So You Think You Can Dance Canada - Top 14 Results!

Sigh. I'm going to do my best here. I was able to watch all the solos on www.ctv.com, as well as the results, but it just isn't quite the same when it's all in pieces like that.

And, just to explain, one more time... I GOT THE TIMES RIGHT! I did! I looked it up and everything! Before heading off to Seattle for some "our dollar sucks" shopping (by the way, first time to Seattle, and I LOVED it! Pike Place Market is such a cool place.) I took the time to make sure I got it right this week. However, my VCR got all excited a week early for that fall back time change, and... I lost the first hour of the dance show, and all of the results show.

So since Carra missed it, I'll just say, the opening group number was KILLER!!! Very Hallowe'en apropos and soooo well done! As soon as someone loads it to youtube, I'll post it here. OUTSTANDING work from Melissa Williams.

So, by looking at the solos, I could tell that the bottom three couples were Lisa and Vincent (thankfully Canada was able to disregard the judges attempt at blowing sunshine up their butts), Caroline and Jesse (yeah, that one was coming for sure) and Lara and Miles (I don't think this one was bottom three material, but with all of them being so strong now, it's going to be difficult going forward to pick the bottom ones without strong couples ending up there).

What was with that tourniquet thing wrapped around Lisa's leg? It was distracting for me... I enjoyed Lara's solo the most - wow can that girl jump and flip... I figure she must have some gymnastics background. Caroline was good as well, but I think... I think... this may be the last we see of her...

Solos from the boys - Vincent, he's so good, such a strong dancer with fantastic extensions. Ahh and Miles. I do enjoy him. Loved the purple shirt and I just find his style so entertaining. And you have to give it to Jesse - his solos are his best feature. But I think he will be holding the door open for his partner at the end of the night.

Lara really looked like she bought JM's fake out - she looked so relieved to be staying. Lisa looked like, as usual, she expected to be staying. And Caroline saw it coming. Bye Caroline.

No question here. Tre doesn't pull the suspense thing, just cuts Jesse loose. The part that killed me? Izaak crying on the sidelines. Other people crying just does me in. Brutal.

So, with the limited information I had, there you have it, the Top 14 recap. I am dedicated to staying home next week and ensuring I watch the shows live time. As you should!

Until then...

So You Think You Can Dance Canada: Top 14!

So here we are for the Top 14!

Our judges tonight are Mary Murphy, Rex Harrington, Tre and Jean Marc. I might get struck by lightning for saying this, but it’s kind of nice to see Mary again. I feel like I should know who Rex Harrington is. But I don't. So I looked him up, but don't feel like I know much than I did 3 minutes ago.

Leah (in her very sparkly shoes) recaps the rules and prizes, again, and then we get straight to the dancers!

Side note from Carra - so... lesson learned. I am not allowed out on Wednesday or Thursday nights any more. While I definately had my times right when I set my VCR - yes, go on, chuckle all you want, have a laugh at my expense - my VCR had other ideas this time. I guess it got all ready for falling back an hour, a week before the rest of us. So I missed the first 4 dances - AND - can you see what's coming next? I completely missed the results show. All I can say is thank god for youtube.com and CTV.

Lisa and Vincent are up first. This week they’ve drawn the Samba with Dmitry Chaplin! Yay! I love it when we get past SYTYCD’ers back. They’re dancing to ‘Skip to the Bip’ by Club Des Belugas featuring Brenda Boykin. The dance starts up with some rather...odd...close ups of each of them. Lisa’s legs look all sorts of wrong in the start. Vincent seems to get the feel of it and plays the part really well. Lisa looks reeaaally awkward to me. Yep. Lisa's legs were all turned out at funny angles, I think in fear of falling off her heels. Awkward landings, awkward stances, just awkward all around.

Mary is back with the hot tamale train. I may have to retract my previous statement. She does tell them that they screwed up a few tricks but I think she’s basing much of her judgment of them tonight on their previous performances. I hate it when they do that. Rex says the dancing was hot and totally gives Lisa a pass for her screw ups because she had to wear heels. Ugh. This is not making me happy. Tre hits on Dmitry then compliments both Vincent and Lisa. JM says they did fantastic and they had a very difficult pick. Then Lisa blathers on and we find out they didn’t even get to do the actual ending of the dance. I listen to the feedback with my mouth hanging open. Yes, they normally do really well. Yes, they are both the most technical dancers on the show this season. Did they hit it tonight? No. They did not. I completely agree with Kim that their screw ups were glossed over in a way that seems to contradict the concept of "judging".

I’m going to take a minute to rant for a bit. Please do. That was way too much positive praise for a dance in which they didn’t even complete the choreography. Yes, they had a tough pick this week, however, so did Allie and Danny last week and they managed to do really well. At this stage of the game, I expect much better from dancers who thus far have been at the front of the pack. Lastly, I loathe that they gave Lisa a pass for ‘having’ to wear heels. If you make it into the Top 20, you know you’re going to have to take on all sorts of different dances and many require you to wear heels. If it was you, wouldn’t you spend some time in between the semi-finals and Top 20 practicing wearing heels? Hear, hear. Pay attention, ladies.

Alright I’m done. Up next we’ve got Lara and Miles who’ve picked the West Coast Swing with Benji! Yay! He says the lifts are crazy, Miles gets hit a lot and Lara gets dropped a lot. They’re dancing to ‘Livin’ for the Weekend’ by The O’Jays. Okay at first I thought ‘this is a little too mellow for me’ and then Miles ripped Lara’s shirt off. Well...that’ll turn things up a bit. They seem to have gotten the lifts down pretty well although there’s a point where Lara looks shocked that they made it! Fun dance. I've really liked Miles from the beginning, but I have to say that I wasn't completely sold on Lara. However, she has really grown on me over the weeks, and I totally think she's been pulling it off. They partner so well together, and always look at ease with what they are doing, no matter the shoes, or how are out of their genre they are.

Mary is totally flustered after Miles does a hip thrust toward her. I love when she said that we Canadians were a friendly bunch... Once she gets herself together she tells them they nailed it. Strangely she then goes on to pick apart bits and pieces which sort of contradicts her ‘nailed it’. Rex thinks it was fun and tells them to watch the in between bits. Lara and Miles pretty much steal Tre’s speaking time, which I don’t mind. JM gives us a definition of West Coast Swing, and says they met the definition.

Arassay and Nico are up next. They’ve got Hip Hop with Luther. Arassay is really going to have to toughen up a bit for this. The song choice is ‘Don’t Touch Me’ by Busta Rhymes. They seem really together and are hitting it hard. We only get one small flash of Nico’s abs this week. Unfortunate really. I know, I KNOW! That small glance seemed like such a tease! It looked really good (the dance, not just Nico’s abs). Arassay did much better than I expected.

Mary agrees that Christmas did come early this year and calls it buck. Rex says it was beyond buck. He praises their connection and may have (may have?) made a slight pass at Nico. Tre thinks they were fantastic and JM says it was great. JM salutes them.

Now we’ve got Allie and Danny and they’ve got Contemporary with Paul Becker. I’ve been eagerly awaiting a contemporary from them. I just can’t wait to see what they do with it. I am nonplussed that there is a personal story attached to it as it always sways the judges and impressions of the dance. They’re dancing to ‘Someday’ by John Legend. They’re really synchronized when they need to be. They’ve really got the feel of this down pat. The last jump that Allie does into Danny’s arms is awesome! Compared to the last piece that Becker choreographed, this one was day and night different. That Joey and Tamina jumping on the bed in jail thing didn't do anything for me.

Mary’s almost teary and says that Danny and Allie are stars. But also says she can't properly critique it becauses of the whole personal story behind it - and I think that's wrong. Every time the dancers get one of these, it's like they've gotten a 'get out of jail free' card. Not that these two need it, but it just seems so incredibly stacked when this happens. And then she screams. Rex loves Allie and says Danny partnered her beautifully. Tre doesn’t think the stage can contain them and says they’re brilliant. JM compliments their emotion and artistry.

Francis and Natalli have got Theatre this week with Sean Cheesman. The story’s all about break ups and Natalli’s playing the scorned lover. They’re dancing to ‘Cell Block Tango’ by the Countdown Singers. Francis does really good with that weird crawl through move. Oh look, Natalli gets stripped...she seems really comfortable with that. The comment made in my house was "so.... when she's using him as a pole..." I don’t know if it’s that I’ve seen so many dances to this particular song before, but I’m kinda bored.

