S21: Tamar Braxton: Dancing All The Way Home

[Andie1]

.

 

But both of their gigs are long over.  I think that only counts if the people in question are still employed by Disney/ABC.  The Spy Kids franchise last produced a movie in 2011 and Alexa was barely in it as she was already all grown up by then.

How long they are contractually obligated to ABC is anyone's guess. Obviously there's a history and a reason to retain a relationship. The dancers sign 5 year contracts, they might not be used for that full period, they may be released to do projects with other groups, but there it is.

[Andie1]

Amber Riley won while she was a regular cast member on a FOX show. She wasn't in every episode of Glee that season, but she did film some while she was on DWTS.

If Amber was a regular on Glee when she appeared on DWTS it's quite likely she wouldn't have time for dwts..  She was dropped as a regular, and was demoted to  "a re-occurring character"  so she was shopping.  That made it real easy for her to exploit her Gleeks and shill for votes on ABC. Like Pickler she dropped or maybe was dropped from her record label - a single had poor record sales and now she's possibly signed with another label.  Hollywood records owned by ABC?   Since she's been on DWTS singing  for the 10th anniversary no doubt she'll be on other ABC shows, when they can use her. Zendaya was just on Blackish. 

Edited October 15, 2015 by Andie1

[Snarklepuss]

I don't really know much about Tamar Braxton other than that she is a member of the Braxton family of TV fame, so when people have been going on about the lack of facial expression when dancing I almost wondered if she was just the kind of person who didn't have a broad range of facial expression.  So I took to the internet and Googled on "Tamar Braxton Facial Expressions" and found this compilation of GIFs of her making various facial expressions and WOW now I totally GET the criticism because she is certainly capable of and known for a broad range of expression in her daily life.  Here's the link:

 

Tamar’s Best Facial Expressions in GIFs

When it comes to giving good eye roll and sass for the gawds, Tamar Braxton is the MVP of face! We can alway . . .

 

http://thereal.com/2015/06/22/tamars-best-facial-expressions-in-gifs/

[NowVoyager]

OOOOOOO-KAY!

I don't regularly watch DWTS so I only logged on to complain about the close scores between Tamar & Paula this episode. I learned a few things from reading the posts here (thank you all for that!); that the "stars" are basically graded on a curve & that Tamar's current schedule is even crazier than I thought (thanks spanana!) She's booked, honey! I noticed she didn't show up today for her talk show "The Real" & I thought it was because she was emotionally devastated by her performance. From watching her on "The Braxton's" I know she's such a perfectionist. The other co-hosts made a point to encourage her through the teevee that she can come back from a poor (for her) performance. But, with alllll she has going on, maybe she really just needed the rest.

Edited October 15, 2015 by NowVoyager

[smiley13]

I had never heard of this woman before she was cast on the show, so all I know about her is what I have seen on DWTS.  And what I have seen, I don't really care for.  Is that due to the Producer's editing, possibly, but she had to actually roll her eyes for them to get footage of her rolling her eyes. 

[PTVjones]

I would just like to point out that besides commenting on the fact he thought Tamar did well in the switch-up week dance, Val has not said a word about being back with Tamar, or looking forward to being back with Tamar but is still posting or retweeting about Bindi as of last night... Just sayin. Maybe we just have to concede that this is not a succesfull partnership. However since they are both professionals (Tamar is for sure a perfectionist and many arguments she's had w/ her sisters have been about her perfectionism) hopefully they can still produce quality performances. 

 

Oh and I think rolling your eyes in jest and rolling your eyes with the intention or disrespecting or belittling someone are two different things. 

 

Edited to include this thank you message: I find it refreshing to have an honest talk about race, gender roles, or generally "heavy issues" in a way where people can state their POV in a mature and thoughtful way. Thanks guys for making something seemingly trivial like a dance competition be a pathway for deeper discussions. 

Edited October 15, 2015 by PTVjones

[katha]

I would just like to point out that besides commenting on the fact he thought Tamar did well in the switch-up week dance, Val has not said a word about being back with Tamar, or looking forward to being back with Tamar but is still posting or retweeting about Bindi as of last night... Just sayin. Maybe we just have to concede that this is not a succesfull partnership. However since they are both professionals (Tamar is for sure a perfectionist and many arguments she's had w/ her sisters have been about her perfectionism) hopefully they can still produce quality performances. 

