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.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
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.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
So You Think You Can Dance 7/10- And We Have Our Top Ten…
Cat is wearing a little black dress, counteracted by incredibly big blond hair. The opening routine, choreographed by Napoleon and Tabitha, is actually pretty fun, although I have quibbles with the fact that it is completely dark and invisible for a chunk of the dance. I mean, there was a cool glow-in-the-dark interlude, but we still couldn’t see the actual dance. Will and Gev, and Comfort to a lesser extent, are the ones who own the routine. We welcome our judges, where Nigel reveals that the Philip Chbeeb/Robert Muraine dance-off will happen during the finale. Sweetness.
The first two couples are brought on stage, Katee/Joshua and Comfort/Thayne. Is there any question which of these two will be in the bottom three? We see Comfort and Thayne’s video package first, where we recall the basically completely negative comments they received. And they only look worse in comparison to the glowing praise (with the exception of some bouncy comments) that Katee/Joshua received. So I’m all of 0% shocked when the results that I knew were coming do, indeed, come. Mia thinks America has got it right and that Comfort and Thayne aren’t getting America’s messages. If they were screening America’s calls, I’d totally understand.
When we return, Jessica/Will and Chelsie/Mark are already on stage. Again, is there any question which of these two will be visiting the bottom three? We relive the awesome Tyce routine (Did I actually just type those words) and the much less awesome quickstep. Oh, and Mia’s comments to Jessica? Still totally too harsh. Mark and Chelsie’s routines look even better than I remember them, so I’m pleased but not at all surprised when Chelsie and Mark are safe. Jessica and Will are gonna dance solos later on. Mary’s heart is aching to see them in the bottom, because their contemporary did rock pretty hard. Now that I think about it, can a contemporary rock hard? Or would it be something like “the fluidity of movement flowed through your spirits and unleashed pure, raw beauty upon our eyes and the eyes of the world.” Whoa, guys. I think I just channeled Mia Michaels.
When we return to the show, the last two couples are on stage. I think this is much more of a toss-up, because while Kherington and Twitch kinda sucked but have a big fan base, while Courtney and Gev rocked it, but have a smaller fan base. We relive all the mixed praise both couples got (Although Courtney and Gev probably had better overall comments). America got it right this week though (as opposed to last week), as Kherington/Twitch are in the bottom three. Honestly, though, neither of these two are going home, so does it really even matter?
Tonight, in our Masters of Dance segment, we get three of the stars of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater doing a part of a piece called “Revelations”. Set to a sub-par version of “Sinnerman”, the number is amazing. These guys are all ridiculously talented (as they should be if they are a part of Alvin Ailey’s company), and the movement looks fantastic.
SOLO TIME:
Comfort: If this is how she’s goes out, it’s kind of fitting. It’s good, fun, full of personality, but nowhere near the best thing on the stage.
Thayne: It’s a more standard contemporary solo of twirls and leaps, but there are enough interesting body contortions to make it a pretty good solo.
Jessica: Well, who knows now? This may not be Comfort’s last night after all. Jessica’s solo is really weak sauce. I can see that she didn’t believe in herself or it. Poor form, Jessica.
Will: Can someone please explain to me why Will is so freakin’ amazing as a dancer but so bad in the personality department? If any bit of Will’s personality ever showed up, he would have this competition locked. He’s pure amazingness on that stage. It’s banoodles. (Am I channeling Mia again?)
Kherington: She brings energy and her movement is great. My only quibble is that the feeling of the solo, which seems to be joyous (mainly because Kherington has the perma-smile on), completely contrasts the dour-ish sounding song.
Twitch: He’s so good. Like, seriously amazing. Maybe even better than Will. Not to keep using this word, but seriously: banoodles.
Tonight’s special guest is Katy Perry, meaning my long run of avoiding Katy Perry has come to an end. Her voice sounds a good deal like Amy Winehouse and she looks eerily like Zooey Deschanel, which is a good combo. I have to say, the song isn’t terrible, and she performs more than the other musical guests the show has had (Save maybe those dancing prostitutes, who, God bless ‘em, can’t sing but know how to perform). Also, I have to say, I’m surprised that Nigel, who, lets face it, is pretty homophobic on this show, allowed a song about exploring lesbianism.
We come back, and, sadly, it’s time to say goodbye to Thayne and either Comfort or Jessica. The girls are up first, and Kherington is brought forward first. They lavish her with praise and send her to the top 10. Which leaves Comfort and Jessica. They think Comfort pulled it out in her solo tonight, but were disappointed with Jessica’s solo. But because she has had moments of being really good, Jessica is staying on, meaning it’s the end of the line for Comfort. We relive Comfort’s finer moments before it’s the boys’ turn. Not that there’s a question as to which of these boys is going home. Nigel calls Twitch forward first and says that he was outstanding and sends him to the top 10. Nigel tells Will that he would fit in with the Ailey boys (which I thought too), and sends him to the top 10 as well. Meaning, Thayne, as everyone suspected, is going home. In a complete dis to Jessica, Nigel tells Thayne that they wished they could have kept him and eliminated two girls. Thayne’s perma-smile never fades as we watch the dancers all surround the final two cut before the tour…
The first two couples are brought on stage, Katee/Joshua and Comfort/Thayne. Is there any question which of these two will be in the bottom three? We see Comfort and Thayne’s video package first, where we recall the basically completely negative comments they received. And they only look worse in comparison to the glowing praise (with the exception of some bouncy comments) that Katee/Joshua received. So I’m all of 0% shocked when the results that I knew were coming do, indeed, come. Mia thinks America has got it right and that Comfort and Thayne aren’t getting America’s messages. If they were screening America’s calls, I’d totally understand.
When we return, Jessica/Will and Chelsie/Mark are already on stage. Again, is there any question which of these two will be visiting the bottom three? We relive the awesome Tyce routine (Did I actually just type those words) and the much less awesome quickstep. Oh, and Mia’s comments to Jessica? Still totally too harsh. Mark and Chelsie’s routines look even better than I remember them, so I’m pleased but not at all surprised when Chelsie and Mark are safe. Jessica and Will are gonna dance solos later on. Mary’s heart is aching to see them in the bottom, because their contemporary did rock pretty hard. Now that I think about it, can a contemporary rock hard? Or would it be something like “the fluidity of movement flowed through your spirits and unleashed pure, raw beauty upon our eyes and the eyes of the world.” Whoa, guys. I think I just channeled Mia Michaels.
When we return to the show, the last two couples are on stage. I think this is much more of a toss-up, because while Kherington and Twitch kinda sucked but have a big fan base, while Courtney and Gev rocked it, but have a smaller fan base. We relive all the mixed praise both couples got (Although Courtney and Gev probably had better overall comments). America got it right this week though (as opposed to last week), as Kherington/Twitch are in the bottom three. Honestly, though, neither of these two are going home, so does it really even matter?
Tonight, in our Masters of Dance segment, we get three of the stars of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater doing a part of a piece called “Revelations”. Set to a sub-par version of “Sinnerman”, the number is amazing. These guys are all ridiculously talented (as they should be if they are a part of Alvin Ailey’s company), and the movement looks fantastic.
SOLO TIME:
Comfort: If this is how she’s goes out, it’s kind of fitting. It’s good, fun, full of personality, but nowhere near the best thing on the stage.
Thayne: It’s a more standard contemporary solo of twirls and leaps, but there are enough interesting body contortions to make it a pretty good solo.
Jessica: Well, who knows now? This may not be Comfort’s last night after all. Jessica’s solo is really weak sauce. I can see that she didn’t believe in herself or it. Poor form, Jessica.
Will: Can someone please explain to me why Will is so freakin’ amazing as a dancer but so bad in the personality department? If any bit of Will’s personality ever showed up, he would have this competition locked. He’s pure amazingness on that stage. It’s banoodles. (Am I channeling Mia again?)
Kherington: She brings energy and her movement is great. My only quibble is that the feeling of the solo, which seems to be joyous (mainly because Kherington has the perma-smile on), completely contrasts the dour-ish sounding song.
Twitch: He’s so good. Like, seriously amazing. Maybe even better than Will. Not to keep using this word, but seriously: banoodles.
Tonight’s special guest is Katy Perry, meaning my long run of avoiding Katy Perry has come to an end. Her voice sounds a good deal like Amy Winehouse and she looks eerily like Zooey Deschanel, which is a good combo. I have to say, the song isn’t terrible, and she performs more than the other musical guests the show has had (Save maybe those dancing prostitutes, who, God bless ‘em, can’t sing but know how to perform). Also, I have to say, I’m surprised that Nigel, who, lets face it, is pretty homophobic on this show, allowed a song about exploring lesbianism.