Ugh...Natalli’s making another acceptance speech. It almost seems like they've given the dancers the job of creating the filler, cuz they don't seem to be discouraging these "I'd like to thank my mother" monologues...

Mary tries to fake them out and does a lousy job. She doesn’t really critique the dance, just compliments the dancers. Rex agrees with Mary (?) and then raves about their Paso Doble...ummm...dude...that was a few weeks ago. Tre loved it and calls them brilliant. JM says they both fit the profile and took it to another level. Then he mentions something about his VID List which I originally heard as his ‘VD List’. That grabbed my attention.

Now we’ve got Caroline and Jesse with the Hustle led by Benji. This could be fun. The song choice is ‘Womanizer’ by Britney Spears. Oh yippee. Jesse looks a little stiff but Caroline’s pretty hot. I get the feeling that she’s really gotten comfortable the last couple of weeks. She just seems more memorable now. There’s some pretty clear flubs here and there, but no worse than, say, Lisa and Vincent’s. Ummm... did Jesse fall right at the beginning? I think he did (I rewound it a couple of times to be sure) and I don't think that was part of the routine.

Mary says it didn’t work and Jesse let his partner down. She nitpicks all the flubs, which is irritating considering previous judging tonight. Rex carries on in the same vein as does Tre. JM compliments the choreography and the entrance but says it wasn’t good enough. I’d say they’re probably going to be in the bottom and Jesse could be seriously at risk. If that fall was for real, then I think that is what sunk the whole thing.

Finally we’ve got Izaak and Kaitlyn. They’ve got Jazz with Blake. It looks like Kaitlyn is playing the sultry waitress and Izaak is a business man. They’re dancing to ‘Breakin’ Dishes’ by Rihanna. Is anyone else completely over Rihanna? I am. Aaanyway, right off the bat, Izaak seems stronger than he’s ever been. Kaitlyn's fully into it. They do a crazy leap off the table, flip thing that makes me scared for her. That leap was amazing! It wasn't so much the leap, but the crazy spin thing right after - loved it! Oh and they’re kissing. Is every couple going to have to do that this year? It’s getting a little old. Hey - he kissed a girl! And he liked it! Our little Izaak is growing up...

Mary thinks it was a great way to end the evening. She raves and screams. Rex thinks they’re at their strongest. Tre congratulates Izaak for giving personality and says Kaitlyn is magnifique. JM loved it and yells a lot. He adds them to his VID list, which he needs to stop saying because I think something totally different than Very Insane Dancer.

So there we have it. I think tonight was the clearest example thus far this season of imbalanced judging. The flubs made by the favored dancers were completely overlooked while those of the lesser favored dancers were harped on. I hate it when the judges are this blatant about it because it makes me bitter, and I don’t like feeling bitter about this show.

Ultimately, I think Caroline and Jesse are a sure thing for the bottom 3, along with probably Natalli and Francis and, I’m hoping, Lisa and Vincent.

Carra’s juggling a bit this week, so her comments might not appear for a bit. She’s also heading up the results show this week (Really, she is. We made sure she got the right time this week! (Hey - and I DID get the time right! It's just that... my VCR had other ideas for me.) ), so look for that later Thursday or early Friday as well.

Cheers!

Top 16 Results! Sort of...

Okay kids...Carra had some minor technical difficulties tonight (I'm sorry!) and was unable to watch the results show. I... I got confused! I thought it was on at 9:00 PST. TV is a hard language for me to learn. I was out for the evening and have just quickly whipped through the show tonight to provide an abridged recap for y'all.

But first...I would like to announce...that Jean Marc Genereux - head honcho judge of So You Think You Can Dance Canada - is reading this here blog! Okay, I don't know this for certain, but it can only be assumed that he is! Of course he is. We're hip and cool.

You see, about a month ago on the blog, I posted this:

So You Think You Can Dance - You Pick the Music

I was walking to ye olde day job this morning, shuffling through my music library on my iPod, and came upon Hedley's song "Old School". As I was listening, I thought 'It would be kind of cool if one of the choreographers on SYTYCD picked this song to do a waltz or something to. It's a different kind of song for a waltz, but it seems to have the right rhythm for it.'

And lo and behold, the opening group number tonight? Choreographed by Jean Marc himself? A Viennese Waltz danced to 'Old School' by Hedley! How cool is that! I'm telling you guys, I need to be on staff at this show! You really do.

Alright, I've noted this in my list of accomplishments and now can move on. There really is no question as to the brilliance that is Kim...

So, the bottom 3 couples tonight are Joey and Tamina, Francis and Natalie, and Izaak and Kaitlyn. I have to say not totally unexpected here, except maybe Francis and Natalie, but I think it may be a little backlash for Natalie from copycat-gate.

Aaaaanyway, the dancers go through their solos and I admit, I wasn't really paying attention enough to properly critique them. I will say that I love that Francis used 'Knock 'Em Out' by Lily Allen as his song choice. I get the feeling Francis is just cheeky like that. And I'm pretty sure that Joey danced to that same David Gray song at some point during his audition process.

Goodie...we get a special filler portion all about High School Musical 3. Thank god for the fast forward button on my PVR.

Finally, we get to the results and Joey and Tamina are going home. I actually expected Izaak would go this week, but I guess the judges see more potential with him. Once the bottom 3 were announced I had no doubt that Tamina would be going. There's very little negative that's been said about either Natalie and Kaitlyn, so there was no way the judges were going to let them go.

So that's it for this week. Our apologies for the less than stellar review tonight. Let's all give Carra a bit of a break...remember she just learned how to program her VCR a mere 3 months ago. She's bound to have the odd relapse now and again. Okay, you know whaaaaat? That was supposed to be OUR secret! And there you go mocking me publicly for something I was so proud of, something to go down on MY list of accomplishments! Whatever. Miss I have a PVR thing...

Keep checking in. Carra will still be adding comments to last night's recap (yeah, once I rewind my TAPE that's in my VIDEO CASSETTE RECORDER and take the time to watch it) and will probably pop in on this point to bitch slap me. (arms crossed, looking the other way) Aside from that we'll be back next Wednesday with the Top 14 recap and maybe before then with any interesting tidbits we may find.

Cheers! Hmph.

So You Think You Can Dance Canada: Top 16!

Howdy folks! Time for the Top 16 Performance Show! And yay me! I figured out how to rewind the tape and was finally able to watch!

Oooh...we’re switching up the judges tonight! Joining Tre and Jean Marc are Paul Becker who has apparently worked with everyone and Kenny Ortega who most recently worked on High School Musical 3. I think it's great to have some different judges on the panel!

Can someone please try and explain the appeal of the High School Musical franchise for me? ‘Cause I just don’t get it.

Leah rambles about procedure and winnings again...blah, blah, blah...Get on with it!

JM and Tre are harping on the voting thing again. I really don’t think Canada’s voting...

We talk to Kenny and find out that aside from working on HSM, he also did Dirty Dancing and Gene Kelly was his teacher. That’s kind of cool.

Alrighty. Up first are Lara and Miles. They’ve got Krump this week with Lil C. I’m anticipating no opportunity for making out with this one. I’ve missed Lil C’s crazy descriptors. He should be on these shows more.

They’re dancing to ‘Tiny Ram Anthem’ by The J Squad. Lara does some crazy flips right off the bat and Miles has some surprisingly crazy abs. For a couple of really white kids, I’m actually buying this from them. They’re not always as together as they probably should be but they finish pretty sharp. I really think we need to talk a bit more about Miles. And his Abs. Yes, I capitalized it, because really? Ummm... yeah. He looked like he should have been part of the 8 Mile crew... I kept waiting for him to declare a battle and go all Eminem on us. I thought they both rocked it. Lara was pure determination throughout the whole thing.

Kenny says Lil C would be proud and that they brought the stuff. Paul says they were buck and surprised him. Tre loves it and says they killed it. JM says Lil C is now called ‘Capital C’. Hee. He thinks it was amazing and fantastic.

Oh, apparently we’re packing the filler into one segment tonight. There’s no way I’m going to catch all of these unique traits and reiterate them all accurately, so I’ll just tell you they all have something, and it’s suitably unique. Onward and upward.

Alrighty, Izaak and Kaitlyn are up next doing the Cha Cha with Benji Schwimmer. Benji says the cha cha is extremely ‘caffeinated’. Why is Benji wearing that ridiculous scarf?

