In which I discuss who will win So You Think You Can Dance…

As is my custom, I fell behind on my recaps, but I’m actually quite sure I will finish them, even if it takes until Christmas. That said, I did want to at least post about my reactions to last night’s performance finale episode briefly, with the intention of going into far more detail later.



First thing: I couldn’t have been happier with the final 4. All season long, I’ve felt a little apathetic towards this crew of 20, which has been hard to deal with. I was so emotionally invested last year in Sabra and Neil (and Pasha) that I was kind of a mess on finale night. Not having that connection with the dancers has made the experience this year less magical and exciting, but you know, lightning so very rarely strikes twice. However, over the weeks, I have grown to appreciate, if not actually love, Courtney and Joshua. Katee and Twitch are also fantastic, but I won’t lie straight to your face and tell you I love them. I would have traded Mark for Twitch in a heartbeat, even though that makes me public enemy number one to most of the fans of the show. We’ll take about Twitch more in the recaps that I will eventually post (especially the whole “4 real” phenomenon, which I LOATHE!, and which I am convinced is entirely Twitch’s doing).

I can’t believe these four kids learned so many dances in one week. That was a sh*t-ton of dancing. They each did three partner dances, a solo, and a final group routine PLUS the huge group routine for the finale which we haven’t even seen. I mean… how are they functioning?? I would be puking up all of my internal organs after all of that, and I’m not even kidding. I suppose I have to stand up and applaud them for even making it through the night, besides performing well, and that thought makes me go on to another thought, which is: maybe it was all too much.

By the end of the night, Courtney looked done, and Joshua looked kind of piqued as well. Their jive was kind of painful, to be frank. A part of me is grateful to the show for eliminating a lot of the useless filler that usually comes with these kinds of shows, but I would rather they NOT do that if the dances have to suffer. If I remember correctly, last year’s finalists performed the same amount of numbers (minus the solos), so last night was nothing new, but I think the dances last night were far more intensive and athletic… Twitch and Joshua did a Trepak for god’s sake! I’m saying: these four dancers got a much tougher workout than Sabra and Co. and while I was completely impressed, I’m not sure it was all worth it.

In my heart of hearts, I’m pulling for Courtney, because she is the light of my life. Don’t laugh at me, but I totally started crying before she did during the judges’ comments after her solo. She is a bundle of joy, and what she has achieved technically is remarkable. I don’t believe she has a prayer of winning, but in a way, she has already won… at least for me.

Katee has been excellent, and I’m tempted to say she’s the absolute best overall dancer this show has ever had. To be absolutely fair, she’s had some luck with the dance styles – I think she has performed more contemporary routines than any other dancer (confirm this), but she has shown amazing versatility when it counts. Her only big weakness is her personality, which has been elusive throughout the season. At first, I thought she just wasn’t getting enough screen-time, aside from her “awkward-dancing”, but now I think she’s just a lovely young girl who doesn’t really have a personality, which choreographers will LOVE, but it won’t win her any reality T.V. dance competitions.

Twitch is the great thorn in my side. He is without a doubt the crowd-favorite, and he has been since the first day of auditions, thanks to his screen-time last year, and he has ridden that wave of public goodwill through some shaky routines. I can’t spite him his fanbase, because he is very easy to like, but ever since his second or third week with Kherington, I’ve been stifling my inner voices, all of which scream words like over-rated, goofy, and, pandering. I stifle the voices because thinking that way makes me a supreme asshole, because Twitch is amazing and how DARE I not love him?? Look, this is really easy. He’s a terrific dancer, and he’s been passable in the styles outside of hip-hop, and he’s kind of funny (I guess), but I can’t, in any fashion, come around to liking him. Maybe it’s the fact that the judges have been pimping him from day one. Maybe it’s the fact that all of his solo routines have been exactly the same, proving to me that he’s a one-note. Maybe I’m blind. Who knows!? I don’t like him.

Now Joshua is a totally different story. In the grand tradition of So You Think You Can Dance success stories, he’s an untrained dancer who claims a street style as his main cup of tea, but is so excellent in ballroom and contemporary and everything else, that it’s hard to believe he’s ever done anything but dance. He’s the proverbial natural, capable of out-dancing and out-shining even the most well-trained dancers on the floor. Now, don’t be fooled, he IS trained, because he said he has taken classes, even if he hasn’t taken as much as the others. But I don’t mind so much that the judges keep saying untrained, because it isn’t too far from the truth compared to someone like Katee, who has been dancing her whole life.

It’s pointless to try and predict the wanton whims of the American voting public, so I’ll just record for posterity the outcome which pleases me most.

4th place: Twitch
3rd place: Katee
2nd place: Joshua
1st place: Courtney

A more realistic outcome that still manages to please me would be…
4th place: Katee
3rd place: Twitch
2nd place: Courtney
1st place: Joshua

And based on the voting history of the show thus far and the dances last night and the cold, cynical light of reality, the results will probably be…
4th: Courtney
3rd: Katee
2nd: Twitch
1st: Joshua

You know, I’ll be happy as long as long as Joshua wins.

So You Think You Can Dance Top 10...

Last week, we lost Thayne’s big toothy grin and Comfort’s trick shoulder, leaving us with a handful of superior dancers and Jessica. Well before the airing of the Top 10 performance show, the fan sites erupted with the rumor of Jessica’s abdication from the competition, attributed to a mysterious injury or something. In her place, the show has invited back Comfort, which gives America the chance to get rid of her all over again. On reality shows, it’s best not to believe rumors, but sure enough, Jessica is conspicuously absent from the opening montage. Cat brings her out immediately, and Jessica informs the world that she has suffered two broken ribs as well as cracked another, and will thus cede her position. Now, I’m sure her ribs are, in fact, broken, but really… so is her spirit. She must be so relieved… I know I am.



The other important note: the couples have been split up, meaning the coattails have been cut. Who has been under the false impression that America loves them, when really we just love their partner? Come on, America. It’s time to break some hearts!



First up, Joshua and Courtney. This should be good. As sad as I was to see my beloved Team Hobbits split up, I think the world of Joshua, so Courtney is in good hands. Their first dance will be a Hip-hop routine by Dave Scott. It’s a mad scientist routine, with Joshua sporting a lab coat and Courtney’s hair teased to oblivion. The routine is cute, if not a little goofy, and Courtney impresses us all with her ability to hit hard. I do have to ask, though… have we discovered another brand of hip-hop to add to the pantheon? If Tabitha and Napoleon are doing lyrical hip-hop, is this comical hip-hop? And if so, what IS stand-alone hip-hop? Does it even matter? Anyway, Courtney is certainly a sexy Frankenstein monster, and, as always, Joshua is incredible.



Kherington and Mark have been paired up, and their first dance is a two-step, which… really? A country two-step? Have we really gone from Bollywood to the Texas two-step? We must be running out of dance styles. The very pregnant choreographer assures us that this style is not as easy as it looks, and their version of it is even more difficult… very fast, tricky turns, and complicated foot-work. Kherington and Mark are game, even if this style is as far out of their comfort zones as possible, and strangely, I’m kind of looking forward to it. And then… wow. It’s bad. I will often say that I like a dance even if I don’t like the way the dancers perform it, because I’ve been watching dance shows long enough to have a pretty good idea of when the dancing is bad versus when the choreography is bad. This is certainly bad dancing. Both of them look terrified, and they seem very under-rehearsed. It’s amazing to me that these two could perfect complicated contemporary and ballroom routines, and yet this one makes them look like they’ve never danced with a partner before. The judges seem to place the blame on Kherington, claiming that she showed an obvious and matter-of-fact distrust in Mark’s partnering, and once they showed footage, I couldn’t help but agree. The bottom line was neither dancer knew where their hands and feet were supposed to be at any given time, and for the first time since I can remember, a dance on this show was an unmitigated failure. I do hope they try again with this style, because it would help break up a rather monotonous series of routines (all the hip-hop, contemporary, and ballroom can get tedious), but they may have to dumb it down just a bit. On a positive note, though, Mark in a cowboy hat did all sorts of things for me. Giddy-up, indeed.



Twitch is stuck with Comfort this week, and while I know that sounds kind of mean, let’s just be honest! Getting paired with Twitch is the absolute best thing for Comfort, though, because Twitch is universally adored. Their first dance is a smooth waltz, and I’m asleep before the dance even starts.



Ooooh, Will and Katee are together, and this should be amazing. Personally, I think Will is probably the best all-around male dancer, even if his personality is holding him back a little bit. The same goes for Katee, except I’m not sure she even has a personality. Their first dance is a Broadway routine by Tyce Diorio, set to Sit Down You’re Rockin’ the Boat, from Guys and Dolls. Will is playing up-tight and conservative, while Katee is playing… um… milk-maid? I’m not sure. I think she’s supposed to be a slut or something, but the pigtails just say farm hand to me… Anyway, the dance is very, very Broadway, which is fine, and they’ve even got a massive boat prop, you know, to either sit down in or rock or both. At the end, Will rips his shirt open, because he’s incapable of performing a dance without baring his rippled, tight chest… not that I have a problem with that. I will say that this routine was probably too reliant on story and props, well… more so than I prefer, and I say that because now, several weeks later, all I can remember about the routine was that there was a boat. There may have been dancing, sure… but I know there was a boat. I’m saying that’s not a good thing.



