Cat looks like a British virginal Native American princess. And she looks charming. We get to see everyone again. It’s just fun to see everyone again, so I’m not gonna comment on who’s better. But Mark and Chelsie are still adorable. And Jessica is notably absent, meaning she isn’t healed enough. That’s too bad. Cat calls them her babies. There are 6 choreographers on the panel tonight Mia, Shankers, Debbie Allen, Nigel, Mary, and the awesome Lil’ C. The others are all in the audience. It turns out that the movie role that Shankers talked about is Step Up 3D. I have to say, a 3D dance movie sounds pretty awesome. We get a very long season recap. It’s equal parts happy and sentimental. Oh, and Will is the only one who gets his elimination shown. Hmmm….
The first dance of the night features the entire top 20 in a Shane sparks routine. The routine is tons of fun and everyone seemingly gets their moment, which is nice of Shane and the editors. Gev probably gets the most awesome bits. But overall, this reminds me of why I missed Shane Sparks so much this season. As much as they’ve created some great routines, Napoleon and Tabitha couldn’t touch this.
Tonight, the judges get to pick their favorite dances of the season for us to see again. I’m just gonna say, Mark better be in at least two. Nigel is up first, and his first pick is the Bollywood routine, which I wasn’t really blown away by the first time around. They’re a lot more relaxed this time around, and it’s a lot of fun this time. Josh even gives Katee a kiss at one point. Awww. Mary is up next, and she picks Courtney and Gev’s rumba. Gev looks a lot more clean cut this time around, and, for anyone who was worried, their chemistry is still very much intact. This is probably the sexiest rumba the show has ever had. Like, seriously, if I didn’t know better, I’d be sure these two were boinking. But they’re still absolutely fantastic and adorable.
Hey, SYTYCD, before next season, could you please find a corporate sponsor who’s mascot isn’t going to probably kill me in my sleep? Because I think that’s what Snuggle is planning.
YAY! It’s time for the Chbeeb/Muraine dance off. Apparently, Chbeeb got pneumonia before getting to Vegas, which is why he wasn’t there. That’s sad. Hopefully he’ll be back next season. As for this dance off, however, well, this is probably one of the greatest things ever on the SYTYCD stage. Personally, I prefer the fluidity of Chbeeb to the ridiculous popping abilites of Muraine. But this is just banoodles on so many levels. I really hope this doesn’t mean Chbeeb can’t come back next season. Because I would love to see him actually compete on the show. We go to the judges to get their say and see who wins. Mia goes with Philip but Shankers picks Muraine, tying it up. Debbie also goes with Muraine, as does Nigel, putting Robert up 3-1. Mary also picks Robert, meaning he wins the dance off. Lil’ C does get to cast his vote, and after deeming the whole thing very buck, he also picks Robert. Aw, poor Phil. Mia and I are behind you Phil!
Sidenote: The way the families act in Olive Garden commercials always make me wanna make sure my own family never goes to an Olive Garden.
We’re back to the judges’ picks for the dances. Nigel and Shankers fake bicker about something that I miss. He’s picked Comfort and Twitch’s hip-hop, which was pretty much a guarantee to pop back up here. There’s a nice camera malfunction in the middle, but the routine is still all sorts of awesome and fun. Comfort really is banoodles in her own style. Lil’ C is up next, and I’m very disappointed at the lack of Mark so far. He describes the show as a museum, which is an awesome analogy, and picks Bleeding Love, meaning Mark! Yay! Can Lil’ C please pop up on the judging panel tons next season? Even though they’re out of sync with each other at the beginning, I forgive them, because they’re Mark and Chelsie, aka my favorites. Although Chelsie’s solo section? Kinda a little more impressive the first time.
We go back to panel, but where’s Mary? On stage with Season 2’s Dmitry, dancing, that’s where! Actually, Mary is a lot better than I would have guessed. I guess that’s why she’s on the panel. Seriously, Mary Murphy has impressed me. I’m shocked. Now, if only she would shut up every once in a while, I’d actually be happy to have her on the show.
Sidenote: Haha, that Scott Toilet Paper “Geez, Louise” commercial is great…
Mia’s pick is up next, and she thinks this has been the best season choreographically, and she’s picking the ridiculously amazing Pas De Deux. This was my favorite too, because it was just so ridiculously amazing. And it still is. These two were the best technical dancers on the show, no question. God, this is still just so ridiculous. It’s back to Shankers for his second pick of the night, and he feels bad for whoever has to follow that. He’s picking Sonja’s “The Garden”, which YAY! Mark, Courtney, Sonja, and amazingness, all rolled into one dance. This is still such a perfect pairing of Mark and Sonja. This routine is still just amazing. Unfortunately, it’s time for the first elimination. It’s gonna be really mean of them to eliminate Courtney is her garters and corset ensemble. But unfortunately, they do, meaning Courtney, the dancer I was rooting for, isn’t the winner. I still really heart Courtney though, but she’s not sad or upset, she’s proud. Aww, she’s adorable. She tears up as she says what she’s gained. Courtney, I was rooting for ya.
The next routine up is the top 5 guys routine, choreographed by Nigel. It’s still really fun, and it’s still the best Broadway routine that was on stage all season. It reminds me how awesome the top 5 guys were. Gev should have lasted longer. Next, we get a dance by Wade from Criss Angel’s “Believe.” Ok, now THIS is the Wade I was looking for last night. Totally bizarre and creepy but totally amazing too. There’s so much to watch, because you don’t want to take your eyes off any part of the dance. If Mark, Sonja, and Wade all came together, I think it would probably blow my mind. I would totally pay for that.
The top 3 are brought back on stage, because it’s time to cut someone again. The next person who is not our winner is Katee, and I’m not at all shocked. Because the judges wanted Josh vs. Twitch, and they pimped in order to get their wish. Katee is still hardcore banoodles and awesome, and she’ll still go on to great things. Katee loved the whole experience and is happy to find out that there’s a prize for the top boy AND the top girl, so Katee wins 50 grand. Not bad. Although, seriously, show, way to stick it Courtney YET again.
When we come back, Cat is chilling with the judges, where we get to talk to Debbie about how proud she is of Will and what it was like watching it as a viewer (which she liked because she could scream obscenities at the judges. Hey, me too!). She also compares SYTYCD to the Olympics. And it turns out Debbie, has brought the Debbie Allen Dance Academy, so we get lots of little kids doing tap. It’s pretty fun. And then Nigel joins the mix, and it gets a little creepy. Still cool, but creepy. The call and answer between Nigel and the kids is really good though. And if anyone was wondering, Nigel still can’t act, as confirmed by the top 20 routine where he was kidnapped. Oh, and Nigel, not cool taking a shot at my city’s public transportation. Our subway rocks. Shankers also challenges Nigel to a danceoff for next season. Go Shankers!
It’s time for Mary’s next choice, which is Twitch and Katee’s door piece, which was tons of fun. So I’m pumped. It’s not quite as mischievous as it was the first time, which is what I loved, but Katee swinging out on that door still may be my favorite moment of the entire season. It’s time for our finale terrible musical guest, The Jonas Brothers. I have completely avoided the Jonas Brothers up until this point, and dear god is this awful. I mean, I get that they are completely non-threatening, but does that make up for a complete lack of talent nowadays? I think one of them forgets the lyrics part way though. To their own new hit single. Seriously? Or are they just supposed to mumble all the lyrics? Nevermind Flo Rida, you’re no longer the worst musical act of the season. Jonas Brothers, welcome to the awards!
