S20.E11: Week 9: Semifinals

[Tara Ariano]

The ninth week of performances feature the semifinal round of competition.

[radishcake]

 

Four remaining couples advance to the SEMI-FINALS. The competition is neck and neck as each couple fights to make it to the top 3 and dance in the finale. Noah Galloway, Nastia Likuin, Riker Lynch and Rumer Willis will perform two full routines including a Viennese Waltz, Quickstep, Paso Doble, Contemporary and Argentine Tango

[Andiethewestie]

I am going to predict that the team that gets the encore this week will be one of the final two contestants standing. 

[Wings]

I am going to predict that Noah does not get the Quickstep.

[LadyMustang65]

According to another site, Rumer and Noah have Viennese Waltz, Riker has contemporary and Nastia has the Quickstep (dancing with Sasha).  Then for the judge's encore dance, Rumer has contemporary with Bruno as her coach, Noah has paso with CarrieAnne as his coach, Riker has AT with Julianne as his coach, and Nastia has the Viennese Waltz (dancing with Derek this time) with Len as her coach. 

[just prin]

I am going to predict that Noah does not get the Quickstep.

 

Or the jive or west coast swing. LOL.

[Wings]

Or the jive or west coast swing. LOL.

 

 

Or anything really! 

Edited May 11, 2015 by wings707

[crowceilidh]

From twitter: Tom Bergeron 
@Tom_Bergeron

BTW, each @DancingABC semi-finalist spent a week with most combined (judge & viewer) votes. Had THAT wk been the Finale, they would've won!

[kitcloudkicker]

Spoiler for Len's judges pick dance. (It's quite sweet!) 

[tearbender]

Well, that spoiler doesn't reek of favoritism and of a gift wrapped, manufactured tearjerker moment at all.
 

From twitter: Tom Bergeron
    @Tom_Bergeron

    BTW, each @DancingABC semi-finalist spent a week with most combined (judge & viewer) votes. Had THAT wk been the Finale, they would've won!

 

I feel like this has happened at least one other season (excluding All-Stars). Season 8 (Gilles, Shawn, Melissa), or Season 10 (Evan Lysacek, Nicole Scherzinger, Erin Andrews), maybe? Or at least that Tom made a note of it.

 

This makes me even more wary for the freestyles, and for the completely unnecessary (IMO) Tuesday Finale Night instant dance scores.

Edited May 11, 2015 by tearbender

[Andie1]

It does feel like a tearjerker manufactured moment to keep Nastia from elimination. Oh well I think all of the judges choices will be 10's the first score will make the difference

[realdancemom]

It does feel like a tearjerker manufactured moment to keep Nastia from elimination. Oh well I think all of the judges choices will be 10's the first score will make the difference

The tearjerker is designed for votes.  I think the judges' scores for Riker, Rumer, and Nastia will be close.

[Andie1]

No doubt for votes and thus avoid elimination, I wonder if Noah's Vwaltz will be scored low? I think all the judges choices will be scored perfect by the other judges Noah has Paso which should be a lot easier for him to get a high score than the vwaltz. I can't see him mastering the rise and fall and at a speed that looks like waltz

Edited May 11, 2015 by Andie1

[McManda]

I feel like this has happened at least one other season (excluding All-Stars). Season 8 (Gilles, Shawn, Melissa), or Season 10 (Evan Lysacek, Nicole Scherzinger, Erin Andrews), maybe? Or at least that Tom made a note of it.

 

I know Shawn Johnson won by a margin of less than 1%. I remember because I'm still a bit bitter Gilles lost. Gilles and Cheryl were awesome. (Gilles and Peta ... not as awesome.) I also think that this show peaked around that time; season 8 might still be my favorite season.

[Wings]

From twitter: Tom Bergeron 

@Tom_Bergeron

BTW, each @DancingABC semi-finalist spent a week with most combined (judge & viewer) votes. Had THAT wk been the Finale, they would've won!

 

 

What does this mean?  "They" would have won.  Who?  

I expect to see either Nastia or Riker out this week and Noah with Rumer as F2.  

[kitcloudkicker]

What does this mean?  "They" would have won.  Who?  

