Sparky

Couldn't agree more about Val. I've been following him for a long time because of his relationship with Maks and I can only guess that those who love him so much have no clue as to his real personality. He really toned himself down a lot when he joined DWTS but every so often his real personality will leak out- the nasty little misogynist who thinks he's superior to everyone and believes his own press. Last year he posted something so vulgar on DWTS' IG account that I won't even repeat it. He never misses the opportunity to pat himself on the back or crow about anything he does for someone else. Maks is quietly generous to his loved ones, Val makes sure the world knows he did something nice. I also don't care for Val's disloyalty to Maks when he tries not-so-subtly to undermine him in interviews and in his blog. He owes Maks more than he'll ever be able to repay but it's obvious that he also wants desperately to be the most famous brother. He's also weirdly dependent on Maks. He's been living in Maks' homes since he was fifteen and shows no sign of wanting to grow up, get his own place and be his own man. At 28 years old that's a total failure to launch. Maks worked hard when he was a teenager and together with his father he founded the string of Dance With Me studios that pulled their family out of poverty. He continues to work hard as an adult, doing some of the behind the scenes work at the family business in addition to teaching there and his other ventures. Val shows up once in a while to teach a class and then tweet about it so everyone knows he worked. He'd be lucky to have half of Maks' heart and sense of self sacrifice. I can't imagine Maks ever eliminating Val from his success story as Val has done to Maks in interviews. Suddenly, Val is solely responsible for his good fortune and the years that Maks supported him financially so that he wouldn't have to quit competing never happened. Or the fact that Val benefitted greatly from the work Maks did in his childhood. It's sad that the main thing Maks and Val have in common is that they both put Val first.

Agree completely about the show giving the AT away in switch week. Val did a fine job but that dance was cold- not a bit of heat or sexiness in it. I don't know where people saw the chemistry they're mentioning between Val & Meryl, either. I saw Meryl politely going along with him in their rehearsal pkg but none of the chemistry & warmth she shares with Maks on and off the dance floor. I really hope that M&M get to do an AT, too. I'm starting to wonder if the show intentionally gave away what could have been their best dance to inhibit a potential Meryl victory. The weekly overpraise, overscoring and lack of critique for Amy makes me wonder if we're being prepped for another potential DH victory. Sigh. The people claiming that if Maks doesn't win with Meryl that it's on him are wrong. A long more goes into a potential victory than just the pro's contribution. The fawning over Derek's horrendously lazy switch dance with NeNe & Amy's score added to the AT being taken from M&M this week doesn't add up to a potential win for Meryl. And that's not on Maks. Additionally, what's with the only celebrity in this season's cast who actually looks like a Disney princess not being one in her routine for Disney week? Rumor has it that M&M are doing something "different." After this week's producer shenanigans, I shudder to think what that might be.

I forgot to mention that Derek's fans are trying to distance him from Julianne on social media. She certainly got the publicity she seemed to crave from her comment to Maks but I doubt it's the kind she expected. She didn't do herself any PR favors last night.

THIS is exactly what I thought after seeing the mess that was NeNe's dance! Maks gets nastiness in spite of the fact that his partner had to dance without her music track, Derek gets a tongue bath for having his partner flap around like Big Bird. Someone phoned it in last night alright, but it wasn't Maks.

I also thought Meryl &Val's AT was a great dance- but for me, it was cold- not warm or sexy in the least. It made me wish even harder for Meryl & Maks to be allowed to dance an AT. With their chemistry I believe it would be amazing!

I thought Meryl's AT with Val was techically great but lacked her amazing chemistry and connection with Maks. It definitely was the dance of the night, though. I loved the way Meryl ran to hug Maks in the middle of her interview with Erin! Those few seconds had more chemistry than her entire dance with Val. I look forward to seeing M&M reunited next week. I sincerely hope that DWTS isn't going to waste precious air time on Derek explaining his creative process before MSOD each time they perform. The show's already abbreviated yet we had to take time to watch Derek rehearse? Oy. NeNe's dance. Oh boy. That was NeNe flapping around while Derek outdanced her. What exactly did she learn this week? I guess Derek really can choreograph for anyone. He just can't do it well. Amy danced more than she has but that's not saying much. She's still being overpraised, overscored and under critiqued. I do think that Mark did a better job with her than Derek has up to this point. Charlie still looks too feminine when he dances. And he didn't have decent hip action tonight. He was vastly overscored. I thought Drew's dance was really fun and he seemed to be having a great time. The camera constantly cutting to Cheryl as he was being critiqued was interesting. What were they expecting? I think all the pros wanted their partner to do well tonight and not only because they were being scored. I was speechless at Julianne's nasty comment to Maks. It's one thing to judge a dance but quite another to judge his motives. Her comment was especially appalling considering that Maks had switched partners with his brother. She was beyond unprofessional but the incident will garner her some press, which was probably her goal. After years of watching the Houghs nothing they do for media attention surprises me.