There’s time for two more routines, and Debbie gets to finally choose one, Twitch and Kherington’s Viennese Waltz. She also mocks Lil’ C in a very funny way, and then the whole panel gets in on it. This was beautiful the first time, and it’s nice to see it again. I kind of wish someone who wasn’t in the top 10 would get some airtime again though. It’s still really beautiful. I don’t have much more to say about it. Nigel gets the last pick of the season, and he picks Tabitha and Napoleon’s “No Air” as the last routine of the season, which was a great routine. I really wish we could have seen Courtney and Gev’s map dance again though. Rewatching this, Josh is even more impressive than I remember. They really nail the emotions on this one.
But, before the final results, we get a dance from a ton of past dancers, too many to list. The routine is completely and totally awesome, because everyone gets to do their little specialties, which adds up to one ridiculously amazing number. And the top dancers from this season join them too. This is just banoodles. So much fun to watch.
But it’s time for the final results. Joshua vs. Twitch. Cat mentions Josh and Twitch’s lack of training again, and then… The winner is Joshua! Good. Between those two, Joshua really deserved it. To Twitch’s credit, he seems so happy for Joshua. Joshua looks like he’s about to pass out, and on the verge of tears. He says “Never let anybody tell you you can’t do something.” Aww. I’m happy. I mean, I wanted Mark. Or Chelsie. Or Courtney. But I’ll take Josh. Well, another season down. Not as good as the last one. But lets just hope next season is better!
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
So You Think You Can Dance 8/6- The Finale Performance Show
Cat is wearing something short, tight, and shiny. But I won’t quote Nina Garcia, because Cat could never look cheap. Just adorable. Although she’s looked more adorable in the past. I think it’s her very flat looking hair. In the intros, Twitch and Joshua are the impressive ones. Big surprise. Not that these 4 don’t all rock, because they do. Tonight’s jidges are the mostly great Mandy Moore, the loud Mary Murphy, and the pervy Nigel Lythgoe. Everyone dances with everyone tonight, and everyone’s got a solo too.
Courtney and Twitch- They’ve got a Tabitha and Napoleon hip-hop routine. Which means that Josh and Twitch aren’t dancing hip-hop together? THAT I’m shocked by. It involves Courtney being a crazy girlfriend. It seems pretty physical in the pre-dance package. It’s fun, but it probably wouldn’t make my top 12. There’s something a wee little bit anemic about it to me, but it’s still fun. They dance all the footwork well, and they get the characters down flat. Courtney is a lot more fun to watch than Twitch, although they both get their share of fun moments. But I’d give Courtney the advantage over Twitch. Mandy loved it and thinks it was a great way to start out. She thinks Courtney brought the Jersey girl out and Twitch is always fun. Mary admits her own craziness and she felt it from Courtney. She calls it a knockout, and is happy it was a little tougher than N&T’s typical lyrical hip-hop. They also get a Mary Murphy shriek. Nigel will miss everyone except that shriek and wonders why Twitch keeps getting routines about deranged girlfriends. He thinks Courtney was perfect and thinks everything about it was fantastic, although it lost a little energy at the end for him.
Courtney- We get a little interview beforehand, where we find out that Courtney is from a family of screamers. Although she admits that she’s not the best dancer. She also makes it clear that her chemistry with Gev was completely non-romantic. Her last solo is really beautiful. She nails the feeling of the song perfectly. A good job from Courtney. Mandy got teary eyed and tells her well-done. Mary thinks she’s an inspiration and thinks her personality lights up the stage. Courtney tears up during Mary’s comments, and it makes me like her more. Nigel is happily surprised she’s made the top 4 and thinks she’s a bundle of joy who energizes everyone around her.
Katee and Joshua- They’ve got a Wade Robson routine! Meaning Wade Robson is back! It’s about a relationship, as always, but it’s Wade Robson, so it should be ridiculous. I’m actually a little shocked this a Wade routine. Because it’s, well, not what I’ve come to expect from Wade. I mean, it’s very good, and the movement is really interesting, but I expected something kind of visionary. And it wasn’t. It was just a really, really good relationship contemporary. But it is really, really good. Really good. Mandy loves the routine and the fact that Wade is back. She thinks that technically it could have used more work, but it was universally readable and very beautiful. Mary also calls it absolutely beautiful and is just very happy that it ended well. But she really likes it. Nigel thinks there were many remarkable things about it. Nigel thinks they danced it brilliantly and thinks that Josh’s control is remarkable for an untrained dancer.
Katee and Courtney- They’ve got a Tyce Broadway routine togther. It’s Tyce, so my enthusiasm is tempered. They’re worried about dancing with props too. We’ll see. It’s very Busby Berkeley, Ziegfeld Follies. But it’s still one of Tyce’ better Broadway routines. The two girls work well together. Neither really outshines the other though. It’s cute, but it’ll be forgettable in the long run, probably. Mandy also found it cute and thinks they looked adorable. It reminded her of old musicals too. Stop stealing my comments Mandy Moore! Mary thinks they nailed the synchronization and says a bunch of other good things. Nigel was happy to see two girls dancing together, and thinks that while Courtney was good, he points out that Katee was better than her. That’s kind of a dick move, Nigel.
Twitch- His nickname came from being fidgety. Go figure. He also contemplated joining the navy if he wasn’t dancing. He also wanted Kherington as a partner and was shocked by her elimination. His final solo is danced to a song by Wade Robson, hmm. That being said, his movement is banoodles. His leg control may even be greater than Chelsie. It was just a really good solo. Mandy thinks Twitch is cool and compares him to the little engine that could. Mary thinks Twitch is great in tons of styles, but his freestyle solos render Mary speechless. Can Twitch solo for the rest of eternity then? Nigel thinks Twitch has left his mark on the competition, and he thinks Twitch has humor in spades.
Twitch and Joshua- They’re getting a chance to settle a rivalry between them. They’ve got a Russian Trepak from a new choreographer named Youri. This is the dance that sent them both to the hospital, so it should be interesting. This is just bizarre. It’s fun to watch, since it’s essentially them trying to one up each other. But I’m really not sure what to make of it. It was clearly a very difficult dance to do, but I can’t say I fully loved it. And for the record, Josh won it. Mandy loves watching two men do crazy stuff on stage. She thinks the stamina was great, and wonders how Twitch got stuck with the floor work. The boys continue to one up each other during the interview. Mary thinks they are tremendous fighters and dancers, and is excited to have two hip-hop guys in the finale. Because the judges hadn’t been secretly planning for this all along. They also get a Mary shriek. Nigel thanks the choreographer for bringing the world to SYTYCD, and lauds both boys for their amazing physical abilities.
Katee- Katee never thought she’d make it this far. We also get reminded of the drama during Vegas. She also loves her little stupid dances. At least in my opinion, this is one of Katee’s most dynamic solos. Her movement, coupled with the music, is really interesting. Mandy thinks Katee should keep dancing but she needs to keep training. Mary will cherish many of Katee’s numbers. Nigel thinks all of her characters and movements have been brilliant.
