Afterbuzz Show: DWTS

[Uke]

eta: I have no idea who that guy was and honestly, I think he could have stayed gone. 

 

 

The guy was Matthew Evan Paine.  According to his IMDB he was a story assistant on DWTS in 2007-2008 which apparently is how he previously knew Edyta. 

 

I thought Edyta was very careful in her critiques.  I'm guessing she doesn't want to burn any bridges that she's been rebuilding.   Rhavin is completely useless IMO.  I'm not sure why AfterBuzz would think anyone would care about her opinions since it seems she only just started watching the show for her AfterBuzz duties.  Matthew would have been more interesting if he would have talked about being a story assistant and what it was like behind the scenes.   It appeared that he has no dance expertise, so I'm not sure why AfterBuzz would think anyone would care about his opinions either. 

 

I think the problem here is, AfterBuzz has these chat sessions about dozens of shows, drama, comedies, whatever, where they can talk about storylines or characters and no one actually needs to know anything. For DWTS, we expect the panelists to have some idea of what they are talking about.  Well, Darv just got back to LA today.  Maybe now being onsite, she can pull this show back together again.

Edited April 22, 2016 by Uke

[luvthepros]

I never cared for Darvina. The new moderator is what makes the show unwatchable for me so they have lost me as a viewer this season. Kristen and Jake were the reasons I watched the show in previous seasons. Wonder who will be on AfterBuzz for SYTYCD.

[Mbeaker]

Shirley Ballas was a guest on AfterBuzz, and she offered up some criticism of Keo and Witney. 

[dirtydi]

I think it is shaping up now.  Looks like Darvina is the moderator now.

[Uke]

This was a watchable episode. I've skipped the last couple - I've no interest in Rhavin's or Matthew's opinions -  but since Shirley was on I figured I'd give it a try.   It was funny watching Rhavin evolve.  She apparently didn't know who Shirley was (other than Mark's mother) so when Shirley started talking about Keo, the disgust on Rhavin's face - she actually rolled her eyes.  As the show progressed, you could see on Rhavin's face how she  slowly came to the realization that this woman sitting next to her was truly an expert and would pull no punches (oh so politely, of course).  Thankfully both Rhavin and Matthew stayed in their lanes and kept their comments brief.   I don't know what Darv is going to do for next week. Few can command the table like Shirley.  IMO she really needs a minimum of 2 dance experts so there can be conversation.   I'm not sure what the purpose was for bringing Sharna and Julz in on Skype other than for Sharna to give a little plug for her partner.

[truthaboutluv]

Agreed about the dance experts. As I said before, once she has some dance experts, doesn't even have to be ballroom and herself as moderator, along with bringing in people from the show weekly, the show will be fine. But I guess easier said than done with schedules and all that stuff. 

While Carrie Ann certainly has her annoying moments, I'm really over Julz' negative attitude about her. He ALWAYS jumps on something she says and suggests she's so clueless and an idiot. So I thought it was hilarious that after that, Shirley basically says, "uh yeah no, there were timing and synchronicity issues in the dance." 

[crowceilidh]

If anybody has time to report more thoroughly on what Shirley said, I'd be interested to read it; apparently, I am not interested enough to watch Afterbuzz.

[RemoteControl88]

13 hours ago, crowceilidh said:

If anybody has time to report more thoroughly on what Shirley said, I'd be interested to read it; apparently, I am not interested enough to watch Afterbuzz.

The main points I remember her saying.....hugely paraphrasing of course.... (Time stamped so you can go back and hear for yourself what was said)

-Antonio/Sharna (11:57)- Didn't think he had any real interest in learning the dances until about a week ago. As for the tango she saw sync/timing issues, foot work issues. Not nearly as good as Sharna & Julzs opinion of it.

-Keo/Jodie (13:27)- She didn't call Keo out by name, but it was clear she was talking about him: too much spacing in their QS/not enough body contact. The fundamentals were not correct i.e. head position and frame hold. She agreed with CAI that it was Keo who made a mistake with the footwork in the Charleston section of the dance.  To me it sounded like she was calling him out on the basic elements of the dance. She suggested all the pro's continue to learn and get training in ballroom,latin, and other styles.

-Wanya/Lindsey (30:56) - Thought Lindsey was doing excellent as a teacher/choreographer this season...very impressed with her. As for the Foxtrot he had slight frame issues (?) or other minor things but overall a very good dance.

