple seconds of Quickstep. They got way overscored. I love Shawn and think she is one of the better one this season and she isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, but I sort of wish she would be in the bottom 3, just so Derek will realize not to break all the rules.
In closing, I think Drew will be going home. As far as the other couple leaving, well I think this will be a week where a former champion will leave.
Last night was not as great as I’d hoped it would be. I was really disappointed a lot.
My personal rankings (all my opinions, this is just how I feel)
1) Kelly and Val. I was really wowed by these two. I’ve been hoping and hoping for Kelly to dance paso, and she did not let me down. By far my favorite dance of the night, and actually the season. I was prepared to give Melissa my votes, but I gave them to Kelly instead. I have read somewhere that Kelly had an accident years back that caused her to have an inner ear problem, which in turn gives her trouble with balance. When she did all those turns, I really thought she was going to fall over. I was impressed.
2) Melissa and Tony. I have to say-they disappointed me last night. I can admit that. I thought their dance was fun and energetic, and I still think Melissa is the best technical dancer of the females. But the tricks in the beginning felt clunky and out of place. I do think they were overscored. They are still some of my favorites, and I’m still rooting for them, though.
3) Shawn and Derek. I was impressed by their routine. It was fun and it kept me entertained and smiling. However. I felt that Bruno and especially Carrie Ann were complete hypocrits. I know Len told the coules to push the boundries and come up with things that were new and different. I don’t remember him saying break all the rules you can. I don’t like Bristol at all, I think most around here know that. And I cheered Carrie Ann’s “slam you back” comments last week. But I did think those comments should have been given to Shawn this week. I felt it was arrogant to think none of the rules applied to them, and I wish they would have been docked a little more for it, actually.
4) Apolo and Karina. It wasn’t my favorite dance from Apolo, but it was good. I didn’t really feel the sexiness he was trying to portray and the statue idea just seemed silly to me. I didn’t feel it went with the song. I still love them, though.
5) Drew and Anna. I loved their dance. I thought they were underscored. No way in my mind should Helio and Chelsie have been scored higher than Drew when they had a complete misstep in their dance. Drew and Anna were fun, sexy Anna is AWESOME and I thought he did really well with the steps. I don’t know why Drew seems to be the sacrificial lamb this season.
6) Emmitt and Cheryl. I actually liked this routine. But like Apolo’s, I didn’t get the reason for him having the troupe there to be props or something. It wasn’t as good as Mario and Karina’s original, but I liked it. Cheryl looked great in her costume. I feel like we’re getting hints of the old Cheryl and I hope she sticks around.
7) Sabrina and Louis. They let me down. Big time. I hated the costumes. Sabrina was way too smiley and perky for me for the paso. I love happy people, but not during the paso! I did not feel it did justice to Mel and Maks at all. She danced way too hard, and I agree that she slipped back instead of going forward.
8) Helio and Chelsie. It was fun, but they had a pretty big mess up. I thought is was overscored.
9) Bristol and Mark. I have to admit, I thought it was the best we’ve ever seen from Bristol. I actually loved the chess idea–it was pretty brilliant, IMO. I wish we could have been shown if that were actually her idea, or as I suspect, Mark’s. It didn’t feel like a recreation of Derek and Joanna’s dance at all, to me, I guess because they went a completely different way with the theme.
10) Kirstie and Maks. I thought this was silly and stupid. It was not as good as even Carson’s dance, and by far not as good as Kirstie’s first cha cha. I pretty much hated it.
11) Yes, I am reserving my last spot for Gilles and Peta. C’mon man. You say this is a first for the show? Really? Have you never seen Tony flying through the air during the Mission Impossible dance with Chynna? You are way too full of yourself, Gilles. I felt like the whole dance was a few repetitive steps, too. And I don’t know WTH Peta was wearing, but I can’t believe he dressed her like that. Gilles is coming off like slimy jerk this season. I hope he does not make the final.
I wonder how it will go with Paula Abdul judging next week, and what the dances are going to be? I hope we get to see them picked tonight.
I have absolutely no idea who will go home. I feel like it could be anybody, really. The scores are close, and Bristol and Kirstie seem to have okay fanbases. I feel like Drew might get Joey’s votes, and Helio’s fans are on alert from last week. So I couldn’t even guess.
This site is so amazing and I appreciate all the hard work done by the wonderful ladies who keep it running. I was reading your bios and I notice that you all have science backgrounds (like me). I was wondering how you became so knowledgeable about dance. Are you all dancers? Thanks again!
I agree with all the recaps of the couples 🙂 my favs were apolo and shawn by a mile ;-)love the chem of apolo and karina and shawn and derek 🙂 gilles is annoying me now with his desperation and I think he may have been better with kym and joey with peta as peta is a fierce personality and whilst I like her as a dancer im finding her partnership with gilles is waning thin for me 🙁 I love maks and whilst that cha cha made me smile im afraid most of it was for maks 😛 and I feel sorry for mark 🙁 the rest of the couples made me feel bleurgh as in I can take em or leave em 😀 also this season has a funny vibe to it imo feels too desperate and has a bitchy vibe to it 🙁 but just my opinion of course 😉 😛
I liked Mark and Bristol’s dance and think that they performed it well. I also enjoyed Helio’s dance, too bad they got tripped up in her dress. Apolo was good too.
I did not like Melissa’s at all and was not impressed with Kelly or Emmitt. Shawn was good, I just wish she had another partner.
Sabrina’s stomping is getting old. I would love for her to be sent home because she seems so smug.
Of the dances I can remember from last night my favorite was Kelly and Val…Yes, he did outdance his brother. I loved their paso..best dance of the night for me.
Louis and Sabrina disappointed me, big time. Kind of ho hum…no way was this paso better than the original that Maks (lousy choreographer that he is :)and Mel B did.
Tony and Melissa were so enjoyable…I thought they were great. I have no idea about judging dancing, I just know what entertains me, and they did.
Maks and Kristie also disappointed.Loved the tight pants and Jagger strut, but Carson and Anna’s “Moves like Jagger” was much more entertaining.
