SYTYCD - Top 8 Results

Alright - this is your recap of Wednesday night's results show. I'm not really sure how it will turn out, because it's taken me the entire 41 hours since the show ended to even work up the energy to write it.

To say I'm disappointed is a bit of an understatement ~ but I'll get to that near the end.

The show opened with a piece choreographed by Sonya Tayeh, set to 'Pon de Floor (Samantha Ronson Remix)' by Major Lazer feat. VYBZ Kartel. As is typical with Ms. Tayeh's routines, this was quirky, jerky and high energy. I did kind of wonder why the dancers were dressed as Jolly Rancher candies, but the song choice didn't lend to any particular costuming demands - so I think they just went with weird. Right away it was obvious that Ashleigh was still not dancing, and that made me analyze the routine for how Sonya & the dancers must have had to alter the choreography to accommodate the lack of one dancer. The alterations were fairly seamless, though it was a bit odd to have Russell just completely disappear off stage for a chunk of the performance, only to leap back in. I'm also getting pretty tired of Jakob always being a large focus point in these routines. I like Jakob as a dancer/contestant just fine BUT we know he can pirouette, jete and bend like Gumby alright? We don't need it shoved in our face at every opportunity.

I'm realizing that I'm sounding bitter while writing this - and for that I apologize.

Up next we get a short filler piece, introducing Samantha Ronson and explaining her participation in this week's music choices. She is on the sickly looking side of skinny. Interesting to hear from her though - as I get the impression that though she is a very popular DJ, you don't honestly "hear" a lot from her directly. She dated some sort of coked out has-been actress didn't she? LOL!

Right on to the results of the voting to discover the bottom 2 boys & girls.

The Guys

Russell - Safe. This was fairly predictable. Russell has a huge following.
Legacy - Not Safe. **SOB!** Okay I predicted this myself, and at this point in the show I still held out hope that my favourite dancer would be in the finale.
Jakob - Safe. Again pretty obvious. I will admit that Jakob has been presented as the most talented dancer this year.
Ryan - Not Safe. With only 4 dancers to choose from, Ryan would have been MY choice to go home. Not because he isn't a good dancer - he is - I just believe he isn't the most well rounded and hasn't grown as much as the other dancers. And he's not Legacy. *SOB!*

The Girls

Kathryn - Safe. SQUEE! Certainly my fave girl this year.
Ellenore - Not Safe. Huh. That NappyTabs (yeah I said it *rolling eyes*) routine really sank Ellenore & Legacy. Or maybe it was the stupid Alien language. Either way - Unfortunate.
Mollee - Not Safe.
Ashleigh - Safe. Listen - I'm an Ashleigh fan, don't get me wrong - but WTF!? This girl didn't dance and she gets a free pass through to the finale? Because that's what this is - a Free Pass.

And while in your head's you can recall the mediocre performance from "Asia's Number 1 Pop Group - The Wondergirls!" I'm going to go off into a little rant...a pre rant...because there will be another towards the end of this recap.

I've already made the statement that I think Ashleigh is a talented dancer. I think of all the girls (yes even above Mollee) she has shown the most growth throughout the season. The judges didn't have much confidence in her while she was in Vegas, and in fact Did Not originally include her in the Top 20. She ended up grabbing that last spot in the Top 20 because another dancer chosen could not continue in the competition. At that point I was happy for her - because I thought it would be an interesting storyline to the season, what with her having to prove herself possibly even more than any of the other girls. There was also the 'cute' factor because she was going to be able to share her journey with her husband - the very much hyped Ryan.
But now that I've made that declaration - I have this to say. Ashleigh should have been in the bottom two tonight. At this point in the competition, where every routine matters, Ashleigh did not perform - at all. Of course - if the results are truly in America's hands, this is no one's fault really. Ashleigh has a large following, which was only increased by Ryan's plea for votes for her. I don't know that there was any other way to fairly prevent Ashleigh from going directly to the finale - but I have to say to my American friends "what were you thinking?". I want to say that Ashleigh should have been the girl to go home, because her injury didn't allow her to take part. There are those who will say that would have been just as unfair - this time to Ashleigh directly - but there really is no good way to solve a situation like this.

Okay - onward we go. I'm going to let you again use your own imaginations to envision the performance by Kris Allen (it took me a minute to remember this kid's name) - because I didn't watch it after the first 30 seconds. Boorrring. I think it's quite telling that the winner of the last American Idol was given a spot on the 2nd to last show - and the runner up (Adam Lambert) was given a spot on the finale. BUT - I haven't watched American idol since Carrie Underwood won (though I do like David Cook) so I don't know much about either singer.

Here are the results:

Girl going home: Mollee. Poor little thing looks devastated but manages to keep it together. All in all I have to agree that she is a good dancer, but up next to Ellenore & Kathryn (I'm leaving Ashleigh out of this) she is the weakest.

Guy going home: Legacy. *Great Heaving Sobs!* Okay so maybe I'm exaggerating - but I'm not happy about this. At. All.

Rant # 2. This stinks of conspiracy. A numbers fix. Do we really think that the American public wants to see Ryan & Ashleigh dance together so badly that they voted for them instead of Legacy & Ellenore - who arguably had the best performance of Tuesday night's show.

In truth I think this was more a case of the voting public thinking that Legacy was safe with everyone else's votes and so they voted for Ryan instead. Does that make me feel better? No.

I haven't been shy in proclaiming my like (all right Love) of Legacy. I think he is a seriously talented young man, whose desire to learn and improve has been proven throughout this season. He has grown by leaps and bounds and broken the limits that most B-boys are held to. At the beginning of the season, I certainly didn't think he would get this far. As the season has gone on, I've grown more and more invested in his journey. It's been hard this year to pick that one standout performer (as Brandon was last season). We've had some incredible dancers showcase some incredible talent this year. But when you line them up (or when I do and I've already said I'm biased haven't I?) you get this: Russell the astonishingly versatile Krumper, Jakob of the miraculous jetes, extensions and leaping, Legacy of the unimaginable growth and Ryan of the...well...phenomenal abdominal muscles?

Alright that may be going a bit far - Ryan IS talented. But is he the best dancer this season - No. Is he going to win SYTYCD Season 6? I highly doubt that (and if he does I may throw up).

I'm going to stop there and continue on, remembering that this is just a reality competition show and not the end of the world. :)

Kim is back next week to cover the Finale Performance and Finale Results shows. I will be laid up recovering from some pre-holiday surgery that will only allow me to watch the shows in a drugged-out stupor. Which is probably for the best all in all.

Oh - one more thing - Cat did mention that auditions for Season 7 would begin in January, so we shouldn't have to wait too long for our next SYTYCD fix.

Keep Dancin'!
Carly

SYTYCD - Top 8 Performance

Good Day to All! I had a busy night last night - with 2 hours of SYTYCD, 2 hours of Biggest Loser finale and Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince all in my TV watching lineup. I made it through the marathon and am here now to recap the Top 8 performances for you.

I must say that I am a big fan of Cat Deeley and her fabulous wardrobe & makeup people, but they must have been suffering from an egg nog hangover last night. What the hell was she wearing? Some sort of silver/pewter lame jumpsuit shorts mess. Ugh. Her hair wasn't much better, looking a lot like she just rolled out of bed and hit the stage without brushing it.

