S11.E11: Top 10 Perform + Eliminations

[kechara]

Found it. 

[luvthepros]

Agree that Lauren looked trashy. Danced beautifully - looked trashy. I blame her boyfriend. Ricky is a beautiful technician. He is not a performer or entertainer.

 

Who is Lauren's boyfriend?

[luvthepros]

My two biggest disappointments of the night were Rudy being safe with Emilio leaving, and the Ricky/Lauren number. I don't know if it was the dancing or the choreography (I usually like Mandy Moore) but that number felt like a dud. Nothing impressed me, nothing moved me, it was just... blah.

Just the opposite for me. I LOVED Mandy's Jazz with Ricky and Lauren. Couldn't keep my eyes off Lauren, actually. I had to watch the number three times so I could finally focus on Ricky. Ricky surprised me in a good way. I thought his interpretation of this Jazz piece was quite good for a contemporary guy who is all about the contemporary technique. Lauren, OTOH, was mesmerizing to watch. I knew I was going to like this after the first 10 seconds. I loved her in Boogie Shoes with Billy Bell so it was a given this number would appeal to me. The routine just makes me smile.

[shortpplfedup]

This show often miscategorises pop jazz, commercial and jazz funk as hip hop. I'm sure Jasmine is getting a lot of commercial work, dancing lots of pop jazz and jazz funk, but she's not a hip hop dancer.

[Giggly]

Who is Lauren's boyfriend?

 

 

Last I heard, it was Dominic from Season 3 (D-Trix). 

[luvthepros]

I think the All Star staying with their contestant was scrapped for time. ......

From what I recall, the second season of using the All Stars is when they began leaving the stage. I think it was discussed that the All Stars were taking away the focus on the contestants. Personally, I prefer the All Stars leave the stage and give all focus to the contestant.

[dcalley]

In the opening number, I was only able to recall the names of 4/5 of each sex. Casey and Bridget were the ones I'd completely forgotten.

 

Again, whomever is voting for Rudy. Please top that. 

Oh no, not "Top That!" ;)

 

I think Jasmine's pants kept me from appreciating the dance as much as I should've. They were unattractive & I felt like they were a hip shake away from showing something.

Oh my gosh I was watching in horror, convinced we were going to see a new "butt dance."

 

Cat was on Craig Ferguson's show last week and said she had a tooth extracted the Monday before last week's show.  She thought she'd be fine "doing it the Judy Garland way" on Percocet.  I believe she said she washed it down with Red Bull.  She was definitely not herself last week.  :)

Oh, that explains her brief surgery mention in last week's show. I was wondering who had surgery, and it was her!

 

 

My horrible and frightened theory on this is that Rudy is running away with votes. I felt like last night that Nigel seemed to do more to validate his dancing, rather than focus on his personality. When he advised Rudy to not pull faces/wink/point, he actually said something to the effect of "You're a brilliant dancer and you don't need to do that." I mean, sure, like all of these kids, Rudy is a fine dancer, and Nigel is known for hyperbole obviously, but in the current crop of kids, Rudy is certainly not what I'd call brilliant. He seems to me to be the obvious weakest link on the male side. But dude has never bottomed, even when Tanisha has. That's worrying.

That is a scary theory. "Brilliant" is overused in the UK, isn't it? Though I'm not sure if Nigel is guilty of it.

 

What happened to sweet little LoFro?

Dominic.

Edited August 8, 2014 by dcalley

[Lara Morgana]

to the physically deformed <Jacque and Tanisha>

 

What a mean-spirited, unkind and unnecessary comment.  

 

First, I think Jacque is really pretty and why you would imply she is deformed is beyond me.

 

Secondly, Taneisha is not beautiful  in the traditional sense  but if you paid attention you would see that in the rehearsal clips she is really a cute girl (woman?).  Her haircut it not the best in the world but.....to call her deformed?  C'mon.

 

And since when is this a freaking beauty contest anyway? 

 

There was absolutely no good reason to make that comment.   Not one.

[Toaster Strudel]

Tanisha has a certain uniqueness to her features, which, combined with her exceptional talent and hard work, sum up to a greater beauty than, say, the more classically photogenic Jessica.

[Dejajeva]

Well I guess we aren't on twop anymore!

 

Anyway, Tanisha is growing on me. I still like both Jessica and Jacque better even if Tanisha's a better dancer than both of them. I can't help who I like!

[ThirteenthJuror]

 

Oh no, not "Top That!" ;)

Hilarious! My typo took on new meaning. I meant "stop" that, but it was worth seeing that hilariously bad video!