Yay, Crazy Sonya is back with another contemporary routine. This time, she will work with Gev and Chelsie, and I can’t wait to see it. Gev, like Courtney, got lucky with his partner this week, because Chelsie is the only other dancer besides Joshua who I trust with Team Hobbits. Sonya’s first trip out (remember: it was with Matt and Kourtni) was only so-so for me, but I LOVED this routine. I love how connected the choreography was to the words and the music of the song (These Arms of Mine by Otis Redding). I think my fav moment is the lazy waltz around the stage; see if you can spot it in the video. I mean, it just seems to fit. Their bodies are so loose and free, almost like puppets with loose strings… I mean, perfection!

Time for round two. Joshua and Courtney are back with a rumba, and this one will be set to Hero by Enrique Iglesias. I’m not ashamed… I love this song. Appropriately, the piece is about a man’s promise to be his woman’s protector, illustrated by some dramatic lifts and intimate closed positions. I don’t think Courtney has ever performed a ballroom routine I didn’t like, so add another tick mark to her scorecard. What I love about Joshua, and the judges have said this too, is even though ballroom isn’t his cup of tea in the technical sense, he always nails the emotional aspect… the storytelling. It doesn’t matter if his hips aren’t quite right or if he fumbles a step or two. He partners well, and he brings out the character without fail. He just gets it.



Kherington and Mark are back to redeem themselves (hopefully) with a Tyce Diorio jazz routine. Tyce makes it clear in the pre-package that this dance isn’t about anything. In fact, there’s no story whatsoever. This will be important later. Quite a few positives to point out: great song (Canned Heat by Jamiroquai), very interesting choreography, and Mark is sleeveless again. Will I ever get tired of seeing his arms? For myself, I actually really enjoyed the routine, because I’m one of those people who thinks all the so-called stories can get kind of old. If I had my way, these kinds of dances, in which the dancing itself takes the focus, would be the norm as opposed to the exception. But that’s me. The judges didn’t like it at all, and were way harsh, in my opinion. After watching it over a few times, I’m starting to see what they were saying. They claimed Mark was distant from the dance, and that he really struggles when he isn’t telling a story. I don’t disagree, but I think their criticism applies more to Kherington than Mark. She looked incredibly uninvolved. Uninvolved is a difficult term, and I only use it because my music teacher used to throw it at me all the time. Uninvolved means you performed the piece correctly and it was good, but there was no spark… no sense of personal attachment to the piece. I liken it to a waiter at a restaurant who gives exemplary service but never smiles or says hello or asks how everything was. I don’t expect a waiter to kiss my ass or be my best friend or anything, but they should at least be personable and, you know, pleasant. So Kherington and Mark performed the dance well, all the necessities were there, but they seemed uninvolved, which took some of the juice out of it. To be fair, involvement is a tricky, very relative, aspect of performance, but you know when it’s there and you miss it when it’s not. The judges, apparently, really missed it.



Comfort has been touched by an angel, because she and Twitch have drawn Hip-Hop as their second dance. Choreographed by Dave Scott, it’s a futuristic dance party set to Chris Brown’s Forever (I LOVE THAT FRIKKIN’ SONG!!) and it is AWESOME!! This… is the hip-hop I like. Ok, seriously, if Comfort and Twitch didn’t hit this one of the park then they would both deserve to go home, and luckily, they sure do. Li’l C, who is guest-judging, described the routine as “buck”, which he then defines as, “when internal artistry meets physical expression.” I have no idea what that means but it sure sounds complimentary.

Katee and Will have drawn the second new dance style of the evening. This time, it’s a Pas de Deux choreographed by Dwight Rhoden and Desmond Richardson, two seriously amazing contemporary ballet dancers/instructors/choreographers. I shouldn’t have to tell you what a serious coup it is for this show to have someone like him choreographing. He’s, like, bigger than Debbie Allen. And lucky for this show, he gets to work with Will and Jessica, the two dancers least likely to embarrass him. Now the Pas de Deux is a technical ballet term, but put simply, it’s a dance for two, usually about love or whatever. There is usually some internal structure to the dance, but it won’t be that deep for this two-minute routine. Mr. Richardson, and I feel like I have to call him Mr. Richardson out of respect, explains that it’s more about two people and their thoughts, expressed with movement. Well, whatever it is, it is incredibly beautiful. Except for a tiny glitch during a trick, an obviously very difficult trick, Katee and Will are superb. Their lines are exquisite, first of all, and the shapes they make are beyond anything else we’ve ever seen on this show. Will is certainly in his element with this dance as he shows off his powerful leaps, his flexibility, and his strength. I mean, some of the lifts defy gravity. The only thing I didn’t like was the music, and that’s only because I’m still not comfortable with the idea of someone covering Imagine, even if it is a cute little puppy dog like David Archuleta. But I’m picky… just watch…

This is completely unrelated, but does Will have something against shirts or what?



Finally, Chelsie and Gev will perform a jive, set to a Brian Setzer joint, and I kind of feel bad for these two having to follow the Pas de Deux. Anyway, it’s a high energy number that’s fun enough to watch, as jives go. The judges point out how much better Chelsie was at the style, which is a big no-brainer considering she’s a ballroom dancer, but I thought Gev kept up with her as well as any of the other male dancers would have. Plus, he’s Team Hobbits, so… YAY!!

If it wasn’t obvious from the videos I posted, my three favorite routines were Gev and Chelsie’s Contemporary routine, Comfort and Twitch’s Hip-Hop, and Katee and Will’s Pas de Deux. I should also mention that each dancer performed a solo, but I won’t talk about them because I barely even noticed. I applaud Nigel’s efforts to keep the show from being 80% filler, but GOD it gets boring.

On elimination night, we are treated to the first ever group Bollywood routine. I’m not gonna lie, I didn’t like it nearly as much as Katee and Joshua’s routine… I don’t know, I guess I just wanted more. In answer to that, Cat tells us that there will be two more group routines: A Mia Michael’s number for the girls, and the guys will have a mystery choreographer.

The Mia Michaels routine is breath-taking. I’ve read that a lot of people didn’t like it, but I was totally into it. So much so, that I’m gonna post it!

The guys’ number wasn’t so great for me. The only positive thing I can say is I enjoyed seeing them all in white tank-tops. I really, really like that look on guys.



They aren’t quite wife-beaters (because wife-beaters can be a little trashy), but they show off the arms and the chests and the backs… everything that is good in this world. The surprise choreographer turned out to be Nigel, of course, and you know… it’s his show; he can do what he wants.

When the results are revealed, Mark and Gev are the bottom two guys and Comfort and Kherington are the bottom two girls. I wasn’t surprised by any of this, because I figured Mark was doomed after last night’s display, and Will, Joshua, and Twitch have been crowd favorites since the beginning. Honestly, I don’t want any of the guys to leave. I like all five of them so much more than any of the girls, with the exception of Courtney. Kherington totally deserves to be in the bottom after last night, and Comfort has never been able to get America on her side.

When Gev was eliminated I was sad (NOOOOOOOooooooooo), but keeping Mark is a good consolation, as long as he keeps wearing those tank-tops. I was shocked (SHOCKED!) when Kherington was eliminated, but I figured Comfort was saved by that fantastic Hip-Hop routine. After some thought, I think America got it right. Choosing from the guys will only get harder, but at least Comfort is an easy choice next week.

So You Think You Can Dance Top 12...

It seems moot to even have a show this week, because without Kourtni and Matt around to make them look good, Comfort and Thayne must know they’ve reached the end. I’m not ashamed to admit it (ok, I’m a little ashamed), but I think about this sort of thing a lot: what would Comfort and Thayne have to do, short of mass hypnosis, to get America on their side? And what would Comfort and Thayne have to do, short of sexual favors, to convince the judges to let them stay over the likes of Twitchington or Team Hobbits? The easy answer seems to be, “Well, Reeva… they could, like, dance good and stuff,” but I think it’s more complicated than that. Clearly, America doesn’t like them – or I should say, America doesn’t like them as much as they like the others, so I guess they only thing they can do is show up, smile pretty, and try not to suck. Meanwhile, everyone else can coast…



Oh, and for real, the picture on the left is Cat on Performance Night and the picture on the right is on Results Night. It kind of looks like a before and after shot… what was Cat thinking on Wednesday?? She looks like she’s just had a hard day of teaching kindergarten on the beach…



First up this week are Chelsie and Mark. I’m not gonna lie, I missed their first dance because I fell asleep during the Simpsons and didn’t wake up until I heard Mary Murphy start squawking. They looked hot, though… sleeveless is a good look for Mark. Anyway, I caught it on YouTube later and it was apparently a Salsa. It was flirty and fun, but ultimately hard to remember (which probably explains why I slept through it).



Later that evening, they performed a Tyce Diorio Broadway routine to the tune of Smokey Joe’s Café, and I’m happy to say I really enjoyed it. Tyce Diorio’s routines have been rather hit-or-miss for me this season, to the point that I think he’s missing more than hitting… but this was a hit. Mark was sleeveless again (good choice), Chelsie was appropriately smoky and hot, and they both played their parts very well. I got a little nervous when Mark’s suspenders starting acting up, but then I thought… that’s the kind of wardrobe malfunction I like. Sadly, his pants stayed up.

Comfort and Thayne must know they’re on borrowed time, so dance choice this week was crucial, and even though I know it’s kind of pointless, I can’t help but pull for them, because he’s so lovely, and she’s such an underdog, and they keep getting struck with bad dances… I just want them to land in some good luck, that’s all. And look… they do. They draw a TabNap Hip-Hop routine and a Mandy Moore contemporary joint. Other pairs have had great success with these styles, especially the lyrical hip-hop, so if they blow it, at least we know it isn’t the source material. Hip-Hop is first, and, I’ll say it again, Thayne just can’t pull off thug. Why do they make him try? To be fair, he did his best, and it was really quite good, but if Comfort isn’t even buying it (which she clearly isn’t), then why the hell should we? The choreography is really good, though, and I immediately imagine it with a different couple and like it even more.