The song is ‘Make Me Sweat’ by Basement Jaxx and they start out swinging around those reflector thingies that the people on airport runways use to direct planes to their appropriate jetway. Izaak doesn’t look entirely comfortable. I think he’s having problems moving his hips independantly. Kaitlyn seems to have it pretty good but not perfect. This one seemed really short. See, and I thought that Izaak looked much more comfortable in this one, that he was finally starting to relax and that he stopped acting like such a nerd about touching a girl.

Kenny thinks it was executed well, but had a slow start. Paul thought the concept was awesome, but found that Kaitlyn overpowered Izaak. I agree. Tre said she believed Izaak for the first time this week. JM acknowledges it was a difficult pick for them this week and that the technique wasn’t quite there, but thinks they showed growth.

Okay so Lisa and Vincent are up next doing African Jazz with Sean Cheesman. The song is ‘Hiohonolofatsa’ (say what!) by the Soweto Gospel Choir. That crazy lift is really quite impressive looking. I’m actually finding the big skirt on Lisa a little distracting. Aside from that I really like this routine. They both seem to be having a lot of fun with it. They're good. They really are. Lisa is probably even as good as she thinks she is. I saw a sign, a hint, of humble at having landed in the bottom three last week. It lasted about 7 seconds. And it's not that I don't appreciate a healthy dose of confidence, because I do! But gracious goes a long way with me, and I just don't get that from her. I do from Vincent, and I think that they couple really well - technically probably the strongest pair on the show... But I think it should be Canada telling HER that, not the other way 'round.

Damn! Somehow I just turned all Kim's words purple and can't make them white again! I have no idea what I did... :( So for the remainder of the show, Kim will be appearing in gray.

Kenny thinks they really understood the work and put in great emotion, heart and drive. Ugh...shut up Lisa. Seriously. Paul just says ‘mmmmmm’. Weird. He also says they’re an amazing couple. Tre wants us to work with her vision. I don’t wanna. JM says the pros are back! He says it was authentic and believable. He’s getting teary again.

Tamina and Joey are on the hook for hip-hop with Luther. He says it needs to be thuggy. They’re dancing to ‘Ditch That...’ by The-Dream. I think Joey’s too skinny to pull off thuggy and the mugging he’’s doing with his face isn’t necessarily helping. Tamina’s really hitting it though. Overall, I think they did pretty good, they were mostly together and hit pretty hard. I haven't been sold on anything they've done up til now... this one was good - wow, was Tamina ever in her element!

Kenny loved the routine and said Tamina hit it hard and Joey surrendered himself to it. Paul says ‘finally’. He thinks they were in a zone and apparently Joey’s mugging sold it for him. Tre says Tamina hit greatness, but gives major ‘props’ to Joey for looking the part. JM acknowledges Luther who seems to be sweating a lot for an audience member. ‘Joey! Ooo are you?!’ Hee. Beautiful fusion right before our eyes. JM cracks me up.

Francis and Natalli (the copy...okay I’m done, really) are doing the rhumba with Gustavo Vargas. Francis is excited about ‘touching’ Natalli and...whoa...somebody needs to teach Natalli about finding a foundation that actually matches her skin tone. Girlfriend’s face is about three shades lighter than the rest of her skin. Not. Good. I really did want to like Natalli, from the very beginning. But I just can't buy into her, and keep thinking that if they would only add a pole to the choreography, it would work for me - cuz THAT I think I would believe...

They’re dancing to ‘Perfidia’ by the New 101 Strings Orchestra. They’re doing really well, although I’m not finding it very exciting. They start getting a little shaky towards the middle and the lift doesn’t really come off well.

Kenny says they are as good as they need to be to win, but they maybe overdanced it a bit. Paul says the dance made him hungry. Tre starts in on the dress and Natalli talks way too much again. Just. Shut. Up. Girl needs to learn that a gracious 'thank you' would do just fine. Less is more. Tre says she got into their routine. JM gives a brief history of the rhumba and thought it was wonderful. Is it just me, or is anyone else getting a little concerned at how fiercely Natalli is clinging to Francis...

Allie and Danny are up next doing the quick step (aka the Kiss of Death) with Pierre Allaire. They’re dancing to ‘The Boogie Bumper’ by Casa musica Sound Studios Dusseldorf. I am in no position to comment on the technique on this, so I’ll say they seem to really have the routine down. It looks like they got a good handle on the lifts in rehearsal and make it look easy (when history tells us it’s not). I just love these two. They look like they should be time machined right back to the 50's. Or whenever the hell quick step was born. They just suit it so perfectly.

Kenny loved it, thought it was classic. Paul thinks Allie and Danny removed the curse from the quick step. Tre thinks they made it look effortless and calls them chameleons. JM says they made it look easy (sheesh should I be a judge on this show, or what?). He says it’s the best quick step from all the So You Think You Can Dance’s. So I notice that when Allie says "yay!" it's like she's pleased to receive the compliment. Kind of a "yay, that was nice to hear!" When Lisa says "yay!" it's like she's expecting the compliment. Kind of like "yay, THERE it is." It's amazing how much of a difference that makes in the delivery.

Arassay and Nico are on next with contemporary with Blake. It’s a fatal attraction/break up kind of story. There is a completely outrageous, disgusting semi nose breaking incident where Nico ultimately ‘pops’ the bone in his nose back in place. Gah! I had to block that part. Some information I just can't allow to penetrate.

The musical selection is ‘Let Me Leave’ by Marc Broussard. Way to be literal with the song choice Blake. So there’s a lot of convulsing and collapsing all through this dance and I really like all the leaps that Arassay does onto Nico. You had to know they were going to do really well with this, it’s right in their niche. Yay! Nico’s shirtless again! Pleasant dreams Carra. As Nico walks off the stage at the end of the dance, I’m reminded of that quote from (I think) Thelma & Louise; “I hate to see him go, but I love to watch him walk away.” or something like that. Sigh. Best line in the whole movie, delivered to a very skinny Brad Pitt... Do you remember? How skinny he was?

So... I'm just wondering... exactly how many drowning orphans and starving kittens do you think Arassay had to save in her previous life to be given this treat. This treat of rolling around... on the floor... with a nearly naked Nico. And does she even know?

I have completely lost my ability to give an unbiased critique. They are both simply fantastic.

Kenny says ‘Viva Cuba!’ and thinks it was beautiful. What is with all the excess talking from the dancers tonight? Paul is not a master a of the fake-out. That he is not. He thought it was amazing and that they have natural chemistry. Tre doesn’t think they’re going anywhere. JM didn’t want it to end. He’s nearly teary again. He loves them and calls them fusion in motion.

Finally we have Caroline and Jesse doing rock with Melissa Williams. Fun! Jesse’s selling his soul to Caroline (the devil). They’re dancing to ‘Miss Murder’ by AFI. They do really well with a difficult lift and look like they’re really having fun with this. They sell it really well. For probably the first time, I’m enthusiastic about their piece. I absolutely agree. The commitment to this one was just pouring off them.

Kenny thinks Caroline should sign up for the Pussycat Dolls. Jesse was overpowered a bit by Caroline. Paul agrees with Kenny about Caroline and thinks Jesse was excellent. Tre thinks Caroline ‘did it’ this week and agrees with Kenny about her overpowering Jesse. JM thinks this was the most solid they’ve been so far. Jesse didn’t ‘jazz’ him so much but Caroline rocked his world.

We close the show with the usual recap and final comments from the judges. Apparently they’re using the judges as filler tonight ‘cause they’re talking a LOT. Each judges pick their two ‘favorites’ and - shock of all shocks - everyone gets picked once! Yeah, that wasn’t orchestrated at all.

Now, just because they harped on it so much tonight, I am actually going to vote. I’ve programmed the appropriate number into my cell and will try to get through to cast at least one vote. Yay for me, I’m a participant.

So that’s it for tonight. Carra’s comments will be added shortly so keep checking back . Carra’s heading up tomorrow night’s results show recap as well (yeah, about that...), so keep an eye out for that later Thursday night or Friday morning.

Cheers

Stephen Baldwin - Political Pundit?

So, I was flipping through the channels last night, trying to find something to watch while I did the dishes (that's right kids - no dishwasher at Chez Kim!) and came across Larry King on CNN. The discussion of the evening was all things political, as per usual.

Here's where my mind boggles; In amongst 3 other seemingly legitimate left and right wing commentators was Stephen Baldwin.

Stephen Baldwin.