[OnceSane]

 

Btw show, when you're leaning on a contemporary/commercial dancer to do hip hop, you officially haven't cast enough hip hop girls over the years. I love Jasmine, but a hip hop dancer she ain't.

 

THIS.  All I could think about while I watched was, "I wish Comfort was dancing instead".  & I love Jasmine too.

[luvthepros]

Last I heard, it was Dominic from Season 3 (D-Trix). 

 

Thanks.

[Aethera]

Ok so I haven't read this at all yet, and I haven't even gotten that far into the episode, I just had to pop in and say, immediately: Tanisha was awesome.  She and Ryan were amazing, the choreography was great, and she should keep this hairstyle because it softens her angular looks and just made her look beautiful.  That routine was incredible.

 

And she's safe! Go Tanisha!

[ToxicUnicorn]

First things first:  Tara Lipinski, you need a new stylist.  Also, LoFro, Bobbi Brown no longer recognizes your skin tone as human.  Ladies, get help STAT.

 

Jasmine: star of the night.  I honestly was not that blown away by Jasmine last season (and, to the extent that I recognized her talent, always thought Aaron pulled her waaay down), but I will eat my hat now.  She was unbelievable.  She definitely made Emilio raise his game.  What a great performance to have given before he left - he should be very happy.  I've enjoyed him all season, sorry to see him go.

 

Amy is another all-star who surpassed herself in my eyes.  Stunning.  I guess Zach was fine if everyone says so.  I couldn't keep my eyes off her.  I was feeling a little hostile to the piece because of the theme, but I was touched by Zach's tears, I cannot lie.  I am glad he is getting this chance - he seems like he is grabbing every moment of it and I think he is improving a lot.

 

I do not understand why Valerie even made the Top 20, so her continued presence baffles me.  But not as much as Jacque's, who adds nothing for me.  In fact, I think Jacque is actually a net negative for me, which is something I can't ever recall thinking about a dancer before.  At least Valerie has personality.  I would have preferred Carly and Bridget there, to be sure.

 

Bridget got hosed. Royally.  Everyone except Zach gets their style and Bridget gets Bollywood Disco?  What is next, Irish Step Hula?  Please.

 

I'll join the few who liked Casey.  Between last week and this, he is shooting up through my ranking.  Ricky, on the other hand, is falling.  He seems tired or something.  At this rate, Casey will end the season as my favorite boy.  I don't know what is wrong with me, I am still not a fan of Kathryn.  I can tell she is good, but I always find her emotionally inaccessible.  So, Casey completely stole that number for me, and I'm glad he's still there.  

 

Tanisha is my favorite of the season and I'm glad I'm not alone.  Having said that, this week was different from every other week so far.  During her dance, I kept thinking about what a pleasure it was to see a ballroom number danced by two people who were completely up to the choreography, technically.  It's the first dance since Heidi and Benji's Black Mambo that impressed me with the ballroom skill of both partners and, imo, it was Tanisha's best ballroom dancing on the show by a mile.  However, I did not feel the passion of the Argentine Tango at all which surprised me, because what has won me over about Tanisha was her combination of good dancing with great character.   I'd love to see this improved for the finale.

 

Despite my mild complaints, I love anything by Miriam and Leonardo.  Thank goodness they keep coming back.

 

Rudy turned in a reasonably good performance and I thought he and Jenna were well-matched, in the sense that neither really pulled much focus from the other.  They seemed to play to the audience at the same times, so I didn't mind them too much.  I still don't think much of Jenna as a ballroom dancer, though.  She seemed awfully high and light on her feet to me.

 

I thought Twitch completely out danced Jessica, even though he was trying so hard not to, but the husband absolutely loved her (red shorts).   

 

Congrats to Sonya re: Martha Graham.  

[waving feather]

Ricky is so not a performer. He has all the steps down but I've noticed this about him even in his partnership with Valerie. In the Viennese Waltz, Bollywood and hip hop, my eyes go to Valerie instead of Ricky even though she was sloppier one. He just doesn't POP when he's not dancing contemporary. The same thing happened when he was dancing with Lauren. Casey has even became a more interesting performer than Ricky. Zack is always performing the heck out of his dances even if his technique may not all be there. At the end of the day, I just want to be entertained, so Casey and Zack for top 2 boys! I didn't even consider Rudy because his type of performance doesn't entertain me. It's too much.

[romantic idiot]

Yeah -- Blake did a routine in SYTYCD-Canada S1 where guest judge Dan Karaty was like "that would not get by the censors in the US."  (I wish I could find a clip of Dan saying that -- he looked so stunned... and like he possibly wouldn't be giving a standing O for a few minutes.)