I enjoyed Shawn and Derek’s QS, but my thought was their dance was much better suited to a broadway production or gymnastics routine than a ballroom competition. Best dance ever? No way..I think the best QS I ever saw on DWTS was the one Louis and Sabrina did last week.
Bristol actually almost danced last night. Almost. She actually moved with the music a few times. I’m impressed. But I still hope she goes home.
I’m still trying to figure out what Gilles was trying to do with his flying? He’s just not very likeable ..I kinda feel sorry for Peta.
The rest of the dances kinda all blurred together…none of them stood out.
Kirstie really needs to go, but sadly, I can see her Scientologist friends keeping her in. She just is not on par with the others. She did a lot of posing in the dance last night without a lot of dancing. Carson’s was better in terms of entertainment value.
I may be alone here, but I was VERY annoyed by Shawn/Derek’s dance last night. It was an amazing freestyle, not Quickstep. I feel like every dance they have done so far this season did not have enough content. I understand that it’s an All-Star season & Derek’s last season, but I feel you can still create amazing routines that are memorable WITHOUT breaking the rules. It sucks cuz I think Shawn/Derek is FANTASTIC and I have them placed in my personal Top 3, but I want to see a “normal” dance.
On the other hand, I think I have decided on my #1 team to support: Kelly/Val. I think it helps that I didn’t watch her season, just snippets of it. I was never impressed with her dancing, but she not only has gotten better but her chemistry with Val is amazing. To me, they feel like the most “new” couple and reminiscent of just a normal pair going through a normal season.
My #2 couple to root for: Apolo/Karina. I’ll admit, I’m not sure if any of his dances for me so far have been memorable (Why did he choose a Foxtrot after a Quickstep?) but his sexiness and maturity just oozes. His dancing is so much stronger this season. I feel like he’s recreating his journey from Season 4. Always a Lil behind, but not at the top until BAM! the Samba. So I’m still waiting for that BAM! moment. It will come soon. And I’m so surprised that I would love him with Karina – still wish Julianne came back just for the All-Star season though.
Another team I want to see go far: Melissa/Tony. I LOVED them back in their season and I feel she deserves to be to go far. But that Samba was too slow for me. I get that she doesn’t hit her moves hard enough, but I’ve always liked her like that. I don’t think it deserved 3 9s, especially when their previous Samba is one of my favorite Sambas ever.
My guilty pleasure: Bristol/Mark. I love rooting for underdogs, and while I don’t want her anywhere near my Top 3, I really want her to prove that she did belong on the All-Star season (Did I want her? No. But I learned to accept she was gonna be on this season.) I’m kind of glad they had that fight cuz I’ve always wondered how celebs feel when they get a blah partner. She’ll never get my votes BUT I honestly don’t mind seeing her beat out some other couples I’m starting to not care about. I know it’s sadistic but if she alleviates the competition to pave the way for the couples I’m rooting for to get to the final, I mean, why not LOL?
All in all, I’m still unsure if I love or LOVE this season. Iconic Dance week would’ve worked if they were all iconic dances and were forced to incorporate a dance move from the dance (cuz it seriously felt like it was “choose a dance that had a song you want to dance to”.) So I’m waiting for the team dances, dance marathon, instant dances, trio challenge, etc. and fun themes like “recreate a dance you did in your previous season”.
Rant over. Hope my couples make it through the double elim!!
Some of you have serious math issues. You think Shawn – who can dance amazingly well – deserves the same comments as Bristol who can barely dance at all? Just because they broke some rules? An amazing dance is an amazing dance. That was a dance worthy of a 30 – the fact that they only got a 26.5 SHOWS (to any rational person) that they got docked for all the rule breaking. They actually got docked MORE than Bristol did, thanks to Len.
Give me a break on the boo hooing over the unfairness of it all. I don’t think it’s fair that Kirstie Alley got the same score from Len as Shawn did. Unbelievable. Ridiculous.
I think some people are just a bit Green and I’m not talking about Louis.
Melissa and Kelly were SERIOUSLY over scored. Apolo was seriously underscored. He should have been at the top of the leaderboard, followed by Shawn, who should have had a 27 because of the rule breaking.
Heh – Melissa when you have the boobage of Sabrina, that stomping was really not a good thing. I though she was going to break her dress. Or something else. 🙂
I will answer one time, and then I’m done with the conversation. I said my thoughts were my opinion and nothing else. It’s not fact, I never claimed it to be, it’s how I felt.
I don’t like being berated for my opinion. I feel the way I feel. Others feel differently and I respect that. I only ask for the same in return.
Overall…I thought last night was a good night.
Drew & Anna: I have to admit, I didn’t watch much of this dance, due to someone distracting me. So I guess I can’t really say much as I saw the beginning, and the ending of the dance. Is this the same guy that won Season 2? Because he doesn’t seem like him. I seriously think he and Anna, while aesthetically a good couple, are one of the lesser pairings by TPTB. He’s decent, but I see him leaving tonight.
Gilles & Peta: I didn’t like it. The Peter-Pan thing (as Court so cleverly put it :)) did nothing for me, or for the dance. The package turned me off too because Gilles seemed, for lack of a better word, insulted of the notion of trying to recreate someone else’s dance. That really turned me off for good to Gilles. Love Peta still, but not Gilles.
Melissa & Tony: Her first Samba was better than this. But I think this was Melissa’s best dance. Yes, she did seem to be playing it safe in her movement quality, but some of those crazy moves she and Tony put it really impressed me. I will say that she was over-scored, but I still thought the dance was good.