I think there's quite a bit of partnerships not really meshing this season and that might give all of those slightly awkward pairings a shot at doing well anyway? I feel Bindi/Derek are a success, Nick/Sharna (though not everything works and I know they edited him to pieces this week, but his intensity might be off-putting to some of the audience anyway), Alek/Lindsay (though his limitations as a performer are coming to the fore now) and Hayes/Emma (though he's not a super dancer IMO). Everyone else is being slightly strained around each other and that was exposed during switch-up. And since you can't eliminate them all at once, some of them have a shot at doing well for themselves despite not being ideal pairings (I think Paula and Andy are the most vulnerable right now, but who knows how voting looks like...).

 

I think Paula's probably going next week, though Louis might have unwittingly "helped" himself by overshooting so in the choreo for Tamar. She's got quite a cushion on Paula and a good fanbase, but is that fanbase interested in DWTS since Tamar doesn't seem that invested in it either? While Paula appeals to the core demo of the show and had a good (for her) and (more importantly) memorable dance with Mark which might have brought in lots of votes. Alek is rather low on the scoreboard as well, but I think he has the votes (who knows, though). I think Hayes has the votes. Alexa and Carlos are big question marks voting-wise for me after this week's overscoring extravaganza, but it should have given them enough of a cushion for this week. Andy had a good dance, but was it memorable enough to get him completely out of danger zone?

[dwtsgueststars]

Tamar hasnt been on her show as well because she's sick.

 

Looking at the numbers, i wouldn't be surprised if she goes home.

https://twitter.com/DWTSGossip/status/653918128456339456/photo/1

[Andie1]

Yep, they are giving her the heave ho, and Val hasn't done much to keep her either.  Watch how little old racist Grandma stays. 

Edited October 15, 2015 by Andie1

[realdancemom]

If there is a conspiracy with Tamar, Louis is not in on it.  He looked pissed during the judging comments.  I bet he was not happy with the scores either because they were definitely low when you consider all the other scores.  But TPTB don't care about Louis either.  He's only back because Paula asked for him.

 

Louis was too ambitious.  But what I noticed in their package is that Tamar never complained.  She worked hard to try to learn that choreography.  She did a lot of steps well even though she did look off balanced with other steps.  I'm wondering if it was her boots.  The heels looked really high.  Ballroom shoes usually have a 2 1/2 inch heel.  My DD did special order a 3 inch heel but Tamar's looked even higher than that.   

 

As I previously mentioned, she does need to work on her facial expression.  If she looked like she was having fun, then the little bobbles wouldn't have mattered that much.

[Wings]

Yep, they are giving her the heave ho, and Val hasn't done much to keep her either.  Watch how little old racist Grandma stays. 

 

 

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!  

[spanana]

Assuming Tamar gets through this elimination, which I think she will, she does have a big chance to redeem herself.  She and Val are dancing to Rhythm Nation next week.  I don't know what dance they have, but I'm guessing it's going to be jazz which means at least she will be more in her comfort zone and not worrying about ballroom technique.

 

Then again, I'm not sure how successful Val has been with jazz on this show.  He's been successful with contemporary, but his jazz track record is shaky.  His one with Janel got a perfect score, but that was more musical theatre than jazz.  Rumer's jazz was probably one of her weakest routines and Liz Berkely's wasn't great either (though the last one was partly on her).

 

On top of that Tamar is sick and has a show in NYC on Saturday night, so we'll see.  Tamar can't control the editing, but if she gets out there and looks like she's having a great time, it helps.  At the very least she should be more in her comfort zone.

 

I have no idea what is going on with Tamar/Val, but I think they were getting along up until this point.  I imagine Val is frustrated with certain things, like Tamar's time constraints in terms of rehearsing, but I don't now if something has shifted.  I guess we'll find out.

[mrsmit7]

I think Val & Tamar get on fine. They are friends, respect eachother, and are working hard. I think some of u are use to Val with partners who are young, single, and/or with dwts as their only obligation.

Tamar has like 10 jobs on top of being a wife & a mom...she doesn't have time to hang and be besties with Val like that...theyre cool tho

Val seemed to post more about the snake than bindi.

I'm looking forward to see how they handle rhythm nation

[Uke]

If there is a conspiracy with Tamar, Louis is not in on it.  He looked pissed during the judging comments.  I bet he was not happy with the scores either because they were definitely low when you consider all the other scores.  But TPTB don't care about Louis either.  He's only back because Paula asked for him.

 

Louis was too ambitious.  But what I noticed in their package is that Tamar never complained.  She worked hard to try to learn that choreography.  She did a lot of steps well even though she did look off balanced with other steps.  I'm wondering if it was her boots.  The heels looked really high.  Ballroom shoes usually have a 2 1/2 inch heel.  My DD did special order a 3 inch heel but Tamar's looked even higher than that.   