 

It's worded poorly, I think. He means that at any point in the season, any one of the four left held the top spot. "They" is all four of them. At different times. 

 

It doesn't really surprise me - I know it's not a great measure, but if you look at the DWTS YouTube page, all four have week by week been at the top of most views. The videos from this season have also gotten dramatically fewer views than last season. Last season Sadie was consistently pulling down 300k views, and quickly, and this season has only had a few videos get that high, and it hasn't been a consistent person at the top. Makes me feel like voting is down this season as well, and that's why it's close. 

 

Noah must really be pulling in votes though, because he's been scored at a much lower level than the other three by the judges. 

[tarotx]

I know people were very emotional about Noel and Sharna's Contemporary. I wouldn't be surprised if that was the week they were number 1.

[Danseur]

I don't have a Facebook account and don't pay close attention to number of video views on YT. I did read a discussion among fans who reported that one of Noah's dances had millions (plural) of views on FB. Sasha Farber said in an interview on an LA TV station that his trio with Derek and Nastia had 1.5 million views by the next day. I don't have a single clue as to whether this really means anything with regard to who is getting votes.

It seems one has to give up reasoning when entering the DWTS realm. Nothing is logical. Nothing can be figured out. I don't even think Riker's having been in jeopardy four times necessarily means he had fewer votes those weeks than Nastia who has not yet been in jeopardy. I have hopes for one couple to win but I gave up being bothered if my favorite loses. It wears me out just to read comments of hand wringing fans.

I agree with you Andie1 that the judges will give 10s to each other's dances tonight, especially if all are actually dancing in them. One article hinted that Julianne will dance with Riker but no declarative statement was made. There was a brief video of Bruno practicing with Val and Rumer. I'm guessing that none of them will do much more than Len said he would be doing--a few spins at the end of Nastia's waltz. I think these dances might be fun but it seems like they will most likely be giveaways in terms of scores.

Speaking of Bruno dancing with Val and Rumer, it's a "ballet fusion" to Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake. I'm trying to envision Bruno in it but for the life of me all I can do is laugh. I also wondered what it will be fused with? Artem and Holly did an American

Smooth Foxtrot to the same music on SCD and Bruno was enthralled by it. It did have lifts and was very balletic so maybe it prompted Bruno's idea. It will be interesting to see if there are similarities besides the music. Artem's and Holly's dance was elegance personified, a most beautiful dance.

[Barbara Manatee]

I don't have a Facebook account and don't pay close attention to number of video views on YT. I did read a discussion among fans who reported that one of Noah's dances had millions (plural) of views on FB. Sasha Farber said in an interview on an LA TV station that his trio with Derek and Nastia had 1.5 million views by the next day. I don't have a single clue as to whether this really means anything with regard to who is getting votes.

 

Noah's memorable year dance has 40 million views, which is far and away a record for the show. But I think it went viral because of the 'wounded warrior/inspirational' aspect of the story. It's a good bet that only a fraction of those viewers have been voting every week. Still, that's a lot of interest in him, so who knows? I won't be shocked if he makes it all the way to the end.

[Padma]

I'm sorry to feel this way, but I think Noah doesn't deserve to be this far, much less to win.

 

It was fine when he outlasted others who weren't very strong, even more entertaining dancers like Patti. Chris and Robert even showed more improvement than Noah has--with more variety of dance challenges. Outlasting Willow was the one that started feeling  his staying on was just undeserved. He is basically still doing what he did in the beginning, with choreography that is built around his strengths and judges who seem determined to ignore his weaknesses as a dancer in a competition (Carrie Ann's "10" still bugs).

 

It seems insulting to keep advancing him over others who are also working hard but who are so much better--and who are doing choreography that is far more creative and physically challenging, imo, even taking his disability into account.. I know it's harsh, but I think Noah winning just makes no sense for a dance competition.

Edited May 12, 2015 by Padma

[McManda]

Is a rounded back a thing in (proper) contemporary? Allison seemed exceptionally hunched in both of their dances tonight. And also, it looks like Julianne can't even tame Allison's harsh, frantic dancing.

