Brooke's dress is actually not horrible tonight, except that she has a sequined head of broccoli that's been spray-painted silver on her shoulder. So you know, except for that. After the couples are introduced, Brooke explains that there will be a double elimination tomorrow night. Yes! Speed things up! Get rid of the garbage! And that also means no dance duel! And something about a three-person dance that I don't get, but they promise to explain it more later.
Donald and Peta are up first tonight. They have the tango, which I think Donald will do well with, since he has good posture and fast feet. And I was right! His posture looks great and his movements are sharp and in sync with Peta. My only complaint is his face; he needs more dynamics and acting in his facial expressions. He tends to pick a facial expression and stick with it. It doesn't help that they're dancing to "Higher Ground" which is really upbeat and not dramatic enough musically for a tango, if you ask me.
Judges? Len calls it a first-round knockout and says that Donald set the standard for the night. Bruno loved the aggression and disdain and power. Carrie Ann thought it was incredible to watch, but she suggests a little more drama. Bruno sharply disagrees, but Carrie Ann is totally right. Peta had dramatic expressions but Donald didn't. Scores: Carrie Ann 9, Len 9 and Bruno 9. See, Len and Bruno should give more criticism if they're not going to give a 10.
Maria and Derek got the first perfect score of the season last week. Rehearsals were rough for both of them because they both got frustrated. This week, they have the Viennese waltz. Okay, so their waltz is really pretty! I think Maria has improved a great deal as a dancer. I'm kind of distracted because Derek's pants are totally going up his butt, though. It's lovely.
Judges? Bruno says she had seamless transitions and total emotional involvement. Maria starts crying and Tom asks what's going on and Maria says that she loved this dance and she felt the emotion. Carrie Ann says that it sang to her, and she felt this beautiful chemistry between Maria and Derek. Len thinks that Maria is the best in hold and Derek should have choreographed more of it in hold. The audience boos and Carrie Ann and Bruno disagree vehemently. This is the problem with recent seasons: we don't know what the technical things are that the judges are supposed to look for, so who knows if Len is being crazy or has a valid point? Scores: Carrie Ann 10, Len 8 and Bruno 10. Whoa. I thought Len would give them a 9, but not an 8. Youch. That's punishing Maria for something that Derek did.
Melissa and Maks are just terrible. Come on, you guys. They're not good, and they should've gone home already. In rehearsals, Maks loses patience and just starts cussing Melissa out, and he seems really awful. I get that she might not learn as quickly as he would like, or as quickly as his past partners have, but jeezy creezy, he needs to lighten up. Melissa explains via interview that she doesn't think Maks is a bad person, but then she kind of intimates that she can't make him look like a bad person, and only he can do that. I don't know what is going on with them, but between their bad dancing and their uncomfortable rehearsals, I'm over it. So after all that, how is their foxtrot? It's pretty lackluster, and Melissa screws up at the beginning. I feel like Maks has given up. And weirdly, maybe because of the screw-up and Maks's attitude, the ending is some of the best dancing I've seen from them.
Judges? Carrie Ann is thrilled that Melissa's shoulders were down and she thinks it was Melissa's best dance ever, despite the mess-ups at the beginning. Len agrees with everything Carrie Ann said. Bruno thought it was the best presentation too. Maks just looks pissed. I guess he's mad about the screw-ups by Melissa? I don't get what he's got going on and I don't really care anymore. Although after watching his post-dance interview, it's possible that he was upset by what he saw in the roll-in package. Scores: Carrie Ann 8, Len 8 and Bruno 8. Melissa and Maks just crack up because they knew how much they screwed up and got their best scores of the season.
Katherine and Mark had some issues in rehearsals because Katherine had trouble getting some moves and was worried about disappointing Mark. She should be worried about getting a concussion with the way Mark bonked her head on the floor. They have the Viennese waltz. It doesn't have the emotion of Maria's, but technically it's much better. And a lot of it is in hold, so Len should be happy. It's really beautiful but so soon after seeing Maria and Derek, you can really sense the differences in terms of emotion and technique.