Katee and Twitch- They’ve got a Tony Merdith and Melanie foxtrot. They are both nervous. There is much joking had in the pre-video package. It’s beautiful, but, I dunno. I’m not blown away by it. Katee’s dress is really transfixing to watch. She, just in general, seems to be much better. Twitch is kind of a prop. And he kind of hams it up. I dunno. I didn’t love it. Mandy found it romantic, think they both look beautiful, and highlights one particular lift as amazing. Comparisons are made between Twitch and James Bond, complete with a line reading from Twitch. Mary calls him one cool gentleman and thinks he was controlled. They both wowed her. Nigel calls Katee splendid and thinks there’s nothing she can’t do. He tells Twitch that he didn’t quite believe the beginning and thinks his strength may have spoiled the choreographers.
Joshua- Joshua chose dance over football and track. He’s not a big crier too, which then makes Cat mock him for being a big crier on the show. He considers his time on the show a blessing. His solo is pretty awesome, even if it does kind of seem similar to some of his other solos. I do like that he goes and dances at the judges table. That kind of takes cajones. Mandy thinks Josh is smooth and charismatic, and he knows how to hit. Mary brings back the hot tamale train (I thought it derailed weeks ago), and thinks he’s got soul. Nigel thinks he’s set the standard for next season with untrained dancers. (Wait, I thought we had established that Josh had some training?)
Courtney and Joshua- They’ve got a Jason Gilkison jive. They’re a little worried, because the dance needs stamina. The choreographer claims its one of most intense he’s choreographed. It’s fun, but they seem a little tired. That said, it’s fun, energetic, and ends really well. I found myself focusing on Courtney more, but that may have been because of the outfit. I wonder how they’ll try to dis Courtney this time. Mandy is wowed by the speed/footwork. Mary thinks that the routine was really hard and bows down to them for how well they did. Nigel was disappointed, because they didn’t know how to breathe and it didn’t have the right feel for it. Nigel claims he’s not knocking them just to knock them, but seeing as how the ballroom dancer loved it, I’m not so sure he should be making that claim. He goes so far as tell them “Tough” that the routine was hard and tiring. He’s really being a d-bag tonight.
Courtney, Joshua, Katee, and Twitch- The group routine is a Mia contemporary, where she says she’s really gonna dance them. She says it’s about celebrating their victory, because they’re all winners. Awwww. My viewing partner accurately points out a Paul Taylor vibe to the piece. It’s good, but there’s some energy missing. What’s interesting is that Katee seemed to be really unsure about the steps at the end. No one really stands out, they all have good moments. Mandy is at a loss for words, describing it as magical, a celebration, and sees that they’ve transcended their exhaustion. Even though Mandy would never put these four dancers together on stage. Courtney looks like she’s about to pass out. Mary thinks Mia did not hold back and thinks Twitch was the standout. Seems like he’s the judge’s choice to win. She also loved Katee. Oh, and Mary takes another shot at Courtney. Seriously? Nigel thinks that it’s great that they have two untrained male dancers in the finals. Hey, did you know that Josh and Twitch were untrained? Because Josh and Twitch are untrained. Nigel thinks that they deserve their spots in the finals, especially since they’re untrained. Oh, and he brings up that Katee was gonna quit and that Courtney scraped her way into the finals. He didn’t get the routine, but he thinks it showed their athleticism, and thinks none of them looked tired. Were we watching the same dance, Nigel? Oh, and did you know that Josh and Twitch are untrained?
My Thoughts On The Finale: This was WEAK. There were no real standout routines, the judges were unnecessarily mean to Courtney and were blatantly obvious in their pimping of Twitch and Joshua. Nigel, especially, was douchetastic tonight. Mary was also unusually mean. Disappointing finale, especially compared to how great last season’s finale was. And I can’t help but feel it would have been a lot better if Mark were still in the running. And my top 12 routines of the season stands as is.
My Ranking Of The Routines:
1) Katee and Joshua’s Contemporary
2) Courtney and Twitch’s Hip-Hop
3) Courtney and Joshua’s Jive
4) Joshua and Twitch’s Russian Trepak
5) Mia’s Contemporary
6) Katee and Courtney’s Broadway
7) Katee and Twitch’s Foxtrot
My Ranking Of The Dancers:
1) Joshua
2) Courtney
3) Katee
4) Twitch
Courtney and Twitch- They’ve got a Tabitha and Napoleon hip-hop routine. Which means that Josh and Twitch aren’t dancing hip-hop together? THAT I’m shocked by. It involves Courtney being a crazy girlfriend. It seems pretty physical in the pre-dance package. It’s fun, but it probably wouldn’t make my top 12. There’s something a wee little bit anemic about it to me, but it’s still fun. They dance all the footwork well, and they get the characters down flat. Courtney is a lot more fun to watch than Twitch, although they both get their share of fun moments. But I’d give Courtney the advantage over Twitch. Mandy loved it and thinks it was a great way to start out. She thinks Courtney brought the Jersey girl out and Twitch is always fun. Mary admits her own craziness and she felt it from Courtney. She calls it a knockout, and is happy it was a little tougher than N&T’s typical lyrical hip-hop. They also get a Mary Murphy shriek. Nigel will miss everyone except that shriek and wonders why Twitch keeps getting routines about deranged girlfriends. He thinks Courtney was perfect and thinks everything about it was fantastic, although it lost a little energy at the end for him.
Courtney- We get a little interview beforehand, where we find out that Courtney is from a family of screamers. Although she admits that she’s not the best dancer. She also makes it clear that her chemistry with Gev was completely non-romantic. Her last solo is really beautiful. She nails the feeling of the song perfectly. A good job from Courtney. Mandy got teary eyed and tells her well-done. Mary thinks she’s an inspiration and thinks her personality lights up the stage. Courtney tears up during Mary’s comments, and it makes me like her more. Nigel is happily surprised she’s made the top 4 and thinks she’s a bundle of joy who energizes everyone around her.
Katee and Joshua- They’ve got a Wade Robson routine! Meaning Wade Robson is back! It’s about a relationship, as always, but it’s Wade Robson, so it should be ridiculous. I’m actually a little shocked this a Wade routine. Because it’s, well, not what I’ve come to expect from Wade. I mean, it’s very good, and the movement is really interesting, but I expected something kind of visionary. And it wasn’t. It was just a really, really good relationship contemporary. But it is really, really good. Really good. Mandy loves the routine and the fact that Wade is back. She thinks that technically it could have used more work, but it was universally readable and very beautiful. Mary also calls it absolutely beautiful and is just very happy that it ended well. But she really likes it. Nigel thinks there were many remarkable things about it. Nigel thinks they danced it brilliantly and thinks that Josh’s control is remarkable for an untrained dancer.