 

I'm not surprised the judges round turned into a gimme of points.

[Stitsch]

Mayhaps I'm a cynic, but any proposal that takes place on national television is partially disingenuous to me.

 

Julianne in Riker's dance? Wow! That is totally not a Hough thing to do! Oh, and Derek and Nastia get a live performer again? No way! Dear everyone that's been on the "they're setting it up for Val to win" train: what now?

 

That said, that was the perfect sendoff for Len. It was absolutely touching to see everyone's reactions.

[Rancide]

That was pretty good.  But... uh... what happened to Mark's head?

 

Happy for Noah and his fiancée because they seem very happy together, and that's worth more than any dance competition.  But his scores continue to bug.  There are plenty of people who go on this show seeking emotional growth or because they have something to prove (see, apparently, Rumer), and that's cool!  And many of them really can't dance at all.  And that's cool, too!  But since when do they get 9s and 10s for it?  Whatever happened to the Andy Dick treatment?  You know, where the contestant who kind of can't dance but whose level of effort and personal challenges tug at the heartstrings gets high words of praise for his efforts and, like, 5s and 6s as his score?  That said, props to Carrie Ann for her Derek-level of smoke and mirrors in that paso.  But that waltz was bad to almost epic proportions.  Was he even putting his feet down in time with the music?

 

Both Allison and Riker did much better with not-Allison choreography.

 

I also liked injured Derek better than non-injured Derek.  I don't actually hate Derek (I'm Derek neutral), but I do think some mandated calmness is a good thing for him, and I think it helped Nastia be showcased to better benefit, too.  It's not all about doing a million flips and splits at high rates of speed.

Edited May 12, 2015 by Rancide

[MsPH]

That second round was such a circle jerk. They could've skipped the judging altogether, since it's not like any of them have the balls to piss off another judge by giving them a 9.

 

I thought Rumer and Val owned tonight! Both dances were just wow.

[Victura]

Nastia/Derek/Len's Viennese waltz was just incredibly lovely, and whatever emotion Nastia may have been lacking before, it was there tonight. I do think Derek's injury has been a blessing in disguise. Wonderful way to cap off the night with classic dancing from Len.

 

Seeing Julianne with Riker makes me wish again that Riker had another pro.

 

I'm pleasantly surprised Bruno chose what he did for Rumer and Val and thought it worked very well for them. Rumer has showcased her edginess and strong character almost a bit too often this season, and it was nice to see her softness. It takes a lot of strength to do that platter lift. Bruno actually does have some real dancing chops underneath all that drama.

 

Wasn't a huge fan of all the 10's...if Noah's dance was 30 worthy, then Nastia's was 45 worthy.

 

I hope that Nastia and Rumer are the top two, with Riker in third and Noah in fourth.

Edited May 12, 2015 by Victura

[upside down]

Who do you think will be tomorrow night's shocking boot, Riker, Rumer, or Nastia? You know that Noah has this in the bag. As much as I love Sharna, I have that much of an irrational dislike of Noah.

This show should be an hour. Even with two dances, they could get rid of all the manipulative sob stories and edited rehearsal packages. Just let them dance.

I am in the minority here but I like Riker and Allison. I think they have an easy partnership that the others don't. I keep looking for tWitch. Has he been in the audience yet?

Speaking of irrational dislike, there's Melissa Rycroft.

[shoregirl]

It's totally not emotionally manipulative to propose to your girlfriend on national tv. I will be annoyed if a better dancer goes home tomorrow. Noah is inspiring and everything but I think its his time to go. The VW was not good and why bother even scoring the last round If you're going to give everyone the same score?

[Packerbrewerbadger]

Why oh why is Melissa Rycroft in the touring show instead of a real pro? Their dance grinded to a halt when she came in and it's not lie she's a big star or anything .

Edited May 12, 2015 by Packerbrewerbadger

[buttersister]

Sixty-minute tongue bath.

[smiley13]

I sure hope that Riker or Rumer go.  You know if I would rather see Golden Boy's partner in the finals, that I really do not care for either of them.  Allison does not deserve to be in the finals, and I am tired of the pimping of Val.  I could not believe Erin said that again about carefully dialing the number for Rumer and Val.

