Episode Report Card Kim: B- | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Save a Horse
By Kim | Season 15 | Episode 11 | Aired on 10.29.2012
Val and Kelly have the tango this week, and their routine last week put them at the bottom of the leaderboard. Neither Kelly nor Val has ever made it this far in the competition; Kelly's season was only six weeks long. Kelly struggles to learn the tango, despite plenty of rehearsal time, just because it's so complex. Anyway, despite the complexity of the routine, Kelly does just fine with the footwork. Her upper body in the first half of the routine looks a little stiff; I get that they're doing the tango, which requires sharp movements and all, but she looks brittle instead of graceful. She relaxes as the routine goes on. Her solo at the beginning is not nearly as complex as the solos that the previous two competitors did, though. Overall, a good routine but not as good as Sabrina and Gilles. No surprise there.
Judges? Carrie Ann thinks this was a return to form for Kelly, in a good way. Len thought it was hectic, but they kept it under control. He also notes the problems with Kelly's neck. Bruno calls it an amazing comeback. Scores: Carrie Ann 9, Len 9, and Bruno 9. Those are their best solo scores in a while.
Melissa is still having neck issues after her injury last week, and Tony is a little frustrated because she can't move it. They do have the Viennese waltz, which is a godsend, since it's mostly in hold and she doesn't have the snap her neck around, and they are shooting for a 10. Melissa opens the dance with her solo, which is beautiful and graceful. Tony choreographs to Melissa's strengths: lots of leg lifts and turns. Her crop top is distracting though; I'm jealous of her abs, especially post-pregnancy, but it's a romantic song and routine, and I'm just looking at her stomach.
Judges? Len gives them a standing ovation. Bruno compares her to Syd Charisse, which is a huge compliment, although I don't know if Melissa knows that. Carrie Ann loved it, but she thinks that Melissa is still dancing a bit too inwardly. Len and Bruno couldn't disagree more. Scores: Carrie Ann 9.5, Len 10, and Bruno 10.
Derek and Shawn rehearse, and Shawn seems distracted and weird. Derek notes it, and Shawn admits that her knee, which she hurt while screwing around with Sabrina during rehearsals for the group dance, is acting up. Derek makes her go sit down and ice it. I just watched that whole thing and realized that I have no idea what their actual dance was. It's a great country routine, don't get me wrong, and Shawn doesn't miss a step, although she does hunch over a bit at times. But the difficulty from their previous routines isn't in evidence here, and I wonder if Derek had to tone it down a bit because of her knee injury. It's still great, though, and from anyone else, I wouldn't even notice that it was a tiny bit easier than usual.