Katee and Courtney- They’ve got a Tyce Broadway routine togther. It’s Tyce, so my enthusiasm is tempered. They’re worried about dancing with props too. We’ll see. It’s very Busby Berkeley, Ziegfeld Follies. But it’s still one of Tyce’ better Broadway routines. The two girls work well together. Neither really outshines the other though. It’s cute, but it’ll be forgettable in the long run, probably. Mandy also found it cute and thinks they looked adorable. It reminded her of old musicals too. Stop stealing my comments Mandy Moore! Mary thinks they nailed the synchronization and says a bunch of other good things. Nigel was happy to see two girls dancing together, and thinks that while Courtney was good, he points out that Katee was better than her. That’s kind of a dick move, Nigel.
Twitch- His nickname came from being fidgety. Go figure. He also contemplated joining the navy if he wasn’t dancing. He also wanted Kherington as a partner and was shocked by her elimination. His final solo is danced to a song by Wade Robson, hmm. That being said, his movement is banoodles. His leg control may even be greater than Chelsie. It was just a really good solo. Mandy thinks Twitch is cool and compares him to the little engine that could. Mary thinks Twitch is great in tons of styles, but his freestyle solos render Mary speechless. Can Twitch solo for the rest of eternity then? Nigel thinks Twitch has left his mark on the competition, and he thinks Twitch has humor in spades.
Twitch and Joshua- They’re getting a chance to settle a rivalry between them. They’ve got a Russian Trepak from a new choreographer named Youri. This is the dance that sent them both to the hospital, so it should be interesting. This is just bizarre. It’s fun to watch, since it’s essentially them trying to one up each other. But I’m really not sure what to make of it. It was clearly a very difficult dance to do, but I can’t say I fully loved it. And for the record, Josh won it. Mandy loves watching two men do crazy stuff on stage. She thinks the stamina was great, and wonders how Twitch got stuck with the floor work. The boys continue to one up each other during the interview. Mary thinks they are tremendous fighters and dancers, and is excited to have two hip-hop guys in the finale. Because the judges hadn’t been secretly planning for this all along. They also get a Mary shriek. Nigel thanks the choreographer for bringing the world to SYTYCD, and lauds both boys for their amazing physical abilities.
Katee- Katee never thought she’d make it this far. We also get reminded of the drama during Vegas. She also loves her little stupid dances. At least in my opinion, this is one of Katee’s most dynamic solos. Her movement, coupled with the music, is really interesting. Mandy thinks Katee should keep dancing but she needs to keep training. Mary will cherish many of Katee’s numbers. Nigel thinks all of her characters and movements have been brilliant.
Katee and Twitch- They’ve got a Tony Merdith and Melanie foxtrot. They are both nervous. There is much joking had in the pre-video package. It’s beautiful, but, I dunno. I’m not blown away by it. Katee’s dress is really transfixing to watch. She, just in general, seems to be much better. Twitch is kind of a prop. And he kind of hams it up. I dunno. I didn’t love it. Mandy found it romantic, think they both look beautiful, and highlights one particular lift as amazing. Comparisons are made between Twitch and James Bond, complete with a line reading from Twitch. Mary calls him one cool gentleman and thinks he was controlled. They both wowed her. Nigel calls Katee splendid and thinks there’s nothing she can’t do. He tells Twitch that he didn’t quite believe the beginning and thinks his strength may have spoiled the choreographers.
Joshua- Joshua chose dance over football and track. He’s not a big crier too, which then makes Cat mock him for being a big crier on the show. He considers his time on the show a blessing. His solo is pretty awesome, even if it does kind of seem similar to some of his other solos. I do like that he goes and dances at the judges table. That kind of takes cajones. Mandy thinks Josh is smooth and charismatic, and he knows how to hit. Mary brings back the hot tamale train (I thought it derailed weeks ago), and thinks he’s got soul. Nigel thinks he’s set the standard for next season with untrained dancers. (Wait, I thought we had established that Josh had some training?)
Courtney and Joshua- They’ve got a Jason Gilkison jive. They’re a little worried, because the dance needs stamina. The choreographer claims its one of most intense he’s choreographed. It’s fun, but they seem a little tired. That said, it’s fun, energetic, and ends really well. I found myself focusing on Courtney more, but that may have been because of the outfit. I wonder how they’ll try to dis Courtney this time. Mandy is wowed by the speed/footwork. Mary thinks that the routine was really hard and bows down to them for how well they did. Nigel was disappointed, because they didn’t know how to breathe and it didn’t have the right feel for it. Nigel claims he’s not knocking them just to knock them, but seeing as how the ballroom dancer loved it, I’m not so sure he should be making that claim. He goes so far as tell them “Tough” that the routine was hard and tiring. He’s really being a d-bag tonight.
Courtney, Joshua, Katee, and Twitch- The group routine is a Mia contemporary, where she says she’s really gonna dance them. She says it’s about celebrating their victory, because they’re all winners. Awwww. My viewing partner accurately points out a Paul Taylor vibe to the piece. It’s good, but there’s some energy missing. What’s interesting is that Katee seemed to be really unsure about the steps at the end. No one really stands out, they all have good moments. Mandy is at a loss for words, describing it as magical, a celebration, and sees that they’ve transcended their exhaustion. Even though Mandy would never put these four dancers together on stage. Courtney looks like she’s about to pass out. Mary thinks Mia did not hold back and thinks Twitch was the standout. Seems like he’s the judge’s choice to win. She also loved Katee. Oh, and Mary takes another shot at Courtney. Seriously? Nigel thinks that it’s great that they have two untrained male dancers in the finals. Hey, did you know that Josh and Twitch were untrained? Because Josh and Twitch are untrained. Nigel thinks that they deserve their spots in the finals, especially since they’re untrained. Oh, and he brings up that Katee was gonna quit and that Courtney scraped her way into the finals. He didn’t get the routine, but he thinks it showed their athleticism, and thinks none of them looked tired. Were we watching the same dance, Nigel? Oh, and did you know that Josh and Twitch are untrained?
My Thoughts On The Finale: This was WEAK. There were no real standout routines, the judges were unnecessarily mean to Courtney and were blatantly obvious in their pimping of Twitch and Joshua. Nigel, especially, was douchetastic tonight. Mary was also unusually mean. Disappointing finale, especially compared to how great last season’s finale was. And I can’t help but feel it would have been a lot better if Mark were still in the running. And my top 12 routines of the season stands as is.
My Ranking Of The Routines:
1) Katee and Joshua’s Contemporary
2) Courtney and Twitch’s Hip-Hop
3) Courtney and Joshua’s Jive
4) Joshua and Twitch’s Russian Trepak
5) Mia’s Contemporary
6) Katee and Courtney’s Broadway
7) Katee and Twitch’s Foxtrot
My Ranking Of The Dancers:
1) Joshua
2) Courtney
3) Katee
4) Twitch
So You Think You Can Dance 8/6- Finale Performances Open Thread
Here's hoping tonight will be banoodles!
Other Pre-Finale SYTYCD Goodness:
The Odds of Each Dancer's Victory
Awards For Season 4
The Top Routines Of The Season So Far
Other Pre-Finale SYTYCD Goodness:
The Odds of Each Dancer's Victory
Awards For Season 4
The Top Routines Of The Season So Far
SYTYCD Pre-Finale Extravaganza Part 3
So, here’s the last part of the extravaganza. Originally it was gonna be a top 10, but I made a preliminary list, and I couldn’t pick just 10. I had the solid top 9, but there were 3 dances that were all basically equal for that ten spot. I did manage to rank them, but they were all so good that they deserved to be listed. So here’s the top 12 routines (and some honorable mentions) of the season so far.