 

And please get Melissa Rycroft and her large mouth off of my screen.  Why do they keep trying to make her happen?

 

I would love to see Noah in the finals!  How sweet was his proposal!

[WhitneyWhit]

Well damn, I got all misty over Len.  I can't help it, I love that cranky old coot and the show won't be the same without him.

 

I wouldn't vote for Noah if you paid me. I have never felt more emotionally manipulated than I did tonight, beginning with his package and ending with his proposal.

 

Rumer's waltz, VW and her foxtrot are basically the same dance.

 

The best dances of the night was Riker's AT and Derek and partner's tribute to Len.

[superdeluxe]

I'm sorry to feel this way, but I think Noah doesn't deserve to be this far, much less to win.

 

Well, he's probably getting all of the votes now because of that proposal.  He's going to the finals and that might launch him to the win.

 

Dear everyone that's been on the "they're setting it up for Val to win" train: what now?

 

Her packages were long and of course they had to pimp her parents.  Plus, Erin Andrews stressed once again to dial their number carefully.  Did she do that for any of the other couples?  I don't think so.

 

Speaking of Erin Andrews, how nice of her to wear her old prom dress tonight.  It is prom season, you know?

 

They got me with Derek, Nastia, and Len.  That was a very beautiful dance.  It was sad to hear Len talk about not being able to dance anymore.  I was even able to stomach Leela James and she's been irking me because I watch R&B Divas.

Edited May 12, 2015 by superdeluxe

[msburg]

Rumer/Val are being set up for the boot. A Viennese Waltz then a contemporary/ballet fusion?  Performing first?  Whatever.

 

Noah/Sharna.  No words for this.  Mr. Burg, who could barely care less, said that this guy shouldn't still be here , since he cannot do the dances.  Add the manipulative on-air proposal, and the cynic in me is over it.

 

Riker -- his cousin dancing with him -- need I say more?  Maybe so.  Still no acknowledgement that he's done this before. 

 

Nastia's best dance was the quickstep with Sasha, no cameos involved.  Just saying.

[Barbara Manatee]

Mayhaps I'm a cynic, but any proposal that takes place on national television is partially disingenuous to me.

 

Yeah, I have to agree. Public proposals give me hives under any circumstances, but if Noah wanted to make a tv spectacle of it and was absolutely positive his girlfriend wouldn't mind, then okay. But he should have waited until tomorrow after the votes were all in. Other fairness issues have been out of his control, but he pulled a fast one here. I've lost respect for him.

[Jewelz]

I just hate when people propose on TV or during another similar venue.  It's not awwwwwww....it's YUCK!  You don't need an audience for something that is supposed to be deep and personal, Noah!

And- what was the purpose of scoring the judges' dances?  All 10s?

Speaking of the judges' dances, I thought they were all kind of crappy.  I'll look at them again tomorrow- but they were ho-hum for me tonight. 

If Noah doesn't go fourth- grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! 

 

Added:  I have to admit the waltz with Len was very sweet.  He is by far my favorite judge!  I don't know if I can watch the show if he isn't on it.

Edited May 12, 2015 by Jewelz

[vibeology]

That final round being the 10 show should have bugged me but frankly, Len got an awesome retirement gift/goodbye so whatever. That was going to get a 30 if Nastia tripped over her own two feet and once that 30 was secure, I can't really complain about the others.

 

Rumer/Val had an epic night in my eyes. I don't love that 50 Shades song and I would like more flow in a V Waltz, but they worked their song perfectly. Bruno might actually be a mad genius. That contemporary number was everything good about Rumer and Val. It had passion, light and shade, incredible technique and risks. It was staged well, the costumes were spot on. That'll be one of those dances I remember years from now.

 

Noah is my least favourite by far. I thought both dances were lacking content and his timing was off. But its clear to me he's a vote getting machine so I'm preparing myself for him to win this thing.

