DWTS All Stars, The Finale – Dancing by the Numbers
I’m going to repeat what I said in the comments in another post early yesterday:
Congratulations to all three ladies for making it to the finale – you all won. Seriously, you did.
Kelly wins because she blew everyone’s expectations out of the water. I don’t think she should win, but she should be extremely proud of what she’s accomplished. I don’t think this was really a win for Val, but those of you who are regulars already know what I think on this subject. 
Melissa and Tony – huge winners. Melissa showed a lot of growth and she’s just so NICE and likeable. I really love the girl and I won’t be devastated if she wins. Tony? Fan-freakin’-tastic season for him. He’s often been considered, by myself and others, as too reliant on the syllabus and often unimaginative in terms of chore – he blew that away this season. Fantastic job. Yes, huge risk with the freestyle because the slow, quiet ones don’t often win, but you get credit for balls. Although I’m a Shawn/Derek fan, I may cry if Tony wins because I’m a real sucker for that story (and that’s the reason why I think they may just win). (Side Note: Intel says you WILL cry if they air Derek’s confessional with Shawn. Apparently he’s very emotional and the implication from what I heard is because it is indeed his last season. I could go on, but I won’t. He’s also apparently surprised by his own reaction.)
Shawn and Derek – hands down the best dancers of the season and not only that, Derek out did even himself in terms of choreography and creativity. He really is the King of Choreography, to quote numerous media outlets and Adam Shankman. Naysayers that claim she’s all tricks and lifts? I will quote Bill Clinton – it’s simple ARITHMETIC. Yes, I did just quote Bill Clinton because it’s appropriate. Take Melissa’s Lindy, Caveman Hustle, AT and Freestyle and COUNT. Then count all the lifts/tricks in Shawn’s entire season. Get back to me with the results. Heh. Anyway, regardless of the actual WIN (which they may not get) they are the biggest winners of all. Derek has set a standard that few can measure up to, as has Shawn. In a years’ time, when people look back on this season, Derek and Shawn’s will be the dances that most easily spring to mind – although I have no doubt that some will go to their grave denying that fact. That’s a win, no matter how you slice it.
Anyway, I think it comes down to Melissa and Shawn and, as of right now, Shawn’s fans had serious work to do in order to make up the deficit. Everything hinges on the instant dance. If the margin stays the same or gets wider between Shawn and Melissa, I have to give it to Melissa – too many people are buying into the pity party and Derek’s fantastic record may come back to haunt him. Derek – please leave this show. You are so destined for bigger and better things. You are not fully appreciated and you won’t be until you’re gone.
Anyway, what are our numbers after the first two dances?
I’m a firm believer in two things:
- The judges have an overwhelming desire to be RIGHT. Meaning that they will sway their scoring tonight so that it reflects what they’ve been told about the voting. The only question is how stupid they are about it – do they really understand the math? Doubtful.
- The overwhelming need for the producers to have DRAMA. The need to make it a horse race at all times. JR was not in the lead going into the final night, neither was Donald. I’m sure there are others. I don’t think they have a stake in who wins, as long as it’s exciting. Do I know what this means? Not until it’s over.
These two things – which are mainly observations that I will post on in more detail in a week or so – lead me to not really know what’s going to happen. Did they overscore Kelly and over hype Melissa because that’s how the voting is going?? Or did they over penalize Shawn because she’s running away with it and want a come from behind win?? What story are they trying to sell?? Because rest assured, this show is all about the story. Normally I would say – Occam’s Razor, which states (roughly): The simplest explanation is the most likely to be accurate. Of course, that also assumes that you don’t have 15 seasons worth of data to study on which to base your theories.
Of course, that doesn’t take into account actual VOTING. And at the end of the show last night, my feeling was similar to Courtney’s but I’ll be more blunt about it – the pity vote/good story vote for Melissa and Tony is a lot stronger than simply amazing dancing. And that is nearly always true on this show. Yes, Melissa is a good dancer too, but in terms of WOW factor? No contest. But, I think that Melissa will likely win because of that prevailing “Oh, we must pick them because they’ve never won before.” In my mind, DWTS has become pee wee baseball. Everyone must have a trophy. Sad. Simple minded. It will lead to less exciting dancing and mediocrity. Anyway…
As you can see, Derek and Shawn have a ways to go if all things remain the same. In order for Shawn to WIN, she needs both of the following things:
- Shawn needs to get 11,400 more votes per million votes cast than Kelly, AND;
- Shawn needs to get 17,100 more votes per million votes cast than Melissa.
