Cat has her hair pulled back tonight, which doesn’t look nearly as good as when it’s forward. I may just be being picky though. The group number tonight is a Bollywood routine. Despite the lights being a little on overload, the number is entertaining and it looks like it was a lot of fun to dance. Will kind of draws the attention, which is no surprise. Cat pimps the shows 4 deserved Emmy nominations. She is also back to saying “jidges”, which is her one non-endearing trait. We get an extended recap of last night. God that Pas De Deux was amazing.
There are gonna be three group dances tonight, which is awesome. Next up is a Mia routine with the five girls. This is also pretty darn good. There’s a great ethereal quality to it, and the use of space is really interesting. The subdued lighting makes a serious improvement, because you’re not being distracted by a bunch of strobing lights. I’ve seen better Mia before, but this would be somewhere near the top of the list. Cat warns us it’s time to get down to business. But not serious business, because we’re just revealing the bottom two girls. I think it’s pretty obvious that it’s going to be Kherington and Comfort. Chelsie is the first to be revealed as safe. Comfort is up next, and she is told that she is, in fact, one of the bottom two. Katee’s next, and because she was awesome last night, she’s safe. Courtney and Kherington are left, and, with little drama it’s revealed that Kherington is the other member of the bottom two, meaning Courtney is safe.
It’s time for the boys group number by a mystery choreographer. This is far and away the best Broadway number there has ever been on the show. The energy is high, the movement is fun, and everyone has moments where they shine. Actually, I’m not sure this is fully Broadway, since there seems to be stepping in the middle. But, seriously, my socks are kind of rocked off. And color me not particularly surprised when it’s revealed that the choreographer is actually Nigel. And color me seriously kinda impressed too. But now onto sad times, as we have to reveal the bottom two guys. Joshua is up first, and, despite him seeming scared, he’s safe. Will was ridiculous last night, so no surprise when he’s safe. He is seriously relieved though, so I don’t think he was expecting that. Mark is next, and I’m really sad when he ends up in the bottom two. I’ll have to vote more for him next week. Gev and Twitch are the last two, and we revisit their nights before it’s revealed that Gev is joining Mark in the bottom two. Which means my favorite two guys are the bottom. Twitch really should have been in Gev’s place and probably should be going home. But America disagrees. Darn you, America. I shake my fist at you.
Every member of the bottom four gets to dance a solo, possibly for the last time, so…
Solo Time
Comfort- Well, this is a lot better than last nights. She’s got enthusiasm and energy. Basically, though, I think she’s just trying to go out with a bang. But it’s a good one. Mary thinks she did an excellent job last night, and Comfort makes Lil’ Cs heart race. He spouts philosophical before telling Comfort she’s grown more than anyone else. Comfort is just glad to be back.
Mark- Mark is just so bizarre and uses his body in such interesting ways. His dance style is my favorite in probably the history of the show. Needless to say, I think he rocks it. Nigel thinks people love Mark. Mary thinks that people don’t realize how tough the show is. Lil’ C says some more cool sounding things praising Mark and highlights Mark’s distinctive atmosphere.
Kherington- Seemingly, people worked harder on their solos for tonight, because again, Kherington is miles better than her solo from last night. She uses her body in interesting ways and doesn’t just alternate leaps and twirls. Lil’ C tries to assuage the hate towards Kherington from last night by citing constructive criticism. Mary is shocked that Kherington has made it this far, but in a good-ish way. Nigel thinks she’s purty.
Gev- Gev does an awesome hip-hop/popping routine to Michael Bublé, and it’s all entertaining tricks and is, as always, very fun to watch. Although he seemed a little rushed. Lil’ C roots for the little guy, I’m guessing pun intendend. He thinks Gev always dances through his heart. Mary thinks Gev has been tremendous and has been pulling it off. Nigel thinks Gev is outstanding in personality, charisma, and ability.
I guess there’s no musical or world of dance act tonight, since it’s cuttin’ time. The girls are up first, aand the girl going home is Kherington, meaning Comfort is living to dance another week. I guess this just shows how one bad night can do you in, since Kherington has been a solid performer all season. She gets her video package and it’s all very nice. But I’m busy worrying about the guys, since I want neither to go home. Although I’m rooting for Mark over Gev. Which is why I’m unhappy but OK with the fact that Gev is the dancer going home tonight. It should be Twitch, though. Gev gets his video package, which reminds me how many seriously awesome dances he had, which makes me sad. And it makes Gev sad too. Cat wishes us all a good night as the dancers, Chelsie first and foremost, make their way on stage to comfort their fallen comrades. I’m not particularly happy with tonight’s eliminations. Neither was the weakest member of their gender. And I think Gev grew more than any other dancer this season. So boo, America. Get it right next week. What about you folks?