 

Riker and Allison were pretty good. She got to be on home turf and choreograph something she actually knows. The difference shows. She has a range in contemporary that she doesn't have in ballroom and was really able to find movement that suited Riker in a way she hasn't always in ballroom dances. It was lovely. Their AT with Julianne was stunning, but mostly I watched Julianne. She can go sultry and powerful all at once. Allison lacks that and the second half of the dance suffered for it. Still, this was Riker's best week since he finally had two teachers who actually knew what they were talking about.

 

Nastia's Quickstep with Sasha was adorable. I do think she has more dance chemistry with him than Derek. She just gets lighter and her facial expressions feel to me more spontaneous. I liked the bold opening solo moment. That showed confidence. As for her second dance, I honestly only remember the last ten seconds with Len. That moment was special and I'm so thrilled about it. 

[Stitsch]

Her packages were long and of course they had to pimp her parents.  Plus, Erin Andrews stressed once again to dial their number carefully.  Did she do that for any of the other couples?  I don't think so.

 

Speaking of Erin Andrews, how nice of her to wear her old prom dress tonight.  It is prom season, you know?

 

Her packages weren't longer than anyone else's. They also interviewed everyone else's families; is it Rumer's fault that her parents are Bruce Willis and Demi Moore? 

 

It should be Noah, but thanks to his stunt, Rumer/Val will get the boot tomorrow. And if it's not Rumer/Val, then it'll be Riker/Allison. And I'm irritated. I know that this is a dancing competition, but that's just it -- it's a dancing competition. Based on that, the F2 should be Nastia and Rumer. The propping of Noah makes absolutely no sense to me whatsoever.

 

I did enjoy the Willow cameo, though. She's adorable.  

[shoregirl]

It should be Noah, but thanks to his stunt, Rumer/Val will get the boot tomorrow. And if it's not Rumer/Val, then it'll be Riker/Allison. And I'm irritated. I know that this is a dancing competition, but that's just it -- it's a dancing competition. Based on that, the F2 should be Nastia and Rumer. The propping of Noah makes absolutely no sense to me whatsoever.

I did enjoy the Willow cameo, though. She's adorable.

I agree,but unfortunately it's not just a dancing competition. People can vote for who they think is the best dancer but most vote on who ,for whatever reason, is their favorite. If it was just based on the best dancers Willow would still be there. I just think we don't need judges propping of Noah. Edited May 12, 2015 by shoregirl

[Ripley68]

Am I the only one that thought Riker's last dance was a hot mess? There were several mistakes and missteps.  The best dances were both of Rumors and Nastia's last one. None of the others should have got perfect scores. Worried because every time I've called for Rumor, I've gotten straight through

Edited May 12, 2015 by Ripley68

[Saylii]

Noah was being totally manipulating with that proposal.  If he had a ring, it would have felt like less of a desperation for votes tactic.  I really wonder if the producers were going to give him time to do it tomorrow, but he snuck it in early for the votes.  Also, I thought she was already his fiancée.  I could have sworn that's how they introduced her in episode 2.

 

I think Riker's probably going to draw the short stick tomorrow.  Noah won't leave now.

Edited May 12, 2015 by Saylii

[tearbender]

Goodness, can't this show save the extreme contrivance and manipulation for the finals?

 

Noah needs to move into the finals? On screen proposal! I'd like to give him the benefit of the doubt, and heck some peopl would be thrilled and love a public proposal but I can't help but find them emotionally manipulative as well.

 

Allison's choreography and dancing isn't up to snuff? Why not bring on some more Hough-on-Hough action to inspire middle America's love of this wholesome blonde family?

 

So far, Nastia has displayed the emotional range of a teaspoon? Bring in Len for a very touching moment to inspire votes.

 

Bye, Rumer. Of all the seasons to revert back to a Top 3 finals.

[smiley13]

Rumer seemed to get a lot more camera time than the others.  I will be a happy camper if we are rid of her.    She is one note to me.  I do not see any change in her dancing throughout the season.  It has been intense and dark. 

 

And was that Riker's sister who competed with him that was on there tonight?  All season and still no mention of his competitive background.

[PBGamer89]

My gut is saying that emotion will drive Noah and Nastia into the finals and that Rumer or Riker is at risk.

