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PureDWTS Season 20, Week 8 – Power Rankings

Not a whole lot to lead-in with – apologize that these didn’t come last night (I try to have the power rankings up before going to bed on Mondays with a results show the following day), but I had a cake to make and my icing gun broke and I kinda lost all my will to live…momentarily 🙂 Then I slept and I was ok.  Definite judges’ agenda last night, and it seemed to be “make sure Rumer makes it to week 9 AT ALL COSTS, and kinda try to shield Nastia & Riker while you’re at it – the rest are expendable”.  Len has completely lost all credibility for me at this point – just seems like he’s following the directions being fed to him by TPTB each week, even if it means contradicting himself.  Random epiphany I had while watching Robert’s samba trio: how cool would it be to have a pro samba to George Michael’s “Freedom ’90” with the pros playing female & male models? 😉

Also, a point of clarification on Nastia’s “meltdown” in their package: per Deep Throat, that occurred at the end of an 8-hour rehearsal, and Nastia was already planning on heading home – so yeah, she didn’t “walk out of rehearsal in anger”, as some are trying to spin it. Also interesting to note: sometimes the staff filming the rehearsals are encouraged to ask kinda inflammatory questions in order to amp up the drama when the pros and celebs are feeling tired, anxious, stressed, etc – so the frustration you saw from Nastia was more than likely her getting irritated by a needling cameraman, rather than with Derek. Felt that this required clarification, since some of Derek’s detractors seem to be having a field day on Twitter over Nastia’s “outburst”. Hehe – I’ll show you a REAL outburst. Just goes to show that the narrative of the show has gotten so out-of-control that you can’t trust the rehearsal packages anymore. Read more..

May 5, 2015 I Written By

Ultrasound sales specialist by day, semi-knowledgeable DWTS fan by night...with a smattering of hair & makeup enthusiast, occasional model, baker, and crazy cat lady peppered in to make things REALLY interesting ;-) I might pee my pants in happiness if Donnie Wahlberg ever does DWTS - or if they ever use "Sunglasses at Night" as a paso doble.

PureDWTS Season 20, Week 6 – Power Rankings

Let’s play a game 🙂 It’s called “Who can come up with the most ridiculous, subjective, and flimsy critique for a dance that’s nearly flawless???” I’ll start!!!  “Nastia, your pupils were FAR too dilated while you were doing that tango – it made me feel like you were undressing me with your eyes!” Or how ’bout this? “Derek, the pleats on your pants weren’t sharp enough – and it really detracted from the dance for me.” YOUR TURN!!! I think you guys get the point I’m trying to make – some of the critiques have gotten so out of control that the judges really seem like they’re grasping at straws to appear superior and relevant.  Or they’re just trying to make sure that Nastia doesn’t get too confident, even though she is every bit as good as Rumer & Riker.  Whatever, guys – I guess just keep spinning the “Wheel O’ Excuses Why We Simply Can’t Just Tell Nastia She Did Well” back in your trailers to keep things colorful…and to keep the season’s agenda on-track.

Besides Nastia, I STILL feel like Robert is getting the short end of the stick from the judges and can’t do anything right in their eyes; and then there’s Chris, who looks downright miserable all the time, barely moves, and the judges just FAWN over him.  Here’s a bit of a “behind the scenes” scoop for you guys, free of charge: CHRIS DOES NOT WANT TO BE THERE.  Sure, it’s totally written all over his face whenever the camera pans to him, but just confirming it for you – the dude was legit disappointed that he didn’t get sent home last week.  And can you really blame him? He’s struggling hardcore each week, he’s butting heads with Witney, and I’m pretty sure he just wants to get back to the farm to have some wild hayloft sex with his Whitney.  Or something like that.  While I think it was Patti’s time to go either this week or next week, I still would have rather kept her over Chris – at least she was having fun, even if she wasn’t really doing a whole lot.  She was still entertaining. Read more..

