He actually just finished a movie called Take The Lead where he plays....a ballroom dancer. Unfair competition I say! (Though that would SO rock.)

FWIW, USA Today reported this morning that their online poll went to John & Charlotte in a landslide (74% to 26%).

Duh! (IMO...not to impune your post!)
Kelly's suxyness and pluckiness can only carry her so far....

That poll may also just be a reflection of USA Today's readership demographic. The only time I ever pick up that bird cage liner is when hotels leave it outside my door. It isn't very soon before I'm throwing it down again in disgust. That's not to say that John & Charlotte don't have an excellent chance at winning, of course.

Also, most of the online polls before the American Idol finale showed Bo Bice in the lead, but that didn't reflect the actual result. While I hope that this poll is a little more accurate, I'm not going to count on it.

One thing I'd like to see for next time is some brief clips talking more about who the pros are - maybe Charlotte or Louis talking about what it's like to grow up as a dance competitor, etc. Even if they thought it wasn't interesting enough to make the show, some clips like that would be a really nice addition to ABC's web site.

Very good idea, IMO. I'd also like to see them treated with more respect during the interviews with Bergernon and Canning. I don't know why the producers have obviously instructed Bergernon (who was very witty last week, btw) and Lisa to regard the pros like "silent" partners. The viewing audience would, no doubt, be interested in their comments.

Too bad there's no bootleg footage available of the pros bantering back and forth about their designated celebs/students. Now there would be some interesting dish.

I'll bet this show could even put together a successful tour. The pros are acquiring their own fan bases. I think Charlotte and Ashley, in very different ways, have each become breakout stars this season.

I hope that USA poll does foretell tonight's results. Is there any way that John O'Hurley can score a magnificent triumph and yet not have to exit the show and thus leave a very big hole in my heart? The only person who might possibly distract me from bereftitude is Owen Wilson -- the contestant of my dreams!!!

I did like the fact that John mentioned last week that Charlotte was the world champion in foxtrot. (She and Andrew Sinkinson won the foxtrot at Blackpool, the biggest and most prestigious dance competition in the world.)

According to TV Guide online today, Tom will be retiring from the FDNY in August in order to embark on a career as a motivational speaker, so he would definitely have some free time. Also, picture him in a tux???? (mmmm.) Although I would have a hard time picturing him in some of the other male dancer costumes (which he probably wouldn't be caught dead in anyway because his firemen buddies would never let him live it down).

DVD material maybe??? They could add in performances by the pros, too.

I don't put much stock in online polls since they are so easily rigged by erasing your cookies and voting multiple times.

I would love a DVD set of the series with an entire DVD devoted to practice sessions and more information on the pros.

Oooh, good point, isiscloud. You can fit 6 1-hour episodes on one DVD, right? That would probably do pretty well for ABC; there are lots of people wishing they could go back and see the early performances again.

Oh, I would pay good money to see Ann Coulter try to dance, and (hopefully) go ass over tea kettle! Who's with me?

John/Charlotte will win, but like American Idol, we'll never know the margin of victory.

The only place I want to see Ann Coulter dance is at the end of a rope.

I can't believe this: I forgot to vote online this week.

I've been watching some of the video on Raphael Pungin's blog (many thanks for the link) of dance competitions other than this show and I'm reimpressed with the celeb contestants on DWtS and filled with renewed respect for them. They certainly accomplished a lot in such a short period of time.

And I also am in renewed awe of the pros and their choreography. Performing and choreographing are separate talents aren't they and yet the pros on this show showed such excellence in both areas.

I must say I am looking forward to seeing Joey McIntyre dance again tonight. As much as I have enjoyed the male pros, they seem to have brought almost a gigolo vibe, at least in my opinion, to their presence. I like Joey's particular kind of masculine energy a lot more. I'm wondering whether competitive ballroom dance in fact encourages the development of what I have clumsily labeled as a gigolo vibe?
Whether this is seen as a quality of truly expert dancing in a male and is something that is strived for?

Because even though Holyfield, McIntyre and O'Hurley were far outmatched by the male pros in dance training and expertise, I still found myself much preferring watching them and what they brought to the dance floor.

I'm wondering --if the gurus of the Ballroom Dance World were to take our beloved Joey, Evander and John hostage and spit them out after years of instruction, would they end up all super suave with their energy all continentalized ?? Would that be considered part of being able to show their female partner off to her best advantage?

I don't think so. People are individuals and there are thousands of more male competitive ballroom dancers out there, each with their own personalities and style.

Now, there is a certain expectation of how people present themselves on the floor -- there's a "ballroom look" or a "latin look" -- but a lot of it is acting. Some people find their own look and style and show up as individuals, and others model themselves after their dance heroes.

