Jess14

I agree with this to an extent. I think she probably should’ve left, but had she left, then the response from people like Melissa would be “if she didn’t think it was safe, she shouldn’t have come in the first place.” The issue they have is with the criticism and that Hannah would dare say negative things about the precious DCCs (which they think is the highlight of her life, apparently) on social media. Whether they like how she’s going about it, the issues she has raised are valid ones - was it safe and a real “bubble”? - we know it wasn’t, bc ppl were out to brunch and other places right before they entered, so no quarantine, which is essential for a real bubble. Do the DCCs care about mental health or do they just put out nice platitudes and pretend to? - Hannah coming, going, leaving, or being cut has no bearing on the answers to those questions. To be clear, I’m not even a fan of people airing out grievances on social media. If Hannah is still going on about it, then it is time to focus on other things. However, this notion that the DCCs can edit the hell out of what happened and present things in an inaccurate or slanted light, and the girls should all just be too grateful to say anything about it is laughable to me.

Theresa being mad at Amber B for not throwing the Challenge was all kinds of ridiculous! This is why I was hesitant to give Theresa props last week for making a move. She acts just as indignant as everyone else when things don’t go her way. I still remember that Challenge when she convinced her team to vote Laurel in, and then she punked out and voted otherwise after her team had voted in Laurel. She’s always plays a sneaky game and never in a particularly clever way. I like Jay, so I’m sad to see him go, but I like Leroy better so I’m glad he won. I can tolerate Fessy, but I can’t stand Josh or Devin AT ALL so seeing an extended amount of time devoted to them is torture. Im ready for both to be gone.

I haven’t listened to the podcast. However, while I think it’s fine for Melissa to provide additional insight into what happened behind the scenes, criticizing Hannah, talking about her anxiety and social media, etc. just seems like punching down to me. Melissa isn’t just a regular former DCC. She has a role in the selection process and is the team “mentor.” On the other hand, Hannah is a cheerleader who was cut on national tv. Why is she even concerned with Hannah’s IG page? I mean, even if Hannah was talking about the DCCs everyday on social media, what is that to Melissa? It’s not like Hannah has criticized her personally from what I’ve seen/heard. Is it that big of deal that a former DCC dares to say something that isnt 100% positive?

Yes, it was the same year, and DCC rules are always selectively applied. In fairness, Keyra wasn’t immediately cut for being late either, but if anything, that is why it always seemed like a BS excuse from Kelli. I’ve always thought it was more of a “Keyra isn’t a favorite, I’ve never liked Keyra’s body type, and now she’s no longer getting the friend bonus with Cersten retired, so let’s cut her ..... but I don’t want to say those reasons on tv, so let’s just go with the late reason.”

Yeah, Lolo is awful. I can’t stand her. I hope she’s the next woman to go. Nan needs a new partner asap. I thought Teresa made a decent move for herself in the short term. With the rookie women on her side, she has the numbers. However, I just can’t root for Theresa. I think she would act every bit as indignant as Kam and Ashley did if she got thrown in after being promised otherwise. On the other hand, Jay screwed his game for no reason. I don’t see why he felt the need to do all that lying. Just say, “We assumed it was a girl’s day, so I let Teresa take the lead.” It’s not like he was lying about things that may not come to light - he knew Cory/Ashley were the house pick and knew Teresa was thinking of sending in Kam. Just dumb to lie about that. I’m really surprised that the vets keep picking each other off. While Tory went about it in an obnoxious way, she’s right that the strategy for someone like Teresa should be to go in against someone like Amber M and get her skull. Yeah, she may have taken out Ashley, but Theresa still has no skull, and she just gave one to somebody (Kam) who she wouldn’t want to face in an elimination!

At first, I was upset to see Alanna so far in the back, but the more I look at the picture, I don't mind it as much. I feel my eye goes straight to her because she is so prominent in the center.

I honestly thought you all were exaggerating until I took a look at the pictures...Yikes! Alanna’s looks good, and there are a few others that are fine, but otherwise....they would’ve been better off using pictures from the girls’ IG pages. I find it very hard to believe that they couldn’t get a better picture of Sydney for example.

Do you mean how many have had a full blown dance career after? Would you expect them to (show or no show)? People who are more immersed in the dance world can probably answer this better than I can (and please correct me if Im wrong), but DCC is top of the chain in terms of pro sports dance jobs (only the Laker girls are as well known to the general public). Other than taking a step down to another sports team, I wouldn’t think that DCC would be a natural step to other dance jobs in NYC, LA, Vegas, etc. Not saying it hurts on a resume, just that it seems like someone who really wants to dance on Broadway would get to NYC and not take a 1-2 year detour to Dallas. I think it makes sense that most DCCs would either go into non-dance jobs afterwards, get married, or work at local studios, and I think that would make sense even if there wasn’t a reality show.