Not a huge amount, normally, but this is the finale. Who knows? I honestly don’t know. Besides, everything hinges on the instant dance. I can’t imagine that anyone will get a 30 on it, but let’s say they all get 27. That would then mean that Shawn needs both of the following:
- Shawn needs to get 7,800 more votes per million votes cast than Kelly, AND;
- Shawn needs to get 11,700 more votes per million votes cast than Melissa.
That’s a pretty sizeable difference. It also puts Kelly in easy striking difference of Melissa. Prior to tonight’s dancing, Kelly needs the following to win:
- Kelly needs for Shawn to NOT get 11,400 more votes per million votes cast, AND;
- Kelly needs to get 5,700 more votes per million votes cast than Melissa.
That doesn’t look too hard does it? Well, it’s the finale. But look how an even distribution of instant dance points tonight helps her. Helps Shawn too. The only person it doesn’t help is Melissa, because it closes the gap a good bit. If all three ladies get 27, Kelly would then need all of the following to win:
- Kelly would need for Shawn to NOT get 7,800 more votes per million votes cast, AND;
- Kelly would need to get 3,900 more votes per million votes cast than Melissa.
Heh. Yes, Kelly is in striking distance of Melissa…but Shawn is also a LOT closer to Kelly. In this scenario, I could see Shawn winning and Kelly taking second. Will it go that way? No idea. I tend to doubt it.
The ONLY beneficial way for this to go for Melissa is if she wins the instant dance round. If she takes it, I think it solidifies a win for her. If she gets second or third, it’s anybody’s game. Let’s take a look at what happens if they rank them and Melissa gets second place, Kelly taking third; that is, Shawn gets a 30, Melissa 28 and Kelly a 26 – I don’t know they’re going to do this, only that they have done it in the past. If that’s how it plays out, Shawn would still be in second place with 87 points, but only by a point. Kelly would be in third with 85 points. For Kelly to win in this situation, she would need BOTH of the following to happen:
- Kelly would need 7,700 more votes per million votes cast than Shawn, AND;
- Kelly would need 11,600 more votes per million votes cast than Melissa.
For Shawn to Win, she would need for Kelly to not get those votes to pass her and she would ONLY need 3,900 more votes per million votes cast than Melissa.
There are a hundred different scenarios that I could expound on at length, but since I don’t have a good feel for what it is they’re going for or if they are at the point they’re going to throw it to the viewers – I’m not going to bother. Heck, they could even go back to giving out a 10, a 9, and an 8 which gives the edge back to Melissa.
At the end of the day, my feeling is the voters will go the sympathy route of “Tony and Melissa have never won before” – which is stupid. This is the all star season – it’s supposed to be the best of the best. How can you be the best of the best if you’ve NEVER won before? The simple answer is – you can’t.
My pick (but not my favorite):
Winner: Melissa
Runner up: Shawn
Thanks Miss. I love these. I think Shawn and Derek are going to win especially being I saw their fans up late into the night and early this morning voting like crazy. However there were a lot of voting issues at the official site, so, I don’t know what’s going to happen? Whatever the case, I think it’s going to be close between Melissa and Shawn with Shawn taking it. I’ll be happy if either two win though. I do think Shawn and Derek deserve it more being they were consistantly better this whole season.
Couldn’t agree more!
TY, didn’t know you were going to do this what with the uncertainty of how tonight will be scored, so this analysis is especially welcome. Very interesting to see how all changes when factoring in example A of all 3 ladies scoring the same on the instant .. and other examples, also. Terrific post!
I love the numbers posts, as well, thank you.
I will be happy with either a Melissa or a Shawn victory.
I do have to disagree with the last statement though. I think you CAN be the best of the best if you BEAT the best. Several winners are out already, and much to everyone’s disbelief (myself included) Melissa is still standing. Almost everybody underestimated her and Tony (myself included).
Also, I don’t think all of the people who might vote for Melissa and Tony would be voting based on sympathy. I didn’t. Shawn could have sympathy voters, too. She’s repeatedly said “this is my Olympics” and how much it means to her. To me, that’s about equal to Melissa and Tony saying they’ve never won before so it means a lot to them.
Thanks for this !! I still think Shawn will run away with this. I saw the Shawnoughers going at it strong, so who knows? But like you said, they really are all winners in my book too.