I think John would turn out still funny and bubbly, but a little less hammy. I think Joey would probably stay just the way he is, but maybe would be more inclined to not fight with his coaches :-) And Evander would stay sweet and lead-footed, and everyone would love him no matter what.

The "giglolo" vibe is really just the male version of the super-sexy feminine vibe that a lot of the ladies put on. It is quite true that sexual stereotypes in ballroom are very pronounced -- but again this a performance thing, not necessarily a real-life thing. Granted, the fake tans, waxed chests, and open shirts don't help much, but that's the performance look that is in vogue these days so that's what people affect.

Thankyou very much for the answers, ziglettospal. Your posts are always so informative and such a great read! And, along with the other ballroom dancers who have generously shared their insights, have also greatly enriched watching this show.

I don't think John and Charlotte should put on a show in the hot department - it's not either one's forte, never will be. Wasn't Rachel's either, tho she "was" a hottie. The more I see their Foxtrot, the better it looks, ditto their Paso Doble. John's better than I thought - I figured he just knew how to "sell" but his timing is very good and he finishes his movements - he understands the dances he does.

I take it tonight's competition will depend upon viewer voting (which reacted to LAST weeks' competition) plus judge's votes for tonight's competition.

I really think John/Charlotte should win. He's the perfect combination of total amateur and talented dance student. You can see both in him clearly - he embodies this competition.

Kelly is less about dancing than athleticism - not every "clumsy" woman out there is as flexible, strong, and gutsy as she. But she's still throwing away stuff she hasn't got - she's getting graded on a curve because she is so much better than the judges gave her credit for, that I'M starting to think she's better than the judges gave her credit for, and I'm expecting more. More finish in her arm movement, more articulation, and lift your feet, Kelly.

Joey could have really buried everybody, but he was kind of lazy. IMO.

Maybe lazy, or maybe just trying to be the boss and not trusting Ashly or the learning process. I recall a training clip or two when he said he wanted to focus on the performance and not the technqiue. But what he didn't get was that he didn't have the technique yet to support the performance. So we ended up with Ashly backing off and Joey looking kind of "off" for two weeks. And then last week when the clips indicated that she started cracking the whip again, he suddenly looked and danced so much better, while still showing his strong performance skills (BTW, I saw him on stage in "Wicked" and he was my favorite thing about the show...by the end I wanted to run off with Fiyero :-) :-) ).

My vote is with John & Charlotte this week, just because I've seen more actual dancing from them then from "The Smokies" (Alec & Kelly) all series. The John versus Kelly matchup is basically the usual dancesport battle between purity of dance versus performance appeal. The whole "federation president Barry Fife" stuff from "Strictly Ballroom" where he came down on Scott for "flashy crowd-pleasing steps." John & Charlotte are showing a very good beginner-to-intermediate version of the fundamental figures in their dances, with some fun stuff thrown in. Alec & Kelly are showing a very strong "hot" performance, but the technique just isn't there (yet) for some of the things they are doing. But some people think "close enough and hella entertaining" is better than "technically correct and well done but without fireworks" is the way to go. Others believe in the opposite approach. It really is one of the long fundamental ongoing arguments amongst ballroom spectators...go for the flash and mood, or go for the actual execution of the dance. It's cool how it turned out like this, and how most of the audience -- dancers or not -- seems to "get" this too.

If Kelly wins tonight it's because people found her more entertaining on so many ways: costumes, smokin' hotness, more interesting choreography, dancing with Alec, her whole back story, her improvement and stick-to-it attitude.

If John wins tonight it's because people found his approach to the dancing appealing, and responded to his clean dancing (clean in terms of showing the fundamentals of the dances) and elegant dance technique.

Neither one is actually "wrong" or "bad" in the long run, but I do have my (strong) preference in this match-up!

Hee! Just heard our show mentioned on NPR's Marketplace program. Announcer gives the date followed by "And the day of the last episode of television's Dancing With The Stars. Oh, come on. You know you watch it."

But, but.....Kelly is so so wrong and bad (at the dancing)! She has pluck and determination, neither of which should win you dance competition (IMHO). Even though she has improved from a Z-, a C- performance still shouldn't win you a competition against B+/A- performers. They are being penalized for starting out better and having less "room for improvement."

John/Charlotte hands down...and if Kelly/Alex win this then I won't be watching next "season."

Sigh! Who am I kidding.....yeah yeah, I'll bring the popcorn!

I think Kelly IS wrong and bad, because her performance doesn't really compensate for her lack of technique.

Kelly and Alec's performance appeal doesn't outshine John and Charlotte's - the ones who had a shot at that were Joey/Ashley. Kelly is kind of slow. Their "performance appeal" to me is physical appeal, and their performance (hers) is kind of lagging behind their physical assets. There are skaters and dancers out there with rockin bods who work it and use it, sell it and hang it out there. Their technique isn't great, but they compensate.