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Pilot Review: The Mentalist
The Mentalist
CBS. Tuesdays at 9.
Cast: Simon Baker, Robin Tunney, Amanda Righetti, Owain Yeoman, Shaun Toub, and Tim Kang
So, as a genre/classification, I’ll admit it: I’m a fan of procedurals. Not only is it nice to have a story that wraps up neatly in 60 minutes, but, usually, they tend to be entertaining. I really like procedurals when they have an interesting twist. So I was mildly excited for The Mentalist.
Now, I know what you’re probably not saying, “Nate, what’s the interesting twist?” I’m gonna tell you. The twist is to take the basic premise of “Psych”, a guy who is really observant uses his skill to solve crimes, and make it all dramatic. Now, I love Psych, it’s one of my favorite summer shows. The Mentalist, on the other hand, kinda blows. And the reason it blows is because it took the premise of Psych instead of the tone, which is where all the fun of Psych lies.
And, in losing the tone, the premise suddenly stops being likeable. See, whereas Shawn on Psych is likeable and, despite being observant, not necessarily the brightest person in the room, Patrick Jane (the titular Mentalist) just kind of comes across like a know-it-all tool. Which, as my liking of House proves, is not necessarily a deal breaker. But add that to the fact that the entire supporting cast (and their characters) is as dull as a piece of driftwood (and not even a cool piece of driftwood). No one is sympathetic, no one is interesting and the “investigation process” isn’t fun to watch. What’s all that add up to? A pretty bad pilot.
But as if that’s bad enough, all the performances either aren’t good or feel sleepwalked through. Simon Baker seems bored as the lead Patrick and Robin Tunney, as the lead cop barely even registers when she’s on screen she’s so low energy. Amanda Righetti, as the rookie and a believer in psychics, has a storyline that the creators clearly thought would be interesting, but it’s not. And the other two aren’t even worth mentioning, because they’re so firmly middle-of-the-road.
While The Mentalist is nowhere near the weakest pilot I’ve ever seen (One Word: Cavemen), there’s really basically nothing redeeming about it. I mean, if you’re super-duper pumped up for this show (although I have no idea why you would be), I’m not gonna say that you shouldn’t watch it. But for everyone else,
Rating: Not Worth Your Time
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
So You Think You Can Dance 7/16- The Top 10 Perform
Cat’s gold dress has a lot of awkward creases. Seriously, like 6 of the creases seem to converge at her nether regions. She looks good it in, but she may want to hire a stylist who is on more than 50% of the time. In the intros, Gev, Joshua, Twitch, and Will are the standouts. Which is not a good sign for the girls of this competition. Jessica is missing from the intros, which is because she’s been forced to leave the competition due to an injury and Comfort has been brought back. Jessica comes on stage to explain that she has two broken and one fractured rib, which means she can no longer compete. But she will be a part of the tour. She doesn’t get a video tribute of her best moments, but I wonder if she’ll get one tomorrow. Our guest judge tonight is Lil’ C. Oh, and everyone has to dance two routines and a solo.
Courtney and Joshua- I’m kind of pumped for this pairing. Their first routine is a Dave Scott hip-hop. We all know Joshua can do hip-hop and Courtney owned her last one, so I have high hopes. It’s Frankenstein themed, and I enjoyed it. Joshua owns all his bits, which is good since Courtney is given little to do and she doesn’t do it all that greatly. She’s good, but not great. Joshua draws the focus though, and he does really rock the routine. Lil’ C enjoyed it and also thinks Joshua owned it. He tells Courtney she did good and praises their comraderie. Mary employs a dramatic pause before calling it a lot of fun and also thinks they paired well. Nigel thought that they were good but thinks Courtney could have been a good bit better (which I agree with)
Chelsie- Her solo, like most ballroom solos, is not all that interesting to watch. She seems to have good technique and she uses the stage really well. It’s not the best solo we’re gonna see on the stage, but I doubt it’ll be the worst.
Kherington and Mark- Their first number is a Country Two Step with new Country/Western two step choreographers Ronnie and Brandi. They seem unprepared, but I really want this couple to succeed. It’s kind of entertaining to watch and there’s a bunch of entertaining tricks, but it doesn’t come across as amazing in any sense. They lack chemistry and Mark seems really uninvested in it. Lil’ C calls it fun and he thinks they tried but maybe they approached it from the wrong angle. Lil’ C thought they brought themselves but they didn’t nail it. Mary calls it a tough number and thinks Mark did a lot better than Kherington, whose arms get really criticized. Nigel thinks the problem is that there were a lot of trust problems and thinks Kherington screwed up a lot more than Mark. He thinks it’s good, though, that they didn’t let the routine get to them.