PH, I have the same feeling re the pity vote for Tony & Melissa. And while I like them both a lot as people & agree that Tony stepped up the choreo, they’re not in the same league as Shawn & Derek. While I was one of the late-night & early-morning voters, I’m hoping that Shawn’s own fan base will pull them through. For example, she’s got sororities, current & future gymnasts, the State of Iowa, etc. behind her. I can easily see people at home thinking she’s got a trophy, Derek’s got three, Tony & Melissa have none…yep, pee wee baseball. Regardless, Shawn’s transformation into mature woman and dancer and how Derek brought that about has been “win” enough for me. I barely remember Tony & Melissa’s dances right NOW, let alone in a year. I know which ones I’ll be watching over & over in years to come.
Shawn & Derek fans, I’d start repeating this mantra to yourself right now: “Shawn & Derek will get the jive”. Because rumor has it, Derek had to choreograph a brand new cha-cha and a brand new samba from scratch last night – which is why they were rehearsing well into the night and early this morning. Apparently they are praying they draw the jive for the instant dance, because it’s the only once they feel well-prepared for. The other two couples simply recycled the choreo from their previous jives, cha-chas, and sambas, ran through each a few times, and went home. Part of the price you pay for doing innovative, not-necessarily-judge-pleasing dances the first time around…
…and yes, I too am tired of the peewee baseball, “Everyone’s a winner and everyone deserves a trophy!” mentality that some viewers seem to have adopted. Voted for Melissa & Tony because they were your favorite dancers and you think they deserve to win based on merits? Great. Voting for them simply because they haven’t won yet? Silly, because over time that mentality will breed mediocrity amongst the pros and will diminish their motivation to really push themselves hard – why even try to choreograph great dances if they know that they’ll probably win anyway, just because they haven’t won yet and they know the fans will vote regardless? A certain degree of competitiveness does keep the show interesting – and after the show ceases to be interesting, it will lose viewers. It’s still a tv show – there has to be an element of competition, or else they’re just dancing for the hell of it.
Still pissed that I wasn’t able to get my online votes in, thanks to the ABC site being down. Grrrr.
I really hope Shawn covers the spread and wins it. All of the media coverage is talking about Shawn’s dance and that fall forward from Derek’s shoulders. And it took me nearly an hour to get all of my phone votes in because the line was always busy.
I believe the general, majority viewer, doesn’t care about the never winning scenario. They vote for good dancing, and the best freestyle has always won. By the time Shawn’s dance was over, the other dances were forgotten. She was fantastic. And the instant dance tonight will change everything.
I am praying that the scenario is Shawn has always been leading in votes and the producers wanted to make things a little more mysterious for tonight by putting the best one in third place.
I dont think its really that close between shawn & melissa. Actually, I think if they threw out the instant dance it would finish melissa 3rd, kelly 2nd, and shawn 1st. Lets face it though, melissa vs shawn would make for much better tv than shawn vs kelly, so i think the instant dance is going to be scored/ranked in however way makes that happen.
@Violet #3 – Love your post, admirable logic, Violet. It’s certainly easy for me to suppoort the points you make!
Matter of fact, since we don’t know what viewers base their votes on, it’s even possible that Kelly gets the majority of her votes NOT from GH fans, NOT from showmance vibes, but from viewers out there who really think she dances well enough to earn their support.
One thing for sure, from reading PH’s look into the math and the unknowns about tonight’s scoring, the outcome is truly uncertain for now.
Last night, I would have said that Melissa and Tony are going to win, but today I am actually more inclined to say that it will end up being Shawn and Derek. In season 8 I thought Gilles was going to win and in the end that did not happen. I just seem to be feeling more of a positive vibe about Shawn and Derek and I think their fans got pissed off last night which pushed them to vote even more. Which is exactly one of the things I believed pushed Kelly into the finals. I also think that the judges will even out the scores more tonight. We will soon see.
Thanks for the insider update, Courtney. Just a thought: how amazing would it be if Shawn & Derek don’t get the jive & blow away the others w/cha cha or samba? Even though it’s supposed to be a “surprise” re who dances what, I think the surprise will be for the dancers, not TPTB. Can’t see Tony & Melissa getting a samba again, for example, since they just did one last night. Where’s the drama in that, you know? Given how well Shawn picks up choreo & what an incredible choreographer Derek is, I’m hoping that they will blow the other two couples out of the water with whatever they get.
i have a feeling they are going to get the samba…..negative nelly here:)
Violet, the difference is – FANS are spouting the “Melissa and Tony should win because they’ve won before” – that’s a different thing than anything Melissa or Shawn have said. Besides, it’s hard to pity two people (Derek and Shawn) who are so blessed.