April 21, 2015 I Written By

Ultrasound sales specialist by day, semi-knowledgeable DWTS fan by night...with a smattering of hair & makeup enthusiast, occasional model, baker, and crazy cat lady peppered in to make things REALLY interesting ;-) I might pee my pants in happiness if Donnie Wahlberg ever does DWTS - or if they ever use "Sunglasses at Night" as a paso doble.

PureDWTS Season 20, Week 4 – Power Rankings

Well, after shedding more tears than I intended to last night, I’m left feeling a tad uncertain about how things are shaking out these season.  Though Michael left on a high note with his best dance yet, he still seemed to get underscored relative to some of the other couples, and it just kinda makes me resent the fact that the judges nitpicked him to death week after week.  Though he seemed like he was at peace with getting eliminated, I still can think of at least 3 other celebs that should have gotten sent him before he did.  But moving right along…

…Len seemed unusually disgruntled last night, and the only people he seemed to really gush about were Robert & Willow.  He’s still not too fond of Riker or Nastia, but he seems like he turned on Rumer a bit this week, too.  Julianne seemed to love just about everyone, but did kinda surprise me when she told Robert he had the best technique of the men this season – perhaps trying to draw attention away from #RikerNotADancer and his suspiciously good technique? Tuned out when Carrie Ann & Bruno spoke, so I can’t really say anything about them.  The big announcement that the cast is touring again this summer? Meh.  If they think Melissa’s gonna be as big a draw as Alfonso, god love them. Oh, and if you didn’t hear already – the switch-up is cancelled, and we don’t know why.  *shrug* No skin off my back.  Is it Disney week yet??? 😀 Read more..

April 7, 2015 I Written By

Ultrasound sales specialist by day, semi-knowledgeable DWTS fan by night...with a smattering of hair & makeup enthusiast, occasional model, baker, and crazy cat lady peppered in to make things REALLY interesting ;-) I might pee my pants in happiness if Donnie Wahlberg ever does DWTS - or if they ever use "Sunglasses at Night" as a paso doble.

PureDWTS Season 19, Week 6 – Power Rankings

I apologize for this being so ungodly late, but between all of the media and other posts we had going up earlier, a sh*tastic day at work, and some of you just generally driving me to drink, I decided that these rankings could wait a bit.  Side note: if you wanna talk about the team dances next week, go here; if you so desire to vote for the dance styles and songs that the couples are dancing in week 7 (I think), this post has directions.  I’m pretty partial to the idea of Tommy doing a Viennese waltz to “I’d Rather Go Blind”, but to each his own 😉

After two hours of Pitbull the peanut-butter eating, Spanglish-speaking naked mole rat judging, I still have no idea was “DALE!!!” means.  Oh well – I guess when it all came down to it, he was a halfway decent judge; he saw right through the showmance front that Vajanel put up, and actually knew the names of a few salsa steps to compliment  Alfonso on.  Doesn’t mean I ever want to see him as a judge again, though 😉 But hey, Mr. Worldwide needed a plug for his gig hosting the American Music Awards, so I guess that’s why we got him this week…

…the judging seemed kinder this week, so I wonder if there was a huge backlash from some of the out-and-out cruelty we saw last week and the judges were told to ease up a bit.  Still think Alfonso & Sadie (and now Bethany) are getting nitpicked, while Janel, Antonio, & Tommy are getting babied a bit; Lea and Mike are a toss-up each week.  Will be  interesting  to see if the dynamic of the judging panel changes at all with Len back – wonder if we’ll start to see more complaints about “messin’ about”, and Julianne will suddenly become the “nice judge” now that Len the critic is back.