Gev- Gev’s solo is full of really fun tricks. But it does just seem like a lot of really cool tricks strung together. I dunno. It was entertaining, but I don’t think I’m gonna remember it.
Comfort and Twitch- They’ve got a Smooth Waltz with Hunter Johnson. Comfort is happy to be back. The routine requires a lot of closeness and romance, which both ham it up about. Ok, wait, first off, seriously? You choreographed a smooth waltz to Journey? No offense Hunter Johnson, but Journey? It’s reasonably elegant, and it’s certainly an accomplishment for two hip-hoppers. Overall, it probably won’t be memorable, but it was nice to watch. Lil’ C enjoyed it but thinks they weren’t feeling the routine fully enough. But then he commends them for dancing it really well. I’m a little confused. Mary wasn’t feeling it, and thinks it was lacking a LOT of power. She uses a whole lot of a bad adjectives and ends by saying it was “just not there”. Nigel thinks it wasn’t strong enough and thinks it was nowhere near strong enough for a top 10 routine. Although he loved the lift at the end.
Courtney- Her solo is dynamic and full of energy. There’s a decent bit of standard contemporary leaps and twirls, but there’s enough different movement in there to make it interesting.
Katee and Will- They’ve got a Tyce Broadway routine, and I’m wondering how bad Tyce’s post-Adam and Eve fall will be. I’d say this one of Tyce’s best Broadway routines, mainly because Will is just an incredible dancer. He completely sells the dance. Katee is also really good too. Although it’s starting to look like Will is going the Dmitry/Pasha open shirt for votes route. Lil’ C praises Tyce’s versatility and thinks they were explosive both in acting and dancing. He calls it buck, which I’m guessing is the first time Broadway has ever been called buck. Mary loves it, especially Katee. She also loved that Will was able to ham it up and calls him fantastic and asks him to keep showing his abs. Nigel calls it terrific and thinks they are the strongest technical pair on the show. He thinks Will is starting to display charisma and thinks the pair just showed up everyone else.
Mark- I love Mark. His movement is so different. He’s unlike anyone else on this show. He could have maybe gotten into the dancing a little quicker, but he rocks.
Chelsie and Gev- They’ve got a Sonja Tayeh contemporary routine. I loved her last routine, so I have high hopes for this routine. I actually love this routine. Sonja is definitely my new choreographer to watch. The movement is all beautiful, they both seem committed and get the emotion across and I love love love classic soul, so I’m pumped to hear Otis Redding on SYTYCD. Lil’ C liked that the routine allowed him to feel something, because that means they committed to it. He thought that they both danced it well too, especially Gev. Mary believed it and thought their chemistry rocked and Gev stepped it up. She calls it terrific. Nigel felt the routine (even though he seems to have misinterpreted the meaning of the routine) and thinks Gev didn’t sell it enough. He liked Chelsie though and loved the choreography.
Comfort- She’s got energy, but it’s nowhere near as impressive as her solos have been. She didn’t seem to have a lot invested in it.
Twitch- It’s pretty cool. There’s some awesome slide stuff in there, and also appears to be a bit of contemporary thrown in. It’s not his best solo, but it’s still really good.
Courtney and Joshua 2 The Streets- They’ve got a Jean Marc Genereaux rumba. Courtney and Joshua seem to have some serious concerns about the routine. I don’t’ see why though, as they pull it off with aplomb. They look beautiful and elegant. The lifts and turns are all beautifully executed. Lil’ C thinks he might need his inhaler because they took his breath away. Awww. He thinks they’re both great and elegant (although he may have said eloquent). Mary thinks they nailed it all, the nuance, the footwork, the sexiness. Overall, it was just fantastic. Nigel thinks the routine fit their bodies so well and thinks they were technically great. Multiple jokes are made about Joshua and whether or not he will have a shirt on in the future.
Katee- It’s an interesting solo, although it seems to be the standard contemporary template of leaps and twirls. Although hers are different in an interesting way. That’s not very informative I realize, but I’m having a hard time describing it.
Kherington and Mark 2 The Streets- They’ve got a Tyce jazz routine with no story and a lot of sliding. I’m worried. As I should be. The routine is like a bad disco number by way of a bad 80s number with some bad jazz thrown in. They seem to be trying their hardest, but they can’t do much with the pretty weak choreography. Lil’ C thinks it was good and it allowed them to show off the dance. He thinks they did a good enough job. Mary thinks it wasn’t bad, but she’s not jumping out of her seat either. She wasn’t feeling fired up by it, and thinks Mark was lost without a story. Nigel compares it to a driving test and thinks it lacked heart and passion and thinks it’s not gonna inspire people to vote.
Will- I gotta say, I was expecting more from Will. There’s a beautiful leap or two, but I’ve seen 200% better from him, so I dunno.