Stephen Baldwin - he who won our hearts in such epic films as 'Half Baked', 'The Sex Monster' and as a bumbling Barney Rubble in 'The Flintstones: Viva Rock Vegas'. Stephen Baldwin - most recently seen on Donald Trump's 'Celebrity Apprentice' which is a fine addition to his resume of D List celebrity reality TV (in case you didn't know, he's also been on 'Celebrity Fear Factor' and 'Celebrity Bull Riding Challenge' (?) ).

**Side note - on checking out Stephen Baldwin's imdb page, he's listed as an actor in over 75 films. Quite seriously, I recognized all of four titles. **

So here's my question: Would anyone in their right mind take political advice from Stephen fucking Baldwin? Really? And what the hell, CNN? You're supposed to be America's Most Trusted News Source and you're asking Stephen Baldwin to be on a panel of pundits? What the fuck? It's not exactly difficult to find qualified journalists who are willing to offer an opinion these days, but no, you choose Stephen Baldwin.

I don't really have anything against Stephen Baldwin as a person, or even as a crappy actor, I just find it a poor mark on the report card of a legitimate news organization to try and pass off a famewhoring, mediocre actor as an educated political commenter.

Such is my rant for the day. Cheers!

Mammia Mia - Dancing Queen

Why can't life BE like this!?! Like a musical! Where everybody knows all the words, knows all the steps, and is just ready to break out at any given moment... Yes, this is my dream. Life should be a musical.

And how great would this scene have been to film - they all just look like they are having so much fun! Meryl Streep - is there any role she doesn't rock?

See comments below regarding my renewed love for this fantastically fun movie.

Honey Honey from Mamma Mia!

I know. It's been out for months.

But... I just saw it (again!) last night - thought my mom would like it, so I made her go too - and my love for it was totally renewed. If I'm not sitting there with a big grin plastered on my face, I'm weeping wildly... Hard for me to pick my favorite scene, but this one makes me happy...

So You Think You Can Dance Canada - Top 18 Results!

Tonight’s show opens up with a Bollywood number that, with a large group, is really quite impressive. I always have trouble picking out the individual dancers in these group dances, but tonight I almost knew who was who! I didn't catch who did the choreography (It was that Nakul guy that did all the Bollywood choreography from SYTYCD US), but the music was from the Jab We Met Soundtrack - Nagada, Nagada by Sonu Nigam and Javed Ali.

In these quick half hour shows, we move straight to business, pulling out the first 5 couples. Lined up we have Natalli (the copycat) and Francis, Dannie and Allie, Romina and Dario, Lisa and Vincent and Kaitlyn and Izaak. We quickly watch the recaps and turn to Leah to find out who's going to be dancing for their lives. Has Leah been practising her fake outs at home? I'm thinking she's going to run out of ways to twist the words around fairly soon...

Safe are Natalli and Francis, and of course, Dannie and Allie. Kaitlyn and Izaak escape the axe and judging by the sheer relief on Kaitlyn's face, they know it. We'll be seeing solos from Romina, Dario, Lisa and Vincent. I was a bit surprised to see Lisa and Vincent land there this week, but it might be good for them - I mainly mean for Lisa. Yes, perhaps that might humble her a bit? Let’s hope, shall we.

Without even a commercial break, we bring the remaining 8 dancers to the stage to meet their fate. We have Nico and Arassay, Miles and Lara, Jesse and Caroline and Joey and Tamina.No chance we'll see a solo from the first 4 dancers. A bit more of a question mark, though, between the last 2 couples... Really! I so thought it would be Joey and Tamina. But no, Jesse and Caroline head off stage in preparation for their solos.

Now just a quick question... Do we need to go back and watch the solos from the previous 4 seasons so that we can more quickly detect the copycat, or will the dancers surprise us with their very own choreography. Let's see...

First thing I notice is that they no longer post the songs of the solos. I don't like that. I'm not as good as Kim in determining what these songs are...Crap! I didn’t even think of writing them down at the time and I’ve already deleted it from my PVR! Next time!

Lisa is up first and her solo is decent. Dario follows and I have to say I thought it was more tricks than dancing. Make no mistake - his tricks are fan-freaking-tastic, he's really something, but I'm thinking the time is near for him. Yeah, I’m kind of thinking staying on the beat in choreography is pretty important and if you can’t grasp that, well…. Romina finishes up the first trio and I thought she was good, nice use of the crowd, good energy, I liked it. No sign of a copycat, but I'm open to being corrected. Anonymous, you out there?

Vincent heads up the final 3 and I thought he was excellent. Strong, edgy performance and I really liked the song. Wish I knew what it was. I remember thinking the same thing. Not that I'd download it or anything. Caroline is next and I thought she was good, but I wasn't entirely blown away. Last we have Jesse and I thought his solo was really good too. Very quick, all over the place. He's very determined and very focused. He does NOT want to go home, you can see it in his face. I like that he uses different music for his solos, it’s not all hip-hop.

Decisions from the judges. The girls line up and JM goes first - and sends home Romina. Awwww. That's too bad. I really thought she was good. She handles the news well and keeps her head held high.Tre delivers the cut to the guys, and after going on substantially longer than JM, which is unusual, she sends Dario on his way. I'm comfortable with this choice - as unique as he is, it couldn't last forever.So there we have it - stay tuned for other tidbits until next week! Cheers!

So You Think You Can Dance Canada: Top 18!

Here we are for the Top 18 dance off!

Leah asks ‘How amazing are our top 18 dancers?’. I would say 17 are amazing and one’s a copycat. (Yes, I’m holding a grudge. I’ll let it go next week.) (I'm not promising anything.)

Leah introduces the judges - Luther, Blake, Tre and Jean Marc.

Blake yammers on about last week’s group number and something about ‘ish’. Blake’s almost getting a little irritating to me. He’s cute but he’s starting to bug me. I agree, tonight's the first time he started getting on my nerves too, especially when he kept speaking over Tre if she was of a different opinion...

As the judges continue to talk, I’m getting the feeling that perhaps Canada didn’t really vote that much last week. They’re really harping on the voting thing. I admit - I didn't vote... did you?

Then Tre goes on this weird thing about how ‘someone’ is criticising the way JM speaks (i.e. his accent). She gets all militant and challenge-y and I’m thinking she’s only giving this ‘someone’ more attention than he/she is probably worth? JM cools it a bit but the whole thing seems sort of odd to me. There are people all over the place that are going to be critical of stupid things. It seems like giving it air time on the show gives it more importance than it should have, and it should have none.

Oh yay. We get to hear the best and worst about each set of dancers. Welcome to filler!

Allie and Danny are up first. Danny’s best thing is his work ethic and his worst thing is that he only owns V-neck shirts. Alllie’s best thing appears to be her smiles her worst thing are her happiness and smile.

They’re doing a mambo choreographed by Tony Meredith and Melanie Lapatin. Allie’s not allowed to be cute! That might be tough to do. They’re dancing to ‘Mambo Gozon’ by Tito Puente. Holy outfit Allie! That definitely helps with the no cute thing. Danny seems to be all over it but Allie’s a little stilted to start with. It becomes more comfortable for her towards the middle. I thought Allie looked amazing, absolutely gorgeous! I agree with her starting off a little awkward in parts, but they really pulled it off, I thought it was great...

Luther makes some comment about her dress and I add out loud, “Ummm...Luther...that’s not a dress”. He says “Y’all did a great thing.” I don’t want to know what that great thing was for either you or JM, Luther. Blake is amazed and Tre says they’re unstoppable & undeniable. Ewwww...she makes a creepy wink at Danny. JM sees what I saw with Allie and is very impressed with Danny. It makes me laugh when Tre is flirty like that - come on! She needs to keep up to some level with everyone else at the table - she's seriously out numbered!

On next are Lisa and Vincent. Vincent’s best thing is his work ethic and apparently doesn’t have a worst thing. Lisa is focused but makes Vincent look too pale.

They’re doing a hip hop with Jae Blaze. I’m just guessing, but I don’t think that’s her real last name. This is apparently based on a sociopathic Raggedy Ann & Andy? Have I mentioned my hate for clowns? The song is ‘Anti Matter’ by N*E*R*D*. They hit hard and keep together really well. The wide smile on Lisa’s face is really distracting.

Luther thinks it was really clean, fun, and great. Blake wanted it to be more grimy, but thinks they killed it. Tre says it was edgy and JM thinks they’re pros. Lisa’s ‘doll-icious’. I’m stifling a groan. I thought it was funny when JM asks at this point if everyone can understand him...