Judges? Len loved how much content the dance had, with lots of hold and turns, but he didn't love the lift/spin. Bruno compliments her technique, but he noticed that Katherine was nervous about the lift. Carrie Ann is mesmerized by her lines, but she thinks Katherine lost her balance and her footing at times. The three judges all start talking at once and you can't hear any of them so let's move on. Scores: Carrie Ann 8, Len 9 and Bruno 9. I'm surprised. I thought the scores would be higher.
Roshon and Chelsie made it through the dance duel last week, and this week they have the foxtrot. Roshon's grandmothers come to watch him in rehearsal. The one grandma is like, "You're great!" The other grandma is like, "You need to plant your foot instead of sliding them around." THANK YOU GRANDMA! I have been saying that about Roshon since week one and no one seems to address it. I think it will give his dancing more power too, if he plants his feet on the ground. Anyway, let's see if he listened to Granny. Okay, his feet are a LOT better, and this dance is a good fit for his style of dancing. He's light on his feet and he reminds me of a young Dick Van Dyke. Good job, Roshon.
Judges? Bruno can't believe the improvement Roshon made in a week. He had clean lines and Bruno compares him to a young Mickey Rooney. Carrie Ann asks the grandmothers if they're proud, and they cheer. Carrie Ann says that they're proud and she's proud too. Len loved it too. See? The feet! They were the key! I don't know why no one listens to me. I know things. Scores: Carrie Ann 10, Len 9 and Bruno 10. Wow. I don't know if it was THAT good. But it was a huge improvement.
William and Cheryl have the foxtrot, and William struggles with the rules of the dance. He explains that he likes more freedom in his dances, and he gets frustrated when Cheryl keeps reminding him that he's doing it wrong. He's quick to emphasize that he appreciates Cheryl's patience, though. It's interesting watching this routine right after Roshon's. I'm not feeling any personality at all. I don't know if it's because William doesn't like the dance or what. His movements are fine. I don't see any major problems. But I'm not engaged with the routine.
Judges? Carrie Ann loves to watch how much fun they are having it. Len calls it "a mix of care and flair." Bruno thinks William is debonair and suave. Maybe William just leaves me cold, not his dancing. He doesn't do it for me. Scores: Carrie Ann 10, Len 10 and Bruno 10. Whoa. Really? I mean, technically, I didn't see any problems, I guess.
Tom explains how the trio dance is going to work. Each star will be joined by a member of the troupe or an eliminated pro. So Donald and Peta will be joined by Karina, and they're doing the jive. Peta explains that Karina is a great choreographer and last season's winner, so they're looking forward to it. I don't really get how this will all work out, but I'm about to find out. Holy crap, this is actually good. I didn't expect that. They do an extended section in the middle where they are side-by-side and doing kicks and flicks and it is spot fucking on. There are a few awkward moments but mostly it's fantastic, and it really does show off Donald's fast feet and natural rhythm.
Judges? Len thought it was "fun, fun, fun." Bruno thought they were beautifully in sync, and Donald kept up with the pros. Carrie Ann loved that Donald never missed a step. Scores: Carrie Ann 10, Len 9 and Bruno 9. Oh, come on! What was with the 9's? That was amazing. The audience boos, and for once, I'm with it. I don't know how that could have been better.
Maria and Derek chose Henry from the troupe for their samba. Maria jokes that Henry has better abs than Derek, and then jokes that she's using him to make Derek jealous. Derek hopes to incorporate some Bollywood moves into their samba question mark? Well, it was ambitious, for sure. But I didn't see a whole lot of samba. And I don't think Maria had the dance skill to sell the Indian movements. She kind of looked like a white girl trying to Walk like an Egyptian. There were some awkward moments in the choreography too. I give them points for trying something different, but it didn't really work for me in practice.
Judges? Bruno thought it was incredible creatively because Maria was always at the center, but he thought they lost timing a few times. Carrie Ann agrees that it was an incredible number, but there were a few slip-ups. Len thinks it was great for a Bollywood number, but he's judging a samba, and he didn't see much samba. Scores: Carrie Ann 9, Len 7, and Bruno 9. Derek fakes a heart attack when he sees Len's score. Funny, I thought that the 9's were a little high.