The same thing happens with the Mandy Moore routine. It’s such a great number – different dancers would have made me love it – but Comfort and Thayne just Do. Not. Connect. I’m tempted to blame Comfort, because it seems like Thayne is trying so hard and since I like him I want to give him the benefit of the doubt, but there’s no mistaking the freeze these two have for one another. I will say that neither performance was as bad as the judges made them out to be, in my opinion, but I think the judges are just tired of delaying the inevitable. They’re also setting up the easy elimination tomorrow night. This show has gotten rather transparent, hasn’t it?

Next up, Jessica and Will. I’m getting really tired of this show forcing me to like Jessica. I’m not in a coma… I can see what they’re trying to do, and I don’t appreciate it. Or her. They will perform a contemporary routine by Tyce Diorio and (Dun Dun Duuuuuuunnnnnhhhh) The Dreaded Quickstep.



If you will recall, most of Tyce’s non-Broadway routines have an African flavor, which I only know because they tell me it is so. I mean, what was African about that routine that Comfort and Chris did? When I hear anything by Marilyn Manson, I don’t say to myself, “Wow, this would work well for African choregraphy…” But then again, I guess that’s why I’m sitting here recapping at my shit job instead of working on the show, right? Anyway, this night’s routine doesn’t have a story, per say, but Tyce directs them to think of themselves as the first man and woman on Earth, so everyone assumes he’s talking about Adam and Eve. The music is minimal and evocative (Silence from the Unfaithful Soundtrack, obviously (but not really)) and provides an almost blank slate on which Tyce can draw a beautiful picture. Will is shirtless (yay!) and sporting some short shorts, so all I see are abs and legs and… I’m not complaining. Jessica is there, too. When it’s over, the audience is very appreciative, if not slightly awed, and the judges are very complimentary. Besides the fact that it was danced incredibly well, this was one of those routines that transcend the show, in a way, because it was real art. It’s something I would expect to see in a real venue after having paid a nice wad of cash. It obviously challenged the audience (and me) because it wasn’t just two people we like performing a crowd-pleasing number to a song we recognize… it was so much more. Anyway, loved it.

The quickstep, on the other hand, was as uncomfortable and unmemorable as I expected it to be, so I need not dwell on it further.



Team Hobbits, aka Courtney and Gev, performed a Cha-Cha and Mandy Moore jazz routine, and even though they didn’t get many accolades, they remain my default favorites. I must mention that the Cha-Cha was choreographed by Season 3 alums Pasha and Anya, and I desperately wish this show could find more reasons to have Pasha. I mean, he is ratings gold. I would watch that man have a root canal. Well, he’s as fine as ever, and the routine he puts together for Courtney and Gev is so much fun. I’m not sure if Courtney knows it, but she really shines on these Latin Ballroom dances. She’s got a smoldering sexiness, perfect for these styles, and she and Gev just seem to have a ton of fun dancing them. Gev is such a trooper, too, and even though he does kind of slip into the background sometimes, he’s holding his own.

Later, Mandy Moore’s jazz routine, about two kids lost in the jungle, is cheeky and bouncy, giving Gev a chance to be silly (which suits him). While this won’t go down as the most exciting dance of the season, I smiled all the way through it, and that has to count for something.



Now for Twitchington. They started with a Krump routine that I just did not like, and I had to meditate for a while on why… I think I like the style of Krump, especially when it’s done well, but I guess I can’t tell the difference between Krumping and regular hard-hitting hip-hop, at least in the context of this show. Maybe I don’t like it because of the obvious disadvantage it poses to these white contemporary dancers… not because I feel sorry for them but because none of them can do it, so the dancing suffers. If I want to watch white people dance poorly, I’ll watch Dancing with the Stars. Anyway, this routine bored me to tears, regardless of whether or not Kherington managed to be “buck” and, surprisingly, I wasn’t even enthused to watch Twitch, even though this is supposedly right up his alley. Again, I feel like I should like this stuff, so maybe I’m out of touch?



Their other routine was a Smooth Tango, and for God’s sake, someone is going to have to do a better job of explaining the differences between the Tangos. There’s the Tango, the Argentine Tango, and now… the smooth Tango, and I mean, can’t we just call them all Tangos and go home? Anyway, the storyline for this dance is a cheap rip-off of the Mr. and Mrs. Smith dynamic, and ya’ll… I didn’t like it at all. I thought it was tedious. Both dancers seemed tentative, and neither one brought any fire or passion. Except for one fairly impressive lift, NOTHING HAPPENED! I can’t rag on the choreography, either, because I feel strongly that a different couple (Chelsie and Mark, maybe) could have totally sold it.

And here’s Katee and Joshua, bringing up the rear. Their first dance was a Viennese Waltz, and I’m so sorry but I don’t remember anything about it… like, at all… and even though I’m writing this three weeks later, I can promise you that I couldn’t remember this routine five minutes after watching it. I’m sure it was magical and beautiful and touching and all that because it’s Katee and Joshua, after all, but seriously…

What we really must discuss is the Bollywood routine. I think this dance marked the first time this entire season that I’ve actually been excited about a routine. Like, this was the first time I actually felt compelled to watch it on YouTube so soon after the show that I couldn’t find it because no one had posted it yet. Since then, I’ve watched it a gazillion times. I have a vague, unsatisfied fascination with Bollywood, and I say vague because I’m not even sure what I like about it, and I say unsatisfied because I know so little about it that I have no idea where to start looking on the interwebs for more! We have an Indian restaurant here in town that plays Bollywood on giant screens, and most of the time I forget to eat (ok, that’s a lie) because I’m completely absorbed by the videos. Anyway, I loved this…

On elimination night, we start with a group routine from Nappy Tabs, or TabNap, or Tapoleon, or however you wanna call ‘em. For the record, I’m totally on this particular train (I have no interest in the hot tamale one, thank you very much)… I think Tabitha and Napoleon are frikkin’ awesome. And since the last few group routines have been, in a word, bad, I was very pleased with this one, if only because it wasn’t boring.

The bottom 3 was hard to predict this week, or rather, two out of the three couples were hard to predict. The first two couples on stage were Katee/Joshua and Comfort/Thayne. I like to think it took every ounce of Cat’s willpower not to roll her eyes and just escort Comfort and Thayne backstage herself, but no, we must go through the motions: Katee and Joshua are safe and Comfort and Thayne are not. The next two couples were Jessica and Will and Chelsie and Mark. I wasn’t sure about this pair-up because Will and Jessica had that awesome contemporary routine while Chelsie and Mark had two good, but not all that memorable, routines. Well, the national distaste for Jessica struck again, though I swear I could hear the audience collectively screaming excuses to Will, “It’s not you, dear, it’s her!” Even sadder, I think Jessica could hear them, too. Finally, in a surprise for me, Twitchington is finally (FINALLY!) called out for their less than stellar performances and Team Hobbits is safe! I have absolutely nothing against Twitch or Kherington, but I was thrilled to see that America wasn’t going to let them slide through purely based on Twitch’s exuberant personality. This show has the best audience of any I’ve seen… seriously.

Is it bad that I’ve stopped watching the solo routines all together? I don’t get anything out of them and I really can’t fathom what the judges see in them, either. I wouldn’t be upset if they did away with them all together. Anyway, the eliminations are not surprising in the least… Comfort and Thayne are booted. Both seem grateful for the experience, and Comfort seems surprised that she made it this far at all (little does she know). I was sad about Thayne not making the tour, although, don’t they usually take the Top 12 (the last two serving as alternates)? I still feel like Thayne got screwed by the Fates, because I think he and Chelsea T. (remember her?) would have been awesome had they drawn better dances… now we’ll never know. Comfort, on the other hand, never proved to me that she could effectively dance anything besides her own genre. Many people have commented that her only real flaw was her inability to connect with her partners, but you know, I’ve said it before… I wouldn’t expect a girl like Comfort to have chemistry with the likes of Chris and Thayne. But since it is a competition, she must rise above, and… she didn’t.

I feel I must mention the strange implications of Nigel’s comments during the eliminations. After dismissing Comfort and Thayne (thus saving Jessica), Nigel says something along the lines of, “the truth is we’d rather get rid of two girls.” Of course, the camera flashes straight to Jessica, and the nation nods in agreement (or at least I do). This, plus Mia’s comments from the night before (she said, “Will, I think you’re tired of carrying her. You need a new partner.”)… OUCH!! I mean, I don’t like Jessica either, but that was way harsh, don’t you think? Anyway, my point is: Jessica is going to break some ribs in the next few days and drop out of the competition. Coincidence??

So You Think You Can Dance Top 14

Ok, sue me for just now getting around to talking about So You Think You Can Dance. But as I was starting to dive into it, I remembered why I stopped recapping in the first place. The Top 14 show had fourteen dances. FOURTEEN. That has to be a record. I can’t recap fourteen dances. I mean, I have a lot of free time, but not that much free time. So, let’s just hit the highs and lows.

Speaking of lows, Cat Deeley wore this…



The only commentary I can muster for this look is, “Ewww.”

Last week, we lost Chelsie and Chris, so the new couple to watch is Comfort and Thayne. I’m not going to lie, I was a little worried for these two kids. Comfort really struggled through all the genres that weren’t hip-hop or krumping, and I don’t think anyone is excited about seeing Thayne act all thug. Seriously, this pairing is most incongruous, so it’s all going to come down to what dances they pull from the hat. But we’ll get to that in due time.