I also don’t think that Melissa actually beat Shawn. Not by a long shot. Scores mean little when the judges smoke crack and voting means little when all I hear all over the internet is “poor Tony, he’s never won, I hope he wins”.
Courtney, some of these pros don’t even TRY to up their game to compete – they sit back and whine about how you shouldn’t break the rules. It’s pretty freakin’ sad, really, because what are we going to watch next season?? Samba 502??
Another thought – I sure hope the producers don’t hose Derek by editing down his confessional. It sounds pretty powerful, but it can be totally turned against him by one asshole with a button.
I just hope Melissa doesn’t get Samba. It be a bit unfair to get a dance she just recieved a 30 on last night and do it basically again.
I can see Kelly or Melissa struggling with the instant dance because something tells me it takes them a bit longer to perfect a dance than Shawn would.
I hope Melissa doesn’t get the Samba because of the fact she did it last night. I can see her recycling Jive choreography from week 2, but the last time Melissa did a Cha-Cha was 3 years ago… I would imagine they had to prepare something, and not recycle choreography. Kelly, on the other hand, has done all three this season, so I can’t say I’m surprised Val is recycling. But at this point in the competition, I can’t say for certain that everybody will be willing to create brand new choreography without really exhausting themselves.
Despite the fact that Derek did create new choreography for Shawn and himself, I highly doubt that he WANTED to.
All I know is, I tried from the moment Melissa and Tony danced their first dance until the voting time ended, a total of 41 tries on my cell phone and I only got through 1 (one) time. And then I moved onto the other phones in the house and still nothing but Busy…
I was able to vote online though.
Heidi you are killing me with the confessional!!! can you just tell me what happens then??? LOL. i for one couldn’t stand some of the pros and troupes twitter comments and i couldn’t contain my tongue…i got into it with Louis- he again wrote a whole piece to hollywood.com on why derek shouldn’t of picked the QS…i mean why write it at all? you know why he does it…does derek say this is my last season straight out? god i hope so…he is just outgrown this show so much…see you later DWTS….i give you about another 3 seasons tops!!!
That’s a fair point, Heidi, and I have seen some of that, too. I do think there are lots of fans who think Melissa is a great dancer and person and vote based on that, including me. I admit that I would love to see Tony win, but that is in no way why I voted for them. I’d love to see Chelsie win, and Anna. But I didn’t cast one vote for either of them this season.
I do think Melissa beats Shawn as a dancer, because I think Melissa is a natural dancer and Shawn is more of someone who can be taught choreo and excel at the steps she’s learned. I know we’ll have to agree to disagree on that one
I hope Melissa doesn’t get samba tonight. For one, I agree that it would be boring and not fair to the other couples because she’s just done it. Also I think Jive and Cha Cha are actually better dances for her than Samba. And last, because IF she wins (and I still actually think Shawn will take the trophy) it will just be one more reason for people to discount her.
Good luck to everyone’s favorites tonight.
Sandy, I got all my phone (four phones in all) votes for Melissa and Tony through easily last night. I started voting when the show began, I don’t know if that made much of a difference.
Heidi, I misunderstood what you meant by Melissa “beating” Shawn in my last post, when you responded to me. I thought you meant as a dancer. Sorry.
But you guys have said over and over, the internet fan base is by far the minority, it’s the general viewers who decide the show. So, why would what is being said on the internet about Tony never winning mean that the voting means nothing? I don’t think that’s true. I also don’t think Melissa has been THAT overscored this season. I think she has been a bit, and I do think Shawn has been underscored a bit–but not enough to mean that if Melissa pulls out a win it doesn’t mean she beat Shawn. So, if Melissa does win tonight, to me, she “beat” everyone. I think that’s pretty cut and dry.
Like I said though, even as much of an avid Melissa fan as I am, I don’t think she will surpass Shawn.
I honestly think Shawn and Melissa voters are spilt. Kelly’s is not. I’ve been going to different places and it seems Shawn and Melissa will have to cancel each other out.
From what I heard, Joey, the implication is pretty strong that this is his last season. And that he didn’t realize how hard it was going to hit him. There’s lots more, but that’s the gist.
As for Louis – once an asshole, always an asshole. I told him on twitter that he sounded jealous. Three whole fans took me to task over it. Apparently commenting that someone sounds jealous is bullying. I could have sword Louis was a 40-something man and not a child…oh, wait.
