It turned out as I called it. Yay. I don’t think it surprised anyone, least of all Brian, that he came in last place. Since Martin Kove got kicked off, it seems the mantle of grandpa at the wedding has fallen on Brian, even though he’s only 48. His paso was embarrassing, especially when he was doddering about like an old man.
I was crossing my fingers when the judges were deciding who to save. I really wanted them to save Kenya because she is a better dancer than Matt. He’s just a mess. I had thought for a double elimination they might just put the bottom three out there and ask the judges to save one. I don’t know why they did it the way they did, unless they wanted to make sure that Brian got the ax. He’s the only one they told, “you lose, go home, no chance of redemption by the judges.” Pretty cold. There’s been a lot of internet chatter that people are pissed because 2 judges wanting to save Matt and one wanting Kenya was not an even split. But it’s their game so they can make any rules they want. In the end, the better dancer was salvaged. Not that she’s anything special. Being the least bad of a group of bad is not much of a claim to make.
Matt’s paso doble was not his worst performance and may have been one of his best. The weird expression on his face freaked me out. It wasn’t passion or aggression or any of the emotions I equate with paso. It was more like mania. Scary. And Derek called him on stumbling while trying to drag Lindsay through her splits.
Cody and Cheryl keep flirting with the bottom of the chart. They scored just above the two who went home. If the bottom two next week are them and Kenya, they may be in trouble. I’m not sure if the Pelaton world votes more than Atlanta housewives. But to the judges, Kenya has been consistently acceptable whereas Cody has been hit and miss. They may have mercy and give him a break seeing as his time there has been a disaster. I like that he’s tall and in shape, so he looks the part of a leader. Cheryl will slap him into shape. However, that Viennese waltz was way too stiff. I did like that Len congratulated them on the flekerl. I love that move. It looks like this coming week will be the first time they’ve had the same amount of time as everyone else to prepare. I’m sure Cheryl is riding his ass.
Kenya’s Viennese waltz on the other hand was more polished, although she did stumble coming out of a turn, and she was frequently off balance. I don’t think Brandon’s ever taken anyone to the finals yet, and I don’t feel this will be his year. I’d like to see her leave next.
Iman and Daniella must be the most surprised couple of the season. After several weeks of being a wandering mess, he started shaping up into a dancer. He’s still not all that good, has a long way to go, but he’s actually doing some dancing. The real star of their routine, however, was Daniella. How in the world did she keep her body stiff for those lifts? They were amazing. The judges fawned all over Iman for it, but all he did was lift her like she was a bar at the gym. Is that the move they call the jerk – lifting from a dead stop? Aside from the lifts, though, he still suffers from awkward body movements. He looks ungainly, especially when matched up with Daniella. He loses all musicality and body flight. Maybe she’ll find the key, but I don’t expect him to be around very much longer.
I’m still in love with The Miz. That was a damn dark tango. An Argentine tango is a lot about performance and that’s his strong suit. He’s a natural showman. That came out in spades in a super scary dance that held me spellbound. Love how he works the cameras. And he even looked like the evil Scar.
I loved the music and feel Mel C. and Gleb created with their Viennese waltz. It was haunting and moving, but I kept waiting for the waltz part to happen. It was too much arms and not enough spins. I agree with Len on calling them for not enough waltz. And what was that on Gleb’s chest? Fire?
Jimmie and Emma got the dreaded (by me, at least) jazz. What’s with all the jazz, anyway? Len goes on and on about it being a ballroom dance and Carrie Ann is manic about calling out lifts like in ballroom comps. Then they throw in this non-ballroom crap. If I wanted to see jazz, I’d turn the channel to wherever jazz lives. If they want to make us watch non-ballroom, why not put in dances that people would like to see like West Coast Swing, Hustle, Country Two Step. Those are dances the public would recognize. Who knows what the hell “jazz” is?
Anyway, I didn’t understand Jimmie’s dance, but it looked fun. And he didn’t cry.
Amanda was simply mesmerizing in her paso doble. Even as the female, she dominated the floor. Scary how well she channeled the villain. As Len said, it had the menace factor. And Bruno mentioned the danger and aggression. It was the whole package. All the things that make paso great. I loved it. I give them a 10. But why was Alan in a blonde wig?
Finally, the real Suni showed up and danced. She not only danced, she threw down. Her best dance yet. Great Viennese.
Olivia and Val with jazz, again. I didn’t see the movie, so I didn’t get the references. In fact, other than Snow White when I was 7, I don’t think I’ve ever seen any Disney movie. So sue me. And I’m really getting tired of the jazz.
I don’t agree with the judges about JoJo’s paso doble. I think it was her best dance to date. She hit that dance like it was the bully she hated. Kinda like Mean Girls in a cat fight. Passion, aggression and anger. Good show.
Melora and Artem. <resigned sigh> Jazz again. Len broke out the 10 paddle for this? Someone needs to check his meds.
The scores show the story thus far. The top five are the 5 best ladies. Melora is a surprise in this group. Has she peaked too early or just in time? Now that Suni is back in how will this affect the dynamics? Olivia, Amanda, and JoJo are yet to square off. In the bottom tier I expect Cody and Kenya to bow out quickly, leaving Jimmie, Mel C, Iman and The Miz to fight for “also ran” status. In a perfect world, Jimmie and The Miz would survive in this grouping to duke it out head-to-head. Jimmie’s got the smooth and The Miz’s got the schmooze.
As to Halloween, will DWTS go all out on October 25, which seems too early or November 1? Even one day after Halloween it seems anticlimactic. I guess they have to go with the 25th. How many weeks is this supposed to go on anyway? After next week’s Grease there will be 10, after Halloween 9, and after November 1 we’ll have 8 contestants left. Barring double eliminations we’ll need four more weeks to get down to 4 for the finale. That takes us to November 29 with the showdown the first week in December. Just in time for my birthday.
Next up: Grease is the word.
Curtisstories 