I think there was a problem with the roll-in package because you could see the countdown on the screen while it was playing and then instead of going right to the couple introductions, we went right to commercials with no opening credits. That was weird. It reminds you that this is a live show, which I do tend to forget until something goes horribly wrong.
When we return, the couples are all on the dance floor and Tom apologizes and acknowledges the technical difficulties. Tom and Brooke explain that each couple will do two dances this week: a regular routine and a trio routine, which they also did last season. I don't remember it setting the house on fire, but it wasn't terrible. What is kind of terrible is that the dancers are saluting veterans through the majesty of dance. I mean, we should all salute veterans every day, not just on Veterans' Day, but by dancing? That's just weird.
Shawn and Derek are up first. Derek's back! Back again! Derek's back! Tell a friend. They have the Viennese waltz this week, and are going to tell the story of all the soldiers who were hopeless and were helped by angels. Is this a thing? Angels on the battlefield? Anyway, as usual, Shawn needs to set her inhibitions aside and be willing to show her emotions. Okay, that was the shortest dance ever, but I'm fine with that. Anyway, Shawn's lines were beautiful. She has turned into such a fine dancer; I remember thinking on her first run that she had the technique but she wasn't this graceful or able to convey emotion this well.
Judges? Len says that sometimes a whisper is louder than a shout, and this was a loud whisper. He would've liked a little more in hold, but it was great. Bruno calls it "heavenly perfection" and the shapes and the figures were exquisite. Carrie Ann thinks Shawn has turned into a rich in-depth performer who has given them poignant moments. Scores: Carrie Ann 10, Len 9, and Bruno 10.
Apolo and Karina were discouraged last week when they put in so much effort and still didn't get a perfect score. So they decide to take a big risk and have Apolo zipline in from the skybox. Well, this could go horribly wrong. But luckily it doesn't, and they start their tango to "Holdin' Out for a Hero," the most underrated song from the Footloose soundtrack. It's a little fast for a tango, and Apolo has pancake hands and choppy arms at times. He doesn't miss a move, but it's not as elegant as I'd like.
Judges? Bruno thought it was a "daredevil of a tango." Carrie Ann thought it was an action adventure of a dance and she can't say enough about the attack and the lines. Len liked that Apolo danced with verve and passion, even if his frame got a bit wide at times. Scores: Carrie Ann 10, Len 9.5, and Bruno 10. I kind of forget they could give half points. I think the judges did too.
Ugh, Kirstie and Maks are still here. This is ridiculous. Kirstie thinks she can win, and God I hope not. That's not possible, right? Anyway, she and Maks are doing the Viennese waltz to "Hallelujah." I'll say this: the waltz might be Kirstie's dance. It's slow, so her lack of stamina and fitness doesn't show, and it allows her grace to show through. And Maks looks great in uniform.
Judges? Carrie Ann says that Kirstie's lines were beautiful, but she'd like to see more difficulty in her routine. Kirstie pouts, "No!" Len thinks it was her best dance, and Bruno thinks it was stylish and elegant. And kind of boring, right? Like it was good for Kirstie but if anyone else tried to come out with that, they'd be laughed off the dance floor. Scores: Carrie Ann 9, Len 9, and Bruno 9. That's fair. It's just not difficult enough to earn higher scores.
Kelly and Val are the third couple to have the Viennese waltz so far this week. This is the week of the waltz. Kelly gets frustrated that she isn't doing better in rehearsals and Val understands how she's feeling, and appreciates that she's not giving up. Was all the frustration worth it? Their dance is really pretty, but it feels a little choppy and honestly, the storytelling aspect isn't up to par with some of the others. I appreciate that, unlike the others, they didn't dress up in uniform. They wore yellow and called it a day. I mean, Kelly is a pretty dancer but it wasn't as good as Shawn's dance from a number of perspectives.
Judges? Len thought it was sharp on occasion. I agree, Len. Carrie Ann disagrees, but Len says that he'd like it more flowing. Bruno calls Kelly "a twinkling twirler" and he's right that her spins are great. Carrie Ann loved everything about it, and thinks Len is all wrong. Scores: Carrie Ann 9.5, Len 9, and Bruno 9.5.
Gilles has been falling down the leaderboard in the last two weeks, so he's hoping his quickstep can save him. Peta really puts Gilles through his paces in rehearsals, which is funny, because it seems like he is usually harder on himself. But he really wants to nail this dance. Did he? Not really. The opening is kind of a mess and looks nothing like a quickstep. I can't pinpoint what's wrong with it, but it's not good. The middle section is much better, with Gilles and Peta in perfect sync. The ending is fine, but it's basically just a run up the stairs and then a slide down the floor, which is more gymnastics than dancing. I'm disappointed.
