Woodrose

They should award three mirror balls tomorrow night: One for Maks, one for Amy, and one for Candace's daughter.

Snowboarders Rule! Louie Vito, the only other Olympic snowboarder to appear on DWTS (several seasons ago) is supporting Amy. He sent this tweet: Stoked to live tweet the @dancingabc finale tonight to support @amypurdygurl #DWTS #TeamAmy #PurdyHough @toyota pic.twitter.com/N29cNQEvN1 https://twitter.com/louievito/status/468454851597197314/photo/1 It includes a cute pic of the two of them. I enjoyed Louie's time on the show, though he wasn't a great dancer (Amy definitely wins the 'Which Snowboarder Danced the Best on DWTS' challenge). He didn't have much rhythm or grace, but he had a fun attitude and a good partnership with Chelsie. Louie also did some very impressive acrobatic flips that I remember. It's nice that he's supporting Amy.

If Amy wins, it won't be just because of her story. It will be her great dancing combined with her inspirational story. If it were all about consistently dancing 'better', no one but Meryl and Charlie would have bothered to show up to even start the competition, since truly, no one could hope to match their skills. And Charlie would still be there for the finals. Maybe Amy hasn't danced as well as Meryl and Charlie, but I'd put her in third, maybe tied with James. As you say, ymmv. But if Amy wins, I'll credit her dancing skill as well as the fact she's an inspirational figure. If M/M win, I'll say they won with lots of hard work and great dances. I won't be unhappy with either outcome.

I hear what you're saying and it may well happen that way. If so, I'll be happy for the M/M fans and also a bit relieved that Derek did not win a 6th trophy. I agree with people who say that would be bad for the show. But....voting for Meryl feels like voting for the overdog. Kind of a deflating result, for the reigning Olympic ice dancer to win a reality show dance competition. And yes, I had similar feelings when Nicole and Kristi won the trophy. I appreciated their hard work and entertaining dances, but their victories weren't very powerful feel-good moments. And then, there is Amy. She's a better dancer on prosthetic feet than the last Olympic snowboarder on the show, Louie Vito. She's got far better rhythm and posture and hip action than he ever did. Her quickstep joined Charlie's foxtrot as the best dances of the night for me last week. An Amy win would be a huge feel-good moment, and would garner a lot of media attention. It would be a positive spotlight on the possibilities of life with prosthetic limbs, an important message given how many disabled vets we have in the U.S. I'm sitting here wishing Amy was dancing with Maks. They are the two I want to see win the trophy this time. No offense intended to Meryl, who is a lovely person and a very hard worker. I hope they all dance their best on Monday, and I'll be very interested to see the results.

I don't like contemporary, as a general rule, and wish it was not included as a regular DWTS dance. I find it to be arrhythmic and completely divorced from the music most times, and I particularly dislike angsty contemporary, especially the 'make like a 2-year-old having a temper tantrum' move. And....Melissa and Tony's season 15 freestyle is in my top 3 of all time, along with Brook/Derek and Amber/bunch of cowboys. M/T's contemporary was uplifting and inspiring and a perfect encapsulation of their all-stars journey. Their music repeated the words "I Was Here" over and over, kind of like Melissa/Tony's statement to the crowd that they were HERE, along with all these trophy-holders. The lifts were elegant and very impressive, and the aerial performers for just a part of the performance did not take away focus from Melissa and Tony. Loved it. The next season, I deliberately voted for Zendaya and Val in the final because I didn't want to encourage more people to do contemporary as their freestyle. Not a majority view, though. Contemporary can also be very happy and joyful and fun and silly. My very favorite Wade Robeson piece on SYTYCD is the one with crash test dummies Kupona and Ashley, and I believe it was called contemporary. If we get contemporary freestyles on Monday, I hope they are not of the angsty variety.

For sure, these little talks were clearly staged. But, they were all conversations he was perfectly willing to have, even if they'd not been prompted by the producers. He was happy to ask Meryl and Maks for advice or sit down for a pep talk from his Mom or Scott. But, Charlie did not play up a rivalry with Meryl. Charlie did not pretend to be gaga over Sharna. Who knows what else the producers suggested they stage for him and he declined. That's how I interpret being true to oneself within a reality show format.