 

I'd put my bets on Riker going, just based on gut feeling. He was the only one really to not have some kind of "moment", IMO.

[tessaforever]

Oh wow, so many thoughts! Okay, first of all, if there's a 50 Shades of Val movie, I would watch the hell out of that. He's such an amazing dancer that sometimes his partners suffer a little in comparison, which I thought happened somewhat to Rumer in that first dance. But they really killed it (the judges are rubbing off on me now) in the Swan Lake dance, or ballroom ballet as I am calling it. Very nice.

 

I wondered about a Noah and a ring (to me a proposal doesn't count if there's no ring - like, hi, will you marry me? anyone can say the words) but when they showed Jamie clapping in the audience later, she was wearing an engagement ring which looked way too big. That's kind of sweet, and Noah definitely seems like a guy who wouldn't get the ring size right the first time. His dancing was meh but he was trying harder than usual, which will probably garner votes.

 

I actually was surprised during Allison and Riker's contemporary - that's Allison's specialty, so she could have gone all Pirates of the Caribbean on it, but I thought her choreography actually had some refinement. While their AT wasn't 100% clean, the choreography was more difficult (except for Rumer's SL lift) than any of the other judges' dances.

 

I am in the minority here but I like Riker and Allison. I think they have an easy partnership that the others don't. I keep looking for tWitch. Has he been in the audience yet?

I like their dancing on the show, but their All Access Livestreams are weird. Allison would drive me nuts - she literally can barely speak a coherent sentence and she's always giggling about something unintelligible. I've been wondering where tWitch is - he was in the audience last year. I don't think I've seen him yet this year. Strange.

 

Derek clearly got the memo about staying out of the dances when Nastia is dancing with Sasha. Poor Sasha, all this work and if she wins he will not really be the winner. While Nastia's movements were incredibly expressive during her last dance, I don't think she has ever mastered the art of showing emotion in her face. I too got pretty choked up when Len came out. Bravo!

[McManda]

I actually was surprised during Allison and Riker's contemporary - that's Allison's specialty, so she could have gone all Pirates of the Caribbean on it, but I thought her choreography actually had some refinement.

 

She couldn't though, because she knows how to do a good contemporary (even if I hate the style). The reason her ballroom dances suffer so much is because she doesn't know how to refine them.

[superdeluxe]

is it Rumer's fault that her parents are Bruce Willis and Demi Moore?

 

It's not her fault, but it is the only reason why she's on the show and one of the reasons why she's being pimped.

[skyways]

I think Rumor and Val are leaving and I will be so sad. Nothing about the final 3 then will interest me. 

 

 I'm not so sure. Her dance WAS memorable. You will remember it because others did what we usually see see on the show.  As a long time watcher, my observation is that when everyone gets the same perfect scores, the audience usually go for the one/star they like best and the most memorable of the dances. But we will see. And don't worry, Noah won't win. Every year we see his type but even if those types sneak into the final, they NEVER win. If Rumer or Riker end up in the final (not both), Derek will get another win.

[tessaforever]

Oh, I forgot! Noah dancing to the "magic rainbows" song - David Cook's inauguration song on American Idol. So funny to hear that pop up!

[truthaboutluv]

It doesn't really surprise me - I know it's not a great measure, but if you look at the DWTS YouTube page, all four have week by week been at the top of most views. The videos from this season have also gotten dramatically fewer views than last season. Last season Sadie was consistently pulling down 300k views, and quickly, and this season has only had a few videos get that high, and it hasn't been a consistent person at the top. Makes me feel like voting is down this season as well, and that's why it's close.

 

 

Some have already mentioned it, but I don't think YouTube is the best judge of the season. There are a lot of issues with videos from the show with all the copyright and stuff and it seems like people have navigated elsewhere. As others noted, Facebook may be a better judge and as noted, Noah's Contemporary has something like 50 million likes or views, Nastia's trio Jive has almost 2 million views and a number of likes and there are many other videos with 500,00+ in views and likes. Plus ratings are slightly up I believe, this season. 

 

That was pretty good.  But... uh... what happened to Mark's head?

 

 

I've given up trying to figure that one out myself. 