Judges? Bruno couldn't believe how fast and efficient it was, and the variation in the middle was amazing. Carrie Ann thought there were a few little slips in his feet, but it was so good and so close. Len thought it was thunder and lightning with energy, speed, and control. Scores: Carrie Ann 9.5, Len 10, and Bruno 10. Gilles is thrilled to get a 10 from Len, and he also thanks the US for saving his country during WWII. You're welcome, Gilles.
Emmitt and Cheryl also have the Viennese waltz. What is up with that? Why did everyone end up with the same dance this week, except for a few? I don't mind that much because it certainly make it easier to compare couples when they are all doing the same dance, but they've gotten away from that in the last few seasons so it's just weird. Anyway, their waltz is beautiful. Classic and elegant, and better than I expect from Emmitt.
Judges? Carrie Ann thought it was smooth but noticed that Emmitt slipped a little bit. Len disagrees because he thought it was smooth and nice. Bruno thought it was smart and classic, even though he also saw a little stumble. Scores: Carrie Ann 9, Len 9.5, and Bruno 9.5.
Melissa and Tony are last in the first round, and they have the quickstep. They are going for a '40s patriotic tone, dancing to "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy," and it totally works. Their quickstep is fast and sharp and Melissa could be on a poster for military recruitment. Whoever decided to go with the '40s theme deserves a raise. My only critique is that, in the opening, Melissa had weird claw hands. But it was minor.
Judges? Len loved that it was a quickstep that was quick and had lots of steps. He can't stop grinning. Bruno thought it was wonderful, and it was like watching Anne Miller and Gene Kelley in On the Town. Carrie Ann loved it as well. Scores: Carrie Ann 10, Len 10, and Bruno 10.
And now it's time for the part where each couple has to add a third person into their routine. Shawn and Derek are up first, and no surprise, they'll be dancing with Mark to do the samba. Derek comes up with a tribal samba, which already feels a little bit racist to me? To have three really, really white people dancing like stereotypical Africans? No? Just me? I'll let it go. Let me see what it actually looks like before passing judgment. Okay, while there was some semi-uncomfortable race implications in there, it was also extremely, extremely well performed. It reminded me a cross between Lion King on Broadway and something Beyonce would do. Shawn looks amazingly sexy. I loved it. When they finish, Mark walks around with his chest puffed out like an asshole. I hate him. Loved the dance, hate him.
Judges? Len thought it was "very self-indulgent" which is SOOOO true. It was like Derek's audition reel to choreograph a Broadway show. He also didn't think it had enough samba content. Hmm. I thought it did have some. Maybe not enough for Len, but enough. Bruno says he has "jungle fever" and as a piece of dance, it was fantastic, but he has to admit that it wasn't really a samba. Carrie Ann disagrees and yells that it had enough samba content and they were bringing it into the twenty-first century. Derek and Mark start doing some weird move that, from the back, makes it look like they are pounding their crotches at her. I don't know. This show just got really weird. Scores: Carrie Ann 10, Len 7, and Bruno 9. Come on, Len. He's making a point but a 7 is ridiculous.
Apolo and Karina are dancing with Sasha from the troupe. Apolo is really intimidated about dancing with two pros, and they really don't do anything during rehearsals to make him feel better. Karina is kind of constantly like, "Ugh, Apolo, you suck. I want to dance with Sasha instead." So their dance is to "Greased Lightning" and I think they really did say "pussy wagon" but slurred it. That is a filthy song, if you haven't listened to it lately. I can't believe my mother let me listen to that album when I was in like fifth grade. Anyway, Apolo has a small screw-up at the beginning where he forgets his steps but he recovers nicely and for the rest of the routine, I have a hard time telling him apart from the actual pro. Of course, there's not a ton of dancing, and there is a ton of running up and down the stage. That helps.
Judges? Bruno was impressed that Apolo managed to dance with another male pro, mirror his moves, and look amazing. Carrie Ann has never seen Apolo shine brighter, though she did notice his slip in the beginning. Len thought it was fast, sharp, tight, and together. Scores: Carrie Ann 9.5, Len 9.5, and Bruno 10.
Maks and Kirstie are dancing with Tristan. This should be interesting. They are dressing up as giant angels and someone is sucking the life out of someone (which isn't really what angels do unless they are vampire angels, right?) and I don't even know. Maybe it will make me laugh. At least I can look at Tristan, right? Okay, I have no idea what the storyline was supposed to be in that, but it was ridiculous. So was the dancing. There was less paso doble in that than there was samba in Derek and Shawn's dance. Why is Kirstie still on this show?