Comfort and Twitch 2 The Streets- They’ve got a Dave Scott hip-hop and I expect this to be amazing, since both dancers are at home and high energy. It’s really cool and fun. They both seem to be the most at home they’ve ever been. I would have liked to see more tricks, but otherwise, it’s pretty awesome. Lil’ C calls it really buck. He says Twitch was like a spitting image of Dave and thinks this is the best Comfort has ever been. Mary also thinks it was buck and thinks they both had it. She says Comfort stepped up and bows down to Twitch. Nigel thinks it looked like they were dancing for the joy of it and thinks Comfort was excellent and thinks she finally earned that early praise he gave her.
Kherington- It’s kind of poppy, and it’s, again, entertaining. But her solo last week was a lot more dynamic and interesting. She’s had a bad night, folks.
Katee and Will 2 The Streets- They’ve got another new style this week, the Pas De Deux, from two new choreographers whose names I missed. Apparently, Katee needs to be elastic this week. If there’s any girl in the competition who could pull that off, I think it’s probably Katee. Ok, well, this is kind of ridiculously beautiful. There’s big surpluses of grace, elegance, and jaw-dropping awesomeness. Banoodles. I also don’t think anyone else could have pulled this off. Massive kudos all around. Although I take points off for Will being shirtless again and the fact that it was to a David Archuleta cover. Lil’ C thinks they danced with commitment and passion and fervor and that everyone will appreciate that routine. Mary calls it so beautiful and calls it something along the line of artistic mastery. She seems to be on the verge of tears. Nigel takes a moment to honor the choreographers because they’re dance huge-shots (bigger than big shots). Nigel agrees with Mary and says it may be the best routine ever on the show. He points out their one mistake and says it’s a good thing because if they’d nailed everything they never would have been able to top it.
Joshua- This is kind of ridiculous. His movement is so interesting and dynamic. He’s got great musicality. One of the two best solos of the night, by far (The other being Mark).
Chelsie and Gev 2 The Streets- They’ve got a Jean Marc Genereux Jive this week. I think this should be suited to Chelsie since she’s high energy and has the ballroom background. It’s fun, high-energy, and entertaining. She absolutely owns it, and Gev is good, despite being kind of clearly out of his technical league. He tries his hardest, and he nails a lot of the footwork, but there’s also areas where he doesn’t. Lil’ C thinks Chelsie outstepped Gev. He says Chelsie danced with extreme confidence and it made up for Gev’s weakness. Mary thinks it was a great way to end the evening, and agrees that Chelsie stole the show. She calls Gev amateur, but in a better way than it sounds, calling him respectable and praising his partnering skills. Nigel was entertained and agrees that Chelsie was outstanding. He thinks Gev was a little too staccato, but thinks they did a really good job.
My Ranking of The Routines:
1) Will and Katee’s Pas De Deux
2) Chelsie and Gev’s Contemporary
3) Comfort and Twitch’s Hip Hop
4) Courtney and Joshua’s Rumba
5) Chelsie and Gev’s Jive
6) Katee and Will’s Broadway
7) Courtney and Joshua’s Hip Hop
8) Kherington and Mark’s Country Two Step
8) Comfort and Twitch’s Smooth Waltz
10) Kherington and Mark’s Jazz
My Ranking of The Dancers Overall:
1) Will
2) Chelsie
3) Katee
4) Gev
5) Joshua
6) Mark
7) Twitch
8) Courtney
8) Comfort
10) Kherington
In Trouble: Comfort is likely done, although Kherington bombing may actually save her. In terms of guys, I’m kind of at a loss. Mark was weak, but I really hope it’s not him. Gev is also probably vulnerable, even though he shouldn’t be. It could also maybe be Twitch.
Courtney and Joshua- I’m kind of pumped for this pairing. Their first routine is a Dave Scott hip-hop. We all know Joshua can do hip-hop and Courtney owned her last one, so I have high hopes. It’s Frankenstein themed, and I enjoyed it. Joshua owns all his bits, which is good since Courtney is given little to do and she doesn’t do it all that greatly. She’s good, but not great. Joshua draws the focus though, and he does really rock the routine. Lil’ C enjoyed it and also thinks Joshua owned it. He tells Courtney she did good and praises their comraderie. Mary employs a dramatic pause before calling it a lot of fun and also thinks they paired well. Nigel thought that they were good but thinks Courtney could have been a good bit better (which I agree with)
Chelsie- Her solo, like most ballroom solos, is not all that interesting to watch. She seems to have good technique and she uses the stage really well. It’s not the best solo we’re gonna see on the stage, but I doubt it’ll be the worst.