Anyhow, on to tonight's show. Ashleigh was conspicuously absent from the dancer intro portion of the show, but that mystery was cleared up right away. Ashleigh dislocated her shoulder during rehearsals and while she said she felt well enough to dance, TPTB wouldn't clear her to perform in the show. This is critical because this is the last show before next week's finale. My brain automatically went into a spiral of confusion - Finale? Last season they whittled down the contestants to the Final 4 before the finale. We (Kim & I) think it's because they didn't want to have the finale week the same week as Christmas, but who knows really. Well, Nigel Lithgow & Co. do I suppose.

Onward to the performances. A reminder that each couple is a NEW pairing tonight, and will be dancing two separate routines. As well each dancer with be performing a solo. I'm going to try to pay attention to the solos tonight, because I think that they may be the deciding factor with some voters.

Kathryn & Ryan
'Last Dance (Samantha Ronson Remix)' - Donna Summer
Doriana Sanchez/Disco

In the first routine of the night my favourite female was paired with the Prince of Ballroom for a fast paced Disco routine. Is there such thing as a slow or moderately paced disco routine? These two dancers seemed to do well together, though Kathryn looked tiny next to Ryan's great height. Watching this, I could certainly feel the energy they were trying to get across, but something just didn't feel right. Maybe Nigel was right and Ryan wasn't loose enough or something. As usual, Ryan's partnering was great but I'm losing my enthusiasm for him. Certainly he has proven that he can be every girl's dream partner. They don't need to worry that he'll ever drop them in a lift for instance. But - and this may be a big BUT, whenever his partnering skills aren't necessarily needed (such as in a hip hop routine or his solos) Ryan falters. He's a good dancer, but not as versatile as the others. Kathryn is, as usual, beautiful - with graceful lines and seemingly effortless movement. A good routine, but it left me feeling slightly 'meh'. I also have to disagree with Adam Shankman and say that Ryan's sequined pants were awful - it looked like he had been attacked by a drunken bejeweller.

Mollee & Jakob
'Ordinary Day' - Vanessa Carlton
Jason Gilkison/Viennese Waltz

I'm not exactly sure what makes a Viennese Waltz - Viennese. Though I get the impression that this means it is less structured than a traditional waltz. While Jason says that the story of this routine is that Jakob is Mollee's friend who is trying to help her get back her mojo - watching the routine I don't know that I got that. Maybe I missed something? That said, this was a very pretty routine. The tricks throughout the number worked and Mollee & Jakob made this seem effortless. The 'butterfly' flips (I think that's what they are called) in particular were awesome. Mollee continues to redeem herself, but I'm growing weary of the judges talking about her 'growth' as a performer. Jakob just can't take a wrong step, and is an incredible dancer but for some reason I just can't work up a lot of feeling for him. He kind of leaves me with the blahs - not sure why. I was kind of expecting a train wreck but I was pleasantly surprised. A pretty routine - but for me not the most memorable.

Solo: Ashleigh Song: None because the poor girl can't dance tonight. They bring her out anyway to remind us how sad it is that she can't perform. Then we get her # to call? I was surprised they didn't show any past dance footage for Ashleigh, but it was perhaps determined to be unfair?

Ellenore & Legacy
'Machine Gun' - Portishead
Travis Wall/Contemporary

It was explained to us that the story here is about two assassins - who are married - who have been hired to kill each other. Uhhh Mr. & Mrs. Smith anyone? I'm not sure if they left the title of that obvious inspiration out on purpose because of some sort of copyright/licensing rules or if Travis/Ellenore/Legacy just didn't get the connection. Anyhooo - I LOVED this, from the choreography to the music, from the dancers to their dancing.. After a worried moment spent wondering if this was going to be another 'desk' routine this moved into a perfect combination of Ellenore's contemporary skill and Legacy's B-boy athleticism. Rough & tumble, exciting and effortless. I could watch this again and again (and I probably will). I totally agreed with Nigel's assertion that the danger in this routine made it an incredible experience to watch. And really - I'm not just saying this because Legacy is my favourite contestant - honest. Travis Wall certainly is a choreographer to be watched in the future.

Solo: Jakob Song: 'When You Say My Name' - Mario Spinetti
And this is just another contemporary solo to me. Spins & flips and expressive grabbing at nothing.

Russell & Rachel (substituting for Ashleigh)
'Too Much Booty 2 (Bobby J Remix)' - Soundmaster T & Jah-Rista feat Korveil
Shane Sparks/Hip Hop

Okay I hope I'm not going to offend Shane Sparks' assistant Rachel here but I think Russell didn't suffer for having her as a substitute for Ashleigh. I know we're not supposed to be judging Rachel, but if we were I don't think she'd come off very well. She seemed really sloppy to me. Russell rocked this start to finish. He hit each movement hard and with precision. It was great to be able to focus on a single dancer throughout this routine - and really pay attention to how well this was done by that one dancer. Is anyone getting the feeling that Russell is bad luck though? First Noelle and now Ashleigh?

Solo: Mollee Song: 'Heartburn' - Alicia Keys
And again - more flips, more tricks, more writhing about the stage. Meh. A big fat MEH.

Kathryn & Ryan
'Put Your Hands on Me' - Joss Stone
Jason Gilkison/ChaCha

Wow - just Wow. While I'm sure this certainly isn't a traditional ChaCha - it was fabulous. Here, Ryan is in his element, able to partner with Kathryn to showcase her as the star. Again - I don't think being a great partner is going to be enough to get him through. Kathryn certainly played her part well. The characters were certainly smoldering on the stage. Not surprisingly (to me) Kathryn was able to learn this new style well and come off smelling like a rose. The final flip was incredible! This was Hot - one of my favourite routines tonight. Not sure why Mary seemed to get 'veclempt' during her schpiel but maybe she just loves the ChaCha just that much. Oh! I almost forgot - Mary offered up two tickets on the Hot Tamale Train to Ryan & Kathryn - and in a season where tickets have been few and far between that's high praise.

Solo: Legacy Song: 'Fancy Footwork' - Chromeo
Aaannnd it's a B-boy solo. Surprising, No? Not sure what was up with the cordless phone - other than Legacy seemed to indicate that it was 'America' calling - perhaps to vote for him?

Solo: Ellenore Song: 'I Got the Feelin'' - James Brown
Hate me if you like - but I do not like James Brown. While I make it no secret that I'm not fond of the solos - this was really boring. These dancers are really not putting a lot of effort in tonight. Sheesh.

Solo: Russell Song: 'Holiday Buckness' - The J Squad
Russell pulls the Bizarre card this week and makes me exclaim out loud "WTF?" Dressed as Santa, krumping, losing a shoe and pulling an accessorized teddy bear from a bag - this was too much to take in. He gets points for being the most memorable solo of the night and that's about it.