 

 

The following season Blake upped the ante and did an even more "sexy" dance to stun Dan but (IMHO) he overshot and went from "sexy" to "tacky".  (I don't remember the dancers or the song, though, so I can't find a clip.)  But Blake was a regular choreographer and judge on SYTYCD-Canada and did some really great routines.

To be fair, I think that routine also works because it's Lisa who is awesome, and Nico - who is the sex (and my favourite SYTYCD winner) overall. As mentioned above, I would shudder to have this crop of children attempt something like that. 

[ToxicUnicorn]

As mentioned above, I would shudder to have this crop of children attempt something like that.

 

Woah.  That video really does make our show's pairs choreography look like a bunch of angsty legs, competition smiles, and twirls, doesn't it.  It makes me wish they had "pop rock" (which I associated vaguely with MTV video dancing) back as a category.  Er.  Back when MTV showed music videos.

 

I didn't love the contemporary ballet, but what I did love this week was that it (and the ballroom numbers) had no story. 

[vibeology]

To be fair, I think that routine also works because it's Lisa who is awesome, and Nico - who is the sex (and my favourite SYTYCD winner) overall. As mentioned above, I would shudder to have this crop of children attempt something like that. 

 

A lot of that comes from this show being 11 seasons old. The first couple seasons of the US show had older contestants. Only Craig was under 20 in season 1 and in season 2 while those numbers went up, less than half the top twenty was under twenty and some of those dancers include Martha, Jessica, Allison and Travis who all could pull off maturity. (And Ivan who couldn't but was charming so who cared?) As the show has gone on and on, the older dancers who have been interested in the show have either tried out and made it, tried out a whole bunch of times and gave up after not making it or have aged out of competing.

 

Almost all the the kids this year have been watching since season one. As soon as they're old enough, they audition so most of the cast is now 18-20 and it has a huge impact on the dancing. Its younger, it can't be as sexy and its a shame. Its not that an 18 year old can't be sexy; Tanisha pulls off sexy quite well, but Valerie can't. There isn't a guy there who I'd trust with the above routine. 

 

Ricky is so not a performer. He has all the steps down but I've noticed this about him even in his partnership with Valerie. In the Viennese Waltz, Bollywood and hip hop, my eyes go to Valerie instead of Ricky even though she was sloppier one. He just doesn't POP when he's not dancing contemporary.

 

I very much disagree with this. I think RIcky is one of the few dancers on this show who can fill the stage with his personality. Most of the dances with Valerie were designed to feature her either in terms of choreography or costuming. The Viennese Waltz was all about her, the Hip Hop costuming for her was so much more colourful, the Bollywood gave her more focus. Ricky stole his top twenty number from Jessica and stole the Love Runs Out number from everyone else. This week wasn't amazing, but I think he's one of the few contestants left who isn't bland, bland, bland.

[aenea]

I don't think that I'd ever get tired of watching Jasmine, and kudos to Emilio for not being completely overshadowed. 

 

Rudy just reminds me of an Irish Setter- all bouncy enthusiasm about everything and everything, and not necessarily a lot going on behind the eyes.  He certainly didn't come across as sexy or in control to me.

 

I tend to love Twitch, and I'm not a Jessica fan, but that routine just skeeved me out a bit.  With the costuming and hair and makeup she looked like a  hard-lived 35 year dressed up as a teenager,  and while Twitch does old man well, I just found the routine a bit creepy.  

 

I did like Jacque/Chehon, but the lighting made me assume that they were trying to hide her.

[realdancemom]

I don't think that I'd ever get tired of watching Jasmine, and kudos to Emilio for not being completely overshadowed. 

 

I tend to love Twitch, and I'm not a Jessica fan, but that routine just skeeved me out a bit.  With the costuming and hair and makeup she looked like a  hard-lived 35 year dressed up as a teenager,  and while Twitch does old man well, I just found the routine a bit creepy.  

 

I did like Jacque/Chehon, but the lighting made me assume that they were trying to hide her.

 

I also thought that Jasmine performed a little better than Emilio even though he's the hip-hop expert.  However, Emilio was good too and I'm glad he was able to do that before he was eliminated.

 

Ditto on Twitch/Jessica's routine.  The theme was creepy.  He was supposed to be an old geezer and yet she was posing with her butt sticking out in her red booty shorts at the beginning of their dance even though she wanted nothing to do with him at the end.  It was synchronized well enough even though I still think it was jazz and not hip-hop.  Twitch definitely danced down.

 

Agree on the lighting for Jacque's piece.  I mentioned this in the Lighting thread and will post it here too.  I think it was done that way to hide her feet.