 

As I previously mentioned, she does need to work on her facial expression.  If she looked like she was having fun, then the little bobbles wouldn't have mattered that much.

 

 I went back to re-watch and I was wondering about the boots. Don't ballroom shoes have a break or something in the sole to make it more flexible. I'd guess if Tamar's boots were regular off-the-shelf boots, they'd be quite rigid, and depending on the bottoms, either too slippery or too "sticky".  Fashion boots like she was wearing will have a too-high heel that the pros can handle but the stars should really stay away from - even if they are used to walking around in super-high heels.

 

I agree Louis just got too excited to have a capable dancer after so many weeks with Paula and he just over did it with the choreography and the footwear.

 

I will stick to my original opinion that the Tamar-Louis connection was better than the Tamar-Val connection.

[Andie1]

Apparently Maks is going to sit in for Tamar on The Real show tomorrow.  Either she's still sick or she's doing extra time catching up for next week. I had strep throat last week, it's one bitch of a virus to get rid of, so hope she doesn't have that. Regardless it's a lousy way to leave.

[Andie1]

 

I went back to re-watch and I was wondering about the boots. Don't ballroom shoes have a break or something in the sole to make it more flexible.

 

I am pretty sure Tamar was wearing latin boots, the construction is the same as  latin heels  http://www.ekclothing.com/shoes-boots.html#1

It's kind of the new thing for dancers, but they were high and considering Louis is vertically challenged  we can only speculate as to why she wasn't in lower heels. 

Edited October 16, 2015 by Andie1

[mrsmit7]

I don't see Tamar leaving this week at all. I think she will at least outlast paula, andy, and both of the penavegas

[OakGoblinFly]

I am pretty sure Tamar was wearing latin boots, the construction is the same as  latin heels  http://www.ekclothing.com/shoes-boots.html#1

It's kind of the new thing for dancers, but they were high and considering Louis is vertically challenged  we can only speculate as to why she wasn't in lower heels. 

 

 

I never liked the look of the dance boot; I think it detracts for the lines of the leg.

[Andie1]

In some ways yes, but in other ways its appropriate, I mean this was a military kind of drum line inspired dance.  My favorite "boots" weren't really boots at all, Kym Johnson wore her latin shoes but had material made to make it look like boots for the freestyle she did with Hines Ward.  I loved everything about that freestyle.  Her costume was amazing, and has been re-used on this show.  Hines' drum major outfit was adorable.

[realdancemom]

I am pretty sure Tamar was wearing latin boots, the construction is the same as  latin heels  http://www.ekclothing.com/shoes-boots.html#1

It's kind of the new thing for dancers, but they were high and considering Louis is vertically challenged  we can only speculate as to why she wasn't in lower heels. 

Tamar could have been practicing with regular Latin heels.  So she could have been doing fine and Louis didn't worry about it.  I don't know when they start wearing their costumes.  If she didn't practice with these high Latin boots until the day before or Monday, then I can see why Tamar might have been unsure of her footing.  Her heels were not just high but they were slim similar to the boots in the top part of your link.   I'm too old to watch music videos.  I'm guessing that the wardrobe people/Louis wanted Tamar to dress like Beyonce and the boots were part of the look.

 

ETA - Put link of the slim heel boot:

 

http://www.ekclothing.com/3301-blksatblkheel.html#.ViEP7it8rFw

Edited October 16, 2015 by realdancemom

[Andie1]

You make an excellent point realdancemom,  in rehearsal she's in sneakers learning those bachacatas, and I saw a clip of her regular latin heels, another clip in chuck taylors,  and another clip with beige boots but the heel was the wider type. Her performance boots were black just like the ones you highlighted on the link. She very well could have been off balance due to the skinny heel.  We just don't know, but it's plausible that all these shoe changes didn't help.  Normally you try to get the student  used to the performance shoes as quickly as possible. Given these clips  I'm not sure if she even wore them in practice. 

 

Edited October 16, 2015 by Andie1

[Andie1]

Assuming Tamar gets through this elimination, which I think she will, she does have a big chance to redeem herself.  She and Val are dancing to Rhythm Nation next week.  I don't know what dance they have, but I'm guessing it's going to be jazz which means at least she will be more in her comfort zone and not worrying about ballroom technique.

 

Then again, I'm not sure how successful Val has been with jazz on this show.  He's been successful with contemporary, but his jazz track record is shaky.  His one with Janel got a perfect score, but that was more musical theatre than jazz.  Rumer's jazz was probably one of her weakest routines and Liz Berkely's wasn't great either (though the last one was partly on her).

