Emily-D

If Nancy actually got eliminated next week, I honestly think it would be the death knell for females over the age of 40 on this show. No matter how well they do or how good they are, they'll always come up short against younger females who are more social media and "vote savvy" with big fanbases and males who typically attract votes from the general female demographic who watch the show along with their own personal fanbases. With the emergence of power voting online in particular, along with younger stars attracting more media attention and serving the requirements of the DWTS producers to bring in their young fans to boost ratings in the key demographic, gone are the days where a Jennifer Grey for example can come on the show and make the final, let alone win. As the old saying goes, times they are a changin.

Very ironic how the two packages showing the most stressed out contestants were Nancy and Simone. Must be an Olympian thing, they're so used to being the best at what they do it must frustrate them struggling to learn the dances. To be fair the standard overall wasn't amazing tonight, probably the worst Disney week so far mainly because Rashad and Heather both flopped. One more point to raise, I know it was just a joke and I know this is me being a massive killjoy and way too serious. But it thought it was a little out of line Maks telling Alan that "he was fired". Alan might not be my favourite but he's worked hard for Heather while Maks has sat on his backside and it just felt a little degrading Maks throwing that word at Alan, although I know he was only having a laugh.

For the first time this season I gave all my votes to one couple. It hurt not voting for Rashad, but I gave them all to Nancy because I think she'll need them wth how bunched up the scores are and the weaker males all have big fanbases. I thought Normani's dance won the night. To be honest I thought the quality of dancing wasn't as good as previous Disney weeks. Heather's jazz was a bomb due to poor choreography and Simones was too gymnastic focused for me. I thought Rashad's contemporary was a lot better. Speaking of Rashad it wasn't his best tonight but it wasn't worth a 7. Nancy was fairly solid, nice concept and choreography and the dancing was at same level as last week except this time the stooges beside Len didn't underscore her.

Nancy's going to be eliminated before I get to see a Rumba from her isn't she. That would be just my luck.

Agreed, publicity and good pay go hand in hand. Since Maks quit after S18 I've never heard of any of his projects which means he probably struggled for work. I don't think he appreciated just how good a gig DWTS is. I mean it must be the best gig a dancer can possibly get, performing for over 10 million viewers every week, getting to work with celebrities, you gain a huge fan following, get to go on a sold out tour and being on television so often on such a well known well loved show opens yourself up for many other job opportunities and ways to make money in the post seasons. Their's a reason why hardly any pros leave the show of their own accord these days and I bet those pros in the past who did leave regret it now. Thanks for the clarification. I don't watch SYTYCD so that's probably why I've never heard of him. I know DWTS like to use SYTYCD as a scouting pool though.

Personally I know you can't blame an injury, but I've been disappointed in Maks' behaviour this season. You can tell the only reason he came back was the paycheck and he probably forced the producers to give him a star who could dance so that they'd last long into the competition and maximise his paycheck. Now he's injured, he's done the bare minimum other than show up on Monday nights, look supportive and collect his pro dancers paycheck whilst Alan collects a troupe dancers paycheck despite doing the vast majority of the work. He's not stupid, he probably knows by now that Heather isn't going to win or probably even make the final so he's not really as invested in coming back and working hard for Heather while he's still getting paid. I'd never vote for her because she shouldn't be on the show in the first place, but it's hard not to feel sorry for Heather. She's been royally screwed over due to all of this, her experience of the show has been a bad one and to make things worse it's impossible for the audience to get to know her personally as she's been completely overshadowed by this Maks drama. Maks should never have come back this season, but he needed the money and as a result has screwed Heather over. She would have had a much better chance if Alan had been her partner from the start, or if they'd brought Mark back to partner her. They could have even given her to Artem, brought Tony back to partner Nancy and I think she'd have had a better chance. As for everyone else, right now there is a clear top 6, if there is any justice then Erika, the Bachelor and the Cowboy will be the next three out. Unfortunately this is DWTS and justice is rarely done on this show. For me that spells bad news for Heather and Nancy.

I have no idea who "Serge" is to be fair I only know the pros. But that choreography was unmistakeably Maks, with the comedic beginning and end. Their also wasn't as much technical dancing as last week when allegedly it was Alan choreograhing. Plus when they panned up to Maks in the skybox he didn't look impressed when Julianne complemented Alan on the choreography, mistakenly.

Alam definitely didn't choreograph that cha cha. When you watch DWTS for an extended period of time you get to know the pros and the signature moves and styles they incorporate into their routine. That cha cha had Maks' choreography written all over it.

Simone's story was absolutely beautiful, but I thought she got away with lack of hold and was slightly overscored by a couple of points. Rashad is running away with it and I think the producers want Simone in the final two with him for the Sasha v Emma drama. If Simone got four 9s then Nancy should have as well imo, I thought they were both dead even. Rashad and Mr T we're both amazing, I'd have no problem whatsoever with Rashad winning. I desperately hope Erika goes next, followed by the Bachelor and the Cowboy.

Foxtrot is good and bad. Good in that it's a classy dance, it'll suit her well and should get good scores. Bad in that like you say. It's not likely to be as impactful as other dances on the floor unless Artem pulls something out of the bag. I just really hope she last long enough to do some exciting dance styles like rumba, paso and jive.