 

I also re-watched Valerie's dance and I'm taking back what I said about the choreography.  It wasn't crap.  I think if Valerie performed it like Canada's Lisa (in the link previously posted), the piece would have worked.  In this season, Tanisha would have slayed it too.  It's true that sometimes choreographers choreograph to their dancers (Twitch and Jessica's piece).  Valerie is sweet and joyful when she dances and he was asking her to be aggressive and angry.  However, I do think that dancers need to be challenged to grow too.  Valerie did get the character sometimes but then she would lose it.  I do like that she danced with Ade this week and will dance with Ryan next week.  Ricky was just too short/slight for her.

Edited August 9, 2014 by realdancemom

[waving feather]

Ricky stole his top twenty number from Jessica and stole the Love Runs Out number from everyone else.

But that's just my point though. I agree that he stood out in those numbers but those are contemporary pieces, in which he's more than comfortable to bring it to the performance level. But when he's doing something that is out of his wheelhouse, he just dances the steps without adding much performance to it. Just compare it to what Emilio did in the Jive with Bridget. His Jive technique was pretty bad but he performed the heck out of it. I haven't seen Ricky do that so far. And if we're comparing him to someone like Danny, whose technique is also great, Danny performed his butt off in the Samba with Lacey. I don't know, Ricky just seems very young, like Billy Bell. 

 

Twitch/Jessica was my favorite of the night. But it wasn't Hip Hop. More like Pop Jazz (a style we used to have on the show). I'm not a Hip Hop expert but I didn't see anything any Hip Hop style that Jessica did in that dance. But it was fun and entertaining. She finally managed to get in the right character for her dance piece.

 

I adore Zack and wanted to give him a hug when he was crying but I'm not crazy about that choreography. It felt like the piece was just beginning to build up but due to time limit, ended abruptly. But who knows, maybe that's the whole point of the dance. I love how Zack throws all of himself in every dance that he's done so far.

 

Jasmine/Emilio Hip Hop didn't really work for me. Both of them danced it fine but their style of movements are so different that I couldn't get into it. I hate it when side by side dancing in Hip Hop doesn't sync perfectly (both style and timing)

 

I didn't feel any chemistry in both ballroom pieces. They danced it fine, though.

[tankgirl73]

The recap has a bunch of mixed up videos, as someone has already pointed out, but it ALSO wrongly says that "Emilio and Jacque" are the ones booted. Perhaps someone should fix that... ??

(Maybe it was wishful thinking?)

[luvthepros]

Anyone know if we can link to AfterBuzz TV which is an online show to discuss TV shows? This week's show for SYTYCD was one of the the best I've seen with Nick Lazzarini and Jaimie Goodwin as guests. Nick was quite brutal with his critiques which I've heard that is his usual personality. I've been watching AfterBuzz TV on YouTube since the beginning of this SYTYCD season and without a doubt, this week's  show was the most informative.

[mo0nlighting]

Tanisha FTW!

 

I'm glad Zack got to stay.  He's so much more than just a tapper, and I guess the show is trying to show us that since there's only been one tap routine.  

[dcalley]

I would say AfterBuzz should go in the media thread, but that's just my opinion.

 

I also enjoyed the Argentine tango but found Tanisha to be lacking in emotion/sexiness.

 

I thought the Tyce number was just a bunch of dance cliches thrown together and was surprised when Nigel complimented the choreography. But I do think he wants Valerie gone next.

 

Rudy in the pit could not hide his happiness at Jacque being safe.

Edited August 9, 2014 by dcalley

[dusang]

Anyone know if we can link to AfterBuzz TV which is an online show to discuss TV shows? This week's show for SYTYCD was one of the the best I've seen with Nick Lazzarini and Jaimie Goodwin as guests. Nick was quite brutal with his critiques which I've heard that is his usual personality. I've been watching AfterBuzz TV on YouTube since the beginning of this SYTYCD season and without a doubt, this week's  show was the most informative.

 

Personally, I would think the AfterBuzz episode related to the SYTYCD episode could go into the specific episode thread.  I'm just watching it now, I never have watched it before. This is going to sound stupid, based on the fact that we theoretically get "expert opinions" after each dance, but I'm always amazed to hear the level of detail that real dance experts see in a performance.  Nick and Jaimie are pulling out details I never would have noticed.

[realdancemom]

So far this season, my favorite Afterbuzz episode was last week when Mandy was on.  Last season, I really enjoyed Alison and Twitch.  But I've really enjoyed a lot the shows.  This week, I thought Nick was a jerk.  You could give honest negative feedback without being rude like Misty Copeland.  He wasn't even impartial.  He basically only likes Travis and Mandy for the choreographers since he worked with them and dancers that he knows and did well in his competitions.  I would hate for Kamilah (Season 1 contestant) or Valerie to watch this episode.