First up are Will and Jessica. Will continues to gain momentum, even as he’s carrying Jessica like a beast of burden. Meanwhile, Jessica continues to try very hard, and yet, not be all that great. I read a lot of recap blogs and television fan sites, and no one has been able to articulate what it is about Jessica that just… doesn’t sit well, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t even matter. We don’t like her.

Of their two dances, the lyrical jazz piece choreographed by Mandy Moore is the highlight. It’s the shirt dance, so called because the two dancers fiddle with an oversized dress shirt throughout. And not just any shirt… Will’s shirt. That’s right, he dances shirtless, which is very hot, because his body is ripped. The shirt prop is used masterfully, and for the first time, Jessica seems to be enjoying herself – totally in the moment of the dance. She’s dancing the dance instead of the dance dancing… on her… ok, I’m not quite sure where I was going with that, the point is: it was really good.

Comfort and Thayne are next, and lucky for them, they’ve drawn Broadway and the Smooth waltz. While these dances aren’t going to be anything to write home about, at least it isn’t Krumping followed by contemporary. I’m saying: both genres are equally out of both dancers’ comfort zones, which should be an advantage, because neither dancer should be able to outshine the other. The Broadway routine, despite the fact that it’s set to one of my favorite tunes from West Side Story, is forgettable at best. I feel like they’re both trying sooo hard, especially when it comes to chemistry, and yet… I got nothing. I feel nothing. I don’t believe it. But actually, I don’t expect to believe it when I watch them, because the idea that Comfort, who is kind of stand-offish, could be sexually attracted to someone like Thayne, who is clearly a big homo, well, it’s ludicrous, isn’t it? I mean, why would they have any chemistry?



And sure, we can talk all day about faking it and acting but we aren’t blind. Comfort and Thayne, poor dears, do all the right motions and their expressions are right on, but… no dice. I will never buy it. And I’m sad because I love Thayne more than String Cheese, and Comfort is awesome. Oh well, can’t win ‘em all.

Matt and Kourtni will be dancing Hip-Hop and Mambo this evening. These two have had an interesting journey. They were two of the brightest stars in Vegas, early favorites, almost shoe-ins, and from their very first performance… they’ve been slipping. The bigger they are, the harder they fall, and these two are freakishly tall, so… TIMBEEEEEERRRRR. That said, I love Matt a little bit. He is rather strange, but he’s cute in a totally non-threatening kind of way, which is why I think Nigel doesn’t like him.



I think Nigel confuses non-threatening with effeminate, and they are totally different things. Like, it’s totally possible to be effeminate and threatening - if you’ve ever known a drag queen, you know I’m right. Anyway, tonight just wasn’t their night. First, they performed probably the worst hip-hop routine this show has ever had, and I would just like to say it was bad all the way around, from the choreography to the styling to the music, just… badness. I mean, they put Matt, the third whitest guy in the competition, in a mandanna under a fedora. That’s just wrong. Their mambo went significantly better, but not enough to make the judges be nice. I however, really enjoyed it, mostly because I thought Matt looked particularly yummy (and non-threatening and effeminate, but I don’t have a problem with it like some people).

Mark and Chelsie probably had the best night overall, I think. Mandy Moore, who was on fire that night, apparently, put together a jazz routine set to Kiss, Kiss, by (???) that can only be described as delightful. Mark has become so impressive - he’s nailing all of these genres so well. I wish the judges would stop calling him quirky, because there’s nothing quirky about him at this point. He’s just good. Chelsie, meanwhile, is awesome in every kind of way. I haven’t become attached to her in the same way as Sabra, but I don’t know, maybe I’ll get there.

Twitchington (and can I be honest? This whole Twitchington thing started to make me tired. I mean, I do love Twitch, and I’ll swear to that on a stack of pancakes, but this pair is sooo over-rated… they aren’t that good…) had a hot and cold evening. Cold would be their Paso Doble, which was the first (and hopefully only) BORING Paso I’ve ever had to sit through. I think the choreography was at fault for most of it, but Twitch didn’t add anything to it, either. Kherington carried him through that one. And then came Mia Michael’s bed routine, which was all kinds of hot, allegedly, but… I don’t know. I couldn’t help but feel like this was Mia’s attempt to recapture the magic of the bench routine, and honestly, it didn’t really hit. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it was good… but I wasn’t jumping out of my chair. Even a shirtless Twitch (and seriously, he’s built like furniture) couldn’t make this routine what I think it was supposed to be. Maybe there was too much “stuff” going on… bed-hopping, rose-petals, Kherington appearing and reappearing in different places… it was kind of all over the place. Don’t quote me, but I don’t think Mia is going to get her second Emmy nom with that one.

So the first Mia Michaels routine was sort of… meh. That’s OK, because Katee and Joshua were around to redeem all. Their first dance was a stripped-down Mia Michaels routine. No props, no real story… just amazing choreography set to good music. The two of them flying down length of the stage, Katee kind of fake-running while Joshua carried her… I think that was my favorite part.

As much as I adore Katee and Joshua, I did suffer during the West Coast Swing. I mean, first of all, Katee looked awful (not her… the outfit), and I just didn’t get it. I think I like WCS, but maybe only when Benji does it. I think this dance requires a certain shamelessness, and no one can deny Benji is the biggest ham this show has ever seen. Indeed, Katee and Joshua aren’t used to having to beg the audience to enjoy themselves, which is maybe why this routine didn’t really work. I understand, however, that a lot of people liked it, so… maybe I’m just out of touch.

And finally, Courtney and Gev take the stage with Hip Hop and Broadway. To be fair, their Hip Hop is better than Matt and Kourtni’s, but not by much. These Cicily and Olisa characters did not have a good night. I say, Fired. Anyway, the Broadway routine was, thankfully, loads of fun. Set to On the Town, Courtney and Gev really sold it, and Gev is sooo cute, isn’t he? He’s really starting to grow on me. He’s a got a great smile, too. Anyway, funny story, I don’t remember too many details about this dance, because all I could see in my mind’s eye was Justin from Ugly Betty in his sailor outfit mincing away to, “New York, New York, a hell of a town, the Bronx is up, but the Battery’s down…” Uuuugh, totes can’t wait for that show to come back on!!



On elimination night, I’m fairly confident Comfort and Thayne are toast, but the bottom three… who knows? We start with a rather lackluster Broadway routine from Tyce Diorio, and I’m totally just being nice. It pretty much sucked.

The bottom 3 ended up being Comfort and Thayne (of course), Matt and Kourtni (no surprise), and Courtney and Gev (Noooooooo!!). Actually, as much as I hate seeing Courtney and Gev in any kind of danger (I’m totally Team Hobbits), it wasn’t really a big deal. Based on the performances, it was either going to be them or Will and Jessica, and the shirt routine was awesome, sooo… Courtney and Gev it is.

You know that Kourtni and Matt got the boot because this happened three weeks ago, but was it right? Methinks the judges probably thought Matt and Kourtni had just about exhausted their chances with the populace, while Comfort and Thayne were a new pairing and therefore deserved another shot. Me also thinks the judges were considering the glut of contemporary dancers in this competition, and losing Kourtni and sparing Comfort would go a long way in preserving some diversity on the dancefloor. Honestly, Thayne and Matt are two peas in a very gay pod, so it was probably ‘half of one, half a dozen of the other’ situation for the judges. We can’t be getting all sentimental though. There are lots more cuts left to make. I’m just sitting here thinking what I’m going to do when the people I like start dropping. It won’t be pretty.

So You Think You Can Dance Top 16...

I don’t know if this is a good thing or a bad thing, but I feel like this season has been going on for months. Like, I feel like I’m ready for the finale. Either my attention span has gotten shorter or I’m just not into the show. It’s gotta be my attention span.



So where were we? Last week, Chelsea T. and Thayne tanked big time, although no one could decide who was to blame (the uncommitted dancing or Mandy Moore’s tired choreography), Comfort and Chris krumped their way nowhere, and Susie and Marquis went home. Everyone else was decent, except for Kourtni and Matt (who were only OK) and Chelsie and Mark (who were frikkin’ brilliant). I’m aiming my poison darts at Chris and Jessica, although I’m pretty sure Jessica isn’t going anywhere, thanks to Will, who gets hotter and hotter to me every time I see him. Damn, that bitch got lucky.

Twitchington – Hip Hop



Tabitha and Napoleon are back with two more routines this week, and Twitchington will perform the first. It’s a Prison Break inspired clown dance, in that it’s silly and slapstick and not very hard-hitting (in my opinion). It kind of matches the first Hip Hop dance by TabNap from Week 1 with (God, I’ve already forgotten their names!... I’ll have to look them up… ahh, here we go) Rayven and Jamie, which was more of a comedy routine than anything. I’m starting to think Tabitha and Napoleon should stick to the slower, emotional hip-hop. Anyway, about thisdance… everyone loves Twitch, including myself, so I feel bad saying I didn’t really like this routine, but ya’ll, I didn’t really like this routine. And I think I disliked it because of Kherington. She’s about as gangsta as I am (which, not at all) and she pulls faces just as much as Matt and the rest, so I can’t help but feel like she’s getting an epic FREE PASS just because she is paired with Twitch. I seriously doubt she would be doing as well with a different partner, although I AM excited to see her dance with a different partner in a few weeks just to see if my theory holds water (I’ll be the first one to admit I’m wrong if she proves herself). Mostly, this was the first time I got the feeling Twitch was really pulling her along (much like Will is pulling Jessica), so I was a little peeved that she didn’t get roughed up by the judges like I thought she should.

Courtney and Gev – Rumba

Something miraculous has happened. Yes, Courtney is responsible for the single most miraculous thing that has happened in the history of this show. Somehow, someway, she worked the voodoo juuuust right… that I, the gayest of the gay, the queerest of the queer – I, who put the Ho in Homo – was turned on by a girl.

