S11.E11: Top 10 Perform + Eliminations

[waving feather]

And the double standard is frustrating because I thought Valerie did as commendable a job in her jazz piece as any contemporary/jazz dancer does in ballroom/hip hop but she gets critiqued in comparison to contemporary/jazz dancers, whereas Rudy, who IS a contemporary dancer, gets to fly by on "personality".

 

Yeah, I don't get it either. I'm not a fan of Valerie and I think this is the best we are going to get from her with contemporary/jazz technique, but she's expected to be on the same level as the other contemporary dancers. Same with Zack. He kept up with Amy, but if he didn't, will he be critiqued harshly while contemporary dancers get a pass on sub-par ballroom or hip hop routines. And he had Afro Jazz, Jazz, Contemporary and next week paired up with Mackenzie, so I can only assume Broadway or some other variation of Jazz. Which he can do well, but man, I'd love to see him Tap. Same with Valerie. There are definitely past season contestants who can tap, what are they waiting for? They only seem impressed by contemporary technique coming from Hip Hop dancers but it's taken for granted that tappers should be able to do it naturally. This show definitely has become So You Think You Can Contemporary.

 

Sad about Emilio and Bridget. Bridget and Zack are my favorites and I like Emilio a lot. So, sure, all 3 are in the bottom. Perhaps, I can finally stop watching when they send Zack home and the rest can duke it out contemporary style.

[Alison]

I didn't realize they were going to be announcing the All-Star pairings for every week at the end of the show. I turned it off during the "This Is Your Journey" montage for Emilio and Bridget. Could someone post the pairings for next week, please and thank you?

 

Tanisha is paired with Nick Lazzarini

Valerie has Ryan DiLello

Rudy with Allison Holker-Boss

Jacque gets TWitch

Ricky is with Jaimie Goodwin

Casey gets Comfort

Jessica gets Will Wingfield

Zack is with Makenzie from last season

[Gardencrown]

 

This is a horrible world when Rudy doesn't even hit bottom and the bottom two are Zack and Emilio.  Zack is the only non-contemporary male dancer left.  And the double standard is frustrating because I thought Valerie did as commendable a job in her jazz piece as any contemporary/jazz dancer does in ballroom/hip hop but she gets critiqued in comparison to contemporary/jazz dancers, whereas Rudy, who IS a contemporary dancer, gets to fly by on "personality".

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.

 

Nigel was setting up Valerie for the bottom for next week -- we'll have to see how that actually works. I could definitely see Jacque going before Valerie. I could even see Tanisha going before Valerie, and I have to say that like many here, I am SO on team Tanisha. She truly transforms for every role -- she never ever coasts or cheats a second of movement. I've grown to like her SO much more than the last few season's ballroom ladies -- Witney, Lindsay, Jenna...Tanisha is magic.

 

Speaking of Jenna (and Rudy), I thought that cha cha was a black hole of zero-chemistry. Don't know if it was all on Rudy, but there was nothing, nothing there.

 

In my ongoing quest to root for contestants that don't win (except for Janine -- that was a notable year for me), I love Zach. And god, the poor kid was certain he was TOAST after his dance, knowing he was in the bottom with Emilio. And I was kind of surprised he wasn't toast too, but SO glad. I really like Emilio, but I was awfully glad to see Zach get another week. I thought that Amy was adorably supportive of him, really seeming to recognize that she wanted Zach to have HIS moment. Honestly, even though I love Jasmine and wanted her to win last year, I couldn't be sad about Amy because she seems like such a sweet girl (I sound old. Oh well.)

 

 

What happened to sweet little LoFro? She looks so trashy now with the tats, bleached hair with dark roots, and excessive tan. She was such an ingenue on her season.

I also didn't think she looked that great. Her hair looked fried, and she just looked so much older. I didn't notice the tats, but her overall demeanor seemed so different. She was very good in that shite choreo, however. Speaking of shite choreo, he who I shall not name -- god almighty that was awful. Not sure what Valerie/Ade could have done to elevate it.

Edited August 7, 2014 by Gardencrown

[chocolatine]

I didn't notice the tats

 

 

In the rehearsal footage she's wearing a crop top and you can see a huge ribcage/belly tattoo. Then when she has her hair up in the performance, you can see a neck tattoo. I found them extremely unattractive.

[phoenix780]

    You better realize that if Valerie or Rudy do not  end up in B3 next week, then one of them is going to win.  Like Sabra-not America's Best Dancer, but America's Most Popular Dancer. Look how sub-par they both have been and nary a trip to the bottom.  I truly do think one of them could win.  YIKES!

I think I'm OK with that, at least at this point in the season.  To me we have people who are good little dancers (at least in their genre) but kind of bland, and strong performers who are not so great with the dancing.  The tagline is America's Favorite Dancer, if I'm remembering that right, and I'm not really engaged with anyone to the point where I think one would be robbed if the stronger performers/weaker technicians took home the big prize.

 

I don't think either one of them has been that sub-par, though, in the sense that I've enjoyed performances from both of them as much (or more) than from the other remaining contestants.

