What a JOKE that Nigel put Russell in the bottom 4. And yes, it was Nigel, and only Nigel, who wanted him there. What a dickfacetwatlickingdouchenozzle. I am so over his machinations! In no way, shape or form did Russell earn a spot in the bottom. He was awesome!

And re: Brandon: Oh, "I'll talk to the producers to see if you can come back on..." Um, Nigel? Stick it up your ass; you ARE the executive frickin' producer, douche. I feel bad for that kid. He was used and abused.

Okay, that's out of my system. Just had to vent.

Awesome recap PM!

For some reason, this screencap really made me giggle: Later the heat will be brought.

You were spot on with all of your assessments.

XOXOXO!

Great recap Potty!

Oh man! If they had cut Russell, this comment would have just been a long list of swears and a picture of Nigel getting stabbed in the neck. What the hell?! Why?! He was good! It's not his style! Did they just want to ensure that what's-his-name went home? Why wasn't Peter in the bottom two? He stunk! And this whole tap thing is wearing thin for me. I get it, tap is a legitimate style of dance, but do we really need three of them? Such bullshit.

The dances this week, and with some exceptions, the dancers, were kinda blah for me. It was hard to figure out what was happening, since this season is the best ever and all, and this season is in midst of blowing last season out of the water. But I was bored more often than not during the dances.

I really liked Jakob, and I wish he had a different partner. Ashleigh didn't have that much to do, which I'm pretty sure was by design. I wonder if their choreographers are going to style all of their performances to be Jakob heavy. He's such a good dancer, and she's so limited, even in her own style, that I can see someone making a dance in which she sits in a chair reading a book while he dances around her. I'd like that.

And what a surprise! The b-boy with connections to the show, who shouldn't have made it anywhere near the top twenty and who they've rammed down our throats from the beginning got hip-hop as his style. Shocking! That said, I really liked Legacy and Kathryn's dance. I'm with you Pottymouth, I was all set to hate it. But the choreography was great - as Dave Scott's choreography usually is - the idea was great, Kathryn was great (I think she hit hard enough) and even Legacy was good. I was all set to poop all over him, but I'll have to save it till next week.

I'm also with you, PM, about Sonya's choreography: it's starting to all look the same. I'm not tired of it yet, but I can see getting tired of it soon if she doesn't mix it up a little. That said, I liked half of this routine, More specifically, I liked the half that Ellenore danced. She was great, and I think she can really move. She might want to avoid setting such ridiculously high expectations before next week's performance, though. I thought Ryan was awkward and stiff, and that Sonya's choreography didn't suit him at all. His head bobbles were cringe-worthy.

I think Victor's a great dancer. I think Nathan's also great, but I thought he stunk in this routine. I guess all you have to do is make it through a disco routine on this show and you're considered awesome, because no way was that good. Nathan just wasn't strong enough to make those lifts look anything but torturous. And I thought his movement was stunted and tight. What's-her-name just annoys me.

Oh, and Channing and her partner aren't very good. He's not terrible, but there's something about his bearing that bothers me. Maybe it's the beat poetry. And I think Channing's movement is brutish and ugly.

Now that I've thought about it a little bit, I wonder if the judges think Russell will be one of the finalists, so they put him in the bottom so they'd have a story to tell at the end, "and he almost got sent home the first week!"

What do you all think?

Based on the judges' comments (and watching with my own eyes,) Russell certainly didn't belong in the bottom...and neither did Brandon. Both Peter and Phillip did worse, and had less positive comments.

I call shenanigans.

Oh...and I figure the rule about competing once you've been in the top 20 won't apply to Billy Bell because he technically never got a chance to compete while in the top 20.

hmmm... I was doing a little googling, trying to figure out how Lauren and Legacy are connected (no luck there- can someone please explain?), and I found some interesting info. Legacy was in both Dance Flick and Stomp the Yard, choreographed by none other than my main man Dave Scott. I hate this show and its shenanigans!! It's so unnecessary.

Ditto to everything PottyMouth! I went to bed angry over this show - how pathetic is that?