Jonathan, Jonathan, Jonathan – kinda stinks that he didn’t last longer, but if he had to get eliminated, at least he went out on a high note.  His jazz was probably his (and Allison’s) best dance yet.  Not sure Allison made a strong enough showing to warrant getting asked back as a pro again next season, but we shall see…

1.) Alfonso & Witney – Perhaps not the most “strictly salsa” salsa we’ve ever seen on the show, but I can’t blame Witney for sneaking in some hip-hop to play to Alfonso’s strengths.  Thought he could have used a bit more hip action, but then I have to wonder if Witney tried to keep the steps a bit tight & boxy in order to baby his groin injury.  Still a very enjoyable routine – there was some complex stuff in there, and Alfonso managed to stay on-time and in-step with Witney. He’s still the showman of this season, for sure – and with the way the crowd goes crazy after his dances, I think he’s gonna be around till the end. 🙂 Read more..

October 21, 2014 I Written By

Ultrasound sales specialist by day, semi-knowledgeable DWTS fan by night...with a smattering of hair & makeup enthusiast, occasional model, baker, and crazy cat lady peppered in to make things REALLY interesting ;-) I might pee my pants in happiness if Donnie Wahlberg ever does DWTS - or if they ever use "Sunglasses at Night" as a paso doble.

Dancing with the Stars Season 19, Week 6 – Who’s Dancing What….and When? (Song Spoilers)

It’s Pitbull week! Except not really…oh wait, I know! It’s Latin week! Nope, not really that either…hmmm.  Who the hell knows what the theme of this week is supposed to be.  Some couples are dancing to Pitbull songs, but not all of them; and we’ve got a few ballroom dances peppered into a bunch of Latin dances…oh, and one lone jazz.  A little something for everyone, I suppose.

I could see Jonathan making a bit of a comeback this week, since jazz seems like it would be right in he & Allison’s wheelhouse; Mike is likely pretty screwed with the Argentine tango.  Tommy could go either way with the foxtrot – it’s his first “true” ballroom dance, so it will be interesting to see how he fares.  At the top of the leader board? I’m guessing Janel gets rave reviews for her samba, regardless of how good it actually is, because they need her to have a comeback week; I think Sadie will unfortunately be back to getting low balled after finally getting the scores she deserves last week. Ditto for Alfonso – I fully expect him to get nitpicked to death AGAIN, and if he & Witney are going the route I think they are with their salsa, they could be taking a big risk…so I’m bracing myself for the most harsh critique they’ve had yet.  Bethany? One big question mark…this will be her first “intense” dance, which could work for her or against her.

Heidi is currently traveling and has limited computer access, but she wanted to make sure this went up for you guys 🙂 She should be back later tonight with more intel…

ETA: I’m Baaaackkk! With Lea and Artem’s song – and no, it’s NOT the Iggy Azalea version. I also wanted to add that I’ve been rewatching the show and left something out of my numbers post that I wanted to mention. I REALLY appreciate and love how the dancers in the sky box are wearing little tribute costumes to one of their cohorts from time to time. This past week they were all wearing dreadlocks after Tommy’s dance, and this was after they were all imitating Tony after his audition tape was shown.  The previous week they all had beards and duck calls. They show a lot of camaraderie with each other that is fun to watch.  Which makes the judges and their behavior that much more dreadful.  ~Heidi

ETA2: Lots of complaining by Derek fans about his and Beth’s song. Chillax, people. Of all people, he can handle it. And if it doesn’t work? Well, it happens. Jonathan? Much harder to tell how that’s going to go. 🙂 Oh, and if you scrooooooll down, you’ll see Derek and Beth had a special visitor in their rehearsal. ~Heidi

ETA3: We think we know who sings Antonio’s song, but we’re not 100%. Be sure to tune into our Live blog tonight for some potential spoilers for next week. 🙂

Janel and  Val – Samba
Vote: 1-800-868-3405

Jonathan and Allison – Jazz (Song: “Back in Time” by Pitbull )
Vote: 1-800-868-3406

Bethany and Derek – Tango (Song: “Jealous (I ain’t with it)” by Chromeo )
Vote: 1-800-868-3403