Judges? Carrie Ann says that she loved the theme and the costumes, but it was a little sloppy. Len didn't see any "incidents" and it has aggression and attitude. Bruno thinks Kirstie's dances look surreal and while he's talking, Maks is whispering to Tristan. RUDE! Scores: Carrie Ann 8, Len 8, and Bruno 8. Kirstie can't even believe her scores were that high. Also, Kirstie is having a giggle fit. I'll have what she's having.
Louis is dancing with Val and Kelly. Kelly explains that she wanted Louis because Louis has taught most of the pros how to dance, so he's the best. Good point, Kelly. Louis makes a lot of comments about Kelly and Val hooking up. Which they are, I'm sure. The whole routine is actually kind of charming; Kelly is trying to decide between Louis and Val, who are competing for her affections. There are some good and tricky bits of choreography, although most of the hard stuff goes to the guys. In the end, Kelly dives on the judges' table and chooses Len.
Judges? Len thought it was fun, fast, and flirty. Bruno loved the sequencing when Kelly was leading, and she held the routine together. Carrie Ann couldn't believe how well Kelly transitioned between Val and Louis, though she could have pointed her toe a little more. Scores: Carrie Ann 9.5, Len 9.5, and Bruno 9.5. That's about right. It wasn't perfect but it was good.
Gilles and Peta will be working with Chelsie to dance a salsa. Gilles notes that they are all entangled all of the time, so if he misses on step, they will all fall down. I've been trying to figure out for the last few weeks why I don't love Gilles this season. I mean, I looooooooooved him on his original season, and I just don't anymore. And I think it's because he started to believe his own press, and he's just not as good of a dancer as he thinks he is. Like he opens this samba with an extended solo and it's...not that good. And no other male star would attempt it, because it requires a certain level of skill, but Gilles thinks he's a pro. Anyway, his samba is not for me. I love the samba, but this seems all about Gilles and his skills just aren't there for whatever reason.
Judges? Bruno says that it was hot and sexy, but Gilles was so busy taking care of his ladies (gross) that he lost timing a few times. Carrie Ann loved it, and Len thought it was great that Gilles was out there, exposed, and didn't hide behind the women. Yeah, that was the problem. He was exposed, and his dancing wasn't that good. Scores: Carrie Ann 9.5, Len 10, and Bruno 9.5.
Emmitt and Cheryl will be dancing with Kym and doing the salsa. Emmitt learns in rehearsals that it's complicated to dance with two women because he's got to keep everything straight and not basically throw them into one another. Hmm. This is one of those routines that is probably really, really difficult to do but it doesn't look that hard. It looks like Emmitt is just standing there while the two women dance around him. But he's concentrating really hard, and that means we miss out on some of Emmitt's trademark sparkle.
Judges? Carrie Ann thought it was red hot, and that's the Emmitt they all love. Len thought it was like working two yo-yos at the same time, and Emmitt had great rhythm and musicality. Bruno thought it was smooth, easy, and natural. I guess I'm the only one who thought Emmitt was out of time in the beginning. Scores: Carrie Ann 10, Len 10, and Bruno 10. Wow, I did not think that deserved a perfect score.
Final dance of the night! Melissa and Tony will be dancing with troupe member Henry. They are doing the paso doble, and Tony encourages Melissa to be dominating and in control. You can see how she struggles with the character, but she knows that if she nails it, the dance will be awesome. Something about being so sharp is messing up Melissa's frame. I think she has trouble dancing when it's not graceful and pretty. It's good; it's not great. And there's a segment where they're supposed to be in sync and they're not.
Judges? Len thought it was seamless, and Melissa impresses him the most of any celebrity. Bruno thought she was flamboyantly fabulous and he mentions specific moves that were beautiful. Carrie Ann loved seeing Melissa own the floor. Man, I need some sugar or something because I am not feeling it in the way that the judges are. And I thought Len was the old crank. Scores: Carrie Ann 10, Len 10, and Bruno 10. Melissa and Tony are running away with this according to the judges.
So week everyone is dancing to Michael Jackson songs. THANK GOD MARK HAS BEEN ELIMINATED! I couldn't handle watching him dance to those songs with his spats and his one glove. Ugh. What a dipshit. Anyway, two couples won't make it to week. Please be Kirstie. Please be Kirstie. Please be Kirstie. This week's scores didn't change the order at all. Here is your leaderboard:
Melissa and Tony: 29 + 10 + 30 + 30 = 99
Shawn and Mark (Derek): 30 + 8 + 29 + 26 = 93
Kelly and Val: 27 + 9 + 28 + 28.5 = 92.5
Emmitt and Cheryl: 27.5 + 7 + 28 + 30 = 92.5
Gilles and Peta: 28.5 + 5 + 29.5 + 29 = 92
Apolo and Karina: 27 + 6 + 29.5 + 29 = 91.5
Kirstie and Maks: 24 + 4 + 27 + 24 = 79