June 6, 2009

Lauren Gottlieb (s3) choreographed a piece called "FUSION" with BBoy Legacy and has entered it in a contest at dancemedia.com.

Here's the description:

A 2LEGZ PRODUCTION... CHOREOGRAPHED & DIRECTED BY: LAUREN GOTTLIEB & BBOY LEGACY This piece is about UNITY. An inspiration of movement to music which equals DANCE. No Separation. The union of all styles makes a complete big picture consciousness in which all races and people as one are unified to set the example for equality (the quality of being equal). DANCED BY: Lauren Gottlieb, Paula Van Oppen, Sara James, Sloan Rabinor, Brittany Markle, Theresa Pena, Carly Anderson, Pandora, Maire Poppins, Hero, Raquel, Lockadelik, Legacy, Luigi, Venum, Beast, Milky.

In past years, Legacy also has assisted Lauren with chreography.

Great recap as always....

Color me surprised by Legacy's hip hop. His partner (um, name escapes me right now....Frieda?) almost outdanced him and he was really good.

Sonya? Please back away from the costume trunk and let someone else dress the dancers.

What is up with the bad lighting/crappy backdrop? No wonder Russell was in the bottom--you couldn't even see him on stage!

Adam's "aaaOOOOGah!" comment was cute! He's rapidly turning into my favorite judge. Please, no Paula!

I could hardly wait to read your recap on this episode Potty! And you did not disappoint. Thanks for making me laugh out loud about a crap Top 20 show.

Thanks for sticking in that beautiful picture of Danny Tidwell, dance god extraordinaire! (No way any of the boys from this year come close to matching him imo)

The use of the Hugh/Wolverine pics this recap were particularly clever. Loved it!

The only 3 routines that I actually liked were Bianca and her partner's (forgot his name already -- but colour me surprised because I thought Bianca would suck more), Ellenore and Ryan (although it was in no shape or form the BEST routine ever danced on the show, but it was good), and the caveman routine danced by Legacy and Kathryn (I did NOT expect that from Kathryn -- she's earned some respect from me).

I was sooooooo pissed about Russell and Brandon being in the bottom 2. I should of known Nigel would pull some crap like that. First of all, that crap about how they're giving a pass to Noelle like they did to whatshername in season 3 is BS. In season 3, whatshername still had to dance for her life and wound up being sent home. The way things are set up this season, I'm guessing that they're not going to make Noelle dance for her life next week, no matter what crap she puts out on the stage.

Secondly, Brandon did an amazing job for having so little time to prepare. You'd think they'd give him credit for that. And isn't he a hiphopper? And yet he pulls out a beautiful contemporary-style routine for his solo and looks like a natural at it? And does he get credit for that? No!

Thirdly, there is no way in heaven or hell that Nigel can justify putting Russell in the bottom 2 -- none at all! My conspiracy theory is that he wanted to justify sending Brandon home and knew that Russell's solo would kick ass (which it did) which would give him an excuse to boot Brandon. If Peter had been in the bottom (as he should have) and had put out a crap tap solo (which he would have), it would have been a lot more difficult to argue that the lesser dancer had been sent home. Bastard!

Ok, other things that ticked me off: Ashleigh being paired with Jakob (watch for her to make it all the way to top 6 just like Melissa, Chelsie, and Lauren before her (sorry to all who like any of those 3, but I couldnt' stand them). I too was ticked that she managed to insert herself into Ryan's video segment -- she is sooooo going annoy me this season.

The other annoying pairing was Nathan with Mollee. When I realized that they were the only two left, I was soooooooo annoyed. One of my favourite male dancers with the most annoying female dancer? Damn you Nigel! I swear he tries to vex me on purpose *sigh* And Doriana needs to retire to a home for mental patients. Why do the judges keep praising her disco routines? All she does is pack them so full of tricks that it's all the dancers can focus on and it takes the actual dance and performance out of the routine. So annoying.