Interesting. I’m always hesitant to completely buy insider information on the DCCs because it so often seems to come from sources who have a settle to score. However, this made me think of a post a while ago talking about how the LSU girls seemed to all be full of drama. At the time, Tess was the one who people said was an exception. I guess not lol!

Yes. This actually may have worked out for Fessy. If he is smart, he will shut up, lay low, and stick with Aneesa for the time being. No, they won’t be strong together in a final, but I doubt most of the house is likely challenge one of them for a gold skull. On the men’s side, Devin is the obvious person to challenge, and there are still 4 gold skulls for the women. Why would anyone challenge Aneesa rather than take a chance against one of the smaller women? Tori was just dumb. She should’ve spent more time making sure that she had the vet women on her side rather than making enemies out of the rookie women. The fact that Nany, Teresa, and Ashley voted with the rookie women speaks volumes. With that said, it does seem dumb to me that the vets don’t seem to be working together at all.

I agree with this to an extent. In the corporate world however, termination meetings, evaluations, and corrections are also not public and most employers don’t provide negative info about former employees to public. If it was standard procedure for corporations to air employee terminations in a one-sided manner, I think publicly badmouthing one’s ex-employer would also be quite common. As it is, it’s kind a “we don’t talk about you, and you don’t talk about us” sort of deal. For the DCCs, I get that they feel that their only outlet to defend themselves is social media. So, I do think Hannah and the other DCCs are in a different boat due to the reality tv aspect of it. Regardless though, I do agree that if she hasn’t yet, she needs to close this chapter.

I understood why the vets were upset being cut by ZOOM at the end of the two week training camp for the pandemic- season when there won’t even be a lot of fans in the stands. It just seems extra cruel and gratuitous. Like, these vets were SO terrible that they can’t dance in front of a 2/3 empty stadium for a year? Whatever! I’m not saying that they were entitled to their spots (as I said last week, I think Lily would’ve definitely been cut in a regular year), but I understand the frustration. 2020 was a terrible year for a lot of ppl with isolation and a loss of normal life, and then to have DCC ripped away too - it’s brutal. I feel bad for the rookies too, and I think the main issue was bringing so many women into training camp in the first place. They should’ve never been in a position where they had to make a gazillion cuts during training camp. It was irresponsible and unnecessary. With that said, I really like the rookies who made it. It’s a strong group, IMO. Hopefully, next season, they will have a real season with fans and will be able to be on the field.

Right! She’s pissed!!! I haven’t followed Hayleigh and Fessy since BB, but Hayleigh always seemed fairly normal - not someone who would start drama just for the sake of attention. I believe her side of things.

Yeah, Aneesa was dumb to tell her that. It made no sense at all. However, it was at the end of the Challenge, and yet, Diem seemed to think she was entitled to make it to the end. Diem also had no reason to believe that Aneesa would turn on Svetlana, who had been her only female ally in the game. The fact that Diem was also upset that Evan had pulled CT in to the Duel the week before just confirmed for me that it was all about entitlement, not any sincere belief that Aneesa betrayed her. With that said, I found Diem to be more likable in some of the later Challenges (if I’m remembering correctly).

This article discusses some of the Hayleigh/Fessy drama. https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/the-challenges-fessy-shafaat-responds-to-ex-haleigh-brouchers-claims/amp/

The "how does the internet work" question is the most ridiculous question that they have ever asked on this show. Like, wth! This isn't a job at At&T or Comcast, where perhaps knowing how the internet works would be relevant. Most of us pay a company for internet service, so we don't have to figure it out. I feel awful for Brennan. Her bout with covid sounded terrible, and puts perspective into the "most people survive, so it's no big deal" nonsense that some people spew. I like Lily. She seems like a great person, but I think she is a weak dancer. While I think they should've just taken vets, if vets are on the hook (as they are), she and Meredith were always the obvious ones to get cut. I think both would've been goners in a regular tryout year.

I watched the Duel on Netflix, and I forgot how satisfying it was to see Svetlana and Aneesa pick off the other women after they kept getting thrown in each week. I never liked Kina, and I had also forgotten how dramatic she acted when she lost.

Aww! I completely missed that. I’m mixed about Fessy picking Kaycee as a partner. He probably thinks it’s more likely that he wins comps with Kaycee, which I think is true. Also, he and Kaycee are both strong, so that’s another layer of protection - anyone partnered with someone thought to be weak is vulnerable, like Nelson. However, he pissed off 2 more people in the process, and Kaycee has the same allies that he does, so that’s not really helpful. I can’t stand Josh! I get why Nelson and Cory were mad at Fessy, but Josh can STFU. I like Nany, so I hate that she is partnered with him, but I don’t want them to win anything. Hopefully, he gets beat soon and she can get a new partner.

