S13.E09: Week 7

[ceebee]

Week 7 dances and songs:

Anita and Gleb are Jiving to ‘The Boy Does Nothing’ by former Strictly winner Alesha Dixon.

Carol and Pasha dance the American Smooth to ‘Man! I feel Like a Woman’ by Shania Twain.

Georgia and Giovanni dance the Samba to ‘Volare’ by The Gipsy Kings.

Helen and Aljaz will Rumba to ‘Hello” by Adele.

Jamelia and Tristan perform the Viennese Waltz to ‘Trouble’ by Ray LaMontagne.

Jay and Aliona perform the Argentine Tango to ‘Diferente’ by The Gotan Project.

Jeremy and Karen are dancing the Tango to ’Go West’ by The Pet Shop Boys.

Katie and Anton will Quickstep to ‘42nd Street’ from the musical 42nd Street.

Kellie and Kevin are going to Waltz to ‘Love Ain’t Here Anymore’ by Take That.

Peter and Janette will Charleston to ‘Do your Thing’ by Basement Jaxx.

On the Strictly playlist: http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/playlists/zzzzhg

Mostly 'appropriate' music this week. Poor Jeremy, though!

First Argentine Tango of the season to look forward to.

Please, British public, put Carol out of her (and my) misery this week...

[legaleagle53]

Well, Karen just assured me on Twitter that "it will all make sense when you see it come together" when I told Jeremy that I love the song (which I do, especially the Pet Shop Boys cover) but hated the song choice for a Tango, so we'll see.

[ceebee]

Some training snippets

https://amp.twimg.com/v/13b0fc7c-4b37-49e3-9441-8d891b46bd5d

Edited November 6, 2015 by ceebee

[Anothermi]

Well, Karen just assured me on Twitter that "it will all make sense when you see it come together" when I told Jeremy that I love the song (which I do, especially the Pet Shop Boys cover) but hated the song choice for a Tango, so we'll see.

 

My random prediction is that they're going to be depicting Woody and Jessie from Toy Story. If I'm wrong? Shrug. Been there done that.

Edited November 7, 2015 by Anothermi

[legaleagle53]

My random prediction is that they're going to be depicting Woody and Jessie from Toy Story. If I'm wrong? Shrug. Been there done that.

 

Except that that's not what the song is about -- the song predates the movie by at least 30 years, so there's no logical connection between the two.

[Anothermi]

Except that that's not what the song is about -- the song predates the movie by at least 30 years, so there's no logical connection between the two.

 

Hee! When has that ever stopped TPTB?

[ceebee]

We know there will be a cowboy hat. Poor Jezza.

On another note, I'm rather looking forward to Gleb rocking a boiler suit!

A leeetle nervous for Jay and his Argentine Tango. There hasn't been much to love about their training footage, but Aliona says it's going well....Fingers crossed.

Conversely, Georgia looking great in training.

Peter's charleston also looking good. I just do not like him.

The snippet of Jamelia's VW on ITT last night looked much better than I expected.

It's a constant refrain from me, but please let floppy, insipid Carol go....

Edited November 7, 2015 by ceebee

[legaleagle53]

Hee! When has that ever stopped TPTB?

 

Yeah, even I thought that as soon as I had posted what I wrote.  *sigh*  I can only take comfort in the fact that it would probably be even worse on DWTS (and as an American, I can't tell you how much that thought embarrasses me for my country!).

[Occasional Hope]

Is this the week Georgia made herself a genuine contender to win?

 

I loathe Peter Andre, but even I have to admit that was his dance, and very good.

 

I also loved Anita and Gleb's cheesetastic jive.  Talking about cheese, Jeremy's horse is the most ridiculous thing I've seen on this show since Ann Widdicombe's paso.

 

Helen always seems to be quite good, but I find I always forget her afterwards.

[Twickenham]

Once again, my comments are based on watching the Youtube clips put up by the BBC, plus the live blog on the Guardian's website: http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/live/2015/nov/07/strictly-come-dancing-2015-week-seven-live(really worth a read, the blogger is pretty spot on).

 

Peter Andre finally danced as well as we've all been expecting from him. Jeremy still made me giggle.

 

I thought both Jamelia's VW and Katie's quickstep were lovely, but both had small bobbles that unfortunately spoiled the overall performance.

 

Loved Jay's AT, but agree with the live blog that he needs to emote more - he needed just a shade more intensity.

 

Helen's legs were stunning, but she had no hip action whatsoever.

 

Anita and Gleb have really grown on me in recent weeks, and think with this jive they're serious contenders.

 

Someone in wardrobe really hates Kellie and Kevin. And why is she moving - does she think she'll be in the bottom 2 this week? OK, if confusing performance.

 

I'm finally on the G&G love train - that was an absolutely fabulous samba. Best dance of the night IMO.

