blairwaldorf

Teaching a basic kickline is not difficult. Have them do 10 eight-counts of straight kicks and then get into both left and right splits from a standing position.

I do think some extra consideration should be given to legacies, but Kelli and Charlotte calling Victoria sharp, clean, and a strong candidate is laughable. The judge who called Victoria out for being sloppy, soft, and out of control was spot on. They obviously like Victoria as a person because of their friendship with her mother, but their inability to be objective about her dancing is really unprofessional and unfair to the other girls. How on earth did Erin make it to finals? She doesn't have the look and her dancing was terrible with major memory and technique issues, which were the same things she was cut for in training camp last year. Brennan looked good, but she always auditions well and then they don't like her as a performer in training camp because they don't like her face and think she struggles with the DCC style. I think they need to stop wasting her time unless they are absolutely certain they want her on the team. Dayton is really pretty without being trashy looking. She has a look that is unique (in a good way) for the DCC. Her dancing, like Victoria's, didn't really blow me away. Victoria was out of control to the point of looking s******. Dayton had the opposite problem. She looked like she was marking it and like her heart just isn't in it. I wonder if she really even wants to be a DCC, or if she is just trying out to humor her mom. My impression of Dayton was that she would welcome the opportunity to be a DCC if she made it, but isn't going to go out of her way to make it happen. With legacies, I feel like if a legacy is right on the cusp, they should take them, even if it means taking a larger team. I don't think they should give a legacy a spot they didn't earn if it means booting someone who did earn it to make room. But I am in favor of taking a squad of 38 instead of 36 so they can tack on two legacies who otherwise wouldn't have made the team, unless they're just so bad that there's no possible way they can keep up. That being said, I don't think they are doing legacies any favors by spewing BS about how they're amaaaaazing dancers at the top of the pack when that's clearly not the case. I would prefer if they said something like, "Victoria was sloppy and out of control, but she's a legacy, so we're going to give her the courtesy of an invitation to finals. BUT if she makes it to training camp, she'll have to fix that to earn her spot." Finally, I think the kick line needs to be done in the first round, and if you can't kick, you're out. Everyone trying out for DCC knows that they do kick line. There's no excuse for showing up to tryouts unable to kick. A girl who can't kick at tryouts is either lazy or incapable, and there's no point in wasting her time or Kelli and Judy's time by putting her in training camp.

Christina making this team really cheapens it. She has no business being on the team. None. If they were so desperate to make numbers that they had to take a TCC who doesn't have the look or technique, repeatedly stands out in a bad way, and has been cut from TCC twice but still can't kick or do her splits, they need to re-evaluate their finals selection process. Christina would not have made my high school dance team. She shouldn't have even been brought into training camp, much less made the team. The fact that she was there over some of the other girls who auditioned and that she actually took a spot on the team shows that there's a failure somewhere in the selection process. This TCC seems like it's full of one season girls, many of whom shouldn't have made the team in the first place, and wouldn't have in previous years.

I did think that this final episode felt more like a series finale than a season finale.

In some of the close ups of Amy T this episode, I thought she really has a striking resemblance to Brooke Sorenson Nix.

I was surprised, too. Simone is pretty, but she's awful. She should not have made this team. Kat made it because of her kicks and because Kelli was impressed with her rhythmic gymnastics background. Period. She still doesn't have the DCC style of dance down and her movements look awkward and forced. Simone and Kat both benefitted from the fact that they were in one of the weakest rookie classes we've seen in the past several years. If they'd tried out any other year, I don't think they would have made it. I'm not impressed with Holly at all. In fact, I don't think she should be on this team. She can dance, but she falls short for me in every other category. I grew up with Kat and if I'm remembering right, she was on the Junior Olympic rhythmic team and the senior national team.

I was surprised that Jinelle did not have a more prominent position in the squad photo.

The cameos this year really are AWFUL. The poses are awkward and unflattering, and the facial expressions are unattractive. And why aren't the cameos on the website full body? Honestly, I'm surprised Kelli even approved these, because many of them make the subjects look flat out unattractive, which is hard to do with a DCC. If I were the director and I saw these photos, I would have invested in a re-shoot. I can't think of a single one where I looked at it and thought, "That's a great cameo!"