No surprise, Melissa and Maks picked Val to dance with them. There's a little clip of Maks and Val doing the samba, and I'd kind of like to see that. They're really good together. I mean, they've probably been dancing together for years, right? The first half of the routine is by far the best dancing Melissa's done yet, and the part where she's in hold with Val is really good also. It all falls apart when she dances with Maks; she screws up and he tries to get her back into it but then it's just a lot of running around and ass-grabbing. I really think Melissa would have been better off with Val as a partner.
Judges? Carrie Ann thought it was Melissa's best number by miles because she seemed free and like she didn't care. Len agrees that it was Melissa's best dance. Bruno says it obviously takes two to get the best out of her. Oh, Bruno. You couldn't resist, could you? But seriously, I had counted Melissa out of this competition, but she's coming on strong. Scores: Carrie Ann 9, Len 9 and Bruno 9. Melissa's highest scores so far.
Mark and Katherine chose Tristan, making the ladies of the forum happy. They have the cha cha. And they are pretty cute together in rehearsals. I'm totally distracted during their dance because they rip Katherine's suit off but her one leg doesn't come off at first, so she has to dance with it on until she kicks it off, and then it's lying on the floor right where they're dancing and I'm sure that someone is going to slip on it and fall. So I was a little sidetracked. But the dancing seemed good. Same as Katherine always is; technically good, but no fire. Bland.
Judges? Len thought it was clean and clear, despite the wardrobe problem. Bruno thought it was sexy and cool, and wonderful. Carrie Ann thought Katherine owned the dance and brought the fire she has sometimes lacked. Scores: Carrie Ann 10, Len 9 and Bruno 10. Hmm. I guess.
Roshon and Chelsie are joined by Sasha from the troupe. They are one of the few who chose a pro who is the same sex as the star instead of the pro. They have the paso doble. So it's the bull and the cape and... another bull? What's great for Roshon is that Sasha is showing him how to be more masculine and powerful. Chelsie should have brought in another dude long ago. Okay, here's my problem with this trio dance. Their third is barely in it, because they don't want to leave Roshon out, but they can't have the two dudes dancing alone either. So they open with Roshon and Sasha mirroring one another and then Roshon and Chelsie do a long segment in the middle, and then Sasha rejoins them at the end. Roshon does a good job; maybe not as good as his last dance, but still good. I just found it to be a bit of a cheat on the threesome thing, compared to what the others did.
Judges? Bruno liked Roshon's lines, although he got out of sync a few times. Carrie Ann liked the routine and how they managed another male in the mix, but she thought Roshon was off at times too. Len disagrees and calls them "two skinny fries chasing the ketchup" and compliments Roshon's tight buttocks. What is Len drinking? Can I have some? Scores: Carrie Ann 9, Len 9 and Bruno 9. Mmm. I don't disagree.
The final dancers of the night will be William, Cheryl and Tony. So they're also doing the same-sex as the star thing. Cheryl explains that she wants William to hold his own against a professional dancer. During rehearsals, William is really intimidated by Tony, but he says that he likes a challenge. They are also doing the paso doble. The advantage here is that Cheryl and Tony are both amazing and experienced choreographers, and the routine shows it. I don't know that William danced any better than Roshon, but the choreography was better.
Judges? Carrie Ann thinks William learned from Tony because his posture and lines were better this week, even if they were out of sync a few times. Len liked the mix of steps together and he salutes them. Bruno does his usual "spin a tale about the dance thing" and says that he loved how they used Cheryl like a cape, even if they did get out of sync. Scores: Carrie Ann 9, Len 9 and Bruno 9. They were penalized for going out of sync, which makes sense.
So William got the highest scores of the week, but I didn't think his dancing was the best this week. I don't know if it was happenstance or by design, but it is interesting to see that the usual leaders are on the bottom (except for Melissa). Could be an interesting double elimination. Here are the scores:
William and Cheryl: 30 + 27 = 57
Roshon and Chelsie: 29 + 27 = 56
Donald and Peta: 27 + 28 = 55
Katherine and Mark: 26 + 29 = 55
Maria and Derek: 28 + 25 = 53
Melissa and Maks: 24 + 27 = 51