 

Jaimie was beautiful.  I did enjoy her feedback as well as Kristyn and Jake.  They gave honest feedback without being rude. 

Edited August 9, 2014 by realdancemom

[luvthepros]

Personally, I would think the AfterBuzz episode related to the SYTYCD episode could go into the specific episode thread. .....

AfterBuzz TV with guests Nick Lazzarini and Jaimie Goodwin.....

http://youtu.be/gWMBaMPdtPg

[Bella]

Anyone know if we can link to AfterBuzz TV which is an online show to discuss TV shows? This week's show for SYTYCD was one of the the best I've seen with Nick Lazzarini and Jaimie Goodwin as guests. Nick was quite brutal with his critiques which I've heard that is his usual personality. I've been watching AfterBuzz TV on YouTube since the beginning of this SYTYCD season and without a doubt, this week's  show was the most informative.

 

If something from AfterBuzz is related to an episode, it can go into the episode thread. If it's general, then it goes into the media thread. If you're unsure, you can PM a mod.

[luvthepros]

Agree with the above poster who said Mandy Moore was a great guest. If I had to rank the AfterBuzz TV episodes, Mandy and Nick with Jaimie are my top 2.

Edited August 9, 2014 by luvthepros

[beeble]

Rudy just reminds me of an Irish Setter- all bouncy enthusiasm about everything and everything, and not necessarily a lot going on behind the eyes.  He certainly didn't come across as sexy or in control to me.

 

ROTFL

 

Seriously - as someone whose next door neighbor had an Irish Setter, I know exactly what you mean. He's just a humongous goof who doesn't know when enough is enough.

 

Did someone mention SYTYCD podcasts? What are they called? 

[preex]

I enjoyed this week's Afterbuzztv show, it's always nice when they have candid guests who can be specific with their praise and criticism.  The male cohost, Jake, is very good with that also, too bad that's his last show for the season.

 

Nick was his snarky, jokey self with his irreverent sense of humor, but his snark and critiques were about the dance/performance and he also had many positive things to say about the choreographers and dancers outside of his "friend" circle.  A few highlights of his comments on the dancers:

 

- He thought as a whole, the contestants are not quite up to par to their all star partners.  (I thought that was a fair comment because many of the dancers danced their own genre this week.)

- He thought it was good to see Ricky doing fast and athletic movement because that has been Ricky's weakness.

- He noted that Ade, a strong guy, had difficulty in lifting Valerie.  (That's a comment about Valerie not having the technique of a liftee.)

- He was proud of Zack carrying off that piece and pointed out a difficult part in the choreography where the dancers had to change visual spot and then pirouette.  

 

Re Twitch/Jessica's hip hop

It was synchronized well enough even though I still think it was jazz and not hip-hop.  Twitch definitely danced down.

 

After hearing Nappytabs say in one of their post show interviews that the piece's less about isolation and more house influenced, I can see it.  I think maybe the piece was danced too upright and "clean" and that gave it a strong jazz feel.  

Edited August 9, 2014 by preex

[panthergirl13]

Wow, Ringo Starr danced with Cybill Shepherd! That was surprising...oh wait, that was Ricky and Lauren? Gotcha.

 

I'm sooooo freaking bored by this season. My company is sponsoring the tour and I'm not even moved to ask for tickets. (we also sponsored the Season 4 tour and holy crap that was incredible.) I think I'm going to forget every single dancer this year 15 minutes after the finale. In fact, I don't mind that Tanisha is a little odd-looking because at least her face is memorable.

 

And finally... can someone buy Zack some Crest White Strips already? I know everyone on TV has those bizarre whiter-than-white teeth these days, but unfortunately it makes the yellow ones REALLY off-putting.

[kelnic86]

 

After hearing Nappytabs say in one of their post show interviews that the piece's less about isolation and more house influenced, I can see it.  I think maybe the piece was danced too upright and "clean" and that gave it a strong jazz feel.

 

It did feel like it had some House elements to it. It kinda reminded me of the House routine on SYTYCD Canada with Tara-Jean and Everett, though with less footwork. I liked Jessica/Twitch routine. It may not have been really hip hop. But I did like the humor she and Twitch brought to the performance and their movements were in sync.

Edited August 9, 2014 by kelnic86

[Aethera]

Ok, thoughts on the rest of the routines:

Bridget: Bollywood Disco should not be a thing. I just don't care about Bridget.  Fine with her going home.

