realdancemom

I did like when Len would say what judges were looking for when judging standard and Latin ballroom. I think Derek does little educational tidbits too. Cheryl is always bad mouthing DWTS now. I think she's bitter because she wasn't asked to be a judge. If the show is thinking of replacing CAI, I hope they ask Sharna instead. Anna and Karina are other choices.

I think the show tries to match pros by height, temperament, etc. I know some of the bigger stars ask for certain pros like Derek. Stephen would have done better with a seasoned pro technique wise. However, he and Riley were cute together. As Derek mentioned, they were like two anti-depressants. I think the show wants to invest in younger pros and give them time to grow. Lindsay wasn't a great pro right away. I think one problem is that Riley might have done what Allison used to do. They think of teaching choreography instead of teaching basic technique first. OTOH, they have to cram a lot in one week. Ilona had a great experience since she was partnered with Alan. Their socials were fun. Yes, she would have listened to Tony just like she listens to coaches. I don't see them creating fun video clips though. I think her and Alan's social media is what got her to second place. Just my opinion which could be wrong.

I read comments that it's supposed to be about celebrities with no dance experience and learning how to dance. Otherwise, it's unfair. That is false. If that was the case, the show wouldn't cast stars with dance experience. That would also be difficult to do especially for women. It's also not about the best dancer. If that was the case, viewers wouldn't be able to vote. People are going to vote for whoever they want. It could be Reggie if they were a big fan. It could be Danny if they love lifts or think he's really handsome. Some people purposely vote for the worst dancer. Votes are what makes the show interesting because you don't know who will win. At first, I thought it would be Stephen or Joey. Later on, I thought it would be Ilona because of social media. I do watch for dancing. To me that was Chandler. However, I didn't expect her to win. I'm writing because some people think that non-dancers have it harder and dancers don't have to work as hard. I think it's a matter of what they're learning. Higher expectations are placed on dancers like Chandler. She has to learn proper ballroom steps but she also has needs more difficult choreography. You can't just give simple choreography or the judges will dock you. I believe that's why CAI said that Joey's freestyle was underwhelming. She expected more based on his abilities.

I remember that Val lifted up Jenna which makes sense. I'm pretty sure that Joey was lifted too. I don't remember by who though.

Oops. I don't know how to link a FB post. This is what their post says. It doesn't state that Stephen is from Stanford. That was my assumption. Stanford FB post: Card on the big screen! Jeremy Bischoff, Brandon Nguyen, and alum Riley Loos made an appearance in tonight’s DWTS finale alongside fellow gymnast Stephen Nedoroscik!

They were his Stanford gymnastics team mates. I saw a fb post from Stanford with their names listed.

More comments - I thought it was really cute how Riley would nod right before big moments in their freestyle. It was like reassuring Stephen that he got this. I just read the comments on the dwts fb page. There are a lot of comments on how Chandler and Brandon made it all about race. They can't even pay tribute to great black dancers before them like the Nicholas brothers.

Although, I've been rooting for Chandler and Brandon all season, I didn't expect them to win. I'm just happy that they made it to the finale. Third place isn't bad. Chandler's redemption jive truly showed how she's miles ahead of everyone when it comes to technique. She's a good performer too but so are other finalists. Chandler really works on the details. Her legs are sharp with great retraction. She points her feet. Joey's feet make me cringe. Her legs were straight when she went through Brandon's legs and she has nice lines and extension. It was weird that Carrie Ann did her summary especially since the VW was mentioned. My favorite freestyles were Chandler's and Stephen's. So congrats on the first time finale pros for their choreography. Ilona's is next because of her great personality. Witney did about as well as she could with Danny. There was that one big throw and nice lifts. He still was a little off during one dance sequence and there wasn't that much dancing. Joey's was something. When there was overnight voting, the best freestyle usually won. I'm not sure if Joey would have still won in that case. Maybe, Ilona or someone else would have. Joey had a solid season though so he's a good winner.

I would love Sharna to replace CarrieAnn. Cheryl could have been a judge but I think she would not be asked. I've never listened to her podcast but I guess it's mostly putting down DWTS from what I read.

I loved his Halloween dance. I found it creepy not sexy though. If there was some sexiness in it, I'm assuming he did it since he played a character and not himself. It can be uncomfortable for some people to act sexy. I remember a lot of giggles when sometimes male pros ask younger females to do it. I think in this case Stephen had a difficult enough time to get the hips and timing correctly. LOL. And Witney stood in front of him for some parts so that you couldn't see what he was doing.

