Well, side-by-side challenge night went about as well as can be expected when you put complete amateurs (well, and a ringer or twoâŚ) next to seasoned pros with years of experience under their belts. If nothing else, it let us see some sorely missed pros doing what they do best đ The judges have made it pretty clear at this point who their favorites are (ZENDAYA, Kellie, Jacoby, & Aly), who they are lukewarm about (Sean & Ingo), and who is disposable (Victor, D.L., and unfortunately, now Andy), and seem to be scoring accordingly. And dare I say that many of the pros came out dancing at full throttleâŚbut noticeably slowed down and calmed down when the celebs joined them on the floor? No bueno. And god bless Tom for soldiering through what had to be a tough night for Bostonians đ Letâs get on with itâŚ
1.) Zendaya & Val â It was a good dance, and I was actually impressed with Valâs first venture into Argentine tango choreography â and thankfully, he seemed to eschew the multitude of lifts big bro seems so fond of, and put in some good basic steps. Zendaya handled pretty well, and I liked the jewel thief storyline â I was worried they were going to go more the smut route, which would have feltâŚicky. But this was appropriate đ So that was the good â now hereâs the bad: I donât think it was 10-worthy. Sorry kids. Once again, I find myself just fixated on how BENT Zendayaâs legs are â yes, I am aware she is tall, and yes, Argentine tango is usually done with a flexed knee. But girl was damn near SQUATTING â and consequently, it made her upper body look that much more flimsy when they were in hold. I hate when tall people (male or female) try to compensate for a shorter dance partner â it almost always looks awkward, and you donât get the full impact of their lines. I say stand up straight and forget about whoâs taller â the bf has 2 female students that have a good 3â on him in heels, and when theyâre dancing to the full extent, itâs MAGICALâŚtheir legs just go on forever. You donât even worry about whoâs taller, because the lines are so gorgeous. So with that said â these two are obviously safe (and thankfully, there were no Twitter machinations this week to tip things in their favor), but I do think Zendayaâs legs will continue to be an issue in the coming weeks.
2.) Kellie & Derek â Iâve always loved Derekâs foxtrots, and the Broadway quality & character they have to them. This was no exception â great side-by-side, playful choreography, and Kellie seemed to handle the sweeping motions of the foxtrot well. She seemed to get a bit stiff in her neck and shoulders at a few times, which looked a bit awkward, but other than that, she handled this routine well and I liked watching her do it. I think she probably came the closest to mirroring her pro counterpart tonight â and I think she has Derek to thank for not dumbing down the choreography, because in most of the routines, the pros went from dancing full-on, difficult steps to dancing simple, kindergarten steps without much energy. It gave me whiplash, at times. But the transition in this one felt seamless â the way Kellie was keeping up, it felt more like another pro couple joining Henry & Anna on the floor, rather than âOh sh*t, here comes the celeb, better slow it downâŚNOW!â So even if Kellie âdoesnât like Derekâs waysâ â I think it was those âwaysâ that probably helped her look so good tonight. đ Read more..