[Arienne]

Before any of you remind me, I know and I have my bags packed, yes I am going to hell. This whole season really feels like SYTYCD "Special" Season. From the hobbits to the physically deformed to the mentally challenged and then there is Valerie clunking around on the stage? the hell? Are they setting this up for the last season.

 

I used to just wait on pins and needles for summer: "SYTYCD in ON! CMON SUMMER! SYTYCD!" now, not so much. The only thing I still absolutely love is Cat Deely

Edited August 10, 2014 by Arienne

[LadyMustang65]

I am definitely on board the "why is Rudy still here and Emilio gone?" train.  Ugh.  Emilio was one of my favorites along with Ricky and Zach.  I thought most of the routines last night were pretty enjoyable.  Absolutely loved Jasmine and Emilio's hip hop - I wanted Jasmine and Aaron to win last year, so I loved seeing her back.  Hope we get Aaron back to tap with Zach.  That would be fun.  Would really love to see him tap with Jess, but I think he's pretty busy.  Loved the AT with Ryan and Tanisha.  Ryan is one of those rare "manly" dancers that the show seems to pass over in favor of the cute young kids.  Tanisha looked good last night - she should always wear her hair like that.  It really softened her features and was very attractive on her.  It was so good to see most of the All-Stars.  I was never a huge Amy fan, so her I could take or leave, but I loved the others.  I thought Jessica probably did her best last night, but I still don't care much about her.  Valerie wasn't at her best last night, but she's just so charming I can't help but root for her.  I think right now I'd like to see the final four as Ricky, Zach, Valerie and Tanisha, but I'm hoping for a guy to win this year.  I still think they're much stronger than the girls.

[Alison]

I know the focus is supposed to be on the contestants, but the way they shuttle the All-Stars offstage two seconds after hitting the final pose never sits well with me. The judges comment on them anyway, so why not have them out there, too?

[spanana]

 

Speaking of Jenna (and Rudy), I thought that cha cha was a black hole of zero-chemistry. Don't know if it was all on Rudy, but there was nothing, nothing there.

Probably because they both play to the camera more than to each other.  Neither Rudy nor Jenna have ever met a camera they didn't like.

 

Is there a reason the judges aren't critiquing anybody?  Admittedly, I've been in and out of this season and I don't have a strong affection for any of these dancers, but I saw plenty that could have been called out and wasn't.  Valerie was the only one that got critiqued, though it was deserved.   It just seemed like the judges giving over the top praise to a whole lot of mediocrity.  I liked a few numbers and most of the rest were just kind of okay.

[kechara]

Tyce is the abyss of suck

[crowceilidh]

 

Whoever designed and dressed Jasmine should have been shot - I was completely distracted by her costume not being skin tight.  So not snake like.

 

Due to idiocies of my DVR, I have a rather unflattering aspect ratio on the playback.  I kept thinking it must be my set that was making Jasmine's pants look so distracting fugly.

 

Jessica was horrible in that hh and I wasn't even that nuts about tWitch (and I am nuts about tWitch).  It looked like he was trying to dance down to her (which he is usually very good at concealing) and it was making him a bad dancer.

 

Travis's smugness during his FIRST EVER CONTEMPORARY BALLET piece was repulsive.  The piece had some nice aspects, but it was very interesting that you could never see Jacquie's feet and Chehon definitely had difficulty putting her down smoothly once or twice.

 

Thanks for the update re: Cat's performance last week (although last week was by no means the first time I'd been thinking she was off - I would never have snarked on a one-night basis (someone like Cat gets at least three off nights in a row before I'd comment, especially as I had to endure Leah Miller on the Canadian version).

[kechara]

Leah Miller - also in the abyss of suck. Cat on her worst day couldn't be that awful.

[Gardencrown]

 

to the physically deformed <Jacque and Tanisha>

What do you mean? I'm not trying to be combative, I'm not sure what you mean...I know many have talked about Tanisha not being as traditionally "pretty" as some of the other girls, though honestly I think her features are interesting and come across quite lovely on stage when she's dancing. Poor girl does have really fine hair (as a fine haired girl myself I sympathize!), and I don't know that I love her haircut, but her ability to melt into whatever role she's dancing is amazing. She has incredible facility of movement, and for my money, a good bit of charisma for someone so young. Jacque is by no means my favorite, but I don't see anything "deformed" about either girl.

[Alison]

Travis's smugness during his FIRST EVER CONTEMPORARY BALLET piece was repulsive.  The piece had some nice aspects, but it was very interesting that you could never see Jacquie's feet and Chehon definitely had difficulty putting her down smoothly once or twice.

That piece was just like every other contemporary routine Travis has choreographed; the only difference is Jacque was en pointe. I've seen actual contemporary ballet and, Mr. Wall, that ain't it.

[StupidSexyFlanders]

to the mentally challenged < I am looking at you Rudy>

Whenever Rudy does his big, open-mouthed heehaw laugh, he gives a distinct Lennie vibe from Of Mice and Men. While Cat's reading off all the voting information, he stares into camera, eyes as wide as dinner plates, pleading "You ain't gonna leave me, are ya' George?"