Really, he doesn’t get that perception is important. And he’s coming across badly.
Regardless of the outcome tonight, the true champions of this (and every) season are our mods right here at Pure DWTS!
PH, Court, Vogue, and all the other great contributors, thank you! Thanks for the countless hours you spend getting the inside scoop; keeping us kids entertained; putting up with our endless demands for more, more, more; and maintaining law and order on the playground.
You’re all awesome!
Oh, I did mean as a dancer, Violet. I just don’t find Melissa terribly exciting or compelling – she’s very NICE though. One of my coworkers came up and asked what the hell her freestyle was supposed to be and that it looked like a series of poses, not dancing.
And I’m sorry, if the judges dock someone 3 points for rule breakage, but give out 10s for mistakes the actually commented on (Emmitt, Kelly and others) then you can’t realistically claim that the judging was just fine and the scores are legitimate. Even if the judges were fair, technically, Melissa didn’t beat Shawn, SHAWN beat Shawn by picking the quickstep.
Melissa gets it for dancing. She’s beautiful, perfectly shaped, graceful, she has the long lines, and she’s done an astonishing job. Shawn is a little bullet-shaped thing but she’ll always have that astonishing forward fall off Derek’s shoulders. I’m impressed that Derek finally had a partner who challenged HIM in terms of difficulty. Kelly had the hardest slog to this point and she also triumphed. I don’t know who will get the MBT, but I think they all won by the job they’ve done this season. How can DWTS go back to normal, mediocre dancing by a crowd of first-timers after this?
I’m sad to hear that Derek could be leaving the show. In television, most people who leave a successful show where they are a huge star end up disappointed and would have been better off career-wise to see it through to its end. I don’t know how his sister ranks her success post-DWTS, but her singing and movie career haven’t upped her wattage, at least such that I’ve noticed. She’s still primarily known for DWTS and I wish she’d come back. If it’s what he wants, he’s earned it. But I’ll miss him.
“Bullying” is a word that gets thrown around far too much these days – yes, there is legitmate bullying in this world, and it ain’t right. But those that aren’t intelligent enough to make the distinction between actual bullying (the use of coercion to abuse and intimidate others) and someone simply not sharing the same opinion are the ones that cry “Bully!!!” the minute they encounter an opinion or person they don’t like or can’t deal with maturely…and that, to me, is becoming a problem in and of itself. Don’t like what someone’s saying? Call them a bully to shut them up. Apparently not buying into the bullshit showmance that Kelly & Val have going on makes you a bully, too, Heidi
But a Kelly fan threatening on Twitter to come to your house and “set you straight”? Nope, that’s just reacting to a differing opinion in a completely justified & mature fashion. True story.
Heidi I know someone who lives in the same condo complex as Louis…and “jealous” doesn’t even begin to cover it. I tweeted Derek some weeks ago, that while it broke my heart to say it…he needs to put on his wings and fly…he has outgrown the show. You can’t keep beating a dog with a stick and think they will stay around forever…DWTS should have treated him just fairly….instead they held him to a higher standard and then talked like that is because they like him so much and want to grow…bull…the is them CYA…and I also agree about the mistakes that were made in the dances last night and then they were given tens, really on what planet, and say a dance lacked creativity was just kind of blah but give it a 9.5..geez.
Cidra #24 = +1, well said!!!!
Again, you make a fair point. I will agree to disagree. Because I know it didn’t exactly work out this way, but if the three points were one from each judge, I would say it was fair, because they shouldn’t have given a perfect score for a non-perfect dance, and I think rule breaking counts as non-perfect. I wish Derek had tweaked the dance a little bit so that it was still entertaining but that they would not have been docked the points. I definitely don’t think Kelly should have gotten those tens last night, either.
But, it’s apples to oranges, I guess. Above is just my opinion, and I understand and respect that you have yours, too. Like I said before, agree to disagree, and I’ll be happy for either Melissa or Shawn tonight, whichever wins (because I hope to hell it isn’t Kelly–I think we CAN agree on that!)
I honestly think the pros and troupe members should keep their personal favorites to themselves on twitter- telling people who to vote for and retweeting only your favorites is just wrong- they should promote all the finalists. I can only imagine the twitter storm from the Russian mob squad (troupe included, fratelli cafe, et al) I Shawn and Derek win…bc you know none of them would be a bigger person and congratulate Derek do you? I am actually starting to despise them.
What I find completely unfair is the fact that a person who has been at the bottom of the Leader Board several times and in Jeopardy several times is still in the final 3, while those who were never at the bottom and never in Jeopardy and score 9′s and 10′s are gone?