I noticed that about Witney covering up Danny too. You couldn't see what he was doing most of the time he was doing dance steps. I'm sure that was on purpose. Jenna like the other female pros know how to dance circles around their male partners to make the routine interesting and distract from their partners. It's nice that Jenna doesn't have to do that this season. Joey has great musicality probably from his drumming. I did not see where he lost timing in his foxtrot. I guess it happened since both CAI and Bruno pointed it out. If it was just one of them, I would be skeptical. I will say that song was fast for a foxtrot. It seemed more like a QS. But the concept was excellent and Joey pulled it off nicely. I think DWTS fans are brutal with Chandler. When she was showing her fierce face for the AT, people would say that she has a bad attitude. She can't win with those type of fans.

I also think Chandler is the one that would have been eliminated. Five people is a lot for the finale. However, if it means that she and Brandon stay, I'm all for it. I think Danny or Stephen should have been eliminated if it was based on dancing. That wasn't going to happen based on fans. There are people on FB complaining that Danny and Witney should have received 10s for their salsa. Yes, their lifts are amazing especially the first one where she shot up so high. But he was mostly standing there setting up for the next lift. What little dance steps existed were not good. He's very stiff and stompy. His facial expressions are stoic. I think his best dance in terms of performance was his jazz since we got to see some humor. Stephen doesn't do sexy or hips. I don't understand why the costume people can't put some back strap on his glasses so they don't fall off. Each strap could match his outfit color. If they can bedazzle Anna's ankle monitor, they should be able to do that. My eyes aren't that great but not as bad as his. I would still be squinting and not dance as well without glasses though. Ilona for most improved. She looked gorgeous, sexy, and powerful in her paso. I can see her winning based on social media. I think her personality makes somebody want to root for her. She was so happy getting her scores on the first show. I believe Brandon was teaching proper technique for each dance. However, freestyle is anything goes so he isn't restricted to a certain style. Today, I saw Derek's FB post where he acknowledged his first dance teacher, Rick Robinson. He was one of the owners of Vibe so he has taught most of the Utah ballroom dancers, especially the ones you see on the show, like Brandon and Witney. Rick not only is a great Latin ballroom dancer but is an excellent hip hop dancer. I'm saying this since I'm sure Brandon is capable of fusing different styles like he did during soul train night. Or he can ask for help from his mentor, one of Debbie Allen's instructors, or maybe Debbie Allen herself. Fingers crossed since Chandler is very capable of doing an excellent freestyle.

Previously, I wrote that Danny is only excellent in lifts. He had contemporary, jazz, and AT three weeks in a row. Now, he has Salsa. I'm sure Witney will fill it with a bunch of lifts again. She knows what works for him and votes. It would have been nice to see a samba from Chandler/Brandon. I think we only got one this season. It was when Joey did Tarzan. It might have been his weakest technically. I saw people saying that he should have received 10s. A lot of posters think that their favorite is low balled and should receive 10s. I'm sure Chandler would have been the best at it this season. However, samba is also a dance that the judges can nit pick. Maybe, that's not a good idea for the semis.

I also think that one of the Olympians might win. At first, I thought it might be Stephen since he was the Clark Kent/Superman of the men's gymnastics team. Now, I do think it will be Ilona. She and Alan have a great partnership and are very active on social. I'm old and not savvy with social but even their posts pop up on my FB feed. I'm not following them so it's just some algo doing it. She's also a positive role model for bigger girls. If it was all about the best dancer winning, Bobby Bones would have never won or made the finals. Tinashe and Juan Pablo would have been there. I've been worried about Chandler/Brandon being eliminated the last few weeks and next week. You can see it in Brandon's face every time they are in the bottom. He's worried too.

I'm glad that Chandler is still there. I don't care if she's a ringer. I watch for the dancing and she's miles ahead of everybody else. I wish they had a five person finale like last year. That way, I know she made it. I mostly want to see their freestyle. I'll be happy that Brandon finally has a chance to do one if that's the case. People are saying that his choreography is boring. Len would have loved it. He is teaching proper ballroom technique. Joey is my second favorite since his technique is decent. Everybody else has improved but there's a bunch of stomping going around. I'm glad Dwight is gone since he was the worse one left. If they're not doing a five person final, I hope Danny is the next one to go. He's a very handsome man but he's really only excellent at lifts. He and Witney did some amazing ones but this show is about dance. Personality wise, I do like everybody left. As I mentioned, I mostly want to see Chandler/Brandon's freestyle. I don't really care who wins although I do hope it's them.