Mollee & Jakob
'Easy Street (Samantha Ronson Remix)' - Annie (original TV soundtrack)
Joey Dowling/Broadway

You know - I would think that when an element of choreography simply isn't working, even after it's been altered slightly - the choreographer would just drop that element out - wouldn't you? That bench slide right at the very beginning simply didn't work, and in fact made the routine seem clunky to start. They moved on quickly though and this ended up being a really nice broadway routine - in your typical nice broadway routine way. Jakob shows off some more of his incredible jumping & flipping and Mollee hams it up . I liked the costume 'change' in the middle of the routine - though truly it was just a layer removal. Jakob & Mollee seemed really into this and embodied their characters with enthusiasm. Fun to watch. I think Mollee & Jakob did well together tonight and have a good chance to make it into the Top 6.

Solo: Kathryn Song: 'Shadowfeet' - Brooke Fraser
Another pretty contemporary solo from Kathryn. *sigh*

Ellenore & Legacy
'People Are Strange (District 78 Remix)' - The Doors
Napoleon & Tabitha Dumo/Hip Hop

I'm just going to leap right into this - what a freaking White Hot Mess. What the hell where Napoleon & Tabitha thinking? Just because the routine was supposed to be quirky and yes, strange - doesn't mean that the choreography can be a disaster. I agreed with Mary when she said that the beginning of the routine was exciting, but the rest of the routine really fell short. It was messy, there was no synchronization and indeed, very little dancing. Nigel said that the concept got in the way here, and I wholeheartedly agree.

Solo: Ryan Song: 'Din Da Da' - Kevin Aviance
This was the most memorable solo of the night for me. Not for the dancing - which was a really standard ballroom solo - but for the heartfelt plea from Ryan for America not to forget to vote for Ashleigh. I've snarked a bit on how sickeningly sweet the 'marrieds' are - but this was very touching. I really felt how much Ryan wants this, not for himself but for Ashleigh. And he gets a Standing O from the judges for his efforts.

Russell & Alycia (substituting for Ashleigh)
'Spirit Of Rangeela' - Rangeela (original soundtrack)
Nakul Dev Mahajan/Bollywood

I was expecting a very large and horrific trainwreck with this routine. Surely this should have been the genre where Russell faltered. So many intricate movements, so many ways to go wrong. I have never been so happy to be wrong. Russell proved, once again that he really loves to dance. As Adam said, the joy that radiated from every pore in Russell's performance made this a huge success. Congratulations Russell!

Alrighty people - I'll be back later on tonight (possibly tomorrow morning) with the recap of tonight's results show. Remember this elimination is the last before the finale next week. If I was forced to make any predictions about who would go home I would say that I can only guess. Based on my feelings alone - I'm going to say Ryan & Legacy (sob!) will be the bottom two guys and Mollee & Ashleigh (because she didn't dance! how can one vote for a dancer who didn't dance above any of the other dancers) for the girls. It would be sad if our marrieds were eliminated together tonight - but I don't think that will happen. To be honest, based on my pretend psychic talents to interpret fan feeling - I think Ryan & Mollee will be eliminated tonight.

We'll see you later - until then... Keep Dancin'!

SYTYCD - Top 10 Performance & Results

Hi! Carly here, recapping last night's SYTYCD Top 10 performance show - I'll also be covering the results show later tonight.

To get things started lets go over some of the changes Tuesday's show brought: This show is the first of the season where America votes who goes home. The guy & girl with the least number of America's votes will be leaving us tonight - and from the cheering at the judges table, I'd say they're relieved. Also, the couples we've grown to love have been separated and each dancer will be dancing with a new partner this evening. I was very excited to see what kind of fun these new partnerships would result in. Remember though, America is voting for their favourite individual dancer - not couple.
Each couple was given two routines to perform and each dancer had a solo as well. Now we must remember that I'm not a huge fan of the solo dance aspect of the show, so the recapping there will be slim - BUT I did enjoy several of the solos tonight and I'll comment on those.

On to the show - and boy was I pleasantly surprised when I noticed that there was no 'filler' before each routine (more on that later).

Noelle & Ryan
'Give It To Me Right' - Melanie Fiona
Napoleon & Tabitha Dumo/Hip Hop

I thought that this was well done, though something about Ryan's performance was a bit conservative - and I'm not talking about the costuming. It felt like he got all the steps and movement - but he wasn't loose enough and I got the impression he was holding back. Noelle looked and performed better in this. She looked great and threw herself into routine with abandon. As a side note to this routine - while I was watching this I thought to myself 'Gosh, this seems a little familiar. Was there a desk used in another routine that is making this seem already done?' And sure enough, I was right. Kim was quick to point out that this routine was a rip off of the routine Mandy Moore choreographed for Sabre & Neil, set to the song 'Sweet Dreams' by the Eurythmics (please don't ask me what season - it was before my time). The routine was featured in the "Best Dances" episode, and that's where I saw it. I'm not going to say that Napoleon & Tabitha 'borrowed' from Mandy Moore - but the implication is there.

Ashleigh & Legacy
'Poison' - The Prodigy
Garry Stewart/Contemporary

What a refreshing change of contemporary pace! I REALLY liked this. Contemporary pieces can sometimes (well a lot of the time) feel like servings of flowy, happy (or maudlin), touchy feely plates of beautiful goodness. Not that I'm complaining - contemporary pieces are almost always my favourites. BUT this, more aggressive, offering was certainly fabulous. I loved the push/pull between the dancer's throughout the whole routine. The movements where these two used each other's bodies to fly into a spin or push into the next move were great. There was definitely a fabulous Capoeira feeling to this choreography. The 'fighting' elements were awesome and the finishing headstand was incredible. These two dancers couldn't be more different but they really pulled this off. And I'll say it again ~ I LOVE me some Legacy! That said up front (because I wanted to put my bias out there), has anyone else noticed that while Legacy continues to show a tonne of talent to pick up new styles easily - when he's provided with a contemporary routine he truly shines. Great job!

First solo of the night is Mollee - and I'll just repeat what I said last night, out loud, to my TV 'Crap! Filler!' I'm not going to recap any of that - it's all just blahdeblahblah to me.

Solo: Mollee Song: 'Rock the Beat' - LMFAO
There was nothing really special or mind boggling in this solo. In fact it felt like a lot of jumping and running around the stage. Meh.

Solo: Russell Song: 'Outros' - Black Milk
I really like Russell, so I wish there was something here that I could praise (or even snark on) - but there wasn't really. We know this guy is an amazing krumper - and this was just a re-assertion of that.

Kathryn & Nathan
'Choreography' - Danny Kaye
Spencer Liff/Broadway

This was cute. That's it - cute. While this definitely made Nathan seem more mature, I couldn't get past the goofball look on his face. I think that I just don't like Nathan and that's tinting my view a bit. Kathryn continues to be my favourite girl in this competition and she outshone Nathan tonight (for me) by a mile. Overall this was a nice routine - but certainly not overly memorable.

Ellenore/Jakob
'Four Brothers' - Manhattan Transfer
Tony Meredith & Melanie LaPatin - Quickstep (or DDD - Dreaded Dance of Doom)

I'll repeat myself - I know nothing about quickstep. However, even I could tell that this was very well done. The judges agreed. I like Ellenore & Jakob together. They fit well. They pulled the DDD and came out smelling like roses. Very well done!

Solo: Ryan Song: 'Rock You Like a Hurricane' - Scorpions
Okay WTH? This was just weird...and that's all I have to say.