Thoughtful comment, JustAlison. And a sentiment that I can imagine is widely shared among general viewers. But, if you look at the Pro side of these couples, the 'deserving, satisfying winner' gets turned on its head. What is more satisfying, to watch Derek win his 6th trophy, or Maks win his first? I've written some critical things about Maks, but I voted for him this week. But I don't think of it as voting for Maks/Meryl, but as doing my Mom a favor. She's a Maks fan, really wants him to win, and asked me to vote for them. First time in the 13 seasons we've been watching and talking about the show each week, so of course I did as she asked. Maybe the winner will be determined by which sentiment is stronger among the voting public, the desire to see the woman on prosthetic legs triumphantly hoist the trophy, or the wish for a longtime pro to get his first win. Or maybe the hot boy bander or sweet Christian mom will sweep in and take the glittery prize. I'm looking forward to seeing how it turns out.

Sorry to be picky, but Peta has only done the one freestyle. Her only trip to the finals was with Donald, and they won the trophy with their freestyle. This will be Peta's second time in the final round. The four pros in the finals this season have all created winning freestyle routines, except Maks. Peta won with Donald, Mark won with Kristi and Shawn, and Derek won the trophy with Brook, Jennifer, Nicole, Kellie, and Amber. No pressure on Maks this week, none at all :)

A Big ITA to this post. The intro to their VW seemed same-old same-old at this point. Meryl dramatically declined to dance with him at first, then she relented and they did their dance. Seemed very similar to what we've seen before. And it is very inconsiderate of Maks to do no preparation before working with Meryl. He could at least listen to the music and start forming ideas. Meryl's time is so limited, she is getting so little sleep anyway, she shouldn't have to waste any time and energy standing around while he waits to be 'inspired.'

If Charlie or his mom are reading here, I want to say thank you for that lovely, exhilarating foxtrot last night. My favorite dance of the season. I loved, loved, loved, the solo section at the end. Charlie and Sharna's foxtrot enters my pantheon of all time favorite DWTS dance numbers. I look forward to rewatching it occasionally, and enjoying it every time, for years to come. Thanks so much for bringing all your skill and charm to the dance floor each week, for the entertainment of viewers like me. I'm sad my 10 votes for you last week weren't enough to get you into the finals :) On the bright side, enjoy your rest. You deserve it.

And I'll chime in with another ITA. Meryl deserved to be assigned a professional partner, a mature adult. She should be able to lean on him, but no....she has to prop him up. Week after week! So ridiculous that Maks is throwing himself a pity party for having the best dancer in the competition. Charlie is a nice, charming, funny guy. It is utterly absurd that the producers could not create video packages for him showing his charm and humor. It's unbelievable to me that we never saw this Instagram clip on DWTS http://instagram.com/p/nk2ZxFk5O2/ Charlie on ice with his dog! Overflowing cuteness! His dog, named DJ -- for Candace's character on Full House! And the producers never showed this bit of cuteness, tied in perfectly to another contestant. Damn it all. Producer malpractice, I'm calling it. I can't see it as a big travesty that James and Candace are in the finals, though. Last season Jack Osbourne and Bill Engvall were in the finals, and they weren't the best dancers of their season, either. It's how DWTS works. Candace and Mark are a very sweet, likable couple, and Candace has some athletic abilities. I can see Mark putting together a killer freestyle for her, and the voters swinging for her big time. It's not out of the realm of possibility that she could take the trophy next week, imo. As always, it will come down to the freestyle.

This is from early in this season http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20797058,00.html Seems pretty insulting to those former partners he had to tolerate every rehearsal.