I don’t understand what the people want from this show. This is called “Dancing” with the stars..not “Most Fan Base” with the stars. If that is what the people want, this is NOT the show for them.
Also judge bias is getting out of hand. The judge will call them out on mistakes made…yet give them 10′s. They will throw the rule book out the window and do whatever they please and still get high marks.
BUT, this is only true for certain “favorite” dancers and pros.
I would like to see what the scores would have been if it wasn’t Derek or Mark(the dead fish) who did such a thing..and not once, but twice..knowing they were told not to do it and choose to again “ignore” the rules and do what they wanted. Anybody else would have received 6 or 7 or less and not 9′s.
Why do some teams have to strive for perfection to receive a deserved 10, when others can make glaring mistakes, be announced by the judges as mistakes and still receive a 10?
Talk had been that these are has beens or need a career boost “stars” on the show, no real “Stars”. If any real star watches the show, they are not going to put themselves through the nasty criticism and unfair , biased, scoring by the judges and the finicky voting by the people.
Also, if we are to believe that fan votes count for half of the score, why in Season 1, when someone who was always at or near the bottom of the board, “beat” someone who was at the top of the board..these same fans (who supposedly put her there) caused such an uproar..that there had to be a special “dance-off” to find the true winner ..and it wasn’t her.?
Don’t be surprised if it happens again and the bottom scorer wins !
That’s the part that Louis doesn’t get and probably never will (Maks either for that matter, or Val who is once again crowing about how all his followers are “real”) – you are CERTAINLY entitled to your opinion and to air it however you see fit. But people out here in internet land will possibly interpret it in a very negative way. That’s the way it works. You get your opinion and people will disagree with you and think you are jealous, insecure brat. What Louis and others do is so unprofessional – they actually WORK with these other pros and are presumably nice to their face while being shitty behind their backs. Childish too. It’s akin to me going around to other companies and talking trash about my coworkers. It ain’t my coworkers who come off looking bad.
#DWTS Viewer, If you are referring to Kelly and Val they were in Jeopardy only ones and that was week 2. From then on they were never in bottom two. *shrugs*
“dance-off” was for charity and he got the sympathy votes. Cry me a freaking river. Only one person in S1 has the MDT at home. *Ye’ shrugs*
Courtney, I will take you up on that repeating mantra challenge:
Shawn and Derek will get the Jive. Best freestyle always wins.
Shawn and Derek will get the Jive. Best freestyle always wins.
Shawn and Derek will get the Jive. Best freestyle always wins.
Shawn and Derek will get the Jive. Best freestyle always wins.
kinda negative in here, so to lighten it up i would like to thank the dancing gods.
after being so final deprived for the last 5 seasons as a chad/cheryl, rick/cheryl, chelsie/romeo, hope/maks (lol oh hindsight), chelsie/roshon fan, ALL three of my favs made the final in one season!
so this season has been pretty perfect to me, and in all my happiness i would like to thank everyone: mods, commenters, crazies-all of you
and will now prepare myself for another 5 season drought
Completely disagree, I think your Derek bias is kicking in…the best *dancer* was Sabrina, but I think Louis might have ruined it for her. I’ve personally enjoyed Melissa’s dancing better then the other two, but that may be because tony stepped it up…if they win, it’s a trophy well deserved for tony.
#David. – My point was she was either in Jeopardy or had low scores and still remained while others with higher scores went home.
Just as a side note- to show I’m not talking off base…as of the last night of regular dancing..the total judges scores were as follows:
Melissa – 437…Shawn – 434….Apolo – 422.5…Emmett – 418.5..
Kelly – 411. Emmett and Apolo (2 higher scores ) were eliminated. So whether you like those two or not..the point is, higher scores went home..lower one stayed.
“shrugs back”
ugh…the dreaded encore dance…is that the curse? LOL…i am starting to get superstitious with this crazy show! plus i look at the dwts instagram and they typically put things in order (although one week they mixed it up) and i don’t like how they have names lined up/people out on the stage…i think i am going loco.
If Melissa wins, that’s okay. She’s a good dancer. However, I hope the people who voted for her, voted FOR HER and not “poor never one a season Tony.” If so many people are voting for Tony now, I cannot imagine what will happen when Tristan and Chelsie make it to the finals.