I don't see Kelly compensating by "working it". I see her doing a commendable, pedestrian job while possessing a smoking body.

Trying to say - Kelly is a "hottie" and Alec is a "hottie". Kelly has the body, but I think her smoldering performance resides mostly in her architecture. She's kind of laid back and casual, otherwise - she's not smoking out there except that's her semi-naked smoking body she's wriggling - and it's not like she's wriggling it to beat the band. She could tap her foot to the rinse cycle in those outfits and come off hot, cause she IS hot.

Her DANCING, though, isn't that hot. She's not smokin out there as a DANCER. She's smoking out there because she's a great looking woman with an incredible body. Combining her assets with a smoking performance would melt the floor, but I don't see her doing the latter.

I don't know what that move is when the male carries the female down steps and she "walks" in the air, but Kelly's "air walk" was sloppy, lazy, unfinished and how hard is it to articulate that? Step. Step. Step. In time to the music.

I think I'm still not over the "meh" of her paso doble, which had decent choreo but I felt that Alec dragged her around the floor for most of it and she barely had the energy for hip movements.

She definitely deserves to be in the final two considering that Rachel couldn't sell it to the audience (great lines and centering, maybe not the best mover) and Joey underachieved. But I don't think we have an apples/oranges situation here. We COULD, but we don't.

It seems that Joey would be very good on stage as Zigolettospal mentioned because of his stronger "performance" inclination vs. technical ballroom dancing where you need both the performance and adherence to the form.


I'll bring the big canister of caramel\cheese\plain popcorn. We definitely need some Dancing with the StarsCons action next time. Is Play By Play (the sports bar at Madison Square Garden where TARCon is held is held) available?

On review, Joey & Ashly weren't all that bad. However, they danced after John & Charlotte and that was a huge hindrance. That, plus the movements were too big for the type of dance they were doing, but they couldn't help the music. If they had done smaller moves, they would have been taken down a notch for not making use of the music.

What the *hell* (pardon my french) was that singer doing????

Kudos to J/C for being able to slow the "quick"step down to their speed! But lordy, that rendition of the song was awful. :P

And I can't tell if John looks nervous or sad or sick. He doesn't seem very happy (perhaps he too is ticked at the band?).

ETA: OK, I'm betting he was nervous about the freestyle that he still had to do. That was awesome! So fun, yet not trashy. Way to go, guys!

What a great, insightful post ziglettospal! I completely agree with you on this point.

I disagree Nyree. I agree with you that Kelly has less technical skill. But I disagree on the general point that her performance doesn't compensate for this. I think performance is completely subjective, while it might not be enough for others, it might be enough for some. As ziglettospal noted, this is pretty much upto preference.

That is why I believe dance as an artform is really difficult to judge, that is, it is a completely subjective experience -- which might or might not equal or surpass the sum of its components parts which we can objectively critique -- e.g. technical proficiency.

NO NO NO NO NO
Flesh over class
Maybe if John had had a Brazilian bikini wax and worn the red speedo.

THIS SUCKS!!!!!! America would rather see Kelly and Alex dry fuck than actual ballroom dancing. Her feet were never pointed when they should have been, she never stomped during her paso doble, and they can all just suck it!!!! John and Charlotte were the greatest! I'll never watch this heap of shit again!



Me too. I guess it's because we were watching the dancing and not waiting for her tits to fly out of her top again.

RIGGED!!!!!

I smell a Redford movie with Ralph Fiennes playing JOH.

America (Broadcasting Company) loves a comeback story--almost as much as they love hot winners in the top demographic.

My GF got me hooked into this and I'm PISSED OFF!

The judges couldn't rig the contest this week, their votes didn't matter.

When reduced to a two-way contest, judicial votes from this week had no way to supercede last week's audience votes in the scoring system. This week's dancing had no influence whatsover on what team won the contest.

Oh, you've got to be fucking kidding me. First three tens, even though she missed two steps, and now she WINS?!?


Shut up, Tom Bergeron.

I thought Kelly's samba was way slower and more uncertain than last week, and she hit her head on the floor in the last drop, before the backbend. But 10's???? Fine.

This was predetermined.

Lifts in a pool, Patrick Swayze guest cameo...I didn't know this was Dirty Dancing night!

John's foxtrot did seem a bit more controlled and more importantly, he was less hammy.

Kelly's samba was fine but I agree with Carrie, it was better last time. I can't put my finger on it though. At least Alec tossed the horrendous shirt.

Lisa, first I welcomed you back. Now I want you dismissed. Let a dancer say a word just ONCE!

Freestyle:

I was SO worried that John was either going to hit her head or him getting clocked when he lifted her but phew! That was pretty fun but he said it best: if he didn't have Charlotte, he would have been screwed big time.

