I know it's only been a week but I've kind of already forgotten all of the dances from the premiere. I do remember that DL Hughley was awful. I'd expect that trend to continue Tom is forced to say something about using Twitter to choose who does the encore and it sounds so unnatural. And do the old fogies who watch this show actually use Twitter? I thought they were all on Facebook now.
Ingo had contemporary last week, which is kind of more graceful movement than actual dance, as far as I'm concerned. This week, he has the quickstep, which will be the true test. And Ingo looks better than I expected! His footwork is quick and his posture is good. He's got long legs and arms and a bit of natural grace. Something is missing though - I think he's just a bit behind the beat. It definitely looks like Kym is pulling him around the floor, moreso the further they get into the routine. That said, he has potential.
Judges? Len thought he did great overall, and a huge improvement over last week since he had a good frame, although his footwork wasn't great. Bruno notes that Kym didn't dumb down the choreography, and that led to a few mistakes by Ingo, but they were minor. Carrie Ann thought his frame was the problem, and it caused them to go out of sync. Len and Carrie Ann argue about the frame for a while. I actually agree with Carrie Ann; there was something wonky with his frame. It was almost too stiff, which seems odd to say regarding the quickstep. Scores: Carrie Ann 6, Len 7, and Bruno 7.
Dorothy and Tristan are up , and man, Tristan's stylist went a little nuts with the mousse. Calm down there, Danny Zuko. They have the jive this week. Dorothy has a cyst on her spine or something? And it's causing trouble with her legs as well. As a result, she can't really rehearse full out, and has to sit and watch Tristan dance most of the time. I mean, not really a punishment, amirite ladeez? Anyway, when they get to the actual routine, she starts off quite tentative, and of all the dances the require a strong attack, the jive is the attackiest, I think. She gets stronger in the middle, whether it's because she realizes it doesn't hurt or because she knows the steps better, I don't know. But then there are a few obvious places where she gets lost and Tristan has to push her back into the routine. So there were a few... well, I wouldn't call them bright spots, but let's call them lighter spots? And I don't know how much of it can be attributed to the injury. Her arms were weak and she just didn't have the gusto she needed to make the jive work.
Judges? Dorothy looks disappointed as they face the judges. Bruno says it was a brave attempt, but she lost the footing many times. He hopes in the future she will relax her shoulders and engage her core. Carrie Ann sensed fear more than the injury was holding her back. Agreed. Len thought it had promise, but didn't deliver and proceeds to trash her routine. The audience boos but Dorothy says that everything he's saying is true, and it wasn't the pain that held her back, it was her brain. She feels badly for letting Tristan down. Aw. Scores: Carrie Ann 5, Len 5, and Bruno 5. The audience boos but honestly.
Jacoby likes to goof around in practice, and Karina brings in a class of little girls to force him to focus. And he is cute with them, I guess, but what's the point? But then their routine starts and there's a long intro where Karina is on Jacoby's shoulders and they're wearing a big trenchcoat, so I think that Karina is putting in this bullshit to hide the fact that Jacoby can't dance. The style is very Cotton Club. But then they start dancing and HOLY SHIT, he's awesome. I mean, he's actually dancing, and not just that, he knows the routine and he has a ton of charisma and personality. I mean, he's really, really good. It remains to be seen if he'll be able to pull off the ballroom routines, but this one was excellent, as far as I'm concerned.
Judges? Carrie Ann says it was rocking, and she loved that they went back to the roots of jazz, and Jacoby's lines were fantastic. Len thought it was fun and full of razzle dazzle, but like me, he wonders how Jacoby will do with the more classical routines. Bruno thought it was outstanding and adds that Jacoby is a real performer. Scores: Carrie Ann 8, Len 7, and Bruno 8. Wow, I thought it deserved higher, like at least one 9.
Victor and Lindsay have the jive this week. In rehearsals, Victor gets frustrated when he can't get the steps and thinks they should call it a night until Lindsay reminds him that in a few days, they have to go on live television and dance no matter what. Good point. That is some powerful motivation to keep practicing. Anyway, their routine is high energy and Victor is much more of a performer than I expected. He seems into the dance and his footwork is decent. However, he lacks musicality and gets off the beat a few times.