The Honorable Mentions: Chelsea and Thayne’s Top 20 Cha Cha, Courtney and Gev’s Top 18 Contemporary, Katee and Joshua’s Top 16 Samba, Chelsie and Mark’s Top 14 Foxtrot, Chelsie and Mark’s Top 12 Salsa, Comfort and Mark’s Top 8 Hip-Hop
12. Katee and Joshua’s Top 14 Contemporary
Choreographed by Mia Michaels
I still stand by my initial wowzers reaction to this dance. It’s ridiculously beautiful.
11. Courtney and Gev’s Top 14 Hip-Hop
Choreographed by Cecily and Olisa
I love the footwork in this. This reminded me what real hip-hop on the show can be like.
10. Kherington and Twitch’s Top 18 Viennese Waltz
Choreographed by Jean Marc Genereaux and France
This is just all sorts of beautiful. And the poignancy behind it only makes it better.
9. Comfort and Twitch’s Top 10 Hip-Hop
Choreographed by Dave Scott
Everyone expected it to be amazing. It was. This was Comfort’s ticket to the top 8.
8. Katee and Joshua’s Top 20 Hip-Hop
Choreographed by Napoleon and Tabitha
Not my usual type of hip-hop, but still amazing. Joshua’s rising back up is just ridiculous.
7. Chelsie and Gev’s Top 10 Contemporary
Choreographed by Sonja Tayeh
Amazing song. Amazing emotions. Just beautiful.
6. Chelsie and Mark’s Top 16 Hip-Hop
Choreographed by Napoleon and Tabitha
I wasn’t sold by this routine the first time. Rewatching it, I am. Chelsie was also ridiculously impressive in this, I’ve noticed.
5. Jessica and Will’s Top 10 Contemporary
Choreographed by Tyce Diorio
This is just really beautiful. I really didn’t know Tyce had this in him.
4. Courtney and Mark’s Top 6 Jazz
Choreographed by Sonja Tayeh
Sonja and Mark are the most perfect pairing ever. This is just banoodles.
3. Katee and Twitch’s Top 8 Contemporary
Choreographed by Mia Michaels
Mia having fun is a great, great thing. Katee swinging out on the door is a perfect moment.
2. Courtney and Gev’s Top 12 Jazz
Choreographed by Mandy Moore
This just beat out number 3. It’s tons of fun, the music is perfect, and they have great chemistry.
1. Katee and Will’s Top 10 Pas De Deux
Choreographed by Desmond Richardson and Dwight Rhoden
Honestly, I don’t think there’s been anything this amazing on stage all four seasons. There have been massively impressive numbers in the past, but this is just so awesomely, beautifully, amazingly banoodles-tastic that there’s no routine that even comes close to it this season. Thank god Richardson and Rhoden decided to slum on SYTYCD one week. We’re all the better for it.
So, what do you folks think?
The Honorable Mentions: Chelsea and Thayne’s Top 20 Cha Cha, Courtney and Gev’s Top 18 Contemporary, Katee and Joshua’s Top 16 Samba, Chelsie and Mark’s Top 14 Foxtrot, Chelsie and Mark’s Top 12 Salsa, Comfort and Mark’s Top 8 Hip-Hop
12. Katee and Joshua’s Top 14 Contemporary
Choreographed by Mia Michaels
I still stand by my initial wowzers reaction to this dance. It’s ridiculously beautiful.
11. Courtney and Gev’s Top 14 Hip-Hop
Choreographed by Cecily and Olisa
I love the footwork in this. This reminded me what real hip-hop on the show can be like.
10. Kherington and Twitch’s Top 18 Viennese Waltz
Choreographed by Jean Marc Genereaux and France
This is just all sorts of beautiful. And the poignancy behind it only makes it better.
9. Comfort and Twitch’s Top 10 Hip-Hop
Choreographed by Dave Scott
Everyone expected it to be amazing. It was. This was Comfort’s ticket to the top 8.
8. Katee and Joshua’s Top 20 Hip-Hop
Choreographed by Napoleon and Tabitha
Not my usual type of hip-hop, but still amazing. Joshua’s rising back up is just ridiculous.
7. Chelsie and Gev’s Top 10 Contemporary
Choreographed by Sonja Tayeh
Amazing song. Amazing emotions. Just beautiful.
6. Chelsie and Mark’s Top 16 Hip-Hop
Choreographed by Napoleon and Tabitha
I wasn’t sold by this routine the first time. Rewatching it, I am. Chelsie was also ridiculously impressive in this, I’ve noticed.
5. Jessica and Will’s Top 10 Contemporary
Choreographed by Tyce Diorio
This is just really beautiful. I really didn’t know Tyce had this in him.
4. Courtney and Mark’s Top 6 Jazz
Choreographed by Sonja Tayeh
Sonja and Mark are the most perfect pairing ever. This is just banoodles.
3. Katee and Twitch’s Top 8 Contemporary
Choreographed by Mia Michaels
Mia having fun is a great, great thing. Katee swinging out on the door is a perfect moment.
2. Courtney and Gev’s Top 12 Jazz
Choreographed by Mandy Moore
This just beat out number 3. It’s tons of fun, the music is perfect, and they have great chemistry.
1. Katee and Will’s Top 10 Pas De Deux
Choreographed by Desmond Richardson and Dwight Rhoden
Honestly, I don’t think there’s been anything this amazing on stage all four seasons. There have been massively impressive numbers in the past, but this is just so awesomely, beautifully, amazingly banoodles-tastic that there’s no routine that even comes close to it this season. Thank god Richardson and Rhoden decided to slum on SYTYCD one week. We’re all the better for it.
So, what do you folks think?
SYTYCD Pre-Finale Extravaganza Part 2
Oh, hello again. I didn’t see you there. Although that may be because I’m looking around my living room and you readers are all scattered about in places other than my living room. But no biggie, that’s not gonna stop me from handing out some So You Think You Can Dance Season 4 Awards. Of course, these are all my own opinion, and such, so on and so forth. Anyway, on to the awards!
Dancer Who I Wished We Could Have Seen More Of: A Near Three Way Tie!
1) Chelsea Traille
2) Marqis Cunningham
3) Rayven Ormijo
So, this is the only award that has multiple winners. Mainly because I couldn’t decide on one of these three. After week one, I actually thought Chelsea, who owned the stage in her first routine, was a potential finalist. But then she and Thayne got two meh routines in a row and its goodbye Chelsea. I think that she could have been much bigger and better. Marquis had real potential to be a dark horse, and his solo was ridiculously awesome the week he got cut. I’m still confused by that one. I’m interested in Rayven more because it would have been interesting to see a ballerina go further.
Dancer Who I Was Too Hard On: Jessica King. She was dancing with Will, of course she never stood a chance of looking great. Plus, that whole dancing with broken ribs thing for multiple weeks made me feel bad about how harsh I had constantly been to her. Sorry, Jessica.