Alfonso and Witney – Salsa (Song: “Booty” by Jennifer Lopez feat. Pitbull  )
Vote: 1-800-868-3401

Lea and Artem – Salsa (Song:  “Sexy People (The Fiat Song)” by Arianna feat. Pitbull )
Vote: 1-800-868-3407

Michael and Emma – Argentine tango
Vote: 1-800-868-3409

Antonio and Cheryl – Salsa (Song: “Bailando” by Enrique Iglesias, we THINK )
Vote: 1-800-868-3402

Tommy and Peta – Foxtrot (Song: “September” by Earth, Wind, & Fire )
Vote: 1-800-868-3413

Sadie and Mark – Rumba (Song: “Diamonds” by Rihanna )
Vote: 1-800-868-3411

Some more not-so-subtle clues from Alfonso & Witney…

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Oooh @therealalfonsoribeiro … dat booty tho #DWTS #TeamWitfonso @witneycarson

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@bethanynoelm and I Gettin our tango on Down Under !! #motough

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October 16, 2014 I Written By

Ultrasound sales specialist by day, semi-knowledgeable DWTS fan by night...with a smattering of hair & makeup enthusiast, occasional model, baker, and crazy cat lady peppered in to make things REALLY interesting ;-) I might pee my pants in happiness if Donnie Wahlberg ever does DWTS - or if they ever use "Sunglasses at Night" as a paso doble.

PureDWTS Season 19, Week 3 – Power Rankings

Well, I guess the euphoria of having my dream contestant on DWTS would finally wear off – and this was the week that it happened.  What a three-ring circus of nitpicking, wonky scoring, and overall chaos.  From what I saw from the judges – crack is whack, and so is meth, heroin, and bath salts, apparently.  Julianne wins the “twatwaffle of the night” award, for generally just being a bit of a cranky b*tch – so in other words, she was filling in for Len.  Hooray.

Sorry, but the wrong person went home – Randy may not have been the best dancer, but he was not nearly as bad as the score he got last week OR this week…but hey, the judges need their scores & critiques justified, so they had to screw him somehow.  Absolutely no reason that he should have been forced to go first TWO weeks in a row, basically making a mad dash from the opening  number to the quickchange; and to add insult to injury, this week he had to do it after being told he was in jeopardy.  Classy, Wade. I just might have to spoil a bunch of sh*t early to get back at you…

…as for Kevin, I actually think he turned out being a pretty decent judge.  I liked that he didn’t seem like he was out to really critique anyone, and tried to see the positive in everyone’s routines.  Also enjoyed his humor, and thought it was kinda cool how he seemed genuinely moved by Bethany & Derek’s dance.  He can come back anytime and enthusiastically yell out scores 😉

1.) TIE: Bethany & Derek and Janel & Val – So the first two perfect 40’s of the season.  I feel one was deserved; the other? Meh. Felt like an awful lot of emphasis was placed on Janel & Val’s struggles with switching the routine, there was a lot of futzing around at the beginning of the routine, and then the score was almost given as a consolation prize for putting up with the crap.  Sure, Janel handled what she was given decently well – she should, given her background – but a 40? For wiping Val’s abs with a towel? Sorry, not buying it.  But hey, they seem bound & determined to make Vajanel happen, so I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised.  As for Bethany – I had been worried, after hearing that her ankle injury was still very much an issue; but thank the lord Derek was able to choreograph something that was true to Singin’ in the Rain while being feasible for her to execute.  God bless umbrella work that doesn’t go awry 🙂 And Bethany kept up, and for the first time, she really seemed 100% invested in the routine, which is what I’ve been wanting from her since the first week. I don’t see either going anywhere for awhile, but it should be interesting to see who fares better next week… Read more..

