Last week was the highest scoring Week 3 EVER! And the women dominated the men, score-wise. Will that trend continue? We find out tonight --- LIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVE!
Guess who's back? Samantha Harris, with some baby-enhanced boobies. She looks amazing for only a few weeks postpartum. It's kind of depressing, somehow. As the stars are introduced, it quickly becomes apparent that this week's theme is BOOBS! Damn. Marie and Julianne are particularly boobalicious. And Edyta barely has any clothes on at all. Tonight will feature the paso doble, and for the first time in the show's history, the Viennese Waltz. [This week I went back and watched all the dances a second time, so the second viewing comments are in brackets.]
Up first are Mark and Kym. Let's try to build some sympathy for him by showing him hugging his little daughter! Kym tries to teach Mark the steps on the Viennese Waltz. Mark carries a piece of paper around with him to write down the steps, and Kym tells him that he needs to drop the analysis and feel the dance. She makes him practice with his eyes closed, and she thinks it's much better. They begin their waltz to "Mr. Bojangles," and Mark's posture is quite good. The routine isn't particularly flashy, but it is pretty graceful, especially for Mark. Perhaps dance purists would find this offensive, but I find Kym's choreography to be kind of boring, and not as creative as some of the others. Near the end, Mark does some solo steps, and he's a little off the beat. [Second viewing: I see what they meant about the lift, which was sort of an assisted jump. The dance was good, but lacked intensity.]
Judges? Len jokes that he tried judging with his eyes shut and Mark looked better. The audience boos him, and Len explains that he was joking and says that Mark has become a much more rounded performer, and it was his best dance. Bruno says that Mark started well, but sort of turned into "Bigfoot in a suit." Bruno wants Mark to practice keeping up the level of intensity. Carrie Ann is pleased that Mark didn't mug so much, and while the footwork could have been better, she thinks Mark is fun to watch. Backstage, Mark says that he took Carrie Ann's advice from last week to heart and tried to feel the dance. Scores are Carrie Ann 7, Len 8, and Bruno 7. Len! With the high score! Has that ever happened before?
Sabrina and Mark are up . In rehearsal, they discuss Len's criticism that they needed more contrast in their dance. Sabrina has a hard time with the serious paso doble, and gets the giggles often, but she knows she needs to show the judges that she can be serious. It's an interesting choice to have the women do the paso doble; I feel like that's a more difficult dance for the men. The dance begins, and Sabrina is very precise, but her dress has about twenty yards of extra fabric sewn in and it's too swirly for my tastes. Also, her "serious" face looks like she's trying to suppress a belch. They get behind on the ending and do their finishing move about three beats after the song ends, which seems wrong. And her dress is not flattering at all -- it makes her look like a linebacker. Anyway, there's a lot to criticize, in my opinion. [Second viewing: Still, eh. Good footwork, but Sabrina's facial expressions bug.]
But let's see what the judges think. Bruno thought it was just incredible. Carrie Ann thinks Sabrina puts her power and passion into every dance and this one was perfection. Len thinks his expectations of Sabrina are very high, and he's always looking for flaws, but tonight he didn't find any. What? I think I was watching a totally different routine. Well, maybe that's the difference between me and a professional -- namely, that I don't know what I'm talking about. Backstage, Sabrina is overwhelmed by the judges' remarks, and she's proud that she kept a serious face. Scores? 10s across the board. The first perfect score of the season! I don't get it, but whatever.
Jane managed to dance well last week, despite the recent loss of her mother. This week, she's approaching the Viennese Waltz as if it's a painting, because she's an artist. So that leads to Jane and Tony dancing with paint on their feet on a giant sheet of paper to create a painting, which I think I did in nursery school. I guess probably Jane didn't want to talk about her mom again in her package, but that was pretty lame. They waltz to that romantic classic, "Piano Man." Really? Just because it's in three-four time doesn't mean it's appropriate for a waltz, band. This dance really plays to Jane's strengths, which are grace and posture. It does look quite beautiful. [Second viewing: Yeah, both her feet are totally off the floor during the spin. But given what everyone else did, it doesn't matter. Really beautiful posture and arms, though.]
Jane and Tony face the judges. Carrie Ann thinks it was gorgeous and loved Jane's elegant lines. She was disappointed that Jane and Tony did what she considered an illegal lift, but Tony denies that it was. Len says that others have done lifts in a way, and they've let it go. Carrie Ann and Bruno argue the point and Len tells them to shut it. He loved the dance. Bruno says that Jane looked like "the queen of the fairies," and the dance was exquisite. Okay, I just went back and watched the spin Carrie Ann was discussing, and both of Jane's feet were off the ground at one point, but barely. After the break, we see the scores: Carrie Ann 8, Len 9, and Bruno 9. Tony says again backstage that there was no lift. Samantha shows the instant replay and it's hard to see in slow motion, so Tony and Jane continue to protest the idea that they did a lift. Ah, who cares. It's not like they were doing flips or anything.