 

Tanisha:  Rocked it, I said it already.

 

Emilio: I thought Jasmine was really good, but her pants were distracting…they just…man, not flattering.  Folks are right, they should have been tight.  Christina Perri had the same problem.  Emilio was fine, but it is his style.

 

Valerie: looked nothing like herself, which was really nice.  But this was not good.  The dancing, or the choreo. Tyce, please go away again.  I think she'll probably go next week.  I like her personality, but she shouldn't outlast better dancers.

 

Rudy:  Go away Rudy.  His reaction to Mary's reaction was…disgusting.  Bad music selection, and bad lighting on the pink outfit.  Good job Jenna having to act attracted to Rudy and managing to sort of convince me.  Man, I just really don't like Rudy.

 

Jacque: Yay Chehon! Agreed that the lighting made it hard to appreciate this.  Their feet really are in the dark. Travis' choreo was uninteresting.  This could have been nicer.

 

Ricky: Didn't love the dance. I mean, he did fine.  The floor work at the end was cool.  Nigel's comments were so weird.  "Hey, you're gonna win" basically.  The 'how shocking' stuff was just RUDE. I really think I'm making Ricky pay for their pre-emptive coronation.  And the face he pulled there was soooo creepy. And then they mention him AGAIN during Casey's routine? Stop. It.  Oh and Lauren seemed very strange to me.  They didn't talk to her during the training and she looked…not herself.

 

Casey: So glad Tyce did not choreograph the Broadway, although I felt the last 15 seconds were not the strongest choreo.  Yay Kathryn!  I though Casey acted and danced really well, and looked adorable too.  Nigel is, for once, right.  This style was perfect for Casey.

 

Jessica:  I love Twitch.  But eh. I'm tired of hearing about her.  I thought the praise was overblown.  And that didn't feel hip hop at all to me.  Comparing it to the actual Bench routine was out of line.  Not good.

 

Zach:  He's great. Amy was amazing, but they both were just so strong.  That thunder move of hers was awesome. I also don't generally like the emotional pieces, but I admired their dancing in this one.

 

The right 2 people went home.  I'm really glad Zach got to stay.

 

I always fast forward through the musical numbers, but I watched that one for Kathryn and Chehon.  Love them.

 

It's weird that they did the reveals this way of the bottom 2s, so that Jessica knew she was safe before she danced, and Zach knew he was in danger.  Although maybe it made Zach better.  I don't think they should do it this way.

 

Mandy made me laugh with the "she won the show.  Just sayin'" comment.  She amuses me.  I'll have to check out AfterBuzz.

 

All-Stars for next week: Will!   The only one I didn't recognize is Jamie.  And Makenzie should not be an All-Star.  It's funny that Nigel made SUCH a big deal about using Jenna and then there's a bunch of last season folks up there.  At this point I'm hoping Zach makes it to the top 4 and gets to choose his style and all-star and dances with Aaron.

 

I think let's send the 'lovebirds' home next week. I can do without Jacque and Rudy both, and the show would love the story of it.

[luvthepros]

If something from AfterBuzz is related to an episode, it can go into the episode thread. If it's general, then it goes into the media thread. If you're unsure, you can PM a mod.

AfterBuzz TV is directly related to each episode. It is discussion about each individual dance, including the group routines.

[luvthepros]

  At this point I'm hoping Zach makes it to the top 4 and gets to choose his style and all-star and dances with Aaron.

 

 

I would much prefer to see Zack dance with Jess LoProtto. That guy is an amaing tapper....Broadway style tapping. Uncle Nigel, please make this happen!

[dcalley]

I enjoyed this week's Afterbuzztv show, ...  A few highlights of his comments on the dancers:

Thanks for summarizing, because I have tried to watch it a couple of times but cannot sit through it all.

 

All-Stars for next week: Will!   The only one I didn't recognize is Jamie.  And Makenzie should not be an All-Star. 

Will and Jessica makes me wonder how she'll look because he is a much better dancer and is way more mature. Happy to have another mature man come and dance for us! Jaimie is from season 3 and is perhaps best known for the hummingbird dance with Hok choreographed by Wade. She is from Travis's mother's studio. And I watched her season but can't really remember Mackenzie, so that one made me say hmm.

Edited August 10, 2014 by dcalley

[kechara]

Nick was so catty. wow. I knew that he was but it was still quite something.

One thing I've noticed is the talk from dancers, starting with Kent and on to Nick on this show about Jessica.  They all say how great she is and how she hasn't really shown it yet etc etc. Blaming the partners mostly.   I keep expecting to be blown away . So far, not so much.  Even Mandy Moore was all about Ricky and Jessica.  They are also really positive about Rudy...as a person, not his dancing so much. Interesting perspective.