To end on a positive note, I do love Adam as a permanent judge. He provide such detailed, meaningful critique to the dancers and you can tell that he loves building them up, not just tearing them down. After the crap excuse for judging that took place on SYTYCD Canada, Adam (and although I hate to say it, even Mary and Nigel) are a breath of fresh air -- well, Mary and Nigel aren't so much fresh air, but they are better (which is sad to say).

That was some interesting info you guys dug up about Legacy - gosh this show really is sneaky isn't it? Who knew the world of dance could be so controversial?

I agree with you that it wasn't fair that Russell got to dance with Melanie (a ghoreographer) but Brandon was flown back with the false hope of competing when you know they never had any intention of keeping him. Why not have Pauline dance with the guy choreographer(his name escapes me).

In your last recap we all blasted the new stage - but your photos of Channing and Philip's dance really showcase how distracting the lighting is. Actually all of your photos show how dark and black holish the whole stage is now.

You wondered why Nigel didn't gush over Karen, it's because she is brunette and a full grown woman. He likes his ladies blonde and young so Molly better watch out.

And speaking of Molly - with every other dancer you learned something about their background in their little clip package. But with Molly we learned she was a goofball. That's it? We already knew that. Does she really have nothing else to say about who she is or where she comes from?

Since I'm not a dancer, I will only comment on some of my superficial first impressions.

First of all, Faces.

Face 1: I don't know who did her makeup this week but I thought Cat's makeup and facial expressions were weirdly Jokeresque. Maybe it was in honor of Halloween.

Face 2: Phillip - Mr GreasyFace. It disturbs me that his face is always so greasy. I hope it's not used as a lift point anytime this season because his partner is sure to slip. I also think Phillip is emulating Philip Michael Thomas of Miami Vice - not only in looks but in his assumption that he is greater (grater?) than he really is.

Good Pairing.

I think the Mollee and Gollee (Nathan) pairing is very cute in a High School Musical sort of way.

Dark Horse Pick.

My Dark Horse pick of the season is Kathryn. She is the dancer that most impressed me because she did more than I ever expected. Sort of like when Katee Shean first appeared. The others lived up to or near what I anticipated so there was no 'aha! moment there. I hope Kath-You're-In continues to rock it and impress us all.

Show Excitement.

Overall the show was a 4.5 on the Richter scale. Not enough to shake me up. The Cave routine woke me up, the others seemed meh.

Bad Juju.

I hope Russell doesn't continue to suffer bad juju from Nigel. Already I am more impressed in Russell than I ever was of Evan (or his brother).

Thanks from a grateful nation.

Finally, thank you Pottymouth for your, as always, humorous, yet insightful, recap.

SWAK-back

I didn't get the whole "bring Brandon back just to fuck with him" thing either. It would have made SO much sense to just let Pauline dance with the choreographer and only vote out a girl this week. Then let her pair up with the guy who was partnerless. That would have made a lot more sense.

I LOVED the dance that Travis choreographed. It reminded me a lot of the stuff that Mia does (love her dances too). I'm pleased to see how well he is doing for himself. I always liked him.

Philip is icky. Just... smarmy. I don't know what it is about him, but everytime he appears on my screen I feel like I need to shower. Gross! Same with Assholee AND her husband. Yeah, he has nice abs but it takes more than that to wow me. Both of them just reek of famewhoredom.

I don't have a problem with Mollie like the rest of you guys. I think she is cute.

TinkerbellAPixie: They showed a lot about Mollie's background during the auditions. She was in all 3 HSMs and then her mom basically sold everything and took her and her sister to LA to give Mollie a chance. They live in a house with no furniture except beds. What more could they really say about her?

Thanks for a great recap, Pottymouth!

Great recap Pottymouth and I'm always anxiously waiting for them!

TinkerbellAPixie you just don't know how sneaky this show is. For anyone wondering Legacy why made it through Vegas Week when it basically sucked and go onto the show he had connections connections connections.