Floyd got low scores last week and ended up in the bottom two. Afterwards, he threw a hissyfit in the interview room and walked off. He explained that he was pissed that the judges thought he was letting Karina down, and that he had BETTER get good scores this week. I don't know if threatening the judges is really the way to go. To cheer Floyd up, they visit an elementary school and Floyd dances with the kids. Did it work? Floyd begins their paso doble holding a cape. I think that the problem with Floyd is that he just has no grace, and that's not something you can really teach; either you're graceful, or you're not. Technically, he gets most of the steps right, though he misses a few, and he has the aggression of the paso doble down pat, but it doesn't all flow together right. Near the end, Floyd does a giant leap in the air that, again, is impressive but not graceful. At the end, he spins Karina around while she is upside down and while she keeps a hand on the floor to avoid it being a lift, it's still kind of scary. Also, he had a hard time getting her into the correct position, so it was awkward. [Second viewing: Floyd never looks very sure of the moves, like he's not sure what comes . And that last lift/spin was really awkward and ugly.]
Floyd faces the judges. Len says that Floyd scared him. Len loves how much effort Floyd puts in, but that causes him to lose a bit of control. However, he's always entertaining. Bruno thinks Floyd went from a bulldozer to a bullfighter, and he stayed in character. Carrie Ann has to bring up the lift thing again, though she adds that she thought it looked good. Her understanding of a lift is that it's something that you couldn't do on your own. She compliments Floyd's posture and has nice things to say about his improvement, though. What about the scores? Carrie Ann 7, Len 8, and Bruno 8. Floyd is happy with those numbers.
For some reason, they show a close-up of Len while they talk about how Mel did great with the jive last week. In rehearsal, Maks has a hard time getting Mel to focus, so they go to a meditation center. You know, as you do. Maks says he doesn't know if the meditation helped, but it was nice to have some peace and quiet. The dance starts with Mel dancing alone. She looks beautiful, but that stupid tattoo on her back is kind of ruining it for me. They dance to "Breakaway" by Kelly Clarkson, and the band's singer is no Kelly. What's up with Maks's hair? It's all slicked down for this more formal dance, and he looks like Joey Fatone or something. And he's wearing a bow tie that matches his vest (silver) and looks like he's going to prom. [Second viewing: Carrie Ann was right -- Mel's solo turns were a little funky, and not in a good way, since this is a waltz. But she was incredibly graceful.]
Bruno loves the elegance and says that Mel surprises him every week. Carrie Ann loves Mel's transformation, because she talks like a truck driver, but she's very graceful and womanly when she dances. Carrie Ann thinks the turns were a little off, but Bruno interrupts to say that the turns were great. Len compliments Maks's choreography and Mel's grace. Backstage, Samantha reveals that if they make it through another week, Maks will be going to London so that Mel can film the Spice Girls video. Scores? Carrie Ann 8, Len 9, and Bruno 9. At least the judges aren't just copying each other this week. Tom jokes that he can't wait to see the Spice Girls gang up on Maks. I kind of can't either, dude.
Cameron has been called Superman, so will he be able to handle the paso doble this week? After last week's show, Cameron called his son to get some sympathy from the audience -- I mean, some advice on his moves. Edyta talks about how difficult it is to choreograph a routine to the music she was given. Cameron gives a lot of suggestions, and Edyta looks exhausted and annoyed with him. They rehearse some moves that look a lot like lifts to me. Uh-oh! And...they're dancing to the theme from Superman. Really? Aren't we done with this reference yet? Edyta does a big jump that seems like a lift, but what do I know. In one shot, Cameron does that paso doble slow-walk thing, and you can see the judges clapping in the background. This was a great dance for Cameron, because it matches his natural posture and serious demeanor. [Second viewing: A few little mistakes, but I still liked it better than Sabrina's routine.]
The judges loved, loved, loved it. Carrie Ann is raising the roof. No, she really is. Carrie Ann has to mention the lift, but she's over it. Len thought this dance was the perfect match for Cameron. Bruno babbles some nonsense about superheroes. Backstage, Cameron defends their lift by saying that Edyta could do it without him, because she does all the work. Cameron also hurt his hip in rehearsal that morning, and hopes it will be okay tomorrow. The scores are straight 9s. Really? I thought this was way better than Sabrina's routine.