 

On top of that Tamar is sick and has a show in NYC on Saturday night, so we'll see.  Tamar can't control the editing, but if she gets out there and looks like she's having a great time, it helps.  At the very least she should be more in her comfort zone.

 

I have no idea what is going on with Tamar/Val, but I think they were getting along up until this point.  I imagine Val is frustrated with certain things, like Tamar's time constraints in terms of rehearsing, but I don't now if something has shifted.  I guess we'll find out.

 

I still think that despite the issues with the Samba, she has the best ballroom technique this season.  I don't know about this jazz piece? Given that RN is old school hip hop with a strong drum line,   I would think Rhythm Nation could be an outstanding Paso Doble, and Val does some great ones, unless the idea is to re-do the choreography and not do a tribute to the dance. This year the BET Awards had singer Ciara on doing Rhythm Nation and while it was good, to do it exactly like Janet is pretty tough.  Another tribute back in the early 2000's to Miss Jackson included Rhythmn Nation (Mya Pink and Usher) and they were all in long leather jackets, which was a cool effect. That type of costuming can be pretty effective for Paso. If it becomes Jazz, it's not Val's comfort zone and that worries me. I prefer that he teach his expertise.

Edited October 16, 2015 by Andie1

[spanana]

One thing Derek said in his blog for this week is that the pros don't have a lot of room for interpretation this week.  It sounds like they were mostly asked to replicate either existing famous movie scenes or performances, within the context of their dance of course.  Bindi has a Dirty Dancing rumba, but they are expected to stick as close to the famous choreography as possible.   Alexa has to replicate Britney's VMA performance to a degree and etc.  So I expect whatever their dance is that they will stick as closely as possible to the iconic choreo/feel of Janet's performance.

[Artymouse]

A Janet Jackson RN-inspired dance sounds very cool, especially with Tamar.

If they're redoing Britney's VMA performance (the one with the python I'm guessing), I guess we should thank our lucky stars they gave it to Alexa rather than to Paula.

[Andie1]

So no ballroom dancing.  This sucks.  It sounds like the mess they are trying with the new Fox show  they have to be as close as possible to the original.

[Andie1]

A Janet Jackson RN-inspired dance sounds very cool, especially with Tamar.

If they're redoing Britney's VMA performance (the one with the python I'm guessing), I guess we should thank our lucky stars they gave it to Alexa rather than to Paula.

It would have made more sense for Bindi the Zoo child to get the snake. 

[Artymouse]

That was my first thought, but I guess with Bindi being young, they're trying to stay away from the overtly sexy stuff. Though Britney wasn't much older than Bindi when she did the dance.

[OnceSane]

A Janet Jackson RN-inspired dance sounds very cool, especially with Tamar.

If they're redoing Britney's VMA performance (the one with the python I'm guessing), I guess we should thank our lucky stars they gave it to Alexa rather than to Paula.

Why am I not on the show this season (besides the fact that I'm not famous in the least)? I still know most of the RN choreography from the music video by heart.

[dizzyizzy01]

But both of their gigs are long over.  I think that only counts if the people in question are still employed by Disney/ABC.  The Spy Kids franchise last produced a movie in 2011 and Alexa was barely in it as she was already all grown up by then.  Carlos show ended in 2013.  Carlos next gig after DWTS is the live version of Grease which is airing on Fox, not ABC.  

 

 

 

Andie1 is actually stating a lot of misinformation.  Viacom and Food Network have nothing to do with ABC/Disney. Carlo's show was on Nick which is a competitor of Disney.  Also, ABC doesn't own Universal.  That's NBC.  The conspiracy theories are really reaching IMO.  For better or worse, the only thing these producers care about is ratings.

[Andie1]

Andie1 is actually stating a lot of misinformation.  Viacom and Food Network have nothing to do with ABC/Disney. Carlo's show was on Nick which is a competitor of Disney.  Also, ABC doesn't own Universal.  That's NBC.  The conspiracy theories are really reaching IMO.  For better or worse, the only thing these producers care about is ratings.

No where did I say that Universal or Viacom were part of ABC/Disney, but in the case of the Food Network there are ABC affliates that have interest in that channel.  But yeah, it's not a conspiracy to know where and why these celebrities are signing on. It's just a fact that those with strong ABC connections are going to have more promotion than others. ESPN is ABC/Disney that's why we have a bunch of footballers on the show, and Erin Andrews.  Shawn Johnson had a Disney contract,  Helio and Indy was ESPN,  Kristie Yamaguchi ESPN/Stars on Ice, Brooke Burke a hosting job, Melissa Rycroft,  etc. etc... it's not a surprise. we get Alfonso in Tom's old job with America's Funniest Videos... the list continues, and this stuff is inked well before they finish their run on DWTS to find out who wins and who doesn't.

