S20.E03: Latin Night

[Andiethewestie]

I think what was offensive about it is he's judging her intellect by a couple minutes of packaged footage and a couple minutes of dancing.  And probably her appearance.  

 

Wow, all that in two months?  He must be quite the prodigy. 

 

I never mind the people who've danced professionally-- Jennifer Grey, Nicole Sherzinger, Amber Riley, Corbin Bleu, Mel B, Alfonso, Meryl, Charlie, Kristie, Melissa, Mya, Lance, Evan, Sabrina...  It's reality tv, not the Olympics.  I don't want to see a bunch of Charlottes.  The show always seems to underplay their dance backgrounds.  

But no where in all of the people who have been on the show in 20 seasons has anyone competed in a Dancesport competition against the now pros on the show.  Except for Riker.  

 

In other news, Keo and Charlotte when interviewed on GMA were asked who they would like to see take the mirrorball, it was Rumer and Val.

Edited March 31, 2015 by Andiethewestie

[ari333]

Wow. I cant stand Charlotte, but what Bruno said was just straightup awful. And his screeching with his shirt unbuttoned at the tummy was .... not good. I wonder who writes his schtick? During the non-dancing time on camera, Charlotte's posing and swaying her back, sticking out her breasts, and blowing kisses just made me sick. And she couldn't dance worth shit imo. But after I saw all the phone stuff I really couldn't wait for her to get off my TV. Poor Keo. Also, poor Redfoo bc in retrospect, he got screwed. He wanted to be there and was working hard. Charlotte, OTOH, seemed not to give a shit about anything but her phone.   Good riddance. A week too late. She came across to me as a rude, self-involved, entitled twit, but her breast size and hair color have nothing to do with that. (imo) (Rude as in, she didn't mind making others stand around and wait on her to finish her so very important emails. Other people have families and jobs too.)

 

I admire Patti and Suzanne. This is nitpicky, but why is Patti, "Miss Patti" and Suzanne is not, "Miss Suzanne?" Are they not like 2 yrs apart? 68 and 70? What am I missing? Is it a  respect thing for only the 70s? or a personal thing  as in... "call me 'Miss?' "

 

So glad Kym is back. Love her! I do miss Cheryl and Karina though. However, Witney has totally grown on me and I love seeing a beautiful woman with curves who is not a dancing stick. She's gorgeous.

 

Riker the ringer could maybe grow on me. Altho out of all the Disney kids available IDK why they couldn't find one not related to the Hough clan. I guess I like Riker's self-effacing bit. Or rather I fall for it bc maybe it is contrived, IDK.  Allison,- still cant stand her. Dont' know why.

 

Rumer's body. IDK if there was some work done, surgeries, but whatever. She is clearly fit too so kudos for the smoking bod. WOW>

Edited March 31, 2015 by ari333

[sinkwriter]

 

Well, they managed to make it all the way to week 3 before starting the tongue bathing of Derek.  Boo-hoo.  Poor pitiful baby.  He travels allllll the time, ya'll.

 

I didn't mind Tom's question about jet lag because it's something I've wondered about before, with any of the dancers and stars. Whenever they talk about how they have something else going on during the week that they have to attend to, and it involves flying back and forth, I wonder: how on earth can they get through their performance? Because jet lag kills me. It takes me at least a day or two to fully shake it off and perk up again, so if you only have days to learn a routine and your energy level is squashed down because of jet lag, I would think that would make learning a routine (and/or coming up with a routine) extra challenging. 

 

I do think that Derek shouldn't have committed to this season, though, if his schedule was going to be so full. It's unfair to the star he's paired with, and his spot in the show could have gone to another talented pro dancer who would have liked to have given it their all.

[crowceilidh]

Dancesportinfo.net keeps records of competitions. Riker and Rydel danced Junior Latin together in 2006.

 

 

Wow. That was almost 10 years ago -- if he was that young at the time (and hasn't kept up with that kind of dance), he might have forgotten how to do it. I don't see a problem here.

 

 

I'm not particularly against ringers, but just have to reply to the idea that "almost 10 years ago" makes a body forget how to dance.  I took baroque dance for 12 years.  It has been 8 years since I quit.  I do not have an athlete's body or mind, but my body will never forget how to respond to dance instruction, choreo and the need for precise movement.  When I subsequently took Tai Chi, my instructors were flabbergasted by the precision of my footwork and body movement and thought I was lying about never having done it before.  So that tells you all sortsa stuff about all of the various ringers we have experienced.  If I all of a sudden needed to become a lindy hopper, I would have some serious disadvantage in that I would have to untrain my body out of certain habits, but I would still have some advantages due to my ability to govern my body's movements.

[sinkwriter]

 

I think Charlotte's departure is a week overdue.  Her first-week dance was one of the worst I've ever seen and I wasn't going to be able to get over that, and last night's dance was pretty shaky.   But I'm curious about the treatment she got last night.  They knew she was going home so they could have been kinder like they were with Redfoo.

 

I wonder if they were all ticked off at seeing her lack of commitment to learning this week's dance, and let that color their commentary, rather than being kind like they did with Redfoo. Then again, Redfoo's final dance was stronger than Charlotte's final dance (probably because she didn't work very hard on it), so their kind comments to him were deserved -- he really had worked hard and shown improvement and they were sorry to see him go because of that. Charlotte, on the other hand, seemed to shrug off her partner's insistence that she was disrespecting him and the people who have to stay longer to film her because she's wasting their time by not learning in the allotted timeframe, and she didn't improve on the good job she'd done last week, so... I think they didn't feel a need to have much mercy. 

 

I'm trying to remember: had the powers that be brought up Charlotte's dyslexia before last night's episode, or was this the first time they'd mentioned it?