Solo: Kathryn Song: 'Beautiful' - Bethany Dillon
While Kathryn certainly was 'Beautiful' here and it was a lovely solo, there was really nothing spectacular to report.

Mollee & Russell
'It Must Have Been Love' - Roxette
Mandy Moore/Lyrical Jazz

First off I have to say that when I was a young teenager (oh so many years ago), Roxette was my absolutely favourite group. So when I heard the first few notes of music here, I shouted 'Woot!'. My husband came in from the next room and asked me what the hell I was doing. Unfortunately - while the song used here was one of my favourites (and maybe because of that) I noticed all the glaringly bad edits to cut the song down to the required 90 seconds (?it's still 90 secs right?). Anyway - Mollee & Russell were wonderful together. Mollee came across as more adult being partnered with Russell. The lifts were well executed and there were some very creative movements included in the choreography. I loved the backward jump, linking elbow lift/drop move (really technical sounding right? LOL). A great partnership - too bad this is the only week they'll be together.

Solo: Nathan Song: 'Golden Train' - Justin Nozuka
Alright I'm going to mention the profile clip here: Are you kidding me Nathan? Crying? This wouldn't happen to be the result of Adam Shankman's comments about how you need to be a bit more careful about how you come across in your profile clips would it? Perhaps you think if you can show a little emotion you'll generate more fan feeling? Gah - I can't even comment on his solo because I was so disgusted about the profile clip I didn't watch it.

Back to the top of the list for the next round of couples routines.

Noelle & Ryan
'Jeau d'eau' - O (Cirque du Soleil Soundtrack)
JT & Tomas/Smooth Waltz

This was very pretty. Excellent lifts and wonderfully smooth & lightweight movement. I'm not really surprised because Ballroom is Ryan's forte. Noelle is lovely and was good with this, but I couldn't help feeling like she was just following Ryan's much more talented lead. In this, Ryan dominated no doubt about it.

Solo: Ellenore Song: 'Beatbox Harmonica' - Yuri Lane
What a great solo! Quirky and fun, this showcased Ellenore's unique personality perfectly.

Ashleigh & Legacy
'Slow Down' - Bobby Valentino
Dave Scott/Hip Hop

I think this was supposed to be vampire-esque. Legacy was costumed to look like an old-school vampire {and by this I mean he wasn't dressed as Edward Cullen ;)} He did really well with the cape as a prop, and it didn't seem cumbersome at all. Unfortunately - this is the end of my good commentary about this routine. I think I understand that while Legacy was the vampire, Ashleigh was supposed to be the girl he wanted to...uhh...entrall? I didn't get her costume because other than the colours it didn't seem to fit in with the 'story'. I didn't really get the whole story anyway - I don't think. This was the one point in the evening where I wished there had been a rehearsal clip before the routine. I'm going to stop here and just quote some of the judges comments, because they really summed up how I felt about the entire routine. Nigel said he "didn't feel it" and that there was "not enough dancing" throughout this routine. He did seem to place the shortcomings firmly on Dave Scott's shoulders - for which I am glad. Adam also summed things up nicely when he said he felt this routine was "not challenging enough" at this point in the competition. This shortfall is certainly choreographer error in my opinion and I just hope it doesn't reflect badly on Legacy & Ashleigh.

Kathryn & Nathan
'Walk on By' - Aretha Franklin
Tony Meredith & Melanie LaPatin/Rumba
This was nice - but I certainly didn't feel any chemistry between Kathryn & Nathan here. Nathan does seem more mature with Kathryn as a partner, but everything he does just comes off feeling disingenuous. Both dancers danced well, but individually. There was no real partnership feeling to me. Hopefully Kathryn will be luckier in her choice of partner next week and to be honest, I hope Nathan isn't here next week.

Solo: Legacy Song: 'No Air' - Jordin Sparks & Chris Brown
This was awesome. It's no secret I love Legacy, but it's really the his true joy of dancing that comes through every time he steps on stage that I adore. I smiled the whole way through this solo. I smiled even more when I heard that Kathryn was offstage "screaming her head off" during the whole solo. Okay I admit it ...I want these two to Lurve each other...and there are rumours that they are. (small squee)

Ellenore & Jakob
'Tore My Heart' - OONA & Dave Tweedie
Sonya Tayeh/Contemporary

This routine was interesting. I'll admit that I had to watch it twice before I decided that I really liked it. The pairing of these two dancers is really fabulous, and their performance was the best of the night. I still can't decide how to describe this - Matador-esque, dark, gothic, Victorian - it had elements of all of these. Ellenore's quirky meshed with Sonya's quirky and they dragged Jakob along for the ride and he loved it. Incredible dancing - incredible routine. Loved it. They deserved the standing 'O' they got from the judges.

(I've loved a lot tonight - I'm sorry - I'll try to bring more snark next time)

Solo: Ashleigh Song: 'Batacada Por Favor' - Bob Azzam
Yeah this was a ballroom solo - and while Ashleigh looked great in her dress (though it kind of reminded me of a 1970's lampshade) there wasn't anything to make it stand out.

Mollee & Russell
'Land of 1000 Dances' - Jimmy Barnes
Anya & Pasha/Jive

The joy Russell brings to every routine makes every routine he dances a joy to watch. Mollee was really cute here too and did a good job keeping up with Russell. Mollee certainly mastered the shimmy and shake. This routine was great and a lot of fun to watch.

Solo: Jakob Song: 'Always Midnight (Acoustic)' - Pat Monahan
In typical Jakob fashion this was very nicely danced, but again was just another solo to me. Not much else to report other than the shorts he was wearing were god-awful.

Okay - that's it for the performance show. I'm not going to predict who will go home tonight because it's just too hard to tell at this point. I have my picks as to who I WANT to go home, but we'll see how things turn out.

And now - because it's taken me all day to get this portion written I'm going to pull a Kim and add the recap of the results show to the bottom here.

Results Show
This is going to be short & sweet people. You don't need a lot of filler from me. :) I'm recapping on the fly as well - so you'll see my instantaneous reactions.

Cat Deeley looks incredible. Holy crow her wardrobe budget must be amazing!

Group Routine - Choreographed by Tyce Diorio
'It's Still Rock & Roll To Me' - Billy Joel

Fun! This routine gave a lot of the dancers a chance to individually shine while still allowing them to play off of each other throughout. AND lest we forget - it also gave Ryan & Ashleigh a chance to not only dance together, but to make out in front of millions of viewers. *rolling eyes*

Cat moves right on into the recap of last night montage...and because I just recapped the entire show myself - I skip through it.

Up first the bottom two girls are revealed. We are reminded that the bottom voted dancers will dance solos again tonight but the solos cannot save them. They are simply a chance to perform one last time.

Oh - they're all still costumed from the group number. Interesting.

Ellenore - Safe
Mollee - Safe
Noelle - Not Safe - Bottom 2
Ashleigh - Safe
Kathryn - Not Safe - WHAT??? No!
**added note: Kathryn looks almost unrecognizable in her costuming & makeup - awesome but unrecognizable.

