Episode Report Card Kim: A- | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Tuesday's Gone
By Kim | Season 8 | Episode 18 | Aired on 05.11.2009
Tom interviews Ty and Chelsie and asks which of his two dances he's looking forward to tonight. Ty says he's looking forward to both of them. Tom calls him on changing his answer since the rehearsal, but they all laugh it off. And now the dancing will begin! I guess this was their last-minute filler since they added thirty minutes to the show at the last minute; luckily I realized it and changed the end time on my DVR in time or this would be a truncated recap.
The actual dancing is about to begin, and the ballroom round is first. Melissa and Tony didn't do as well as expected with their Viennese waltz last week, but earned perfect scores for their samba. They're doing the cha cha and the quickstep this week. Melissa is really nervous about her footwork, because she knows that Len will be watching her like a hawk. Tony pushes her to get the heel leads right because he knows the details will make a difference this week. I still can't really tell the difference between a heel lead and lack thereof; I understand conceptually what it means, but their feet move so fast that I can't tell if they're doing them in practice. Anyway, their quickstep is very fluid and graceful, which are not normally two words I would use to describe that routine. I'm used to the quickstep being more frenetic and energetic; this almost seems like a waltz in 4/4 time with a few nods to a quickstep. It's executed beautifully and Tony (for once) does a great job making the movements fit the music well. It ends with a beautiful spin move. I'm always impressed when they do those moves where the man grabs the woman's arm and spins her around the floor; they always manage to look graceful and I would just look like an elephant clomping to the ground and then being spun like a beetle on its back.
Len tells Melissa that her feet are much improved and that the routine was a delight. Bruno thought it was very good, but he needs to be more nitpicky since it's the semifinals, but it lacked some zing. I totally agree. Zing! That's the word I was looking for. Carrie Ann agrees with Bruno and says that Melissa is a beautiful dancer but there's no soul to her dancing. Melissa looks like she's about to cry, but I've been saying that about Melissa for weeks. She's so used to performing, whether in ballet or cheerleading, that she has this fake smile pasted on at all times and you get the sense that she's performing instead of dancing. Shawn does a bit of that too. Backstage, Melissa thinks she did the best that she possibly could have. Scores: Carrie Ann 9, Len 10, and Bruno 9. Melissa and Tony are thrilled to get a 10 from Len.