I do believe that's in his job description, and a big reason he was brought back to the show. I give you Exhibit A: :) And I'm fine with Maks bringing the drama. It keeps DWTS ticking, and I'm happy it's been renewed. He's just not convincing me to vote for him. Lots of stuff that annoys various people is kept in the show, because it gets people talking and creates buzz. What some people call Derek's mugging, he probably calls doing his job -- playing to the cameras, upping the cheese factor. Peta's skimpy costumes are likely part of her job security, a way to get people talking about her. I'm helping to keep DWTS on the air by writing my post that I'm not planning on voting for Maks this time. :)

I've NEVER heard any other pro slam their former partners the way Maks has this season. Talking about how he had to force himself to go to work, could barely tolerate being around them, had to drag them around the dance floor, etc. So I have to say that Maks is worse about this than the other pros. His ridiculous hyperbole about Meryl is off-putting to me. Early in this season, I was hoping that Maks would win the trophy. Not for Maks's sake, but for his fans. They want it so badly, and feel so victimized that he's not yet won, that I kinda wanted it for them. My Mom is a Maks fan, so that helps -- I want to see her be happy. But, with the awful comments Maks has made about his former partners, and the not-so-pleasant way he treated Danica, I'm once again not on board with a Maks victory. If he and Meryl win the trophy, it will be without my votes.

I strongly suspect they are not, most of the time. In the season one finale of So You Think You Can Dance, they gave the vote percentages for the final four (Its never been done again). The percentages were very widely spaced -- something like 39%, 28%, 18%, 15%. Combining these types of number with the judges percentages will show that the fans determine the placement, and the judges percentages will not change the finish order from the fans' preferences. This is why I don't get all upset about the judges' scores, whether Meryl's tango received one point less than Amy's, or any of that. I just think that the margins between the judges scores are so small, they will be quickly overwhelmed by the fan votes. By and large, I think that the fan votes determine the winners and where everyone finishes. In Season 8, just before the winner was announced, Tom said that it was the closest competition ever, with less than one percent separating the winner and runner-up. He's never said anything like that before or since, leading me to believe that most times the vote is not so close.

Rant, continued: "Judge" Abby criticizes Meryl. Maks calmly responds, "I really don't care for anything that she has to say." Dimwit DanceMoms: Laugh and smile and clap. Maksim Chmerkovskiy, very successful pro competitive dancer, former #7 Latin dancer in the world, co-owner/lead teacher of a string of successful dance studios, coach of world-class competitive dancers, flatly states that their daughter's dance coach is not worth listening to, and they clap? They don't even have enough sense to be ashamed and embarrassed that they are sending their children to a 'dance coach' who is harshly, publicly scorned by genuine world class professional dancers and teachers.

ALM brought DWTS to its lowest ratings all season. Some of the decline may be permanent, if some disgusted people have turned the show off for good. Maybe they saw The Voice for the first time and liked it. I won't be at all surprised if the next episode of DanceMoms has the highest ratings ever. Still many less viewers than DWTS, of course, since its on a little cable network, but enough to make them cheer. Most people don't like bullies, but some do enjoy watching bullies in action. It's why Rush Limbaugh and other shock jocks have an audience -- a certain percentage of people think bullies are entertaining. Some number of DWTS viewers will probably check out DanceMoms for the first time and become fans as a result of her stint on DWTS, hard as it is for me to understand. Casting that bully cow as a guest judge on DWTS is without question the Stoopidest move I've ever seen TPTB make. It may well end up permanently hurting DWTS while helping the ratings of DanceMoms. I truly wonder if that asinine stunt was Conrad Green sending ABC and DWTS cast/viewers the bird as he walks out the door.

Whoa. The pros did not mince words in their after-show interviews regarding the travesty at the judges' table last night. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/dance-moms-abby-lee-miller-701550 If I had kids who wanted to learn to dance, I'd want their teacher to be Sharna. Love her comments from the article: Mark and Derek have some good quotes in the article, too. The article also unfortunately makes this questionable statement: One of the comments below the article asks for a list of the witch's students who have 'conquered Broadway.' I've seen this question elsewhere, too -- exactly who are the successful dancers she's trained? No one seems able to name them, so it's clear they don't exist. The person who wrote the article should not have repeated the bully's fairy tale without fact checking.