I don’t know how she did it, and really, I don’t want to know, but this was the sexiest, hottest, steamiest dance I have ever seen on this show. I suppose some credit must go to Gev, but in a bizarre twist, I barely saw him. I was too busy watching Miss Thang over there with her bad-ass sexitude. This routine was so good… it was like a slow burn. Something about the choreography allowed the chemistry to build and build until it boiled over. It was like these two were dancing alone… except we were watching, and feeling all sorts of dirty about it, but loving it at the same time. And can we talk about that dress?? SCANDAL! She was practically half-nude, but somehow, it didn’t look inappropriate. God, I love her right now. What is happening to me!?!

I don’t blame Gev at all for being totally in love with Courtney, and I think it’s kind of charming that he can barely hide how he feels about her. But I think dances like these are going to be the death of him. In a way, it’s kind of unfair. Did you see how she was looking at him during that dance? I’m sure she was acting, and I know she has a boyfriend, but I don’t think any red-blooded American Man could resist reading into those looks. That chemistry was real and I don’t care what anyone says!

Comfort and Chris – Jazz



I needed to cool down, and who better to that with than Comfort and Chris. This routine was a big ‘ol mess. At first I thought the choreography was to blame, but then I watched it a few more times and I’ve convinced myself that two better dancers really could have worked this routine out. It had rhythmic urgency, it had dynamic technical moves, and it was an interesting enough story. Somehow, though, Comfort and Chris found a way to make it suck. I was bored. That’s all I have to say about that.

Jessica and Will – Disco



Everyone hates on disco, but I happen to like it. I’ve enjoyed all the routines Doriana Sanchez has put together. I mean, her routines have amazing lifts and awesome partner turns… what’s not to like? Here comes Jessica to change my mind. Nah, I’m kind of kidding. I don’t hate her, I just think she sucks.

It’s no secret that Jessica is a weaker dancer than Will, but I feel like I’m being manipulated into treating her like an underdog, which I don’t appreciate. In the pre-package before the dance, we get a heart-wrenching backstory about how Doriana Sanchez had to put some tough love on Jessica, because up to this point, she’s been pretty bad, and she needs to step it up. Will this be the week? Well, I certainly didn’t think so. First of all, I didn’t need an instant replay to know that she botched that first death drop. I mean, girlfriend hit the floor with an audible thud, and then Will had to mop the floor with her to get her back up. The only reason I can be so critical is I’ve seen so many couples on this show with equal or lesser levels of technique pull off a perfect death drop, so it can’t be all that hard. And then there was that thing at the end – more obvious mistakes. But the whole routine looked frightening… something about their performance made me nervous. Nothing was effortless. Listening to the judges praise this pair and that routine was really irritating. I mean, I just ragged on Jessica quite a bit, but that doesn’t mean I’m OK with Will’s performance. That death drop was probably his fault, and he sure did lose his balance at the end, but the judges just can’t say anything bad about him. Is Debbie Allen going to cut them or something?

Matt and Kourtni – Contemporary



Hooray! A new choreographer. I was just thinking last week that we needed some new blood on this show. It isn’t that I don’t love Mia and Wade and Mandy and TabNap and all the rest, but it starts looking like more of the same. The new girl, Sonja, has a giant Mohawk that makes her look like a human My Little Pony, which really isn’t a bad thing in my book. She has put together a routine about quirky comic book characters who like to flirt. I, for one, really enjoyed the routine. It was the first time I liked Matt (ever) and the first time since her audition I liked Kourtni. The routine was maybe a little cutesy, but there were some killer moves that blew me away, like those side-by-side jumps in perfect unison (I think Mary pointed those out). All in all, I thought they did a good job, so I was surprised when Nigel continued to harp on Matt’s alleged lack of personality. I mean, what does he expect Matt to do?? It’s a mystery.

Chelsea and Thayne – Quickstep



Oh, Chayne… what is to be done with you? Everything about this made me sad. It’s like watching a sparkler in your hand – bright and explosive at first, but it slowly peters out, occasionally shooting sparks, until it just dims and dies. Chelsea and Thayne were my undisputed favorites three weeks ago, and now… look at them… tired and rundown and listless… and folding.

The Quickstep is supposed to be a curse on this show, and I think I believe in that curse now. Let’s start with what I really want to do, which is defend my favorite couple. The Quickstep is probably the hardest dance in the ballroom repertoire. Not only are the steps incredibly complicated, but the character is difficult to capture. It’s stiff but light… frenzied but smooth… happy but not hammy. I think I remember one of the professionals on Dancing with the Stars talking about how difficult this dance is, and if the professionals find it hard, what the hell are two contemporary dancers supposed to do with it after only 6 hours of training? The character of the dance, which is breezy and cool and easy, can only be captured if the couple is comfortable with the steps. A brilliant performer may be able to hide their discomfort by acting, but the audience is way more perceptive than anyone knows. Unease isn’t a look, it’s a feeling… and it’s unmistakable. Clearly, Chelsea and Thayne weren’t ready to perform this dance, and the nerves were impossible to hide. I think Nigel nailed it when he talked about the painted on grins, because it was obvious to me that the smiles were fake, like they were covering something. And Chelsea just didn’t seem interested, even. Someone on a recap said that Chelsea was phoning it in, and even though that makes me really sad, I can’t argue. And after getting thrashed by the judges last week, I knew they weren’t going to stay out of the bottom 3. Whether or not one of them (or both) would go home was totally dependant on who went with them.

Chelsie and Mark – Hip Hop

Oh, Hell YES! All I really have to say about this dance is LOVED IT LOVED IT LOVED IT. I was enthralled. The song was perfect, the choreography was brilliant, the story was touching… I mean, I can’t ask for anything else. Mark was amazing to watch, and Chelsie… oh, my girl, Chelsie… girl worked it out up there. The emotions were sincere and believable… I was completely convinced. God, if I were Mary Murphy this is when I would scream.

On a completely unrelated note… during their pre-package, was Chelsie coming off like a total twerp? I mean, she’s awesome and I love her and everything, but there was something about her personality in that pre-package that rubbed me wrong. I wonder if she was in character or something?

Katee and Joshua – Samba

Do we like Katee yet? Is everybody over that episode in Vegas? Yes? Good… because WOW! Another great Latin dance from Tony and Melanie, and after Courtney and Gev, I wasn’t sure I could handle more hotness, but I am soooo glad I did.

What I loved about this routine was that it was very sexy, but in a completely different way than Courtney and Gev’s. Courtney and Gev managed a sensual, lusty chemistry, whereas Katee and Joshua were more flirtatious and fun. The cool thing is both couples matched the character of each dance perfectly. The Rumba is supposed to be a seduction, while the Samba is a party. And without raining on Katee and Joshua’s parade, I’ll say they got lucky picking the Samba instead of the Rumba because I’m not sure they could have pulled off the sexual chemistry of Courtney and Gev. It doesn’t even matter, though, because they did exactly what they were supposed to do. Didn’t Katee look gorgeous? I was surprised the wardrobe people convinced her to wear the other half of Courtney’s dress (I know, but I’m tired so I’ll steal Nigel’s joke and you will LIKE it), but she should be happy about it because she looked awesome. And while I’m not particularly attracted to Joshua, I will admit freely that he looked damn fine in those ass pants. The boy has got serious junk.

My 3 favorites of the night were:

1. Chelsie and Mark – Hip-Hop by TabNap
2. Courtney and Gev – Rumba by Tony and Melanie
3. Katee and Joshua – Samba by Tony and Melanie

My Bottom 3 are:

1. Chelsea and Thayne – Quickstep by Heather Smith (it makes me heart hurt)
2. Comfort and Chris – Jazz by Tyce Diorio
3. Twitchington – Hip-Hop by TabNap

I tuned in on Thursday Night with some trepidation. I just had a bad feeling for my girl Chelsea. I was confident that she and Thayne would be in the bottom 3, but I couldn’t quite get my psychic forces to focus on the other two couples. A good bet would be Comfort and Chris, of course, but Comfort seems to be developing a cult of personality (and why not? She’s kind of a hoot). I was crossing my fingers the last couple would be Jessica and Will, because I figured Chelsea could beat Jessica in the solos.

Mia Michaels covered the group routine this week, and once again, I was angry at the camera-work. I’m pretty sure I liked it, but I didn’t feel like I saw enough to really make a decision. However, I do remember the song. If you’re interested, it was called The Dance by Charlotte Martin. I’ve listened to it at least 3,000 times today.

So the bottom 3 couples were announced in the order of their obviousness. Chelsea and Thayne, Comfort and Chris, and… (Awww crap!) Kourtni and Matt.

After the solos, and a semi-frightening performance from Jordin Sparks, Cat Deeley handed Chris and my girl Chelsea their walking papers. I couldn’t care less about Chris (oh, just go… be a tree), but I shed one salty tear for Chelsea. I truly believe there was better dancing in her… she just got screwed by some crappy choreography and the dreaded quickstep. So sad.

On the bright side… the idea of Comfort and Thayne is… well, kind of fascinating. I love that Comfort lost her partner and then got stuck with the second whitest guy in the competition. If she had trouble developing chemistry with Chris, I can’t imagine Thayne is going to make her job any easier. I predict a trainwreck, and I kind of can’t wait.