Edited October 17, 2015 by Andie1

[dizzyizzy01]

No where did I say that Universal or Viacom were part of ABC/Disney, but in the case of the Food Network there are ABC affliates that have interest in that channel.  But yeah, it's not a conspiracy to know where and why these celebrities are signing on. It's just a fact that those with strong ABC connections are going to have more promotion than others. ESPN is ABC/Disney that's why we have a bunch of footballers on the show, and Erin Andrews.  Shawn Johnson had a Disney contract,  Helio and Indy was ESPN,  Kristie Yamaguchi ESPN/Stars on Ice, Brooke Burke a hosting job, Melissa Rycroft,  etc. etc... it's not a surprise. we get Alfonso in Tom's old job with America's Funniest Videos... the list continues, and this stuff is inked well before they finish their run on DWTS to find out who wins and who doesn't.

 

You said in a previous post that Carlos had some Disney connection through his Viacom show and Tamar's Sony label  is a competitor against "ABC's Universal".  Either way, obviously ABC tries to cross promote content when they can (e.g., why there's a Disney night), but I can guarantee you the producers do not care who wins as long as the ratings are consistently good.  They edit to tell stories they think are interesting and draw viewers in, whether it works is another story.  There's no master plan to handicap Tamar.

Edited October 17, 2015 by dizzyizzy01

[Uke]

In some ways yes, but in other ways its appropriate, I mean this was a military kind of drum line inspired dance.  My favorite "boots" weren't really boots at all, Kym Johnson wore her latin shoes but had material made to make it look like boots for the freestyle she did with Hines Ward.  I loved everything about that freestyle.  Her costume was amazing, and has been re-used on this show.  Hines' drum major outfit was adorable.

That's interesting about Kym's "boot" being latin heels made to look like boots. It makes a lot of sense.

It just seems like a boot would be quite restrictive in moving the foot - especially for a newbie dancer.  Hmmmm. I think I'd call out Louis on this one. Tamar might not have recognized the difference in dancing in a proper shoe vs in a boot but Louis should have.

[Danseur]

I thought Tamar would have a great dance with Louis and was disappointed with how it turned out, but I have high hopes for the Rhythm Nation dance. I think Tamar is the best natural dancer and this dance seems like another great one for her. Val can come up with good choreography so I'm not worried about their dance either.

But viewer perception is definitely being affected by either the scripts/edits and/or her relationship to Val, which might be fine, but it's definitely doesn't seem the same as many of his relationships with former partners. One of my good friends who is a devoted Val fan told me he has usually posted lots of photos on IG of his partners during former seasons, but is posting very few of Tamar. It doesn't have to mean anything, but it doesn't help from the crazy fandom perspective.

At my friend's request, I looked through comments on both Val's and Tamar's IG and YouTube videos. She is getting some pretty harsh treatment in all three places and from her response, I think she's hurt. Many of the worst attacks are coming from the usual place, but also from Val fans who don't like how she treats Val, as if they have a way of actually knowing.

I'm not a big Val fan but I like him and I love watching him dance, especially when he has a good partner. The incapacity to allow people to be individuals with individual personalities is perplexing and wearisome. If fans don't like someone, fine. That's natural. But why not express dislike in a civil way? I don't think it helped Val's cause for him to engage his accusers last week, but it's hard to resist self-defense when you're falsely accused.

After the brouhaha, I was hoping Val and Bindi would hit it out of the park with their dance and that he would be vindicated by her praise. I couldn't have been happier with the result. It didn't shut the mouths of all the critics, but it certainly disproved all the "child abuse" fears and accusations, which were ridiculous in my opinion. I'm hoping the same thing happens for Tamar.

There is a wide enough margin between her numbers and Paula's/Andy's that I don't think she'll be eliminated this week. I always want to see the better dancers make it to the finals and I'm hoping Tamar will be there. Tamar leaving before Paula would be like Brandy leaving before Bristol.

The show has problems, the Pros have problems and so do the celebs, judges and hosts. Well, maybe we can exempt Tom since he's pretty close to perfect. But fans do more to make me want to stop watching the show than anything else I find to criticize. I can only imagine what it would be like to be on the receiving end of some of the barbs and fiery darts hurled at Tamar this week and at others who are part of a show meant to entertain us. I can't remember who described these types of people as cockroaches that you can't get rid of, but it's a perfect metaphor. There's no way to turn on a light and make them disappear into the darkness from whence they came.