Von/Witney (39:10) - Least favorite dance of the night.  Implied Witney could use more training in Latin & Ballroom. Thought she excels in lyrical, freestyle and jazz choreography though. Generally she likes her routines but was not a fan of the salsa.

Nyle/Peta(24:10) - She thought his frame was good...she thought his butt was sticking out a little bit but it was not a huge deal to her. Agreed that the Val comment was misunderstood as Nyle doesn't have a mean bone in his body.

Ginger/Val (34:10) - She praised Val on his teaching ability, attention to detail and quality of movement. Said he was one of the nicest person she's come across. Said that Val, Mark, Derek, Julianne all grew up dancing together.   And basically knows what he is talking about when it comes to teaching on the show and in the competitive world. As for the VW with Ginger she thought the perfect scores were deserved. She thought Ginger was a sweetheart and didn't complain with her schedule and when Val is being difficult....thought the dance suited her.

Paige/Mark (42:07)- Was the best jive she's seen on the show in 22 seasons...not saying that because Mark is her son but because Paige was just that good. Noted that it was pure dance...no props etc. Noted that in once section they got slightly out of sync but Paige got back on time. Praised Mark for including a spinning move "tallgate??" Very tricky move and she nailed it. Thought Paige was gaining confidence as people do like her and she's also gaining fans because she's doing a great job on the show.

It was great to hear from Shirley she 100% made the entire episode.

[crowceilidh]

Thank you RemoteControl88 for that rundown of her comments.  Very much appreciated.

[calipiano81]

I believe Shirley was saying there was a "tollgate" in Paige and Mark's jive. 

You know, like in big cities with train and subway stations, after you pay the fare/toll, you pass through a rotating "gate" that has arms sticking out. 

(I think it's a cute name...the move does kind of look like that LOL.)

[RedFiat]

Saw this on Marks Twitter, the Tollgate as executed by Corky and Shirley  and  Paige and Mark.  Now, anyone can see when you chalk it up to side by side, Paige is not a pro, but she sure has fantastic energy. 

https://twitter.com/Support_Pallas/status/728251308008976385

Edited May 6, 2016 by RedFiat

[skyways]

Mark did that same move too with Sabrina in their first Jive. I thought Sabrina did it better but I liked Paige as well - in short I like it if done well. 

Edited May 6, 2016 by skyways

[dirtydi]

I still like the Jives Mark did with both Katherine and Sabrina, better than Paige.

[calipiano81]

To this day, out of all his partners, I feel that Sabrina was Mark's best-matchon the dance floor. Paige did a great job with her jive, but as you can see in the video above, Sabrina's power, control and precision completely equals Mark's.

[crowceilidh]

I agree somewhat, but Paige adds the Tina Turner to hers, so she wins for me.

I'm surprised that Shirley liked that VW by Ginger and Val.  I thought it was horrid - of course, the music may have had some effect on me, but I didn't think so at the time.  I lasted about 25 seconds before hitting ff.

[crossover]

1 hour ago, crowceilidh said:

 agree somewhat, but Paige adds the Tina Turner to hers, so she wins for me.

 

Agree.  There have been better jives.  But the Tina T aspect made it so enjoyable.  Kinda like the Michael J cha cha with Shawn.

[RedFiat]

Yeah I agree, Sabrina was fine, technically very good, but it was an all so safe Jive, It was high school cheerleader meets earnest nerd. Which is fine, but Mark has repeated that scenario with most of the jives he has done. They are fun but for me, tend to lack an extra excitement between the partners. 

What I liked about Paige that elevates her Proud Mary (even above Nicole and Derek's Proud Mary jive) was that raw style of Tina Turner. That's what Paige captured,  she embodied that little phrase that Tina always says before performing that number "we never ever do anything nice and easy, we like to do it rough" It was that rawness, that dirty sexy, right on the edge, almost falling out of her latin heels, but staying in control of the movement that was for me, the most exciting feature of that dance. Mark has got better at the choreography as well. The tollgate, in the Sabrina jive was an perfect little element that was not particularly highlighted, but on the Paige jive it was the dynamic that everyone noticed and cheered. 

As a comparison, I look back at Gilles Marini and Cheryl Burke doing the Argentine Tango, my favorite of all time, and it was not a dance that had perfectly executed technique. But it remains one of the best Tangos because Gilles was that sexy Argentine, that Antonio Bandaras, that is in our minds eye.  He made it a conversation between a man and woman that was blushingly intimate and it brought the house down. In both cases Paige, and Gilles put themselves in and convinced us that they were the characters of the dance and brought us along to be in the moment with them. 