Yay! It’s time for Arassay & Nico! Arassay’s always smiling and looks too good for Nico (I’m 100% certain Nico is wrong here). Nico gives big hugs but doesn’t remember that girls should go first.

Leah refers to this as a ‘Theatre’ style, but it looks like contemporary to me. Either way, it’s choreographed by Melissa Williams and is about a girl at her wits end and her guardian angel (he ripped off his feathers!) who becomes human to save her. Ooh, ooh Nico’s shirtless! Bonus! Dancing to ‘Somebody to Love’ by Queen which is not what I would have expected given the story. This is an excellent piece. They’re both really in it. It’s one that I’ll watch again. and again. and again. (did you see, when he ripped of his feathers?)

Luther thinks it was intense and brought the drama. Blake gives it a standing O’ and calls them the King and Queen of the competition. Tre says they made it their own and that they have an unreal connection. JM calls it effortless and seamless. He actually looks like he’s close to tears! He says Nico is magical which makes Nico cry. Guaranteed, Carra’s weepy. I’ll admit, I had a little twinge. Rest assured, my heart is still mostly black. So from the part where he ripped off his feathers? That's when the weeping started.

Thank god Kim sent off a warning text for me before I actually got to watch it - "Just so you know, Nico's shirtless." My response? "As he should be. Always." But I really didn't grasp the full meaning, cuz when I actually saw him, all lovely and shirtless like that? And when he RIPPED OFF HIS FEATHERS? Yeah, I was pretty much done for.

Oh lookee. It’s Francis and the Copycat. (tee hee) Francis has good eyelashes and big feet. There’s the required wink wink nudge nudge moment with the big feet comment. The Copycat apparently ‘gives it’ on stage and doesn’t have a worst thing. How about....she’s a copycat? (Really, I promise, I’ll let it go next week) Again, I make no such promises. I'm crusty like that.

They’re doing a Paso Doble with Tony & Melanie, dancing to ‘Espana Cani’ performed by the Manhattan Pops Orchestra. This works for Natalli because it really works her overt sexiness. Francis is totally in his element and they’re both really sharp. Potentially the best use of the dress I’ve seen thus far in this type of dance. (See, I can still be objective and hold a grudge....she’s still a copycat.) Yeah. Begrudgingly I say, this piece was really good, they were both perfect for it. I think I actually said "Wow!" outloud once.

The judges are all standing. Oh Natalli, just shut up. You’re not accepting a god damned award. No kidding! I kept yelling 'Stop - just. stop. TALKING already!' Luther says it was amazing, Blake says this show is now ‘We Know We Can Dance Canada!’. Tre thinks Natalli had no problem with the choreography and makes a blatant pass at Francis. Would someone please volunteer to sleep with Tre so we can curb the creepy flirting? Girl needs to get laid. JM calls them the Ultimate Alpha Man and the Ultimate Latin Goddess. I refuse to comment on Blake’s remark about Natalli makes the rest of the girls look like babies. Yeah, what was all that about... Even Natalli had the good grace to look uncomfortable with that statement.

Izaak says Kaitlyn is an amazing dancer, but she’s intimidating. Izaak is strong but awkward.

They’re doing Dance Hall (?) with Jae Blaze. Izaak describes it as ‘Rub a dub dub’. After seeing the dance, this description is surprisingly accurate. The song is ‘Click Mi Finger’ by Erup. The Grease styling totally isn’t working for me with this music and this dance. Kaitlyn looks really out of place. Neither seem particularly ‘connected’.

Luther thinks they didn’t dance ‘in the ground’ enough. Blake thinks Kaitlyn worked it but Izaak’s falling short. Tre gives them credit for getting difficult moves. Kaitlyn embodied it (really?) and she thinks Izaak may be in trouble. JM shoots more sunshine up Kaitlyn’s ass and comments on Izaak’s insecurity.

Miles is a very positive person and is spoiling Lara. Lara doesn’t get mad when Mile’s drops her but she doesn’t like pie. Did anyone hear it like Miles said ‘Lara doesn’t like pot’? That’s what it sounded like to me...I had to rewind three times to get what he was actually saying. Damn! Now I have to go and watch it again to see!

They’re doing the Viennese Waltz with Amy Wright. It’s going to be terribly romantic. At Last by Etta James is the song. Lara’s dressed in lingerie, which surprisingly works well. I can't say I was crazy about wardrobe in this one. Lara doesn’t look like she’s getting the full extension all the time, but what do I know. It’s quite lovely. Wait, was Miles’ shirt ripped on the side to start with?? How’d that happen? I saw it too and wondered the same thing... They have a near makeout session at the end. While that's entertaining now, I hope they don't go overkill, cuz after enough times, it could start to get old.

Luther’s proud of Miles and thought it was fun to watch. Blake is kind of meh about it. Tre blathers on a whole lot but doesn’t say much of anything. I think she thought it was good. JM doesn’t bother to critique the technique much. “The frame could have been better but the picture was perfect”. Awwwwwwww.

Jesse has a big heart but takes too many pictures. Caroline pushes Jesse and has more experience than he does.

They’re doing Hip hop with Tanisha Scott, dancing to ‘Touch It’ by Busta Rhymes. They’re dressed as tin soldiers, which is odd, but works. Caroline’s pretty hot but Jesse doesn’t seem as sharp as he should be.

Luther says overall it was good, but they need to kill it and sell it more. Opposingly, Blake thinks they did kill it. Tre ‘believed’ it. JM liked the concept and calls Caroline a force. Jess needs to add more.

Up next are Tamina & Joey. Joey’s fun and apparently doesn’t have a worst thing. Tamina’s got flavour but uses weird slang.

We’ve got a contemporary choreographed by Paul Becker. The story is about a prisoner reminiscing about an old love. They’re dancing to ‘Crocodile Rock’ by Elton John which makes me reminisce about The Muppet Show. I like this one. It’s a fun routine and I’m certain the judges are going to rip it to shreds. Fun contemporary doesn’t often get good reviews. Contemporary is supposed to be tortured and angsty. I don’t care. I like it. Good for you, Kim, swimming against the tide like that! I didn't enjoy this one at all. I tried. And I just couldn't find reason to.

Luther likes it, Blake thinks it was a mess, Tre thinks it has entertainment value but it felt juvenile, Jean Marc wants them to bring volume (?). (expand on their movements, I'm guessing?)

The entire time Leah is doing her voting spiel for Tamina and Joey, Tamina’s bra is completely hanging out of her shirt on one side. Heh. Double sided tape my friend. Keeps that from happening. Lesson learned. Damn. Something else I need to go back and look for...

Finally we’ve got Dario and Romina. Dario’s very optimistic and like others, doesn’t have a worst thing. These people are not playing by the filler rules. Romina’s sweet and patient but sweats a lot.

Choreographing is Sean Cheesman on a Jazz Pop number. Dancing to Disturbia by Rihanna. Perhaps there is supposed to be some statement on the economy I’m just not getting? They don’t seem as together as they should be. The choreography uses a lot of Dario’s flexibility. Romina’s hitting it hard.

Luther thinks Romina’s a fighter and says Dario did a good job but was often ahead of the beat. Blake says Romina’s intense but thinks Dario’s got to fight a lot harder. Tre thinks they shouldn’t be in the bottom three and says she actually watched Dario more than Romina. JM thinks it was a great routine. Romina made it her own and he wants Dario to stay.

I enjoy the dancer flashback for the chance to see Nico shirtless again. There’s a bit more filler from the judges and we’re done! The only ones that I think are completely safe are Danny and Allie and Nico and Arassay. Probably Miles and Lara too, with the kissy, makeout stuff. That tends to sell well. The rest are really hit or miss,. There wasn’t anything that was terrible, but the rest were either meh or forgettable. Never a good thing. My bottom three guesses are Joey and Tamina, Izaak and Kaitlyn and Romina and Dario.

Speaking of flashbacks, I wonder why we aren't getting those when the judges are giving their reviews... I kind of miss that...

Carra’s heading up the results show tomorrow. Till then all!

So You Think You Can Dance Canada: Controversy!

Soooo....an interesting thing happened today in the world of the SYTYCDC blogosphere.

A commenter, going only by 'anonymous' pointed out something from last Thursday's results show that Carra and I failed to notice:

Hey Romina might be skinny, but she is original... Natalli's solo, I don't know, it seems a bit similar to Heidi's solo from so you think you can dance US season 2... take a look for yourself.