It’s interesting that many, if not most, posters on here, whether they liked the solo or not, seem to think that the message/politics of Kristin’s solo was the real issue. Yet, the show felt the need to obscure that and pretend like Kristin just had a typical poorly choreographed and poorly performed solo - with fast, hard hitting music overlayed to drive home the point. Kelli could’ve easily said, “Kristin attempted to perform a powerful solo that showed solidarity with the social justice movement going on in the country, but the routine just didn’t hit the high points of the music, and she lacked the needed emotional connection to pull of the piece.” The fact that she didn’t is telling. They absolutely didn’t want the audience to know the real nature of the solo. I have to think that ten or even a few years ago, Charlotte would’ve had no issue taking her to task on camera for “getting political.”

Exactly. It's like someone who, rather than speak privately to her best friend, posts on social media for everyone to see, that said best friend's husband is having multiple affairs.....When the best friend is upset that her personal life has been aired out for everyone's amusement, saying "but I told the truth" isn't going to help. The issue in that case, as well as the case with Pen, isn't telling the truth, it's that she drug people through the mud in public - including Colin, who she supposedly cares about - without making the disclosure in private. Whether Colin was going to be tricked is not a matter of public concern. If she told Colin the truth, and he still wanted to be with Marina, so be it. Pen just didn't want to take the chance that Colin would learn the truth and still choose to stay with Marina - hence, going nuclear with Lady W. There's also this: Yes. This is part of the issue too. It wasn't just light-hearted or satirical stuff. Pen used Lady W to settle a score with Marina, and then there is the situation with Daphne, who by all means, was nothing but nice to her. The character just comes off in a poor light to me (if she is supposed to be sympathetic). I also agree with those who initially liked the Marina/Pen friendship. It's a shame that they destroyed it.

Yes, I thought the exact same thing. Marisa looked better than Maddie in the hip hop dance clip that they showed. I’m just can’t get into the “Hip Hop Maddie” thing. I don’t think she is bad at hip hop, but when they portray her as being a standout, it does her no favors because I just watch with a more critical eye. Same with VK. She looks fine, but she’s not heads and shoulders above anyone else.

Exactly. I just watched the episode, and after seeing Kristin's real solo just now, I'm really annoyed. This isn't a case of them taking a bad or cringeworthy solo and making it look worse with choppy editing (ex: Vivian's poem) or a case where they amplify certain errors. They deceptively edited it to present a different picture of what actually occurred. It's not about them disliking the solo. That's fine. I think any two people can watch almost any dance and come away with different opinions. Here however, if they thought that it was inappropriately "political," (clearly, the real problem, IMO), then have the guts to say so. Instead, they took the cowardly way out.

Ok....so this solo is nowhere near as bad as they made it out to be on the show. I liked it. No, It's not the best solo ever, but they acted like it was one of the worst solos that they had seen. I tend to agree with the other poster that their real issue is that it was political. Rather than just be honest about that, they overlayed it with music that is nothing like what she actually danced to and pretended like she was totally offbeat - I mean, maybe her performance at show group auditions was especially bad, but I'm doubting that. The fact that Scott and Neil McCoy were both a yes for her reinforces that for me - neither would care about politics. Charlotte and Kelli on the other hand - absolutely. I feel bad for Meredith, but she needed to go. The clip of her and Ashley dancing Charm's piece next to each other was really glaring. Meredith was completely off. Kelli is nuts for giving her a "yes" - who cares if she is a good lyrical dancer if she is weak at power pom? I actually think she looked worse than her rookie season. I know that she and Kat are often lumped together, but there's no comparison, IMO. Kat may make mistakes, but she looked great in the clips of her dancing the DCC choreography. Meredith always looks like she is a half step behind.

I’m curious about this as well. Are we as viewers, supposed to like Pen now that we know she’s Lady W? I don’t think she’s the worst person in the world, but I no longer like her. I also have a hard time reconciling her character, which is portrayed as a naive, sweet girl with Lady W, who seems quite malicious. The hit against Marina was as mean-spirited as it could possibly be, and I don’t see her as a good friend to Colin now. I feel like the character is in a corner, unless the show wants her to be a villain. Also, as someone who has not read the books, I have no lingering affection for the character, and it seems like some of the defense of her actions here is based on her being a beloved character from the books. Overall however, I loved the show. I agree that Daphne/Simon are problematic in many ways, but I still enjoyed them. Honestly, I’ll take the Duke of Hastings on my tv screen any day, all day lol!

Regarding the bold, I disagree. Colin could’ve denied that he was the father and said that he never had sex with Marina, which was the truth. What makes you think that he, as a man, lacked the ability to do that? It’s not like he had been courting Marina for a long time, such that his denial would be unbelievable. On the rest, I just think this goes to the problem of her being Lady W. All of this may be true with a regular young woman in town. But with Pen, clearly, she manages to get around at night and to hear about everyone’s business, write, and publish it just fine. She can’t be so savvy as to successfully and secretly write this column that has the whole ton gossiping, while also being so naive and constrained as to be unable to tell her best friend’s brother that he is about to be tricked into a bad situation.