So You Think You Can Dance Top 18

I love the second (and third) week of competition on So You Think You Can Dance! We’ve had a week to process the contestants and maybe even pick some favorites, but nothing is final. There’s still some mystery and romance, and this season, I think, is going to be as unpredictable and suspenseful as any Reality show has the right to be. I don’t see any clear front-runners (despite all of Nigel’s efforts to pimp the male hip-hop dancers) and I’m still very eager to see those who haven’t had a lot of time in the spotlight. It really is anyone’s game to win, proven by the fact that the two couples who survived last week’s bottom 3 were saved this week, putting three brand new couples on to the chopping block. Oooooh, this season is gonna be good, ya’ll… Oh wait, I’m sorry. This season is gonna be “banoodles.”



Chelsea and Thayne start us off this week, and they’ll be performing a Jazz routine choreographed by Mandy Moore. After their amazing Cha-Cha last week, I considered myself the premiere member of the CHAYNE GANG (trademark – put it in my pocket), so I was more than excited about this routine. Who could have predicted this performance would so thoroughly and devastatingly break my heart? Ya’ll, this routine was a nightmare.

Besides the dreadful Elizabethan Circus clothes, the oddly incongruous choice of song (don’t get me wrong, I love the song: Untouched by The Veronicas), and the boring choreography (and really, isn’t that enough)… Chelsea looked uncomfortable and Thayne looked comatose. I mean, what happened?

Once the routine was over, there was nothing for me to do but shake my head and wait for the inevitable onslaught of bile from the judges, because I think we all knew this display was going to get ripped. Of course, it did, but not enough for me. There was so much left unsaid, and we’re going to fix that. Right. Now.

The real losers in this whole thing are Chelsea and Thayne; they were handed a really bad routine, forced into ridiculous costumes, and then verbally man-handled afterwards by the judges. The worst part is none of the judges pointed out the real problem: the choreography. The routine was flat-out boring. I kept waiting for things to heat up, but alas, it was 1. 5 minutes of stale. The lifts weren’t creative, the partner-work was cliché… I mean, it was just… boring, you know? How are Chelsea and Thayne supposed to tell the story of a forbidden romance in a royal court if the choreography doesn’t at least try to simulate it? Even the best performers will flop if the material is bad. Chelsea and Thayne got blasted for being unconvincing, but I’m not sure they could have done anything else to make the story come across short of shouting out narration. Nigel made it a point to make sure the audience understood that the dancers were not responsible for their wardrobe, but I think he could have gone further. They are also not responsible for shoddy choreography. I love Mandy Moore most of the time, but I think she needs a vacation or something, because that Sh*t was WHACK.

To be fair, though, I’m not sure Chelsea and Thayne were trying very hard. I like to think they hated the routine just as much as I (and, apparently, America) did, and that’s why they seemed so uninvested out there. Things might not have gone so badly if they’d really tried to sell it. I sensed that Chelsea was having trouble with her footwear, and Thayne may have just been OVER it. After watching the routine a couple more times, I think I get what Mandy Moore was trying to do, so I’ll amend my comments from, “That routine was TERRIBLE,” to, “That routine was WEAK.” I think weak is a better word, because it implies that the routine was good conceptually, but lacked any kind of pay-off. Well, I really hope they draw a better dance next week, because one more like this and I may have to unlink the Chayne gang.

The only good thing that came out of the first 10 minutes of the show was Chelsea taught me a new word, Exhuberating. Try using it in a sentence today.



Good NEWS! I don’t have nearly as much to say about all the other routines. REJOICE!

Chelsie and Mark will perform an Argentine Tango, which, if understand correctly, is a Tango only sexier. So basically, if the Tango is a PG-13, the Argentine Tango is an R. I’m not sure where the MPAA would have placed it, but I LOVED this routine. I mean, I love the Tango, anyway, and Chelsie and Mark were really hot. I loved the foot action… there was so much to watch what with all the kicking and leg-locking. I’m amazed these dances are so entertaining when one considers that the entire dance takes place in hold. Anyway, I agreed with the judges about Mark’s great performance. I thought he looked the part and played his role perfectly. Nigel said he would have liked Chelsie to be just a little bit sleazier, and maybe that is the correct assessment for an Argentine Tango, but I’m not sure I want my Chelsie to be any sleazier. She’s so cute and blonde and All-American… I’m not sure Slut will work on her. I think it would make me uncomfortable.

Also, I spent probably 30 minutes too long re-watching the video of this routine trying to find exactly when Chelsie’s pinky toe escaped her shoe.



Will and Jessica are next up with a Hip-Hop routine by Cicily & Olisa. Ya’ll, Jessica may be in trouble. It’s not because she’s white… it’s because she can’t move past choreography. I’m not a hip-hop expert by any means, but I do know that Hip-Hop requires a certain attitude… a certain looseness. It isn’t about the moves, but rather the attitude in which they are delivered. I’m not sure that attitude can be taught.

In a surprise, I thought Jessica did pretty well. Nigel nailed it when he said that she looked kind of sloppy dancing next to Will (who was awesome), but she held her own. I liked that he also mentioned how cheerleader-y she looked at times, but I don’t think it was so much a dig at her as much as a statement of fact. I imagine a lot of white girls will look cheerleader-y when they dance hip-hop… again, because it can’t be taught. In another surprise, I actually liked the routine. I confess that I was getting tired of the faster-paced hip-hop routines on this show, but this one brought me back.



Kourtni and Matt will be hitting it up ballroom style this week with a Jean-Marc Genereux Foxtrot. Just FYI, the Foxtrot is one of my fav ballroom dances. Matt is, like, made for the Foxtrot… with his height, his build, his slicked back, dark hair and charming face. He’s the perfect leading man for a dance like this, and he performs with elegance and grace. Kourtni, however, is just alright for me. Her hair isn’t working for her at all, so that’s distracting, but besides that, she doesn’t seem as graceful… her movements don’t seem as effortless. Mia says Kourtni doesn’t “own” her size yet, whatever the hell that means, but I, too, sensed Kourtni was awkward out there. She needs to work that out. Show did her a huge favor pairing her up with Matt, who is her only equal when it comes to height. They could have paired her with Gev, who I think may be a hobbit, and then she would be really uncomfortable. And I need to add, I hope she leaps across the stage and claws out Nigel’s eyes the next time he calls her fat on national TV.



Courtney and Gev, who I’ve affectionately dubbed the Shire-Folk of So You Think You Can Dance, will be performing a Contemporary routine by Mandy Moore. Mandy is in my dog-house right now, and she better not sabotage another couple I like. Aaaaaand she doesn’t. Even though this routine seemed kind of Mia Michaels Lite, I enjoyed watching the connection between Courtney and Gev. You can totally tell he is mad crushing on her. It’s really cute and really depressing at the same time, because she has a boyfriend, but all of the unrequited love underneath the surface makes this performance even more fun to watch. I was glad to see some interesting lifts and partner work, mostly because I was starting to think Mandy Moore had lost it. She must have been tired when she worked on Chayne’s Jazz routine. That’s the only explanation that makes sense. Get some sleep, girl!

Also, in case I haven’t made it clear, Courtney and Gev are very short!! Like Hobbits!!



Which means Cat Deeley is a magical elf-giantess, just as I have suspected all along!



Next up, Joshua and Katee. Just so we’re all on the same page, most people still dislike Katee, thanks to that embarrassing display in Vegas, but Joshua has enough goodwill stored up in his cheeks to sustain them both through the winter. This week, they’ve chosen a Tyce Diorio Broadway routine set to some song from Godspell, and we’re promised lots of jazz hands. The routine is a high-spirited, fast-paced, frenzy of Broadway clichés (sorry, but it’s true), and I was kind of let down when it was over. I think Katee and Joshua did incredibly well, but I wasn’t nearly as excited about the routine as Nigel was. Frankly, I thought he’d lost his mind. It was good, but was it that good? Personally, I thought the choreography was uninspired, and the only reason the audience got into it was because it was fast. If you really watch, though, not a whole lot is going on. Geez, I must have been in some kind of bad mood when I watched this. Joshua and Katee are awesome… thrilling performance… blah, blah, blah… NEXT!



Susie and Marquis have hit a bit of luck, it seems. They’ve drawn the Salsa, and since Susie is a salsa dancer, this should be incredibly good news. Well, things start to fall apart rather quickly. In rehearsals, the choreographer, Alex da Silva, points out for our benefit that Susie isn’t really a salsa dancer… she’s a street dancer, but Susie overhears the comment and takes it to a deep, dark, not-so-spicy place in her heart. I don’t think Alex meant she sucked or anything. I think he was trying to build suspense by saying that her salsa background wasn’t necessarily going to help her master this routine, because it’s just that difficult. I suppose if I were insecure and terrified, I would have taken that comment badly as well, so I feel Susie’s pain, but I’m pretty sure Alex didn’t mean anything malicious.

Seeing the dance on stage, I have to say I didn’t hate it at all. It had a lot of potential. The choreography was, indeed, very difficult, but all things considered I enjoyed watching them perform. The judges… not so much. I get where they are coming from, though. There were moments when the dancing looked tentative (or labored, as Mia said), and I can’t say they always looked like they were having a great time up there, but I thought Susie was in character and Marquis did the best he could. The judges, like they often do, decided to dwell on the negative, ignoring the great tricks and decent Salsa stepping going on in that routine. Perhaps they were disappointed because it wasn’t great, even though Susie is a salsa dancer. She didn’t meet their expectations and they can’t let that slide. It’s funny, though, because that’s what I think Alex da Silva was trying to say when he accidentally insulted Susie in rehearsal. This routine was beyond any Salsa Susie had ever performed, and maybe he hoped that fact would be taken into consideration.



