calipiano81

I was pleasantly surprised by Trevor and Emma's samba! I thought he would be stiff and awkward, although he wasn't for his rumba, so maybe I should have known better. I completely disagree with Len saying Trevor had no bounce, especially when they immediately put up a clip (while Len was still talking) showing Trevor actually doing samba bounce.

Loved the beautiful jazz content and technique in Charli and Mark's Simpsons dance. That was pure dance from start to finish and I love that Mark is making full use of her experience and talent. Also, I found Charli's performance very charming!

I thought Cheryl Ladd and Jesse were underscored for their rumbas. Their dances had a good amount of proper content and had decent hip action.

Thought Charli and Mark's rumba was gorgeous and loved the storytelling. I've seen a lot of comments saying that Charli "didn't show emotion," had a "dead/blank face," and "didn't connect with Mark." THAT WAS HER CHARACTER. Mark was someone she had to kill. So she played it very cold until near the end where you saw her anguished face (during the leg trick) and then the smirk before she handed him the poisoned drink. I do find Charli expressive when she dances (I really enjoyed the sassiness of her cha cha and her animated face during her quickstep), she just maybe needs to make her expressions bigger so that more of the TV audience can feel what she's feeling.

No hate, but Mark had Bristol Palin TWICE, Kim Kardashian, Melissa Joan Hart, Shannen Doherty (eliminated first in S10), and Candace Cameron Bure. I certainly would not consider them among the best dancers of their seasons. And Mark did partner Paula Deen for one week during switch-up week in S21.

I just wanted to drop some support for Charli and Mark. I love good dancing and Mark's always been my favorite pro...so Charli and Mark are the ideal pairing for me! Mark gave Charli a very intricate quickstep, and while not perfect, I thought Charli rose to the challenge. I also enjoy her performance quality and facial expressions (another reason why she's a good match with Mark, lol). As a person, I think she comes across as a lovely young lady. I don't need someone to be the life of the party for me to appreciate his/her hard work.

Fellow Mark fan, so I'm with you. I still enjoy DWTS but my investment definitely changed since Mark Ballas' departure. It made me so happy to see him on the dance floor again and, for me, Charli and Mark's cha cha did not disappoint! I think they are a great match. Not every pro can maximize a ringer.

I liked Amanda/Alan's first week tango more than this week's. Amanda seemed to be overdoing it a little with the facial expressions. I didn't get to see the rehearsal package before their contemporary, but I could immediately tell by the dance that it was about Amanda's husband, so good storytelling on their part.

I actually preferred Iman/Daniella's tango to their jazz. Iman is great at getting into character (he and Daniella brought some heat!) and his posture and tango movement across the floor was much improved. It usually bugs me when less proficient male celebrity dancers overtake more talented female contestants, but Iman/Daniella might be the one time I wouldn't mind.

JoJo and Jenna have a great partnership. I think their movement together is beautiful and they've done a great job all season working out the lead and follow in their dances. However, for me, I still find it more aesthetically satisfying to see masculine attributes combine with feminine attributes in ballroom dancing. Even though JoJo generally takes the traditional "male" role, she doesn't possess the masculine quality I prefer to have present.

Suni has come so far in her performing. She looks relaxed and comfortable out there now. Foxtrot, I thought, was a little loose in the upper body. Liked Suni's emoting in their contemporary and Sasha did a good job incorporating her gymnastic skills.

I liked the song and content of Melora's rumba a lot and her hip action seemed to get more pronounced as the dance went on. However, to me, she seemed like she was concentrating more than expressing. Her contemporary was pleasant, but nothing noteworthy for me.

In general, I find Cody's dancing a bit awkward (though I think last week he was quite good) and tonight was more of the same. I've said this before, but he doesn't really bring his legs together, so he kinda looks like he's in a constant squat and his footwork is shaky sometimes because of that.

I agree. After 30 seasons of witnessing the DWTS demographic's voting tendencies, I also predict that Jimmie and Iman will be final 2. Although, I would give the edge to Jimmie to win as he is technically the better dancer and the demographic most likely has more country music fans than basketball fans. I think Amanda might get third, as she came out of the gate strong. Good first impressions can often generate enough support that can last until the finale. Finally, I predict either JoJo or Olivia will get the fourth spot, as the show and the judges seem to really like them and will want to get at least one of them into the finals. The one wild card, I think, is Cody. His dancing has been fine, but hasn't had any standout performances. However, he obviously has enough passionate fans that have kept him out of the bottom.

For me, I think the awkwardness comes from him not closing/bringing his legs together. He's almost in a constant squat in all of his dances, especially when in hold.