149 replies to this topic

[TWoP Lockley]

Remember to keep discussion to the episode.

[trojan69]

Truly horrendous music. Ruined everything.

The contestants/dancers generally did a very nice job dealing with this contrived fusion.

Melissa/Tony were clearly the marathon winners.

I think next week will be the last we see of Kirstie in competition.

[CPP83]

Well that was a waste, again, so shocking, imo. The singing was god awful, the dancing really didn't matter one way or another, imho, the leader board is basically set in stone at this point. And how quaint that they give Shawn her first 30 with Mark, those cheeky judges, insert eye roll here.

How sad that the election is going to be over, finally, hopefully, tomorrow, and yet this show will continue for several more weeks. This feels like the longest season of all time, to me, and so very little has proved worth it. And no one will even go home this week, it's like the gift that keeps giving, like irritated hemorrhoids or a pesky case of the clap.

However, if they would ever install shockers into the judges chair when they begin to lose their minds and start spewing hyperbole, that'd be a nice touch.

Though seeing those kids together, minus Mark acting like Jesus Christ Superstar of the Ballroom, was a treat for me, even if I could hardly tell what was going on with the frantic camera work and flashing lights as if the Mod Squad had arrived.

I just love spotting Brandon when I can, ever since he won the kid competition with his partner Brittany, which seems so very long ago. He really has become such a talented young man, imo, he really has something special going on and he seems as if he is capable of doing it all. I would love to see him given a chance on the show with some young, fresh faced, celeb soon.

And Val actually impressed me some with his swing choreography with Kelly, I actually would like to see them dance it alone, it looked pretty good from what I could see, which was not much, but she is the perfect size for it.

[MHCBadDude]

Melissa and Tony are getting propped. Holy Cow.

Scoring all over the place once again and makes no sense. What else is new?

And Val actually impressed me some with his swing choreography with Kelly, I actually would like to see them dance it alone, it looked pretty good from what I could see, which was not much, but she is the perfect size for it.

I was impressed, too. I wanted them to get the 10 points. I also think Emmitt lasted a little too long.

It was funny when Mark mentioned William sliding all over the floor last year and he still won.

Edited by MHCBadDude, Nov 5, 2012 @ 10:05 PM.

[Kerri Johnson]

I saw Witney Carson and Lindsay Arnold from SYTYCD rehearsing in that AT&T dance. Please, show do not bring them on.

[QueenL]

Melissa's choreo was tough, but I thought she looked kind of awful getting back into the Tango. Trying to hold on for dear life, a step or two behind Tony, and her form wasn't good and there was too much body space.

Contrast that to Shawn, whose form looked absolutely great in the Tango, and was completely seamless in and out of it. Great technique.

Having said that, it's a little unfair to talk about how true fusions should be, because the Tango/Paso lends itself to each other more than other dances do. They did go in and out of it quite nicely and seamlessly, though.

Anyway, looks like my predictions earlier about how they would score Melissa versus Apolo are coming true. I wonder if it's enough to negate the fan votes or not.

With that said, I thought she actually deserved it in the marathon. It's predetermined, I have no doubt about that, especially with the way they scored her earlier in the night...but I thought that she still deserved it anyway. I thought that they did the most good dancing, right from the very start, through to the end.

She actually looked fantastic. And I agree with Bruno that she was actually really sexy in the fushion dance. First time I really thought that. She worked those boots!

lolz at two judges giving Emmitt a 9.5. I don't know in what world that's a higher dance than Apolo's.

At first I couldn't figure out how I felt about Gilles' dance, but about halfway though, I realized that I really liked it. It had some things that could use some work (the hands, still, and that Samba roll looked eh), but it had a certain dynamic quality that I liked. very "go for it", and those Argentine Tango sections had spark. It just had a certain level of gutso that I felt was a bit missing during his initial season sometimes.

Speaking of gutso, that's what I loved about Apolo's routine. Just full force, and the transition into the Paso section was hot. I just love watching men hit those Paso poses, especially when they can do them really well.

Kelly's routine was really cute, and the Cha-Cha was sharp. Ouch! though, at that fall during the swing rehearsals. She's really lucky that that didn't really hurt.

Edited by QueenL, Nov 5, 2012 @ 11:50 PM.

[ari333]

I hate that dance move where the girl is flung and hoisted and she peddles in the air with her flexed-on-purpose feet. HATE.