We come back, and, sadly, it’s time to say goodbye to Thayne and either Comfort or Jessica. The girls are up first, and Kherington is brought forward first. They lavish her with praise and send her to the top 10. Which leaves Comfort and Jessica. They think Comfort pulled it out in her solo tonight, but were disappointed with Jessica’s solo. But because she has had moments of being really good, Jessica is staying on, meaning it’s the end of the line for Comfort. We relive Comfort’s finer moments before it’s the boys’ turn. Not that there’s a question as to which of these boys is going home. Nigel calls Twitch forward first and says that he was outstanding and sends him to the top 10. Nigel tells Will that he would fit in with the Ailey boys (which I thought too), and sends him to the top 10 as well. Meaning, Thayne, as everyone suspected, is going home. In a complete dis to Jessica, Nigel tells Thayne that they wished they could have kept him and eliminated two girls. Thayne’s perma-smile never fades as we watch the dancers all surround the final two cut before the tour…
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
So You Think You Can Dance 7/9- Everyone Steps It Up To Make The Tour
Cat looks all summery and hippie-ish. Although she may or may not look kind of like a patchwork quilt. The impressive intros are courtesy of Will, Chelsie, Joshua, Mark, Gev, Twitch, and Thayne, which seems like a bigger group than ever before. It seems people are stepping up their game before the last pre-tour cut. Cat has us welcome the judges, Nigel, Mary, and Mia, which means no kickass Mia Michaels contemporary, which makes me sad.
Chelsie and Mark- They’ve got an Alex DaSilva salsa, apparently featuring many tricks. They look mildly scared in the pre-dance package. It seems pretty darn fantastic though. Their footwork is great, with Mark upstaging Chelsie. They both seem totally into it, and all the tricks are well executed. Nigel thought the routine was great, but that Mark was a little tight in the upper body. But he lauds the footwork and calls Chelsie fantastic before making a pervy comment or two. Mary says it worked for her, but she wanted more rhythm from Mark, but he owned the tricks. She also says Chelsie nailed it and calls her beautiful dynamite. Chelsie brings out the murderous tendencies in Mia, but in a good beauty way. Mia loves both of them and calls Mark a star, but says he was kind of weak in this.
Comfort and Thayne- They’ve got a Tabitha and Napoleon hip-hop. Comfort is in home territory, so she’s confident. I wouldn’t be, considering Tabitha and Napoleon are very hit and miss. They also tell Thayne to stop smiling so gosh darn much. They, thankfully, get one of the good N&T routines. With the exception of that dumb punch line, the movements are all relatively cool and relatively hip-hoppish. Overall, I enjoyed it. Nigel wasn’t feeling the vibe, but he thought the movements were there. He predicts the bottom three for them. Mary also didn’t feel the chemistry, calling it just “good”. Mia calls it a little bit more than “good”, but says that the chemistry was, indeed, lacking. She liked the beginning, but tells Comfort than her star is falling and Thayne is fading.
Jessica and Will- They’ve got a Tyce contemporary routine. I’m interested to see if Tyce is any better in another style than Broadway or Jazz. Their pre-video has an angelic chorus and everyone spouts platitude-like statements. I’d actually call this one of the best Tyce routines I’ve ever seen. The movement is interesting and the lack of distractions add up to a fairly impressive routine. Jessica is better than I’ve ever seen her, but there was still something a little lacking. She seems to be catching up to Will, but she’s not quite there. Nigel loved loved the routine, and thinks that they felt the routine and danced it beautifully. Mary is a little bit in heat over Will and says it was one of the best pieces she’s ever seen on the show and thinks Jessica stepped up to the plate and matched the equally good Will. Mia also loved loved it and says they explored newness. Mia Michaels jargon is hilarious. She calls it the perfect moving human body art, and uses words like fluid and alive and showers love on them.
Courtney and Gev- They’ve got a Cha Cha, choreographed by Anya and Pasha from last season. I loved them both, so I’m excited. Apparently, Gev is great at ballroom, which shows in the fact that they rock this routine. He’s got the bravado down, and the hips on both of them are great. Nigel gives it an extra Cha for how hot the routine is, and tells Courtney she’s as sexy as Anya was. Nigel says Gev was great, but maybe not technically. He lauds them for their chemistry and calls it fun. Mary says it was magic, also giving it many extra Chas. She also says Gev wasn’t great technically, but says it didn’t really matter because he was so connected and otherwise great. She was delighted with Courtney and puts them on the hot tamale train. Oh, how I hate that idiotic train. Mia thinks it was fabulosity at its best. She tells them they’re clearly not the best dancers on the show, but their performance quality is amazing. She’s starting to see potential in Courtney.
Kherington and Twitch- They’ve got a Lil’ C krump routine. Kherington promises she can get buck if she needs to, but she don’t seem confident. Kherington handles herself reasonably well, but the star here is Twitch. He owns his parts. Overall, though, I’m not sure if this routine’s gonna be entirely memorable. Nigel gets constipated but tells Kherington she did a damn good job. Nigel says there was honesty in her movement, but thinks she fell absolutely apart at the end (which she did). Mary calls this the first krump number to believe in. She wanted to sit back and say “whoa” to Twitch. She also applauds Kherington for stepping it up. Mia calls it dirty and stank and buck. She loved it and says it was right on and says Twitch served gangster on a platter. She also thought Kherington did really well and is willing to ignore the end.
Katee and Joshua- They’ve got a Jean-Marc Genereaux Viennese Waltz. He says this is gonna be less emotional than the last one, but still emotional. Katee is worried by the mucho lifts, but blames Joshua for any problems. It’s beautiful, if a little bit overdone for a waltz. That’s not their fault though, as they hit every lift well and looked graceful. Joshua was a little bouncy for Nigel, but otherwise, they looked lovely. Nigel loved Katee too. Mary thought all the lifts were well executed, but she thought the dancing part was kind of lacking and bouncy. As a whole, she calls it okay. Mia called it a little bit clumsy on Joshua’ s part, but she thinks that Katee is meant to dance and thinks her journey is just beginning and says that her spirit soars through her body.
Chelsie and Mark 2, Electric Boogaloo- For their second dance of the night, they’ve got a Tyce Broadway number. I doubt Tyce will have two great routines in one night, so I’m a little worried. They’re a really enduring couple, these two. The number is a little cheesy, but they are very entertaining. Mark chews the scenery but does it in a great way. They both rock it. Nigel calls it hot and says Chelsie has legs for miles. He says it was terrific and well danced. Mary calls it sultry, sexy, and bluesy. She compliments their partnering, particularly on a death fall. Mia says it worked and calls it a success, but says it showed Mark’s lack of technique, but he can overcome it because he’s awesome in other ways. She says Chelsie is hot, but she wanted more movement.
Comfort and Thayne 2, Electric Boogaloo- They’ve got a Mandy Moore contemporary routine, which Mandy says will pull out all the stops. Comfort’s arm is apparently acting up again. I’d say this is one of Mandy’s best routines, and Comfort does, seemingly, step it up. There’s one amazing lift, twirl that’s really impressive. Nigel thinks they didn’t connect and didn’t dance it as well as they should have. He says he wanted to see a different couple dancing it. Mary says it wasn’t completely believable, which I guess I agree with. She thinks the movement from Comfort was so-so and thinks the lift technique was so-so. Mia thinks the choreography was great, but says Comfort has basically reached her end. The words “you can only fake it so much” are thrown around. She thinks Thayne is brilliant though, and says he’s grounded and she wants to work with him, on the show or off.
Jessica and Will 2, Electric Boogaloo- They’ve got SYTYCD kryptonite, a Tony Meredith quick step. Cat appears to be apologizing for them before they get on stage, so color me worried. Both dancers seem worried too. They’re much better than the quickstep usually allows. Will, in particular, stands out as amazingly gymnastical. Nigel loved the non-quickstep parts of the routine, but didn’t like the quickstep parts. It makes more sense than I’m getting across. Mary thinks the wardrobe hindered them and thinks their footwork was lacking. Mia is a bit sad because Jessica lost all the progress she made in the first number. She says it wasn’t working at all and thinks Will is tired of carrying her, going so far as to say he needs a new partner. Ouch, Mia.
Courtney and Gev 2, Electric Boogaloo- They’ve got a Mandy Moore jazz routine about lost jungle explorers. I’m a big, big fan of this routine. They both dance it really well, Gev in particular. They play off each other really well and the movement is all excellent. Nigel says it was fun, but it felt like cotton candy, no substance. Mary thought it was rough and raw and thinks they owned it. She loved Gev’s strength and Courtney’s dynamism. She calls it pure entertainment. Mia thinks they had a great night tonight. She calls them one of her top couples.
Kherington and Twitch 2, Electric Boogaloo- They’ve got a smooth tango from Jean-Marc Genereaux. Twitch describes it as “Mr. and Mrs. Smith”, tango style. It’s really good in the first half, when the lights are down. Once the lights come up, however, it’s another story. It seems a lot more like dancing choreography than just dancing. They both look almost startled. Nigel thinks Twitch was fake, Kherington was passionless, and thinks it overall wasn’t very good. Mary loved the beginning and the very ending, but thinks the in between was weak and hoppy. She thinks Kherington was better, but is glad they had the other number. Mia thinks there was no substance and thinks they were non-committed. The last word spoken is mediocre.