September 30, 2014 I Written By

Ultrasound sales specialist by day, semi-knowledgeable DWTS fan by night...with a smattering of hair & makeup enthusiast, occasional model, baker, and crazy cat lady peppered in to make things REALLY interesting ;-) I might pee my pants in happiness if Donnie Wahlberg ever does DWTS - or if they ever use "Sunglasses at Night" as a paso doble.

PureDWTS Season 19 Mini-Spoiler O’ the Day – Sept. 11

4 days till the premiere! And we’ve still got spoilers for ya 😉

If you’re looking for song and dance spoilers for Monday night’s show, check out Heidi’s “Who’s Dancing What?” post – we’ll continue to update it throughout the weekend.  My mini-spoilers are primarily going to be intel on coming weeks and how the couples are doing in rehearsals…as well as any other random tidbits that fall into my lap 😉 Read more..

September 11, 2014 I Written By

Ultrasound sales specialist by day, semi-knowledgeable DWTS fan by night...with a smattering of hair & makeup enthusiast, occasional model, baker, and crazy cat lady peppered in to make things REALLY interesting ;-) I might pee my pants in happiness if Donnie Wahlberg ever does DWTS - or if they ever use "Sunglasses at Night" as a paso doble.

PureDWTS Season 19 Music Wish List

Normally this list would be a lot longer, but John, Heidi, & Lori all had brain farts on music – leaving Vogue & I to pick up the slack 😉 Here’s some of the songs we’d love to hear on DWTS this season…and we want to hear yours! Let us know in the comments what songs you’re hoping get used on the show!

Courtney:

“Chandelier” by Sia – This has been on repeat on my iPod all summer.  Just a great song for a contemporary routine.

“It’s Not Unusual” by Tom Jones – I’ve wished for it before, and now that we finally got Alfonso on the show, I need to see a quickstep to it…or maybe even a quickstep/samba fusion 😉

“Sunglasses at Night” by Corey Hart – My perennial song wish – you guys know this 🙂 Well I wished for Alfonso & got him – maybe Rob Wade will give me my much-anticipated paso doble to this one! 😎

“You & I (Nobody in the World)” by John Legend – While everyone was going crazy over “All of Me” last season, my favorite song off of John’s latest album is this one – it’s kind of the R&B answer to Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight”: a guy telling his lady she’s beautiful no matter what, as he watches her get ready to go out at night.  And if you haven’t seen the video yet, go watch it right MEOW – it’s just perfect.  If I only see one rumba all season – I want it to be to this song.

“Stay” by Shakespears Sister – Thought about this song last season upon finding out that Candace & Charlie were dancing to Sam Smith’s “Stay with Me”.  It’s a pretty old song, but it would make a stellar song for a contemporary routine – hell, I think it would make a fantastic contemporary TRIO song, based on the narrative of the music video.  Give it to Derek and watch him work wonders 🙂

“Conjunction Junction” from Schoolhouse RockHad an epiphany the other night while watching a documentary about Schoolhouse Rock – how fun would it be if they did a Schoolhouse Rock theme week? This song would make such a fun foxtrot, and would allow the pros to show off a bit more of a playful side.

“All About That Bass” by Meghan Trainor – This song is so ridiculously catchy, and my sister and I have a running inside joke about this song and a gif of a dancing honey badger.  Just don’t ask 😛 Would be a fun cha-cha.

“Love Runs Out” by OneRepublic – A currently-popular song that’s actually appropriate for paso doble.  So please, producers – no more duds like “Sail”.

Vogue:

“Billy Jean” by Michael Jackson – I’d love to see Alfonso bring this song to life as his older self being this is the song he did with Michael in the Pepsi commercial. That could possibly give us a big “Michael Jackson” moment and I love how this show features something by Michael almost every season.

“A Place With No Name” by Michael Jackson – This is my favorite song currently. I’d freak if the pros performed this in a group number. They could bring on Sharna’s boyfriend Paul Kirkland to dance as well and help with choreography being he performs in the new Michael Jackson Vegas show.