Why does Gilles have to sound like the giver-of-instructions to Peta? He is the student. And no, Gilles, if I were a judge I would most definitely, indeed not want to smell it. Also, he is still doing that weird thing with his hands in which he looks like he is screwing in a lightbulb with his pinky, ring, and middle fingers flaired and the index finger pointed. Additionally, I wish he would let Peta tell the world how hard he works instead of him telling us himself. blarg.

Nice to see what looked like genuine joy on Kelly's face. It looked like a real smile. Nice change. BTW, if Val doesn't have a thang for Kelly I'll eat your hat in public at high noon.

I know Maks is an ass, but I still love him. I was surprised at Kirstie's quickstep. I thought that would be the weak part of the fusion, but it looked good. The other part of the fusion dance (samba?) seemed to slip or something.

Edited by ari333, Nov 5, 2012 @ 10:06 PM.

[smiley13]

I think Shawn and Mark or Apolo and Karina should have won the marathon, certainly not Melissa. And Val and Kelly should have been out earlier.

I loved Apolo's dance and was surprised he only got nines. Shawn and Mark's 30 was well deserved.

[MusicaDolce]

Tonight was one of the more underwhelming episodes of the season to me. I wasn't wowed by any of the fusion dances, and I thought the dance marathon was generally a train wreck. I am, however, completely shocked that the judges kicked Gilles and Peta off second. Who knew they had it in them?

Also, loved Tom at the end of the show encouraging everyone to vote: "Be part of the poetry that is democracy." Oh, Tom. You're just the best.

[sab85]

Tony and Melissa! YAY! Tony never gets to win anything; he clearly couldn't believe it.

Best part of the Utah dance-seeing Brandon (of Brandon and Brittany) who must have been on the show four times now. Someone give that kid a job.

I liked Cheryl's choreography the best. That was a fusion.

[superdeluxe]

Why did Melissa and Tony got the extra pimp points? I wonder.

[QueenL]

I just love spotting Brandon when I can, ever since he won the kid competition with his partner Brittany, which seems so very long ago.

I swear, that's one of my favorite Pasos ever on this show. Better than many of the pro dances!

I saw Witney Carson and Lindsay Arnold from SYTYCD rehearsing in that AT&T dance. Please, show do not bring them on.

Nick, the third ballroom wheel in that SYTYCD trio, was there too.

And Val actually impressed me some with his swing choreography with Kelly

Yeah, aside from the butt-slapping, it had some really nice moments. Nice sense of musicality, especially in Val's dancing, and a good deal of humor too.

Actually liked Tony's choreo for Melissa's swing section. He's been getting a lot of props for his choreo this year, and I don't get it, because I thought he was much stronger in Melissa's initial season (I think that that was when he was producing some of his strongest work). Hopefully this is a signal of better things to come, for me.

[MHCBadDude]

Kelly's routine was really cute, and the Cha-Cha was sharp. Ouch! though, at that fall during the swing rehearsals. She's really lucky that that didn't really hurt.

That fall looked brutal, but I liked her reaction to it. No dramatics.

[sussudio]

Boy Apolo being first didn't help. Thought he did well, but can't believe Emmitt and Gilles outscored him. He's the 2nd to the bottom in the leaderboard. Yikes.

I didn't see Gilles doing any argentine tango. Looks like Peta just was dancing around him. I was too distracted with the tie coming off. And dont' know why he needed to rip his shirt. I thought for once, they wouldn't sexed it up, but I was wrong. They did.

And I can't stop comparing Gilles' Argentine Tango with Cheryl and Peta. Boy Cheryl really did a great job.

Even though I dont' think Emmitt deserved better scores than Apolo, props for Emmitt/Cheryl for dancing to that horrible song.

Shawn/Mark/Derek - that was a great fusion. But she has no emotions whatsoever.

[vepyewwo]

I was disappointed that a lot of the pros used the term fusion loosely. I thought fusion meant going in and out of each style constantly throughout the dance rather than just doing half the routine in one style and then the other half in the other style. That seems like a bit of a cheat to me and definitely the easier option. I was glad that Len pointed this out during Melissa and Tony’s judges comments.

Apolo and Kelly both danced better than Emmet but I suppose he deserved a higher score because his dance was an actual fusion of samba and rumba. I can understand Maks taking the easy way out but Karina and Val?