Edited March 31, 2015 by sinkwriter

[Guest]

But no where in all of the people who have been on the show in 20 seasons has anyone competed in a Dancesport competition against the now pros on the show.  Except for Riker.  

How relevant is it when Riker spent two months in that sport, as a novice, when Witney started training for it at age 3 and was good enough to be a finalist on SYTYCD by age 18?  It just seems kind of ridiculous to compare him to Witney and Alison, for whom dance is their lives and careers and has been for many years.  It'd be like comparing me to a soccer pro because I spent a summer at soccer camp.  

[hathorlive]

 

That was awful and quite mean spirited.

 

 

I have to say that if I wanted to watch people get kicked around and called stupid, I could just go to work.  This show is supposed to be campy fun but some of the judge's comments just made me uncomfortable.  We know who the ringers are and who is going to be in the top three.  Why bother having people, especially older people, if you are going to dis them?  And I just felt bad for Charlotte and Michael.  I think the judges like having soundbytes so much that they forget that these people came on the show for reasons other than being humiliated.

 

It's just not fun to watch. 

 

On other issues, I don't mind Riker being a ringer. I mind them blatantly lying about his dance experience.  His entire intro was that he went to dance competitions and "watched" those distant cousins compete.  Just f'ing be honest.  I can't stand watching him because a good number of people have no idea that he's just as much a ringer as Meryl was.  But with much worse hair.

 

I can't get into Nastia.  I know everyone keeps saying that gymnasts are stoic, but the best floor ex'ers had lovely expression and emotion.  It's just that the sport has beaten out any beauty and grace that once existed and replaced it with endless bouncing and tumbling. 

 

Willow has horrible posture and her frame desperately needs work. 

 

It's hard to have depth when you are dancing to a Barry Manilow song. 

 

 

[superdeluxe]

In other news, Keo and Charlotte when interviewed on GMA were asked who they would like to see take the mirrorball, it was Rumer and Val.

 

Of course.  He's been adopted by The Fam.  Maybe that explains why I don't care much for Keo.

[Andiethewestie]

How relevant is it when Riker spent two months in that sport, as a novice, when Witney started training for it at age 3 and was good enough to be a finalist on SYTYCD by age 18?  It just seems kind of ridiculous to compare him to Witney and Alison, for whom dance is their lives and careers and has been for many years.  It'd be like comparing me to a soccer pro because I spent a summer at soccer camp.  

 

He spent two months competing, but to get to the quarterfinals as a junior against the likes of Witney also a junior he's had to have had the training to get there. Remember this is Utah, the most prestigious dancesport state in the nation, not a small town competition, it was for the nationals.  

BTW here's a little interview where he's standing next to Allison who tells the reportor he's never "partner danced" and the sin of ommission is clear he never corrected Allison.. a little bit of hip hop on Glee is all he'd cop to http://ca.eonline.com/news/629216/which-new-dancing-with-the-stars-celeb-is-derek-and-julianne-hough-s-cousin

Edited March 31, 2015 by Andiethewestie

[leighdear]

 

I admire Patti and Suzanne. This is nitpicky, but why is Patti, "Miss Patti" and Suzanne is not, "Miss Suzanne?" Are they not like 2 yrs apart? 68 and 70? What am I missing? Is it a  respect thing for only the 70s? or a personal thing  as in... "call me 'Miss?' "

You can be called "Miss" at 20, if you're Janet Jackson. And you're nasty. 

Edited March 31, 2015 by leighdear

[kayma]

How relevant is it when Riker spent two months in that sport, as a novice, when Witney started training for it at age 3 and was good enough to be a finalist on SYTYCD by age 18?  It just seems kind of ridiculous to compare him to Witney and Alison, for whom dance is their lives and careers and has been for many years.  It'd be like comparing me to a soccer pro because I spent a summer at soccer camp.

I never took dance lessons, but I'm pretty sure you'd have to have a few years of lessons before getting to competitions. I was surprised, though, that even with his dance experience that Val was giving him tips for his shoes during their live feed. That seems like something someone who was more well-versed in ballroom would have known. The lying does bother me - not even just downplaying the truth like Nastia's never had a dance class but has taken dance training - but most people aren't even going to know.

 

Of course, I'm glad there's a third real contender even if I don't think he's going to win. It gives them someone else to pit against Nastia and Rumer. And since Allison was brought back, I don't mind seeing her with someone who doesn't look awful and that she can refine instead of teach. I don't mind watching the middle of the pack dancers when there are some really good ones thrown in.

[iMonrey]

Wow.  I have never, not on any show, seen a package so hellbent on destroying a contestant.

 

More and more I get the impression the judges are scoring based on the rehearsal footage rather than the dance itself. Last week Charlotte got a very sympathetic rehearsal package and then the judges bent over backwards to be nice to her. This week her rehearsal footage made it look like she was paying more attention to her phone than to her rehearsal and the judges ripped her apart. Yet I saw no significant difference in her dancing ability from one week to the next.

 

Same for Chris and Witney. Last week's rehearsal footage showed Witney scolding him for not listening to her and doing his own thing. The judges ripped him apart and put him at the bottom of the leader board. This week his rehearsal footage is full of redemption and the judges all tell him how much he's improved. Yet he's no better than he was the previous week.

 

I hesitate to describe anyone who's a double amputee a "pole" but essentially that's what Noah was for Sharna. By the same token so was Chris for Witney. They both just kind of stood there while their partners twirled around on them.

 

And not for nothing but that prosthetic arm probably costs a hefty sum of money. It was rather disconcerting to see Noah basically throw it down on the floor or on the table in disgust no matter how frustrated he felt. No doubt millions would give their eye teeth for that kind of high-tech prosthetic.