[luvthepros]

I could not keep my eyes off Lauren in Mandy's Jazz number. I watched three times before I could focus on Ricky. Way to go Lauren!

[mojoween]

Makenzie was in the bottom so often last season that the fact she is an "All-Star" gives me the giggles.

[BensBritches]

It pains me to say this, but I was not moved by anything last night.  Where, oh where, has my little show gone?  The Emilio/Jasmine hip hop was good, but like others I was just so distracted by Jasmine's pants and how they looked like they were ready to slip off... they needed to be skin tight!  I want to like Zach, I really do, but nothing he has done has excited me.  I think I just find his movements too fluid, puppet-like if that makes sense.  Chehon is on my "all time favorite" list, yet I didn't feel anything from his dance last night with what's-her-name.  There seemed to be little movement and the lighting was too low.

 

Ricky, oh, Ricky.  I loved him in his audition, I loved his initial dance with Jessica (which says a lot because I can. not. stand. her), but since then- meh! 

 

I find Rudy immature in a bad/distracting way.  I simply do not get his appeal at all.  Not with the judges and certainly not with the voting public.  He should have been gone long ago and I fear we won't be losing him next week.

 

Girls?  Are there girls?  I guess Valerie is cute and sweet and puppy-kissing fun, but I get nothing from her but clunky, graceless movements.  I was very disappointed that she was paired with Ricky and I have no attachment to her at all.  She can go, I won't care.  In fact, there is no girl that I would be upset to lose, although I do suppose Tanisha is the best of this crop, so she can stay.

 

Someone else mentioned it, but I found Nigel's comments to Ricky to be rude and very disrespectful.  First he called him a hobbit, which yes, we all see it, but is that really something you want to say to someone's face on national TV when it isn't a comedy roast?  It isn't "selling" Ricky to call him that.  Then Nigel goes on about how there's no need to open the envelope as everyone knows Ricky is safe... hey, Nige, stranger things have happened on this show that the most technically-gifted dancer being eliminated in favor of "loveable, personable" dancers!  Then when people react to Ricky being safe, Nigel must have said "oh he's safe and everyone's surprised?" (or something like that) about 6 times to be sure he was heard.

 

Given this, my grassy knoll brain takes over and I think this was Nigel's subtle way to trying to lose Ricky votes.  Like, "Don't bother to vote for him, he's safe."  "He can do anything, it's boring now" "He may be good, but he's a freakin' hobbit..."  These don't sound like comments I'd expect if Ricky was really TCO.  Something makes me thing Nigel has no interest in a white, male contemporary dancer winning.  I think he wants Zach or Tanisha to win- a male tapper!  A ballroom girl!  Won't that prove just how diversified this show is and how unique and special and let's all win Emmy's and Oscars and bow down to the great and powerful Sir Lythgoe who brought it all to you and practically invented dance and give SYTYCD another season because a tapper doing a dance of my dead friend and a ballroom girl hip hopping is just so amazing and no one has seen choreography like this before, knighthood for all...

 

Sorry, I lost it there for a minute.  I don't care who wins.  I don't care about this show much anymore and this makes me very sad indeed. 

[realdancemom]

Tanisha is awesome!!  She's still my favorite girl and she slays everything.

 

I think the judges wanted Valerie to be in the top 10 since there has never been a female tapper in the top 10.  That's why she was paired with Ricky.  Now, that she's on the tour, they are giving her the critiques that she deserved.  I would have rather have Carly in the top 10 instead of her.  Valerie does radiate joy when she dances.  Unfortunately, you know who said that's what he didn't want.  He wanted Valerie to play a different type.  I could be wrong since I don't listen to all the judges' comments, but it seemed like the judges were criticizing her performance not her technique this week.  In terms of technique, she's always been lumbering to me and she's defintiely the weakest among the girls when it comes to jazz/contemporary technique.  OTOH, the choreography that she and Ade were given was crap.

 

NappyTabs know how to choreograph for the dancers.  That's why Emilio/Jasmine had a real HH piece while Jessica did a dance that looked more like jazz than HH.  It was still a mediocre dance.  But then since Jessica was terrible in HH in Pasadena, I can see why NappyTabs choreographed that way.

 

I'm glad that Zack wasn't eliminated.  I think he's been so versatile all season.  I do think Emilio improved a lot and I liked his number with Jasmine.  But out of those two guys, I'm glad Zack stayed.   

[DHDancer]

I could not keep my eyes off Lauren in Mandy's Jazz number. I watched three times before I could focus on Ricky. Way to go Lauren!

 

What struck me is how hard she was working to appear shorter/same height as Ricky!  It gave a bit of a bizarre aspect to the dance.  She completely out-danced him despite that.

[Biggie B]

I was very sorry to see Emilio go. I knew he would not/could not win, but I really enjoy his dancing, his personality, and his looks! /shallow/  I'm glad he is on the tour, however - good for him! 

 

I really enjoyed the opening group number - and once again, I missed whose music it was - could someone kindly advise the name of the song and the artist?