Apolo & Karina: Love, love, loved this dance. I love a Foxtrot to “Fever.” The song is so hot (no pun intended) and Apolo is just so damn good at dancing. Yes, he was underscored, but I would have liked a little more in hold dancing. This was an American Smooth Foxtrot, but it was still a damn good Foxtrot. On a side note, WTF was Karina wearing? Those pants were hideous…
Kelly & Val: I know everyone has said Kelly was overscored, and she probably was, but I think she was somewhat accurately scored. Obviously it wasn’t the best dance of the night (See Shawn & Derek’s section) but it was Kelly’s best, and I think the best PASO of the night. I’m thrilled for Val because I see him sticking around longer than Week 4. 😀
Kirstie & Maks: I know they were going for the Jagger mood, but Maks just didn’t look like Maks in his outfit. I wanted to rip that wig off his head it was so bad. The dance was good, but not as entertaining as Carson’s that’s for sure. I agree with CAI on the comment of the Cha-Cha being Kirstie’s best dance. It’s the one dance she seems to really, thoroughly enjoy dancing.
Sabrina & Louis: While the dance was good, I agree with Carrie Ann – there wasn’t really anything innovative about this Paso Doble. It was a good paso, but there wasn’t anything “wow” about it for me. I still love Sabrina. She’s easily one of the best dancers of the entire show, but on a week where the challenge was do do something new, she and Louis kind of failed in that aspect.
Emmitt & Cheryl: I love Emmitt; he’s so humble (kind of). He’s got an amazing personality and I think he’s drawing out choreographer Cheryl and locking up Sex-Crazed Cheryl. Having said that, I still can’t bring myself to vote for him because I just don’t think he’s the best dancer, nor do I think he deserves to win. From what I remember, it was a good Paso, but as I said, Kelly’s was the best of the night for me. So I’m really at a loss for words with these two.
Hélio & Chelsie: I’m lumping these two in Sabrina’s category. There wasn’t really anything innovative about this dance either. Maybe there was, and I’m just not seeing it though. It wasn’t the most memorable dance for me either. It was about middle of the road. I can’t say who will be joining Drew in the elimination tonight, but I won’t be surprised if it’s these two.
Bristol & Mark: What’s really sad is that their entire training package was that stupid fight. I’m sure over half of the viewers had no clue as to what iconic dance they had picked. The actual dance, I thought, was Bristol’s best. I actually really liked the chess theme! However, due to the drama, I believe Bristol will be through to next week for sure.
Shawn & Derek: What. A. Quickstep. Derek really out did himself last night. High energy, amazing dancing and just so much fun to watch. I’ve said it before (though I’m sure no one remembers) but Shawn is dancing so much better with Derek than she EVER did with Mark.
As always, I love your Power Rankings, Courtney. They express so many of the thoughts that ran through my mind last night as I was watching the show.
I am one of those people who believe that the judges are underscoring both Apolo and Shawn this season. Of course, I had the same view during the original seasons in which they competed. However, I must say that as much as I loved their performances then, there is a definite improvement in their technique this season. Derek and Karina are better teachers than Mark and Julianne, although all four of them are fabulous choreographers.
Nonetheless, I must say that at some point I would like to see Derek and Shawn dance in hold for an extended period of time so that the dance can breathe. The dances they’ve done so far this season have been packed with choreography but I find that I often don’t have the time to appreciate the beauty and difficulty of the various steps and moves because they are moving so quickly. I also wonder if the height differential may be playing a factor in the choreography that Derek selects.
Anyway, I am hoping that Apolo and Shawn are the final two. I’ve been splitting my votes equally between the two of them each week and wouldn’t care which one won.
And as for the rest of the contestants, I just want Bristol and Gilles to go away — Bristol because of her poor attitude and dancing skills and Gilles because of his tremendous ego.
I liked all but two routines were less impressive. These are my rankings:
1)Shawn and Derek: LOVED IT! So much fun.
2)Mellissa and Tony: My fave of her dances ever on the show.
3)kelly and Val: so awesome to see her doing well. darkhorse of the competition.
4)apollo and karina: so polished and i think the best serious dance of the night.
5)drew and anna: he’s back!!!!! This is the drew we all know and love. loved it.
6)kirstie and maks: All hhail queen of the cha cha! she nailed it.
7)emmit and cheryl: loved it
8)giles and peta: very cool dance. hated the concept though.
9)sabrina and louis: i really dsliked it. she hit it too hard.
10) Helio and Chelsie: I really wanted to like it but it was just ok. the mitake sealed the deal. bye helio.
11)Bristol and mark: it was a mess. between tat video and the lack of excitement in the dance (killing mark was the only thing i remebered from it today besides her ice queen outfit…..how fitting 🙂 )bye bye bristol.
You post an opinion, you are open to disagreement. Period.
I forgot one thing: How is that in Melissa & Tony’s Samba is the first time I’ve seen under-arm turns in a Samba for the first time? I know under-arm turns are seen a lot in Mambo/Salsa and to some extent, the Jive, but I’ve never seen them done in a Samba on the show before.
You know, Irisandlilies, I’ve been having the same problem with Derek’s dances with Shawn – they are moving so freakin’ fast that you don’t see all the finer points until you watch it over again. They’ve done a fast Foxtrot, thanks to the song, a VERY fast Jive and now a very fast quickstep. While I admire the sheer athleticism exhibited – dang, I’m worn out by the time they’re done and I feel like I’ve missed half of it. In watching it again this morning, though, I did notice that Derek and Shawn did have a good bit of body contact while dancing in hold – I was rather impressed with that, considering the rather extreme height difference.
I’d be willing to bet that someone picks a very slow dance for them next week.
Wow, I put “the first time” twice in the same sentence…forgive me. lol
Would not have expected Drew to get the same score as Kirstie and only 1.5 more than Bristol. Apolo also seems to have been low-balled perhaps. IDK, but it just doesn’t seem right that certain couples get slack for entertainment or it being a “good dance for him/her,” especially for all-stars. Life’s not fair and all that, but this is one thing that COULD be fair if the judges wanted it to be. These are all-stars – so, evaluate everyone as an all-star. JMO though.
While I have been blown away by Shawn and Derek’s fast dances, that is all we have seen from them this season. Obviously they haven’t had much of a choice due to the music they have been handed, but just sayin .. 🙂 I am looking forward to an Argentine Tango or a Rumba next week from them.