 

This was the first time I was actually impressed with Willow. (Mark's costumes, no. Willow, yes.) I saw a marked lack of maturity and natural dance ability in her first two weeks but she performed the hell out of the Paso without any noticeable flubs. 

 

The content in Riker's dances make all the other celebs look like slackers. The other male ones anyway. I was shocked Carrie Ann had the balls to say he had a sort of androgynous thing going on because it's true. Telling him he needed to be more of a man to Allison was kind of insulting though.

[Andiethewestie]

I think it's all about the cover-up. He never "partner danced" according to Allison, so he has to keep up the charade by all the pretending. 

I never took dance lessons, but I'm pretty sure you'd have to have a few years of lessons before getting to competitions. I was surprised, though, that even with his dance experience that Val was giving him tips for his shoes during their live feed. That seems like something someone who was more well-versed in ballroom would have known. The lying does bother me - not even just downplaying the truth like Nastia's never had a dance class but has taken dance training - but most people aren't even going to know.

 

Of course, I'm glad there's a third real contender even if I don't think he's going to win. It gives them someone else to pit against Nastia and Rumer. And since Allison was brought back, I don't mind seeing her with someone who doesn't look awful and that she can refine instead of teach. I don't mind watching the middle of the pack dancers when there are some really good ones thrown in.

Edited March 31, 2015 by Andiethewestie

[sinkwriter]

 

Last week Charlotte got a very sympathetic rehearsal package and then the judges bent over backwards to be nice to her. This week her rehearsal footage made it look like she was paying more attention to her phone than to her rehearsal and the judges ripped her apart. Yet I saw no significant difference in her dancing ability from one week to the next.

 

I'm not sure about that -- from what I recall, she seemed to have a lot more movement in her routine last week, which highlighted her abilities better. This week she seemed to do a lot of flexible poses but no real flow or movement going on. Of course, that can be attributed to the choreography Keo gave her, but I do think there was a difference in her abilities this week versus last week. She seemed to do more last week, and it showed.

[saber5055]

Nope, Mark made it to Week 5 I believe. What's more interesting is that Mark was also paired up with Kym.

 

 

I stand corrected! I guess my mind voted Mark off before it really happened. Thanks also for telling me Cuban has been in the audience. I flip to The Voice as soon as the dances are over so miss some audience shots and THANK GOD I also do not hear the judges' stupid and irritating comments.

 

Which is why I didn't know about Bruno's Charlotte remark until I came here, which saved me from having a tiz fit by hearing/seeing it in real time. Bruno has the most awful things to say under the guise of his being "hot and clever." Whether he writes his schtick himself or pays someone ... either way, I wish it gone. I also wish he would be gone. And CAI. Then maybe I could actually watch and listen to the comments and see the scores. (Like that will ever happen.)

 

Although the judge panel as is does allow me to watch two shows at the same time, so there's that.

[BW Manilowe]

I have to say that if I wanted to watch people get kicked around and called stupid, I could just go to work. This show is supposed to be campy fun but some of the judge's comments just made me uncomfortable. We know who the ringers are and who is going to be in the top three. Why bother having people, especially older people, if you are going to dis them? And I just felt bad for Charlotte and Michael. I think the judges like having soundbytes so much that they forget that these people came on the show for reasons other than being humiliated.

It's just not fun to watch.

On other issues, I don't mind Riker being a ringer. I mind them blatantly lying about his dance experience. His entire intro was that he went to dance competitions and "watched" those distant cousins compete. Just f'ing be honest. I can't stand watching him because a good number of people have no idea that he's just as much a ringer as Meryl was. But with much worse hair.

I can't get into Nastia. I know everyone keeps saying that gymnasts are stoic, but the best floor ex'ers had lovely expression and emotion. It's just that the sport has beaten out any beauty and grace that once existed and replaced it with endless bouncing and tumbling.

Willow has horrible posture and her frame desperately needs work.

It's hard to have depth when you are dancing to a Barry Manilow song.

Not all his songs are quite that "fluffy", honestly.

And Suzanne & her husband have been best friends with Barry & his significant other for a very long time now, so she was probably gonna dance to 1 of his songs at some point before being eliminated.

Since Copa's been used on the show at least twice before (including being performed by Barry himself once, & danced to by at least Cheryl Burke; the other performance was a Samba by Margaret Cho & Louis Van Amstel), & it was "Latin Night/Latin Week", Suzanne might as well have danced to Copa last night.

At least she had her own "showgirl headdress" (the "fruit hat"), from when she headlined in the Moulin Rouge production show at the former Las Vegas Hilton (now the Westgate Casino Resort, where Suzanne will headline a new show, of her own, starting on May 23rd) in the 1980s (& she said last night that's where she got her "fruit hat" she wore in her dance).

[spanana]

 

I think it's all about the cover-up. He never "partner danced" according to Allison, so he has to keep up the charade by all the pretending. 

 

 

Even if Riker is lying or downplaying or whatever, do you honestly think he's doing it to the point that he's pretending not to know how to keep his shoes from slipping in the livestreams?  To the point that Val has come in to help him and offer suggestions?  I don't get the impression that Riker cares about this competition enough to go to those lengths of deceit.  His career is not being made by whether he comes in 2nd here or 4th. 

 

As for Keo supporting Val, Val is probably his best friend on the show.  Of course he would support Val.  Any of the "fam" pros would likely say they are supporting Val for the win, at least once they are out of the competition themselves.  That includes Peta, Sharna, Artem, probably Emma and etc.  Henry too, except I assume Henry's loyalities will be with Nastia since they are working together week to week.  But they have all been itching for Val to win since at least S16, so nothing overly new there.  At this point I don't think they care who Val wins with so much as he wins.