Judges? Len thought it was fun and had energy, but it could have been much sharper and cleaner. It had a lot of attack but not enough precision. Bruno loves how Victor commits to the dance, but he lost style when he did. Carrie Ann thinks Victor had a great time out there, but his feet were terrible. Carrie Ann thinks he has potential, though. Scores: Carrie Ann 6, Len 6, and Bruno 6. That might be a leeetle low. He maybe deserved another point, although I appreciate the lack of score inflation.
Wynonna and Tony have the quickstep this week, which should be interesting, since she's not exactly quick and she's out of shape. At least it's not the jive, I guess? Tony's conceit for the dance is that they're mall cops who get bored and start dancing. Because that's a fantasy that people have? Anyway, their dance is awful. It's slow and Wynonna is wearing sneakers instead of heels, and Tony moves her around the floor like he's pushing a piano made out of glass. She's not doing any actual dancing; she's just moving through the steps and counting in her head. If she stays, Tony needs to figure out a way to get her to come out of her shell, quit counting, and just move to the music.
Judges? Bruno makes a joke about her boobs and Tony's fake moustache before saying that it started as a quickstep and ended as a casual stroll. Carrie Ann says that she needs to turn it up a notch and take a risk. Len agrees, and says that she comes out and entertains them but she needs to work on technique. Scores: Carrie Ann 6, Len 6, and Bruno 6. That was generous. I mean, I guess most of her routine was done properly but it was dull as hell.
Zendaya was really great last week and topped the leader board. This week, she has the jive and has to wear high heels which freaks her out. Val points out that she hasn't grown into her long arms and legs yet, and that does make her look awkward at times. So how does their jive go? Here's where Val is really smart. He choreographs the dance to be lightning fast, because she's a teenager and can handle it, and then any small imperfections are glossed over. I mean, it's good but it's not perfect, and yet it's tough to point out any issues because she just whips on to the move.
Judges? Carrie Ann yells that Zendaya killed that number, and she was totally in control. Len doesn't think Zendaya has anything to worry about with the vote tonight. Bruno says, "A star is born, big time" and she hit some breathtaking lines. Bruno stands up and starts recreating some of her moves until Tom says he has to shut up. Scores: Carrie Ann 9, Len 8, and Bruno 9. I'm curious about Len's score but I guess we don't have time for an explanation so that Brooke can ask more inane questions backstage.
Andy and Sharna have jazz this week. This should be... interesting. They're doing an Alice in Wonderland theme. Okay, I don't know what the fuck that was, but it was fun to watch. And demented. And not much of it looked like dancing, but Andy was totally committed. I would have no idea how to score that.
Judges? Len compliments Andy's commitment and says it was fun to watch, if awkward in places. Bruno calls it "outlandish and crackers." Carrie Ann does some dance moves and says that Andy was lucky he got jazz, because he got to be demented and nail it. Scores: Carrie Ann 7, Len 6, and Bruno 7. Those are probably the highest scores Andy will get this season, so he should enjoy it.
Sean and Peta have the jive this week, and Sean struggles with both the speed and remembering the steps. And also, showering I guess? He tells Peta that he didn't take a shower for two days. Yuck. Anyway, I like their theme of retro beach goers; it's very Frankie and Annette. And at least it's not the typical '50s greaser routine. Sean starts out pretty good, but the longer the song goes on, the less it feels like dancing and the more it feels like marching in place. He's quite flat-footed and he doesn't flick his feet when he kicks, which I'm sure Len will point out.
Judges? Bruno thinks Sean has charm and charisma, but it was less jive than jitterbug, which is Peta's fault, not Sean's. Carrie Ann thought it was solid, but he needs to work on listening to the music instead of just doing the steps in order. Len didn't see much jive, and again, that's Peta's fault, not Sean's. I get why they have to point it out, but I feel bad for the dancer who takes the blow. Scores: Carrie Ann 7, Len 6, and Bruno 7.