Now we've got the guys:
Ryan - Not Safe - Bottom 2 - Uh Oh could our marrieds be separated tonight?
Russell - Safe
Jakob - Safe
Nathan - Not Safe - YES! oops sorry to all those Nathan fans out there.
Legacy - Safe (thank you thank you thank you)

Up next a performance from the Legion of Extraordinary Dancers - dancing to 'Yellow' by the Vitamin String Quartet, a great cover of the Coldplay song. This is a melding of classical dance with hip hop, b-boy and contemporary movement. Wow. This was incredible. And I promise this is the last time I'll gush my love tonight - but I can really see Legacy being a part of this troupe in his future.

Solo - Solo - Solo - Solo

Snoop Dogg - Ugh. Moving On.

Okay taking a deep breath before the results.

Girls first: Noelle is going home - Oh thank the Goddess! Okay look - Noelle is lovely, but she's not as good as Kathryn. Period.

And the Guys: **crossing fingers - knocking on wood** Nathan is going home. *fist pump in the air* Uhhh yeah, just didn't like this guy.
Loving Ashleigh & Ryan embracing off stage...a close call for them. Sickening - but sweet.

That's all folks. Thanks for joining me tonight for this combined recap. I'll be back next week as my lovely sister is going to New Orleans for a few days to celebrate her birthday (or hide from it).

Have a good weekend and I'll see you all next week!

Carly

SYTYCD - Top 12 Performance & Results

I've done it again. Time got away from me, so you again get a blended recap. Too much going on these days. Also, I wrote part of this this morning and am doing the rest now, so if it seems a little off, that's why.

It was Top 12 week and each couple did two dances each, which was good because I was having serious anxiety about the amount of filler necessary to fill a two hour show if they were each only doing one.

This was overall a pretty strong night for our gaggle of dancers. There were some definite weak spots, but I don't think anyone came out as a definite 'going home' contender. I think when you looked at ALL the performances there was a clear choice - if only because compared to everyone else they were the last couple standing. Not mentioning names at this point. Everyone had better bring some pretty great solos out for the results show tonight. On to last night's dancing!

Ellenore & Ryan
Lindy Hop by Carla Heiney
'I've Got to be a Rug Cutter' by The Boilermaker Jazz Band

Was this the one Nigel said looked 'twee'? I can't remember and don't have my PVR in front of me. Regardless, this one was 'twee' to me. Well danced and all that, but maybe I just don't get the style. These two are ultimately really talented regardless, I don't think they've got anything to worry about.

Kathryn & Legacy
Jazz by Sonya Tayeh
'So Deep' by Hot Chip

You all know I love me some Sonya, and this dance was no exception. I love the fact that she really tailors the dances to her dancers strengths, which really worked well for Legacy in this piece. The two of them mastered the 'photograph moments' where all movement just stops for a second. I love it when those are done well, no shaking, no shifting. It's like a sculpture with momentum. Additionally, Sonya tends to pick music that some might have problems finding the 'musicality' with when dancing. Definitely not a problem with this pair. Really well done. Love me some Legacy, he's become my FAVE dancer at this point.

Karen & Victor
Tango by Tony Meredith & Melanie Lapatin
'Montserrat' by Orquesta del Plata

Going into this, I was worried about Victor. He's a soft, flowy, Contemporary dancer. Could he pull off the strength of stature needed here? Definitely. Both Victor and Karen were fully invested in their characters and it showed. Aside from the point Nigel pointed out where Victor's ass was sticking out, the form was solid and held the whole way through. Very dramatic and well done. Thumbs up to the costume department here too. I think Karen had more fabric on her body in this one dance than she's had in all her other dances put together.

Mollee & Nathan
Hip Hop by Jamal Sims
'Ring-a-Ling' by Black Eyed Peas

Maybe this was the one Nigel called 'twee'. Okay - what the heck is 'twee'? It definitely qualified. But not necessarily in a bad way. Considering the concept, I'm not sure this could've been anything other than cute, especially with these two dancing it. It could've been hit harder by both, but overall, it was pretty good. Mollee and Nathan aren't going anywhere and, like the judges, I'm interested to see how they do paired up with other dancers.

Noelle & Russell
Samba by Tony & Melanie
'Hips Don't Lie' by Shakira

This is gonna be one of those dances that hurts this pair and may spell an ouster for at least one of them. Russell was in it, but I don't think Noelle was completely comfortable here. I agree - she was a little stiff. We've had the pleasure of seeing some really good Samba's on this show before (both the US and Canadian versions) and this wasn't one of them. Something just felt off the whole way through. Adam was right - it just wasn't 'oogie' enough.

Ashleigh & Jacob
Lyrical Jazz by Sonya Tayeh
'Time Flies' by Lykke Li

Admission up front: knowing Sonya's affinity for vampire/Twilight stuff, I had to double check the New Moon soundtrack to see if this was the Lykke Li song used on it. It wasn't. Second admission up front: writing this the day after the show, I'm having a difficult time remembering this piece. I remember thinking it was great at the time, agreeing with Nigel that it was a great piece by Sonya, but I'm drawing a complete blank now. Wait...this was the one where Jacob had to wear the horrid purple pants right? Right. That's all I can remember. So to sum up, it was good, but...it appears...not very memorable. Certainly not as memorable as the earlier Sonya piece, but still good. Ashleigh is proving herself (again) to be very versatile.

Ellenore & Ryan
Broadway by Spencer Liff
'Razzle Dazzle' from Chicago (Original Broadway Cast)

Being the non-Broadway fan I am, I was actually pretty surprised to find myself liking this one. Mostly because it seemed like Ryan was totally channeling Ed Grimley in his movement - made me chuckle the whole way through. Seriously though, this was fun. Two thumbs up for Ellenore & Ryan. Did anyone else pick up a 'goth-y' vibe from this? I liked this very much, and was for once drawn to Ryan's dancing more than Ellenore's. They're both awesome.

Kathryn & Legacy
Viennese Waltz by Jean-Marc Genereux & France
'Your Guardian Angel' by Red Jumpsuit Apparatus

Not to go with a theme or anything, but I do love me some Viennese Waltz. Jean-Marc (Com'ON!) and I have bonded over the Viennese Waltz before on the first season of the Canadian show. I agree with the judges that this had some technical issues throughout, but I just thought on a performance level it was lovely. Legacy is just so earnest in everything he does (as evidenced by his teary-ness after this dance) and I love that he wears his dance heart right out there on his sleeve. Going to shout my Legacy love again! Kathryn was definitely the stronger dancer of the two with this, but the pair of them really brought it together.

Karen & Victor
Hip Hop by Laurieann Gibson
'Moving Mountains' by Usher

This one was just a mess for me, flat out. The judges were right in that the music didn't fit the dance at all (which isn't the dancers' fault), the steps seemed messy (which is the dancers' fault), and you all know that Laurieann's choreography just doesn't do it for me. They couldn't move a mole hill with this, much less a mountain. Weakest showing of the night for me. I'm going to come right out and say it - this was badly choreographed but the dancer's didn't even try to bring it. Unfortunate.

Mollee & Nathan
Cancan by Tyce Diorio
'Cancan Suite' by Offenbach/Ponchielli

Okay, this dance really couldn't have been done by any other couple. I was all prepared to hate it, but it was actually pretty enjoyable. Like I said, perfectly tailored for these two with the spins for Nathan and all the cutesy stuff for Mollee. Much better than that Russian Folk horseshit (Bwah!) last year.