I know nothing about dance technique and rules, which is probably the case for many viewers. I don’t care about dancing rules on an entertainment show. I want to be entertained, period. Last night was entertaining. Shawn and Derek were brilliant. I love that producers showed Derek and Shawn saying they were going to give Len what he wanted, and Derek knew they would get slammed for it, but they wanted to be entertaining for the audience. Mission accomplished. That routine made me smile and I loved every bit of it. The audience obviously loved it as they were standing for most of the routine. I didn’t care about Bristol breaking hold last week, and I didn’t care with Shawn and Derek this week. It was a fun, entertaining, brilliant routine, showing the audience something they had never seen before.
I am so grateful for Heidi, Courtney, Vogue, and everyone else who contributes to this website. DWTS is so much more fun because of this website. You guys are great. Thanks for all the hard work.
Sometimes I think people are blind, yes Shawn and Derek broke the rules but they had a lot of quickstep in that dance, some really hard stuff and even with a extremely fast routine Shawn was amazing on the quickstep steps.
Rules be damned? NOOOOO!!!!! Rules RULE!
I didn’t appreciate Shawn doing a Freestyle dance in week 3. Boooooh.
It is interesting to me that some people who were fun to watch previously just are not this time. I am not sure what is going on with Gilles. He was awesome with Cheryl, so maybe it is Peta bringing him down.
On the other hand, I am once again enjoying Helio, Drew, Bristol and Apolo. And then there are those I did not like the first time and don’t like now, like Sabrina, Melissa and Kirstie.
And lastly, there is the dancer I really like paired with a pro I do not. I wish Shawn had someone else.
I agree that while Shawn & Derek’s dance was phenomenal to watch, it WAS more freestyle than Quickstep. Breaking a rule or two is one thing, but they broke it continuously. I personally think they should have been scored lower because of it, but just my opinion. I’m not a Derek fan, but think Shawn is an absolute cutie pie. But Derek IS the golden boy of the ballroom so he tends to get away with it more. Besides, after blatently calling Bristol out on it last week, someone HAD to call them out on it this week.
On another note, Gilles drives me insane, and I just don’t like Peta; never have, never will. No tears would be shed if they left the competition. I’d rather watch Bristol and Mark at this point 😉
Glad Tony pulled out great choreography and tricks I have never seen on DWTS. I know some think Melissa is too soft, but I loved it – it was refreshing to see something new.
Side note: Glad we are getting to see some new/slightly used dances next week. I am personally tired of seeing the Tango/AT, Waltz/V Waltz. They seem redundant to me. Do one or the other and bring in new stuff 🙂
It won’t happen, but if Sabrina goes home tonight, Louis will explode.
Thank you Courtney for the great rankings post, always love them.
I find it interesting that there is always a discussion about how great Derek is after his especially good dance, and last night’s dance was incredible. The jury is still out on what it was – free style or quick step, but it was a lot of fun, and this is what this show is about (IMHO).
Unfortunately for me, the biggest story of this season so far, is not how good or bad Derek is, but how judges are underscoring Appolo, it is really sad. He is doing everything right, still cannot get scores he and Karina deserve.
And I love Val this season, the boy can dance, LOL. He was the best dancer last night, IMO.
1. Shawn/Derek Wow!
2. Kelly/Val- beautiful, love their connection
3. Melissa/Tony – glad to see Tony enjoying himself with a good partner for the All stars
4. Apollo/Karina- dance was lovely
5. Helio/Chelsie-I liked it!
6. Emmitt/Cheryl loved the ending of their dance.
7. Sabrina/Louis-
8. Drew/Anna-Liked their dance
9.Giles/Anna
10. Kirstie/Maksim
11. Bristol/Mark
Did Shawn and Derek got a 30, because I sure don’t remember that, they got AMAZING comments but not great scores. They didn’t get away with anything, Len gave then a 8 (lowest score of the night after Bristol 7,5). Bristol score last week was a mix of breaking the rules and terrible dancing, how BRistol and Shawn deserve the same score, NO they don’t.
Apollo and Karina were my favorite. Shawn and Derek were enjoyable. The rest was blah. Took less than I thought for Bristol to realize that Mark doesn’t care. She took her chances coming back and should realize that not many people care about her dancing or her attitude. Did not watch her actual dance. Gilles is hitting my last nerve. Did not watch his dance. More annoying to me than anything is the judging, once again.
Seriously, could Apolo and Karina be any better together? I love their approach, the choreography, their connection. I could be biased because they are two of my favorites anyway, but their performances are the ones that I find myself going back and watching again and again to discover the fine nuances of their dancing. Definitely being low-balled, but I’m sure that will set them up for a good season-long arch as they enter the finals – which I’d be absolutely astounded if they didn’t.
I love the routines that Shawn and Derek have put together and they display her precision and athleticism and they sell them well. But I can’t wait to see something different – less high energy, more subtle impact. I can’t blame them, as if I had a partner like Shawn I’d play to those strengths too. It’ll be interesting to see their AT, Rumba, VW, etc. I’m sure they’ll be great, though. Another couple destined for the finals.
I did not like Sabrina and Louis’s dance at all. It was so very ho-hum, and I think not as good as her first Paso and definitely not as good as the Maks/Mel one. Very disappointing, considering the potential this routine had. I also look forward to seeing if they are able to do anything softer like a VW with grace and elegance.
I finally got annoyed with Gilles. I’ve been trying to not care about his begging for votes and excuses and all that, as I think he’s probably a good person with a lot of pressure – how could he possibly live up to his fantastic first season? But the way he was a not-so-subtle dick about Apolo’s foxtrot was annoying. I’m still hoping he can right this ship, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he doesn’t make it to the finals at this rate.
I liked Bristol and Mark’s concept – which I doubt was Bristol’s – but I still think she’s a stupid selfish brat that needs to be humbled. I know that Courtney and PH know the story behind Mark being late for rehearsal and they feel that Bristol is in the wrong, so I’ll take their word that we only have half the story and it only strengthens my opinion that Mark has been almost a saint to put up with her (almost).
Drew and Anna – I think they got screwed again. I like these two but I think in this season he’s one of the weaker dancers and weaker fanbases. I will not be surprised if he’s gone today.