Whether they just wanted for us to see Russell solo or they already knew were going to get rid of Brandon and they had to ensure that by putting him up against Russell it's all still wrong. Inviting Brandon back for like 2 days and then cutting him. They should've just not brought him back and had Paula dance with the choreographer like they did with Russell. Putting Russell in the bottom making him think he was really bad might mess him up next week or so.

I like the Bianca/Victor contemp. routine and even though he bugs me I also liked the Legacy/Kathryn hip hop routine.

Does anyone else get a Twitch/Joshua type of vibe in Russell? Maybe that's why I like Russell so much and he's just awesome!!!

Great recap!

Completely agreed with everything already stated. However, just to play the devil's advocate when it comes to Legacy: If you took almost every dancer that has ever been in the competition and made a list of how their backgrounds all intertwined, then you'd have a spiderweb of overlapping jobs, movies, commercials, events, etc. From what I understand, if you're a talented dancer that has been trying to make it in the business for a few years, there's a good possibility that you've somehow been involved in a project either choreographed or supported by someone who has somehow been a part of SYTYCD (whether it is a choreographer or a previous contestant). I don't think it's necessarily fair to constantly berate someone for having connections to the show.

The thing about this season that is making it difficult for me to enjoy is that there's nobody to root for. Instead of coming out of this Top 20 show with three or four contestants that I absolutely adore, I came out of it furious that Nigel exists, angry that they let Orangeface McPinkLips be a part of this show, and concerned that instead of being able to enjoy Russell as a contender I’m constantly going to be worried about his relationship with the judges (I know that they aren’t going to kick him off because it would go completely against the whole idea of America’s “FAVORITE” dancer, but still…)

Other notes: I, too, feel as though Sonya’s routines are becoming a bit redundant. I’m starting to feel the same way about her that I began to feel about Mia Michael in more recent seasons: I want to like a choreographer because their choreography makes me feel something. I want to see a dance, and when it’s over say “Whoa.” And I was starting to miss that in Mia’s routines, because I always knew what to expect (she did get me with the “Addiction” routing last year though), but I still liked her because I felt obligated, because she is THE Mia Michaels. Anyway, I’m starting to get that same feeling with Sonya, so she’d better bring something new.

I love Adam Shankman. I love him as a judge, and a choreographer, and a movie producer, and I want to carry him around in my pocket everyday because I think he’s adorable; he manages to be constructive and knowledgeable, without being snarky and annoying like Tyce.

I also agree that the stage is swallowing the dancers whole. It’s almost as if I can’t focus on the dances because the lights are going all over the place, except where they need to go…on the dancers.

All this being said, I am still (and will forever be) a King Danny/Prince Travis fan. I have yet to see a dancer on this show who matches Danny’s technique, or has as likeable a personality as Travis. I find it almost sad that I get more excitement out of seeing Travis as a choreographer, than I do from any contestant on this season or last.

*One note: Not that Legacy did well in Vegas, because he didn't, but there have been several dancers who sucked in Vegas and made it to the show. Legacy is somewhat talented in his own right.

Rocksmiles:

I agree with most of your post, but concerning your comments about Legacy, I think it's different this time.

First off, it's not his connections to the show that bother people. Will from season 4 had connections to the show. But Will deserved to be in the top 20, whereas most people feel Legacy doesn't.

I also don't agree that recently there have been dancers who sucked in Vegas but still made it onto the show. There have been dancers who were bad in other styles who made it through, but these dancers were awesome in their own styles. I think part of what pisses people off about Legacy is that he's not even that great in his own style. He's got talent, sure, but compare his solo to Twitch's or Phillip's. Twitch and Phillip's had range and humor and showed thought and and a good sense of choreography. Legacy's was just a bunch of tricks we'd seen before with no transitions. Do you really think he's on the same level as Josh from Season 4 or even Russell from this season?

But mainly though, it's the way they rammed Legacy down our throats. The show needs to promote itself and its current season, and so it lies to us a lot. But there are lies and then there are insulting lies, and telling us that Legacy might be the best b-boy ever is an insulting lie. And telling us that he did well on Mia Michaels' choreography is an insulting lie, too. It made it too obvious that they had decided from the very beginning that he was going to make the top 20 no matter what. Probably, it's not the first time they've done that, but this time it was so obvious, and their reactions to his routines so obviously false, that it made my stomach hurt to watch it.