Katee and Joshua 2, Electric Boogaloo- They’ve got a brand new style for the show, Bollywood from new choreographers Nakul and Marla (I think those were their names). Katee and Joshua look quite scared. I don’t really know how to critique this, but it looked relatively fun. They’ve got the cool hand moments down, but some floor spins that they had to do seemed pretty week. Nigel pats himself on the back for introducing Bollywood and then immediately compares it to tons of other styles. He thinks they gave it personality. Mary staggers her words then calls them stars and lauds their athleticism. She says she was drawn to Katee but they were both great, placing them back on the hot tamale train and gives them a scream. Mia says Katee looks amazing all bedazzled in Indian clothes and jewels. Mia thought the routine was great and thinks it’s great that world dance is being featured. She thinks they did a great job.
My Ranking Of The Routines:
1) Jessica and Will’s Contemporary
2) Courtney and Gev’s Jazz
3) Chelsie and Mark’s Salsa
4) Courtney and Gev’s Cha Cha
5) Chelsie and Mark’s Broadway
6) Comfort and Thayne’s Contemporary
7) Katee and Joshua’s Viennese Waltz
8) Katee and Joshua’s Bollywood
9) Comfort and Thayne’s Hip-Hop
10) Jessica and Will’s Quickstep
11) Kherington and Twitch’s Krump
12) Kherington and Twitch’s Smooth Tango
My Ranking of the Couples:
1) Courtney and Gev
2) Chelsie and Mark
3) Jessica and Will
4) Katee and Joshua
5) Comfort and Thayne
6) Kherington and Twitch
Should Be Worried: There’s no doubt that Comfort and Thayne will be heading to the bottom three. Jessica and Will will probably be there as well. Kherington and Twitch should be there, but it may be Courtney and Gev wrongfully in their place again. I’m guessing this is the end of the road for Comfort and Thayne.
Chelsie and Mark- They’ve got an Alex DaSilva salsa, apparently featuring many tricks. They look mildly scared in the pre-dance package. It seems pretty darn fantastic though. Their footwork is great, with Mark upstaging Chelsie. They both seem totally into it, and all the tricks are well executed. Nigel thought the routine was great, but that Mark was a little tight in the upper body. But he lauds the footwork and calls Chelsie fantastic before making a pervy comment or two. Mary says it worked for her, but she wanted more rhythm from Mark, but he owned the tricks. She also says Chelsie nailed it and calls her beautiful dynamite. Chelsie brings out the murderous tendencies in Mia, but in a good beauty way. Mia loves both of them and calls Mark a star, but says he was kind of weak in this.
Comfort and Thayne- They’ve got a Tabitha and Napoleon hip-hop. Comfort is in home territory, so she’s confident. I wouldn’t be, considering Tabitha and Napoleon are very hit and miss. They also tell Thayne to stop smiling so gosh darn much. They, thankfully, get one of the good N&T routines. With the exception of that dumb punch line, the movements are all relatively cool and relatively hip-hoppish. Overall, I enjoyed it. Nigel wasn’t feeling the vibe, but he thought the movements were there. He predicts the bottom three for them. Mary also didn’t feel the chemistry, calling it just “good”. Mia calls it a little bit more than “good”, but says that the chemistry was, indeed, lacking. She liked the beginning, but tells Comfort than her star is falling and Thayne is fading.
Jessica and Will- They’ve got a Tyce contemporary routine. I’m interested to see if Tyce is any better in another style than Broadway or Jazz. Their pre-video has an angelic chorus and everyone spouts platitude-like statements. I’d actually call this one of the best Tyce routines I’ve ever seen. The movement is interesting and the lack of distractions add up to a fairly impressive routine. Jessica is better than I’ve ever seen her, but there was still something a little lacking. She seems to be catching up to Will, but she’s not quite there. Nigel loved loved the routine, and thinks that they felt the routine and danced it beautifully. Mary is a little bit in heat over Will and says it was one of the best pieces she’s ever seen on the show and thinks Jessica stepped up to the plate and matched the equally good Will. Mia also loved loved it and says they explored newness. Mia Michaels jargon is hilarious. She calls it the perfect moving human body art, and uses words like fluid and alive and showers love on them.
Courtney and Gev- They’ve got a Cha Cha, choreographed by Anya and Pasha from last season. I loved them both, so I’m excited. Apparently, Gev is great at ballroom, which shows in the fact that they rock this routine. He’s got the bravado down, and the hips on both of them are great. Nigel gives it an extra Cha for how hot the routine is, and tells Courtney she’s as sexy as Anya was. Nigel says Gev was great, but maybe not technically. He lauds them for their chemistry and calls it fun. Mary says it was magic, also giving it many extra Chas. She also says Gev wasn’t great technically, but says it didn’t really matter because he was so connected and otherwise great. She was delighted with Courtney and puts them on the hot tamale train. Oh, how I hate that idiotic train. Mia thinks it was fabulosity at its best. She tells them they’re clearly not the best dancers on the show, but their performance quality is amazing. She’s starting to see potential in Courtney.
Kherington and Twitch- They’ve got a Lil’ C krump routine. Kherington promises she can get buck if she needs to, but she don’t seem confident. Kherington handles herself reasonably well, but the star here is Twitch. He owns his parts. Overall, though, I’m not sure if this routine’s gonna be entirely memorable. Nigel gets constipated but tells Kherington she did a damn good job. Nigel says there was honesty in her movement, but thinks she fell absolutely apart at the end (which she did). Mary calls this the first krump number to believe in. She wanted to sit back and say “whoa” to Twitch. She also applauds Kherington for stepping it up. Mia calls it dirty and stank and buck. She loved it and says it was right on and says Twitch served gangster on a platter. She also thought Kherington did really well and is willing to ignore the end.
Katee and Joshua- They’ve got a Jean-Marc Genereaux Viennese Waltz. He says this is gonna be less emotional than the last one, but still emotional. Katee is worried by the mucho lifts, but blames Joshua for any problems. It’s beautiful, if a little bit overdone for a waltz. That’s not their fault though, as they hit every lift well and looked graceful. Joshua was a little bouncy for Nigel, but otherwise, they looked lovely. Nigel loved Katee too. Mary thought all the lifts were well executed, but she thought the dancing part was kind of lacking and bouncy. As a whole, she calls it okay. Mia called it a little bit clumsy on Joshua’ s part, but she thinks that Katee is meant to dance and thinks her journey is just beginning and says that her spirit soars through her body.
Chelsie and Mark 2, Electric Boogaloo- For their second dance of the night, they’ve got a Tyce Broadway number. I doubt Tyce will have two great routines in one night, so I’m a little worried. They’re a really enduring couple, these two. The number is a little cheesy, but they are very entertaining. Mark chews the scenery but does it in a great way. They both rock it. Nigel calls it hot and says Chelsie has legs for miles. He says it was terrific and well danced. Mary calls it sultry, sexy, and bluesy. She compliments their partnering, particularly on a death fall. Mia says it worked and calls it a success, but says it showed Mark’s lack of technique, but he can overcome it because he’s awesome in other ways. She says Chelsie is hot, but she wanted more movement.
Comfort and Thayne 2, Electric Boogaloo- They’ve got a Mandy Moore contemporary routine, which Mandy says will pull out all the stops. Comfort’s arm is apparently acting up again. I’d say this is one of Mandy’s best routines, and Comfort does, seemingly, step it up. There’s one amazing lift, twirl that’s really impressive. Nigel thinks they didn’t connect and didn’t dance it as well as they should have. He says he wanted to see a different couple dancing it. Mary says it wasn’t completely believable, which I guess I agree with. She thinks the movement from Comfort was so-so and thinks the lift technique was so-so. Mia thinks the choreography was great, but says Comfort has basically reached her end. The words “you can only fake it so much” are thrown around. She thinks Thayne is brilliant though, and says he’s grounded and she wants to work with him, on the show or off.
Jessica and Will 2, Electric Boogaloo- They’ve got SYTYCD kryptonite, a Tony Meredith quick step. Cat appears to be apologizing for them before they get on stage, so color me worried. Both dancers seem worried too. They’re much better than the quickstep usually allows. Will, in particular, stands out as amazingly gymnastical. Nigel loved the non-quickstep parts of the routine, but didn’t like the quickstep parts. It makes more sense than I’m getting across. Mary thinks the wardrobe hindered them and thinks their footwork was lacking. Mia is a bit sad because Jessica lost all the progress she made in the first number. She says it wasn’t working at all and thinks Will is tired of carrying her, going so far as to say he needs a new partner. Ouch, Mia.