I really think Shawn can make up the different, I don’t think the judges will help, they will probably give a 30 to all of them. This never won thing is so out control, even yesterday during the after party thing, they were commenting on that how Tony never won and all that crap. I just think is so wrong in so many levels, to think that Shawn might actually lose because of pity votes makes me really mad, but at the end of the day regardless who wins, this was Shawn and Derek season, like Derek said yesterday she is the best of the best, and that won’t change with she doesn’t get a trophy.
@dwts viewer
you do know that happens every season right?
but you did make a good point. It’s called ‘dancing with the stars’ not ‘ America’s best dancing star’
If Melissa and Tony win, it will be because the judges and the producers handed it to them on a silver platter. What does Melissa get if she wins? Does she get to take Brooke’s job? There has to be a reason that they propped her these last few weeks.
And what’s this? Louis and other pros were complaining on Twitter? Why am I not surprised? They’re all bitter and jealous. If Tony wins, they’ll all be doing back flips in celebration.
Well, Cbg since Sabrina didn’t even get close to the finale, I would say you’re the one with the issue here, not me.
Sorry for ya.
#DWTS Viewer, they just didn’t have the viewers votes. No need to cry a damn river about it.
Joey #40 At first, I thought that too. Apolo had the dreaded encore dance. But then I remembered last season. Who did the encore dance? I recalled because at the time I thought it wasn’t fair in case they got hurt and then had to dance for the judges votes. You know who did the dance? Donald Driver! He didn’t leave empty handed. Just Saying!
@Linz – Well JR did not have the encore dance for his freestyle. As far as I remember.
I think it’s an absolute horrible this that people are going the sympathy route for Melissa&Tony. This isn’t a normal season; it’s All-Stars and All-Stars is the best of the best! And that’s only one person…Shawn! She’s been consistent, she entertained, she brought incredible dances. What’s she’s done…WOW! They went outside of the box; they were plain amazing and Shawn&Derek deserves it. It doesn’t matter who has the best showmance or who hasn’t won yet and should get it, it’s about who’s the best at dancing and entertaining because at the end of the day, isn’t that what matters most? So, with that said, I’ll be hoping and praying tonight that when the winners are announced, it’s Shawn&Derek called because they deserve it, completely.
I have said week 1 Shawn would win, but would love to see Melissa win just for the shock. And because I love Tony!!! Not because he hasn’t won before just really liked his dances this season.
Heads up, everyone – we’re turning on Comment Moderation when the show starts in the east in order to cut down on trolling. It will likely stay turned on for 12 to 24 hours. Regardless of who wins, the wackos will be out in force.
So, a little patience will be required when commenting. Depending on what time it is, it could take a bit of time for the comments to show up.
Sigh….for the 500th time, the encore is indicative of nothing. Sometimes they don’t have one at the finale, sometimes they do. Sometimes the winner gets it, sometimes they don’t. So, those of you freaking out because Shawn and Derek got it, relax. For those of you who are freaking out because others think it makes some sort of point for Shawn and Derek – you relax too. Jesus.
I get the sentimental side for Tony and Melissa but more pros have lost than won. Also no offense but Tony had celebs that were good like Audrina who just had no fans. I just think it is silly to give it to Tony because he suffered with Kate, as I read. I just hope that freestyle Shawn did was enough to win. If not, the best freestyle will not win which is a first. Though the judges were so OTT about all of the dances.
I also feel like they handed Mlissa this win. They did all but scroll vote for Melissa on our screens.
Going to say Shawn will get jive!
I am guessing the encore has more to do with dwts having the fierce five on the show.
Donald and Peta did their freestyle as an encore last season & went on to win…
It’s Derek’s last season and I am very sad that he’ll leave with just two or three (fusion dance incl.) perfect scores up to now.
I think as for pleasing the judges completely, they were doomed from the beginning by the producers’ song choice. Most of their songs did not fit the dances perfectly so that Derek could choreograph a proper ballroom dance that the judges (Len in particular) could have given tens. For example, GOOD TIMES (foxtrot), BAD (AT) or even NICEST KIDS IN TOWN (jive), lacked the feel of those dances. I loved all of their dances though because they were choreographed and executed brilliantly. So I did not miss a proper ballroom dance.
Thanks to Derek and Shawn I was entertained the whole season. They were the perfect ALLSTAR couple and Derek should be proud of his DWTS history. I think without this show he wouldn’t have grown as a dancer and choreographer the way he did and without him the show would have missed out on quite a number of great routines.
Exactly, Melissa.