Biggest surprise in the swing marathon was Gilles getting eliminated second and Kelly placing second. She looked like one of the weakest of the stars in that dance to me. (It was difficult to tell with the camera moving between all the couples).

I really hate the way they don’t put the leader board on screen at the end. Did Shawn end up second behind Melissa?

I fear placing Melissa at the top means she is not getting the viewer votes.

[victura]

I was really happy to see Mark and Shawn together again, even though it was slightly awkward in the interview portion. Mark really did triple duty tonight; he must be exhausted after this week! Anyone notice that it was Mark and Shawn's freestyle music they used for the swing marathon? I saw bits and pieces of their freestyle in their dance tonight.

For the most part, I thought the dances that had a real fusion (as opposed to half one, half the other) worked better...i.e. Cheryl and Emmitt, Melissa and Tony, Shawn and Mark. Gilles and Peta did well dance-wise, but that song really wasn't very well suited for an Argentine tango, so it felt weird to see that being danced. Plus, samba and Argentine tango just seem weird together. Not sure if it's Cheryl's choreography, but samba and rumba worked for them, which I wasn't really expecting at all.

[bluvelvet]

I really enjoyed the Swing marathon, I thought Mark and Shawn looked like a gymnastics routine, Apolo and Karina took too long to get going but I loved Val and Kelly along with Tony/Melissa.

You know I really liked Gilles costume this week, but Peta's not so much. Gilles just doesn't have the chemistry he had with Cheryl. I do notice the thing with the hands that Carrie Ann keeps pointing out. Also PLEASE kill "the sexy".

Loved Kelly/Vals fusion dance. Shirtless Apollo very nice but I kept feeling that Karina's costume was about to fall off at any moment. Didn't like her costume either but I did like the cape reveal.

Edited by bluvelvet, Nov 5, 2012 @ 10:31 PM.

[tip and fall]

"I want them to smell it!" Sorry, Gilles, but I don't want to smell you.

I could have done without seeing Shawn in the middle of a Derek and Mark sandwich. They were the slices of Wonder Bread and she was the mayo in between.

Brooke was being such a shit-stirrer when she asked Shawn which partner she preferred, I loved it. Derek did not look pleased after Shawn's dance; I like to think he was pressed that she got her first perfect score with someone else. But then Mark bungled everything during the swing marathon... if only he had aped Derek's signature crotch bob, then he and Shawn could have won!

Apparently I spoke too soon when I praised Apolo for not feeling the need to rip his shirt off. At least he's still not as bad about it as Val is. And it was pretty rich for Carrie Ann to tell him, "Thank you, it's about time!" after criticizing him in a previous blog for overdoing the sexy card.

Loved Melissa and Tony. They're my favorite couple as of this point.

[oldbabe]

Wow, nothing says, please, God (and fans), send me home NOW, like Kirstie's performance tonight. Spending more time on the hurricane relief effort than practicing was a big hint that she's exhausted and ready to go.

The scoring made it obvious where they're going for the finals, but Tony is one of my favorite dancers and I'd love to see him win.

[smiley13]

Why did Melissa and Tony got the extra pimp points? I wonder.

She must not be pulling in the votes.

Looks like we may finally get rid of Kirstie with the double elimination next week. I think she is like 11 points back.

[superdeluxe]

Even though I dont' think Emmitt deserved better scores than Apolo, props for Emmitt/Cheryl for dancing to that horrible song.

That song was awful. Is that a real song that's actually on the charts somewhere?

I fear placing Melissa at the top means she is not getting the viewer votes.

Yep. Exactly.

[Danielle87]

I'm loving Kelly and Val, Melissa and Tony, and for some reason, really starting to love Kirstie and Maks. They all just look like they are having so much fun. You can tell which couples truly get along and like each other cause it shows in the dances.

Honestly, I'm sad to say this cause I absolutely loved Gilles his first season, but I haven't enjoyed any of his dances, like at all. Peta's choreography is just very weak to me, unlike Cheryl who always brings something new and exciting to the table with her partners. All throughout Gilles' dance, all I could think was that Cheryl would have choreographed a killer samba/tango fusion for Gilles that would have gotten them that perfect 30. Actually, they probably would have gotten a perfect 30 much earlier in the season if Gilles was still partnered with Cheryl. Oh well.

Oh, and I like Shawn so much better with Mark. Shawn and Derek really have like no chemistry at all, and I think they both know it, hence why Brook's "which partner you like more" question was so awkward. Hee.