[ceebee]

Peter danced really well. Loved the look and the concept. If I'm honest, though, I didn't detect a great deal of genuine Charleston content. He was complimented on the swivel, but to me that was only here and there. I liked the lifts and they were well integrated into the routine. Dunno if it deserved best score of the series, but it was probably best of the night, so, fair enough.

Jamelia started well but it became a little bumpy (and Tristan crashed them into the guitar!). Her best ballroom so far.

Carol. Urgh. I did watch, but nothing remains....floppy? Weak? Meh.

Helen could have done better (or I expected more, anyway). She's very stiff in her hips and some of the moves were half baked. The music overwhelmed, I think. Or the rumba didn't live up to the song..

Jay's was another where my expectation may have exceeded reality. It had enough quiet intensity for me, but would have like Jay to have more to do. Not sure I want him over-emoting, but a little more expression would be welcome. I do believe he 'feels' the dances (and has difficulty coming back down to Planet Tess and Claud afterwards;-)), but he'll be nagged about this by the judges if he doesn't show what he's feeling more. Love him still.

Katie's QS disappointed a little. Or Anton over-egged it and she had too much to do. Not sure which. She hasn't had a stellar performance for a while.

Anita (jive) good as always. She has monstrous amounts of energy! A tad too much showboating from Gleb, but a fun routine and I'm happy she got some 9s at last, even if I preferred last week's waltz.

Kellie (waltz). She always dances competently. Kevin always tells a story. It's always schmaltzy. I rarely love it.

Jeremy!!!! Tango!!! On a plastic horse!!!! Love him. Squirmed through a lot of this. He may need to go soon, or I will fall out of love.

Georgia's samba was great. A couple of glitches, but energetic and exuberant. Giovanni's bum went like the clappers. Fab. Camp. My favorite of the night.

Edited November 8, 2015 by ceebee

[Occasional Hope]

Well, I wasn't expecting Kellie in the danceoff, I thought she was high enough on the leader board to be OK even if she was bottom in the public vote, but obviously not.  Helen looked REALLY worried waiting, even before it got down to the wire; so did Jay but he always does.

 

Slightly ironic to see Giovanni at the poppy collecting event seeing as his country was on the Other Side in WWII (although they were on our side in WWI).

 

Carol was totally the right one to go.  That danceoff was basically pointless.  Jeremy should go soon, too, but he must have a really significant fan base.  I will laugh uncontrollably if Peter Andre goes ahead of him ;)

[Dots And Stripes]

Peter danced really well. Loved the look and the concept. If I'm honest, though, I didn't detect a great deal of genuine Charleston content. He was complimented on the swivel, but to me that was only here and there. I liked the lifts and they were well integrated into the routine. Dunno if it deserved best score of the series, but it was probably best of the night, so, fair enough.

Jamelia started well but it became a little bumpy (and Tristan crashed them into the guitar!). Her best ballroom so far.

Carol. Urgh. I did watch, but nothing remains....floppy? Weak? Meh.

Helen could have done better (or I expected more, anyway). She's very stiff in her hips and some of the moves were half baked. The music overwhelmed, I think. Or the rumba didn't live up to the song..

Jay's was another where my expectation may have exceeded reality. It had enough quiet intensity for me, but would have like Jay to have more to do. Not sure I want him over-emoting, but a little more expression would be welcome. I do believe he 'feels' the dances (and has difficulty coming back down to Planet Tess and Claud afterwards;-)), but he'll be nagged about this by the judges if he doesn't show what he's feeling more. Love him still.

Katie's QS disappointed a little. Or Anton over-egged it and she had too much to do. Not sure which. She hasn't had a stellar performance for a while.

Anita (jive) good as always. She has monstrous amounts of energy! A tad too much showboating from Gleb, but a fun routine and I'm happy she got some 9s at last, even if I preferred last week's waltz.

Kellie (waltz). She always dances competently. Kevin always tells a story. It's always schmaltzy. I rarely love it.

Jeremy!!!! Tango!!! On a plastic horse!!!! Love him. Squirmed through a lot of this. He may need to go soon, or I will fall out of love.

Georgia's samba was great. A couple of glitches, but energetic and exuberant. Giovanni's bum went like the clappers. Fab. Camp. My favorite of the night.

 

I agree with so much of this. Surprised Jamelia dodged the dance off. That was a boring dance and Tristan had a malfunction with the guitar, but I wonder if maybe she got enough sympathy for her comment about no one liking her last week. I think I may have said it last week, but as someone who was not aware of Jamelia before the show, she doesn't strike me as malicious. I can see why people would dislike her if she says outrageous and offensive things, but she comes across well enough on SCD.

 

I think Alijaz gave up on that rumba. Helen tends to look stiff at times as it is and I think that would get accentuated in such a slow dance, so Alijaz gave her some rumba-like moves instead of authentic content. He seemed to cop to that when he told Claudia they started with rumba walks and then started to trail off.