Kherington and Mark- Their first number is a Country Two Step with new Country/Western two step choreographers Ronnie and Brandi. They seem unprepared, but I really want this couple to succeed. It’s kind of entertaining to watch and there’s a bunch of entertaining tricks, but it doesn’t come across as amazing in any sense. They lack chemistry and Mark seems really uninvested in it. Lil’ C calls it fun and he thinks they tried but maybe they approached it from the wrong angle. Lil’ C thought they brought themselves but they didn’t nail it. Mary calls it a tough number and thinks Mark did a lot better than Kherington, whose arms get really criticized. Nigel thinks the problem is that there were a lot of trust problems and thinks Kherington screwed up a lot more than Mark. He thinks it’s good, though, that they didn’t let the routine get to them.
Gev- Gev’s solo is full of really fun tricks. But it does just seem like a lot of really cool tricks strung together. I dunno. It was entertaining, but I don’t think I’m gonna remember it.
Comfort and Twitch- They’ve got a Smooth Waltz with Hunter Johnson. Comfort is happy to be back. The routine requires a lot of closeness and romance, which both ham it up about. Ok, wait, first off, seriously? You choreographed a smooth waltz to Journey? No offense Hunter Johnson, but Journey? It’s reasonably elegant, and it’s certainly an accomplishment for two hip-hoppers. Overall, it probably won’t be memorable, but it was nice to watch. Lil’ C enjoyed it but thinks they weren’t feeling the routine fully enough. But then he commends them for dancing it really well. I’m a little confused. Mary wasn’t feeling it, and thinks it was lacking a LOT of power. She uses a whole lot of a bad adjectives and ends by saying it was “just not there”. Nigel thinks it wasn’t strong enough and thinks it was nowhere near strong enough for a top 10 routine. Although he loved the lift at the end.
Courtney- Her solo is dynamic and full of energy. There’s a decent bit of standard contemporary leaps and twirls, but there’s enough different movement in there to make it interesting.
Katee and Will- They’ve got a Tyce Broadway routine, and I’m wondering how bad Tyce’s post-Adam and Eve fall will be. I’d say this one of Tyce’s best Broadway routines, mainly because Will is just an incredible dancer. He completely sells the dance. Katee is also really good too. Although it’s starting to look like Will is going the Dmitry/Pasha open shirt for votes route. Lil’ C praises Tyce’s versatility and thinks they were explosive both in acting and dancing. He calls it buck, which I’m guessing is the first time Broadway has ever been called buck. Mary loves it, especially Katee. She also loved that Will was able to ham it up and calls him fantastic and asks him to keep showing his abs. Nigel calls it terrific and thinks they are the strongest technical pair on the show. He thinks Will is starting to display charisma and thinks the pair just showed up everyone else.
Mark- I love Mark. His movement is so different. He’s unlike anyone else on this show. He could have maybe gotten into the dancing a little quicker, but he rocks.
Chelsie and Gev- They’ve got a Sonja Tayeh contemporary routine. I loved her last routine, so I have high hopes for this routine. I actually love this routine. Sonja is definitely my new choreographer to watch. The movement is all beautiful, they both seem committed and get the emotion across and I love love love classic soul, so I’m pumped to hear Otis Redding on SYTYCD. Lil’ C liked that the routine allowed him to feel something, because that means they committed to it. He thought that they both danced it well too, especially Gev. Mary believed it and thought their chemistry rocked and Gev stepped it up. She calls it terrific. Nigel felt the routine (even though he seems to have misinterpreted the meaning of the routine) and thinks Gev didn’t sell it enough. He liked Chelsie though and loved the choreography.
Comfort- She’s got energy, but it’s nowhere near as impressive as her solos have been. She didn’t seem to have a lot invested in it.
Twitch- It’s pretty cool. There’s some awesome slide stuff in there, and also appears to be a bit of contemporary thrown in. It’s not his best solo, but it’s still really good.
Courtney and Joshua 2 The Streets- They’ve got a Jean Marc Genereaux rumba. Courtney and Joshua seem to have some serious concerns about the routine. I don’t’ see why though, as they pull it off with aplomb. They look beautiful and elegant. The lifts and turns are all beautifully executed. Lil’ C thinks he might need his inhaler because they took his breath away. Awww. He thinks they’re both great and elegant (although he may have said eloquent). Mary thinks they nailed it all, the nuance, the footwork, the sexiness. Overall, it was just fantastic. Nigel thinks the routine fit their bodies so well and thinks they were technically great. Multiple jokes are made about Joshua and whether or not he will have a shirt on in the future.
Katee- It’s an interesting solo, although it seems to be the standard contemporary template of leaps and twirls. Although hers are different in an interesting way. That’s not very informative I realize, but I’m having a hard time describing it.