Edited March 31, 2015 by spanana

[saber5055]

At this point I don't think they care who Val wins with so much as he wins.

 

 

While I'm not disputing what you say, I'm just curious why all the pro Val support. Has something happened or been said the viewers don't know about? TPTB did give Val a competitive partner this season. Even Rumer says no one on the show is as good as she is.

[spanana]

While I'm not disputing what you say, I'm just curious why all the pro Val support. Has something happened or been said the viewers don't know about? TPTB did give Val a competitive partner this season. Even Rumer says no one on the show is as good as she is.

 

No, nothing has happened.  It's just a combination of Val not having won as yet and him being close friends with a lot of the current pros.  Most of the above mentioned pros, as well as Tony, think Val should win every season (next to them wanting to win themselves of course).  Maks & Val tend to refer to everyone that they are close with as "the fam" and that term has spread over time as more and more of the pros have taken part in events at the studios that Maks, Val, & Tony own.  Peta, Sharna, Jenna, Artem, Henry and now Emma have all danced at shows put on by their studios in the past year.  Keo isn't really part of the fam yet, but he and Val became close on tour.  So it's not that Rumer is undeserving of a win so much as this crew will support Val for the win no matter what.  They wanted Janel to win last season.  They wanted Zendaya to win in S16.  They probably wanted Liz to win in S17.  S18 was an exception since of course they wanted Maks to win.  I assume once Val get his win this season, they will likely back off a bit.

[hathorlive]

 

Not all his songs are quite that "fluffy", honestly.

And Suzanne & her husband have been best friends with Barry & his significant other for a very long time now, so she was probably gonna dance to 1 of his songs at some point before being eliminated.

 

No disrespect for Mr. Manilow.  I missed him by about 5 years but my sister still has every album and 8 track.  I have a playlist of him as well on my iPod.

 

Just that it's not exactly a depth kind of song, if you get what I mean.  It might have been better used if Carrie Ann had said "Next week, I hope to see a bit more emotion, now that we've seen your fun side".  But then that might not have been a side swipe at Tony. 

[sinkwriter]

 

And Suzanne & her husband have been best friends with Barry & his significant other for a very long time now, so she was probably gonna dance to 1 of his songs at some point before being eliminated.

 

It's a bummer he didn't come on the show and sing the song himself, especially if they're such good friends.

 

Personally, there are some Barry Manilow songs that I grew up hearing because my parents would play them, so I have fond childhood affection for them. Copa's not really a favorite, but I did get a kick out of the lyrics because the song talks about a guy named Tony... and here we have a dancer named Tony. It seemed fitting, and tickled me because of it. I kind of wanted them to act out the actual story of the song, within their dance routine.

 

I missed him by about 5 years but my sister still has every album and 8 track.

 

Heeee. 8 track. My parents have some in their basement somewhere, I think. I can remember them being played when I was very young, but they didn't last much longer. The world soon moved on to cassette tapes, whoo!

Edited March 31, 2015 by sinkwriter

[hathorlive]

It's a bummer he didn't come on the show and sing the song himself, especially if they're such good friends.

 

Personally, there are some Barry Manilow songs that I grew up hearing because my parents would play them, so I have fond childhood affection for them. Copa's not really a favorite, but I did get a kick out of the lyrics because the song talks about a guy named Tony... and here we have a dancer named Tony. It seemed fitting, and tickled me because of it. I kind of wanted them to act out the actual story of the song, within their dance routine.

 

Heeee. 8 track. My parents have some in their basement somewhere, I think. I can remember them being played when I was very young, but they didn't last much longer. The world soon moved on to cassette tapes, whoo!

My sister also dated a guy with an 8 track player in his Nova.  Full on 70's love.

 

It would have been great to have Barry sing the song.  Much better than what we got last night.  It's a fun song, which is why I thought CA's comment was strange.  Who has depth with Copa?  It's a drunk spring break kind of sing along song.  Maybe Tony should have picked Even now? 

 

I did get a kick about Tony the character and the dancer.

Edited March 31, 2015 by hathorlive

[Andiethewestie]

Even if Riker is lying or downplaying or whatever, do you honestly think he's doing it to the point that he's pretending not to know how to keep his shoes from slipping in the livestreams?  To the point that Val has come in to help him and offer suggestions?  I don't get the impression that Riker cares about this competition enough to go to those lengths of deceit.  His career is not being made by whether he comes in 2nd here or 4th. 

 

 

I get the impression that to some a lie here and there makes for good television. Back in season 4 Julianne asked Apolo not to allow his then girlfriend Allison Baver to sit in the audience so that much of the " chemistry" they had dancing together could be exploited for votes. I was a bit shocked at that, but Allison Baver said on Millionaire Matchmaker just last season that Apolo's partner thought it best for her not to be there. So anything is possible. Riker's partner this time said he never had any partner dancing,(which we know is untrue) so what does the show do to support that notion? 

[Shibori]

 

And I TOTALLY loved seeing Kevin and Lori in the audience loudly cheering for Robert. Odd that Mark Cuban wasn't there. Ha ha! I believe he left either first or second in his season. So, take THAT, Cuban!

Mark guest hosted Live! with Kelly and Michael this morning, and they had had Charlotte and Keo on as guests.  He may not have wanted a late night with the guest host gig booked first thing this morning.

 

I do think it's disingenuous to have someone who's competed in DanceSport and not acknowledge it.  As others have pointed out, You don't just take one class and hold your own in a competition, especially the boys.  It's not a natural style you'd pick up elsewhere.  So either he's a dance prodigy or had some serious training.  I'd say whatever, but own it, don't cover it up.  Between that and the fact he's related to half the cast, it just seems shady.