Last week, Len thought Marie needed to lift her ribcage. Marie takes that as an insult on her midsection, which it really wasn't. It was a posture thing. Jonathan gets Marie to take a ballet class with a bunch of little girls to try to improve her core. It really would make a big difference for her if she had a stronger core. Their waltz begins, to "Can't Help Falling In Love" by Elvis. Marie has approximately three extra people's hair on her head. Ooh, they execute a floor spin that was quite amazing and well-done. They end with the same move Maks and Mel used, where they sort of stroll off the floor. [Second viewing: My one complaint would be that, instead of doing actual waltz steps, Marie sometimes seems like she is running across the floor and randomly placing her feet.]
Judges? Len thinks Marie makes people feel good, and even though the dance was gentle, it was also lovely. Bruno agreed, but he missed the character that Marie usually puts into her dances. The audience boos. Carrie Ann liked that Marie wasn't putting her spunk into it, because it was appropriate. I am just the opposite of the judges this week. I thought that was really good. What were the scores? Carrie Ann 9, Len 9, and Bruno 8. Backstage, Marie promises to do better for Bruno. Samantha asks how Marie remembers everything, and Marie says that she has had to forget some of her brother's names and apologizes to Jermaine and Tito. Marie also jokes that the little girls in her ballet class were reminding her to work on her core. Samantha, full of spunk tonight, even sings a little bit as she reminds people to vote.
Last week, Jennie had the big comeback. Jennie explains that her family is the most important thing in the world to her, and her husband (The Fatch!) has been picking up the slack while she's in rehearsal. Derek explains to Jennie that, in the paso doble, one dancer is the bull and the other is the cape. Jennie wonders how she's supposed to be a cape. Jennie concludes that her husband loves this dance and she hopes to make him proud. What in the hell is this music? This is the worst paso doble music, ever! The dance is okay, but I'm so distracted by the terrible music that I can't watch. And also, Derek grabs Jennie under the arms and spins her around, and both of her feet clearly come off the ground. But Ian Ziering is there to cheer her on! At the end of the dance, Jennie runs over and hugs her husband. [Second viewing: I muted the sound, and it was seriously a million times better. That song sucked.]
Start with Bruno. He compares Jennie to "Nicole Kidman in the Pride of Spain." What? He thinks Jennie has really improved, and he loves the choreography. Carrie Ann asks about the lift, and Derek grabs Jennie and tries to prove that her feet stayed on the floor. Len says he's in a lift-free zone this week, so he'll let it go, but he promises that, in the future, he will be worse than Carrie Ann about it. He tells Jennie that it was fantastic, and she squeals. Samantha says that she knew Jennie could be sweet, but is impressed by her passion. Jennie says that her husband and Derek have tried to pull the passion out, which sounds gross. And painful. Scores: Carrie Ann 8, Len 10 (!), and Bruno 9. Jennie is as shocked as anyone about that 10.
Helio took a drop from the top of the leader board last week, so now he's got to climb back to the top. Helio explains it as being the hunted instead of the hunter. Julianne tries to help Helio learn the technique. She and Helio argue about whether or not they should learn the routine first, and then get into the detail work (Helio's position) or learn the details as they go (Julianne's position). Julianne wants Helio to trust her, and Helio says that they both want the same thing. So it's time for their Viennese Waltz. Wow. I actually just got the chills while they were dancing, because it was so beautiful. Helio's posture falters a little towards the end, but they are both so exuberant and smiley, and they know that they've pretty much nailed it, and it's a joy to watch. [Second viewing: His footwork and posture were not great, especially towards the end, but Julianne is a genius at using choreography to cover her partner's weaknesses.]
Judges? Carrie Ann thanks Julianne for keeping her toes on the ground in a spin that could have turned into a lift. Carrie Ann tells Helio that his dancing makes her happy to be alive, which sounds incredibly corny, but I know what she means. He's like Roberto Benigni with the joy and the enthusiasm, but not in a bad way. Len says that their engine stalled last week, but now they're revved up again. Len's only criticism is some head placement. Bruno thinks they are "a glittering combo" and he can't believe that Helio has never danced before. Tom reminds everyone that week is Latin week, so people will be wearing very little clothing. Backstage, Helio says that he was acting as best he could. Samantha asks about their difference of opinion. Julianne says that they compromised, but Helio says the woman is always right. Scores? Three 9s. Helio and Julianne are excited.
Final scores in order:
Sabrina and Mark: 30
Cameron and Edyta: 27
Jennie and Derek: 27
Helio and Julianne: 27
Jane and Tony: 26
Mel and Maks: 26
Marie and Jonathan: 26
Floyd and Karina: 23
Mark and Kym: 22
So who's going home this week? I thought Floyd was actually overscored and that Mark's dance was better. So I'm going to say that Floyd is going home. We'll find out tomorrow night!