[Try Again]

Here are my rankings of the fusion dances

1. Shawn & Mark- Another wonderful dance from Shawn. Wow she's definitely the most improved from her last season. I'm sorry but she definitely deserves to win this ho-hum season.

2. Melissa & Tony- Great routine from Melissa and Tony. Glad to see them do well at the Marathon Dance.

3. Apolo & Karina- I love how ambitious this routine was. It sucks that the judges keep low balling them. I seriously hope that he makes through the double elimination next week.

4. Kelly & Val- Glad to see Kelly smile and have fun. Great routine.

5. Emmitt & Cheryl- Nice dance. I love Emmitt but it would be a shame for him to continue past next week.

6. Gilles & Peta- It was okay. I was expecting so much more. I was surprise to see him out early from the marathon. Hmm, I think he'll get a "comeback" 30 next week WATCH!

7. Kristie & Maks- love her enthusiasm, however it's time for her to go home.


Marathon Dance: I was definitely surprise to see Gilles leave early. I knew that Emmitt would last longer than needed. Apolo got hosed as usual and Kelly definitely surprised me in that marathon.

[CPP83]

Better than many of the pro dances!

I kid you not, I watch it at least once a month still. Those two really tore up the floor, even with his teeny tiny boy chest out and her dress with a split that went up to there for such a young girl, almost made me clutch the ole pearls. But that was a truly spectacular dance, not just from kids but from anyone, their ending move took my breath away.

And I feel Brandon has become the stronger since their parting, imho, he just seems to have transformed into quite the little superstar. His work tonight was nearly flawless, from what I could see which was not much, thanks show, thanks a lot for showing me Mark's constipated face over and over again.

Yeah, aside from the butt-slapping, it had some really nice moments. Nice sense of musicality, especially in Val's dancing, and a good deal of humor too

Seeing the butt slapping actually made me chuckle because I bet he only put it in there to touch on what Maks did last week, and it did get them the win so what's good for the goose as they say.

But aside from the silly bits, it did look passable, imo, and I am very picky about how my Swing looks and is performed. He really had a lot of old school moves and tricks, and Kelly let him fling her all around and even between the legs, without crotch pumping as other have done in the past, it was nice to see. She is built for it, imo, and I think if given a whole week to focus on it they could really do a pretty jazzy routine.

[janerazor]

I really, really, really didn't enjoy the fusion thing. The dances just didn't...taste right, or something. They all felt so purposeless.

My favorite part of the episode was seeing Cheick Kongo! Hey, maybe he'll be on a future season.

[mybabyaidan]

I thought Kelly and Val got the short end of the stick again. That routine was fun. Granted, I didn't see whatever issue Len pointed out, so I will have to go back and watch again, but the routine was hard and it was danced really really well. 9's aren't bad scores, but I thought their dance was WAY better than a few scored above them.

The music was atrocious for almost all of the dances. Gah. Kesha? Really?

[vepyewwo]

Apolo and Karina were good but it felt a bit frantic at times to me. I was disappointed that it was first half Cha Cha followed by second half Paso rather than a real fusion of the two styles. I know a lot of people have been saying over the last couple of weeks that Apolo seems to not really like Karina but I don’t get that vibe at all from them. They seem to get on fine to me.

Emmet is probably the weakest dancer left after Kirstie but it was a good effort from him tonight. Combining rumba and samba together was not easy and I give credit to Cheryl for actually choreographing a proper fusion dance. They were going in and out of both dance types throughout the routine and it flowed fairly well.

When they first announced the three of Cheryl’s previous partners who were taking part in All Stars, I thought that Cheryl might be secretly a bit disappointed to get Emmet over Drew and Gilles. But the way the latter two have acted this season, I think Cheryl lucked out. Emmet really is a nice guy and seems like a fun partner.

Not surprisingly Maks went for the easier option of Quickstep at the start segueing into Samba for the end. It wasn’t great but not quite the train wreck I expected. Their costumes were awful. Don’t the pros design the outfits for each dance themselves? I can’t believe Maks purposely gives himself those costumes to wear every week.

I really enjoyed Kelly and Val. Again, disappointed that it wasn’t a real fusion dance but what they did, I liked. I’ve really enjoyed Val’s choreography this season as well. In fact, I’m surprised by how much I’ve enjoyed Val. I barely noticed him the last two seasons other than that he was Maks’ brother. He has really come into his own with Kelly.