 

And I enjoyed the Bollywood Disco number as well. It was frantic and yes, prone to causing seizures, but I still got a kick out of it. It entertained me and kept me engaged. Same for Emilio's number - I was completely invested in it. And isn't that what it's all about? For those few minutes, I wasn't thinking about anything else but the dancing and how much it pleased me. I have ZERO dance knowledge, which in a way, is nice...ignorance is bliss, right? 

 

Good on you, Zack/Zach! Ya done good!

[Giggly]

I don't even know where to begin. First off, when did the All-Stars start leaving the contestants at the end of the routines? I didn't watch last season, but if memory serves, Season 9 had the All-Stars stay with the contestants during "judging". I hate that the dance is done and the All-Star exits stage left. It seems so Wham!Bam!Thankyoumaam!!

On what planet did anyone think it would be a good idea to do the results individually after the contestants danced? How about pull them all together at the end of the show and announce who is going home?

Why do they keep having Christina Perri sing live? She is awful. Does she not know how to lip sync?

Emilio and Jasmine - Enjoyed the choreography, enjoyed the performance. HATED the costumes. Poor Jasmine looked like she had a load in her pants the whole time. That's just so wrong. And these people won an Emmy?

Tanisha and Ryan - I love Ryan. I love ballroom when it is done by adults and not kids playing dress-up(I'm lookng at you Rudy and Jenna). Maybe I'm jaded, but it seemed a little dance-lite, lift-heavy for an Argentine Tango, but it was significantly better than most anything else I've seen this season.

Valerie and Ade - Ugh. That was so bad on so many levels. The choreography was just plain awful. Nothing redeeming about whatsoever. I'm not making excuses for Valerie, but seriously Dude Whose Name is Not to be Uttered, choreograph for the dancer. You know Valerie is a puddle of rainbows and sunshine and puppies. Do NOT ask her to be super bitchface diva. Do serious, do sad, bitch is not in her repetoire.

Twitch and Jessice - I enjoyed this. I thought it was entertaining. It was cotton candy.

Zack and Amy - I've seen this before. At least once a week every summer since 2008ish. Both danced it well, but it was wash, rinse, repeat for me.

Jacque and Chehon - love Chehon. Thought he carried Jacque around the stage nicely. Would have like to see something other than that though. I wonder if anyone at the New York City Ballet has been informed that Travis Wall is going to choreograph for them? Did they laugh out loud or simply throw up a little in their mouth?

Ricky and Lauren - 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.

The seasons that I have loved, have had serious performers/entertainers - Benji, Natalie, Danny, Pasha, Anya, Lacey, Courtney, tWitch, Joshua, Jeanine, Brandon, Jeanette, Jess, Kent, LoFro. This season is light on entertainers and heavy on people dancing IMO. I just don't find any of the dancers particularly engaging.

[Spicy Bubbles]

I really enjoyed the opening group number - and once again, I missed whose music it was - could someone kindly advise the name of the song and the artist?

'Bang Bang' by Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj.

[Bosman]

So glad that Tara Lipinski could get her hair done by the Cowardly Lion before heading to the studio. Yikes! 

[preex]

Contemporary Ballet - is THIS a real thing?

 

Yes it is.  Classical ballet is the traditional style with the strict ballet technique.  Contemporary ballet is a combination of different styles and techniques, allows for a greater range of movement, and can include classical pointe technique.

 

I've seen actual contemporary ballet and, Mr. Wall, that ain't it.

 

I have seen many contemporary ballet performances and thought that piece would fit right in.  It was a bit heavy on the ballet side for my preference but it's not like that are set rules.  

 

Nigel was setting up Valerie for the bottom for next week -- we'll have to see how that actually works.

 

She has never been in the bottom so who knows.  That performance really was not good.   It wasn't even about the technique or the lack thereof, but there was just not enough energy.  Like when she raised her foot to Ade's stomach level, she was really just raising her foot, it gave no stop or push meaning behind the movement.  Also there was a part where she raised her arms, she was like an unenthusiastic participant forced to do a wave in an arena.  She has always radiated great energy in her past performances so it was strange.

[larcollins]

Can Chehon and Misty Copeland dance together, please? I think my TV might melt.

[Percysowner]

 

I don't even know where to begin. First off, when did the All-Stars start leaving the contestants at the end of the routines? I didn't watch last season, but if memory serves, Season 9 had the All-Stars stay with the contestants during "judging". I hate that the dance is done and the All-Star exits stage left. It seems so Wham!Bam!Thankyoumaam!!

 

I think the All Star staying with their contestant was scrapped for time. They had to fit Christina Peri in there. If the All Stars had been with their dancers, the judges would have wanted to compliment them and that would have eaten into the time for Christina's song. I could have lived without it, but they didn't ask me.

[crowceilidh]

Oh - I thought they started doing that last season?

[ali59]

Rudy is nine years old and the slowest in his class.  It's like he's not quit right up there.

 

I'm glad someone else said this first.  The whole time I was watching the his bio during the try outs, I kept waiting for them to say something about his mental deficit, but they never did.  Color me surprised!

 

Okay, I'm a seamstress, not a dancer, so sometimes my eyes go straight to the costumes instead of the dance.  

I kept thinking it must be my set that was making Jasmine's pants look so distracting fugly.