Kirstie and Maks – this was inferior to Carson and Anna’s in a lot of ways, and didn’t have the charm that Carson displayed. She’s funny and I like Maks, but I won’t be sad if they go soon.
I liked Kelly and Val and the first half was fantastic – she did seem to get a little lost, and they were probably overscored – but I hope she is able to stick around a bit longer.
Emmitt and Cheryl had the best song ever for a Paso and while I was entertained, meh. I won’t be sad if he goes or lasts a few more weeks.
Melissa and Tony – yet another good routine – for Tony – but he just doesn’t seem to know how to incorporate a fluidity of transfer from proper dance move to trick back to dance. There was a disjointedness that their freestyle had. She also moves well and I love her lines but yeah, a bit soft and a bit held back.
Not a good sign that I forgot about Helio and had to look at the list. I think he’s a great guy and I enjoy his performances but not at the expense of others – again I wouldn’t mind him staying a few more weeks nor would I be heartbroken if he left today, as I don’t think we’ll see anything “new” out of this couple that we haven’t seen before.
As much as I LOVED Derek and Shawn’s dance, I hope tonight’s encore goes to Apolo and Karina so that we can see beauty of that dance without the razzle dazzle of the other dances that engulfed it last night.
I can’t believe that anyone would suggest that Derek isn’t a great choreographer or that he is over-scored…he probably is the golden boy of the ballroom but has had to work harder than anyone to come by his scores. I felt the same way Heidi that his eight was an insult when you compare who else they gave eights too…they took one point off for Bristol breaking the rules and did the same to Derek and Shawn…but show me the flaws other than the rule break…and I’d like to see any dance from when Len was in his “heyday” that could have been done any better. I thought the challenge was for choreographers to “showcase” their celebs in the best light possible and Derek does that every season….and this season he is doing it in spades. I can’t wait for what the other couples throw at them…because they will meet the challenge. Okay pile on folks I have a thick skin….lol
Shawn and Derek danced 0:50 seconds on hold, I think that is even more than Kelly and Val’s last week, and people still say that they didn’t have quickstep moves
Eh, they’ll get a rumba or an AT and people will find something else to complain about. The producers picked the first two dances, Andrea, not just the music. No choice.
yeah, laila, you’d think that Shawn and Derek got a 30 for the way some are acting – but then logic flies out the window when Derek is involved. 🙂 Shawn and Derek weren’t even in first place – two dancers that weren’t NEARLY as good as either her or Apolo were in first place. Mind boggling.
Fig, I actually DON’T know the reason behind Mark’s missing a rehearsal, but I know other things about last week that still make me side with Mark. I did see an interview where Mark said that he called the producers to let them know he had some sort of thing that was making him miss, but the editing (of course) left that part out.
Thanks to everyone for reading and saying such kind things 🙂
For those getting upset over Shawn & Derek’s quickstep – it’s not like Len didn’t goad them on a bit with his comment last week, and it’s not like Derek didn’t acknowledge that yes, they broke the rules…and it’s not like they weren’t docked points for it. So what’s all the fuss about? You feel like they weren’t docked enough? You just want to see them punished further? What? Should they be suspended from the competition next week because they broke “sooooo many rules”? Should they issue a public apology? Be angry if you want…it’s your prerogative. But I have to wonder if some of you won’t be satisfied with anything short of Derek being publicly flogged…and I have to wonder if you were getting this upset over Bristol & Mark’s blatant rule breaking last week. Or by extension, Apolo & Karina getting low-balled, despite NOT breaking any rules. If it’s the rule-breaking that truly bothers you, then it should bother you across the board. Food for thought. 😉
@BJ – Glad you enjoy us! I actually have been ballroom dancing as a hobby for about 10 years now, and my boyfriend is actually a professional. I think John & Marianya might have also taken some classes at some point.
@Tony – Underarm turns are actually a basic step in the samba syllabus – I just don’t see them utilized very often on DWTS, because they tend to look rather…boring, next to more dramatic moves like samba rolls, samba runs, bota fogos, voltas, etc. I’m honestly not surprised that Tony would include one – he seems to stay pretty loyal to syllabus steps, moreso than any other pro on the show.
And Carrie Jane, a question: did you not get the freestyle vibe upon seeing Gilles floating above the stage? Or when Emmitt was leading in a donkey? Or when Maks drove onto the floor in a Mini Cooper? Cause none of those things are what I would consider to be regular-week, garden variety fare on this show. EVERYONE’s routine felt like a bit of a freestyle to me – or at least a no-holds barred regular week dance. It certainly wasn’t business as usual for really anyone last night…just sayin.
*channeling Evaine* It’s just a sparkly dance show…it’s just a sparkly dance show…
You know I won’t pile on, Lynne. 🙂 I think Len always makes Derek work harder than the other pros for the same scores. How long did it take him to give Nicole a 9 and then a 10?? An absurdly long time. People call Derek “golden boy” all they want – I see it as jealousy on behalf of their own favorites – but if you look at the scoring on some of his partners, Len scores him down frequently. It’s quite laughable, really.
Dammit Courtney!! This is SERIOUS business!! In case you couldn’t tell by the porno gif in our previous posts.
😉
ETA: Great point, btw, about the mini-cooper, donkey, etc. Wonder if the donkey pooped on the dance floor. Talk about a freestyle.
Louie says every week that Sabrina can handle pro choreo and that she is amazing, but there paso look nothing like a pro choreo, I was actually full of basic and easy paso steps, apart from the end. Sabrina had two pasos with Mark, not only they much better in therms of dance but the choreo was way better and way more challenge. I actually like Sabrina a lot, but Louie is going to get her eliminated. Paso was supost to be her dance.