I have a feeling that Mark is trying for his own dance Emmy with all of the over-the-top costuming and styling he's been doing the past couple of seasons.  His buddy Derek has one so now he has to have one.  This week's costume, make-up and especially that hair...yeesh. As soon as I saw him in the opening sequence i was shaking my head.

Sorry, Mark and Willow, but Will Ferrell and Jon Heder did it better...

[Wings]

I do not believe Bruno realized what he said.  I think he had something different in his mind and it came out wrong.  He seemed oblivious to the audience reaction and Tom's comment (neither will you).  He just kept talking.  He screws up phrasing all the time.   He is not a mean man. 

[saber5055]

Sorry, Mark and Willow, but Will Ferrell and Jon Heder did it better...

 

 

Totally LOL at that photo. I've been reminded of that movie SO many times watching DTWTS. And yes, Jon's outfit beat that "whatever" Mark was wearing last night by miles and then some.

 

Thank you spanana for the info on "the fam" and thanks also to Shibori. Cuban being on early tv in New York is a good reason for him not to be in last night's audience. I hope he had something nice to say about Shark Robert (and his gorgeous blue eyes).

[sinkwriter]

 

I hope he had something nice to say about Shark Robert (and his gorgeous blue eyes).

 

I have to say, I've been really impressed with Robert so far. I've never watched Shark Tank so I have no idea how he is on that program, but here he seems like a good guy. When I first heard he was going to be on the show, I bristled because I was worried he was going to be like Donald Trump (arrogant to the point of offensive). I was afraid this Robert guy was going to be like that, and I was steeling myself to be irritated by his segments. I mean, the show is called Shark Tank; I wasn't sure what else to expect but Trump-like asshole-ishness. The "shark" mention alone has connotations that the judges on there will eat you alive. *GRIN*

 

Color me completely wrong (thank goodness). He's been lovely! He seems like a nice guy, he works hard, he seems to have a good sense of humor about the process and himself, and - as saber5055 points out - he has entrancingly beautiful blue eyes. I'm definitely rooting for the guy.   :)

Edited March 31, 2015 by sinkwriter

[Pepper Mostly]

I like Robert too. I loved Mark Cuban in his season also--I really like the non showbiz types, I guess. I want to see non-dancers get better, that's why I love this show!

 

I know Patti Labelle won't last long, but I enjoy her zestfulness. And holy mother of god, her outfits at rehearsal! no sweats for Miss Patti!  That orange shirt she was wearing looked like raw silk. It cracked me up. Everyone else is in hard working dance gear, and she's impeccable and elegant in a silk shirt! Respect.

[fishcakes]

Strange that the judges kept mentioning how far along they are in the competition; I even thought I heard one of them say they were almost to the halfway point. It's only the third week. If they feel this way now, I don't think they're all going to survive to the end.

 

I can't really warm up to Keo, but mostly because both seasons he's seemed completely disinterested in his partner. Of course, both Lolo and Charlotte had terrible attitudes, so maybe that's why, but even so, his comments when they get eliminated are mostly about himself. If he ever gets a decent partner, maybe I'll change my mind about him.

 

There's no one I'm rooting for this season, so if I can ever remember to vote I think I'll just throw all my votes to Michael. I know he's not a contender to win it, but he's better than at least a couple of people who'll probably outlast him based on their fan bases, and also he just looks so sad and scared up there that my heart goes out to him.

[Steph619]

Last night's show was boring to me. Maybe it's because I don't find myself as invested this season like I was last season with Alfonso who was my favorite. Nonetheless, I liked Rumer and Nastia. Nastia actually surprised me because I thought that she would have difficulty with the latin dances like the samba and would be better at the ballroom dances, but other than lacking control in some of her movements like the judges pointed out, I thought she did a great job. I kind of wish that she had been partnered up with Henry instead of Derek seeing as Derek is very busy and doesn't have much to rehearse. I wonder how they'll make it work when they have to do more than one dance.

[vibeology]

I do not believe Bruno realized what he said.  I think he had something different in his mind and it came out wrong.  He seemed oblivious to the audience reaction and Tom's comment (neither will you).  He just kept talking.  He screws up phrasing all the time.   He is not a mean man. 

 

The gist of his comment was you're not that smart, but its okay because you're pretty. He's made some pretty horrible comments in the past so I don't think its just a mistranslation. He said to Ralph about Karina "You were rough with your pussy," he told Susan Lucci to slut up her Cha Cha, he once laid down on the judges table and invited Kendra Wilkinson to have sex with him. He's made enough sexist comments that I'm not willing to give him a pass. Either he knows exactly what he'd doing or he doesn't care to know. Both are mean options designed to degrade the women he works with.

Edited March 31, 2015 by vibeology

[Guest]

He spent two months competing, but to get to the quarterfinals as a junior against the likes of Witney also a junior he's had to have had the training to get there. Remember this is Utah, the most prestigious dancesport state in the nation, not a small town competition, it was for the nationals.  

BTW here's a little interview where he's standing next to Allison who tells the reportor he's never "partner danced" and the sin of ommission is clear he never corrected Allison.. a little bit of hip hop on Glee is all he'd cop to http://ca.eonline.com/news/629216/which-new-dancing-with-the-stars-celeb-is-derek-and-julianne-hough-s-cousin

Do you know he didn't correct Allison?  The footage stops as soon as she said that.  She also said she just met him the night before.  Maybe she didn't know his whole background yet.  I haven't watched his part of this ep yet.  Did he deny it on that?  He mentioned having some dance background in the link above.  He even said he thought he had some Hough gene advantage, which seems the opposite of what he'd want to say if he was claiming total non-dance-background/ability.