 

I don't think so, they were definitely fugly!

What was wrong with Ryan's suit?  There is a difference in cut between a regular street suit and a dancing suit.  I haven't rewatched the dance yet, but I'm pretty sure Ryan's suit was cut like a street suit and not a dancing suit.  And then there was the fabric!  It was horrible!  It might have worked if the suit had been cut properly but as it was it was awful.

Ricky's belt buckle was loose during the opening number and I hated the neon costumes.  Gosh, I hate being distracted by little stuff like this but I just can't help it.

Edited August 8, 2014 by ali59

[Terrafamilia]

Opening number with the neon cowboys (and girls) - Just plain fun. They should do it on the tour.

 

Bridget & Brandon - Competently done but didn't excite me.

 

Emilio & Jasmine - Excellent, though as people have pointed out Jasmine's costume was distracting, and not in a good way.

 

Tanisha & Ryan - Another excellent turn from Tanisha. I liked that they gave us something a little different from what we are used to in the choreography in not relying on a flurry of ganchos to show us hey, look, this is the Tango.

 

Valerie & Ade - Really showed Valerie's limitations.

 

Rudy & Jenna - You could tell he's done this sort of thing before. But dang, they botched the ending and none of the judges mentioned it. Why, Glob, why?!?

 

Jessica & tWich - I thought Jessica did a really good job on this. It was the most fun number of the night (not counting the opening).

 

Zach & Amy - Yeah, it was an overtly angsty contempo piece but they made me like it anyway. I continue to be impressed with Zach. I hope the voting audience will appreciate the skill here. The music, or lack thereof, was such that they were often without external musical cues to aid them in keeping time and yet they kept in synch with one another.

 

Jacque & Chehon - Nice, but not as much there as I would have liked.

 

Casey & Kathryn - I thought Casey nailed it. Smooth, suave, and a cad.

 

Ricky & Lauren - Came off a bit more manic than I would have liked. It left me wondering how I would have liked it more. Maybe if Ricky had been clean-shaven. I thought that week we saw Ricky without his beard he looked more mature, which is opposite of how it usually works.

 

Results - Sad to see you go Emilio, you were progressing so well and were so much better than he who is warded against even the most obvious criticism. This is why I shouldn't try to predict how American tweens will vote. Even so, Valerie should be in the bottom two girls next week and unfortunately Zach will probably be in the bottom two boys again.

 

If there are any tweenyboppers out there reading this, please go ask your parents for a quarter so you can buy yourself a clue. Arrgh, Ghack, Iä! Iä! Cthulhu fhtagn! [assorted gibbering and pulling of hair] Why does this show insist on vexing me so?

 

[preex]

I just watched the danceplug Louis Van Amstel interview.  When the host commented that Rudy has a ballroom background, Louis said Rudy has done ballroom but has never done competition, and you can't call yourself a ballroom dancer unless you have done competition.  Is that a rule in the ballroom world, a SYTYCD world, or both?

 

The Afterbuzztv show on this week's SYTYCD starts in a few minutes, with guest Nick Lazzarini and Jaimie Goodwin.

[traboule]

The full episode isn't up yet on Hulu, so my comments are based on watching only the dances and reading the recaps.

 

I'm sorry to see Emilio and Bridget go. That devil jazz dance last week didn't do them any favors, but their jive and their Travis Wall contemporary (and Emilio's hip-hop w/ Teddy) made me a fan of each of them. I'm glad Zack wasn't eliminated because he's my favorite guy but I would rather have seen Jacque go before Bridget.

 

Loved having the All-Stars on. I suppose we aren't going to get an All-Star choreographed episode like we did last season? That was a lot of fun.

 

Tanisha is my favorite female dancer in the competition. Nice to see her paired with someone new this week, though I don't think I've watched the season that Ryan was on. And after seeing her in the tango, I had to go back and rewatch her cha-cha with Nick. I hadn't yet been converted to being a fan when Tanisha first performed it and had overlooked her. Sorry Tanisha!

 

I think I'm in the minority with kind of liking Valerie/Ade's dance. I have liked Tyce's jazz before - Tied Up w/ Paul and Kathryn last season for example (though that one was much better both in execution and choreography). I think I like Valerie/Ade's dance partly because I liked the song. The timing of the first lift with the sound of the harp was cool for instance. Anyway, I get that Valerie's technique wasn't the best. Since I didn't see the prepackage, I didn't know what "character" she was supposed to be, and thus couldn't pass judgment on that aspect. And there's some choreography that I wasn't a fan of, like the upside-down bicycling and the fake slap. But then there were these other moments that I did like - her standing on his back, this other part where he leaps over her, and it was apparently enough to make me like it. I think also Ade's physicality was a better match for hers than Ricky's was, for all that Ricky and Valerie share similar joyful dance personalities.

 

In 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.) Anyway, I've been wishing Rudy off the show since the beginning but he didn't bug me too much here. I was pretty much watching Jenna the whole time anyway.

 

RIcky and Lauren's piece looked hard, or at least demanding. On the one hand it was impressive, on the other hand it kind of tipped toward frantic and away from fun at times.