Kherington and Mark 2 The Streets- They’ve got a Tyce jazz routine with no story and a lot of sliding. I’m worried. As I should be. The routine is like a bad disco number by way of a bad 80s number with some bad jazz thrown in. They seem to be trying their hardest, but they can’t do much with the pretty weak choreography. Lil’ C thinks it was good and it allowed them to show off the dance. He thinks they did a good enough job. Mary thinks it wasn’t bad, but she’s not jumping out of her seat either. She wasn’t feeling fired up by it, and thinks Mark was lost without a story. Nigel compares it to a driving test and thinks it lacked heart and passion and thinks it’s not gonna inspire people to vote.
Will- I gotta say, I was expecting more from Will. There’s a beautiful leap or two, but I’ve seen 200% better from him, so I dunno.
Comfort and Twitch 2 The Streets- They’ve got a Dave Scott hip-hop and I expect this to be amazing, since both dancers are at home and high energy. It’s really cool and fun. They both seem to be the most at home they’ve ever been. I would have liked to see more tricks, but otherwise, it’s pretty awesome. Lil’ C calls it really buck. He says Twitch was like a spitting image of Dave and thinks this is the best Comfort has ever been. Mary also thinks it was buck and thinks they both had it. She says Comfort stepped up and bows down to Twitch. Nigel thinks it looked like they were dancing for the joy of it and thinks Comfort was excellent and thinks she finally earned that early praise he gave her.
Kherington- It’s kind of poppy, and it’s, again, entertaining. But her solo last week was a lot more dynamic and interesting. She’s had a bad night, folks.
Katee and Will 2 The Streets- They’ve got another new style this week, the Pas De Deux, from two new choreographers whose names I missed. Apparently, Katee needs to be elastic this week. If there’s any girl in the competition who could pull that off, I think it’s probably Katee. Ok, well, this is kind of ridiculously beautiful. There’s big surpluses of grace, elegance, and jaw-dropping awesomeness. Banoodles. I also don’t think anyone else could have pulled this off. Massive kudos all around. Although I take points off for Will being shirtless again and the fact that it was to a David Archuleta cover. Lil’ C thinks they danced with commitment and passion and fervor and that everyone will appreciate that routine. Mary calls it so beautiful and calls it something along the line of artistic mastery. She seems to be on the verge of tears. Nigel takes a moment to honor the choreographers because they’re dance huge-shots (bigger than big shots). Nigel agrees with Mary and says it may be the best routine ever on the show. He points out their one mistake and says it’s a good thing because if they’d nailed everything they never would have been able to top it.
Joshua- This is kind of ridiculous. His movement is so interesting and dynamic. He’s got great musicality. One of the two best solos of the night, by far (The other being Mark).
Chelsie and Gev 2 The Streets- They’ve got a Jean Marc Genereux Jive this week. I think this should be suited to Chelsie since she’s high energy and has the ballroom background. It’s fun, high-energy, and entertaining. She absolutely owns it, and Gev is good, despite being kind of clearly out of his technical league. He tries his hardest, and he nails a lot of the footwork, but there’s also areas where he doesn’t. Lil’ C thinks Chelsie outstepped Gev. He says Chelsie danced with extreme confidence and it made up for Gev’s weakness. Mary thinks it was a great way to end the evening, and agrees that Chelsie stole the show. She calls Gev amateur, but in a better way than it sounds, calling him respectable and praising his partnering skills. Nigel was entertained and agrees that Chelsie was outstanding. He thinks Gev was a little too staccato, but thinks they did a really good job.
My Ranking of The Routines:
1) Will and Katee’s Pas De Deux
2) Chelsie and Gev’s Contemporary
3) Comfort and Twitch’s Hip Hop
4) Courtney and Joshua’s Rumba
5) Chelsie and Gev’s Jive
6) Katee and Will’s Broadway
7) Courtney and Joshua’s Hip Hop
8) Kherington and Mark’s Country Two Step
8) Comfort and Twitch’s Smooth Waltz
10) Kherington and Mark’s Jazz
My Ranking of The Dancers Overall:
1) Will
2) Chelsie
3) Katee
4) Gev
5) Joshua
6) Mark
7) Twitch
8) Courtney
8) Comfort
10) Kherington
In Trouble: Comfort is likely done, although Kherington bombing may actually save her. In terms of guys, I’m kind of at a loss. Mark was weak, but I really hope it’s not him. Gev is also probably vulnerable, even though he shouldn’t be. It could also maybe be Twitch.
Monday, July 14, 2008
The Mole 7/14- Past The Halfway Point
Previously on The Mole, the team rebelled against Craig’s costuming, Paul continued to be hated by everyone, and Kristen, one of my mole suspects, was eliminated. Nicole is proud to be the last woman and wants to be the last player standing. Paul, however, just wants to outlast Nicole.