Ok, ya’ll, get ready for controversy! Twitchington will be dancing a Viennese Waltz by Jean-Marc Genereux, and this Waltz comes with baggage. Jean-Marc is dedicating this dance to his young daughter suffering from Rett Syndrome, a developmental disease that causes poor motor skills (I’m sure there’s more to Rett Syndrome, but that’s what show gives me). According to Jean-Marc, the only time his daughter seems to want to move is when she is watching other people dance, so this goes out to her.

Kherington looks beautiful in her flowy, white gown, and Twitch is all open-shirted and handsome. They glide across the floor doing lift after lift after lift while Celine Dion shrieks on the soundtrack. It’s very pretty and very emotional. Here comes Mia to destroy the mood.

But before we get to that… my thoughts. First of all, this was not a Viennese Waltz. This wasn’t even a Vietnamese Waltz. It was, in fact, an anti-Waltz. I think the dancers performed basic Waltz steps for less than 1% of the piece, and that’s kind of not acceptable. Other than that, I thought it was perfectly lovely, and I’m glad the choreographers got the chance to do it, because it clearly meant a lot to them. It’s all good for me to have thoughts about this dance, but what the heck are the judges supposed to do? It really puts the judges in a weird position… I mean, they can’t be honest, can they? So Mia, since she can’t crap on the dance itself, decides to critique Kherington’s smile, and we all know how that went. I’m not even going to go into what the judges had to say because, frankly, it’s all moot. It could have been a Viennese train wreck, but since it had a backstory involving a special needs child and the simultaneous pain and joy of parenting such a child, there’s nothing much to talk about. While a part of me appreciates what happened on stage (I mean, it’s for the children, I’m not a complete bastard), I kind of wish it had been a passable waltz, at least. I knew Nigel was going to try to explain, too, because he knows as well as I that we didn’t get any waltzing out of that number, but I mean… why even bother? Why even call it a French-Canadian Waltz? That was a contemporary number is ¾ time. Call it that and I’ll shut my face. As for Twitchington… congrats! A dance about a sick kid is what we call a FREE PASS!



Comfort and Chris are krumping, and since I’m lazy, I’m just going to refer back to my comments for Will and Jessica.

I thought Chris did pretty well, actually. I mean, the kid is white, so what was Nigel expecting? I need to call out Nigel for what is turning out to be an alarming double standard. An hour or so ago, he was giving Jessica the benefit of the doubt with her hip-hop routine, but he pans Chris’s performance, even though he’s dealing with the exact same situation. Why is that, Nigel? And while I’m at it… why does Nigel give the hip-hop dancers credit when they perform decently in a ballroom dance or a broadway dance, but won’t give the contemporary dancers credit when they krump? I’m not defending Chris’s krumping… it was pretty bad. I’m jusy saying Nigel’s negative comments were a little over the top, especially when he grabbed his crotch. I don’t want to see that. Oh, and Chris… I’m sorry you don’t want to grab your crotch. I’ll admit it’s a little unsavory. But this is krump! If Li’l C tells you to grab the boys… GRAB ‘EM and MEAN IT.

My Top 3?

Ummm… wow. This is hard. I really didn’t love any of the routines this week. But I guess I’ll go with:

1. Chelsie and Mark – Argentine Tango
2. Courtney and Gev – Contemporary
3. Katee and Joshua – Broadway

My bottom 3?

1. Comfort and Chris – Krumping
2. Chelsea and Thayne – Jazz
3. I’m sooooo tempted to put Twitchington’s Waltz here, but… Jessica and Will – Hip-Hop

On elimination night, there was a Shane Sparks routine that I think I liked, except I couldn’t really follow it because the cameras were frikkin’ EVERYWHERE!

The bottom three couples were: Comfort and Chris, Chelsea and Thanye, and Susie and Marquis. So I was 2 for 3. I totally knew Chayne was busted because they went first, their routine was boring and unmemorable, and Mandy Moore broke my heart. I wasn’t surprised to see Comfort and Chris at the bottom because that routine just wasn’t very good, dancing-wise or krumping-wise. I’m not really sure what krumping is (textbook definition, anyway), but I do know that that wasn’t it. It’s hard to say if Comfort and Chris were to blame or the choreography, but none of that matters because they’re in the bottom 3 regardless. Even though I don’t believe Susie and Marquis deserved to be in the bottom 3 based on last night’s performances, I wasn’t shocked to see them there. From what I’ve heard and read, people just HATE Susie, and for a variety of reasons. Some say she isn’t good enough for the Top 20. Others insist she got through on looks alone. Others are convinced she’s a transvestite. I don’t have the same knee-jerk hatred towards her, but I’ll admit I’m not a fan, so I wasn’t upset when she got the boot. Chelsea and Comfort danced her off the stage, so I was all… fair is fair.

The boys had an even playing field, all three being contemporary dancers, so they all kind of did the same thing… showing off their kicks and leaps. I was “exuberated” when Thayne was saved, because I love him, but between Chris and Marquis, I was very six-of-one. The judges ultimately sent Marquis home, which the audience brutally boo’ed, but I enjoyed, because that means all the couples are still intact, which is the way I prefer things to work out.

So BYE Susie and Marquis! Apparently, you’re Salsa routine just wasn’t “banoodles” enough.

Oh, and P.S. That flamenco dancer on elimination night was something else, right? I mean, talk about smarmy. Would you still be my friend if I said I liked it? Because I did, a little bit. The lack of shirt was a plus.

So You Think You Can Dance Top 20

I always approach a new season of every show with a little bit of apprehension, especially when the season preceding it was, like, awesome. Thus, I turned on Season 4 of So You Think You Can Dance with more apprehension than ever, because last season was more than awesome… it was sublime and magical and everything good wrapped up in Sabra’s cute little ankle warmers. I knew from watching (and recapping) all of the audition episodes that the judges had picked up some incredible talent during their travels, but would these dancers be able to live up to my impossible standards? Somehow, I doubt it, but I’m watching anyway, because that’s what I do.

Rayven and Jamie, Hip-Hop by Tabitha and Napoleon



First up, Rayven and Jamie, or as I like to call them, who? and who again? Rayven, the mistress of superfluous y’s, is a ballet dancer, and Jamie is a practitioner and educator of West Coast Swing. Before they even dance, I know they’re in trouble. Not only have we never seen them before in any kind of context, except for maybe the smallest of reaction shots during the auditions or Vegas Week, but they are also dancing first, which is where the producers like to “thin the herd.” I suppose that drawing Hip-Hop as their first genre is a small consolation, since Hip-Hop usually fares well with the voters. Their dance is choreographed by the new Hip-Hop gurus, Tabitha and Napoleon, whom I really like so far, mostly because I think their names are catchy, like, I want to name a restaurant after them or something. Rayven and Jamie are dressed in urban-preppie ensembles, complete with argyle, trucker hat, and silk scarf (all of which are obvious ploys to destroy the little street cred they have), and are dancing to one of my new fav songs, American Boy, by Estelle.
Now, I didn’t hate this routine nearly as much as everyone else, judging by what I’ve read, but I freely admit that it wasn’t great. It was soft when it should have been hard, goofy when it should have been cheeky and all sorts of lame when it should have been cool. Some of the blame must go to Tab and Nap, I suppose, because no one can say that Rayven and Jamie didn’t do their darndest to sell it, but you know what they say… the best used car salesman in the world is still selling used cars. It’s tempting to say other dancers may have fared better with it, but since that will never happen, there’s no use arguing the point. All I saw was a not great routine. Hell, if a very attractive guy getting his pants pulled down and showing off his goodies doesn’t help, then the whole venture is probably doomed.

HOWEVER, I do appreciate the different flavor Tab and Nap are bringing to hip-hop. I like that they’ve devised a way to make the genre a little softer, a little less serious, a little more universal. But I think this routine proves that hip-hop doesn’t always translate well into goofball.

Suzie and Marquis, Smooth Waltz by Hunter Thompson



Next up is Suzie and Marquis. Suzie is the much-maligned high school teacher / pussycat doll, and Marquis is another who? They will be dancing a Smooth Waltz, brought to you by another new choreographer (at least I think he’s new), Hunter Thompson. I’m always nervous for people who draw a slow ballroom dance during the first week, because I tend to forget about them, and I also think they get judged with a different set of standards, which is totally fair, but also confusing to the public. All of this to say, I barely watched. That is UNTIL they totally botched a lift. But kudos to them for their recovery. Although I knew they had messed up, neither of them let it show on their faces, and they saved it as best they could. That’s called working it out and I applaud them.

Kourtni and Matt, Jazz by Mandy Moore

I think Kourtni and Matt get the Ok-but-not-great-which-kind-of-disappoints-me award for the night. Kourtni was basically paraded into this competition with trumpets and tambourines and riding on a float made of money, and while that might seem like an advantage, it actually builds a sense of goodwill that can rapidly backfire if she blows it. Matt, likewise, was presented with glowing adoration through the audition process. And then they got Mandy Moore as the choreographer of their first routine, which is more good news for them, because Ms. Moore is only slightly behind Mia and Wade as my favorite choreographer on the show. And they drew jazz as their genre, and then Mandy picked "Tainted Love" as their song, and they’re dancing jewel thieves. The question is: how did something that sounds so fabulous end up being so… not? I’ve watched this routine quite a few times since last Thursday, and I’ve convinced myself that another couple, say… Sabra and Neil, for example, would have killed this routine… it could have been an instant classic. So where did the lauded and universally adored Kourtni and Matt go wrong? Personally, I think Kourtni over-acted, and Matt just looked out of his element. Nigel’s comment about Matt having a broomstick shoved up his butt might have been a little harsh, but he isn’t wrong about it, either. I think Matt has a personality, it’s just one that hasn’t adapted to this kind of dancing quite yet. For him, acting out a dance involves pulling faces, which just won’t work when there’s a camera aimed right at your mug. The emotions have to be real and the story-telling has to be sincere. Since he isn’t there yet, the dancing suffered, the overall performance suffered, and the chemistry between him and Kourtni REALLY suffered. BUT, I think he WILL get it, if he’s lucky enough to stay around. All of that said, they are both incredible dancers. I worry about their partnership a little bit, since they’re both gigantic… if they thought the puny lifts in Mandy’s routine were hard, just wait until they have to do disco or ballroom. I feel I have to reiterate, just one more time… I loved this routine, just not the people dancing it.