“Come Get It Bae” by Pharrell – This is another one of my current favorite songs. I don’t care who performs it or how….just so they do it. I know Sharna likes this song a lot too.

“Hunter” by Pharrell – Being this song has “Duck Dynasty” mentions, I’d love to see Mark and Sadie dance to this song. Not sure if it’s age or lyric appropriate (maybe the band could fix it somehow?), but, it’s a great dance song.

“Anything Goes” by Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga – What a beautiful song for a Fox Trot or a Waltz.

“Bailando” by Enrique Iglesias – This would be such a great song for a “Latin” group number. The cast could bring the video to life.

“Fairytale” by Alexander Rybak – What a cool and snappy pop Irish/Hungarian “gypsie” jig. A song like this would make a great mix up to the show. I was hooked the first time I heard it.

Queremos Paz” by The Gotan Project – This song would be so cool for a Tango or Argnetine Tango. Actually, I’d take anything by The Gotan Project for a Latin number. Ssssssssssss

 

Now let’s hear your suggestions! 😎

September 10, 2014 I Written By

Ultrasound sales specialist by day, semi-knowledgeable DWTS fan by night...with a smattering of hair & makeup enthusiast, occasional model, baker, and crazy cat lady peppered in to make things REALLY interesting ;-) I might pee my pants in happiness if Donnie Wahlberg ever does DWTS - or if they ever use "Sunglasses at Night" as a paso doble.

DWTS Season 18, THE FINALE, Part 2 – Let’s Recap Tonight’s Show (Spoilers)

Repeat of rules from last night/last week: Once again, due to heavy traffic, we have to institute a few ground rules for tonight show. Most of these are good rules ALL OF THE TIME, and are basic netiquette.

  1. DO NOT hit refresh every few seconds – in fact, do not hit refresh every five minutes! Read, comment if you like, then walk away from the computer for five to ten minutes. I know this is hard, but it will prevent others from losing their minds trying to read and/or update the site.
  2. DO NOT use the comment section like it’s twitter – it’s not twitter. Make an actual comment with context of who you’re talking about, who you’re talking to (if it applies), etc. Context, and more than one line. If you break this rule more than one time, I start deleting. If you do it a couple times, you’ll find yourself on moderation.  Perhaps for life. 🙂  Keep in mind that if you can’t follow this rule, I can make you follow it.
  3. Try very hard to keep the ugly to a minimum. Think before you post. If you’ve been called out previously on this blog for your behavior, this will be extra important because there’s only so much I will tolerate. I’m not talking about differing opinions, I’m talking about nasty. If I get the sense that you are purposely trolling  (look it up if you’re not sure), I will just block you. No warning other than this one.

Again, we’ve turned on the Comment Moderation feature for the entire site. That way, in the event of an unexpected elimination, we can week out any trouble makers that much quicker. 😉

So, if you’re in rehab from the drinking during last night’s show, raise your hand. 😀 Read more..

May 20, 2014 I Written By

I'm a nerd and proud of it. Two degrees in geology also means I love BEER. :-) I'm also a Derek lover - proud of that too. So don't scream at those of us on this site and call us a bunch of "biased Derek-lovers" - it's just ME. :-) It may sound like I hate DWTS at times, but really, I'm just a snarky nitpicker from way back. And I'm cynical and jaded too. But I do love DWTS. :-)

PureDWTS Season 18, The Finale – Power Rankings

Well, that’s that, I guess – just go ahead and give Maks Meryl her MBT and let’s be done with this.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen a finale tip its hand as much as it did last night – it was made quite clear who they wanted to keep far away from the MBT (Candace), who they wanted to make the final two (Amy & Meryl), and who they ultimately want/need to win (Meryl & Maks…duh).  I was rather disgusted that everyone (including Erin & the judges) seemed to jump on the ridiculous Meryl & Maks showmance bandwagon, but then again, I’m not at all surprised – I will forever remember season 18 as the season that DWTS decided to adopt the “tabloid sleaze” angle.  It won’t be a pleasant memory.