I was hugely disappointed to see that Meryl would be dancing the Argentine Tango with Val since Maks spent last summer dancing it on Broadway. The AT was the dance that I looked forward to seeing M&M perform the most. I've always loved Maks' ATs but after Forever Tango I expected an even richer and more seductive experience. What was DWTS thinking to assign it to Meryl's switch partner?! I'm hoping there will be an upcoming twist that allows couples to redo the dance styles that were performed during switch week. What a missed opportunity if that doesn't happen!

I know Derek's in contact with them because the Pure mods boast about their conversations with him. It's one thing to have fans who send hateful tweets. No one can control that. It's quite another to have a site dedicated to tearing down the reputations of the pros and celebrities on DWTS. Even if Derek wasn't in contact with Pure, at least he could warn people that he doesn't condone their hateful actions. He hasn't done anything to let his fans know to stay away from the site. Why? Because they help him. Pure fans are all over social media spreading lies that are generated on Pure and will benefit Derek. They are an army of organized negativity. Shame on Derek for being involved with them.

It's absolutely correct that Pure was offered the information to correct their false findings. They not only rejected it but attacked the folks trying to help them. They'd rather incite their readers to rage than to admit they made an error. I wasn't surprised by their actions as they've been doing this sort of thing for years. They are Derek's fan site masquerading as a DWTS site. No dissenting opinions are allowed. If you're not in the cult of Derek they don't care what you think. That they are now affiliated with Afterbuzz makes that program just as biased and untrustworthy. I honestly don't see how anyone can read Pure and find it anything other than a site designed to trash anyone who might get in the way of Derek being handed yet another victory. And yes, Maks did it. Because whatever it is that they are seething over today, or tomorrow, or whenever, it was Maks that caused it. Because Maks! That Derek not only doesn't disavow them and their craziness but speaks to them and clearly knows that they are attacking his coworkers is reprehensible. He's got an effective racket going with Pure. They do his dirty work for him while he hides behind his nice guy persona. We see you, Derek. I hope this latest meltdown backfires on them and they are revealed to have manipulated their readers far more than DWTS manipulated the switch votes. For years of spreading misinformation and nastiness, they deserve to be dragged out into the light.

Does this mean Conrad's love affair with Derek has ended? Hoo boy, if that's the case, I need to lay in a supply of popcorn to munch while I watch the Derek fan fireworks. It would be a strange new world for them..hahaha!

TPTB are treating Maks very well this season, aren't they? :) Although I'm very much enjoying the meltdown at Pure over their perceived switch voting manipulations (years of past manipulations were fine with them as long as they favored Derek) the partnerships seem based on the idea that Derek might not have been able to travel with Meryl this week because of Stars of Dance starting next week. So Val got Meryl as the next highest vote getter. TPTB are treating Maks very well this season, aren't they? :) Although I'm very much enjoying the meltdown at Pure over their perceived switch voting manipulations (years of past manipulations were fine with them as long as they favored Derek) the partnerships seem based on the idea that Derek might not have been able to travel with Meryl this week because of Stars of Dance starting next week. So Val got Meryl as the next highest vote getter.

I posted this in another area (sorry) but regarding the switch: Val and Peta have been seen in FL so are probably there with Meryl and Charlie. Yesterday, Tony posted an Instagram that pictured himself, Maks and Derek. Also Candace, Danica and NeNe. Those six are likely partnered which means that NeNe is either dancing with Maks- or Derek.

Meryl and Maks' foxtrot was my favorite dance this week. I loved its ethereal yet sensuous quality. They have real chemistry, not like the manufactured piffle that DWTS is trying to push with Peta and James. I don't care whether or not they're a real-life couple as seems to interest a few on TWOP. They dance beautifully together and are adorable in interviews. And if their foxtrot was being scored on the Derek Hough scale of favoring some pros other others, then great! Maks is long overdue to be treated well on this show. If he's being favored, then I hope it continues. I like Charlie's personality and kindness but am not thrilled with his dancing. He has a feminine quality that reminds me of watching Ellen Degeneris dance. When in hold with Sharna he looks tentative. Hoping he finds some way to inject a little testosterone into his performances. I enjoyed Danica's contemporary dance but not her rehearsal package. She's becoming more annoying by the week. It was Weep Week #3 for Amy. I hope next week DWTS shows more of her personality and stops focusing solely on her disability. I don't want to hear the word "inspirational" for a long time. As for her dancing, she hasn't done much yet. She's been more of a prop for Derek to manipulate than an actual dancing partner. The judges have seriously overscored her out of sympathy for three weeks now. Maybe next week they'll start scoring her on her ability as they promised in week one. Candace's jive was a weak way to close out Monday's show. I realize they wanted to end on an upbeat note but that dance was sloppy. Looking forward to switch week so we can get it over with. Some unexpected pairings: Looks like Val and Peta are in FL with Meryl and Charlie. Tony tweeted a video yesterday that starred himself, Maks and Derek with Candace, Danica and NeNe. The possibility that Derek could have gotten NeNe in the switch makes me smile.