Heidi Solo:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMvGTDJSN4A

Natalli solo:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VROTl01M5dw

Now, Anonymous may have been trying to be subtle with his/her 'a bit similar' comment. Seriously...click on both links and have a look. You can hardly tell who's who! Down to the dress, Natalli has done a virtual direct copy of Heidi's solo.

Here's why this bothers us (I'm taking the opportunity to speak for Carra here as well)...When you're on this show and you're in the position to Dance For Your Life, it is your opportunity to differentiate yourself from the rest and show people exactly who you are and what your dance is all about. By copying a previous competitor's solo, you're not showing us who you are, you're showing us who that other competitor is.

Additionally, if you are going to copy someone else's solo, at least be able to do it as good if not better than the original. Comparing the two, Natalli didn't accomplish that, at least in my opinion.

So, what do you think? Do you agree with us or do you think we're completely off our respective nuts?

Also, I'm going to throw this out there for all you eagle eyed viewers: This is not the first time we've missed something and - it's early on in the season - it certainly won't be the last! If you see anything you think should be commented on in a recap or deserves a post of its own, add a comment, or email us at popgoestheword@gmail.com. Oh, and Anonymous, next time let us know who you are so we can give credit where credit is due!

Cheers!

So You Think You Can Dance Canada: Top 20 Results!

Alrighty....so here we are for our first set of results! Leah's wearing a killer dress that I couldn't pull off in my dreams!

We open the show with the requisite group number. It's a sort of tribal African thing and it's actually really good. Usually this early on I don't enjoy the group numbers as much because it's hard to determine who's who, which is certainly the case with this number, however...it's fun to watch. At the very end a bunch of them do this crazy leap off the stage into the audience which is really cool.



After introducing the judges, we're straight into the results. Up first: Kaitlyn & Izaak, Jesse & Caroline, Allie & Danny, Miles & Lara, Francis & Bre. I like this. Instead of Leah recapping the judges comments, they just play clips. Excellent! Yeah, way to get right down to it, no filler to speak of...

Izzak & Kaitlyn, Jesse & Caroline are safe! Allie & Danny are safe! (yay!) Francis & Bre are NOT safe! Miles & Lara are safe!

Up next: Joey & Tamina, Kevin & Natalli, Vincent & Lisa, Nico & Arassay, Dario & Romina.

Joey & Tamina are safe! Kevin & Natalli are NOT safe! Vincent & Lisa are safe! Dario & Romina are NOT safe! Arassay & Nico are safe! (yay!)

Time for the girls' solos! Bre's up first dancing to The Story by Brandi Carlisle. Ummmmm...isn't this the same thing she did for her audition. Way to make yourself stand out. It was not amazing...shut up Leah.

Natalli's dancing to Proud Mary by Tina Turner. Now that was much better. Original, lots of spins and kicks and stuff (have I mentioned I really know nothing about dance?). Leah says it's hot.

Romina is dancing to a Spanish song I have no hope of knowing. She's good...but I just realized how very very skinny this girl is. I'm hoping someone gives her a sandwich or a donut after the show.

Boys solos! Francis is dancing to an Johnny B. Goode by Jerry Lee Lewis. I don't think Francis should wear flares. They make his legs look funny. It's good though. High energy and he looks like he's having fun.

Kevin is dancing to a song I don't know, but I might have to look up. I kind of like it. His dance on the other hand...kind of meh, although he does this crazy spin thing about half way through. Does Kevin remind anyone else of that kid from the last season of SYTYCD US that the judges said had the personality of a tree and then he spent the whole rest of his time on the show trying to convince everyone he wasn't a tree? Yeah, Kevin...you're a tree.

Dario's dancing to Breathe Me by Sia which is a song I'm pretty much over. He does lots of crazy flexible stuff that's really impressive. He spends about 10 seconds or so looking like he's sucking his thumb which is....weird. But he's good. Does anyone know what it was he took out of his pocket?

So at this point if I had to make a prediction, I would say Kevin and Bre are heading out tonite. Bre rehashed an old solo which to me is weak and Kevin just doesn't appeal to me at all. My predictions were Natalli and Kevin.

Oh goody...Leah's a crier. Carra's screwed. Heeeeey, come on now...

Girls are up first and JM says they're all great. Romina's staying. Bre's going home and Natalli's staying. Bre's crying and Leah's crying. Carra's crying, damn it. Time for the sappy recap. It's adequately sappy.

Guys are up. Tre says they're all amazing. Kevin's going home. Way to cut to the chase Tre! Sappy recap, sappy recap, sappy recap. He really did not think he was going home - and even though of the 3 guys, it had to be him, I have to say I felt bad for him.

So there you go...If you guys want to enlighten me on any of the music I missed, feel free to do so in the comments! Top 18 next Wednesday! There'll be more stuff posted here over the weekend, so keep visiting!

Cheers!

So You Think You Can Dance Canada - Top 20!

For the last two years, I have been trying to justify why it is, exactly, that I become a weepy mess every time I watch this show... probably overtired or maybe just having a bad day... but really? I've got nothin'. Nothing to validate the rush of emotion and bursting into tears at the freaking opening credits! It's embarrassing, and usually best that I watch this show by myself. And I've learned not to eat my dinner while watching the show, cuz I only end up all choked up and getting something stuck in my throat. So maybe watching the show by myself isn't the best strategy...

It just made me so happy to see all this Canadian talent!

Alright, enough already... getting on with it.Leah started off the night in a poofy black prom dress, givin' it up for the Top 20 - it entertained me that every time a dancer from Montreal was introduced she felt the need to try for a French accent. She really doesn't have to do that, I don't think...

Once the dancers did their opening thing we find out who the judges are for the evening: Luther Brown, looking very serious; Blake McGrath, who really is such a cutie; Tre Armstrong, dancing her way on stage and Jean Marc Genereaux (JM), who honestly? just makes me cringe most of the time. His desire to emulate Nigel is so... obvious... Okay, that creepy dance thing he did when he came out on stage was totally not necessary.

Back to Leah who spells out the deal - the winner, not only titled Canada's Favourite Dancer, dances away with $100,000 AND a 2009 Mercedes C230. No mention whether there'll be a Katie prize of $50,000, so we'll have to see where that goes in the end...

A quick review of the Top 20 auditions with JM making it clear you need to "go big or go 'ome"...

On to our first couple of the night.I've been keen to find out who Nico was going to be coupled with - just so I can start being jealous ahead of time, really - and it's Arassay! Two of my early favourites! Nico had me at "I don't just live to dance... I AM dance." Swoon. And Arassay getting all emotional about her background - ah, a girl after my own heart, getting all teary like that.

Choreographed by Gustav Vargas, they dance the salsa to... I'm sorry! I missed the name and artist of the first song... La Salsa something by Sonora something... I'll do better, I promise. A perfect opener for Arassay for sure, obviously she's in her element. And Nico? Well call me biased for sure, but I thought he did really well. A tiny bit sloppy with one of the throw/catch in the air things at the very end, but overall I was pleased with this first number of the night. I was less impressed with this than I thought I would be. Also, could they not have dressed her better? The outfit was terribly lackluster. I don’t think they’re going anywhere, but it wasn’t my favourite.

It was caliente... Fun in the Sun, said Tre! Luther agreed with me that it was a great opener, as did Blake, telling Arassay that she stole the show. Tre followed up with 'fierce' and something about a sexy little kitten... and then JM just got all weird, telling Arassay we (Canada) OWN her now. Kind of creepy, like when McCain said 'fellow prisoners' instead of 'fellow Americans'...I'm thinking they are safe.

Our second couple of the night is Natalli and Kevin. I said in my last write up that I was interested in Natalli, curious to see how she would do. I don't know if I am any more certain now than I was going on. It seems to me she is almost studiously sexy, like coming off all smoldery like that is a bit of an effort and it's a bit hard for me to buy.

Choreographer Tanisha Scott says right off the top that Natalli may have 'flava' but definitely some trouble with timing. Kevin has timing in spades, but maybe a bit lacking in the 'flava' department. We'll see how this all translates dancing hip hop to The Way I Are by Timbaland.Yep. Issues with the timing all over the place. Sucks that Nat's belt was falling off too (I think that was intentional styling, unfortunate), had to have been a distraction for sure. Kevin seemed a bit scared at one time when he had to smack her ass, which made me laugh. I thought they both hit it, but felt not much of a connection between them... It struck me that it seems Natalli is more used to dancing my herself than with a partner. Suddenly her background escapes me, and I can't remember if there's any truth to that.