[RedFiat]

Week 8 Afterbuzz 

[RemoteControl88]

Just watched Week 9 Afterbuzz because Karina was the guest.  I swear I wanted to bang my head against the table. There were a few times when of of the hosts were confused about a step or why it looked weird. I was sooo confused as to why they didn't ask Karina's opinion....she's probably the most decorated female pro on the show?  Toward the end of the episode they weren't even asking her what she thought of the performances...she had to speak up with her 2 cents.  Why the hell ask her to be there?

Also this Mathew guy could save more time talking about the actual dances instead of his play-by-play of the packages. He did work on the show, right? He of all people should know not to take the packages too seriously. And he also takes whatever quote from the judges as truth.  Note to Mathew...CAI says something is the best thing ever...every.....single....season. 

[Uke]

Darv sent out a tweet and instagram this morning saying she won't be hosting on AfterBuzz this season.  I wonder who they'll have. I hope it's not Matthew and Rhavin - they were useless IMO.  I'd love it if they'd get  Shirley Ballas or maybe Toni (forget her last name but she really knew her stuff) or even Kym.

[RemoteControl88]

On 9/5/2016 at 4:12 PM, Uke said:

Darv sent out a tweet and instagram this morning saying she won't be hosting on AfterBuzz this season.  I wonder who they'll have. I hope it's not Matthew and Rhavin - they were useless IMO.  I'd love it if they'd get  Shirley Ballas or maybe Toni (forget her last name but she really knew her stuff) or even Kym.

 

No such luck. I attempted to watch....this panel is useless. I think a causal general fan knows more about the show than all 3 of them combined.  It was so rife with incorrect info or gossip/opinion stated as fact that I could take it for about 5 min.  Afterbuzz was cool while it lasted but this group............is sub par.

[Uke]

59 minutes ago, RemoteControl88 said:

No such luck. I attempted to watch....this panel is useless. I think a causal general fan knows more about the show than all 3 of them combined.  It was so rife with incorrect info or gossip/opinion stated as fact that I could take it for about 5 min.  Afterbuzz was cool while it lasted but this group............is sub par.

I tried to watch it last night. I only lasted a couple minutes.  It's unfortunate since AB really had been our only independent knowledgable review of the dances, but these 3 panelists are a waste of time.  I did tweet to AB stating why they've lost me as a viewer. Maybe if they hear from enough of us, they'll fix this. But I don't know. So many complained about Rhavin + Matthew, I don't think anyone expected it to get worse.

[luvthepros]

What is Kristen Burt doing now? I really miss her. Honestly, for me, the show is nothing without her and Jake and the great guests from the ballroom world. The show has lost relevance for me. As others have said before me, I was able to watch about two minutes worth of AB for the premier of DWTS. Awful panel.

Edited September 17, 2016 by luvthepros

[cc818]

I used to listen religiously when Anna was on, but it's hard to get into it now. I started listening to the new panel, and while they seemed okay, it was more fan commentary than any real dancing expertise. Anna was probably unique because she was a ballroom expert and also wasn't afraid to criticize the dances, so maybe it's unrealistic to expect anyone else to fill her shoes. Having said that though, I just find I'm not interested enough to listen with the current format. 

[luvthepros]

For week 3, I gave it another try to watch the AB show and I'm glad I did. The panel of two have improved. The co-host on this show is British and offers quite a bit of technical comments. Much improved show. Glad I tried watching again.

[cc818]

On September 30, 2016 at 0:56 AM, luvthepros said:

For week 3, I gave it another try to watch the AB show and I'm glad I did. The panel of two have improved. The co-host on this show is British and offers quite a bit of technical comments. Much improved show. Glad I tried watching again.

Yes! Thanks for mentioning; after seeing your comment I went back and listened to week 3 and also enjoyed it. There was a lot more detail about each dance (vs previous hosts who would just say "that was so hot!", or "that was so amazing!" over and over), and I liked the fact that they brought in stuff from the media, like the blog post that Cheryl wrote. That's kind of a fun detail that I wouldn't have known otherwise. Also, they weren't afraid to offer actual criticism (I'm thinking of their comments about Cheryl just dancing around Ryan and hoping people would be distracted by his abs and not notice he wasn't moving). Definitely an improvement on last season. 

[luvthepros]

Hopefully, more people will give the show a go again. I would love to see Shirley Ballas as a guest, among other pros who have offered their expertise on the show.