[Zuleikha]

They all say how great she is and how she hasn't really shown it yet etc etc.

 

I disagree with them. I think Jessica has shown that she is a great contemporary dancer. But this show isn't about looking for the best contemporary dancer; it's about testing versatility. She's not versatile. Of course, I'm not sure any other female dancer left has demonstrated great versatility either except for Tanisha.

 

ETA: Although I should say, I was pleasantly surprised by her number with tWitch. I thought she was quite credible, and I had low expectations.

Edited August 10, 2014 by Zuleikha

[Giggly]

 

But this show isn't about looking for the best contemporary dancer; it's about testing versatility.

 

 

Sadly, I think the only people who really remember that, are on this board.

[preex]

But this show isn't about looking for the best contemporary dancer; it's about testing versatility.

 

Sadly, I think the only people who really remember that, are on this board.

 

 

No, it is about America's favorite dancer!  Ha.  

 

Some of the favorites like Twitch, Cyrus, and Chenon were not versatile dancers.  It makes sense that the specialists aren't too versatile and I love what they bring to the show.  I actually find Jessica more a generalist than a specialist and I think the perception of her performances has been quite dependent on the choreography.  

Edited August 10, 2014 by preex

[realdancemom]

It did feel like it had some House elements to it. It kinda reminded me of the House routine on SYTYCD Canada with Tara-Jean and Everett, though with less footwork. I liked Jessica/Twitch routine. It may not have been really hip hop. But I did like the humor she and Twitch brought to the performance and their movements were in sync.

I can kind of see the House movements in Jessica/Twitch's dance now that both of you mentioned it.  I think it lacked the house bounce/jack.  You can see it in Tara-Jean's and Everett's routine.  Twitch definitely danced down and was upright to match Jessica.  Still it was Jessica's best non-contemporary routine so far in the competition.  The theme was creepy to me but it was in sync even though it was fast. 

 

I also noticed that a lot of the AB guests and Jake (the host) love Jessica because they know her outside of SYTYCD and say she is amazing.  Previously, she did pull faces like a lot of competition dancers and didn't have chemistry with her partners except for the contemporary routines.  She could have pulled so many faces with this routine but she did the right amount.  Of course, Twitch is the kind of dancer that would have chemistry with anyone.

[joylove]

I actually liked Tara Lipinski, which is shocking because I've harbored a grudge against her since the '98 Winter Olympics. I do have a question though: A couple of people mentioned her lack of dance cred, but shouldn't she have had tons of ballet-based training, being a figure skater?

 

I enjoyed all the dancing and agree that the All-Stars really forced the contestants to raise their game.

 

Emilio/Jasmine had the routine of the night for me. Great dancing from both of them. My second favorite routine of the night was the opening number. Thanks, Jamal Sims, for avenging that terrible hip-hop number you choreographed back in season 6.

 

But that's just my point though. I agree that he stood out in those numbers but those are contemporary pieces, in which he's more than comfortable to bring it to the performance level. But when he's doing something that is out of his wheelhouse, he just dances the steps without adding much performance to it.

 

I thought he stood out (in a good way) in his and Valerie's hip-hop routine and in the opening number this week.

 

My thoughts on next week's dances:

Tanisha/Nick Lazzarini- Should be good
Valerie/Ryan DiLello- Trainwreck
Rudy/Allison Holker-Boss- I'm afraid she'll wipe the floor with him.
Jacque/TWitch- Trainwreck
Ricky/Jaimie Goodwin- Lord, have mercy, that dance should be gorgeous!
Casey/Comfort- Tranwreck
Jessica/Will Wingfield- Yay! Can't wait to see Will.
Zack/Makenzie- Should be good.

Edited August 10, 2014 by joylove

[Percysowner]

All-Stars for next week: Will!   The only one I didn't recognize is Jamie.  And Makenzie should not be an All-Star.  It's funny that Nigel made SUCH a big deal about using Jenna and then there's a bunch of last season folks up there.  At this point I'm hoping Zach makes it to the top 4 and gets to choose his style and all-star and dances with Aaron.

 

I think let's send the 'lovebirds' home next week. I can do without Jacque and Rudy both, and the show would love the story of it.

 

I liked Mackenzie last year, but during the season I thought the judges saved her too many times. Then I went to see the tour. In person Mackenzie has a certain something that I never got from on screen. At times she was breath taking. I'm still not sure they should have kept saving her, but at least now I think they were doing it because of that certain something that didn't translate over TV.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

A couple of people mentioned her lack of dance cred, but shouldn't she have had tons of ballet-based training, being a figure skater?