Echoing Heidi’s sentiments about siding with Mark – let’s just say that Bristol has some major issues with accepting any sort of fault or responsibility for anything, and tends to project her insecurities onto Mark…and that behavior only gets rewarded, reinforced, and encouraged by her mother & father. And had we seen the ENTIRE, unedited debacle that unfolded between Bristol & Mark last week during their package last night – I think we’d all be 100% on Mark’s side. I think Bristol should be thankful that the package made her look a lot better than she really should have – and I have a newfound appreciation for Mark’s restraint and refusal to resort to her victimization tactics. More food for thought…
Well said Court! I don’t need to see the whole unedited episode, in fact I’d rather not. The bit I saw was more than enough to allow any sensible person to be 100% on Mark’s side. I’ve had my issues with Mark’s attitude and behavior in the past; He’s no saint for sure, but he’s been a super-pro in dealing with Bristol. For his sake, I hope this dust up convinces his loyal fans that this season the best gift they can give him is to *not* vote for him.
I dunno about the donkey dookie, but I do know that the donkey went all diva and refused to go onto the floor when it was time. I guess he was trying to show Gilles how a diva really rolls-er, trots.
Thanks for the clarification about the Mark and Bristol thing – and frankly I think very few people are surprised. I know Mark takes a lot of flack, some of it very much deserved, but I have honestly been impressed with how he has handled Bristol and her family since the first season. Plus he could have thrown her under the bus how many times, and his public support for her has been unwavering despite her probably not deserving it. Anyway, I know he’s not a saint but I do appreciate that he’s handling a difficult case probably as best as can be.
I would also like to have seen that concept executed with a more competent female partner because I thought it was pretty cool.
Was the edit of Bristol’s package just less damning than it could have been or far enough to make her sympathetic? I simply choose not to watch her performances, so haven’t seen.
I think sometimes I forget some people may watch the show and post on the rankings article but might not watch a lot of the other DWTS media coverage.
Derek said in many different interviews that he did go back and forth about whether to break the rules but decided to because of the nature of the song, the closeness of the scoring (it is about pleasing the fans more than the judges with the scores so tight), and how Len asked the envelope to be pushed. He also said they expected even lower scores than they got, they didn’t do it out of ego thinking they would be above the rules. And if you watched Shawn & Derek’s demeanor during the judges critiques, they were fine with the criticism but really just cared whether the judges enjoyed the dance or not. I thought that was really cute the way they just wanted to make sure Len enjoyed it. I thought the 8 from Len was really low, I would have expected 8.5 from him in this case. And yes I agree Heidi, Len makes Derek work very hard for the scores. He held back a long time from giving Nicole the scores, only to keep handing out the big ones to them the last few weeks and then telling her she deserved to win before Evan even danced the finale. I think that showed that he felt she was the best all along but had his ‘reasons’ for keeping the scores lower most of the season.
Anyway, most of the dances were pretty good but not very exciting. The only ones to wow me were Shawn, Apolo and Kelly. After 15 seasons of this show, I’ll take some excitement and breaking of the rules to see something fun and new. We got that tonight from Shawn as well as the opposite, but just as good–a sleek, sophisticated non-rule breaking number from Apolo. They certainly both won the night for me. And Kelly has just been so fun to watch, I just love how so many people expected her to be bad and gone week 1 but she has proved them wrong and come out this season dancing better than she ever did before.
Gilles and Sabrina let themselves down tonight. Gilles attitude is terrible and he is psyching himself out on top of it. Without the suspension gimmick, that tango was completely forgettable. The choreography was dull and uninspired, besides the mistakes. Then Sabrina is over-analyzing everything. I can’t believe they came out with such a dull routine. I might not like Louis that much, but he is a decent choreographer and THAT is what they came up with? It was arguably the most boring dance of the night. Not the worst-danced…but the most boring. Kelly and Apolo didn’t break the rules either but they weren’t boring.
I hope at least one of Bristol or Kirstie go tonight. Probably won’t happen though. I have a bad feeling for Drew & Helio.
Oh and I just wanted to add that I thought Sabrina and Louis had the worst costumes/hair by a country mile. If she designed those – holy hell – what a disaster. Not flattering at all and somehow that purple, which is one of my favorite colors, looked terrible on-screen.
Word, Cidra! Everything you said in #83, especially about the edited package we were given to see. Enuf!
This whole “drama” between M/B is much more disturbing than entertaining.
@MMC – Based on the intel I’ve heard, the package shown painted Bristol in a far better light than she (and one of her parents) probably should have been painted in. Had they shown what really happened, I think people would have been far less sympathetic to Bristol.
Tell me when has Derek ever choreographed a proper quickstep? Same old, same old, same old.
Courtney, now you’ve got me very curious!
I do have to hand it to Mark for his patience. He’s defended just about everything Bristol has said or done, so much so that I was annoyed with him for it. 🙂 I don’t think many of the other pros would put up with it. I don’t think I would…
Maddy – Ricki, Maria, Brooke and pretty much every partner he had…… the only other non proper qickstep that he did was Nicole’s, this is his 10 season, 8 propor quicksteps.
The hate that Derek and Mark get from been awesome is just funny for me. You might not like Derek but this choreo is amazing, much better then the boring stuff that we saw last night ( Karina and Val did great too).
*sigh* Thanks for the insight, Courtney. Seems like the producers usually live for showing rehearsal conflict. They must want her around awhile longer.
Derek and Shawn and Apolo and Karina were the winners for me, hands down, and I adore Mark and I just feel sorry for him because of the drama and negative crap. How disheartening and draining it must be to share the same space during any upcoming rehearsals, promos, interviews or talk show appearances! Hopefully it’ll all be over soon Mark, and you’ll be put out of your misery!
Finally got to watch the show. My favorites are Shawn & Derek, Apolo & Karina, and Kelly & Val. So blatantly obvious that they are underscoring Apolo that it’s ridiculous! And I cannot even bear to watch Gilles & Peta anymore. He is SO annoying and apparently really threatened by Apolo’s dancing this season. In my dream world, Bristol, Kristie, or Gilles would be among the ones eliminated tonight but unfortunately I don’t see any of them being eliminated due to voting!!!
Maddy –
season 5, with Jennie
season 6, with Shannon
season 7, with Brooke
season 8, with Lil Kim
season 9, with Joanna
season 11, with Jennifer
season 13, with Ricki
season 14, with Maria
And the only two rule-breaking quicksteps he’s ever done? This one with Shawn, and the season 10 one with Nicole. You sure do live hyperbole.