 

Speaking of irrational dislike, there's Melissa Rycroft.

 

 

Seriously, what was the point of that two second pose she did? Was that supposed to show off her "great" dancing fans should anticipate during the tour?

 

It's totally not emotionally manipulative to propose to your girlfriend on national tv. I will be annoyed if a better dancer goes home tomorrow.

 

 

Hate to break it to you, but I definitely think he's making the Finals. My gut says he won't win but he's making the Finals. 

 

Why oh why is Melissa Rycroft in the touring show instead of a real pro? Their dance grinded to a halt when she came in and it's not lie she's a big star or anything

 

.

Not a big star and an average dancer who was overscored to her win. 

 

Pretty cool night. The second round was rendered pretty much useless with the 10 free-for-all (seriously, it was like an episode of Oprah "you get a 10, you get a 10") but really we all saw that coming so whatever. Rumer and Val's Contemporary was definitely ambitious and interestingly I felt like Val was the one who barely did much but it was good. A bit of a hodgepodge of styles but beautiful to look at and well danced. 

 

I admire Sharna's skills at basically making it look like Noah was doing a lot when it was really 2 minutes of the troupe males moving him from position to position. But look, the thing is, the man is clearly limited and there are things that he just physically cannot do which means she has to be clever and I don't judge her for it. Hell I give her props just like I did Derek for the stuff he came up with for Amy, even though I definitely think she did more dancing than Noah has done. And don't get me wrong, I totally get people's frustration with his scores and him likely making the Finals but honestly, I saw it happening since mid-season, so I'm kind of ambivalent about the whole thing. 

 

Riker and Allison's Argentine Tango was good, but I felt like Julianne stayed a little too long, to the point that it was starting to feel like a trio. She looked absolutely stunning though. Of course, her staying so long just highlighted to me how Allison's skill in that dance was not fully up to par. She was good, don't get me wrong, but some of her lines were not as sleek and stunning like I've seen from the other Pro women. Still a cool dance. Although I have to say, Riker does not sell intense and smoldering well at all - he just looked more confused than anything in the face.

 

The Nastia/Derek/Len dance was definitely a tug at the heart-string number. I did love how everyone was in tears but Len himself (well and probably Nastia - she's just not much of a crier). That old coot will always be his cranky self. But it was a beautiful and simple story and a very poignant tribute. I also think the judges may have all felt it so much too because they're all dancers on some level and all understand what it means for a dancer when they get to that point where their body just isn't what it once was anymore. Also, with regards to the actual dance, I very rarely watch the Pros when watching the couples but I couldn't help looking at Derek but it was because he was so not dancing to his level in my opinion and it was very obvious. He was very heavy footed in that dance and seemingly had none of the toe heels and glides you usually expect from the Standard dances. But I guess it's fine because he's not the one being judged and scored. 

 

For the first round, I only really loved Nastia's Quickstep. That was a full out, no holds barred Quickstep and she nailed it. Val and Rumer's Viennese Waltz was a little too dramatic for me and I get that they were dancing to a song from  50 Shades of Grey but after the second time of Val practically grabbing onto Rumer's boob, the whole thing got too weird for me. Noah and Sharna's VW was pretty but am I the only one who was a little uncomfortable by the end with her walking up the stairs like Noah does? I'm sure she was going for a poignant moment but the whole thing just felt a bit uncomfortable for me. No comment on the proposal - good for them but I never care about people and their engagements. 

 

Riker's contemporary was good and I expected it to be because really this is pretty much Allison's wheelhouse so I would expect this would be the one thing she should not mess up. But I didn't love it. It was okay but I felt like it was a lot of  Allison dramatically flying around and making dramatic faces rather than Riker being amazing. 

Edited May 12, 2015 by truthaboutluv

[TeeMo]

It's hard to tell where all the chips will fall but I think Rumer and Riker are the two most in danger of going home tomorrow. It's too bad, the finals should be Rumer/Riker/Nastia. 

 

Convenient that Derek was cleared to do more significant dancing as soon as that Radio City show closed last week. I expect we've seen the last Sasha/Nastia dance for the season.