I teared up during Shawn’s freestyle last night, because it hit me that it was likely the last freestyle I’d see from Derek. Embarrassing, but true
Rooting for he and Shawn because of the growth she showed this season, and the incredible routines they gave us.
My brain keeps saying the only way they would let Shawn (the best dancer, IMO)go into tonight in 3rd place is that she’s blowing everyone away votes-wise, and they like the come-from-behind story (one scenario Heidi outlined-great post, BTW). But I know logic doesn’t always rule the day at DWTS, unfortunately…
#54 Melissa said: I also feel like they handed Mlissa this win. They did all but scroll vote for Melissa on our screens.
I guess they didn’t want to be that shameless.
Wow, just watched Derek and Shawn on Access Hollywood and their confessional where they are talking about those very ending flips – decided to do it during the dance and never rehearsed it before. Wow. And Derek almost didn’t make it – not enough momentum. The things you learn from watching these videos.
Derek also goes into a lot of detail for why they chose the dance they did and how they feel about the scores, etc. Very interesting dude, that Derek Hough.
We think very much a like, Heidi! I think I commented the same thing on the Power Rankings post. I’m beyond impressed with how in sync they were for it too. I can’t see any other pro or celeb having the ability to pull of changing a routine mid dance live show. I will miss Derek a lot after this season of DWTS, but I look forward to see all else he can do beyond this show. Which we know is a lot!
Hef just tweeted that Kelly Monaco got 2nd place! What????
Am I getting ahead of myself? But Val, Melissa, tony are tweeting kinda like they know they didn’t win where both Shawn and Derek tweets were thanking the fans- none of this no matter what happens talk…hmmm wishful thinking? Derek told Maria they weren’t moving forward…do the couples really not know??? Like Brooke is BFF with Derek she doesn’t whisper in his ear?! Lol…I mean it is reality television everything is not what it always seems….who knows
He probably was thinking about the leader board, that she was second.
I hope that’s it Laila
Andddd as I typed that post Hugh Hefner posted that on twitter?! Wtf?!?!?!
Let me just say this. If this truly is Derek’s last season…what an amazing way to go. Their freestyle was amazing. The music was unique and yet familiar…and the dancing sublime. The tricks were amazing…if best freestyle wins…Shawn and Derek win hands down. Of course, personal preference also comes into play, because best freestyle or not… If my favorite star had been in…I’d have voted for him before it ever got to the freestyle round. Normally, I don’t switch votes once my favorite is gone…but this time I did…and whether they win or lose…their freestyle will go down as one of my favorite dances ever.
Seriously?! Melissa gets another samba??
Yeah. And the ball was accidentally broken open already. :::smirk:::
The Melissa things get more subtle by the week, not only she gets the samba again, but she also get the last person shot from the opening package.
Really? They needed to inflict that Bollywood on us again? I think it was a poor choice, because in comparison to Shawn and Derek’s Bhangra, it looked so simplistic and even sloppier than the first time – and noticeably so!
That was kind of anti-climatic in a I could of had a V-8 kind of way.
Okay, site is acting kinda weird. Patience.
Only Emmitt had a shot at being the Champion of Champions.
Everybody else either didn’t win before or they had a different pro partner in the past.
So, the comments about Champion of Champions are pointless from day one.
You make a good point, Carrie. Hadn’t really thought of it quite that way before.
Len and Carrie Ann made the point to Derek and Shawn that they chose to break the rules, knowing that they were called on it the first time, and that if they don’t make it, it’s all on them. They received lower scores because of it. If they had just done it right and kept to the rules, they would of received 10′s more than likely. That would have given them the judges numbers that would of almost guaranteed a win.
They broke the rules for the fans,but did all their fans see it that way or agree with it?
It was also a surprise that Shawn was so willing to go along with breaking rules when her life was spent living up to the rules and winning.
Derek and Mark both have a tendency to do what they want, knowing they are going to get away with it anyway. Derek did the hold break..even though he did receive lower scores..it was not as low as it would have been had any other pro tried that. Mark did the dead fish thing for the V Waltz, knowing that had no place in it. ( Yet he got the request dance for it).
The sad part is both Derek and Mark are such good dancers, why resort to such tactics.Marks parents were Ballroom champs and Derek was as much as raised with them, they would never have done such a thing in their competitions.
Also, would it have been fair for Derek to win, after as much as ignoring the rules, while those who have kept the rules were denied a win?
I would be interested in seeing what the final spread was between Shawn and Melissa, given how the scores panned out, and how many votes Shawn needed at the end of the day to win.