Dancer The Judges Were Too Hard On: Probably Matt Dorame. Or Thayne. They both would get ripped, even though they weren’t terrible terrible.
Dancer Who Grew The Most: Definitely Gev. Definitely. (And there was no height pun intended here)
Dancer Who I’m Still Surprised Made The Top 20: Does anyone remember Susie “Cannon Fodder” Garcia?
Most Impressive Legs: Is there even a question? Chelsie Hightower.
Most Impressive Upper Body: Despite Will and Twitch’s constant shirtlessness, this one goes to Joshua Allen. That boy is strong.
Mr. and Mrs. Congeniality: Comfort Fedoke and Mark Kanemura. These two just seemed to constantly be in good spirits, even during bad criticisms.
Mr. Personality: Twitch is always fun to watch, just because he has such a good demeanor. Not that the others don’t. Twitch’s just stands out more.
Most Uneven Choreographer: Napoleon and Tabitha. One week, they’d have an amazing routine. The next week, suck city. Hell, the first week of the competition, I ranked their routines at numbers one and ten out of ten. That’s pretty uneven, if you ask me.
Most Improved Choreographer: Tyce Diorio. I had never gotten why Tyce was so loved before this season. I still don’t really, but he’s had a handful of great routines, which I have to give him credit for.
Best New Choreographer: Sonja Tayeh. All three of her routines this season have been bonkers, in a good way. Even that Kourtni and Matt superheroes one was great.
Best New Style: There haven’t been many this season, but probably Bollywood.
Worst New Style: No brainer. Country two step.
Worst Routine of the Season: Kourtni and Matt’s Top 14 Cecily and Olisa hip-hop. Yikes. There’s no soul, no passion, and you can read every mistake on their face.
Worst Musical Act Of The Season: While I’m tempted to pick those dancing prostitutes from week one or Lady Gaga, they both featured dancing, so they’re off the hook. This one probably goes to Flo Rida.
Best Musical Act Of The Season: Again, while the dancing prostitutes and Lady Gaga danced, their songs were terrible. I guess this one goes to Katy Perry, since her song was probably one of the best we were subjected to.
Best Guest Judge: Lil' C was really awesome. Here's hoping he shows up more often next season.
Worst Guest Judge: I still think Toni Basil came across as kind of a crazy old lady...
Best Cat Deeley Moment: Again, no brainer. The grills.
Worst Cat Deeley Moment: There’s no such thing as a bad Cat Deeley moment. Just bad Cat Deeley outfits.
Well, do you folks agree with my awards. Did I miss categories? Misidentify winners? Can you remember a bad Cat Deeley moment? Comment it to me. And part 3 is coming soon…
Coming Up in Part 3: The 10 Best Routines of the Season (So Far)
Dancer Who I Wished We Could Have Seen More Of: A Near Three Way Tie!
1) Chelsea Traille
2) Marqis Cunningham
3) Rayven Ormijo
So, this is the only award that has multiple winners. Mainly because I couldn’t decide on one of these three. After week one, I actually thought Chelsea, who owned the stage in her first routine, was a potential finalist. But then she and Thayne got two meh routines in a row and its goodbye Chelsea. I think that she could have been much bigger and better. Marquis had real potential to be a dark horse, and his solo was ridiculously awesome the week he got cut. I’m still confused by that one. I’m interested in Rayven more because it would have been interesting to see a ballerina go further.
Dancer Who I Was Too Hard On: Jessica King. She was dancing with Will, of course she never stood a chance of looking great. Plus, that whole dancing with broken ribs thing for multiple weeks made me feel bad about how harsh I had constantly been to her. Sorry, Jessica.
Dancer The Judges Were Too Hard On: Probably Matt Dorame. Or Thayne. They both would get ripped, even though they weren’t terrible terrible.
Dancer Who Grew The Most: Definitely Gev. Definitely. (And there was no height pun intended here)
Dancer Who I’m Still Surprised Made The Top 20: Does anyone remember Susie “Cannon Fodder” Garcia?
Most Impressive Legs: Is there even a question? Chelsie Hightower.
Most Impressive Upper Body: Despite Will and Twitch’s constant shirtlessness, this one goes to Joshua Allen. That boy is strong.
Mr. and Mrs. Congeniality: Comfort Fedoke and Mark Kanemura. These two just seemed to constantly be in good spirits, even during bad criticisms.
Mr. Personality: Twitch is always fun to watch, just because he has such a good demeanor. Not that the others don’t. Twitch’s just stands out more.
Most Uneven Choreographer: Napoleon and Tabitha. One week, they’d have an amazing routine. The next week, suck city. Hell, the first week of the competition, I ranked their routines at numbers one and ten out of ten. That’s pretty uneven, if you ask me.
Most Improved Choreographer: Tyce Diorio. I had never gotten why Tyce was so loved before this season. I still don’t really, but he’s had a handful of great routines, which I have to give him credit for.
Best New Choreographer: Sonja Tayeh. All three of her routines this season have been bonkers, in a good way. Even that Kourtni and Matt superheroes one was great.
Best New Style: There haven’t been many this season, but probably Bollywood.
Worst New Style: No brainer. Country two step.
Worst Routine of the Season: Kourtni and Matt’s Top 14 Cecily and Olisa hip-hop. Yikes. There’s no soul, no passion, and you can read every mistake on their face.
Worst Musical Act Of The Season: While I’m tempted to pick those dancing prostitutes from week one or Lady Gaga, they both featured dancing, so they’re off the hook. This one probably goes to Flo Rida.
Best Musical Act Of The Season: Again, while the dancing prostitutes and Lady Gaga danced, their songs were terrible. I guess this one goes to Katy Perry, since her song was probably one of the best we were subjected to.
Best Guest Judge: Lil' C was really awesome. Here's hoping he shows up more often next season.
Worst Guest Judge: I still think Toni Basil came across as kind of a crazy old lady...
Best Cat Deeley Moment: Again, no brainer. The grills.
Worst Cat Deeley Moment: There’s no such thing as a bad Cat Deeley moment. Just bad Cat Deeley outfits.
Well, do you folks agree with my awards. Did I miss categories? Misidentify winners? Can you remember a bad Cat Deeley moment? Comment it to me. And part 3 is coming soon…
Coming Up in Part 3: The 10 Best Routines of the Season (So Far)
SYTYCD Pre-Finale Extravaganza Part 1
Hey folks. In honor of tonight’s SYTYCD finale, LevyOnTV is gonna have a big pre-finale extravaganza in 3 parts. Now, I know, I probably should have spread this out over 3 days or something, but, what you don’t know is that I’m very lazy. So, now that I have the day off, I’m gonna space them over the afternoon!
Before we start, I’d like to thank all of the open thread participants from last week’s results show for a fun time. Even if it did take a sad turn when Mark was eliminated. But it was still fun, and hopefully tonight’s (it’ll be up around 6 EST) will be even better. Also, in case you haven’t heard, Twitch and Josh were hospitalized for dehydration this weekend. But, if you’re a fan of those two, don’t fret. They’re fine, and the girls didn’t have any extra rehearsal time, so everyone’s on the same page. Finally, I’d like to direct you over to Momo for a link roundup she was nice enough to do. There’s a whole bunch of other SYTYCD stuff there too. Thanks!