Courtney and Gev 2, Electric Boogaloo- They’ve got a Mandy Moore jazz routine about lost jungle explorers. I’m a big, big fan of this routine. They both dance it really well, Gev in particular. They play off each other really well and the movement is all excellent. Nigel says it was fun, but it felt like cotton candy, no substance. Mary thought it was rough and raw and thinks they owned it. She loved Gev’s strength and Courtney’s dynamism. She calls it pure entertainment. Mia thinks they had a great night tonight. She calls them one of her top couples.
Kherington and Twitch 2, Electric Boogaloo- They’ve got a smooth tango from Jean-Marc Genereaux. Twitch describes it as “Mr. and Mrs. Smith”, tango style. It’s really good in the first half, when the lights are down. Once the lights come up, however, it’s another story. It seems a lot more like dancing choreography than just dancing. They both look almost startled. Nigel thinks Twitch was fake, Kherington was passionless, and thinks it overall wasn’t very good. Mary loved the beginning and the very ending, but thinks the in between was weak and hoppy. She thinks Kherington was better, but is glad they had the other number. Mia thinks there was no substance and thinks they were non-committed. The last word spoken is mediocre.
Katee and Joshua 2, Electric Boogaloo- They’ve got a brand new style for the show, Bollywood from new choreographers Nakul and Marla (I think those were their names). Katee and Joshua look quite scared. I don’t really know how to critique this, but it looked relatively fun. They’ve got the cool hand moments down, but some floor spins that they had to do seemed pretty week. Nigel pats himself on the back for introducing Bollywood and then immediately compares it to tons of other styles. He thinks they gave it personality. Mary staggers her words then calls them stars and lauds their athleticism. She says she was drawn to Katee but they were both great, placing them back on the hot tamale train and gives them a scream. Mia says Katee looks amazing all bedazzled in Indian clothes and jewels. Mia thought the routine was great and thinks it’s great that world dance is being featured. She thinks they did a great job.
My Ranking Of The Routines:
1) Jessica and Will’s Contemporary
2) Courtney and Gev’s Jazz
3) Chelsie and Mark’s Salsa
4) Courtney and Gev’s Cha Cha
5) Chelsie and Mark’s Broadway
6) Comfort and Thayne’s Contemporary
7) Katee and Joshua’s Viennese Waltz
8) Katee and Joshua’s Bollywood
9) Comfort and Thayne’s Hip-Hop
10) Jessica and Will’s Quickstep
11) Kherington and Twitch’s Krump
12) Kherington and Twitch’s Smooth Tango
My Ranking of the Couples:
1) Courtney and Gev
2) Chelsie and Mark
3) Jessica and Will
4) Katee and Joshua
5) Comfort and Thayne
6) Kherington and Twitch
Should Be Worried: There’s no doubt that Comfort and Thayne will be heading to the bottom three. Jessica and Will will probably be there as well. Kherington and Twitch should be there, but it may be Courtney and Gev wrongfully in their place again. I’m guessing this is the end of the road for Comfort and Thayne.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
So You Think You Can Dance 7/3- The Top 14 Become 12
I missed the first minute or so, but what I saw Tyce’s top 14 group routine was okay. Not stellar, but not outwardly bad either. Although it seems like Broadway finally means Broadway on the show. Cat erases all memories of last night’s hideous outfit by looking ravishing in a red wrap dress and big gold neckpiece. We welcome, unfortunately, our jidges (Cat, you were doing so well). I guess we’ve gotten to the point where the shows aren’t packed anymore, because we get an audition filler piece about how rude Tyce to bad dancers was during auditions. It only furthers my dislike of Tyce.
The first two couples are brought out on stage, and they are Kherington and Twitch and Katee and Joshua. Which means this will most likely be a completely safe round, since these two (along with Mark and Chelsie) are the clear fan favorites this week. We relive all the positive comments and, despite trying to psych them out with promises of the bottom three, both couples are safe. There’s a lot of whooping and jumping and Cat, after apologizing, tells them to get the hell off the stage. Cat, I love you more each week.
Sidenote: So, I was watching The Colbert Report before SYTYCD, and there was a commercial for Dianetics. Aka Scientology. WHAT? First, Scientology advertises on TV now? Second, The Colbert Report is the place that they’re advertising? Now, I may not be an advertising expert or whatnot, but I would think if you’re a shadowy organization with some bizarre beliefs (No offense to any scientologist readers, you just believe some crazy stuff) whose bizarre-ness was outed by the biggest show on a certain network, why would you advertise on said network?
The next three couples on stage are Kourtni and Matt, Courtney and Gev, and Chelsie and Mark. Kourtni and Matt are up first, and we relieve their two weak numbers before they are shunted to the bottom three. Tabitha and Napoleon have nice words for them. Courtney and Gev are up next, and I thought, overall, they were the best last night. Chelsie and Mark are also videoed, and, while I didn’t dig their Jazz, I loved their foxtrot. One of these couples in the bottom, and it turns out to be Courtney and Gev, which is not surprising to me, but I’m a little miffed. Nigel says that’s the way it goes.
The last two couples are up, and Jessica and Will must be very happy, because, while they definitely deserve to be in the bottom a lot more than Comfort and Thayne, they are not going to be. Jessica, especially, must be breathing a sigh of relief. We relive the two couples dances, and it only enforces to me that Jessica and Will should be in the bottom. But, alas, Comfort and Thayne are in the bottom three, meaning Jessica survives to dance another week (I mean, she’s not the weakest dancer, but I think she’s holding back Will more than any other dancer would. She’s the weakest overall package, personality and dance wise).
The special dancer of the night is the awesome, awesome Robert Muraine, who gave up on day one of Vegas. He’s still spectacularly awesome, but, I dunno, I was expecting a little more. There’s a lot of really awesome stuff, and he builds well, but he takes a while to get into the really jaw-dropping stuff. Nigel brings up the fact that Robert quit and then mentions Philip Chbeeb. There’s also a mention of a possible dance battle between Muraine and Chbeeb, which is so clearly gonna be a part of the finale that it’s not even worth speculating about.
I’m still ignoring the Snuggle happy dance segments, but I can’t ignore the fact that Matt can seemingly get his leg to point 90 degrees north. It’s actually more creepy than impressive.
SOLO TIME:
Kourtni: There’s a great pirouette, but this is nowhere near as impressive as she was last week. It’s standard contemporary solo variation four.
Matt: Matt, on the other hand, again displays a wide array of movement types. There’s a bunch of beautiful leaps and extensions.
Courtney: Courtney brings energy, impressive moves, and musicality to the stage. That’s what I call a dance for your life solo.
Gev: Gev is absolutely awesome. I honestly can’t think of any other word to describe it, except for maybe banoodles. There’s a dizzying variation of movement types, ending in a ridiculous frontwards flip. If he or his partner goes home tonight, then this show is completely off its rocker this season.
Comfort: Well, if Comfort is going home tonight (which she likely is), at least she’s going out on a high note. I FINALLY see why Nigel called her the best female hip-hopper the show has ever had. She rocks the stage, even if her music was far too quiet.
Thayne: Well, Thayne, who knew you had it in you. Another awesome solo that is NOT just leap, twirl, leap, twirl, arm movement, like I’ve come to expect. Even my Thayne-hating viewing companion said, “Wow.”
The musical guest tonight is OneRepublic, who are still only notable to me for unleashing the absolutely overplayed “Apologize” on the world. I remember them performing from last season, and how out of place it seemed because they all just stand in place while performing. The frontman steps out from behind his keyboard this time, but it’s more to bend over and look pouty to get the emotions of the song across. The song is, in my opinion, pretty dull and sounds like 87 other songs that are also dull but invade my senses. The sound reminds me of a whinier, American version of a bunch of the good songs from Glen Hansard in “Once.” I say meh, OneRepublic. Meh. The audience seems enthused though.
Sidenote: Step Brothers looks awesome. I guess between this, Pineapple Express, and Tropic Thunder, the studios are saving all the good comedies for the end of summer.
Well, it’s elimination time. Based on those solos, I’d cut Kourtni and Matt (Comfort is also an acceptable cut since she’s the weakest dancer left). The girls are up first tonight, and Nigel says he cares more about the dancers this season than he ever has before. Nigel says they are not unanimous tonight. Courtney is up first, and they laud her and tell her she’s staying. Comfort is next, and, although she didn’t get Nigel’s vote, she is safe, and Kourtni is going home. I liked Kourtni, and she was a good dancer, but she never stood a shot, so I’m perfectly fine with this cut. Next it’s the boys’ turn. Gev is called forward first and is told that he rocks and is safe. The judges were in agreement, and it’s Matt’s end of the line, meaning Thayne is safe. Matt, again, is a really good dancer, but, again, he didn’t stand a chance, and it was kind of his time anyways. Agree? Disagree? Perplexed as to how Jessica is still in the competition or am I just being too harsh towards her?
The first two couples are brought out on stage, and they are Kherington and Twitch and Katee and Joshua. Which means this will most likely be a completely safe round, since these two (along with Mark and Chelsie) are the clear fan favorites this week. We relive all the positive comments and, despite trying to psych them out with promises of the bottom three, both couples are safe. There’s a lot of whooping and jumping and Cat, after apologizing, tells them to get the hell off the stage. Cat, I love you more each week.