[Andie1]

You said in a previous post that Carlos had some Disney connection through his Viacom show and Tamar's Sony label  is a competitor against "ABC's Universal".  Either way, obviously ABC tries to cross promote content when they can (e.g., why there's a Disney night), but I can guarantee you the producers do not care who wins as long as the ratings are consistently good.  They edit to tell stories they think are interesting and draw viewers in, whether it works is another story.  There's no master plan to handicap Tamar.

What can you guarantee? ABC is interested in ratings, sure,

they are trotting out Alfonso every chance they get because he's going to be the face of a high rated ABC show. Some would say that may have the opposite affect since many have grown tired of him.  But this is what they are about.

Universal and ABC have a very strong connection in distribution agreements, they're different companies sure, but a lot of the American Music Awards is about promoting the Universal Music Group  Artists, and that awards show is also always telecast on ABC. To contend that there is no manipulation of the show to highlight their own is ridiculous. They do care who wins because they win. 

Edited October 17, 2015 by Andie1

[Andie1]

That's interesting about Kym's "boot" being latin heels made to look like boots. It makes a lot of sense.

It just seems like a boot would be quite restrictive in moving the foot - especially for a newbie dancer.  Hmmmm. I think I'd call out Louis on this one. Tamar might not have recognized the difference in dancing in a proper shoe vs in a boot but Louis should have.

Well the first time I saw these types of boots was a couple of seasons ago,  Janel Parrish wore them quite a bit, but the difference was Janel wore them a lot in rehearsal, which was crucial to getting used to the construction. I'm not sure that Tamar got the same amount of "breaking in" time.

Edited October 17, 2015 by Andie1

[Andie1]

 

Many of the worst attacks are coming from the usual place, but also from Val fans who don't like how she treats Val, as if they have a way of actually knowing.

 

I am a fan of Val, but this is turning me off him.  This kind of adoration that he can't be criticized makes me sad that the pros are somehow above the celebrities that come on this show.  I got turned off Derek in a big way when the narrative became he's the greatest choreographer since the beginning of time, and the rabbid defense of that narrative makes it impossible to critique when he does the stinkers. Both these guys are young men who have said mean things to their celebrities from time to time. To deny their bully tactics is wrong.  I am always for the student of dance who is trying to learn, gets frustrated in the learning and is allowing us to see them, warts and all.  I think with last week's package of Tamar and Louis you could see her willingness to really dig down and try to learn something completely foreign to her, but she was game. For that, I'm her fan first. As for the social media stuff, it is very possible that Tamar doesn't want to have a running commentary of Val and Tamar together, all the rabid fan speculation of people hooking up or sleeping together or whatever is distasteful. Weird ass shippers will say anything and they don't care.

Edited October 17, 2015 by Andie1

[Mbeaker]

As a Tamar fan, I'm frustrated with how this season is going. Not all of which has to do with editing. My main issue with her is the disconnect during some of the dances. And to me that is squarely a direct result of her tendency to go blank in the face. And I'm not only now seeing it because it's become her "storyline". I made a mental note of it before the judges. It's the one thing that makes me not enjoy her dances to the fullest. She's my favorite, and I find her technique to be the best of all the celebs. Performance value counts though, and if she could improve on that it would just kick up the overall effect a few notches.

As for the whole ABC affiliation having anything to do with who is crowned a winner... I don't subscribe to that. Too simplistic a view when there are multiple factors in determining our winners, such as likability, dance ability, fan base, and freestyle performance. Alfonso's name has been brought up. Sure, he bugs now, but he had all the before mentioned factors going for him. If not Alfonso, who "should" have won?

Anyway, to bring this back to Tamar - I'll be surprised if she's the one eliminated on Monday, and I think Rhythm Nation lends itself perfectly for redemption from last week.

Edited October 17, 2015 by Mbeaker

[Uke]

But viewer perception is definitely being affected by either the scripts/edits and/or her relationship to Val, which might be fine, but it's definitely doesn't seem the same as many of his relationships with former partners. One of my good friends who is a devoted Val fan told me he has usually posted lots of photos on IG of his partners during former seasons, but is posting very few of Tamar. It doesn't have to mean anything, but it doesn't help from the crazy fandom perspective.

At my friend's request, I looked through comments on both Val's and Tamar's IG and YouTube videos. She is getting some pretty harsh treatment in all three places and from her response, I think she's hurt. Many of the worst attacks are coming from the usual place, but also from Val fans who don't like how she treats Val, as if they have a way of actually knowing.

 

 

At week 6 now, I tend to think the typical viewer who tunes in each week and votes for their favorite has by now already picked the team they like best.  If their favorite gets eliminated, I'm not so sure they latch on to another couple.