Side note here from me: Apparently I’m supposed to support Kevin above all others because he’s local to me. If this performance is anything to go by, my community is going to be sorely disappointed.

Over to the judges. Luther loved the outfits and the energy, felt Kevin really went for it, but overall there were mistakes. Blake commented that the energy fell a bit, and while it was okay, it certainly wasn't amazing. Good thing Leah thought it was though...Tre felt they hit it, and called Natalli 'fierce, and hard'... but she wasn't gonna hate, she was gonna participate and congratulate. Huh?JM gave a shout out to choreographer Tanisha, said he loved 'ip 'op and that Kevin was one of the most skilled dancers on the show, but didn't really offer up a review.

Maybe one of the bottom 3? I would say that’s a safe bet.

Up next are Bre and Francis dancing a waltz choreographed by Amy Wright. In the practice, they are stressed out over the Dead Man's Drop, and to be honest, it looks like it really could be if it doesn't go right! Dancing to You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman by Aretha Franklin, my first thought is that they make a really nice couple, and I loved Bre's dress, all pink and flowy. They ace the drop early in the number, and from there on, I really enjoyed it. I thought the lines were good and felt a certain chemistry between them. And I confess to chills when Francis caressed the side of her face and toyed with her earring at the very end... I think I made an out loud sound.

So Leah agrees with me, saying she was all 'goose bumpy'... but that's where the agreement ends. Luther was luke warm about it, saying it was good but not great and that he felt they were holding back. Blake said the lines WEREN'T good (is my eye really that off?) and said she was more like a 'natural grandmother' as opposed to a natural woman. Huh. A bit harsh I thought. I actually agree with Blake. Her hands weren’t often fully extended, and her arms and legs never really looked like they were ‘reaching’ like they should.

Tre said it was entertaining, but not necessarily smooth. Oddly JM and I are on the same page, as he said he really did feel the emotion. Poor Bre is left defending herself at the end of it all. Sigh. I was so hopeful for them.

Next up - Allie and Danny. I like them as a couple right off the top. They seem well suited and I am looking forward to watching them do the jive to Rock This Town by The Straycats.This number is choreographed by Melissa Williams and was super entertaining. I love that Allie has such ballerina hand and arm movements...! They have great timing throughout, it has lots of energy and enough good tricks to overlook the few stumbly parts. I really liked this and was glad that there was finally something to be excited about.

Luther calls Allie his favourite ballerina, saying 'y'all looked good, y'all danced good, it was great'. It was Blake's favourite number of the night and I giggled when he called Allie Miss Thang. I want him to call ME that! Ummm…Carra…I know you sometimes have some issues determining what side of the fence someone is on (if you know what I mean)….I’m fairly sure he’s not on yours… Fine, he's not on my side of the fence - then he's not on Allie's side of the fence either, and he STILL called her Miss Thang, and I STILL want him to call me that!

Tre agrees that it was also her favourite of the night and JM tells them they rocked dis town... At the very end I heard Danny say that Allie was sunshine. Awww... I'd call them safe for the night.

Kaitlyn and Izaak, the youngest couple on the show, are up next doing a theatre piece - I assume this is the same as Broadway? Choreographed by Sean Cheesman and dancing to All That Jazz from Chicago, I have to laugh when they show in the practice piece how hard of a time Izaak has having to smack Kaitlyn's ass.I really enjoyed this number, but I admit to being a bit of a sucker for theatre/Broadway, whatever... I liked Izaak's expressions and felt that both got into it.

The judges were alright with it - Luther said it was cool, but could have been more exaggerated, Blake enjoyed it but felt it looked a bit young.Tre felt they could have taken it to another level, but said that Izaak had the most potential for development of all the guys on the show. JM was not trilled, but agreed with Tre on the whole potential spiel. I actually thought they did much better than the judges gave them credit for.

Moving on to Lisa and Vincent... Lisa says that her confidence may come off as cocky, and hey, whaddya know, I completely agree with her. Now for any of you who read Lainey Gossip, you had to laugh out loud at the song selection... did it make you Rossum, by any chance? UGH!!! I was so disappointed in the Emmy Rossum song choice!!! There’s so much killer music to choose from and they pick Emmy fucking Rossum???

This is a contemporary piece choreographed by Stacey Tookey, and the song is Slow Me Down by Emily Rossum (she was in the movie version The Phantom of the Opera). Lainey has wrecked this song for me, and I am trying to take the number seriously.

It was an interesting number for sure, and I actually can't say that I didn't like it, in spite of all the factors. I thought it was sharp, strong. Aside from the music, I really liked this one. But I’m a sucker for contemporary.

The judges are all over it. Luther loved it, said it was from the heart. Blake threw out descriptors like stunning, phenomenal and raw.Tre felt they were the technically strongest couple of the night and JM told Canada to wake up, as this couple was a force to be recognized. Or reckoned with, whatever, JM, it's okay.

Based on the judges, I'm thinking they're safe.

On to disco from Lara and Miles. I wasn't sure how I felt about Lara going in, to be honest, but I came out of this quite liking her. I already liked Miles from the auditions, so I was feeling good about this one.

Oh! And there's the famous SYTYCD half dress! Finally - I've been waiting all night to see when that would surface.

Choreography by Melissa Williams, song Shake It by Metro Station.It has a very 70's roller skating kind of look to it, and I'm loving the white boots. What a great cheesy disco number! I feel Lara is a bit tight up in the shoulders and upper body, but man alive, Miles sure has that thrusting thing down pat! Oh! And... did they just kiss? Uh huh, they did! That'll get the crowd going... But whoops, something just rolled across the stage... Ah, an earring...I really liked this one. Great song choice, great choreography.

Leah says that the funny 'hip thing' from Miles just breaks her heart... Luther says it was fun, and that he's proud of Miles. Blake says it should get the fun award of the night, but tells Lara she needs to relax a little bit. Tre tells Miles that he no longer needs to be fearful of the disco - did I miss in the practice him saying he was afraid? Maybe I did... Tre also mentions that Lara needs to relax a bit. JM says it was fun, fluid, and calls Miles the John Travolta of the show. I'm hoping that's a good thing. Another couple I think that is safe though.

We have another hip hop number by Tanisha coming up, this time with Romina and Dario. Dario says he's happy to be working with sexy women and Romina says she has to practice the booty thing in front of her mirror... tee hee... that's kind of funny to me.

Dancing to Dangerous by Kardinal Offishall, Romina comes out in a shiny maid's outfit - hey! I wore one of those to a murder mystery a lifetime ago... ha! And Leah claims that's how she cleans her house...

I thought it was alright, but the timing seemed a bit off between them - and was this number shorter than all the rest, or was that just me? Regardless, it was better than the first hip-hop.

Luther said that Romina did a great job, but thought that Dario could tighten it up a little bit. Blake said that Romina killed it and called her the hottest girl of the night... I think I don't actually agree with that, but what do I know... He also said that Dario let her eat him alive out there. Tre cuts him off to say basically the same thing. And ha, before JM can say anything, Leah asks if she should call the medics, cuz she knows how he gets anytime a hot girl is on the stage. JM says yes, please call 911, don't even 'eh-sitate. At least that's what I think he says, hard to say with all the slobbering.

Tamina and Joey - I thought their practise monologues were... strange. Tamina says she has an alter ego? And Joey says he's not just a pretty face, or something? Maybe he's just not my type, but I never actually thought that he was...

Dancing a Tango by Gustav Vargas, I am immediately struck that Joey reminds me of the Tall, Thin Man in the Charlies Angels movies.

I think they used this song, Santa Maria by the Gotan Project in the last season of SYTYCD?

Another one I thought was just alright - I thought they were both kind of tight in the hips and shoulders.

Luther really liked the outfits, said it was good, but that they needed a better connection with each other. Blake agreed with that and said that it kind of fell flat.

Tre said something, and I must have drifted off, cuz I really didn't follow. JM said he'd put 3 hands on Tamina if he could. I'm concerned for her.

Last up for the night are Caroline and Jesse. Clarence Ford choreographs a 70's-vibe jazz piece to Soul Man by Sam and Dave. They both come out in matching outfits with big hair, and I can't tell who is who. I guess that's the point to start with. I find it a bit messy in some of the flips... But high energy...

