Jazzhands

Does Melissa actually pick the TCCs she “mentors”? I just assumed it was a production decision, but then again, I’m a cynic.

I was hoping either Julia or Shaina would flip out during their office visits and stare directly into the cameras and say, “This is Candid Camera, right? I may not be the second coming of Nicole Hamilton, but my God ... MEREDITH and KAT are still here. You have got to be kidding me.” Sure, Julia’s answers were bad and the fact that she didn’t even realize it makes her an ambassador risk. Shaina is kind of sloppy in some of her movements and seems to lack stamina at times. Lily has a frozen face. People have been complaining for years that Christina is a boring dancer. Tons of people on here hate Victoria. But all of them know and can do the choreography and blend fine on the field. They’ve already cut a bunch of girls who could’ve been field ready. Meredith and Kat, on the other hand ... they don’t know what they’re doing. Both of them should’ve been cut week 2. Tell them both that they’re lovely and you want to see them back next year after a year of power pom, jazz, and hip hop classes. Beginner ballet for Kat, too, so she can learn better body and foot placement. She’s got some natural talent, but she’s untrained as a dancer. Meredith is trained, but not in this style. A year of classes and maybe dancing with another team like the Ice Angels or something, and then come back stronger and more prepared.

A lot of black women wear wigs. I thought Kat came across really cute and fun in that segment with her names for the wigs. A large majority of the girls wear extensions, which are also “fake hair,” and that’s acknowledged on the show and not an issue, so why should Kat be any different?

I think that’s because hers are big and natural! 😉

When they did the profile of Madeline Salter, I really hoped she’d do a Fosse-inspired number at finals. I get so tired of the angsty lyrical pieces and the pom dances that look like random bits of DCC choreography strung together in a different order. I don’t think Amy is great at tap, nor do I think Maddie’s hip hop is great, but at least they’re doing something different and it’s fun to watch. Kat’s “routine,” bless her heart, had me somewhere between cringe-watching through my fingers and falling off the couch laughing. I can’t help but root for her because she’s just not good at this, but by God, she’s giving it her all!

Thanks, ByTor! It was only through discovering the reruns on Pluto TV that I remembered how much I couldn’t stand Jay. A lot of the garbage he spewed was not only inaccurate (i.e., soda causes cellulite) but potentially dangerous like that body-fat percentage nonsense. The military fitness tests were absurd, too — you get more benefit from doing ten pushups with proper form than 60 lousy ones, but he was only concerned with putting up the best numbers. I’ve always thought that all of that stuff was made up for the show rather than any true benefit for the DCC/TCC. If you want them to learn healthy eating habits, bring in a nutritionist, not this clown or paid product placement (looking at you, My Fit Foods). TPTB should be looking at the women in terms of actual fitness (do they have the strength, flexibility, and stamina to do the job?) and appearance (do they look good in the uniform?), not irrelevant numbers. I’m sure that I’ve got a lower body fat percentage than Brittney Schram did while she was a DCC for example, but no one alive would think I’d look better in that uniform than she did! Sorry for the long rant, but as a former dancer who lost a friend to a heart attack when we were 19 due to the damage she had already done to her body from an eating disorder at that young age, I get really offended by Jay’s garbage and I’m glad he’s not featured any longer.

That 12 percent “average” Jay was always spewing seemed like garbage to me. According to medical guidelines, the level of “essential fat” for a woman is around 13 percent for the body to function normally. Most of the DCC look like they’d be around the 15-17 percent range, which is thin but healthy and pretty typical for conditioned athletes (bodybuilders and distance runners tend to be lower). So, no, I’m not buying that the average DCC is 12.

Anyone else watching live? That media training segment was painful. Between Kat and Meredith ... I have no words. 😉 I don’t know how they weren’t let go on the spot.

Yes, but dancing on a ballroom floor is very different from dancing on turf. The new MDC boots just look like ankle fractures waiting to happen. I love the rest of their new uniforms, though.

I’m guessing they don’t want actual team wear ending up on eBay, at Goodwill, getting worn by God knows whom — not good for the brand. It’s different from the licensed merchandise available to the masses.