 

The "usual place" eased up a bit on Val this week since he paired with Bindi and did very well and they don't want to associate their negativity with Bindi. I don't see them having an issue with Tamar, except for who her partner is.  Val's superfans seem like a bunch of 13 year olds, shipping him with whatever partner they like and slamming whatever partner/pro dancer/etc. they think is getting in the way of Val & [fill in the blank]'s truuuuuue luuuuv.  I don't think those superfans are representative of the average viewer who watches the show and votes.  If Tamar came into the show with a strong and dedicated fan base, I wonder why some of them aren't defending her on IG.

[Andie1]

I guess my question to those who think ABC affliation has nothing to do with the winner is to ask yourself who of all the winners has not inked some sort of deal that would involve ABC/Disney   I can think of one, Jr Martinez.  Yes he was on an ABC soap, but he isn't on the radar since, and he wasn't invited to the 10th anniversary show.

I remember the season Mark Dacascos was on, he had no prior affliation with ABC and he was not treated the same.  He had to go to NYC to tape for iron chef,  his pro partner Lacey flew with him, she got sick so he couldn't rehearse. Tony was in town and tried to give him some basics but no choreography. He came back to LA on no sleep to work with Anna on the Sunday before the show.  His Samba wasn't great but it was better than what the judges gave him- low enough to put him  in the bottom . Rather than giving him a chance to be saved or voted off by the audience, they went to a dance off against Aaron Carter who wasn't getting the vote at all, was constantly in the bottom, but he was an experienced dancer, and he was a disney kid. Kind of a male Sabrina Bryan but less likable. ABC did that.  I don't forget.

[Artymouse]

I don't think Amber Riley was connected to ABC. Wasn't Glee on Fox? And I can't think of any ABC connections that Rumer had.

[Andie1]

I don't think Amber Riley was connected to ABC. Wasn't Glee on Fox? And I can't think of any ABC connections that Rumer had.

Amber is connected to ABC she was a guest artist on the 10th Anniversary show, so she'll be around. Also, she wasn't a full time cast member of Glee at the time of DWTS so she was shopping. 

Rumer's connection to ABC goes all the way back to her family, her mom on General Hospital and her dad on Moonlighting.  Of course they were going to treat Rumer royaly getting A listers who were once ABC employees. Rumer has enjoyed the spoils of winning, having being able to sing when she couldn't dance on the dwts tour.

[OnceSane]

The topic is Tamar. Please stick to it.

[Andie1]

The issues surrounding Tamar may be all circumstantial, yet it seems from her very first dance there has been negativity where there doesn't need to be.  If her first package was edited with high fives instead of disagreements I don't think there would be the level of nastiness there is out there against her. ABC absolutely controls that. The fact that they chose what they chose to undermine the best dancer this season is what they do. There are reasons for it, one of which is to elevate other dancers who may not be as good.

At week 6 now, I tend to think the typical viewer who tunes in each week and votes for their favorite has by now already picked the team they like best.  If their favorite gets eliminated, I'm not so sure they latch on to another couple.

 

The "usual place" eased up a bit on Val this week since he paired with Bindi and did very well and they don't want to associate their negativity with Bindi. I don't see them having an issue with Tamar, except for who her partner is.  Val's superfans seem like a bunch of 13 year olds, shipping him with whatever partner they like and slamming whatever partner/pro dancer/etc. they think is getting in the way of Val & [fill in the blank]'s truuuuuue luuuuv.  I don't think those superfans are representative of the average viewer who watches the show and votes.  If Tamar came into the show with a strong and dedicated fan base, I wonder why some of them aren't defending her on IG.

I think some of Tamar's fans just aren't into dwts.

[CED9]

Alexa was on Nashville which is ABC, so there's that.

As for Tamar, she doesn't really seem to be into promoting herself within the context of the show. Looking through her mentions, she's asked several times how/where to vote, and that's an issue. Val has a rabid fanbase, but it's really no bigger than Mark's so I don't think they can carry him (and Tamar) as far as people think. Especially now that Val has actually won a mirrorball. So much of the carrying was to get him that stupid trophy, and now that he has it, there are people out there who want a pro who hasn't won to win. Fair? Definitely not. But that can't be discounted, IMO.

[anonymiss]

Tamar was promoting DwtS every week except for this one where she got the clear message that the show doesn't want her around. And she's on sick leave from work.

[Mbeaker]

I can't speak on her relationship with Val, but I will say that I predicted many of these reactions before the season started. As someone who has known of Tamar long before DWTS, I know her personality is polarizing. She receives similar criticisms from Braxton Family Values fans. This isn't DWTS-specific. Her brand of humor and sass is simply not for everyone.