Sidenote: So, I was watching The Colbert Report before SYTYCD, and there was a commercial for Dianetics. Aka Scientology. WHAT? First, Scientology advertises on TV now? Second, The Colbert Report is the place that they’re advertising? Now, I may not be an advertising expert or whatnot, but I would think if you’re a shadowy organization with some bizarre beliefs (No offense to any scientologist readers, you just believe some crazy stuff) whose bizarre-ness was outed by the biggest show on a certain network, why would you advertise on said network?
The next three couples on stage are Kourtni and Matt, Courtney and Gev, and Chelsie and Mark. Kourtni and Matt are up first, and we relieve their two weak numbers before they are shunted to the bottom three. Tabitha and Napoleon have nice words for them. Courtney and Gev are up next, and I thought, overall, they were the best last night. Chelsie and Mark are also videoed, and, while I didn’t dig their Jazz, I loved their foxtrot. One of these couples in the bottom, and it turns out to be Courtney and Gev, which is not surprising to me, but I’m a little miffed. Nigel says that’s the way it goes.
The last two couples are up, and Jessica and Will must be very happy, because, while they definitely deserve to be in the bottom a lot more than Comfort and Thayne, they are not going to be. Jessica, especially, must be breathing a sigh of relief. We relive the two couples dances, and it only enforces to me that Jessica and Will should be in the bottom. But, alas, Comfort and Thayne are in the bottom three, meaning Jessica survives to dance another week (I mean, she’s not the weakest dancer, but I think she’s holding back Will more than any other dancer would. She’s the weakest overall package, personality and dance wise).
The special dancer of the night is the awesome, awesome Robert Muraine, who gave up on day one of Vegas. He’s still spectacularly awesome, but, I dunno, I was expecting a little more. There’s a lot of really awesome stuff, and he builds well, but he takes a while to get into the really jaw-dropping stuff. Nigel brings up the fact that Robert quit and then mentions Philip Chbeeb. There’s also a mention of a possible dance battle between Muraine and Chbeeb, which is so clearly gonna be a part of the finale that it’s not even worth speculating about.
I’m still ignoring the Snuggle happy dance segments, but I can’t ignore the fact that Matt can seemingly get his leg to point 90 degrees north. It’s actually more creepy than impressive.
SOLO TIME:
Kourtni: There’s a great pirouette, but this is nowhere near as impressive as she was last week. It’s standard contemporary solo variation four.
Matt: Matt, on the other hand, again displays a wide array of movement types. There’s a bunch of beautiful leaps and extensions.
Courtney: Courtney brings energy, impressive moves, and musicality to the stage. That’s what I call a dance for your life solo.
Gev: Gev is absolutely awesome. I honestly can’t think of any other word to describe it, except for maybe banoodles. There’s a dizzying variation of movement types, ending in a ridiculous frontwards flip. If he or his partner goes home tonight, then this show is completely off its rocker this season.
Comfort: Well, if Comfort is going home tonight (which she likely is), at least she’s going out on a high note. I FINALLY see why Nigel called her the best female hip-hopper the show has ever had. She rocks the stage, even if her music was far too quiet.
Thayne: Well, Thayne, who knew you had it in you. Another awesome solo that is NOT just leap, twirl, leap, twirl, arm movement, like I’ve come to expect. Even my Thayne-hating viewing companion said, “Wow.”
The musical guest tonight is OneRepublic, who are still only notable to me for unleashing the absolutely overplayed “Apologize” on the world. I remember them performing from last season, and how out of place it seemed because they all just stand in place while performing. The frontman steps out from behind his keyboard this time, but it’s more to bend over and look pouty to get the emotions of the song across. The song is, in my opinion, pretty dull and sounds like 87 other songs that are also dull but invade my senses. The sound reminds me of a whinier, American version of a bunch of the good songs from Glen Hansard in “Once.” I say meh, OneRepublic. Meh. The audience seems enthused though.
Sidenote: Step Brothers looks awesome. I guess between this, Pineapple Express, and Tropic Thunder, the studios are saving all the good comedies for the end of summer.
Well, it’s elimination time. Based on those solos, I’d cut Kourtni and Matt (Comfort is also an acceptable cut since she’s the weakest dancer left). The girls are up first tonight, and Nigel says he cares more about the dancers this season than he ever has before. Nigel says they are not unanimous tonight. Courtney is up first, and they laud her and tell her she’s staying. Comfort is next, and, although she didn’t get Nigel’s vote, she is safe, and Kourtni is going home. I liked Kourtni, and she was a good dancer, but she never stood a shot, so I’m perfectly fine with this cut. Next it’s the boys’ turn. Gev is called forward first and is told that he rocks and is safe. The judges were in agreement, and it’s Matt’s end of the line, meaning Thayne is safe. Matt, again, is a really good dancer, but, again, he didn’t stand a chance, and it was kind of his time anyways. Agree? Disagree? Perplexed as to how Jessica is still in the competition or am I just being too harsh towards her?
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
So You Think You Can Dance 7/2- The Top 14 Perform. Alot.
Cat apparently got into a very bad multi-tuxedo pile-up before this weeks show. I wish her a speedy recovery from her horrible wardrobe accident (I’m gonna leave her slightly bizarre and unflattering hair alone, simply because the dress is that bad). The standout intro dancers this week are Katee, Twitch, Mark, Joshua, Comfort, and Gev. Everyone is dancing twice tonight, so I’m gonna try to cut down my recapping a little to keep this from being six pages long. Our guest judges tonight are the unreliable Napoleon and Tabitha.
Jessica and Will- They had no idea what they were doing, according to the pre-dance package. So it’s no surprise when their Tony Meredith and Melanie LaPatin choreographed Jive is nothing much. I mean, there are a few fun bits, but neither is all that remarkable. Will continues to dance circles around Jessica though, which is no big feat when she’s off her game like she appears to be tonight. Tabitha felt the fight but Napoleon thought that Jessica started pretty weak. Mary thinks there were a lot of missed connections and thinks they probably fooled the audience. Jessica also gets a negative mention from Mary. Nigel thought Will had a good bounce, but Jessica’s weight and balance were all wrong. But he also thinks there was some good technical stuff. But then he picks on Jessica again. I don’t sense that Jessica is long for this competition.
Comfort and Thayne- The new Frankensteined couple has a Broadway routine from a new choreographer. They seem to be getting along well in rehearsals. It’s a lot more classical Broadway it seems, and it’s markedly better than anything Tyce has ever put on the stage, in my opinion. They’re actually really good. Thayne even tempers and uses his perma-smile to his advantage. It’s not the way the song was originally intended, but that’s the choreographer’s fault. They danced the choreographer’s vision well. Tabitha is really liking their chemistry. Napoleon liked Comfort’s flirtiness. Mary really liked the partnership and the number and is really proud of Comfort. Nigel comments on how authentic the choreography was but thinks the passion of the original number was seriously missing. He kind of lays into Comfort actually. I guess they’re stopping babying her. He tells them they’d be booed off Broadway for that routine.
Kourtni and Matt- They’ve got a Cecily and Olisa hip-hop routine, and they seem to flounder during rehearsals. I wouldn’t quite classify this as a trainwreck, but even Kourtni reads as thinking they’re terrible. You can see every mistake in her face, which is not good, since there are lots of them. They seem to hit every step (although many of the them are labored), but there’s absolutely no soul in it. Matt is better, but he’s still pretty stiff. Tabitha calls them groovy and commends them for how good they did for being who they are and she compliments Matt. But Napoleon tells them they would have gotten booed off the stage at a hip-hop competition. Mary liked it, but had nothing to say and wasn’t at all wowed by it. Nigel doesn’t know if it was the choreography or them but there was nothing to get hold of. He calls it hip-hop on sleeping pills, which I kind of agree with.
Chelsie and Mark- They’ve got a fast Mandy Moore jazz routine. This is probably gonna be the unpopular opinion here, but this doesn’t do all that much for me. It’s fun and they dance it well, but the choreography doesn’t seem to be all that much. But I give them a lot of credit for keeping up the rapid pace. And Chelsie didn’t seem repelled by Mark this week, which is nice to see. Tabitha thinks they’re always able to tell the story. Napoleon loves their chemistry. Mary just loved it and says they haven’t taken a wrong turn yet. Nigel thought it just worked and they used each other well. He calls them magic together.
Sidenote: I think the true strength that Mark has is that he never breaks character. Never. So he always seems to be really good, because he’s performing it well. Plus, he’s a great dancer. I’m on Team Mark for the win.
Kherington and Twitch- They have a Tony and Melanie Paso Doble about matadors. This is all sorts of fun, with a great opening involving capes. They have intense chemistry and nail all the steps really well. This may be their best performance of the season. Napoleon thinks Twitch started slow but he built awesomely. Tabitha agrees. Napoleon jumps back in and says that the second half of the dance rocked. Mary says it was full of passion, but calls the cape-work was weak. She calls it just ok, but says she was entertained. Nigel was very entertained, but calls Twitch on some of his framework and lauds Kherington for not smiling.