All that said, as I mentioned in my earlier reply, I thought he was good this week.

JohnnyLegs:

Totally agreed. I didn't think Legacy was anywhere near talented enough to be on this show when you compare him with Joshua, Twitch, and even Phillip.

I think when reading the comments, what I had gathered was that many people were hating on him simply because he had connections, and I guess I didn't really read closely enough to realize that it's not simply the connections to the show that people are mad about, but the fact that he really doesn't deserve to be there because his solo and his performance of the choreography is lacking (which I agree with). Thanks for the clarification!

JohnnyLegs:

I think you summed it up pretty nicely about everyone's issue with Legacy. My comment before I wasn't hating on Legacy just cause he had connections I just don't think his talent justified him getting a spot onto the show.

I also agree with JohnnyLegs.

I think putting Russell in the bottom two did two things, actually: (1) tried to throw viewers off the scent that he's one of the judges favorites (honestly, he has top four--if not top two written all over him; plus, he was heavily featured from the beginning); (2) rallied a fan base for him once the voting starts. If people think he's in danger or that the judges are gunning for him, they'll vote for him.

I have to say that I don't like the judges picking who goes in the bottom because part of the fun of the show is the WHAT WAS AMERICA THINKING aspect, and, I get the feeling that Ellenore probably would've still gotten booted but who joined her in the bottom might have been different.

I have such a problem with Noelle being safe, but I'm guessing the judges really like her and want her in the top ten, which is why she was paired with Russell. Still, it stinks.

I normally agree with your assessments PM, but we had a few differences of opinion this week.

I liked the Broadway number with Ashleigh and Jakob. I think they both did a good job.

I absolutely hated the Sonya number (although I admittedly have never liked her choreography), and what Ryan was doing can't be considered dancing, he was spazzing out on stage. I want to root for Ellenore, so I hope Ryan gets cut soon and she stops making outlandish predictions about her routines.

I guess I'm also in the minority in that Mollee doesn't bother me. In my opinion, she's a good dancer and she saved the disco routine. Nathan was horrible. Horrible, horrible and did I mention horrible. Based on his performance he should have gone home. He could very well be another case of someone who is brilliant in his own style but can't adapt to anything else. Given the judges' positive comments after his epic failure at disco, it looks like he's favored to be around for a while regardless how he dances.

I also disagree with the notion that the bottom four people should have been couples. If someone dances well, why should they be put in jeopardy just because their partner wasn't very good. That seems a lot less fair. That the judges have a tendency to cut couples in the first few weeks of a season is something I've always disagreed with, so I can't buy into that being an excuse for how people should be put into the bottom four now.

I'm glad people were impressed with the hot girl's performance, but why did she have to be saddled with Legacy? Once the voting starts his incompetence is going to put them in the bottom three every week. But oh no, HE won't go home…it'll be her who gets boned by the judges. I'm having Ashley/Kupono flashbacks.

You beat me to the punch keenai. I was just about to say the same thing regarding Russell. He was never in any danger of going home. What better way to light a fire under his fan base and guarantee he stays in the competition than by "supposedly" placing him in danger. Who thinks his fans aren't going to vote for him in droves when they finally get the chance? Being put in danger of going home was the best thing that could have happened to him.

I dont know if this was covered in the other comments. My theory is that they put Russel in the bottom so he could showcase his solo and possibly garner support for later on when votes will be necessary. That is the only thing that makes sense because he was far from being in the bottom 2 guys in my opinion.

I meet Ariana, not Ellenore. Obvs.

Also ohhhyeah, I agree with you about the disco routine. I blame the choreography more than the dancing, but I thought Nathan was plodding and danced heavy. A lot of it was him rushing to get into position for the lifts, which is why I blame the choreography more than anything. He couldn't really ever settle into the routine to actually DANCE.