Oh! Now I know who Caroline is, since she stripped off the orange jail suit. That's better. Okay, over the top costuming really bugs me (the afros and orange suits). It completely distracts from the dancers and the dance. I’m sure everyone watching spent part of the time trying to figure which was which and wasn’t fully watching the dance.

Luther says they are two of the strongest dancers on the show and says they are very x10 good. He admits to some mistakes, but overall he likes it. Blake says he's not going to focus on the mistakes (I wonder then, the point of judging... is... ?) and that he liked it, it was fun.

Tre also wants to ignore the mistakes, saying it's hard to judge a number that is retro/jazz/pop. I wonder why that is. JM says they went 'full owwwt.'

In closing, Leah asks the judges who they liked best. I expect the usual 'I love them all!' and am happy to get an immediate answer from Luther - Allie and Danny. Blake starts off with an "all of them" but then narrows it down to Lisa and Vincente. Tre concedes that the Romina/Dario and the Caroline/Jesse pairing is 'unusual' which makes me think she is more saying who she thinks wasn't so hot... JM says Arassay and Nico, and I am troubled that once again we are on the same page.

Results tomorrow night - so we'll see who the first to leave the island is...

As a side note, I saw a trailer for the next episode of Grey's Anatomy, and okay, I'll bite. It looks decent...

Do You Think Sarah Palin is Qualified to Serve as Vice President of the United States?

PBS wants to know what you think!

http://www.pbs.org/now/polls/poll-435.html

It's something like watching a spoof... except... it's not...

Best line?

"...you need to pick up one of those how many ever newspapers you read, what was it, INFINITY?..."

So You Think You Can Dance Canada: Semi Finals!

Alright...right off the top I’m going to tell you, there will be names missed and spelled wrong all through this post. The show moved really fast tonight and even with the magic of PVR, it was hard to grab all of it.

So we’re starting out with nearly 200 dancers here in the finals. Our judges through finals week are Jean Marc Genereux, Tre Armstrong, Blake McGrath and Luther Brown.

Everyone’s nervous and doesn’t know what style is coming first. Emmanuel gets pissy about appropriate footwear. Cue eye rolling.

The dancers are brought into the theatre to listen to the judges usual over-metaphoring and ‘bring its’. And we’re off to learn some Hip Hop with Luther.

Have you ever noticed that choreography involves a lot of sound-effect-ing? Odd. (Especially with Blake! I don't think I heard an actual "word", say like a dance step or something helpful... but lots of BAM! and WHAM!)

Over a quarter of the dancers are eliminated over the course of this round. Emmanuel Sandhu, Allie Bertram, the ballet dancer, Nicolas Archambault (love), Francis Lafreniere, Danny Arbour, Izaac the medieval knight, Taylor the aspiring model, Jared Cox (I think that was his last name) and Juliet Irons are all through. Tiger Son is out and cries like a slapped kitten. (Come on now, no one knows how very hard it was for Tiger. It was really. really. HARD!) Sara Liang is out ‘cause she didn’t really dance at all. TK, the rubics cube guy, Meaghan Wegg, the Circus performer and Tiffany Anderson are all out.

Time for Day 1 Dance for Your Life!

Natalli Reznick dances and I get a little out of breath just watching her. She’s through to the next round. Jade Anderson seems to be a master of the ass-roll/shake. The judges like his personality and keep him for the next round. Ferdinand Topel’s personality doesn’t help him enough and he’s out. Tyrell Witherspoon is dancing for his dead mother to ‘Walking in Memphis’....awwwww... Doesn’t work out for him, he’s gone. Joey Bothwell... I can only repeat Blake’s sentiments; “We asked you to dance for your life and it looked like you were dancing for a free dinner”. Hee. See ya. Shawn Fraser, Paul Koos and Arassay Reyes are all through while Achmeal Samajuste (?), Pardis Starchini (?), Candace Simpson and her brother are all out.

It’s Day 2 and we’re starting out with Tre Armstrong’s disco!

First up is Jeremy Tran Hu. He doesn’t do well and is asked to Dance For His Life. On his way out he says “I’m not good in choreography...I won’t be able to do it”. Dude, you're on the wrong show. He ultimately makes it through to the next round.

I can’t tell who all is in the next group of dancers, but they’re so good the judges are all up dancing and send them all through.

Kaitlyn Fitzgerald, Shane Simpson, Graham Goodall, Jesse Catava, Tatiana Parker, Romina D'Ugo and Mira Schwartzburg are all through. Tianne Lin Trong is through as well, but she’s injured her ankle so she’s going to have a tough go for the rest.

DJ Dove, who hit every audition trying make it through is downed by the disco. Fly away home now.

Emmanuel Sandhu and his ego have to Dance for His Life - he makes it through to the next round.

Hey! It’s Jeremiah Hughes! He’s the guy who auditioned in the US, made it to Vegas and threw a hissy fit! Is it evil that I’m kind of hoping for another hissy fit? None so far, but he has to Dance For His Life and will make it through to the next round.

Others that make it through on DFYL are Dario Milard, Miles Faber, Julia Harnet, Kevin Howe, Mike Condissomething, Jared Potts, James Jones and Justin Jackson.

For the second half of Day 2 we’re doing the Foxtrot with Jean Marc and France. To start us off on a creepy note, Jean Marc does a weird pelvic thrust that I never need to see again. (His wife must have a really good sense of humour.)

Okay there are a lot of names and dances...some are good, some are not so much and some are lousy. Going straight through to the next round are Lisa Auguste, Joey Matt, Hania Vaza, Mira Schwarzburg, Caroline Torti, Vincent Olivier Noiseaux, Pierre Bouttiez, Kaitlyn, Tianne Lin Trong, Ricky Cooperman, Ashley Irvin, Danny Arbour, Kevin Mylrea, Denitsa Ikanamova, Allie Bertram, Francis, Claudia Primo, Nicolas Archambault (love) and Chloe Schultz.

In a cruel twist of fate, the dancers aren’t going for some much needed rest, but being separated into groups and given random songs with which they’ll have to choreograph a dance routine to. We’ve now found ourselves in the whiny bitchfest portion of the semi finals!

Group 1 doesn’t pull it together at all. Izaac, Jared and Juliet are sentenced to Dance For Their Lives while everyone else is through.

Aside from Group 1 they make it look like all the rest are really good and everyone is staying. Group 10’s performance is awesome and the judges love it. JM fucks around with them a little bit and really freaks them out...it’s pretty hysterical ‘cause everyone bought it. (I totally bought into it - that was just MEAN!)

All 3 dancers that were sent to DFYL are staying.

The final choreography round is contemporary with Blake. Half of the remaining dancers will be cut this round. It looks like it’s a struggle for a lot of them.

Staying this round are

Denitsa, Joey Matt, Nicolas (love), Emmanuel (he’s starting to look a little humbled), Natalli Reznick, Chris and Jesse.

Jeremiah’s out and yet, no hissy fit. Disappointing. Tianne Lin Trong is also out which is probably for the best...her ankle looks really gross.

We’re now to the final solos. There will be no critiques here, so apparently that means we don’t need to see any of the dances. There’s a short montage and we get straight to revealing the Top 20.

Emmanuel Sandhu is.....OUT!!! I really thought his tricks were going to sneak him through. (Did you see the look in his eyes when Tre first said no, like "Are you freaking KIDDING me? You're saying NO? To ME?) Those judges...smart folk (I reserve the right to retract that statement at any time). He’s crying like a little girl with a skinned knee.

Alright, done gloating.

The Top 20 Dancers are: Arassay Reyes! Dario Milard! Lisa Auguiste! Allie Bertram! Lara Smythe! Jesse! Kaitlyn! Vincent Olivier! Tamina! Joey! Caroline! Kevin Mylrea! Izaak Smith! Romina D'Ugo! Bre Wong! Miles Faber! Nicolas Archambault! Natalli! Danny Arbour! Francis!

So that’s it for the semi finals! While I appreciate getting on to the competition quickly, I almost wish this was spread out over two episodes. It was really fast and hard to follow well.

If any of you want to point out my spelling mistakes or missed names, please do so in the comments! I’ll edit the post to add in whatever help you guys can offer.

First competition show is next Wednesday. Look for a new SYTYCD Canada post then. We’ll post other various interesting tidbits throughout the week, so come back often!

I'm picking my early favourites much sooner than I have in any other season: Nicolas Archambault and Arassay Reyes...! They both just make me happy. I also feel pretty good about Kevin Mylrea, and am curious about Natalli, once we get her to move past the heels/leg warmers/hoodie look...

Cheers!