You would think that all ice skaters and gymnasts would have a lot of ballet training but it's not always the case, especially in more recent years. It's really up to the coaches to require their athletes to have some ballet training. Back in the olden days, they did but not so much anymore. At my sister's former gym, all levels were required to take weekly ballet classes on site. I have no idea what Tara's training was like (that was right around the time that I stopped watching skating obsessively) so it's possible that she has some ballet training.

[realdancemom]

I liked Mackenzie last year, but during the season I thought the judges saved her too many times. Then I went to see the tour. In person Mackenzie has a certain something that I never got from on screen. At times she was breath taking. I'm still not sure they should have kept saving her, but at least now I think they were doing it because of that certain something that didn't translate over TV.

If Jenna can be an all-star, then I think MacKenzie should be able too.  Both exchanged being in the bottom every week just like Lindsay and Witney did in Season 9.  I really liked her last year but I'm a sucker for beautiful feet.  She's beautiful in contemporary and I still remember her Spencer Liff Broadway with Jakob.  I really liked the part where they developped (spelling?) slowly.  It showed their strength, flexibility, and beautiful feet.  So I can see her being used in Broadway or Contemporary.

 

I wouldn't even mind if they brought in Iveta and Malene for ballroom or Nick for tap even though all three of them left early.  There are not that many specialized ballroom or tap experts.

[LadyArcadia]

n a similar place of minority opinion, I thought Rudy and Jenna were fun in their number. I was slowly won over by Jenna last season, and while I see her often playing to the camera, it doesn't bother me. (Is it a ballroom thing to do that? I know Witney was accused of it too in her season, and wonder if it's a hazard/byproduct of competing in the ballroom scene.)

 

 

Most definitely.  In competition you have to get the judges attention. I mean, you don't crank your head to do it, but if the judge (camera) is in front of you, you ham it up. Winks, smiles, you name it. A trick is to say your vowels when you dance. "AY EEEEE EYE OOOO UUUU"  Finish a move and go "ooooooo!" and "aaaaah!" That sort of thing.

 

One of my instructors held a clipboard off to the side, like a judge. My one and only goal was to ham it up, get her to look at me, and make her smile.  It's all part of ballroom.

 

Having said that, I know there's a lot of Rudy hate here, but I absolutely loved their Cha-Cha! One of the best we've seen on the show (excluding Pasha and Anya, of course).  I'm very surprised they focused on his face and not his technique. I thought it was really good!  Aside from botched ending, his technique was incredible. He wasn't billed as a ballroom dancer, so they could have easily gone the "But you're contemporary!" route. But they didn't.  I think that bus is on it's way.....

 

And I'm sure I watched the whole thing but I cannot for the life of me remember Jessica's routine!

 

But Emilio and Jasmine... wow!  Oh, I wish they would have made her pants tighter. The dancing was so good yet all I kept thinking about was if we were going to have a wardrobe malfunction.

 

Valerie has to go. She's just not doing it for me at all

[realdancemom]

Most definitely.  In competition you have to get the judges attention. I mean, you don't crank your head to do it, but if the judge (camera) is in front of you, you ham it up. Winks, smiles, you name it. A trick is to say your vowels when you dance. "AY EEEEE EYE OOOO UUUU"  Finish a move and go "ooooooo!" and "aaaaah!" That sort of thing.

 

One of my instructors held a clipboard off to the side, like a judge. My one and only goal was to ham it up, get her to look at me, and make her smile.  It's all part of ballroom.

 

Having said that, I know there's a lot of Rudy hate here, but I absolutely loved their Cha-Cha! One of the best we've seen on the show (excluding Pasha and Anya, of course).  I'm very surprised they focused on his face and not his technique. I thought it was really good!  Aside from botched ending, his technique was incredible. He wasn't billed as a ballroom dancer, so they could have easily gone the "But you're contemporary!" route. But they didn't.  I think that bus is on it's way.....

I think ballroom competitions are tougher than the other competitions.  With jazz/contemporary/hip-hop (the studio kind) competitions, you or your group performs one at the time.  So you don't have to fight for the judges' attention.  In ballroom competitions, the first few rounds are huge even though you are divided up in groups.  The other couples can get vicious too.  You really need to capture the judges' attention or you're out.

 

Previously, I wrote that I liked Rudy's ballroom (as well as his hip-hop with Tanisha).  I think his facial expressions matched Jenna's.  They both made contact with the camera but also with each other.  It's when he's done dancing, that I'm annoyed with his personality.