There was one positive note in the show last night: Tom's announcement that next week's guest judge will be Kenny Ortega! I don't like having guest judges just because I would rather have the time devoted to more pro dances rather than listening to the judges, but if we must have them, Kenny is my number one choice. He's my favorite guest judge on SYTYCD -- he's very knowledgeable, of course, but he also has the most lovely demeanor and gentlemanly presence. We can be sure he will be coherent, upbeat, and any criticism will truly be constructive and on-point. It will be like going from Hell to Heaven in the guest judge sweepstakes, with the biggest bitch in TVLand followed by the loveliest gentleman in Hollywood.

No, Abby Le Idiot, the fact that Amy can use her impressive athletic strength to perform an amazing dance does NOT mean that little girls can dance when hungry and tired. Really cannot believe she has a show that is popular, and parents willing to send their kids to her school. Derek clearly could hardly bear to stand in front of the loudmouth bully to receive her praise. On a general note, I don't think anyone needs to feel bad for liking or not liking Amy. She wants to be treated like anyone else, and on DWTS, that means viewers can like a celeb and vote for them, or not, for any petty reason they please. Or no reason at all. And plenty of celebs gain or lose votes based on what their partners or the judges say or do, so that can hold true for Amy, too. I personally loved Amy's AT and have no problem with the 10s. I'm curious about what Derek was trying to do with the barstool at the end of the routine and what went wrong. I gave my votes to Charlie and Sharna again this week. I loved their quickstep and felt Sharna did a terrific job with the choreography, matching moves perfectly to the music. I liked Mark's song and the opening number. It's sweet to see how all the cast supports Mark and are happy for him.

We had better hear about this delightful, charming story tonight when Charlie will be dancing with Candace! If not, I will be sending a raspberry thru my TV screen to the DWTS producers. Can't believe they've been grasping for a 'story' for Charlie's packages when they have this sparkly gem in their midst. Showing Charlie's good humor and charm would be an excellent package for him. Everyone doesn't need to have a drama every week.

Random sighting on Instagram: http://i.instagram.com/p/nfzKglp3CX/ According to this, Len thinks the winner will be either Charlie or Amy.??? Knock me over with a feather. I guess Len sees Charlie as being on the Donald Driver trajectory, not the Ralph Macchio path. I will be truly shocked if Charlie leaves this week; I'm expecting Danica to go home. I'll be happy for her to be able to rest and heal, if so.

Thanks for reminding me about that Gasoleeena song. I was listening to it, wondering if it was from the Mad Max movies? They were out in the desert, fighting over supplies of Gasoleen (...instead of water....lol) I was chuckling so much at singing about Gasoleeeen, that's about all I remember from that performance.

Sorry to correct Lord Tom, but Melissa Rycroft is not the one and only instance of rehearsal footage being judged in the competition. Don't forget Steve-O. Melissa was injured before the dress rehearsal, and her camera-blocking footage was shown, with her dancing in her blue jeans. It was scored. Then, in the team dance, Lacey did Melissa's part, and Melissa received the team dance score even though she didn't dance it (which created a bit of controversy). Steve-O injured his back during dress rehearsal, and his dress rehearsal footage with Lacey was shown and judged. He did make it through that week, and a couple of weeks beyond. I've been voting for Danica and Amy this season, but I don't want to see them carry on and injure themselves further. So, Charlie and Sharna got my votes this evening. Danica and Val traveled to DC this week for a Science Fair and both appeared onstage with Bill Nye. It's really too bad that her package was focused on her injury, because it would have been interesting and fun to see geek-Danica promoting her math books. Amy's package about her boyfriend was cringe-worthy. I wish she hadn't cooperated with any intrusive questions the producers asked to put that one together. Ugh. Between her injury and that embarrassing pre-dance footage, I'm ready for her to go home for her own sake. I'm beyond tired of the additional dancers in the numbers. They just violate the entire spirit of Dancing With The Stars, which is based around watching stars and their pro partners perform 1.5 minute dance routines that they've practiced all week long. Not celebrities as bit players in huge production numbers.

Bad News. Danica is injured, may not be able to continue. She sent the following tweet an hour ago: So...I broke a rib in yesterday's #DWTS rehearsal. Trying my best to pull thru and could use your prayers!! #wanttokeepdancing https://twitter.com/...742581367521281 Damn, that's not good. Probably trying to do a lift. I remember Melissa broke a rib during her first season.