specialj67

She’s a better performer than Zagitova, but in my view, that’s not saying much. And yeah, that 2-axel was Not Good.

I’d be confused too, without the commentators. They got dinged in the required step pattern, and my untrained eyes never would have been able to tell without someone telling me. And even then,...

Perhaps it was Johnny or Tara talking about it during nationals—my memory is fuzzy and I’m not a skater, so I apologize if I get anything wrong. I think Nathan changed to a skid take-off, which is different from how he was doing it previously (?), and he’s still getting used to it. One of them, Johnny or Tara, said that it takes time to learn to trust the skid (?), but once the skater does, it’s a more reliable way of doing the jump. Nathan’s iffy-ness with that jump reminds me of Stephane Lambiel.

I love Tarasova and Morozov’s SP as much as I hate their LP this season.

I know I would enjoy it more if it didn’t mean skaters using the same old warhorses, just now with the lyrics. I never truly hated Phantom of the Opera until I heard Music of the Night in all its bombastic, overwrought vocal glory dozens of times in the 2014-15 season and after.

I believe they started allowing it in all disciplines in the 2014-15 season.

I’m disappointed Nathan isn’t ahead of Patrick, but he did make a costly error in popping that second quad. I can only hope this isn’t a portent of things to come. I can’t imagine the amount of pressure Nathan is under.

Good lord, that was hard to watch. I hope they get their ice game on point. It was hard to listen to the skate blades *cruuuunch* into the ice like that.

This was a delightful read! Her agony at watching live sports is my agony too.

I was looking at the Wikipedia entry for the medal winners of this event, and it seems like Japan usually sends more of their top skaters than not. Perhaps because they hold their national championships sooner than countries like Canada and the U.S., their top skaters have more time to train in between the two competitions and are less likely to beg off? I’m glad they do, because I really enjoyed seeing Uno in all of his performatively melodramatic glory in this year’s competition. Conversely, I’m glad the U.S. sent the b team for this one, because it gave Jason Brown and Max Aaron an opportunity at redemption, and they didn’t waste it.

4CC seems especially also-ran in Olympic years compared to EC for the U.S. and Canada because of the timing. It seems like the powerhouse countries only take it seriously the season before the next Winter Olympics.

I really enjoyed Dmitri Aliev’s performance at the EC—confirmed having re-watched it in NBC. I click with his style much more than Kolyada’s. I can appreciate that when Kolyada completes a jump well, he has a nice quality to his skating, but the skating in between those elements and music choices this season leaves me very meh. Re: Tarasova/Morozov’s LP this season: if even Johnny Weir thinks Candyman with yellow and black polka dotted costumes is a misfire, you know that’s bad.

The only thing interesting me about the EC women’s short program is that Medvedeva is not in the lead, and only because that’s an unusual occurrence. The pairs result was frustratingly predictable. It’s boring when any country sweeps the podium, honestly.

If it’s the same delightfully low-rent masterpiece it was back then, I will be watching every night!

Keegan Messing’s long program performance at nationals was so charming! I hope Skate Canada names him to the 2nd spot for the men on their Olympic team.

Stephanie Rosenthal! It was her ‘06 nationals SP:

That was a surprising result in the free dance! Only a half of a point or so separating the top 3. So jazzed Hubbell and Donohue won it—their free dance is my fave of this season. I’m only disappointed the Shibs couldn’t do a three-peat. That stumble toward the end of their program was so unlike them. i love all 3 of the top U.S. teams and would be pleased for any of them to medal at the Olympics next month, though the Shibs are my sentimental faves.

In 2006, Michelle Kwan missed nationals (and the whole GP season, I think) to recuperate from an injury, and had to petition to be named to the team. They put her on the team and made Emily Hughes, the bronze medalist from nationals, the 1st alternate. However, Kwan ended up withdrawing before the start of the ladies competition, and Hughes got to compete anyway.

IDK, but the mullet is splendid.

I feel bad for hoping that the committee picks Adam over Ross for the Olympic team, but I can’t help it! Adam has the international results of this season to warrant it. Happy to see Nathan defend his title, but his LP just doesn’t do it for me as much as his SP. His LP costume does (way more than that minimalist Tron cosplay thing he wore for his SP). as for the other also-rans of the evening, I feel for Grant and Jason. Jason hasn’t underperformed that badly at a nationals LP in awhile—I wonder if it was just the pressure? And it was too bad Grant couldn’t replicate the magic of 2016. I hope he gets named to the 4CC team and gives it his all.

Inoue and Baldwin had some success about a decade ago (no world medals, though), but the last time the U.S. had a world medal-winning team was Ina and Zimmerman back in ‘02 (bronze, I think).

Having been subjected several times to Bradie’s SP during the coverage of this nationals, she really reminds me of Kimmie Meissner, in terms of style. Kimmie always looked too stiff during the non-jumping portions of her programs, and Bradie looks the same way.

So happy for the women’s medalists this year. As much as I wish Marai had won, Bradie delivered the cleanest program of any of them. I wish Ashley had been doing that LP this whole season. I enjoyed watching her tonight, even with the errors, more than I have in a couple of years. That said, I hope she isn’t selected fo the Olympic team. Her results this season don’t speak as well for her as they did in 2014.

I am a huge Jason Brown fan, but I call shenanigans on that score. He should be in 5th. I very much agree with Tara’s comment during the slow-mo replay that not properly calling those kinds of obvious underrotations is just the kind of thing that keeps people from taking this seriously as a sport.

I will say this for Medvedeva, at least her arm-over-the-head is actually up and away from her head. Unlike Sotskova’s.