I agree with the cuts of Kyndal and Taylor, but I think they should have cut Simone instead of Courtney. Simone seems like she expects special treatment and, to use a popular DCC quote, every time she's dancing in a group, she stands out to me in a negative way. She seems like someone who would get really lazy as soon as she had her spot locked in if she made the team... Like Ashley Pro or Breelan. I'd like to see Courtney come back next year. I got the impression that Kelli regretted cutting her... I think Judy was really the one behind that decision. I didn't see enough of Selina prior to her cut to comment on her. Kat is lucky she can kick because I'm pretty sure that's the only thing keeping her around. She has a very severe look that isn't really in line with what Kelli and Judy tend to prefer, and she struggles with the DCC style of dance. I agree that in the future, they shouldn't waste training camp spots on girls who can't kick at auditions. Everyone knows that good kicks are a necessity for DCC. If you have the ability to get flexible enough to do DCC kicks, there is no excuse for showing up to auditions unprepared and so out of shape that you can't do it. That means you are lazy, sloppy, or both. If your build is such that DCC-level kicks are just never going to be possible for you, that can't be fixed in training camp. Either way, not being able to kick at auditions is a pretty good indication of incompatibility with DCC.

I'm pretty sure they do start with a generic size and then customize it from there. That's how we ordered uniforms when I was in high school and how I ordered them for my girls when I was coaching cheer.

I didn't mean to imply that because Angela is a group leader, she should have a free pass into show group, but I do think that she should have been given extra consideration and if they really had such serious concerns about her level of commitment and availability, there needed to be a conversation with her to address that before a decision was made. If Angela was told these appearances were "optional," then she shouldn't be penalized for declining them. Maybe she would be willing to devote more time to appearances or trips for show group, but until they put her on show group wasn't comfortable taking the time off work. I also want to add that missing the calendar shoot may not have been her choice. I know that when Melissa Rycroft tried to quit and then changed her mind, they told her they'd let her come back but she wouldn't be allowed to go on the calendar shoot. If Angela did decide later in the game to come back for a victory lap season, it's very possible that Kelli and Judy told her she couldn't participate in the calendar shoot.

I also found myself wondering if Megan was under the influence of drugs. Her behavior, speech, and facial expressions were just "off" in a way that can't be fully attributed to editing. Do they drug test the DCC/TCC? As for the whole Angela situation, I've been thinking about it, and I really think if I were Angela, this would make me re-evaluate whether I really wanted to finish out the year. The show group snub is personal. It's an indication of bigger problems. I am usually all for honoring commitments, but being the only group leader left out of show group would be a game changer. It's a huge, HUGE slap in the face. If they really didn't think she was ready for show group, that's a conversation that needed to take place in private before the announcement, considering her circumstances. Like someone else said, if she's good enough to be a group leader, she should be part of show group, and if she's not good enough to be in show group, she has no business being a group leader. The fact that they took three rookies over a group leader (the equivalent of a DCC captain) is incomprehensible. It shows a total lack of respect for Angela and lack of confidence in her ability to fulfill her role as a leader on this team. If I were Angela, I would ask for a meeting with Kelli and Judy, and then tell them that based on this decision, I'd come to the conclusion that it would be mutually beneficial to part ways now and I'll be resigning as a group leader and team member.

How in the world did Megan B even make it to training camp??? There's no way she did well in panel interviews; she can't hold a conversation. She seems either stoned or just completely stupid when she talks. She just sits there with that dopey smile, not seeming to comprehend what anyone is telling her, and if she does contribute to the conversation she's not able to express herself clearly. I agree with everyone that she quit because she knew they were cutting her and she wanted it to look like it was her choice. Good riddance. Overall, I'm not too impressed with the rookie class this year. Megan C. is really the only one who I think is 100% the total DCC package. And yes, that includes Holly. I know most people seem to love her, but in my opinion she has the dance skills and personality but not the look. I felt bad for Angela not making show group, and I also cringed when the guest choreographer was getting on her case about something that had nothing to do with the choreography. I kind of felt like the guest choreographer was overstepping her boundaries with the way she talked to Angela. Yes, Angela needs to know not to let a bad day ruin a performance. But this wasn't a performance; it was a practice. And that was a conversation for Kelli or Judy to have with her. Not someone who isn't even affiliated with DCC. I wonder if Kelli did call her into the office and they just didn't show it.

Courtney might wear padded bras for the lift that you can get from a padded push up bra.