Somewhere along the line Doriana figured that the routines were boring because they lack tricks, but I always found the routines boring because of the dancers. The season one disco with Nick and Melody was awesome (and choreographed by Brian Friedman) and I loved the S3 one with Sara and Neil. And then the S4 one w/Joshua and Chelsie was memorable because it was HARD AS HELL. And I think for some reason she latched onto that. WHO KNOWS? Maybe she just wants to keep her job.

At any rate, I liked the waltz more.

ARGH.

MEANT Ariana, not meet Ariana. Sigh. I should've just left well enough alone. The smart people already knew what I meant anyway.

I finally got to watch this show over the past two nights. Ugh, where to begin? I've about had it with Nigel.

Potty, you were right on with your recap the other night regarding the fact that they won't feature tap routines on this show. They continue to feature Disco, and Russian Folk Dancing, and African, but I don't remember one person get on this show as a disco dancer, or a Russian fold dancer...etc. If tap is such a hard routine to master, why is it there was a whopping total of ONE tapper prior to this season? Isn't that an insult to the people who learn hip-hop, Paso Doble or contemporary routines in a week?

Kudos to Russell for being a class act and defying the odds again. Tough ballroom routine, and he loses his partner a day before, and has to work with a new partner, and he still did a respectable job. I was especially impressed with the lifts, as Noelle would've been a little easier to lift.

I actually liked the Legacy routine. That was better partnering work than I'd seen from him. They were hitting most of those moves in perfect sync.

Ellenore should refrain from calling her shots unless she has the goods to deliver, and that routine was not even close to the best that this show has seen. It's not endearing anyway...ask Blake from season 1 how that much confidence worked out for popularity.

I accept that Mowwee is going to be with us for a while, though not happy about it. I think Brandon got a very raw deal, which leads me back to Nigel...

How in the blue hell does Russell get put in the bottom? To counter ohhyeah's opinion that the bottom four should not have been couples, I'd say that I know the World Series is affecting the first two shows, but America would be voting bottom couples until we have the top 10. Not necessarily are couples eliminated, but they both dance solos when in the bottom, so it should be the same now.

Lastly, I'd like to know WHO Nigel plans on talking to in order to bend the rules. That's a really flimsy way to make the show appear transparent and like he's NOT pulling the strings, but I think most should be on to him by now. Brandon should get another shot, because in reality, he never really had a shot here. This was a foregone conclusion from the onset, I believe.

Noelle gets hurt? She gets a pass. If memory serves, Pauline missed the last part of Vegas due to the ankle, for sure the last solo part, and made it on.

Most of this show is meh for me so far. Not thrilled with many dancers thus far, not a fan of the stage, the miked tapping is kinda off. However, the one great part to this show is Adam Shankman. He's restored a lot of the credibilty to the judges panel that's disappeared since Mary became a caricature of herself and Nigel is playing puppet master and changing the rules to suit his shaping of who stays and who goes.

Hopefully once people start voting again things will get to normal. Fingers crossed Russell makes it one more week until we take over in voting.

zbird: Yeah, I’ll be shocked if they actually let Brandon come back – Nigel is a big liarpants.

JohnnyLegs: I think Phillip and Channing may be my least favorite couple. I think once America starts voting, they’ll be in the bottom. Legacy and Kathryn were definitely the surprise of the night for me. Like you, I was all set to poop all over him! Oh well, I’m sure I’ll get my chance when they get ballroom!

cattyfan: Yes! Shenanigans!!! I was thinking the rule would apply to Billy since he appeared in the Meet the Top Twenty special. I hope I’m wrong because I’d really like to see him come back.

here4beer: I see your question about Legacy’s connection to the show has been answered already. Thanks for the info about his movie credits! I had no idea he had a connection to Dave Scott as well!

zerocool: Not pathetic at all! I was still pissed three days later!!! :D

cattyfan: I’ll have to keep that list of dancers for future reference – I wonder how many will show up on future seasons?? ;)

Sabrina: I know! When I was pulling the pictures for Russell’s dance it was so frustrating because the lighting was so bad! This show has already had issues with lighting and camera work, but the new stage seems to have made it worse.