Noelle & Russell
Contemporary by Tyce Diorio
'A Case of You' by Diana Krall

It's so much better when Tyce does Contemporary as opposed to Broadway. He has real talent with these pieces. Add to that, the great song choice (original is by Joni Mitchell) and the strength of these dancers together and all in all this was a great performance. Easily made you forget the earlier samba.

Ashleigh & Jacob
Cha Cha by Jean Marc & France
'Cha Cha Heels' by Rosabel feat. Jeanie Tracy

This dance was a great way to end the show and this was pretty much a lock for Ashleigh & Jacob. Right in line with Ashleigh's own style and a great use of Jacob's abilities. Ashleigh rubs me the wrong way a bit, but even I've gotta admit this was hot. She's got great legs - and I loved to watch her enjoy her own style so completely. These two are Top 10 bound and beyond.

RESULTS

Okay, again, I just watched the group number and the results, so Carly's going to have to fill in some of the blanks a bit.

I've decided I much prefer Napoleon & Tabitha's group numbers to their pairs routines. Tonight's group number was awesome. The dance, the props, the costuming, the make-up; all top notch. For a few seconds at the beginning I thought "did they get Wade Robson to choreograph another routine?". Loved the Alice in Wonderland feel. I'll watch this one again (hooray for YouTube!)

Our bottom three couples were Mollee & Nathan (a little surprising), Ellenore & Ryan (slightly more surprising) and Karen & Victor (not really that surprising - not at ALL surprising from this corner).

After much monologuing from Nigel (which I'll rant about in a sec), our evictees tonight are Karen & Victor. Not really surprising (Called it Last Night), but for one thing in regards to the guys, which I intend to rant about...now.

Nigel, in his discussions with the guys, gave Victor a whole heap of praise for his solo and even more for the amount of growth he's experienced this season thus far. Then moving on Nathan, he says Nathan hasn't really shown any growth at all and doesn't really even mention his solo. Yet, it's Victor who's going home. YET - Nigel did say that if it was up to him Nathan would be going home. This wasn't a unanimous decision. The judges need to come to a decision on exactly what kind of show this is. If it is in fact, the search for America's favourite dancer, then I guess they made the right choice tonight seeing as Nathan's probably got a larger fan base. If that's the case though, they need to stop spewing about how 'this is a dance competition' and how the less trained dancers need to work on the technical, because that's clearly not the case.

Que sera, sera. See ya Karen & Victor. Sadly, your paycheques won't extend into the tour.

That's it for this week. You might be seeing more of Carly's posts over the next couple of weeks as next week is vacation prep for me and the following I'll be letting the bon temps rouler in New Orleans. A little cajun flavouring for my birthday this year! Should I mention which birthday it is? Not unless I don't want a Christmas present...LOL

Cheers! Salut!

SYTYCD - Top 14 Performance and Results

Alright kids. I meant to do this earlier, but I came down with a major case of the fuckits. The fuckits generally pop up after a busy day at work, usually immediately post-afternoon-nap. The worst symptom of the fuckits is a general 'don't give a shit-ness' about pretty much anything, so I figured it best to postpone the recap until the symptoms had diminished a bit.

Subsequently, I'm throwing both the performance show and results (the few bits I watched of it) into one post. So here we go.

Best thing about no more tap dancers on SYTYCD? No more mic'ing the stage for the tapping! God that was irritating. It fucked up the sound and threw everything off. Intros rolled along much better. Also, Mary clearly went directly from the taping over to the New Moon premiere in LA that night 'cause she was photographed on the red carpet wearing that exact outfit. How embarrassing! I liked her outfit - worth wearing to two events I think.

On to the dancing!

Ashley & Jacob
Hip Hop by Tabitha & Napoleon
'Whatcha Say' by Jason Derulo

This started off a little messy for me, but they seemed to pull it together really quickly and did a really good job with it. They were sharp and hitting it hard and while these two pretty much scream 'WE'RE NOT HIP HOP DANCERS' they really pulled it off. I'm with the judges in that these two are a lock for the Top 10.

Karen & Kevin
Broadway by Spencer Liff
'If My Friends Could See Me Now' from Sweet Charity, performed by the 2005 Broadway revival cast.

One word for this...BOOOOOOOOORRRRRRIIIIIIINNNNNNGGGG. OMG Yes. And did you see Kevin's face? He kept 'remembering' to smile. There wasn't really anything to this routine and I just got a big ole' Debbie Downer 'wah wah' out of it. Next.

Noelle & Russell
Fox Trot by Eddie Simon
'Baby, You've Got What it Takes' by Michael Buble with Sharon Jones and The Dap Kings

This was pretty good. Better for Russell than the first time around, but I think Noelle stood out more. She really seemed to work the lifts and the extensions. Well done all around I'd say, but I'm not sure that these two are destined for Top 10.

Channing & Victor
Jazz by Tyce Diorio
'Blackbird' by Bobby McFerrin

Right off the bat, I'm totally with the judges that the song choice was distracting. Agreed. The concept for the piece was very cool and the dance itself was great but the song took something away from it. There are so many great versions of that song that could've been made to work, it's disappointing that the one chosen took away from the dance. I think Channing and Victor did a good job with this, but it's hard to be objective about the dancing when the music kind of set me off.

Kathryn & Legacy
Paso Doble by Tony Meredith
'Pursuit' from the Cirque du Soleil show 'Ka'

Legacy's on the fast track I'd say. He's pretty clearly in this thing to win it. Whether or not he can - considering he's up against trained dancers - tough to say, but he's doing everything he can to make it happen. He definitely showed it on this piece. Kathryn was pretty good as well, aside from the near miss with her feet at the end, (I internally said 'grab it grab it come on!) but I get the feeling she's riding Legacy's popularity a bit.

Ryan & Ellenore
Contemporary by Travis Wall
'Your Ex-Lover's Dead' by Stars

Oh, Travis Wall. How I do adore you. *le sigh* I want you to be my friend. You make such wonderful art. I just wish you had gotten different dancers for this one. Sorry guys. I've got a permanent case of the fuckits where these two are concerned. I realize Ryan is all popular and shit and Ellenore is great but I Just. Don't. Care. I'm going to forfeit to the judges on this one because I can't be objective about the dancers here. I like the dancers but think these two REALLY benefitted from great choreography tonight.

Mollee & Nathan
Pop-Jazz by Laurieann Gibson
'Bad Romance' by Lady Gaga

There was so much working against these two in this dance for me specifically. First, I loathe the song. I think they need to put a permanent ban on Lady Gaga songs on this show, it's so overdone. Secondly, I don't really care for Laurieann's choreography. She does too much 'side-by-side', 'matchy-matchy' dancing and not enough stuff that relies on chemistry and partnering. Did you also notice how far apart Mollee & Nathan were from each other throughout the whole routine? And what the hell were those 'wheels on the bus' moves about? I just don't get it. That being said, Mollee and Nathan did a good job with what they were given here. They were 'matchy-matchy' where they needed to be and hit hard the whole way through. Good job on a bad piece. I was surprised that the judges liked this so much. I was kind of waiting for this routine to be over from about 15 seconds in.

