S23.E06: Week 4

[Picture It. Sicily]

24 minutes ago, bybrandy said:

I just don't understand why Julianne couldn't have said something like, "I'm sorry I made my comments about your dance in a way that made you feel that way."  Or something.  She could have said she was only responding to the quality of the dance but also met Amber halfway on the apology.

I don't understand why every time a person whines, they are deserving of an apology.

[truthaboutluv]

And Julianne apologized for her inconsiderate actions regarding the blackface. I don't think Amber was forced to do anything. At the end of the day, the show is not above milking drama (how many times and from how many angles did we see that Lochte drama) and I like Amber well enough but from everything I've observed of her over the years, I also know she's not stupid. In other words, she knew what would happen when she made these comments. And I think it would have been more awkward if the show just pretended that this wasn't all over the media all weekend and trust me, it was, considering how much it showed up on my twitter timeline.

And I just do not understand the notion that Julianne did not apologize, like Amber was forced to. Tom brought up the issue, asked if they'd had a chance to speak, they said no and before Julianne could say anything, Amber went into her apology. Julianne responded by talking about how dance celebrates everyone and that's why she loves it. She then stressed that her job is to judge the dancing and that's the only thing she was judging. In my opinion that was her making it very clear again that her uncomfortable comment was purely in reference to Amber's dancing in that number and not about her body. 

People are free to interpret Julianne's comment any way they want to. But seemed to me that Amber took something one way, Julianne made a public statement defending herself, Amber realized she may have been wrong and chose to be an adult and admit that and Julianne accepted it and they moved on. But for some that's not good enough because someone always needs to be a bad guy here no matter what, so some are still looking for fault in what Julianne said or didn't say or how she didn't say it, etc. 

Edited October 4, 2016 by truthaboutluv

[Picture It. Sicily]

22 minutes ago, Uke said:

Amber was put on the spot to apologize for her feelings.

Now she knows how Julianne felt when she decided to start a public beef, accusing her of body shaming. This isn't the only site I've seen people bringing up the blackface again. I'm sure julianne loves having that thrown back at her. I hope Amber gets sent packing for her desperate ploy for votes.

Edited October 4, 2016 by Picture It. Sicily
Damn auto correct

[LotusFlower]

16 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

This was Julianne's response to Amber saying she was body shamed, in its entirety:

Thanks, but I meant on the show.  (The poster said that Julianne explained her reason for being uncomfortable on the show).  I don't think she did, which I normally wouldn't care about, but the show made a big deal of it and put Amber on the spot, whereas Julianne never addressed her comment specifically.  I know you thought her point was clear, but it wasn't to me.  Instead she just talked about herself and her philosophy on dance in general.  

[bybrandy]

29 minutes ago, Picture It. Sicily said:

I don't understand why every time a person whines, they are deserving of an apology.

They aren't.  I don't particularly think Amber Rose needed to apologize for her feelings, either.  But I do think that once she did, I personally would have offered her one in kind.   It is just a way of acknowledging the other persons step with one of your own.  It is a bit of civility that doesn't cost anything.

I missed this dust up last week.  Didn't know anything about it until the show started.  From where I sat, just from what I saw on ABC during the show, Amber Rose overreacted to something that Julianne said during her dance.  Her feelings were hurt and she made a fuss about it.  However, by the time the week rolled around she acknowledged that she might have overreacted and apologized if Julianne didn't mean harm by her words.  

Julianne did not in any way admit that the words that she chose might have been somewhat ambiguous and that she understood how Amber Rose reacted that way.  It wasn't required of her.  But to me, she came off as a person who could give two fucks that she hurt a contestant. 

I fully believe Julianne did not intend to slut shame Amber Rose.

But I think she came off as kind of bitchy tonight when she could have come off as conciliatory.  It isn't her job to be conciliatory.  I just personally wouldn't want to lose a "who is the bigger person" war to Amber Rose.  To me, tonight, Julianne did.