 

If he makes it deep in the show, I'd be surprised if we didn't see full disclosure of his short Dancesport career, along with footage.  They tend to hold back relevant facts often.  

 

Bruno- I think he could care less what anyone thinks of him, he likes making water cooler chatter on Tuesdays.  

 

I was a little surprised Val seemed to initially sort of blame Rumer for his injury.  Maybe it was all her fault, I don't know, but he's the pro- he should take responsibility.  It's not like he HAD TO include that bizarre jump, anyway.  There are plenty of ... prettier... disco lifts.  

[PBGamer89]

I don't mind when someone has a little dance background or learned a bit of ballroom for a movie role (Brandy, Danica, Mya, etc), but when you've competed in Latin, I draw the line.

 

I don't care if you competed for 2 months or 2 years, he was obviously training enough to be good enough to compete and even did well in those competitions. No one else has ever been on this show before who competed in a Latin or Ballroom competition.

[saber5055]

He is not a mean man.

 

 

But Bruno is a disgusting man. Ever see him on a talk show, like The Tonight Show or others? He's vulgar, sexist and thinks he's the hotsy totsy, stripping to his underwear whenever he has a chance, and leering at the show host. 

 

Which makes me wonder if they replace his judging chair each week. If I were another judge, I'd worry that they switched my chair with his.

 

I'm thinking that I'm rooting for Robert, too. No dance background, a businessman, just a nice guy who has his own show so it's not like he's pimping something coming up, or is trying to extend his 15 minutes.

 

Rumer's outfit last night could have used a couple of black bars to make it family friendly. I was flipping the channel when she turned around and OMG, I swear there was nothing covering her rear end. (Making that sentence family friendly.) Of course, I tried to flip back to check it out but camera was already on her face. Heh.

[Alapaki]

I can snark with the best of them.  And I love a good takedown, in its proper place.

 

But I thought the treatment of Charlotte was really beyond the pale.  They judges took advantage of their position on the show to just shit all over her.

 

Since they've gone to the one-night format, I've wondered whether the Judges know who's going home.  The treatment of Charlotte makes me think that either they don't, or else she really pissed in the wrong person's cereal.

 

Frankly, I don't blame her for checking her e-mails.  She probably realizes that she's on the 15-minutes-of-fame clock and that time's running out to make bank.  She's got much more potential as a "model" than as a dancer, anyway.  She probably put more time in than Michael Sam did last week when he went to the Combine (for the same reasons).

 

And why are they acting like RedFoo was some sort of shocking elimination?

 

I thought it was interesting that Carrie slipped up and admitted to one of the Stars "well, we're supposed to criticize this week".

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Strange that the judges kept mentioning how far along they are in the competition; I even thought I heard one of them say they were almost to the halfway point. It's only the third week. If they feel this way now, I don't think they're all going to survive to the end.

I know! Either Julianne or Carrie Ann said, "At this point in the competition, it's almost week four." I thought, "Say what now?" The phrase "at this point in the competition" is usually reserved for later in the season when most of the deadweight has been eliminated and the remaining celebs have been dancing for months at that point. To say that during week three when only one couple has been eliminated so far seems a bit of a stretch. But what really cracked me up was following that with "it's almost week four." So you mean it's week three?

[smiley13]

I had to laugh when Charlotte was so concerned about her "modeling" and "acting" emails.  I don't think the woman is very attractive yet she whined about being bullied in high school because she was pretty.  Well anyone who calls their own self pretty is not pretty at all in my book.  She is vapid and self absorbed.  I don't think she could act her way out of a paper bag.    There have been some offensive people on this show over the years, but she comes in close to the top of the list for me.   And that says a lot when you have had Kim K ,Pam Anderson, Holly Madison and Kendra Wilkinson on here.

 

Charlotte should have been gone last week, but at least that wrong has been righted.  Now if we could only get rid of Rumer and Riker, I might could enjoy this season.

[marketdoctor]

 

I'm trying to remember: had the powers that be brought up Charlotte's dyslexia before last night's episode, or was this the first time they'd mentioned it?

 

She brought it up last week in her "I was bullied for having dyslexia" story. It's possible she also never learned to take criticism, or know the difference between constructive criticism like "move your hips more" and bullying, like "you'll never win a specific type of Nobel Prize."  They might have set her up to be a guest star on The Big Bang Theory.

 

Also, although Carrie is an attractive woman, when is it ever appropriate to discuss how much cleavage a woman is showing? (Answer:  When asked directly, and even then <GenAckbar>IT'S A TRAP!</GenAckbar>.  The General and I have your back here.  You look great, but it's going to be a cold night, so plan ahead.)

[Andiethewestie]

 

Do you know he didn't correct Allison?  The footage stops as soon as she said that.  She also said she just met him the night before.  Maybe she didn't know his whole background yet.  I haven't watched his part of this ep yet.  Did he deny it on that?  He mentioned having some dance background in the link above.  He even said he thought he had some Hough gene advantage, which seems the opposite of what he'd want to say if he was claiming total non-dance-background/ability.

 

LOL!!  Okay E News asked him DIRECTLY and he denied it, saying he went to Vegas one time and "watched" a ballroom competition. But he never copped to having competed. Oh, hey Riker, you're not going to talk about the time you competed against pros on this show and did well?  Guess not 

 

[CED9]

And why are they acting like RedFoo was some sort of shocking elimination?

Probably because Emma had taken so many horrendous duds deep into the season that the fact she had someone who could put one foot in front of the other and not look like they were going to kill over 4 seconds into the dance and be the first ones out was surprising. Nothing to do with Redfoo.

[PBGamer89]

I think Redfoo seemed shocking based on his past famous songs and his stint as a guest judge I don't think they anticipated him going home first. Not to mention, of the 12 celebs, he has the most Twitter followers.