RESULTS!

Okay, straight up, I only watched the group performance (killer!) (Woot! Wade Robson) and fast forwarded to the results at the end. Sometime over the weekend I'll come in and post the music for the solos and stuff so you have them for reference.

The group routine, choreographed by Wade and Amanda Robson was truly awesome. It just goes to show that you don't need the choreographer to explain the theme/story before the dance in order to get it. Truly a great piece. Loved the music choice for this as well. 'Aha!' by Imogen Heap.

Our bottom three couples tonight were Mollee & Nathan, Karen & Kevin and Channing & Victor. Mollee & Nathan were a little surprising, but according to the judges, they really pulled it out with their solos, so they were the first ones in their respective groups sent to safety. I agreed with Nigel's admiration of Mollee's aerial cartwheel drop to the knee move - Wow!

Ultimately going home are Channing and Kevin. Eh. Can't say as I'm all broken up about it. Channing, for all her talent, never really stood out and Kevin's up against a lot of really talented dancers.

So, Goodbye Picadilly, Farewell Leicester Square to Channing and Kevin and hopefully I'll be kissing off the fuckits before next week's show!

Cheers!

SYTYCD - Top 16 Results!

Okay kids, I left my notes at home this morning, so I'm doing this from memory today. I'll come back in and post song info once I get a hold of my notes.

The first results show group dance of the season was an African inspired Hip Hop number choreographed by Dave Scott ('Warrior Pt. 2' by Lloyd Banks). Very, very cool. The dancers were all really in it and it came off really well. For some reason I don't normally go for Dave Scott's stuff, but this was great.

Moving right along, after much (not really) suspense and teasing from Cat, we learn our bottom three this week are Ellenore and Ryan for their lacklustre Hip Hop, Pauline and Peter for their boring Quick Step and Karen and Kevin for their ho-hum Hustle. Hehe...ho-hum Hustle.

I've got to give it to Nigel for giving Nathan a verbal slap upside the head for his stupid comment on performance night. After receiving a series of fairly unflattering critiques, coming back with an 'IT WAS HOT!' struck me as incredibly disrespectful. Especially when he clearly knew his performance was anything but hot. Let's not forget that you're there to learn, boy, so sit your ass down and listen. As inane as the judges can be at times, they do know what they're talking about a good deal of the time and you'd do well to remember that.

We get a performance from three dancers from the Alvin Ailey (sp?) Dance Group which was pretty cool. Yes, I did actually watch it.

Onto solos and...yeah...aside from getting the song names (I'll add those in later), I skipped through these. Probably not a bad decision either, considering the rant they all got from Nigel about not being nearly good enough.

Solo Songs

Ellenore - 'Eleanor' by Alexa Woodward
Ryan - 'Jump With My Baby' by Big Bad VooDoo Daddy
Pauline - 'Took the Night' by Chelley
Peter - No song
Karen - 'Celia Y Tito' by Celia Cruz & Tito Puente
Kevin - 'I Question Mark' by Wade Robson

Have I mentioned that an hour is entirely too long for a results show? I swear this seemed to go on forever and I skipped through a lot. Follow Canada' lead and go for a half-hour version! Moves right along, wham-bam-you're going home-see ya!

Finally, the judges made their decision and Pauline and Peter are going home. Eh, I'm not heartbroken. Although I will miss getting to hear Cat say 'Pauline' the way she does. It's kind of like it should be spelled 'Powline'. Very cute. Oh well, I'm sure I'll get over it.

That's it for this week. Dancers better snap to it for next week, the judges sound like they're getting moody!

SYTYCD - Top 16 Performance!

Happy SYTYCD night! Tonight's Top 16 episode is the first night viewer's from the US can vote on their favourite routines and to celebrate that, Cat Deeley is rockin' the Goth look. And sweet Goddess I'm dying for Cat's shoes! Our Top 16 sashay onto the stage to be introduced (as usual) and the first thing I'm struck by is the incredible awfulness of Ashleigh's pants. Who the hell approved that wardrobe choice? Red, ruffled, gaucho pants? Terrible. Seriously, she looked like she was attacked by a deranged Fraggle.

Next, some information is passed to us about the Dizzyfeet Foundation Gala and who will be performing that night. SYTYCD's Season 5 Top 10, dancer's from ABC's Dancing with the Stars, and crews from America's Best Dance Crew. Mary Murphy will also be dancing some sort of latin routine (Salsa? Samba?) with one of the contestants (Pasha?) from a past SYTYCD season. Sorry about the vagueness, my two year old was colouring on my notes and I had already deleted tonight's show from my PVR. Note to self - Next time - check notes before delete. Maybe Kim can fill in the holes in my details.

Tonight - I'm going to change things up a little bit and list the pair of dancers, the choreographer and music right at the top of each segment, then I'll move on into my thoughts about the performance. This way YOU will be able to find the song titles etc. a bit easier. Or skip them if you like. I'm not going to go over the "thing America should know about" for each dancer, that's just filler and honestly I FFwd through a lot of that stuff.

Karen & Kevin ~ Maria Torres/Hustle ~ Music: 'Come to Me' - France Joli

Right away I'm going to break my rule about not going into the "stuff" portion of each performance: Holy crap! Karen and her husband, who auditioned with her but was cut during Vegas week, decided to DIVORCE after Vegas week. Apparently things hadn't been good for a while, but jeez Karen, fishing for a sympathy vote? Okay, how did I miss this? I didn't hear that at all! Anyhow, the Hustle was one of the last dance styles to come out of the 70's Disco era, and why they didn't leave it there I don't know. I just don't get it. While the music was upbeat, I wasn't dancing along in my seat. Something was missing here. The dancers seemed to get it, and had the choreography down but there was no real feeling and energy was low. Lifts were all done well, though the 'death drop' spins looked and felt awkward, and Kevin had a noticeably nervous look on his face with each 'drop'. I'm still not feeling like there's anything special about Karen, though the judges disagree. Kevin again got shuffled off to the side as Karen received the lion's share of the praise. And there was praise, but nothing said by the judges indicated that this was a spectacular performance.

Ashleigh & Jakob ~ Mandy Moore/Jazz ~ Music: 'Relax' - Frankie Goes to Hollywood

The first routine tonight to use a prop of some sort (and there were a few this evening). Mandy Moore has worked a cane into the movement and wants it to be used not to hold up the dancers but as an extension of their bodies. Overall I liked this. Instead of feeling awkward, the cane really worked, and the costuming was great. Ashleigh is really starting to grow on me and looked fabulous tonight, especially her hair. I still don't like her personally, but she is a great dancer. There were a couple, super brief moments where the cane tangled them up a bit, but A&J moved on so smoothly that I almost didn't notice at all. I loved the fact that these two dancers were within inches of each other throughout the routine. There was a co-ordination of movement that really showed off their talent. This was fun to watch, the chemistry was good and I think I can safely say that these two, even if they won't be the TOP couple tonight (and they won't), will be safe for another week. Though now that I've written that down, they may be doomed.