Jon welcomes the final 6 to a vineyard in the Argentine wine country. Clay thinks the place smells. The team splits into two groups of three, runners (Clay, Mark, and Alex) and thinkers (Nicole, Paul, and Craig). Today’s mission is the Grapes of Cache, which makes me groan. It’s worth $70,000. The thinkers have to answer trivia questions, which correspond to coordinates, which correspond to hidden wine bottles. Mark, since he was picked as the best runner, has to run on a treadmill and when he stops running, the mission is over. The drama of the mission all seems to rest in the answering of the questions. Alex and Clay, the two runners, find their first bottle, which means the treadmill speeds up. It’s kind of hard to recap this mission, since it’s all answering the trivia questions and people wandering. Or, at least, it is until Paul and Nicole start bickering at one another. Then it’s kind of entertaining. At the commercial, three bottles have been found.
When we come back, Mark, who is allowed to help with the trivia, continues to nail all the questions that Craig and Nicole are failing at. The runners now have 5 bottles, meaning Mark is running at quite a pace. They find their 6th, and Mark maxes out the treadmill. They find the 7th bottle, but they must get back to the base camp before Mark stops or they don’t get any money. But Clay and Alex manage to get back in time, meaning that the team made $70,00 for this mission, pushing the pot up to $247,000. Everyone recognizes Mark as the clear MVP of that mission. Back at the hotel, Paul tells Alex that Nicole didn’t do anything. He harps on her some more and continues to piss me off. He seems to think she’s the Mole, and even questions whether she’s a real doctor. Turns out, Clay and Mark are having a similar discussion, but they think she’s NOT the mole. People seem to continue to be stumped to the mole’s identity.
Nicole seems to be relishing the fact that everyone thinks she’s the mole. Meanwhile, Mark and Clay seem to be talking about liquoring up Alex before the quiz, because apparently he’s a lush. Jon welcomes them to their next mission, worth $60,000. It involves bungee jumping and throwing things onto a bullseye. Craig and Nicole seem very scared by jumping off a bridge. Mark is up first. But before he jumps, Jon starts talking about an exemption. Apparently, who ever guesses closest to the total won gets an exemption. Mark guesses $10,000, but misses his own shot. Paul is up next, and, while we don’t get to hear his guess, he also misses his shot. By a lot. Clay, who Craig calls Chocolate Bear, is up next. We also aren’t allowed to hear Clay’s guess, but we do get to see him also miss his shot. Craig is next, and he’s very uncomfortable. But, after a hidden guess, he also manages to jump, and, based on everyone’s reactions before we go to commercial, he may have plummeted to his death. Or it could just be editing. Who knows?
But, we return, and Craig is still alive. And he manages to get closer to the bullseye than Paul or Clay, but he still misses. Alex is next, and apparently, he doesn’t deal with heights well. He’s not sure if he wants to do it, but he does, and he’s the first one to score, getting four grand. Nicole is last up, and everyone has no faith in her. She’s also questioning whether or not she’s gonna jump. But she does, in order to keep girl power alive. And she manages to jump better than anyone else, but she still misses the target. Clay immediately accuses her of mole-ery. The team made a whopping four grand today, and the lucky winner of the exemption is no one, because everyone guessed over. Someone really should have gone with the Price is Right strategy of $1. That’s what I would have done.
When we come back, Nicole is a little scared, because she hasn’t been writing stuff down, and the quizzes are getting more specific. Meanwhile, in the background, Alex is drinking straight from a bottle of champagne. My kind of guy. Clay nicely gives Nicole some information. They all share a dinner with Jon and Nicole keeps talking about how she’s the last woman standing, which means she’s going home tonight. Also discussed is the fact that no one has a conscience and everyone is unscrupulous. Which they should be. It’s The Mole, for Chrissakes. Meanwhile, Operation Get Alex Drunk is in full effect, and, despite the editing trying to play it up, Alex seems no drunker than usual. There are just more shots of him with a glass in his hand.
Quiz Time
I still suspect Alex
Mark maybe suspects Craig
Clay maybe suspects Paul
Craig suspects Mark
Alex maybe suspects Nicole
Nicole maybe suspects Alex
I’m pretty sure I just saw a clue. There was a barrel, that the camera held on for a weirdly long time. If I transcribed correctly, it said “N20 HL 70”. Anyone have an idea what this could mean? Alex is up first, and, proving me wrong yet again, he’s eliminated. Frick. That means I need a new suspect. I guess I’m thinking Craig now, but I dunno. Alex seemed so right. So, yeah, I guess Craig is my new suspect. Everyone eulogizes him as some bad music that he played at some point is on in the background.
Next time on The Mole, Nicole thinks Craig is sabotaging, peoples’ families are brought in, and trains become a lot more dramatic.