It was nice to see Kelly step out her comfort zone, improve, etc and I do commend her for doing some pretty wacky and wild stuff. That said, I found a section in the middle that just stalled for no reason and there was some pretty obvious bobbles. So an effin' 30?! Yeah. Right. All of those judges are some powerful narcotics if they miss all of that. I started to boo. And hiss. And snarl. And willing to boycott. Then I realize I am taking this way too seriously. But still, I call le bullshit. If Kelly was leading the fan vote from the start, then this was just a formality.



It's not just you. I saw it and it screamed "Me want WOMAN!"


I miss Joey and Rachel. Evander? Eh. (Love you but lead feet.) Trista? What? She's a somebody?

Since this won't change the course of world history, I have to live with the result. But say it with me America: JOHN. WAS. ROBBED! But we should be thankful that the Red Speedo did not come to pass.

And there is a woman who hopes you don't get to keep that toll free number.

Overall it's like Amazing Race season 3: Kickass season right up until the last 5 minutes. Kelly is the new Flo.

I wonder if, like the Emmy, we'll see the trophy show up on the set of GH???

Bwah.

Wow I guess maybe I was paying too much attention to Alex and Kelly's freestyle because I found a lot of steps really off.

Funny the hosts comments about John and Charlotte bringing in a lot of viewers. Seriously though Kelly and Alex. Bullshit.

Oh and I hate a Cinderella story (especially where Cinderella dances like she has two left feet).

An ABC "star" wins an ABC show? I'm shocked. Shocked!

I call bullcrap. How the heck this those two win? This show is officially dead to me now.

Oh, BULLshit!!!!!

First of all their coreography had me confused, because while I am sure it was intended like that, but in various ocassions it seemed like Kelly forgot the steps, because Alec would start doing something and she would start a bit after. But whatever, I imagine they meant it to be this way, so well, whatever.

But am I wrong, or were those lifts really sloppy. At some points, again it looked like she was slightly behind him, so their momentum wasn't working together, and it seemed like he was about to drop her. And that last thing they did when he put her down on the floor, it looked REALLY awkward.

Three 10s????? Really??????

"I'm going to Disneyland!" Corporate synergy at its best!!

I cringed through pretty much all of Kelly and Alec's final freestyle performance while I thought that the John and Charlotte's final freestyle performance was perfection. The judges had to have known how the audience vote was and then followed the points along accordingly.

I feel stupid for asking this, but what song was playing during Joey & Ashly's cha cha routine at the end?

What a load of crap! Kelly messed up several times during her free dance and they give her 10s??? me thinks the judges knew the outcome and wanted to make it seem like a close race.

Damn you General Hospital fans!!

Absofuckinglutely!

Underdog, my ass. Bigger tits, that's all.

It was all in the lifts that Alec did and he could do it because Kelly is so tiny. Charlotte is an actual woman and John is at least 15 years older than Alec. BS. This was so totally rigged.

3 10s????
3 10s????
2 10?????

John & Charlotte were just the right amount of sexy. Sure, they messed up a couple of steps, but whenever Kelly had to dance she stuttered and waited for Alec to see what to do. When J&C messed up, they just tried cover it up and move on. Plus, J&C don't get a farewell dance??? Bullshit.

Crap! I agree, I think something is suspect about the convenient 3 *10s* awarded. The bloody judges fawned over John and Charlotte's 1st dance, making special mention of how it was better than the previous performance that scored 26. So, what do they score? 27. CRAP. They should have scored 10s for that dance alone.

I'm annoyed. More later.

Boooooo! Boooooo! I demand a recount!

This show is such BS!! The show has lost my viewership for next year! She was SERIOUSLY flawed tonight and the dance was pathetic!! SHe couldn't catch up to him she had to watch him to make sure she was doing all the right moves! Solid 10's that is such CRAP!! John and Charolette were MILES MILES MILES above Kelly and Alec!!! I wish that my group Joey and Ashleigh had taken their places!! I am just so pissed right now!!

Thanks, ABC, for spoiling my bit of summer fun with the rigged voting. ALL three judges giving the only 10s to Kelly and Alec's last dance? Bullshit. I, who know nothing about dancing, saw the missteps and could have sworn that Alec basically dropped Kelly on her knees at the end.

I knew that ABC would have to "create" suspense by making the scrappy, come-from-behind couple top the longrunning favorites' scores. And the rat smelt even worse when all three judges fell all over themselves to praise an obviously flawed routine.

I guess I'm in the minority but I loved Kelly and Alec's free style a lot more.

Kelly came a long way, but no way was that freestyle routine worth all 10s.

Only watched the last minute to see who won...

BS.

Load of crap.

Psych.

Whatevah.

Kelly made a great comeback, but did NOT deserve to win.

[many posts deleted]

Please don't use these boards like a real-time chat room during the show. Thanks. Those messages are tres annoying to go through after the show is over -- as annoying as using 'tres'.