P.S. Hit the submit button ONCE, Maddy.
Courtney, Courtney, Courtney. You’re driving me batty!
Spill, girl! I need details, particularly regarding parental involvement. Put me out of my misery, here. Take some pity on us DWTS fanatics. We’re listening!
So what exactly went on between Bristol and Mark that some are hinting around about but won’t come out and say? I think she had a right to be upset with him and this is coming from someone who is a huge Mark fan. Perhaps she is insecure. I don’t think she voiced anything that the press and message boards have been saying. He openly was campaigning for Sabrina to be the one voted in. I would imagine that any of the stars would be upset if their pro stood them up for rehearsal. Also, what day did this incident take place?
Ya know, EP…I think Sabrina and Louis might be psyching themselves out in addition to Gilles. Instead of looking at it like a TV competition (emphasis on TV) where viewers vote, they are placing too much weight on the judges and are dancing with too much fear of elimination. Instead of having a conversation like Shawn and Derek did (“We’re going to get slammed, you realize that” and “gotta make the audience happy too”) they’re afraid the judges will ding them too hard and they won’t be able to over come it with votes. Well, guess what? You didn’t break any rules, you played Louis’ “Sometimes less is more” game (not good on TELEVISION sometimes and definitely not THIS season) and you STILL might not over come the deficit in votes. Nothing is different. The scores are so close that you don’t do yourself any favors by playing it too safe.
I figured Sabrina would do pretty well with the Paso, but I was so underwhelmed by their performance last night. Who smiles while dancing a paso? And her costume didn’t help matters.
If you looked up “intense” in the dictionary, you would find Sabrina and Gilles’ pictures for this season.
I hate that the judges are so nice with Gilles and Sabrina, they were crappy, so say it. They are the judges favorites (not Shawn or Apolo). No way that they deserved the same score as Apolo.
No way, not spilling any further details of this one – gotta protect the source, because I was given some pretty specific details. And not that I feel the least bit obligated to give you any further information, MelissaC, but this went down Wed/Thurs. And as for poor, poor Bristol – she’s a grown ass woman, and she should fight her own battles – not go running to mommy & daddy when she doesn’t get her way.
Courtney, guess it doesn’t matter, as I will continue to support Bristol, and Mark if he doesn’t screw up again. And I never said anyone was “obligated” to say anything. I didn’t know that asking what day it was would bring such a response. It was a natural question with the comments that had been made. As a professional, I would have expected better of Mark.
This is a bit late, but with so much to talk about, I would like to share my opinion as well. Since I don’t have a lot of time, I’ll just hit highlights.
Shawn & Derek were PHENOMENAL in my opinion tonight. Yes, they broke some rules, but it was sheer brilliant. And by the way, I would like to point out that their quickstep WAS mostly legit quickstep. I did the counting (because I have no life LOL) and there were 50 seconds of legit, proper, well-executed quickstep and only 30 seconds of lifts and tricks. Like I said with Nicole’s quickstep, I don’t agree with someone calling it “not a quickstep” when the large chunk of it was actual quickstep. But that’s just how I feel on that. I think they got docked plenty, actually .5 more than I would’ve docked them. Not sure why anyone would want them docked more than they were, but that’s just me.
Apolo was fabulous as well. Second best dance for me. He seemed to slightly lack fluidity in his arms and his hands got a bit weird, but other than that, this was stunning. Loved it. Yeah, I’m not liking how Apolo’s been screwed this week and last either.
Kelly & Melissa were good and I love both, but they shouldn’t have been at the top. Kelly was overscored by a point or a point and a half, because she seemed to lose a bit of balance through certain parts of it. Melissa, while technically pretty good, was still too soft and pretty. Melissa was overscored by about 2.5 points for me. But still, two good dances.
As for the Bristol/Mark thing, I’m not sure why Bristol would treat Mark like he doesn’t care. He may not be my favorite, but that dude busted his ass for her in her original season, and he’s giving it a good effort now as well. Mark can only meet her halfway, SHE also has to put in some serious effort if she wants to do better, and I’m not seeing it. I saw a great improvement in week 1, but last week and this one were total back tracks, mostly because of Bristol. Yes, the quickstep choreography (if you can call it that) was…meh, but the quickstep she did was pretty poorly executed. That Paso could’ve been REALLY cool if Bristol wasn’t as cold as a penguin’s nipple in Antartica. Not a lot of emotion in there, and that’s not Mark’s fault.
Anyways, there’s my two cents.
Penquins have nipples? 😎
I LOVED Shawn & Derek! Apolo & Karina were great too! I was most impressed with Val & Kelly. This was definitely her best dance and shows what she can do with more practice. Can’t wait for the show tonight!
@MelissaC, (#99 and #104) I have to respectfully disagree. Of course partners can have legitimate reasons for being angry with one another. However, the ones you outlined don’t qualify as legitimate in my opinion. I think it’s pretty obvious Bristol is insecure, but I don’t feel the blame for that can be laid at Mark’s door. So what if Mark campaigned to have Sabrina as the Viewers’ Choice All-Star? Louis is her partner, and Mark is Bristol’s partner this season. Mark has been to Alaska with her and is training in Arizona with her. I’d say he’s doing his share. As for the rehearsal, I might have missed or misread some details and if so I apologize, but I thought I read upthread that Mark notified TPTB that he was going to miss a rehearsal. If so Bristol would have been notified. So that wouldn’t qualify as being “stood up”.
There is usually fault on both sides when people have blow-ups, but the lion’s share is on Bristol in my opinion. As I’ve already said, I think Mark has been a consummate professional this season (as he was with Bristol in her first season), and this is coming from someone who is *not* a very big Mark fan.
So Bristol thinks the reason she’s at the bottom of the leaderboard is because Mark doesn’t care? Has it occured to her that her dancing doesn’t measure up to the other pros? When even 60 something Kirstie Alley is dancing better than you are (not just being scored better, but actually dancing better) and being more entertaining than you are, it’s time to take a serious look at yourself. But why look inward and at the actual quality of your dancing when you can just blame your partner?!