 

I liked Casey and Kathryn's Broadway just fine, but Casey's probably going home next week.

 

Zack was impressive as usual. Nice control. I am absolutely thrilled he is paired with Makenzie next week. I think she is an amazing dancer and a team player, so I think they will make a great pair. I hope the choreography and costuming gods are benevolent.

[phoenix780]

Since I didn't see the prepackage, I didn't know what "character" she was supposed to be, and thus couldn't pass judgment on that aspect.

 

I think this is a really interesting comment.  Those prepackages do set up expectations against which a dancer either succeeds or fails.  The criticisms they gave her were about not meeting the stated emotional assignment, but does that necessarily mean she failed in the dance?  I almost wish I could re-watch not knowing.  She may have looked clunky, or emotionally inconsistent, but it wouldn't have been a failure because she wasn't angry enough.  That only happened because Tyce told us she was supposed to be angry.  

 

Not sure that makes sense, but it's that weird spot they create when they rely on words to convey the feeling of a piece instead of trusting the movements.  They could easily flip that- show the rehearsal, but have the choreographer speak after the judging is done, as they go to commercial (the spot where they've started having "learn this move" segments).  

 

Also- I think my main issue with the Valerie criticism from the judges, setting aside my bias towards her, is that she really was the only one who got any, and she was not, imho, the only one who deserved it.  Everyone else seemed to get OMGILOVEYOUWHOAREYOU?YOU'RE MAGIC, too, not even just normal praise.  So really...it's the main thing I remember about the show at this point because it was such a dramatic contrast.  

 

Well, I remember that and Jasmine's pants.

Edited August 8, 2014 by phoenix780

[calipiano81]

This was a good episode. I loved almost every routine (although it helped that most of the contestants were in their own style).

 

I love seeing well-done ballroom, so I was especially looking forward this week to seeing our remaining official ballroom dancer (Tanisha) and our secret ballroom dancer (Rudy) in their routines. (Ironically, it looks like these 2 got their dancer labels backwards in their partnership. LOL)

 

Tanisha brings a maturity that I really appreciate and she matched really well with Ryan (who the judges completely glossed over yet again in their commentary). Loved her solo at the beginning (and her dress!)

 

Whether or not one likes his personality or his performance style, Rudy definitely put his Latin ballroom training on full display and did it with a lot confidence and ease. It was kind of weird to hear Mary pretend that he got the style "in such a short time;" none of the other male contestants left would have danced that cha cha like Rudy did because they simply haven't had the training.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

While I wasn't crazy about the actual costumes from the group number (one of the poor guys looked like The Man in the Yellow Hat so I was waiting for Curious George to pop out), this is a strong argument for putting the dancers in matching costumes but in different colors so that we can tell them apart even in the long shots.

 

Yay for the return of the individual intros and having the guys and the girls walk into on group. I have missed that! But what is up with the production people? If you know to turn on the mic for a tapper, shouldn't you also know to pull back the camera so we can see the ballerina's feet when she's en pointe?

 

Loved seeing Brandon again but I felt like Bridget didn't quite get the style. She learned the choreography and she had the stamina to do the routine but to me it felt like the style itself wasn't there. It's kind of like the stereotype where you see a ballet dancer doing hip hop and even though they learn the steps, it looks off because their body is used to moving in a different way. She looked like she was striking too many poses. Mary is back to her nonsensical blathering with her talk about tNe 5 S's. Nigel did his weird "old uncle trying to seem hip to the new music" bit with his Pharrell/Happy reference and that lame Saturday Night Fever joke. I was hoping Tara would put her skating experience to good use but she spent too much time talking about Bridget's costume.

 

Tanisha's tango was great but I was afraid that it would invoke an ungodly amount of shrieking from Mary. I was surprised that instead of piercing my eardrums, Mary gave a focused and non-shrieky critique. Tanisha has such a maturity in her dancing, and she has shown once again that she can be sensual without being overtly sexy in a skanky way. The choreographers gave her some big tricks and she pulled them off and made them look effortless. She definitely benefited from having a ballroom partner who is a man, not a boy. He had no problem picking her up without looking labored.

 

Emilio's hip hop with Jasmine was an example of why it's not always beneficial for the contestants to dance with the all stars because I felt like he was outdanced by Jasmine. He didn't do anything wrong but I couldn't take my eyes off of Jasmine. Normally I don't love Tabitha and Napoleon's choreography but the double tutting section was cool. Once again, Tara had nothing useful to say.

 

I had mixed feelings about Valerie's jazz routine with Ade. First, it was awesome to see Ade again and I loved that he actually got to dance instead of being treated as a continuous forklift for the entire dance. That said, anyone is lucky to dance with him because he manages to make every girl seem light as a feather during lifts. And like Ryan, that is dancing with a MAN, not a boy. It was nice to see Valerie connect with a non-happy emotion in her dancing. Tyce bugs the shit out of me, but I liked that he pushed her to that place and specifically told her to stop being so nice. I don't think she quite got as far as she should have emotionally or style-wise, but it was good to see some growth and change from her. On a shallow note, I loved her makeup. This is the second Tyce routine this season that featured the upside down bicycling leg lift. You better watch out, Tyce, Sonya is going to come after you!