Melissa was great again this week. Hated the boots though!

Shawn was excellent, best dance of the night by far I thought. They probably got the easiest combination of dances but they nailed it, the choreography was great. I’m glad Derek is back next week, I really would have liked to have seen him dance that routine.

Gilles continues to irritate me but I’ll admit he was very good tonight, Peta really did a great job with the choreography. But like last week he was still a little too effeminate in the samba parts for me. He didn’t seem that impressed with his score.

[PBGamer89]

~My Dancing with the Stars 15 Week 7 Review~

Preface- A very interesting night and this fusion dance will be something I’d like to see again in the future. Really separates not only the celebs but the pros too. We saw a perfect 30 and an unexpected Marathon winner.

1. Apolo/Karina (Cha Cha/Paso) 27/30: It was definitely a strong dance and by far, the best male celeb dance of the night, but I do agree in that it wasn’t a 30. I didn’t like how it was first half Cha Cha and then second half Paso. I would’ve preferred an actual fusion and not one style right after the other. My score: 27.5/30

2. Emmitt/Cheryl (Samba/Rumba) 27.5/30: Probably the most over scored routine of the whole night. OK, so it wasn’t a disaster and Cheryl actually made this fusion work on a choreographic level, but it was too boring for me. Nothing Emmitt is doing lately just pops in any sort of way. He relies way too much on charisma and that may have won it for him in season 3 but not this time. My score: 25/30

3. Kirstie/Maks (Quickstep/Samba) 24/30: I was expecting a hot mess, but it was more like a lukewarm mess instead. The outfits were weird, but the Quickstep section was actually pretty respectable, but she really lost it at the Samba section. This was another cop out fusion like Apolo’s dance. It’s not super creative to just do one style after the other. My score: 23.5/30

4. Kelly/Val (Foxtrot/Cha Cha) 27/30: It was a really cute and charming performance but also really well danced. Foxtrot and Cha Cha seemed like a really natural combination. Her Fox trot section wasn’t perfect but still good, but her Cha Cha technique is really really good. Thought it was slightly under marked. My score: 28/30

5. Melissa/Tony (Tango/Cha Cha) 29/30: Another really strong routine from Melissa. I love her and she’s among my 3 favorites, but I didn’t expect her to get this far based on fan base alone, but happy to see her succeeding. Her Tango was strong and better than her solo Tango from 2 weeks ago and the Cha Cha parts were really feisty and clean. My score: 29/30

6. Shawn/Derek (Tango/Paso) 30/30: Wow! By far, the best dance of the night and it was just amazing on every level. The choreography, the music, the execution, and Shawn really kept her game face on for it. Loved her Tango considering she never did ballroom Tango before and her Paso parts were really amazing. Fully deserved this 30! My score: 30/30

7. Gilles/Peta (Argentine Tango/Samba) 28.5/30: Gilles is just still whiny to me. “I wanted to do Argentine Tango all by itself” just came off like a kind having a temper tantrum. This is one fusion where the 2 styles didn’t really seem cohesive to me. There was little Samba but when they did the Argentine Tango sections, it just seemed to slow everything down and not in the good way. My score: 26.5/30

Swing Marathon: I love how the music was Shawn and Mark’s freestyle song the ONE week Shawn danced with Mark. Nice one! Not surprised at all that Kirstie went out first, but kind of surprised that Gilles and Apolo went out right after here. I’m very happy that Melissa won it, but wish it was Shawn instead but so glad that overall Melissa and Shawn are the top 2 on the leaderboard.

Edited by PBGamer89, Nov 5, 2012 @ 10:20 PM.

[Shocker]

I am NOT a dance technical whiz; I'm just a fan. I loved Apolo OhYes's dance and Melissa and Tony's. I think Gilles whines way too much, and I'm tired of seeing him take off his shirt. He should have stood next to Apolo (whose arms would have made Gilles look like a sissy). I said OUCH when Kelly went over Val's head and landed on her face. Why do the male dancers pick up the female dancers who have hurt themselves rather than getting on the floor to talk to them to see what has been hurt? Survey for damage, guys, and THEN pick up your partner.

I am voting for Melissa and Apolo tonight. I hope Kirstie goes home, but I give her props for all that she has accomplished.

[harkiv]

What does Kelly have to do to get a ten from those judges?