I was not very impressed with any of the makeovers this year. I suspect there wasn't much they could do about Madeline because fixing that awful black dye job will take weeks and they just didn't have that kind of time. Kat still has the brassy yellow hair with dark roots. Jax still has too-long, unhealthy looking, stringy hair. None of the makeovers really wowed me or made much of a change like we've seen in the past.

Kat looks so awkward in that group pic. The girls in the back row should have been facing forward and evenly spaced between the front row.

They showed more of the score sheets last night. One thing I found interesting was Courtney's score from tryouts; Yes: 5 Maybe: 5 No: 6 I was surprised that she had so many nos, and that she made it into training camp with more nos than yeses or maybes. I wonder what the nos were for, because from what they've shown right now Kelli, Judy, Kitty, and Melissa all seem to like her.

I'm not sure if any cut vets have re-auditioned or earned their spots back in a different season, but I do know that certain vets are advised not to re-audition.

All three of the cut vets were inexcusably sloppy and unprepared at tryouts. Kelli and Judy took a chance on Breelan and Ashley last year, and while they may be good girls, neither of them turned out to be very good DCCs.

I am not really a Taylor fan, but I did think she was great in the dance that Stephanie choreographed for them and one of the few who actually looked good doing it. On that style of dance, she really shines. I don't care for her looks; in a way she reminds me of Morgan. I think she's very rough looking and her teeth are distracting. I'm liking Courtney a lot more as the season progresses, too. I think she's cute and she seems to have a good attitude. She's not the best dancer there, but she doesn't stand out in a negative way like some of the others do. I felt like they really sped through uniform fittings. I would have liked to see more. It seems like in the past they've had almost a whole episode dedicated to fittings and in this one we really only saw 3-4 girls. I hate to say it, but aside from being so skinny, I think the moles all over Emily's stomach would have been a deal breaker on their own. Very distracting and the first thing I noticed when she put the uniform on.

http://www.cmt.com/shows/dallas-cowboys-cheerleaders/video/full-episodes/

I think the decision had been made that Colby was getting cut this week even if she came in and nailed everything; that's why Kelli and Judy didn't care that she didn't have a opportunity to show them her improvement. Ultimately, the problem with Colby wasn't her dancing, it was the fact that she looks old (especially next to the other girls) and that's not something they can change. Her window of opportunity to be a DCC has passed, and if she comes back next year I don't think Kelli will take her into training camp again. I don't get why Emily was selected for training camp to begin with, especially over vets. She's sickly looking and with that timid personality there's no way she did well in the panel interviews. I also don't think her face is anything special, even though Kelli and Judi raved about how pretty she was. Madeline needs to be the next cut. Like Neal McCoy said, she doesn't have the DCC look and she's not ever going to. She's also not applying the corrections they keep giving her over and over and over; Every time they dance, Madeline is told that she's popping too much. She nods and says ok, but she never actually changes anything about her dancing. They can't risk giving a spot to someone who can't/won't do their style of dance AND doesn't have the look. No way. Did anyone else notice when it showed Kelli's notes, it showed the TCCs ranked in order of performance at tryouts? It also listed their scores. I paused it to try to read the full list but it was too blurry. I think KaShara was number 27. Auto Amy was right around there, too.

I grew up with Kat, and I remember her being a lot prettier than she seems on the show. She's a natural brunette, and I don't think the obviously bleached blonde/yellow hair is doing her any favors. I also think maybe her looks just don't really translate well on camera. I think it will be interesting to watch and see what Kelli and Judy have to say about her as the season goes on, because I don't think she really has the look OR the style of dance they tend to prefer, but she doesn't really seem to be one of the ones they clearly dislike either.

Last season I said I'd like to see more in depth footage of the judges' deliberations, and I still feel that way. Since the show is called "Making the Team," I want more footage showing what really goes into these judges' decisions when they are deciding who is worth an invitation to training camp and who's not. I also want to see more of what goes on behind the scenes when deciding to cut a veteran. I'm sure there are some heated discussions that are a lot more in-depth than just, "She looks heavy... but she's a vet..." Less Kitty Carter. I know some people like her, but honestly, I could do without her segments altogether. Pan out and show the whole group during dance segments instead of the choppy editing where it flashes from girl to girl, showing each one for 1 or 2 counts. I would love to see solos made available online.

Ashley Pro's last name is a longer version of "Pro". Prochaska or something, I think.