[spanana]

I think fans are two fold.  Celebs come into the season with one set of fans, the ones they had pre-DWTS and their hardcore fans.  Then they usually pick up a new set of fans for the show.  You really need to both to win IMO.  But how much the pre-existing fans get into he show, to me, is usually a result of how invested the celeb themselves seem to be in show.

 

So I don't think think Tamar is doing anything wrong.  She has hardcore fans who go hardcore for her.  But I don't think they are DWTS fans so they probably need to be told what to do and pushed into voting and caring.  Tamar will post one voting post a week, but beyond that, she doesn't really do anything to incite her fans and get them interested.  Whereas a lot of other celebrities will post numerous times about how fans can vote, post cute little videos with their pro or other celebs, and whatever they can do to drum up interest.  Tamar's fans are more invested in her music because that is largely what she posts about, which of course makes sense since that is her actual career.  But the fans take their lead from their celeb.

 

To me it's like the difference between a Cody Simpson and a Hayes.  Cody didn't act like he cared, so his fans didn't care enough to vote and keep him there.  Hayes on the other hand comes off invested and like he's having tons of fun, and as a result I think his fans are more invested in keeping him there.

 

Also at this point I think most of the casual fans have picked their horses in this race.  Val's hardcore fans are still hardcore, but I agree that now that he has his win they aren't as obsessed with him winning.  On top of that I agree that his young fans are mostly into the shipping aspect so they don't care if they don't have someone to ship him with.  Guarantee if Bindi was his regular partner there would be people shipping that.  Same way people still ship him with Janel (even though I don't think they talk), or people think that Rumer is his soulmate (which, what?).  His fans mostly like to attach themselves to a ship and declare that "Val has never acted like this before until X came into his life".  Rinse.  Repeat.

[mrsmit7]

As far as posting on SM, Val usually goes they way of his partner. If they post 10x a day he will tend to post a lot, and if they don't post much, he usually won't post much. I don't think it has much to do with how invested he is...Vals said himself that his downfall on the show is that he can't NOT be completely invested...even when he tells himself hes just gonna chill and relax.

I agree with whoever above me said that Tamar's number 1 problem is that blank face she gives. In fact it's her #1-10 problem. Personality, Chemistry with Val, technique...I'm fine with all that, but that face has got to be fixed starting THIS week.

The most frustrating thing is that it comes and goes and seems to pop up out of nowhere and completely take you out of the dance. Like if you go back and watch her samba, she will be either smiling/being fierce killing a section and then boom out of nowhere that 'deer in the headlights' 'I'm lost' look. I don't get it at all. If I were Val I would force her to watch back practices or the dances and have her stare in the mirror until she finds a game face, bc she could be so good if she just fixed that.

[spanana]

I am very curious what sort of package these two have this week.  According to fans, it looks like Tamar has now unfollowed Val on both twitter and instagram, which yes, it's just social media.  But she made a point to do it as she was most definitely following him before and at least engaging with him on social media.  I can't imagine she would unfollow him if they were having a great time with each other this week, so speculate away.

Edited October 17, 2015 by spanana

[PTVjones]

Tamar unfollowed Val??? Oh Lord, that seriously can't be good. Apparently Tamar is on sick leave and even missed a performance she has tonight at Madison Square Garden (unbeknownst to her fans who are not quite happy they bought tickets to a concert that she's not performing). Their performance may not be very good due to her sickness and lack of practice time. 

 

In response to 

But viewer perception is definitely being affected by either the scripts/edits and/or her relationship to Val, which might be fine, but it's definitely doesn't seem the same as many of his relationships with former partners. One of my good friends who is a devoted Val fan told me he has usually posted lots of photos on IG of his partners during former seasons, but is posting very few of Tamar. It doesn't have to mean anything, but it doesn't help from the crazy fandom perspective.

At my friend's request, I looked through comments on both Val's and Tamar's IG and YouTube videos. She is getting some pretty harsh treatment in all three places and from her response, I think she's hurt. Many of the worst attacks are coming from the usual place, but also from Val fans who don't like how she treats Val, as if they have a way of actually knowing.

Val fans are usually pretty divisive honestly. They very much have camps as to which partner they have preferred for Val and his comments often erupt into who was better. You'll still some comments about Zendaya and Janel on his pictures that have nothing to do w/ either of them or the show. 

 

It saddens me that they are not getting along as they seemed to get along in the beginning (if of course any of this is true). Maybe Tamar got a little jealous of the pre-package and feedback he received when he was with Bindi. Of course speculation but I can see why that would happen. 

Edited October 18, 2015 by PTVjones