Lizbot: What really annoys me is that Nigel has said that the reason Russell was in the bottom was because he was weaker than the other guys. That is complete and utter bullshit. Now, could he be lying and trying to pull a reverse psychology no all of us? Yes. My concern is that there is something more insidious at work and he is trying to undermine someone who is clearly a fan favorite. In other words, Nigel is an asshole.

Tink: The thought of Nigel oogling Mowee just made me throw up in my mouth. I guess Karen needs to bleach her hair, stat. ;)

gerritv: Yeah, someone needs to apply some powder to Phillip’s face and fast! The Tubbs comparison is hilarious! I think you said that before, right? As soon as you did, I was like YES!! A greasy Tubbs!

Snootchy Bootches: I really love Travis’ choreography and am excited to see him do more. That IS one really good thing about the show – giving young choreographers more exposure. Who knows? Maybe Travis will win an Emmy in a year or two.

bigjr6633: I really hope being in the bottom doesn’t mess with Russell’s head – I really like the guy. I think he has a great spirit about him, if that makes sense. I can see where you’re going with the Twitch/Joshua comparison. There was just something about them that made you want to see them succeed.

Rocksmiles: A pocket Adam Shankman? I want one! I do love that he tries to give constructive criticism to the dancers as well. Really the only time I’ve ever had an issue with him was when he called Danny arrogant, but I’ve since forgiven him.

JohnnyLegs: Will was a great example!!

keenai: That is some of the fun isn’t it? Wondering what the hell people were thinking when they voted. I hope that people do rally around Russell because I actually think he could go far in this competition, given the chance.

ohhhyeah: The reason I’m saying the bottom four should have been couples is because that’s how the show has always done it. I wouldn’t mind the dancers have individual numbers from the beginning – then we wouldn’t have the business of a good partner “protecting” someone not as good. But I would bet money that as soon as the voting starts, we’re getting numbers for couples until the top ten. I guess I’d just like them to apply the same rules to themselves that they apply to us. Silly, I know. ;)

nick7894: Yes, that seems to be a popular theory. And I hope it’s true. I still don’t like that they put him there.

keenai: I swear one day Doriana is going to seriously injure one of the dancers. And Hee!! You made me giggle with the meet/meant thing – I do that all the time!!!

Thanks so much for reading and sharing your comments, everyone. Can’t wait to see what happens tonight!!!

SWAK, PottyMouth

LuckyLouie!! You must have been leaving your comment as I was writing mine!! LOL on the Blake comment – I always wonder if he would have been better received had he not put his foot in his mouth so early on in the competition. We are on the same wavelength about partners vs individuals in the bottom four :D I will have my fingers AND toes crossed for Russell tonight!!

Something that has bothered me every year...the changing criteria based on who the judges want to give the boot.

Some weeks we get a "this decision is based on your weak solo this evening. If you're dancing for your life, it needs to show." And other times we get "this decision is based on your body of work throughout the show."

It's just another batch of lies Nigel tells, thinking the audience is too stupid to see through it.

@cattyfan -

You're dead on about the changing criteria. That's because it's whatever it needs to be to spin the judges decisions.

@tink -
He likes the brunettes too...remember how he drooled over Jeanine, especially with the superhero costume routine. He's an equal opportunity ogler.

@potty -
I really don't like to get all conspiracy theory, but I really think Evan has spooked Nigel. I believe, in his mind, Russell is like an Evan or Phillip, in that they're fan favorites, they have a good story, let them stay in the competition to get them on tour, then get 'em off the show so they don't get in the way of those who are deemed worthy of winning cough*contemporarydancers*cough.

I hear where you're coming from PM. What I'm saying is that the judges already know who they want to send home, so it doesn't make any real difference if the dancers are put into the bottom four as couples or on an individual basis. Whoever they want to cut is going to be cut, there is no way around it. Maybe I'm just being overly practical.