Jon welcomes the final 6 to a vineyard in the Argentine wine country. Clay thinks the place smells. The team splits into two groups of three, runners (Clay, Mark, and Alex) and thinkers (Nicole, Paul, and Craig). Today’s mission is the Grapes of Cache, which makes me groan. It’s worth $70,000. The thinkers have to answer trivia questions, which correspond to coordinates, which correspond to hidden wine bottles. Mark, since he was picked as the best runner, has to run on a treadmill and when he stops running, the mission is over. The drama of the mission all seems to rest in the answering of the questions. Alex and Clay, the two runners, find their first bottle, which means the treadmill speeds up. It’s kind of hard to recap this mission, since it’s all answering the trivia questions and people wandering. Or, at least, it is until Paul and Nicole start bickering at one another. Then it’s kind of entertaining. At the commercial, three bottles have been found.
When we come back, Mark, who is allowed to help with the trivia, continues to nail all the questions that Craig and Nicole are failing at. The runners now have 5 bottles, meaning Mark is running at quite a pace. They find their 6th, and Mark maxes out the treadmill. They find the 7th bottle, but they must get back to the base camp before Mark stops or they don’t get any money. But Clay and Alex manage to get back in time, meaning that the team made $70,00 for this mission, pushing the pot up to $247,000. Everyone recognizes Mark as the clear MVP of that mission. Back at the hotel, Paul tells Alex that Nicole didn’t do anything. He harps on her some more and continues to piss me off. He seems to think she’s the Mole, and even questions whether she’s a real doctor. Turns out, Clay and Mark are having a similar discussion, but they think she’s NOT the mole. People seem to continue to be stumped to the mole’s identity.
Nicole seems to be relishing the fact that everyone thinks she’s the mole. Meanwhile, Mark and Clay seem to be talking about liquoring up Alex before the quiz, because apparently he’s a lush. Jon welcomes them to their next mission, worth $60,000. It involves bungee jumping and throwing things onto a bullseye. Craig and Nicole seem very scared by jumping off a bridge. Mark is up first. But before he jumps, Jon starts talking about an exemption. Apparently, who ever guesses closest to the total won gets an exemption. Mark guesses $10,000, but misses his own shot. Paul is up next, and, while we don’t get to hear his guess, he also misses his shot. By a lot. Clay, who Craig calls Chocolate Bear, is up next. We also aren’t allowed to hear Clay’s guess, but we do get to see him also miss his shot. Craig is next, and he’s very uncomfortable. But, after a hidden guess, he also manages to jump, and, based on everyone’s reactions before we go to commercial, he may have plummeted to his death. Or it could just be editing. Who knows?
But, we return, and Craig is still alive. And he manages to get closer to the bullseye than Paul or Clay, but he still misses. Alex is next, and apparently, he doesn’t deal with heights well. He’s not sure if he wants to do it, but he does, and he’s the first one to score, getting four grand. Nicole is last up, and everyone has no faith in her. She’s also questioning whether or not she’s gonna jump. But she does, in order to keep girl power alive. And she manages to jump better than anyone else, but she still misses the target. Clay immediately accuses her of mole-ery. The team made a whopping four grand today, and the lucky winner of the exemption is no one, because everyone guessed over. Someone really should have gone with the Price is Right strategy of $1. That’s what I would have done.
When we come back, Nicole is a little scared, because she hasn’t been writing stuff down, and the quizzes are getting more specific. Meanwhile, in the background, Alex is drinking straight from a bottle of champagne. My kind of guy. Clay nicely gives Nicole some information. They all share a dinner with Jon and Nicole keeps talking about how she’s the last woman standing, which means she’s going home tonight. Also discussed is the fact that no one has a conscience and everyone is unscrupulous. Which they should be. It’s The Mole, for Chrissakes. Meanwhile, Operation Get Alex Drunk is in full effect, and, despite the editing trying to play it up, Alex seems no drunker than usual. There are just more shots of him with a glass in his hand.
Quiz Time
I still suspect Alex
Mark maybe suspects Craig
Clay maybe suspects Paul
Craig suspects Mark
Alex maybe suspects Nicole
Nicole maybe suspects Alex
I’m pretty sure I just saw a clue. There was a barrel, that the camera held on for a weirdly long time. If I transcribed correctly, it said “N20 HL 70”. Anyone have an idea what this could mean? Alex is up first, and, proving me wrong yet again, he’s eliminated. Frick. That means I need a new suspect. I guess I’m thinking Craig now, but I dunno. Alex seemed so right. So, yeah, I guess Craig is my new suspect. Everyone eulogizes him as some bad music that he played at some point is on in the background.
Next time on The Mole, Nicole thinks Craig is sabotaging, peoples’ families are brought in, and trains become a lot more dramatic.
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