Last week, I was a little disappointed by Aly's performance. Seeing her dance with Mark, with her long brown hair and fringey dress, she just reminds me of Bristol. Anyway, Mark was pleased with her ability to pick up the steps in their quickstep routine, but he really wanted her to work on emotion, because she's used to keeping a stone face while performing as a gymnast. This routine is a little slower than I expected from an athlete, and she does seem a bit robotic like her brain is going, "Smile two three four and pucker two three four" instead of just feeling the music and dancing. She misses a few steps but gets through it well. For week two, it was solid.
Judges? Carrie Ann thinks it was the best quickstep of the night. Len thought it was technically terrific, although her head was a little far to the left. Bruno calls her "a magic little bluebird." Did I watch a different routine than they did? I didn't think it was that great. Scores: Carrie Ann 8, Len 8, and Bruno 8. Wow.
Lisa and Gleb have the jive and Lisa complains and complains about the physical aspect of it, because she's kind of a whiner, and spoiled besides. She doesn't deserve Gleb. Despite his weird name, he's really, really handsome. Lisa has that old lady stiffness through her mid section and it makes her whole routine awkward, plus she doesn't seem to know what to do with her arms when she's holding them out straight. She needs more precision. It is quite a fast routine, though, so I'll give her that.
Judges? Len says it was a little bit wooden and didn't have enough flow, but it was neat and precise. Bruno advises her to contain and place her movement and finish her moves cleanly instead of letting herself be thrown about by Gleb. Carrie Ann warns Gleb about his lifts, and tells Lisa that she's refined but she needs to watch her arm placement. Scores: Carrie Ann 6, Len 6, and Bruno 6. Overscored.
Last week, DL got nailed by the judges for his terrible cha cha cha. During rehearsals, DL gets frustrated and argues with Cheryl about whether or not he can learn the routine. Cheryl thinks he's being disrespectful and walks out of the studio. The day, DL admits that he was humiliated on national television and now he's scared. And he should be; the quickstep is hard. They start out super slow and I think it's going to be Wynonna-redux, but then they go into the first pass down the floor and while DL is no superstar, it is MUCH better than last week. He actually smiles a few times and while his foot placement isn't great, he doesn't miss many steps. There are a lot of things that could be better: posture, body contact, etc. But it's better than last week.
Judges? Bruno says he obviously worked hard and did well with some complicated choreography. Carrie Ann says that she is proud of DL for coming back after getting slammed and putting in a solid performance. Len thinks he improved over last week and that's what they ask the stars to do. Scores: Carrie Ann 5, Len 5, and Bruno 6. Hmm, I thought it was at least as good as a few others.
Derek and Kellie got jazz, and Kellie is a little confused by Derek's interpretation. Derek says that the judges will either love it or hate it, which scares me. They do a very modern routine with lots of fog and lights. I'm not sure if it was what the judges were looking for, but Kellie nailed it. I mean, she looked like a pro with this style of dance. And Derek's choreography was pretty amazing.
Judges? Carrie Ann says that Kellie is a dancer and her lines were amazing. She's blown away. Len thought they were amazing, especially for week two. Bruno thought it was visually arresting and beautiful, and technically superb. Scores: Carrie Ann 9, Len 8, and Bruno 9. Again, I have no idea where the points off were from Len. I can see not giving a 10 in week two, but why was Len's score a point lower? No idea.
I think DL is probably going home but at least he got redemption first. Here are last week's scores plus this week's scores added together:
Scores:
Zendaya and Val: 24 + 26 = 50
Kellie and Derek: 21 + 26 = 47
Aly and Mark: 21 + 24 = 45
Jacoby and Karina: 20 + 23 = 43
Ingo and Kym: 20 + 20 = 40
Sean and Peta: 19 + 20 = 39
Andy and Sharna: 17 + 20 = 37
Dorothy and Tristan: 21 + 15 = 36
Victor and Lindsay: 18 + 18 = 36
Lisa and Gleb: 18 + 18 = 36
Wynonna and Tony: 18 + 18 = 36
D.L. and Cheryl: 12 + 16 = 28
Check out what Sharna had to say about Andy Dick in this exclusive from our friends at Wetpaint.