And now, on to the first part of the extravaganza! Here are, in your semi-humble TV blogger’s opinion, the odds of each dancer taking home the title and why.
3:1- Joshua Allen
Josh is two things. One, he’s an amazing dancer who has been consistently good in pretty much every style (Although he never got Country Two Step). Second, Josh is absolutely adorable. He’s one of those insanely likeable people who’s almost too likable. But he always seems grounded, and always seems amazing. Plus, he and Katee have totally been the power couple to beat since day one. Which is why it’s kind of ironic and funny that what Josh truly needs to worry about is Katee having an amazing night.
4:1- Katee Shean
As I just said, Katee and Joshua were the power couple from day one. Katee has been nothing if consistently banoodles. Technique-wise, she’s been the strongest female for a while, if not since day one. Plus, where everyone (or maybe it was just me), kind of expected her to maybe pull a Kherington and fall flat without her original partner, she’s kind of flourished. Katee is the real mystery to me almost, because it’s possible that she has been doing much stronger in the votes than I’ve been believing her to. If there’s anyone who can knock out Josh, it’s gonna be Katee.
10:1- Courtney Galliano
Courtney is the absolute dark horse. If you had told me at the top 10 that Courtney would have been one of the two finalists, I totally wouldn’t have believed you. But the girl proved herself and earned her spot. Everyone loves an underdog story, which could help Courtney. Plus, I have the sneaking suspicion that Courtney is gonna be the dancer to pick up the majority of Mark fans. She still needs to have a banoodles night, though.
20:1- Twitch
I’m not ready to say that Twitch is completely out of the running yet. But does anyone really expect Twitch to win? Yes, his solos are always great, but, lately, his routines have been showing lots of weaknesses. And, with Josh being similar and usually more impressive, I really don’t think Twitch will win. He could, but it’s a real longshot. I may be underestimating his personality/demeanor and his fanbase, though.
Well, readers, do my odds seem right to you? Disagree with my reasoning? Comment it to me, I’m a good listener. Stay tuned for the next two parts…
Coming Up in Part 2: Various Season 4 Awards
Before we start, I’d like to thank all of the open thread participants from last week’s results show for a fun time. Even if it did take a sad turn when Mark was eliminated. But it was still fun, and hopefully tonight’s (it’ll be up around 6 EST) will be even better. Also, in case you haven’t heard, Twitch and Josh were hospitalized for dehydration this weekend. But, if you’re a fan of those two, don’t fret. They’re fine, and the girls didn’t have any extra rehearsal time, so everyone’s on the same page. Finally, I’d like to direct you over to Momo for a link roundup she was nice enough to do. There’s a whole bunch of other SYTYCD stuff there too. Thanks!
And now, on to the first part of the extravaganza! Here are, in your semi-humble TV blogger’s opinion, the odds of each dancer taking home the title and why.
3:1- Joshua Allen
Josh is two things. One, he’s an amazing dancer who has been consistently good in pretty much every style (Although he never got Country Two Step). Second, Josh is absolutely adorable. He’s one of those insanely likeable people who’s almost too likable. But he always seems grounded, and always seems amazing. Plus, he and Katee have totally been the power couple to beat since day one. Which is why it’s kind of ironic and funny that what Josh truly needs to worry about is Katee having an amazing night.
4:1- Katee Shean
As I just said, Katee and Joshua were the power couple from day one. Katee has been nothing if consistently banoodles. Technique-wise, she’s been the strongest female for a while, if not since day one. Plus, where everyone (or maybe it was just me), kind of expected her to maybe pull a Kherington and fall flat without her original partner, she’s kind of flourished. Katee is the real mystery to me almost, because it’s possible that she has been doing much stronger in the votes than I’ve been believing her to. If there’s anyone who can knock out Josh, it’s gonna be Katee.
10:1- Courtney Galliano
Courtney is the absolute dark horse. If you had told me at the top 10 that Courtney would have been one of the two finalists, I totally wouldn’t have believed you. But the girl proved herself and earned her spot. Everyone loves an underdog story, which could help Courtney. Plus, I have the sneaking suspicion that Courtney is gonna be the dancer to pick up the majority of Mark fans. She still needs to have a banoodles night, though.
20:1- Twitch
I’m not ready to say that Twitch is completely out of the running yet. But does anyone really expect Twitch to win? Yes, his solos are always great, but, lately, his routines have been showing lots of weaknesses. And, with Josh being similar and usually more impressive, I really don’t think Twitch will win. He could, but it’s a real longshot. I may be underestimating his personality/demeanor and his fanbase, though.
Well, readers, do my odds seem right to you? Disagree with my reasoning? Comment it to me, I’m a good listener. Stay tuned for the next two parts…
Coming Up in Part 2: Various Season 4 Awards
Monday, August 4, 2008
The Mole 8/4- The Final Three Do Some Stuff
Previously on The Mole, I picked Craig as The Mole (who, as one commenter told me, has obviously been the mole since day one), and the final four did some stuff. And Paul finally went home. ‘Bout time. Craig is in the final three and loves this game. Nicole is sad that she no longer has an antagonist. Mark is happy to be there too. Mark says he’s kind of lost as to the Mole’s identity. Nicole is certain Craig is the mole. Craig also claims he’s not positive who the mole is.
The players arrive at their first mission, “Tick Tock Boom”. The players have to diffuse a bomb and stop $50,000 from blowing up. They have one hour to do, and a room of clues that look straight out of a spy movie. The players are all understandably lost, since Jon gives them little to no instructions. They figure out a little bit, but still seem very lost. Craig seems to very quickly locate the hidden clue, a Time Zone map. Then again, the Mole always doesn’t throw this last mission, so Craig is still totally the Mole. Even after the Time Zone map is found, though, the players seem totally lost. They’re not alone, seeing as how I have no idea how the challenge will come together.
The players then start to use the clocks, and get a whole bunch of letters. Which they start to unscramble. Only they can’t make a heads or tails of a bunch of the letters. Until they realize that they have some wrong letters, all of which were Nicole’s fault. Both guys of course then speculate to camera that Nicole may be the Mole. That’s a new one. Then they find the right letters and start to make legitimate words. With 30 seconds remaining, the three decide to cut the purple wire, because they have the words “cut” then two four letter blank words, the “red + blue”. Personally, I noticed that they had the word fuse in the left over letters, so I think they may be on the right course. But of course we go dramatically to commercial right before they cut the wire.
They cut the wire. Nothing happens. Meaning they succeeded. Everyone hugs each other and rejoices. Jon comes back and makes a bad pun about “down to the wire” and congratulates them on winning the $50,000 and passing the 400 grand mark. Oh, and the word fuse was totally not in the answer. My bad. Everyone discusses how they loved this mission. Nicole calls herself a badass and is just glad she made it this far.
The next morning, Jon welcomes them to their final mission, “3 to Tango”, for $75,000. They each get a different set of clues and have to go to 3 locations and do 3 tasks and finally get to a final destination. Oh, and the first one who gets there can choose to trade the $75,000 for The Mole’s dossier. Craig quickly finds his first location and succeeds in his first task. Mark has more trouble, but the locals help him solve his clue. Nicole, meanwhile, uses the map and solves her first clue. Doing her task, however, proves more problematic. She even hangs up on Jon when he doesn’t accept her photo of her completed task. Craig, meanwhile, is having a much harder time finding his second location. Oh, and the locals are totally screwing over Mark in getting to his first location. It’s kind of funny.