And I know it’s not just me, as a jaded DWTS viewer/blogger, that was put off by last night’s show – the bf actually had a rare day off yesterday, after being tied up with a competition over the weekend, and he came over for dinner and decided to stay & watch the show.  Those of you who follow me on Twitter got to hear some of his gems while watching the show last night – but for those who didn’t, I think this quote best sums up his feelings about the whole thing: “This is such a waste of my life right now.” He was appalled at the judging (“When did this bimbo ever do ballroom in her life???”), appalled at the teaching (he was especially taken aback by Mark forcefully moving Candace’s head during rehearsal – and he’s even friendly with Mark!), appalled at the choreography (“Why the hell is Maks doing contemporary? He’s a ballroom dancer!”), and was oddly disturbed by the fact that none of the pros seem to wear the proper footwear to teach in (“They could seriously hurt themselves…Argentine tango is not meant to be done in Nikes.”) He did seem rather impressed with one thing, though: how good Amy is, despite her disability.  He didn’t even realize she was missing the entire lower portion of her leg until I explained her story – and then he was just floored.

Can’t say I’m terribly surprised that James just couldn’t make his way past Candace last night – I think he unfortunately had a bit of an unmemorable week last week, and Candace does seem to have some fervent fan support.  Was left feeling rather puzzled by both of his dances last night – his tango felt a little bit chaotic & desperate (hello, kiss – guess everyone was trying to make a ploy for showmance votes last night), and his freestyle just felt…aimless.  Guess we now know how Peta does with freestyles when she doesn’t have any outward assistance from other pros.

Gonna do things in reverse tonight – start with 3rd place and work up to the winner…

3rd place: Candace & Mark

I think the judges all but ensured that Candace will wind up in 3rd when the chips are down tonight – while I agree with most that she’s the weakest dancer left, I don’t think she’s as bad as some of the scores she was given last night.  I guess I agree with her quickstep score – there still seemed to be a few frame and body contact issues, but really, it’s the finale – would it have killed them to give her just one 10? Or is she pulling in THAT many votes that they’re afraid she might overtake Amy or Darling Meryl? I just get the impression that Candace has been one variable that TPTB hadn’t planned on this season – she seems to have a lot more support than they thought she would, and that has led to some serious hosing over the weeks.  As for her freestyle – I don’t think it was nearly as bad as being 8-worthy across the board.  9-worthy, maybe.  I thought she connected well to the music and gave it a good effort – seemed like she was having fun out there.  Sure, maybe she was a little clunky coming out of some of the lifts, but it didn’t detract from the performance THAT much.  In the end, I’m left feeling a little torn on Candace: I feel bad for her, with some of the unnecessary hosing she’s gotten this season; but in the same token, I think she’s lucky to have gotten as far as she has, and should feel proud to be a finalist.  I think she’s had great journey this season 🙂

Runner-up: Amy & Derek

If they gave the MBT to whoever overcame the greatest odds in order to end up in the finale, Amy & Derek would be a shoo-in, for sure.  But unfortunately, there seems to be a different agenda at play this season, so I think the best these two can end up with is second place.  Loved both of their routines last night – thought their salsa was a nice step-up from the one she did with Mark, and had plenty of content; and Derek STILL reigns supreme in the freestyle – I think the edge Derek has is that he’s better able to tell a story than some others with his choreography; I understood the theme and plot he was trying to convey with that routine, and he managed to still do some pretty awesome lifts and creative stuff in it.  Thought the rope was genius at the end – kinda symbolized for me the journey Amy has taken on the show, and her ability to handle things that no one would ever guess she’s capable of.  Of course the naysayers will claim there wasn’t enough content – what they fail to realize is that, just because she wasn’t necessarily on her feet for every single step, does not mean there “wasn’t content”; hell, I think doing that rope spin was far more difficult than any pirouette or pique Derek could have had her do on the ground.  But whatever – these two have already won this season for me, and I daresay Amy has a bright future ahead 🙂