There was an episode (and between On Demand and Pluto TV, they’re all blurring together in my mind, so I don’t know which one) when one of the rookie candidates was cut, and Maddie immediately went to the girl, put herself between the girl and the camera, shielded her while she was getting the goodbye hugs, and shuttled her into an elevator, all the while blocking the girl from the camera. I was really impressed by that. I never saw her look at the camera, but she obviously knew where it was the entire time and protected that girl from being made into a spectacle for the viewing audience. I don’t think she’s the best dancer or necessarily has the traditional DCC look, but she displayed the compassion and decency that’s often sadly lacking from this show.

I think the two senior vets holding the team together are Amy and Maddie, and that’s why they’re sharing point.

My God, I need glasses. I thought it was Kat with weird lighting. 🤦🏼‍♀️

I liked Jasmine, but her solo was ... not good. It looked like she came up with it in the parking lot on the way in that day. I was sad for her but not surprised at all that she was cut.

Is anyone else having the issue that the arrows at the bottom just point to “next unread topic” while not identifying it, and then when you click to that page, it takes you directly to the first new post since you last read, so you don’t even know what page you’re on or what the topic is? I’m half afraid to post anything because I don’t know whether or not I’m in a spoiler thread or if it’s going to be off topic.

I’ve been a health-care law attorney for more than 20 years. HIPAA restricts covered entities from sharing certain personally identifiable information and electronic medical records without patient consent subject to certain specific exceptions. We have NO IDEA what types of consent forms, disclosure forms, etc. these girls are required to sign when they audition and go into training camp. It’s entirely possible that if they’re being treated by DCC-employed or -affiliated health care providers that they’ve already signed a consent form permitting the release of otherwise protected information to DCC/CMT personnel upfront. It’s equally possible that they haven’t. We just don’t know.

Was Kitty Carter a judge? I could’ve sworn I saw her in a brief shot of the judging panel at the end of the first video.

Travis for point! 😉 Seriously, though, that was a fun segment.

I feel sad for the girls getting cut in the middle of practice because they don’t get the support and condolences of the rest of the team as they’re leaving. I’d think it’s also got to be difficult for the other TCCs who are trying to practice while watching other girls get called out and not coming back. Each one is probably wondering if she’ll be next rather than concentrating on dancing.

Jacie is one of my all-time favorites. Great technique, great ambassador, and just gorgeous.

I agree with this. My high school drill team did jump spilts. For me, the idea of doing it was terrifying, but once I swallowed my fear and did it, it was fine, the same as the first time doing a back handspring or an aerial. Everyone on our drill team had a dance background including ballet usually starting between the ages of 3 and 5, and our coach worked with us one on one to ensure that we were using proper technique and form before we ever hooked up in a line to try to lessen the possibility of injury. I really hope that the DCC girls are getting more instruction than what we see on the show with regard to jump splits and field work in general, especially since it seems that a lot of these girls have never danced on a football field before. It has always seemed to me that spending a couple of hours on marching fundamentals and learning their field placement before adding in the dance steps would save poor Judy’s vocal cords from yelling “LINES!!!” constantly.

I’m wondering if the leaderboard is based not on cumulative “scores,” per se, but on judges’ yes/no/maybe votes. The 17 with tied scores probably got all yes votes from the judges, which could also explain how VK ranked so high — none of the judges were going to vote anything but yes on her this year. The next five (ranked 18-22) may have gotten 16 yes votes and one maybe. Maddie may have gotten 16 yes votes and one no, so she ranks at number 23. That could explain how one of the dual point girls ranks at 23 on the board. Not necessarily that she was the 23rd best girl overall. Total speculation, but I can’t figure out how else this ranking system makes any sense.

She also hosted Redneck Island and had a reality show with her husband called “Melissa & Tye” on CMT. I always figured it was more network-driven to shoehorn her into DCC:MTT for hopeful crossover appeal to boost ratings rather than Charlotte/Kelli/Judy deciding that the TCCs needing a mentor and selecting her for the job over any of the countless other former DCC who were likely available and more qualified for that specific task.

My guess is Maddie.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bjsi_6oAKwQ/ I’m not sure if this link will work, but it’s from the Wilhelmina agency’s Instagram account — it’s a screenshot of Jordan.