Overall fun night! Everyone for the most part tried to take it up a notch. I think Apolo was fantastic and helped to create a very unique routine.
Shawn & Derek – Wowza! That was AMAZING Quickstep! So reminscent of the Gene Kelly era & style of dancing! It was fun, energetic, athletic and it brought the house down!! Their technique and synchronicity was so on point. While celebrating one of their favorite dances, they managed to create their own ICONIC routine!(are you listening Giles)-LOL
This is what happens when you give Derek an athlete!-greatness!! She keeps him on his toes too-LOL Really excited to see them continue on and
so happy they will be performing this amazing Quickstep for the encore performance tonight.
Hopefully, the right couple goes home tonight. Unfortunately two couples. Well Good Luck all!!
I absolutely LOVED Shawn and Derek’s routine last night. It was amazing! I mean, just wow. That all being said, being a competition dancer myself, I always get more than a little irritated when the pros and their partners break the rules. I think rules are important and necessary; I am a weirdo who LIKES rules (which is probably why I like to dance international standard even tho it kicks my butt constantly). If that had been a competition, Shawn and Derek would have totally been disqualified. Fortunately for them it’s a reality show, NOT a competition (as much as I’d like it to be a competition, since PBS hasn’t had the funding to air the real thing in a while, boo!). So…although I didn’t agree with the rule breakage, I loved the dance and I hope Shawn wins again. She’s just so darn cute and I adore watching her dance. Kelly also has surprised me; Val has really done super well with her. Kirstie’s dance, although it was hilarious, was not very good IMO. It seemed sluggish and slow. I would have put her down at the bottom with Bristol. Speaking of Bristol, both she and Mark are getting on my nerves. I had really hoped they would pair her with someone else so we could see once and for all if the issue is the combination of Mark and Bristol together or just Bristol herself. Ugh! Emmitt and Drew: I’m just not into either one of them this season. Giles is just being ridiculous. I’m with the other person on here who said they did NOT like Sabrina’s dress; it needed to have been attached at the top or something. (BTW, I have always loved Mel B’s paso outfit the best of any paso outfit that has ever been on the show. Its proportioning was just perfect; none of the ones they tried to copy from that afterwards looked good to me) Anyway, I’m glad to see Tony enjoying himself with Melissa….as for Helio, I was sooo not impressed with his dance. They showed a clip of Apollo dancing it and it was so energetic. Then Helio danced it and it just seemed slow and heavy or something. Not sure what it was about it, but I was greatly disappointed in it. Apollo and Karina’s dance, OTOH, was amazing! Loved it second only to Shawn and Derek’s. I would not mind Bristol, Emmitt, Giles, or Kirstie going home tonight. I would love to see Shawn, Kelly, Apollo, Melissa, Helio, Sabrina and Drew all be declared safe to dance another week (in that order).
Just watched Derek and Shawn’s dance. Wowza is right! I got tired watching. 🙂 I agree with others that they were in hold a majority of the dance overall, but the time was all chopped up by those hold breaks. I don’t much care that they broke a rule, but, and God help me I sound like Len, this seemed sort of un-quickstep-y with multiple broken holds and a lift. Fortunately, the penalty wasn’t a deduction for each violation. But it was amazing choreography and execution, and totally fun to watch. Undoubtedly a newly-minted iconic dance and a fine tribute to the original. This is only my opinion though – please nobody kill me.
I was amazed at how creative most of the celebrities were! After seeing how the others took charge and talked to staff about sets & all, the first thing I thought when bristol threw her fit was “They have to show this ’cause she had no ideas whatsoever”. That said, was very entertained by everyone else. LOVED Apollo & Karina, Kelly & Val, and Shawn & Derek. Loved Helio and was so upset over the stumble, hoping they get sympathy votes cause I do not want him to leave yet. Had totally forgotten Drew & Anna til someone brought up how they cut out his acrobatic move and remembered at the time it upset me that it wasn’t shown. Expecting Drew and Sabrina to go, Hoping that Bristol and Sabrina go.
OMG, Sabrina SHUT UP, just saw her confession, that girl ego is out of control too, Carrie An was even nice to you, your dance was not that good, choreo was boring and you were sloopy, shut up and take a very generous score. Don’t blame the others on your lack of creativity.
I didn’t realize that Emmitt and Cheryl invited Jaleel to be part of their dance. Unfortunately we didn’t get to see him perform. I heard that Cheryl and Emmitt didn’t get the depth of Stefan Urquelle so he showed his ass, pooped on the floor, and left. Seriously, I’m not sure what was up with using a jackass as part of a dance unless Cheryl was going to straddle it at some point…
Another thing that puzzled me is Gilles flying around as part of that dance. it just seemed freaking odd. I guess it was meant to be some avante-garde thing since he is French. I really hope he doesn’t get to the finals.
Interesting to me that the stars were supposed to have creative control this week but it seened to me that all Louis was saying is what he wanted. Maybe being from Amsterdam he hasn’t heard the expression that there is no “I” in team.
By far Derek and Shawn had the best dance. I thought Apolo and Karina were great as well. Apolo is a class act by showing what good sportsmanship is about unlike others.
I woul’ve liked to have seen what Joey and Kym could have done this week had they gone further. Regardless of his technique I really like Joey.
Just discovered this website so there’s a lot to read over! I am sorely disappointed that Drew got such pissant scores and others that weren’t at that quality got higher. With Bristol back on, no honest voting is being done by the public so I am just trying to enjoy who is dancing well. I DID someone’s comnment about Kelly “wobbling” and am wondering if no one else remembers her inner ear thing from Season 1? She has some sort of permanent issue so that’s why when there’s lots of spinning, she can look disoriented and wobbly. And yes Sabrina’s costume from Monday night was absolutely GOD awful and extremely unflattering! Yikes, someone take over designing for her body type PLEASE!!!!
forgive my lousy proofing skills, I’ll do better next post!!!!!!