Pauline & Peter ~ JT & Tomas - NEW!/Quickstep (or Dreaded Dance of Doom 'DDD') ~ Music: 'Hey Baby! (Shake Those Hula Hips)' - Big Kahuna & The Copa Cat Pack

Our dancers are dressed as an army guy and a hula girl, which suits the 40's war era style of music. Pauline really doesn't have the 'hula hip' action I think she needs here. She's awfully stiff and not smooth and flow-y as I think hula dancers should be. Peter's got some good energy and a big smile on his face, like he's loving every minute of this routine. The actual quickstep steps, though I'm certainly no expert, don't seem quite right and feel almost as though they are a half beat behind where they should be. I have to agree with the judges on this one and say where the technique could have used more polishing, the enjoyment the dancers obviously had performing this routine made up for it.

Kathryn & Legacy ~ Andy Blankenbuehler/Broadway ~ Music: 'I Wanna Be Like You' - Swingin' Fireballs

First of all, I love the choice of music, which is actually from the Disney movie 'The Jungle Book' and not 'Tarzan' as Adam mentioned. (I double checked - Adam did say 'Jungle Book') This was Fun Fun FUN to watch. I'm constantly amazed at how well Legacy is doing with whatever style gets thrown at him. The props in this routine worked too, from the beer can to the hat and arm chair. These accessories didn't weigh down the routine at all (which we'll see later on tonight). I will say that in some parts, I noticed a lack of chemistry between Kathryn & Legacy, which seems odd considering that chemistry has been so good in the past two weeks. The minute the judges mentioned that Kathryn's performance seemed a bit juvenile I said "Ohhh that's what was wrong". I went back and immediately re-watched the number (thanks to the miracle of PVR) and agreed with the judges assessment. Kathryn didn't seem like she was taking the character seriously enough. While the whole routine was supposed to be fun, if she had maybe vamped it up a little bit, instead of playing like a little girl, a missing piece would have been filled in.

Channing & Victor ~ Stacey Tookey/Contemporary ~ Music: 'Be Be Your Love (Live at KCRW)' - Rachael Yamagata

In a piece themed around a toxic relationship, Channing & Victor proved that in their own style they can really shine. Victor really didn't need to prove this, but Channing certainly did. I FINALLY like something Channing performed, and her chemistry with Victor seems to click. Much better than it did with Phillip anyway. There were some really beautiful examples of contemporary movement. I have to wonder though, if that can be put down more to the genius of Stacey Tookey's choreography (Yay for Canadian choreographers!), than to the talent of the dancers. Because while this was really lovely and enjoyable to watch, it wasn't all that memorable. Channing still gives off more of a clunky athlete vibe, rather than a graceful dancer. A good routine, but just that...Good. Again - I agree with the judges assessment when they said that Channing & Victor, in their own style were expected to be good and so they should have given us something Incredible.

Ellenore & Ryan ~ Lil C/Hip Hop ~ Music: 'Lost Boiz Anthem' - The J Squad

This had such potential, but from the minute I saw Lil C trying to teach swagger to our favourite ballroom guy, I dreaded the result. Dressed as bank robbers (though in white? huh?) and tossing around money bags, this had the opportunity to be really awesome. Here is where the use of props becomes laboured and a hindrance (much like the tennis rackets last week). The money bags led to some really clutzy moments and it immediately felt as though Ellenore & Ryan were SO concerned about catching the bags they forgot about character and the mood of the piece. Luckily the bags were discarded just a few seconds into the piece. I thought that Ryan & Ellenore worked really hard at pulling this off. I enjoyed the effort, but a few things just seemed off. Ryan is WAY too tall- the length of his arms and legs seemed to get in the way. There was a stiffness to his movement (most likely the result of his ballroom training) that I just couldn't let go of. Ellenore's movement certainly had more swagger but instead of coming off as hard hitting, just felt sloppy. There was NO synchronicity from the very start and they couldn't pull it together. This was the first time watching Ryan, that I KNEW I was watching a ballroom dancer trying to perform in a different genre. While Adam & Mary tried to hand out some good critique with the not so good, Nigel was having none of that and said flat out that he didn't like this routine At All. Oh dear - one of our dream teams fell flat this week. Let's hope they'll get another chance to prove themselves. I have a theory about this one...I've never seen them have Lil' C choreograph in anything other than Krump. I'm thinking these two originally pulled Krump and when they came to the realization that these two weren't going to be able to get dirty enough for it, dialled it back to Hip Hop.

Mollee & Nathan ~ Gustavo Vargas - NEW!/Salsa ~ Music: 'Quimbara' - Celia Cruz & Johnny Pacheco

Gustavo Vargas is a new choreographer to SYTYCD US, but those of us loyal Canadian watchers will recognize him from SYTYCD Canada ~ Again YAY! for Canadian Choreographers. Gustavo's routines on the last Canadian season proved he's an exceptionally talented choreographer and our American friends should love what he has to offer. I was certainly excited to see what Mr. Vargas would give our Teen Dream couple to work with. And well...uhhh I...well this just didn't work. At All. While I believed Nathan more than I did Mollee, neither dancer sold this. Sloppy moves, no real sexy salsa hip action, missed & messy hand holds, no sync between the dancers and the end lift was awkward to say the least. From step one this was a mess. I won't go so far to give it my ultimate bad critique of "White Hot Mess" - it was bad, and the judges agreed with me. Mollee and Nathan should be worried.

Noelle & Russell ~ Sean Cheesman - NEW!/Afro-Jazz ~ Music: 'Frog Dance' - Mickey Hart & Planet Drum

WoooHoooo! Another fabulous Canadian choreographer - what a night for Canada! This style (a mix of African tribal and Jazz techniques) has been used on seasons past of SYTYCD Canada and is really fun to watch, so excitement filled my brain waiting for this to begin. I wasn't disappointed! Russell playing the role of the Frog Prince and Noelle as the African Princess were So Much Fun to watch. I loved how Russell threw such joy into the whole routine. The smile on his face the whole way through made my night. Noelle was great as well, but I do think she's going to have to work very hard to outshine Russell's star. The tribal movements were well executed and the flips and tricks were amazing. The tumbling roundabout was incredible. Obviously my favourite routine of the night - can you tell? The judges agreed and congratulated Sean Cheesman for bringing this new style to SYTYCD so successfully. While the judges called Russell the King of Afro-Jazz, I'd have to say I disagree and say that title belongs to Mr. Cheesman.

So here we are at the end, and I'm going to make some predictions regarding the bottom three couples. Please don't make any bets on my guesses though, I'm certainly no prognosticator. I'd have to say that there are two couples tonight that have a VERY good chance of being in the bottom 3, and they would be Mollee & Nathan and Ryan & Ellenore. However - all of these dancers are fan favourites, so we may be surprised by one or both of these couples making it through. The third couple in the bottom tonight was, for me, Pauline & Peter. They pulled the 'DDD' and while the performance aspect of their routine was good, I don't think it was good enough. Unfortunately for Pauline & Peter, I believe that if they end up in the bottom 3 this will be the end of the line. Both have been selected by the judges to be in the bottom previously , and at this point how many chances can they be given?

That's it for me dance fans. Kim will be back later to expound on the results show. Have a lovely week!