[howmanywords]

 

I can't really warm up to Keo, but mostly because both seasons he's seemed completely disinterested in his partner. Of course, both Lolo and Charlotte had terrible attitudes, so maybe that's why, but even so, his comments when they get eliminated are mostly about himself. If he ever gets a decent partner, maybe I'll change my mind about him.

And here I thought I was the only one not feeling sorry for Keo.  I didnt care for him last season and this season I liked him even less.  I find him to be a little self absorbed and the little I saw of his rehearsals with Charlotte I didnt think he was a great teacher either. Frankly I dont think he deserves a good partner if he is given a 3rd chance.  I think hes very lucky he not only got asked back after being 1st eliminated last season, but they gave him a spot on what turned out to be a very successful tour.  Not all pros even get that 2nd chance.  I think of someone like Lindsay who got a shot at pro then got downgraded to troupe the next season, and if I recall she lasted a lot longer than Keo did.

[BW Manilowe]

No disrespect for Mr. Manilow. I missed him by about 5 years but my sister still has every album and 8 track. I have a playlist of him as well on my iPod.

Just that it's not exactly a depth kind of song, if you get what I mean. It might have been better used if Carrie Ann had said "Next week, I hope to see a bit more emotion, now that we've seen your fun side". But then that might not have been a side swipe at Tony.

Right. I get it. You say it's not a "depth" kind of song, I say "fluffy" to mean the same thing.

It's the writers' (which includes Barry--he did the music) take on a 1940s, Carmen Miranda-style, movie musical... So, no, it's not gonna have a lot of depth to it (but it does bring the Latin setting).

And I get Carrie Ann was using it to take a swipe at Tony (which is also the hero's name in the song, & my Dad's name... not for nothing). However, she's seen at least 2 other performances of it on the show, & probably heard it innumerable times outside the show; maybe even danced to it herself, in a professional or non-professional context. So, whatever... I still don't get the "bad blood" between Carrie Ann & Tony (but I don't need it explained again, either) & I guess I wish they could just be professional when they have to work together, & not snipe at each other until they're offstage, off-camera, etc.

I doubt they'd dance to Manilow 2 weeks in a row (& maybe they can't 'cause I think Disney Night is either next week or the week after, there's no Manilow appropriate for that), but if Suzanne wants to dance to his music again (if she doesn't get cut next Monday), Barry's got at least a few album cuts that are more "dramatic" than Copacabana "fun"; she can probably find them, if motivated enough & Tony's on board/they can get the song(s) cleared for airing, & I'd bet she knows his discography about as well as I do (or at least did).

sinkwriter: Yeah, it would've been nice if they'd at least used his recording to dance to (since they used the Bublé the other week for Kym & Robert, & I thought they actually said they would start using "original artist" recordings, along with the Ray Chew Live band's vocals & instrumentals, to dance to a season or 2 ago). You'd think the show would have it cleared, since Barry's personally sung it on there at least once & at least 1 other couple (Louis & Margaret Cho) already danced to it.

It would've been nice if he could've sung it live too, or at least been in the "ballroom" audience to support Suzanne (like both of Rumer's parents, her Dad's current wife, & her sisters were at the 1st show) but he's currently on what's being billed as his last "big" (meaning "long") concert tour, & he was doing a "makeup" date in Cleveland Monday night. They had to postpone the original Cleveland date, & 2 other shows that were all in the same few days, from late February or early March, when he apparently got a respiratory infection & couldn't perform.

Barry's tour runs through his birthday in mid-June (& obviously this DWTS cycle ends before that). And Suzanne's new Vegas show is supposed to open May 23rd (whether this DWTS cycle ends, & she is/isn't still in the show, by then or not). If Suzanne doesn't get cut too soon, & he can be in LA without other obligations on a Monday night before she does, I'm still hoping he'll make it into the audience to watch her (Like I said, Rumer's megastar parents weren't too "big" to be there, with her Dad's current wife & her sisters; also Cher wasn't too "big" to be there at least 1 week when her son Chaz was on the show, & other "big" celebs have sat in the audience to watch family, friends, or other loved ones, so I'm hoping it works out for Manilow to support his friend too).

Edited April 1, 2015 by BW Manilowe

[sinkwriter]

 

I doubt they'd dance to Manilow 2 weeks in a row (& maybe they can't 'cause I think Disney Night is either next week or the week after, there's no Manilow appropriate for that), but if Suzanne wants to dance to his music again (if she doesn't get cut next Monday), Barry's got at least a few album cuts that are more "dramatic" than Copacabana "fun"

 

I'm a fan of "Could It Be Magic/Mandy" from his live album from way back when. I love how it opens with chords from a Chopin prelude (and returns to it later). Very dramatic, especially the final parts when everything builds up. I also love the "Very Strange Medley" (who knew Barry had written all those commercial jingles? fun!), and as a kid I used to dance around the living room with my siblings to the "Jump Shout Boogie" medley. That whole live album is a piece of my childhood. (And as an adult, I love "Lay Me Down." Definitely stuff they could play with, if Suzanne wanted to do another song of his. And maybe they could fly him in to sing it himself.  :)

Edited April 1, 2015 by sinkwriter

[Lonesome Rhodes]

While I give Nastia props for improving her mien, she has got to be better at working on a chemistry with a partner.  She most definitely had some appropriate changes of expression last night.  It wasn't the plastered-on competition face which had been burned into her psyche by her gymnastics coaches.  This was no small feat and good on her.