Katee and Joshua- Mia Michaels Contemporary! Mia Michaels Contemporary! Yay! Wowzers. I mean, I know I shouldn’t be shocked when Mia delivers an amazing routine, but that was remarkable. The dancers seemed a little weak, especially in the beginning (they seemed to be a little off-sync), but when it picks up, boy howdy does it pick up. All sorts of awesome. Banoodles. Just banoodles. Tabitha agrees with my wowzers sentiment. Napoleon seems to thinks so too. Napoleon also picks out an amazing assisted run across stage as being ridiculous. Mary thinks Katee and Joshua still have a perfect record. Nigel says the word fancy multiple times and thinks they were both stellar.
Courtney and Gev- They’ve got a Cecily and Olisa hip-hop. Gev seems more worried than Courtney, because it’s not his style of hip-hop. They’ve got nothing to worry about though, at least from me. THIS is the kind of hip-hop I love to watch. They’re both having fun, hitting the steps, and more importantly, they’ve got that all-important soul and bounce that Kourtni and Matt were missing. Napoleon thinks they were good but that Gev was a little worse than Courtney. Tabitha thinks there was a little too much bounce in their shoulders but she’s feeling Courtney. Mary was expecting more out of Gev but thinks Courtney killed it. Nigel thinks it was fun and funky but thinks it lost its mojo after a while.
Jessica and Will 2- They’ve got Lyrical Jazz by Mandy Moore for their second routine. Pre-video package didn’t inspire much confidence. This is much better than their jive, but Jessica probably still isn’t all that good. Will, however, dominates that stage and draws attention throughout the entire thing. He’s the best technical dancer of the season, no question. Tabitha likes Will’s shirtlessness and thinks the choreography was very clever. She also points out how classically trained he clearly is. Napoleon tells him he has what it takes to win. Napoleon also tells Jessica she’s holding Will down (Ouch). Mary thinks it was genius/fire (there’s some bizarre analogy which allows it to be both). She thinks they had the whole package and puts them on the hot tamale train. Nigel makes a homophobic comment about two men dancing together (But he wasn’t calling Jessica a man). He says people will pick up the phone for that dance.
Comfort and Thayne 2- They’ve got a Smooth Waltz and it’s all about lost love, which may be problematic. The message of the dance doesn’t really come across, but they’re elegant and smooth. Thayne’s perma-smile is also missing, which is a breath of fresh air. I like it (quite a bit, actually), but my viewing companion doesn’t (She really dislikes Thayne though). Napoleon is not a waltz expert but he loved it. Tabitha wasn’t crazy about Thayne though, calling him somewhat phony. Napoleon disagrees though. Mary is a waltz expert and loved it (Comfort moreso than Thayne), especially for it being danced by a Contemporary boy and a hip-hop girl. Nigel thinks it was very good and that Comfort looks better without her eyebrow piercing.
Kourtni and Matt 2- They’ve got an Alex DaSilva mambo, and both seem very intimidated by it. It’s markedly better than their hip-hop, and I liked the number overall. But Matt is seriously weak. He does not have the masculinity to pull this off. He’s good technically, but he doesn’t have the necessary oomph. But boy does Kourtni rock this one. She seriously outshines him. Tabitha was hot and cold on it, but Napoleon thinks Matt needed to be a lot more masculine. Mary says Kourtni was really hot but there was no chemistry between them. Nigel butchers the pronunciation of the word mambo and thinks it was a tough routine and they didn’t get the feel of it. He wanted butcher from Matt.
Chelsie and Mark 2- They’ve got a Foxtrot, which worries Mark a little. I like it a lot. They’re both really entertaining to watch, there’s a ridiculous cartwheel up and over Mark, and for once it seems like there’s a really memorable slow ballroom routine. Chelsie’s dress is also absolutely transfixing. Napoleon and Tabitha think they’re showing America why people love dance. Mary thinks they nailed a bunch of really difficult technical stuff, to which Mark replies “Wow.” Nigel thinks Mark was a little uncomfortable but calls Chelsie fabulous. Nigel and Mary bicker a little.
Kherington and Twitch 2- Another Mia Michaels Contemporary! Another Mia Michaels Contemporary! Double Yay! Ok, well, this is significantly less wowzers, but it’s still really good. There’s a lot more flinging of bodies onto a mattress than great dancing. The musicality is really good though, and the use of rose petals is a great touch. There’s serious chemistry though. I’d give it about a half a banoodles. Tabitha calls it awesome nine times. Napoleon calls it storytelling at its best. Mary says that Mia outdid herself this time and there’s a small scream. She calls it powerful and dynamic. Nigel makes a joke about the routine being about him and Mia. Nigel thinks they were committed to it and calls it thoroughly entertaining.
Katee and Joshua 2- They’ve got a West Coast Swing choreographed by (GROAN) Benji Schwimmer, assisted by (SMALLER GROAN) Lacey Schwimmer. The routine has moments, but overall, it seems sluggish, like they’re not dancing as fast as they should be. The hip bumps are all a lot of fun, but everything seems a lot more practiced than danced. The ending though, where she bumps Joshua and he goes flying, is great. Tabitha thinks Katee bumped Joshua off stage. Napoleon thinks it was well built for characters. Mary enjoyed it and gives a small scream. She liked the routine and thinks they executed it. Nigel thinks they adapted really well.
Courtney and Gev 2- They’ve got another non-Tyce Broadway routine where they pretend to be tourists. I had a smile on my face throughout this whole dance. Again, it seems like real Broadway choreography, although there were clearly bits thrown in there for them. But it’s fun and cute and better than a Tyce piece, so I’m a definite fan. Courtney was better than Gev. Tabitha thinks a little bit of modulation would have been better, but she calls it amazing. Napoleon thinks Gev may have found a new niche. Mary thinks they were great and believable and strong. Nigel calls them underdogs (which I’d like to point out I said last week) and says this style was perfect for them. But he has some technical nitpicks for them.
My Dance Rankings:
1) Katee and Joshua’s contemporary
2) Chelsie and Mark’s Foxtrot
3) Courtney and Gev’s Hip-Hop
4) Comfort and Thayne’s Smooth Waltz
5) Kherington and Twitch’s contemporary
6) Courtney and Gev’s Broadway
7) Comfort and Thayne’s Broadway
8) Kherington and Twitch’s Paso Doble
9) Jessica and Will’s Lyrical Jazz
10) Chelsie and Mark’s Jazz
11) Katee and Joshua’s West Coast Swing
12) Kourtni and Matt’s Mambo
13) Jessica and Will’s Jive
14) Kourtni and Matt’s hip-hop
Couple Rankings:
1) Courtney and Gev
2) Comfort and Thayne
3) Katee and Joshua
4) Chelsie and Mark
5) Kherington and Twitch
6) Jessica and Will
7) Kourtni and Matt
In Trouble: Kourtni and Matt, Jessica and Will, and either Courtney/Gev or Comfort and Thayne. Neither deserves to be there though… (Matt and either Jessica or Kourtni is gone tomorrow)
Jessica and Will- They had no idea what they were doing, according to the pre-dance package. So it’s no surprise when their Tony Meredith and Melanie LaPatin choreographed Jive is nothing much. I mean, there are a few fun bits, but neither is all that remarkable. Will continues to dance circles around Jessica though, which is no big feat when she’s off her game like she appears to be tonight. Tabitha felt the fight but Napoleon thought that Jessica started pretty weak. Mary thinks there were a lot of missed connections and thinks they probably fooled the audience. Jessica also gets a negative mention from Mary. Nigel thought Will had a good bounce, but Jessica’s weight and balance were all wrong. But he also thinks there was some good technical stuff. But then he picks on Jessica again. I don’t sense that Jessica is long for this competition.
Comfort and Thayne- The new Frankensteined couple has a Broadway routine from a new choreographer. They seem to be getting along well in rehearsals. It’s a lot more classical Broadway it seems, and it’s markedly better than anything Tyce has ever put on the stage, in my opinion. They’re actually really good. Thayne even tempers and uses his perma-smile to his advantage. It’s not the way the song was originally intended, but that’s the choreographer’s fault. They danced the choreographer’s vision well. Tabitha is really liking their chemistry. Napoleon liked Comfort’s flirtiness. Mary really liked the partnership and the number and is really proud of Comfort. Nigel comments on how authentic the choreography was but thinks the passion of the original number was seriously missing. He kind of lays into Comfort actually. I guess they’re stopping babying her. He tells them they’d be booed off Broadway for that routine.
