kiddo82

First off, totally agree about story week. I hate story week for that very reason. I don't like the idea of judging someone based on things that are so deep and personal. Art is all about personal expression but at the end of the day it's a competition and someone has to go home. It's such emotional manipulation on the part of the producers. Secondly, totally agree about the judging. This is the reason, for me personally, I've gotten turned off to the pair even though I understand there's nothing that Amy can do about it. I suspect it comes from a well intentioned place on the part of the judges but it's truly not fair to her. There comes a time late in the season when the good stars get nitpicked and the Bill Engvalls stop getting judged entirely. (They'll say something like "You know it wasn't very good but clearly America loves you." then hold up a 7. Really, what more can they say at that point?). I feel like Amy deserves to be among the nitpicked, not because I want to see her criticized, but because it's a sign of respect and she's proven to be good. We can argue about the table in the jazz routine from now until doomsday but there were obvious timing errors in that routine. Granted, I know even the perfect routines on this show aren't literally "perfect" and the judges do miss things but it just seems as if they still aren't quite sure how to judge her. I know a lot of people complain about them and how useless they can be but as someone who's been watching this show a long time and still knows nothing about dance I take a lot cues from their criticisms. I don't always agree with them but will obviously defer to them when it comes to technical merit. Their opinions do matter. Lately, however, I feel they've been more of a disservice to her for a neutral person like myself. Obviously if you like Amy you're still going to like her and if you don't it's fuel to the fire but there's a lot of people in between. Admittedly, there's nothing Amy has done to bring this on nor is there anything she can do change it.

But isn't it a little condescending to necessarily assume that she can't do more? Let's say Meryl hadn't had a hip actiony Latin dance all season. Wouldn't there be similair cries that TPTB were protecing her (a grade A ringer) from something that she might not be very good at? We'd want to see her at least attempt something perceived to be out of her wheelhouse. I don't see why wanting Amy to perform that which is perceived to be more difficult for her is unfair. Maybe she really does need the stool....but maybe she doesn't. Maybe having her perform a proper Paso would be a disaster. Or maybe it would be awesome. Maybe it would be middle of the road but would reach that Valerie Harper waltz level where we'd say "It wasn't pretty but who cares? She did it.". It's extraordinarily possible that Derek has already assessed this which is what is guiding his decisons. (not that he has any control over the dance style they are given). Or perhaps he's too nervous to go for it. He's certainly doing his job, which is to progress his partner as far as possible, but I don't know. Don't get me wrong, what Amy is capable of doing as a dancer, a snowboarder, is remarkable, but even if she truly can't do more, it's frustrating not to see the attempt.

Agreed, which is why the table dance was so frustrating. Amy has proven to be a really good contestant and doesn't need smoke and mirrors. It's condescending at this point not to treat her as any other contestant.

I've always loved the table dance but the bench is overrated. Speaking of SYTYCD, I was distracted during Derek and Amy's routine by the music thinking of Mackenzie and Jakob's stellar broadway to the same mix of Too Darn Hot. My problem with the use of the table or the stool used to the extent that they have been in a competition like DWTS is that any other celebrity would've been penalized for "messing about" or not showing a diverse range of movement. The DWTS pros are often called out for content whereas the SYTYCD choreographers never are. (Not that I think Neil/Sabra table dance was lacking in content) The pros do it to disguise weakness or get the crowd on their side and I like that Len is a stickler for it because then every week would turn into freestyle week. Amy has proved that she is capable. I understand that she presents unique challenges to traditional routines but she's not being judged on a level playing field.

This. Becoming Part II is the ultimate example for me. To this day, every time I hear the opening strains of Full of Grace I see Buffy's face all over again and I well up. Every. Time. Another one I've always loved was when Scrubs used the Fray's How to Save A Life during the episode where Dr. Cox and co. are trying to save the transplant patients. Powerful episode with a perfect song for the soundtrack. On the other end of the spectrum The Simpsons has had some great original songs. Even now I still sing the monorail song (complete with "Mono-D'oh!") but my favorite is the Duff Beer for Me, Duff Beer for You song. (Which mocks "It's a Small World."). It's perfectly catchy and annoying.

The book on Ross and Rachel as a couple should have been closed when she "congratulated" him on marrying Emily in London. He moved on and she was finally ready to accept that. It was sweet closure to a pairing that had run its course. They could still have gotten married in Vegas and/or had the baby because neither of things mean the two were inherently in love. Instead, the writers kept trying to make fetch happen when the characters had grown so far apart from season 2-3 that the pairing no longer made sense. I thought the criticisms of last season were unduly harsh but I agree that this season did little to return the show to the quality of season 1-2. I don't hate Buffy season 6 or 7. In fact, 6 has grown on me with multiple viewings and 7 is tolerable.

Since it is believed that whoever was buried under the gazebo was pregnant, any chance that that tidbit comes up again? Aria even made it a point to say "you got her pregnant" in her confrontation with Fitz on the ski lift. It's made pretty clear that Ali didn't do it with Fitz or Ian but clearly somebody had sex with somebody and since I doubt that body that was actually recovered will be a random, someone will still have had motive to cover up something.

I'm pretty much just along for the ride at this point but this was the best episode I could've asked for to close the Lima chapter. Objectively, it wasn't a particularly good hour of television, but it evoked memories of a better time, IMO. Seeing the (mostly) reunited original cast reminded me of this charming show I used to like about a group of misfits singing cheesy songs and that had some subversive themes. It also made me feel a little bad for the newbies as the were just set up for failure. Not that the original Glee clubbers are so irreplaceable, but I think the reason the newbies failed to gain a lot of traction is that what made the show so enjoyable in the first place was long gone by the time they arrived. I will always root for that gang that "didn't even place" in regionals way back in season 1. (That episode still makes me cry and I'm not afraid to admit it). Hopefully the NY move will give the series a new tone instead of rehashing the same scenarios over and over. And while I don't have strong feelings for or against Sam I agree that his inconsistent characterization could actually work for the show as he is kind of a blank slate.

Hi gang. I dabbled a little bit in the PLL boards on TWoP but mostly lurked. I too am excited to have others with which to share my obsession. I mostly just send incoherent and cryptic text to my friends that consist of "What the!?" They don't watch but they're nice enough to humor me.