 

Rudy's cha cha with Jenna proved to me that Rudy was made to be a ballroom dancer because that's where you can make crazy faces and it's totally acceptable/expected.

 

What the hell was with the lighting in Jacque and Chehon's dance? I could barely see her feet at all. And what was with Nigel pimping Travis to choreograph for the NYCB? Gawd.

 

I usually like Mandy Moore's uptempo numbers but this one left me wanting more. I'm not sure if it was the choreography or the dancers. At this point, I was tired of Tara's useless comments.

 

Casey and Katherine's Broadway started off smooth and sophisticated but then it devolved into trick after trick.

 

I love Twitch but Jessica got one of those non-hip hop routines. She got a huge pass this week.

 

Zach's contemporary with Amy was much better than I thought it would be.There was one moment where I thought he looked a bit awkward/not realistic enough in his emotions, but other than that I was impressed with how well he did.

 

Man, Christina Perri's voice is terrible. I thought it when they used her song on the show back in 2010, when they had her come on the show to perform a few weeks later, and every time I hear her on the radio. She's even worse live. But I have to admit that I love the story of her becoming an overnight success thanks to SYTYCD.

 

I know I'm a big sap, but seeing the other dancers when Bridget and Emilio were cut was so sweet. It was nice to see that by the time the credits rolled, Bridget and Emilio were recovered enough to dance with the other contestants. One of the things I dislike about this one show per week format is that we don't get to see the first night of happy carefree dancing over the credits because it's usually just hugging and crying.

 

Yay, Nick Lazzarini is back! I know Nigel likes to pretend that S1 never happened and that Nick didn't win, so I love that Nick is coming back. Man, they are really working it with these all star pairings. Valerie is dancing with Ryan next week. He is a great partner who makes his partners look good. Same goes for Allison so Rudy is getting a huge gift from the producers. Is Jacque going to get the female version of the ballet hip hop routine with twitch? Ricky has Jaimie so that means he is getting contemporary or jazz which means he will be dancing a style in his comfort zone. Casey with Comfort means hip hop which should be interesting. I have no feelings on Jessica with Will or Zach with Makenzie though.

[crossover]

Always did like Top 10 week and I enjoyed all of the routines this time as well.  Didn't understand the HARSH critique of Valerie.  I thought this was the best she's done in contemp.  Guess she's no longer needed.  Didn't appreciate the extreme manipulation of giving Jessica a jazz routine for her hip hop.  She was so terrible in hip hop during the auditions.  I guess they couldn't risk her with real hip hop or even lyrical hip hop because they couldn't save her.  Guess Travis was more concerned about the shadow than the feet?  For what I could see, it looked lovely. If you don't already have a fanbase, lovely doesn't get you votes.  Tanisha performed the best out of the girls.  The problem is she did ballroom.  Hopefully her fanbase will come through.

 

The 3 hobbit boys did well (Emilio Ricky Rudy).  Too bad about Emilio but that was his best dance of the season even though Jasmine outdanced him.  And it was my favorite this week.  The cha cha was a little slow for my taste.  But Rudy moved the hips just enough to let us know he could and his feet looked good.  I guess Mandy was going for another boogie shoes?  It was a cute routine but didn't see anything so special out of Ricky that caused the judges to rave on?  He can do anything?  What about the waltz and bollywood?  He did well but I thought LoFro outdanced him.  Nigel went on and on about Casey but he got a forgettable broadway routine.  And they gave him hip hop next week with Comfort.  Really don't think they want him as F4.  Zack got the Sonya "dramatic music" routine and he did really well especially knowing he was in the B2.

 

It looks like Valerie is slated for B2 next week.  They probably hope that Jacque is the 2nd but I think Tanisha will be there because she did ballroom.  Jessica's fanbase saved her from the WCS. And if you don't think of this as hip hop, it was a good performance.  So she'll probably be safe.  They didn't stress the boys too much so I guess the voting is coming in like they want.  I would say Ricky and Rudy are getting the votes which leaves Casey and Zack B2.  If Valerie goes, so does Zack (tappers together).

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I thought once we hit the top ten, we would get the bottom four dancing for their lives but I guess they had to make time for Christina Perri to screech at us. With her long hair and bangs, she reminded me of Cece on New Girl.

[kechara]

Speaking of season 1, Blake did some decent choreography for SYTYCD Canada, and i think his sister is a choreographer as well. That might be something , although I remember some of his work being maybe a bit edgy. Anyone? Am I remembering correctly?

[dusang]

Speaking of season 1, Blake did some decent choreography for SYTYCD Canada, and i think his sister is a choreographer as well. That might be something , although I remember some of his work being maybe a bit edgy. Anyone? Am I remembering correctly?

 

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.

Edited August 8, 2014 by dusang

[Shades of Red]

Speaking of season 1, Blake did some decent choreography for SYTYCD Canada, and i think his sister is a choreographer as well. That might be something , although I remember some of his work being maybe a bit edgy. Anyone? Am I remembering correctly?