 

However, I paid rapt attention to the rare moments she would look at Derek.  For sure, the vast majority of that dance required she look elsewhere.  Yet, there were more than enough moments for her to steal a glance at him, or more.  Didn't happen, but once to my eyes.  Then, after the dance through receiving the jidges' comments, she looked for all the world to me that she was avoiding looking at him.  I would bet money she is worried about cheesing off her husband.  

 

Many in here have noted the coldness.  While it typically isn't a conscience thing, e.g. my choosing to focus on it, the visual cue of a lack of eye contact between them will quite often cause observers to sub-consciously feel/believe that there is a distance between a couple.  I am pretty sure that is what many of us are experiencing.  Whatever the cause, she has got to show more warmth toward Derek in order to maximize support.  That is a tall order, in my opinion.

 

Finally, I was stunned when I saw the quality of movement Riker had from the jump.  I wrote such in a post.  I figured he was some kind of gifted athlete.  Now, I learn that he trained at a high level not so long ago.  His "ringi-ness" is not that he is recalling specific steps of specific dances he had performed.  It is that he had already been through that first blush of learning how to move at all.  I can imagine Robert, for example, wowing us if he were not going through very basic understandings about dance movement.  That Riker now lies about it makes him worse than Charlotte's indifferent effort, to me.

Edited April 1, 2015 by Lonesome Rhodes

[Guest]

LOL!!  Okay E News asked him DIRECTLY and he denied it, saying he went to Vegas one time and "watched" a ballroom competition. But he never copped to having competed. Oh, hey Riker, you're not going to talk about the time you competed against pros on this show and did well?  Guess not 

 

 

Was Witney really competing against a novice in 2006, at age 13, after 10 years of training?  Or is Riker supposed to have gone from novice to whatever her league is in 1-2 months?  And then just dropped it?  It all sounds really odd.  

[superdeluxe]

As for Keo supporting Val, Val is probably his best friend on the show.  Of course he would support Val.  Any of the "fam" pros would likely say they are supporting Val for the win, at least once they are out of the competition themselves.  That includes Peta, Sharna, Artem, probably Emma and etc.  Henry too, except I assume Henry's loyalities will be with Nastia since they are working together week to week.  But they have all been itching for Val to win since at least S16, so nothing overly new there.  At this point I don't think they care who Val wins with so much as he wins.

 

He might've became besties with Val during the tour, but Keo's been in with the fam for a bit now.  Which I think is a perfect fit with the way he acts.  Now, Emma's involved with them?  Gonna have to start disliking her. 

 

And don't worry about Henry.  Even though he's working with Nastia, he is still all about the fam.  Hell, Henry's been acting like he's doing more than what he's actually with doing with Nastia.  So, he's fanning that flame.

 

By saying they don't care who Val wins with just as long as he wins, you're including the producers in that, right?  Because they've been trying to get Val the win since day one and it always fails.  Seems like it might finally work this time.  Unless Rumer keeps running her mouth.  Which once again, perfect fit there.

[Andiethewestie]

 

Was Witney really competing against a novice in 2006, at age 13, after 10 years of training?  Or is Riker supposed to have gone from novice to whatever her league is in 1-2 months?  And then just dropped it?  It all sounds really odd.

 

Sorry to have to break it to you, but the only thing that's odd is him not owning up to his training.  In 2006 both were in the same categories because they would have had similar training up to the point of the competition. Ryker and his sister deciding to quit the competition circuit early may mean he wanted to do other dance styles or concentrate on his music, it doesn't mean that he doesn't have a similar background that Witney or Lindsay Arnold or Britany Cheery (new troupe member this season) has. In fact, kids training for Dancesport are strong Ballroom dancers before they even get to competition. In the open Pre-Junior Championship  Ryker and his sister placed 6th overall. That's a big accomplishment. 

http://dancesportinfo.net/Competition/Holiday_Dance_Classic_2006_2723/Junior_Pre-Championships_Latin_15330/Results

Edited April 1, 2015 by Andiethewestie

[PBGamer89]

I believe the point we are all making is that he obviously had enough training to be competing and to also have him not admit to it, it makes it all fishy.

Edited April 1, 2015 by PBGamer89

[judemorrigan]

A few points on Riker's results:

 

- dancesportinfo is not any sort of an official repository of results.  While you can generally trust the results that make it into their database, they can be pretty hit-or-miss in how comprehensive they are.  It's entirely plausible that he may have additional results that aren't listed.

 

- That said, the results he has are actually *not* terribly impressive.  Take that 6th place in Junior Pre-Champ Latin at Holiday.  (An aside, amateur has "Novice", "Pre-Championship" and "Championship" as successive levels.  So that is "Pre-Champ" and not "Pre-Junior".  Basically, he and his sister competed in two successive levels at that competition.)  That really is a result of sixth place out of seven.  And his results from Champ at that comp really are 11th out of 12.  

 

There isn't any sort of "point-in" system in the U.S.  A competitor can enter any level they choose to.  Now, Junior is actually old enough for junior champ to be pretty serious business.  If you were go look up some junior champ events (try "usa dance nationals junior latin" on youtube for an example), you'd see some pretty spectacular dancers in the finals.  But the couples in the bottom rungs tend to be ... not so great.  

 

It's hard to say with any certainty without seeing video, or at the very least scoresheets, but I very much suspect that Riker and his sister were absolutely nothing remarkable as competitors.  I actually find it pretty plausible that they may have spent less than a year as ballroom dancers before deciding that it just wasn't their thing for whatever reason.

 

- That said, the fact that he does have results at all is still pretty noteworthy from my point of view.  I can pretty much guarantee that he's spent *way* more time doing rumba walks than any other "star" that's been on the show.  I'm looking forward to seeing him dance rumba or chacha.  If he's retained much of anything in terms of dancesport-specific training, that's where it's likely going to show the most.