Kourtni and Matt- They’ve got a Cecily and Olisa hip-hop routine, and they seem to flounder during rehearsals. I wouldn’t quite classify this as a trainwreck, but even Kourtni reads as thinking they’re terrible. You can see every mistake in her face, which is not good, since there are lots of them. They seem to hit every step (although many of the them are labored), but there’s absolutely no soul in it. Matt is better, but he’s still pretty stiff. Tabitha calls them groovy and commends them for how good they did for being who they are and she compliments Matt. But Napoleon tells them they would have gotten booed off the stage at a hip-hop competition. Mary liked it, but had nothing to say and wasn’t at all wowed by it. Nigel doesn’t know if it was the choreography or them but there was nothing to get hold of. He calls it hip-hop on sleeping pills, which I kind of agree with.
Chelsie and Mark- They’ve got a fast Mandy Moore jazz routine. This is probably gonna be the unpopular opinion here, but this doesn’t do all that much for me. It’s fun and they dance it well, but the choreography doesn’t seem to be all that much. But I give them a lot of credit for keeping up the rapid pace. And Chelsie didn’t seem repelled by Mark this week, which is nice to see. Tabitha thinks they’re always able to tell the story. Napoleon loves their chemistry. Mary just loved it and says they haven’t taken a wrong turn yet. Nigel thought it just worked and they used each other well. He calls them magic together.
Sidenote: I think the true strength that Mark has is that he never breaks character. Never. So he always seems to be really good, because he’s performing it well. Plus, he’s a great dancer. I’m on Team Mark for the win.
Kherington and Twitch- They have a Tony and Melanie Paso Doble about matadors. This is all sorts of fun, with a great opening involving capes. They have intense chemistry and nail all the steps really well. This may be their best performance of the season. Napoleon thinks Twitch started slow but he built awesomely. Tabitha agrees. Napoleon jumps back in and says that the second half of the dance rocked. Mary says it was full of passion, but calls the cape-work was weak. She calls it just ok, but says she was entertained. Nigel was very entertained, but calls Twitch on some of his framework and lauds Kherington for not smiling.
Katee and Joshua- Mia Michaels Contemporary! Mia Michaels Contemporary! Yay! Wowzers. I mean, I know I shouldn’t be shocked when Mia delivers an amazing routine, but that was remarkable. The dancers seemed a little weak, especially in the beginning (they seemed to be a little off-sync), but when it picks up, boy howdy does it pick up. All sorts of awesome. Banoodles. Just banoodles. Tabitha agrees with my wowzers sentiment. Napoleon seems to thinks so too. Napoleon also picks out an amazing assisted run across stage as being ridiculous. Mary thinks Katee and Joshua still have a perfect record. Nigel says the word fancy multiple times and thinks they were both stellar.
Courtney and Gev- They’ve got a Cecily and Olisa hip-hop. Gev seems more worried than Courtney, because it’s not his style of hip-hop. They’ve got nothing to worry about though, at least from me. THIS is the kind of hip-hop I love to watch. They’re both having fun, hitting the steps, and more importantly, they’ve got that all-important soul and bounce that Kourtni and Matt were missing. Napoleon thinks they were good but that Gev was a little worse than Courtney. Tabitha thinks there was a little too much bounce in their shoulders but she’s feeling Courtney. Mary was expecting more out of Gev but thinks Courtney killed it. Nigel thinks it was fun and funky but thinks it lost its mojo after a while.
Jessica and Will 2- They’ve got Lyrical Jazz by Mandy Moore for their second routine. Pre-video package didn’t inspire much confidence. This is much better than their jive, but Jessica probably still isn’t all that good. Will, however, dominates that stage and draws attention throughout the entire thing. He’s the best technical dancer of the season, no question. Tabitha likes Will’s shirtlessness and thinks the choreography was very clever. She also points out how classically trained he clearly is. Napoleon tells him he has what it takes to win. Napoleon also tells Jessica she’s holding Will down (Ouch). Mary thinks it was genius/fire (there’s some bizarre analogy which allows it to be both). She thinks they had the whole package and puts them on the hot tamale train. Nigel makes a homophobic comment about two men dancing together (But he wasn’t calling Jessica a man). He says people will pick up the phone for that dance.
Comfort and Thayne 2- They’ve got a Smooth Waltz and it’s all about lost love, which may be problematic. The message of the dance doesn’t really come across, but they’re elegant and smooth. Thayne’s perma-smile is also missing, which is a breath of fresh air. I like it (quite a bit, actually), but my viewing companion doesn’t (She really dislikes Thayne though). Napoleon is not a waltz expert but he loved it. Tabitha wasn’t crazy about Thayne though, calling him somewhat phony. Napoleon disagrees though. Mary is a waltz expert and loved it (Comfort moreso than Thayne), especially for it being danced by a Contemporary boy and a hip-hop girl. Nigel thinks it was very good and that Comfort looks better without her eyebrow piercing.
Kourtni and Matt 2- They’ve got an Alex DaSilva mambo, and both seem very intimidated by it. It’s markedly better than their hip-hop, and I liked the number overall. But Matt is seriously weak. He does not have the masculinity to pull this off. He’s good technically, but he doesn’t have the necessary oomph. But boy does Kourtni rock this one. She seriously outshines him. Tabitha was hot and cold on it, but Napoleon thinks Matt needed to be a lot more masculine. Mary says Kourtni was really hot but there was no chemistry between them. Nigel butchers the pronunciation of the word mambo and thinks it was a tough routine and they didn’t get the feel of it. He wanted butcher from Matt.
Chelsie and Mark 2- They’ve got a Foxtrot, which worries Mark a little. I like it a lot. They’re both really entertaining to watch, there’s a ridiculous cartwheel up and over Mark, and for once it seems like there’s a really memorable slow ballroom routine. Chelsie’s dress is also absolutely transfixing. Napoleon and Tabitha think they’re showing America why people love dance. Mary thinks they nailed a bunch of really difficult technical stuff, to which Mark replies “Wow.” Nigel thinks Mark was a little uncomfortable but calls Chelsie fabulous. Nigel and Mary bicker a little.
Kherington and Twitch 2- Another Mia Michaels Contemporary! Another Mia Michaels Contemporary! Double Yay! Ok, well, this is significantly less wowzers, but it’s still really good. There’s a lot more flinging of bodies onto a mattress than great dancing. The musicality is really good though, and the use of rose petals is a great touch. There’s serious chemistry though. I’d give it about a half a banoodles. Tabitha calls it awesome nine times. Napoleon calls it storytelling at its best. Mary says that Mia outdid herself this time and there’s a small scream. She calls it powerful and dynamic. Nigel makes a joke about the routine being about him and Mia. Nigel thinks they were committed to it and calls it thoroughly entertaining.
Katee and Joshua 2- They’ve got a West Coast Swing choreographed by (GROAN) Benji Schwimmer, assisted by (SMALLER GROAN) Lacey Schwimmer. The routine has moments, but overall, it seems sluggish, like they’re not dancing as fast as they should be. The hip bumps are all a lot of fun, but everything seems a lot more practiced than danced. The ending though, where she bumps Joshua and he goes flying, is great. Tabitha thinks Katee bumped Joshua off stage. Napoleon thinks it was well built for characters. Mary enjoyed it and gives a small scream. She liked the routine and thinks they executed it. Nigel thinks they adapted really well.
Courtney and Gev 2- They’ve got another non-Tyce Broadway routine where they pretend to be tourists. I had a smile on my face throughout this whole dance. Again, it seems like real Broadway choreography, although there were clearly bits thrown in there for them. But it’s fun and cute and better than a Tyce piece, so I’m a definite fan. Courtney was better than Gev. Tabitha thinks a little bit of modulation would have been better, but she calls it amazing. Napoleon thinks Gev may have found a new niche. Mary thinks they were great and believable and strong. Nigel calls them underdogs (which I’d like to point out I said last week) and says this style was perfect for them. But he has some technical nitpicks for them.
My Dance Rankings:
1) Katee and Joshua’s contemporary
2) Chelsie and Mark’s Foxtrot
3) Courtney and Gev’s Hip-Hop
4) Comfort and Thayne’s Smooth Waltz
5) Kherington and Twitch’s contemporary
6) Courtney and Gev’s Broadway
7) Comfort and Thayne’s Broadway
8) Kherington and Twitch’s Paso Doble
9) Jessica and Will’s Lyrical Jazz
10) Chelsie and Mark’s Jazz
11) Katee and Joshua’s West Coast Swing
12) Kourtni and Matt’s Mambo
13) Jessica and Will’s Jive
14) Kourtni and Matt’s hip-hop
Couple Rankings:
1) Courtney and Gev
2) Comfort and Thayne
3) Katee and Joshua
4) Chelsie and Mark
5) Kherington and Twitch
6) Jessica and Will
7) Kourtni and Matt
In Trouble: Kourtni and Matt, Jessica and Will, and either Courtney/Gev or Comfort and Thayne. Neither deserves to be there though… (Matt and either Jessica or Kourtni is gone tomorrow)
Monday, June 30, 2008
The Mole 6/30- Craig Says Paul Is A Llama's Ass
Previously on The Mole, Craig got hypothermia, Mark wandered into the Argentinean wild, and Victoria got sent packing. Nicole wonders why everyone who she suspects keeps getting executed. When you think about it, that’s actually a very good question. Jon welcomes them to a roofless train station for their first mission. The whole team is chained together and they have to work together to get a key. There’s a timed component and coldness (which Craig is worried about) and an exemption at stake (which will take money out of the pot. And since everyone needs to work together, this is gonna take a while. Craig tries to convince everyone that he just wants to get out of the cod and won’t take an exemption. Clay and Mark are hesitant, but they are willing to trust him. And it’s good that they do, because Craig takes the key and leaves the exemption. Surprisingly, Paul and Alex seem to be the most trusting, and Kristen uses her favor with Clay and goes second. Trust rewards them again, as Kristen also takes the key over the exemption. Paul, swearing on his daughter, is allowed to go next (even though Mark and Nicole seem very hesitant). We go into the commercial break as Paul’s hand hovers over the exemption.