The judges seem to have their favourites now even though it's only week three. CAI's favourite is Heather, probably because she can relate to her as both used to backup dance for an insanely popular musical artist. Len's favourite is Nancy, the older women who is keeping it traditional dancing lots of routines full of content which he loves. Julianne' favourites are Rashad and Simone, probably because she's good friends with both Sasha and Emma. Bruno's favourite is Normani, the performer and Bruno has always liked the younger female competitors. As I said above all of them bar Len also love Bonner for next to no reason whatsoever.

Len is the only one who has realised that Bonner is actually a bad dancer and isn't playing the game the producers want the judges to play. The other three are embarrassing though, salivating over him. If he didn't have Sharna as his partner and this tacky forced showmance going on I think he'd be out the door next week.

Redfiat, I'm expecting her to do a tango as well (either ballroom or Argentine). Personally though I hope she dances something more impactful especially on a night like most memorable year where it's hard to stand out on your own. Paso or Rumba would be ideal. Artem's rumbas on Strictly are very good from what I saw on YouTube, and her extensions would be amazing for that dance. I really hope her or anyone else for that matter stays away from contemporary. I'm bored of contemporary now especially on most memorable year night.

I actually kind of understood Nancy struggling to accept compliments. As an athlete she must have been criticised all of her working life non stop by her coaches in order to help her improve and become the best skater she could be. She was also in the public eye constantly so if she had a bad competition performance then she probably got criticised non stop by the media and press. People criticised her for how she came off during the Olympics, criticised her for her being attacked (how and why I don't know). Hell people are criticising her now on this thread. All of a sudden she's on DWTS, a very positive show with an excited pro who hasn't got to work with someone of her ability since joining the show and is showering her with praise. I'd find it difficult to handle as well if I were in her shoes. After being criticised and insulted all her working life she probably finds all the sudden compliments patronising and a little fake. I could be well wrong, this is just me guessing. Having only known Nancy by name coming into this and not her past, she's coming off very well on tv for the neutral viewer.

I actually disagree with with one thing you mention. Rashad is a great dancer, the best male by far. If anyone can break the female juggernaut, make the final and potentially even win, it's him.

The first thought after watching that is annoyance that Charo wasn't sent home. I love entertainment but she is too annoying for me. Praying she goes home next week, it's getting embarrassing to watch. Keo isn't the best pro and doesn't have a clue how to handle her, meaning poor Tom has to deal with her.

People undervalue ballroom compared to Latin. Because it doesn't look as flashy. For example I saw people labelling Simone's tango as boring. It wasn't boring if you appreciate ballroom because those steps are harder to master than most Latin dances.

The way I see it is that Sharna doesn't have any feelings for Bonner whatsoever but knows it's her best chance of staying in for a while considering Bonner can't dance. So she goes along with the "showmance storyline". She'll never speak to him again once their eliminated I bet.

To be honest it's hard to see anyone other than Simone winning. She's got the dance ability, a pro that's never been to the finals so people wouldn't mind seeing do well and the fanbase being an American Gold Medalist. She has a strong back story as well which I'm sure we'll hear more about as the season goes on. Heather won't get the votes, I like Nancy but I don't think she's the one to take Artem to the finals, Rashad is good but doesn't have a great fanbase, especially compared to Simone. If David Ross could improve to the point where he can pick up 10s then I honestly think he could win, but I don't think he'll be able to. Which leaves only Normani, she has the fanbase and the dance ability but having Val as a partner may not help her, people may well be bored of him winning again.

I'll be very surprised if the first elimination is anyone other than Chris Kattan or Charo. Chris' dance was awful and Charo was just downright annoying. I felt sorry for Tom. I also really dislike Bonner, he gives me a really creepy vibe and the attempts at a showmance are boring. Hopefully he doesn't improve and gets eliminated early, not a fan at all. David Ross was absolutely fantastic, such a humble player good hearted guy. Rashad, Simone and Nancy were all great. Erika needs to have a day off on the "sexiness" she's not all that. Mr T made me smile, he should last a couple more weeks on nostalgia value. The producers sure went overboard playing damage limitation on Heather as well. I still think she's a shocking elimination when we get to around the final 6.

Yikes, that was awkward, I guess I'm one that doesn't really get his humour Those were some rough scores.

I saw the dance styles everyone has and I knew that the song Nancy and Artem are dancing to rung a bell. He's done a Viennese Waltz before to the exactly same song he's set to do with Nancy in the UK with a different partner. I wonder if he'll use the same choreography although the person he was dancing it with was a 60+ year old duffer. He managed to make her look half decent to be fair. Best of luck to them.

Maks is smart. He knows theirs no point denying it or it'll make them even more unpopular. Heather less so. I won't be voting for them personally, to be honest I get an arrogant vibe off of Heather, hopefully I'm wrong.

The timing is too convenient. She's definitely doing the show now to get her side of the story out there before trailer park Tonya does with that new film.

Same, it's feasible that all three make up the final. If I had to pick one to fall first of the three I'd pick Heather right now. I'm already seeing backlash online over her dance experience and that's a stigma that will probably follow her throughout the season. Simone is a national treasure and Normani has Val as a partner and a gigantic fanbase. I wouldn't be surprised if they make up the final two tbh, unless one of the men surprises us.