The winner: Meryl & Maks

Since the focus of this partnership all season long seems to be Maks (with Meryl as an accessory), I’ll respond in kind and make this critique about him, since I don’t think Meryl is the problem (other than the fact that she herself seems to have bought into the hype of “Maks has never won, Maks deserves to win” and is falling into step with it instead of actually standing up for herself).  Meryl is going to dance whatever she’s given FLAWLESSLY.  The problem is (and has been all season), that what Maks has given her has not been all that impressive.  And I stand by that statement tonight, because even the redo Argentine tango he gave her (which I guess is his favorite dance) paled in comparison choreographically to what his lil bro gave her over a month ago for me.  And here’s why: Maks seems to have a lot of “moments”, but isn’t quite adept at stringing them altogether to make a coherent routine.  Val, on the other hand, seems to see the whole picture: he understands that a dance, like a story, needs a beginning, middle, and end, plus some fluid transitions to make it all flow together seamlessly.  Plus, Val did his thing with a far more difficult song, and with a partner that he had only worked with for a few days.  And then there’s the freestyle: looks like Maks’ idea of being “creative” and doing something “never before seen on DWTS” involves creating a derivative, watered-down version of a winning freestyle from a year ago and acting as if it’s something brand-new and ground-breaking.  I actually don’t even think this was choreographically as strong as their rumba from a few weeks ago – and that was barely a rumba.  I think if he really wanted to showcase Meryl’s abilities, he would have shunned the ooey-gooey showmance-promoting route and choreographed something more upbeat and full of both lifts and energetic dance steps.  Show us how versatile she really is, instead of rehashing what we’ve already seen from her.  And for Pete’s sake, do something that actually seems to illustrate her journey on DWTS. Hell, at the beginning of the season, I had envisioned some wild, celebratory freestyle to “Gypsy” by Lady Gaga (which would have even appealed to the shippers on some level, while still nodding to all the traveling she & Maks have done together this season). So given what I just said, you’ll have to forgive me when I ask “So WHY does Maks ‘deserve to win’?” He’s struggled with choreography, he’s struggled with crafting routines that showcase his partner, and he’s struggled with his own behavior.  “But Courtney, it’s not about Maks – it’s about MERYL!!!!” I’m sure some of you are going to cry – to which I say “She’s an Olympic gold medal ice dancer that hasn’t been truly challenged all season long.  Should she win the MBT for (no pun intended) skating through the season without much of a struggle?” I look at all the tough stuff that Amy & Charlie in particular have had thrown at them throughout the season by their respective pros – and how they’ve struggled, and toiled, and still overcome those obstacles.  There’s just no comparison for me.  But everyone is going to vote how they’re going to vote (and that’s fine), and I think the die has already been cast that this was “Maks’ season” from the get-go – and everyone has just kind of fallen in line with that mindset.  It will be a hollow win, though, IMO – and it’s one I’m sure we’re going to be hearing about for the next 5 years, a la Donny Osmond.  But whatever helps Maks (and his fans) feel validated, I guess.

So there’s my two cents.  What’s yours? 🙂 Just as a side note: I still do post here at PureDWTS in the off-season, but with America’s Got Talent starting up next week, you’ll probably see more of me over at Pure AGT this summer.   If you’re a fan of the show, come join us! We’re a small (but entertaining) group 😉

I Written By

Ultrasound sales specialist by day, semi-knowledgeable DWTS fan by night...with a smattering of hair & makeup enthusiast, occasional model, baker, and crazy cat lady peppered in to make things REALLY interesting ;-) I might pee my pants in happiness if Donnie Wahlberg ever does DWTS - or if they ever use "Sunglasses at Night" as a paso doble.