When we come back, Craig, Mark, and Nicole are all still sucking. Jon asks her if she hung up on her and she basically says yes. But then she succeeds and gets her second location quickly. Craig finally figures out his second clue. Mark finally succeeds in his first task and, like Nicole, quickly gets his second location. And he succeeds in his second task very quickly too. Nicole, put off with the mission, tries to trick Jon on her second task and fails. Then she succeeds at doing the task correctly. Meanwhile, Mark is on his way to his third task already. Craig, after much trouble, manages to find his second location and quickly succeeds in his task. Nicole figures out her third clue, as does Craig. I realize this is a pretty boring description, but it kind of plays like a boring mission too. Except for Nicole’s snarkiness. Craig and Mark are basically tied in finishing their third tasks, and both get their clues to the final location. Which, coincidentally, is a palce that Craig has been dying to go to. Hmmm….
Nicole, meanwhile, is still trying to get to her third location. Mark and Craig are racing to get to the bridge first, and Mark is the victor. He wins the mission. So he has the big decision of $75,000 into the pot or look at the possibly helpful, possibly non-helpful mole’s dossier. Craig gets there next, and he’s unhappy about losing to Mark. Nicole, meanwhile, is still sucking. Sucking to the point that they have to send a car to pick her up and bring her there, without even having finished her final task. Mark decides to take the dossier over the money, meaning the final pot is up to $420,000. We are not told whether or not it has any helpful information, put there’s clearly a picture of someone in there and see Nicole’s name in there too. I’m guessing it was completely unhelpful, but Mark’s face seems to indicate it may, in fact, help him out. At their final dinner, everyone reminisces fondly of missions and deception past. Tonight’s final quiz is twice as long. Nicole isn’t confident, but she wants to win. Craig is run down and weary but he’s gonna try his best. Mark is gonna pick one of the remaining two players.
Quiz Time
Mark hopes he’s on the right track.
Craig needs the money.
Nicole knows that this journey has turned her into a renaissance woman.
Everyone spouts more platitudes during the quiz and highlights each other’s suspicious activites. We’re clearly not gonna get any revelations tonight, so I don’t really pay attention to any of what they’re spewing. Next week, everyone gets back together to find out who’s the winner, who’s the mole, how they sabotaged, and where the secret clues were (I’m still convinced that that wine barrel with the weird number-letter combo was a clue).
The players arrive at their first mission, “Tick Tock Boom”. The players have to diffuse a bomb and stop $50,000 from blowing up. They have one hour to do, and a room of clues that look straight out of a spy movie. The players are all understandably lost, since Jon gives them little to no instructions. They figure out a little bit, but still seem very lost. Craig seems to very quickly locate the hidden clue, a Time Zone map. Then again, the Mole always doesn’t throw this last mission, so Craig is still totally the Mole. Even after the Time Zone map is found, though, the players seem totally lost. They’re not alone, seeing as how I have no idea how the challenge will come together.
The players then start to use the clocks, and get a whole bunch of letters. Which they start to unscramble. Only they can’t make a heads or tails of a bunch of the letters. Until they realize that they have some wrong letters, all of which were Nicole’s fault. Both guys of course then speculate to camera that Nicole may be the Mole. That’s a new one. Then they find the right letters and start to make legitimate words. With 30 seconds remaining, the three decide to cut the purple wire, because they have the words “cut” then two four letter blank words, the “red + blue”. Personally, I noticed that they had the word fuse in the left over letters, so I think they may be on the right course. But of course we go dramatically to commercial right before they cut the wire.
They cut the wire. Nothing happens. Meaning they succeeded. Everyone hugs each other and rejoices. Jon comes back and makes a bad pun about “down to the wire” and congratulates them on winning the $50,000 and passing the 400 grand mark. Oh, and the word fuse was totally not in the answer. My bad. Everyone discusses how they loved this mission. Nicole calls herself a badass and is just glad she made it this far.
The next morning, Jon welcomes them to their final mission, “3 to Tango”, for $75,000. They each get a different set of clues and have to go to 3 locations and do 3 tasks and finally get to a final destination. Oh, and the first one who gets there can choose to trade the $75,000 for The Mole’s dossier. Craig quickly finds his first location and succeeds in his first task. Mark has more trouble, but the locals help him solve his clue. Nicole, meanwhile, uses the map and solves her first clue. Doing her task, however, proves more problematic. She even hangs up on Jon when he doesn’t accept her photo of her completed task. Craig, meanwhile, is having a much harder time finding his second location. Oh, and the locals are totally screwing over Mark in getting to his first location. It’s kind of funny.
When we come back, Craig, Mark, and Nicole are all still sucking. Jon asks her if she hung up on her and she basically says yes. But then she succeeds and gets her second location quickly. Craig finally figures out his second clue. Mark finally succeeds in his first task and, like Nicole, quickly gets his second location. And he succeeds in his second task very quickly too. Nicole, put off with the mission, tries to trick Jon on her second task and fails. Then she succeeds at doing the task correctly. Meanwhile, Mark is on his way to his third task already. Craig, after much trouble, manages to find his second location and quickly succeeds in his task. Nicole figures out her third clue, as does Craig. I realize this is a pretty boring description, but it kind of plays like a boring mission too. Except for Nicole’s snarkiness. Craig and Mark are basically tied in finishing their third tasks, and both get their clues to the final location. Which, coincidentally, is a palce that Craig has been dying to go to. Hmmm….
Nicole, meanwhile, is still trying to get to her third location. Mark and Craig are racing to get to the bridge first, and Mark is the victor. He wins the mission. So he has the big decision of $75,000 into the pot or look at the possibly helpful, possibly non-helpful mole’s dossier. Craig gets there next, and he’s unhappy about losing to Mark. Nicole, meanwhile, is still sucking. Sucking to the point that they have to send a car to pick her up and bring her there, without even having finished her final task. Mark decides to take the dossier over the money, meaning the final pot is up to $420,000. We are not told whether or not it has any helpful information, put there’s clearly a picture of someone in there and see Nicole’s name in there too. I’m guessing it was completely unhelpful, but Mark’s face seems to indicate it may, in fact, help him out. At their final dinner, everyone reminisces fondly of missions and deception past. Tonight’s final quiz is twice as long. Nicole isn’t confident, but she wants to win. Craig is run down and weary but he’s gonna try his best. Mark is gonna pick one of the remaining two players.
Quiz Time
Mark hopes he’s on the right track.
Craig needs the money.
Nicole knows that this journey has turned her into a renaissance woman.
Everyone spouts more platitudes during the quiz and highlights each other’s suspicious activites. We’re clearly not gonna get any revelations tonight, so I don’t really pay attention to any of what they’re spewing. Next week, everyone gets back together to find out who’s the winner, who’s the mole, how they sabotaged, and where the secret clues were (I’m still convinced that that wine barrel with the weird number-letter combo was a clue).
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