 

The best part of Carol's dance was the costume reveal, which has nothing to do with dancing really. I'm glad she left. She strikes me as a confident woman in general, but she does seem slightly embarrassed to be dancing. Jeremy is terrible but lacks shame, so he's more fun to watch.

 

Georgia and Giovanni were awesome! Too bad about that missed step in the middle. I'm happy though that she's now had two stand out weeks back to back. The fact that she did so well in tango and now samba bodes well for her longevity in this competition. 

[ceebee]

Well, I wasn't expecting Kellie in the danceoff, I thought she was high enough on the leader board to be OK even if she was bottom in the public vote, but obviously not. Helen looked REALLY worried waiting, even before it got down to the wire; so did Jay but he always does.

Slightly ironic to see Giovanni at the poppy collecting event seeing as his country was on the Other Side in WWII (although they were on our side in WWI).

Carol was totally the right one to go. That danceoff was basically pointless. Jeremy should go soon, too, but he must have a really significant fan base. I will laugh uncontrollably if Peter Andre goes ahead of him ;)

Yes, Kellie was a shocker and Kevin pops his dance off cherry!

So relieved to wave good-bye to Carol. She's universally liked, it seems, but I didn't want to watch her dance. I too would love Jezzer to outlast Pete...

I don't know if you're posting from the UK or US, but there's a bit of poppy fascism when it comes to appearing on the telly (especially on the BBC) and Giovanni will have been heavily leaned on. I fully support the poppy wearing, but you should be able to choose not to if you wish. Tristan copped a fair bit of flak about it, unfortunately.

Edited November 8, 2015 by ceebee

[Occasional Hope]

UK.  I agree people shouldn't feel obliged if they'd rather not.

[Anothermi]

My random prediction is that they're going to be depicting Woody and Jessie from Toy Story. If I'm wrong? Shrug. Been there done that.

 

Just ducking in before tomorrow night's show sweeps this one off our minds to note that although (thankfully) Jeremy's dance wasn't Toy Story themed, I wasn't too far off from what sprung to mind. Even Len mentioned Woody in his "critique". So, feeling sadly smug that I can think like a SCD producer. :-0

 

Otherwise, enjoyed the dances and felt G & G deserved to get the top marks this time.  Random thought: I wish Oti had gotten to stay longer.

[ceebee]

 

Random thought: I wish Oti had gotten to stay longer.

Oti's lovely in every way. She appeared on this evening's Children in Need Strictly/Call the Midwife Special. Hopefully she'll also do the Christmas show.

[legaleagle53]

Oti's lovely in every way. She appeared on this evening's Children in Need Strictly/Call the Midwife Special. Hopefully she'll also do the Christmas show.

 

I just watched the CIN special on YouTube.  My only question is why the show insisted on bringing Bruce back -- he's even more cringeworthy than ever.  The show was only 14 minutes long.  Couldn't they have let Tess do it by herself, or at least had Claudia or even Anton do it with her?

[Anothermi]

I just watched the CIN special on YouTube.  My only question is why the show insisted on bringing Bruce back -- he's even more cringeworthy than ever.  The show was only 14 minutes long.  Couldn't they have let Tess do it by herself, or at least had Claudia or even Anton do it with her?

 

Right. Thanks for the reminder of where to find it. I thought Laura and Brendan were the standouts, so no surprise they won. However, now I think they had an unfair advantage. Upon closer inspection Laura seemed to have an aircraft engine on her head! No wonder she was so fast and sharp and spun that back flip with ease! ;-)

[ceebee]

I just watched the CIN special on YouTube.  My only question is why the show insisted on bringing Bruce back -- he's even more cringeworthy than ever.  The show was only 14 minutes long.  Couldn't they have let Tess do it by herself, or at least had Claudia or even Anton do it with her?

I think offering Bruce the 'specials' allowed him to retire while still believing he was relevant to the show. If that's what it took to help him step down from the main show, then I'm grateful for small mercies. I fast forwarded past his bits last night...

Laura would be a good candidate for the main show next year and perhaps Jenny.

There was a lot of Strictly related content on CiN, but Peter Andre and his awful singing kept popping up and I had to skip it. Be gone, Orange Cheesy One.

[legaleagle53]

Laura would be a good candidate for the main show next year and perhaps Jenny.

 

Agreed.  The ladies were far better than the men, and Laura's Jive was especially impressive.  She must have quite a lot of natural dance ability to be able to pull off a sophisticated routine like that with such good technique and polish after only having three days to learn and master it.  Of course, she probably wouldn't be lucky enough to get Brendan as her pro during the main show!

[Occasional Hope]

My danceoff predictions for this week are Jamelia and Kellie.  That horrible rap/hip hop will have done Kellie no favours with a fair proportion of the audience; I had to turn off the sound and I bet my mum will have turned off the whole thing.