Chelsea and Thayne, Cha-Cha-Cha by Tony Meredith and Melanie

Next! Chelsea and Thayne. They’ve drawn the Cha-Cha-Cha, choreographed by Tony Meredith and Melanie. Before I talk about the dance, I must sidebar: ya’ll know how I secretly believe in all those conspiracy theories about producer manipulation and subliminal strategies to control the votes… smoke and mirrors and all that… well, these two are the DEBUNKERS. We’ve never seen nor heard from Chelsea (Chelsea who?) and Thayne got less than 10 seconds in Salt Lake City. Neither has a story, nor do they have fan-bases. And yet, here we are: they had my favorite routine of the night.

There’s no need to get too deep. Chelsea was fiery (in her purple, feathery, next-to-nothing slip of a dress) and Thayne was smokin’ hot. The movements were sharp, their technique was spot-on, they engaged the crowd, and seemed to have a hell of a lot of fun doing it. I don’t remember much about the choreography, but I do remember the raw, sexual energy coming off of Chelsea in waves. The judges were equally dazzled and heaped Chelsea with most of the compliments, while Thayne was credited with just keeping up with her. Well, I’ve watched the video a couple hundred times, and trust me, Thayne was working it out! He’s a little toothy, and he can get a little maniacal looking when he pulls his face, but otherwise, I’m feeling him... his hip action was good for me. Really good.

Chelsie and Mark, Contemporary by Mia Michaels



Mark, another one of our beloved who?’s, has been paired with Chelsie, the ballroom dancer from Salt Lake City with many brothers but not so many cars. It doesn’t really matter what I think of them, because they’ve drawn a Mia Michael’s contemporary routine, which translates to FREE PASS. Honestly, this routine isn’t my favorite of Mia’s routines. I’d go as far as to say I didn’t like it, but that sounds blasphemous, so I won’t. Was anyone else a little weirded out by Mia’s comments about Mark before we saw the dance? I mean, geez, lady, it’s week 1, we barely know the guy, and here you are throwing him under the bus. I’m sure she’s just trying to “keep it real” but I thought it was really bitchy. Anyway, Mia explains that this piece is an imagining of Tim Burton’s wedding, which, if I’m following her, means we’ll be seeing something that is macabre but sweet, quirky but moving. All I can see is Mark dancing like a molting bird and Chelsie trying to dance whilst bearing her own weight in tulle. That tutu was out of control. Some people liked it, but I thought it was a little distracting, and it obscured some of the more subtle movements, especially when the two were dancing together. All in all, it was good, and like I said, FREE PASS, but I didn’t cry or call my friends or take a picture of it or anything.

Kherington and Twitch, Broadway by Tyce Diorio



Next up are Twitch and Kherington, aka Twitchington. I have a feeling I’m going to be so tired of the word Twitchington by the time this season is over. Anyway, they will be performing a Tyce Diorio Broadway number, set to “Too Darn Hot” from Kiss Me Kate. I tend to run hot and cold with Tyce Diorio routines. His Lion King group number is one of my favorite routines, like, EVER, but some of the partner dances he has put together are just alright for me (sorry for that Randy Jackson moment, I’ll try not to do it again). And unfortunately for Twitchington, this routine left me cold. I will say that they were both terrific, and they did what they could with it, and for all I know, it was exactly what Tyce intended. The deal, though, is that Twitch could go onstage and run in place for 2 minutes and he’d still get a trillion votes. We just love him, don’t we? While I thought Kherington was very good, I think she was lucky to get paired with Twitch. She’ll ride him to the Top 10.

Comfort and Chris, Jive by Tony Meredith



Comfort (who is Comfort?) and Chris (the boy with the personality of a tree) (that sounds like a bad children’s book) must have some seriously bad luck. I always feel bad when the non-ballroom dancers have to do a ballroom number, but I feel even worse when they have to do it in the first week. I think contemporary dancers can pull it off easier than the hip-hoppers and breakers, but still… that’s a rough bit of luck. Comfort and Chris have chosen the Jive, choreographed by Tony Meredith, and ya’ll… it’s bad. Comfort looks uncomfortable and awkward (although, cheers for staying on those heels, girl), and Chris just looks desperate. As a couple, they look tentative and frightened, which they can’t hide by pulling their faces. If it wasn’t for Comfort’s incredibly likeable personality (“Bra… panties… BEADS!”), they would have certainly been in the Bottom 3. And even though I kind of hate it, because he’s just so cute, the first time Chris finds himself in the Bottom 3 will be his last.

Katee and Joshua, Hip-Hop by Tabitha and Napoleon

Katee, that girl who almost didn’t make it to the Top 20 when she pissed off the judges by being human and honest, and Joshua, the boy who cries a whole lot and whom I, therefore, adore, will be dancing a Tab&Nap hip-hop routine to the tune of “No Air” (or Ayuh, if we’re being phonetic about things) by Jordin Sparks. I was disappointed with the first hip-hop routine, so I was itching to like this one. And SCORE, second favorite routine of the night! I LOVED it. And here’s the thing: another couple might have blown it. Katee and Joshua were so committed, so deeply involved with the movements, that it never came across as cheesy or overwrought. It had feeling and substance, which made it work. It was soft hip-hop done right. Although, it does make me wonder if Tab&Nap are capable of truly hardcore hip-hop. We’ll see.

Jessica and Will, Tango by Hunter Thompson



There’s one more ballroom dance to get through, and it stars Jessica (Jessica WHO!?) and Will. I’ve never even seen Jessica before, but I remember liking Will. My first impression of Jessica is… not good. First, we find out it was she who misspelled Vegas at the Charleston auditions, and even though she spends her interview packet proving once and for all that she does know how to spell simple words, I think the damage is done. Second, her hair. Before I get to that, though, Will and Jessica will be dancing a Tango by Hunter Thompson. Will is flawlessly masculine, strong and graceful. She is wobbly on her heels and her hair makes her look like a ginger Sonic the Hedgehog. There are a couple of good lifts, and they successfully capture the mood of the dance, but the dancing is uncomfortable … I can see their nerves through the movements. I don’t get it, but the judges give them rave reviews. Mary even pronounces them the couple to beat. You know what, Mary? Not even! I won’t say the routine was bad, but it made me nervous, and that is bad.

Courtney and Gev, Disco by Doriana Sanchez



Last up, Courtney and Gev. First of all, love this couple. I think it’s a great pairing with a lot of potential. Unfortunately for them, their first test is Disco, choreographed by Doriana Sanchez. Ya’ll, I love Disco, but only when it’s done right. There’s a vibe to it, a spirit. I think people’s bodies just moved differently back then. I can imagine how hard it must be to teach these young, very modern dancers how to “feel” Disco. Anyway, I think the routine is enjoyable to watch, and I’m almost certain Courtney and Gev did the absolute best they could. I’d venture to say Gev may be the weaker of the two, but this dance was all about survival.

Ok, my three favorites were:
1. Cha-Cha by Chelsea and Thayne
2. Hip-Hop by Katee and Joshua
3. Jazz by Mandy Moore (Ok, fine… and Kourtni and Matt)

My Bottom Three are:
1. Hip-Hop by Rayven and Jamie
2. Tango by Jessica and Will
3. Jive by Comfort and Chris

America’s Bottom Three turned out to be:
1. Rayven and Jamie
2. Kourtni and Matt
3. Jessica and Will

So far, so good, America. We basically agreed.

Wade Robson is back for the first group number of the season! It’s too bad I didn’t like it. I know, I can’t believe I said it, either. Let me explain. I did like the dancing – I love Wade’s style. But I thought Nigel’s big face ruined it. Why did we have to point the camera at him every five seconds? We missed so much dancing! Another small quibble: the hair and make-up on the dancers made it hard to pick out my favorites. Otherwise, it was splendid.

On elimination night, the judges sent Rayven and Jamie home, and I can’t disagree. I was totally onboard with giving Rayven the boot, especially after she performed solo without going on point. Nigel took the words out of my mouth with his critique. She was brought on to the show because of her ballet background… it was a mistake not to show it off. Meanwhile, Kourtni was terrific and Jessica looked injured. On the boys’ side, there was no way in hell the judges were going to send Will home, and Matt had a decent solo, so the short straw went to Jamie. I have to say, I felt bad for the kid. I’ve always felt that the whole dancing-for-your-life bit gives the breakers and poppers (and on occasion, the contemporary dancers) an incredible advantage, while the ballroom dancers get screwed. It’s hard to stand out with samba steps, especially when the next guy spins on his head, bends himself into a pretzel, and closes out with some tumbling. That said, Jamie didn’t have a prayer, which is sad, because he was kind of cute. I think he could have wowed us with a ballroom routine or a contemporary routine. Now we’ll never know. And speaking of: with Jamie gone, we don’t have any male ballroom dancers. Jamie wasn’t even a ballroom dancer, technically speaking, but he was the closest we had. It makes me miss Pasha. Where is Pasha, anyway? What the heck happened to him??