We come back, and Paul, in a surprising move, is not a douchebag, taking the key instead. The remaining four players, though, are left bickering. Mark no longer trusts anyone, since his journal was burned and he’s a whiner. Mark goes so far as to say he no longer trusts himself. Seriously, this guys kind of off the deep end. Clay convinces them to let him go next, and he rewards them by taking the key. Mark, Alex, and Nicole are left, and, for no foreseeable reason, they let Nicole go next. And in an even more surprising move, Nicole takes the key, not being the bitch we’ve come to know her as. Mark lets Alex go next and also takes the key, leaving Mark there alone to ponder exemptions. He goes over and we go to commercial.
We come back and the group is discussing whether or not Mark will take it. They don’t seem to have a good opinion of him, and, when he comes in, he wants to know their opinion on whether or not he took it. He, however, took the key, meaning that the team adds $25,000 to the pot. Now that he didn’t take the exemption, Mark has entered my list of Mole suspects. Jon gives everyone a brand spanking new journal and I can only hope that this will make him less curmudgeonly. There’s some information exchanging, but Paul is proving to be a douchebag and is holding back information about himself. Paul and Clay start bickering at one another. Paul calls Clay’s whole life a “hypocrite.” I’m getting really tired of Paul (as if you couldn’t already tell). The car that doesn’t have Paul seems very pleased about their situation. Clay hit the seat and throws a lemon at Paul, and Paul is all up in arms. He says he’d kill Clay if they were on the streets. Clay and Kristen switch cars and I feel bad for Kristen. The other car sings a song about not having to deal with Paul. If only I could join in.
The players arrive in Mendoza, the Argentinean Napa Valley, but the drama from before arrives as well. Although it’s all under the surface now. When told that their mission will be stress relieving, Nicole asks if they’re gonna shoot something. Nicole is my favorite player, because she’s hilarious. Their next mission is called “Travelers” and involves them working in teams to get to a statue. Craig lucks into a role of getting to divide everyone up (well, not really lucks. He’s the first to say exemption at breakfast). Plus, if no one makes it to the checkpoint, Craig gets an exemption. Craig wants the exemption and he tells the team such. He pairs Alex (dressed as a conquistador, complete with Burro) with Mark (dressed in scuba gear). Kristen (on stilts) is paired with Clay (on a unicycle). Oh, and Nicole and Paul have to share a llama costume, with Paul as, fittingly, the ass. Everyone rebels against him, the whole team opting out. Jon tries to plant seeds of suspicion by questioning about who fomented the Mole Revolution. Mark is starting to seem too obvious. Craig gets his exemption, and the whole team hates him.
DIGRESSION: In my opinion, the Mole HAS to be someone who is not being edited as moley. Because ABC would have to be idiots to make it obvious. Which is why Kristen, and, very much increasingly, Alex are my biggest suspects. They haven’t done anything outrightly sabotage-like, but there’s something that doesn’t sit right to me about those two.
At dinner, Craig tries to make peace (it seems mildly successful). Nicole calls $30,000 a paltry sum, which kind of upsets Alex. Mark talks about how difficult it is to be away from home. Paul is also having a tough time, resorting to talking to a lemon. Everyone seems worried about the execution.
QUIZ SUSPECTS
I suspect Kristen and Alex (as stated above)
Alex suspects Mark
Clay suspects Nicole (maybe)
It’s executin’ time, and, since Craig is exempt, that means it’s a one in six shot for the rest of them (and a 1/3 chance that one of my suspects is going home). It’s a tie again tonight, and the time difference was one second, to which everyone, including me, goes Wow. Alex is first, and he’s safe, making me 1 for 2 on my suspects. Paul is next, and he’s safe too. Kristen is up, and she’s executed, meaning that I was only 1 for 2 on my suspects. My mole-dar goes fully to Alex now. I’m OK with it though, since I was leaning hardcore to Alex tonight and away from Kristen (and No, that’s not just me compensating for being wrong about the mole’s identity. Next week, Clip Show! Apparently followed by a new episode, with bungee jumping!
We come back, and Paul, in a surprising move, is not a douchebag, taking the key instead. The remaining four players, though, are left bickering. Mark no longer trusts anyone, since his journal was burned and he’s a whiner. Mark goes so far as to say he no longer trusts himself. Seriously, this guys kind of off the deep end. Clay convinces them to let him go next, and he rewards them by taking the key. Mark, Alex, and Nicole are left, and, for no foreseeable reason, they let Nicole go next. And in an even more surprising move, Nicole takes the key, not being the bitch we’ve come to know her as. Mark lets Alex go next and also takes the key, leaving Mark there alone to ponder exemptions. He goes over and we go to commercial.
We come back and the group is discussing whether or not Mark will take it. They don’t seem to have a good opinion of him, and, when he comes in, he wants to know their opinion on whether or not he took it. He, however, took the key, meaning that the team adds $25,000 to the pot. Now that he didn’t take the exemption, Mark has entered my list of Mole suspects. Jon gives everyone a brand spanking new journal and I can only hope that this will make him less curmudgeonly. There’s some information exchanging, but Paul is proving to be a douchebag and is holding back information about himself. Paul and Clay start bickering at one another. Paul calls Clay’s whole life a “hypocrite.” I’m getting really tired of Paul (as if you couldn’t already tell). The car that doesn’t have Paul seems very pleased about their situation. Clay hit the seat and throws a lemon at Paul, and Paul is all up in arms. He says he’d kill Clay if they were on the streets. Clay and Kristen switch cars and I feel bad for Kristen. The other car sings a song about not having to deal with Paul. If only I could join in.
The players arrive in Mendoza, the Argentinean Napa Valley, but the drama from before arrives as well. Although it’s all under the surface now. When told that their mission will be stress relieving, Nicole asks if they’re gonna shoot something. Nicole is my favorite player, because she’s hilarious. Their next mission is called “Travelers” and involves them working in teams to get to a statue. Craig lucks into a role of getting to divide everyone up (well, not really lucks. He’s the first to say exemption at breakfast). Plus, if no one makes it to the checkpoint, Craig gets an exemption. Craig wants the exemption and he tells the team such. He pairs Alex (dressed as a conquistador, complete with Burro) with Mark (dressed in scuba gear). Kristen (on stilts) is paired with Clay (on a unicycle). Oh, and Nicole and Paul have to share a llama costume, with Paul as, fittingly, the ass. Everyone rebels against him, the whole team opting out. Jon tries to plant seeds of suspicion by questioning about who fomented the Mole Revolution. Mark is starting to seem too obvious. Craig gets his exemption, and the whole team hates him.
DIGRESSION: In my opinion, the Mole HAS to be someone who is not being edited as moley. Because ABC would have to be idiots to make it obvious. Which is why Kristen, and, very much increasingly, Alex are my biggest suspects. They haven’t done anything outrightly sabotage-like, but there’s something that doesn’t sit right to me about those two.
At dinner, Craig tries to make peace (it seems mildly successful). Nicole calls $30,000 a paltry sum, which kind of upsets Alex. Mark talks about how difficult it is to be away from home. Paul is also having a tough time, resorting to talking to a lemon. Everyone seems worried about the execution.
QUIZ SUSPECTS
I suspect Kristen and Alex (as stated above)
Alex suspects Mark
Clay suspects Nicole (maybe)
It’s executin’ time, and, since Craig is exempt, that means it’s a one in six shot for the rest of them (and a 1/3 chance that one of my suspects is going home). It’s a tie again tonight, and the time difference was one second, to which everyone, including me, goes Wow. Alex is first, and he’s safe, making me 1 for 2 on my suspects. Paul is next, and he’s safe too. Kristen is up, and she’s executed, meaning that I was only 1 for 2 on my suspects. My mole-dar goes fully to Alex now. I’m OK with it though, since I was leaning hardcore to Alex tonight and away from Kristen (and No, that’s not just me compensating for being wrong about the mole’s identity. Next week, Clip Show! Apparently followed by a new episode, with bungee jumping!
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