Episode Report Card Kim: B+ | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Stripper Pole
By Kim | Season 16 | Episode 8 | Aired on 05.20.2013
Wow. That samba was a huge improvement over her previous one. She's much sexier, for sure. And she's got her hip action down. The choreography seemed harder, and she didn't miss a step. Mark cheated the samba roll a little bit; he put in a stationary one instead of a moving one, and just one. I was only mildly distracted by the raccoon tail that Mark had clipped to his pants. Mark was overdancing like crazy and Aly is good enough now that he doesn't pull focus.
Judges? Bruno says that there's no stopping Aly now, and she was cleaner and slicker than ever. Carrie Ann says that Aly has the momentum because she combines the best of all the other contestants. Len saw huge improvement, and he agrees with Carrie Ann that she's peaking at the right time. Scores: Carrie Ann 9, Len 9, and Bruno 10.
Derek and Kellie are redoing their quickstep. They got a 29 the first time, so not much room for improvement. Len comes to help them and Kellie jokes that he feels like the principal and he makes her feel like she's in trouble. Kellie and Derek demonstrate their first pass and Len notices that there's still too much space in their hold. He shows them how to jam their crotches together, basically. I'm surprised that Derek didn't correct that himself. I mean, it must be weird to say, "We have to be connected at the crotch" but that's what you do.
It starts out a little soggy (the opposite of crisp) because I think Kellie threw in a little gallop that didn't belong. And it still seems like there's too much space in their hold. Their footwork is great though, and there's one big pause and then an explosion of kicking feet that totally works. After that, Kellie seems to remember to arch her back more so that she can push her pelvis forward, finally.
Judges? Len says he was super excited, and he loved the changes of rhythm. He thought their spacing was perfect. Really? Bruno thinks she is better than ever, and the technique was great, as it was packed with content. Carrie Ann says that she was looking for improvement in body contact and she saw it. Man, I must have been looking for the wrong thing. I saw it at the end, but not in the beginning. Scores: Carrie Ann 10, Len 10, and Bruno 10. It's no secret that I have a soft spot for Derek, but I did not think that was a perfect routine.
Zendaya and Val had a rare misstep last week. This week, they have the samba and Carrie Ann joins them in rehearsals to offer advice. Her biggest tip is for Zendaya is to rehearse in heels and make sure she doesn't let her weight fall back on her heels.