 

I agree that his choreography is "edgier" or can we say "sexier/more sensual" than what would be allowed on a main network in the U.S.  Have to say the same thing for Luther Brown and some of Stacy's stuff.  I think any of the Canadian choreographers who do routines for the American show have been warned about what it and isn't acceptable for a routine.  I know I've watched "racier" routines on our version that I really liked and laugh when I see anything that's considered "racy" in the U.S. version.

 

I haven't watched this entire episode but did catch a little of Ryan's dance and have to agree with anyone who said it was nice to have a "man" dancing ballroom especially anything with the word "tango" in it vs someone who is young and looks their age. 

[kechara]

Dusang - was it the leg licking one with Emmanuel and his partner? With the box?

 

Edited August 8, 2014 by kechara

[phoenix780]

Are the dancers on the Canadian version older?  I think they could do that sort of routine here, but it's hard to go sexy with a bunch of 18 year-olds.  Especially ones who seem as young as they do this season.

 

The dance in that video was interesting.  The strutting around the stage reminded me of RuPaul's Drag Race.  Thanks for posting it!

[preex]

Speaking of season 1, Blake did some decent choreography for SYTYCD Canada, and i think his sister is a choreographer as well.

 

Yes, his sister was the one who accused SYTYCD of stealing her live submission for the show.  Basically she submitted a piece for the show and didn't get pick up, and when she saw Travis' Medicine piece with Tucker/Robert she decided that something unethical happened, as if she had the exclusive idea/right of using that music and choreographing a piece about a person helping another based on the lyric of that music.  I thought that was quite embarrassing for a seasoned professional like her.  

Edited August 8, 2014 by preex

[kechara]

If it had been Tyce, she might just have had something.

[waving feather]

Speaking of Tyce, I usually hate Tyce's Broadway pieces but really enjoy his pure Jazz choreography. For Jazz choreography, I prefer him to Sonya (who is better at Contemporary). The choreography for Valerie and Ade was fun and crisp with a lot of interesting transitions and steps, so I don't blame the failure of the dance on Tyce for this one. It's solely on the lack of connection between Val and Ade and Valerie was not a believable character in the dance.

Edited August 8, 2014 by waving feather

[Lemons]

I love how Jasmine came in and showed this anemic group of dancers how hip hop is done. And they called what Jessica did hip hop? No. Totally wasted Twitch's talent.

[Spicy Bubbles]

I think this is a really interesting comment.  Those prepackages do set up expectations against which a dancer either succeeds or fails.  The criticisms they gave her were about not meeting the stated emotional assignment, but does that necessarily mean she failed in the dance?  I almost wish I could re-watch not knowing.  She may have looked clunky, or emotionally inconsistent, but it wouldn't have been a failure because she wasn't angry enough.  That only happened because Tyce told us she was supposed to be angry.  

I was thinking about regarding the Sonya Zach & Amy piece: would I have been as moved or brought to tears if I didn't know the story? Isn't the dance itself supposed to convey the emotion or the message without explanation? Or shouldn't we be able to interpret the dance how we see it? I feel this is a common issue on SYTYCD, or maybe it's just my issue with it. Don't tell me, show me. Dangabit.

 

I thought once we hit the top ten, we would get the bottom four dancing for their lives but I guess they had to make time for Christina Perri to screech at us. With her long hair and bangs, she reminded me of Cece on New Girl.

I don't know how that would work though, since America is voting off the dancers at this point. There isn't a way to determine the bottom four before we vote.

[Giggly]

I think SYTYCD should do what The Voice did this year and have a Twitter vote at the end of the to determine who stays.  Let the dancers do the DFYL, trot out a depressingly bad musical act, a couple of commercials, Nigel congratulating himself on his own awesomeness and relevance in the history of dance, and then the results.

[dusang]

Dusang - was it the leg licking one with Emmanuel and his partner? With the box?

No, I'm thinking of one where there was actually a cage on the stage and the girl definitely had a long extension ponytail that she flipped a lot and possibly a faux-tail on her ass. Dan was definitely guest judging. Although good guess on this one! Who knew there was such a plethora to choose from! Edited August 8, 2014 by dusang

[realdancemom]

I think SYTYCD should do what The Voice did this year and have a Twitter vote at the end of the to determine who stays.  Let the dancers do the DFYL, trot out a DEPRESSINGLY bad musical act, a couple of commercials, Nigel congratulating himself on his own awesomeness and relevance in the history of dance, and then the results.

I don't like Twitter voting because then West Coast voters can't vote.  If they are going to have musical acts, then I do want All Stars performing just like DWTS.  I would ff through a lot of the DWTS musical acts except that I want to see the pros dance.

 

I'm in the minority because I think Rudy has danced o.k. every week.  At least, he knows how to perform even though his contemporary technique is not that strong.  I thought his hip-hop was smooth and he did a pretty good job this week too.  Based on his audition, I didn't even think he should have been in the top 20.  I thought that it was going to be between Nick or him and they would choose Nick.  However,  I agree with a lot of people that he's annoying when he talks to Cat.  He needs to tone it down a lot!!  I want the final two guys to be Ricky and Zack. 

Edited August 8, 2014 by realdancemom