[bantering]

I didn't think Amber should have been put on the spot. But I'm also not sure if she was dumb enough to actually make her comments to the Dancing with the Stars camera people. Initially,  I thought she had simply spoken to the media. But if she used the word "shamed" in talking to the camera people, which I'm now thinking she may have been foolish to do, then I guess I can see how that could have been used to confront her on the show.  

There wasn't really enough context from Julianne's comments to figure out what she meant, imo. She could have meant anything, but we can't know. Amber may have been projecting; she may have not -- but this is one of those situations where, if you want to make your feelings public, you go talk to Entertainment Tonight, not the Dancing with the Stars camera people, because clearly they will spring the video of you saying the words onto you before you enter the ballroom.

Normally Julianne Hough annoys me, but I'm not sure I would have apologized either if I really didn't mean ill-intent or malice with a word like "uncomfortable" (it's not a slur or anything like that  -- it's  a word which is very broad). Giving out an apology might have erroneously implied that she she really did mean to body-shame Amber when using the word "uncomfortable" (which, imo, I don't think Hough intended -- though, I'll admit I've come to this opinion because we don't have any context to prove what she meant and that's not where my mind would have gone. I probably wouldn't have registered the word simply because this is a dancing show and it's the early weeks, and most people's dancing is uncomfortable to watch. I feel uncomfortable just listening to Maureen McCormick speak about dancing.)

Edited October 4, 2016 by bantering

[SpikeGal]

4 hours ago, spanana said:

  This is the same woman that thought blackface was okay only a few short years ago.  I'm not going to pretend like Jules always knows where to draw the line.

 

Why, why, why, WHY did they bring her and her brother back?!

[Zuleikha]

Amber, a former stripper with a huge ass, was dancing a provocative number and, well, kind of looking like a stripper, which made Julianne, who has a goody-goody reputation, uncomfortable.  

Because champion Latin dancer Julianne, who also played a burlesque dancer in a movie about burlesque, has absolutely zero experience wearing sexy costumes and dancing in a sexy way and being around people wearing sexy clothes and dancing sexy. 

All Julianne said was that she felt uncomfortable. She didn't say anything even in the general direction of Amber's body. I have no idea why Amber came to the conclusion that Julianne was uncomfortable by Amber's body instead of her crappy dancing, but the clips tonight made it sound like Amber was feeling self-conscious about her booty shaking to begin with. As a result, she put Julianne in an impossible position. It's bizarre to me because I wouldn't have expected Amber Rose to be so self-conscious, but it seems to me that her confidence and advocacy are surface level rather than truly felt. For whatever reason, she seemed much more comfortable in the lingerie than the jean shorts, but while her facial expressions were much better, her dancing was still very weak. I thought the 8s were generous and were basically only given because the judges felt bad for her being so upset.

[SpikeGal]

4 hours ago, Emily-D said:

 Marilu is turning out to be really bad. Derek is giving her the choreography and staging to shine but she keeps messing up. I don't see this often with Derek's partners and it's actually quite satisfying to watch (evil cackle).

Me too! For once Mr. Derek isn't the Golden Boy and the trophy isn't in the bag this time! I guess even HE can only go so far!

[Lonesome Rhodes]

I am forever writing about the music on this show.  Tonight?  YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!  Actual George Harrison.  OMG.  Thank you, TPTB.  And another Beatles' song!  And MJ!  It makes such a profound difference when we get fantastic music which is not adapted so as to be unrecognizable or wildly out of place.  

Cirque du Soleil theme night is the best thing I've seen, excepting a couple of Disney nights they have had.  Wow.  This is the first, and only, time where I welcomed the extra troupe all over the stage.  They added excellence and it was all done within the spirit of the dance.  Really, really, good.   This is as good as this show can get, in my opinion.

Calvin was robbed on his scores.  A man of his size taking on that dance and hitting it?  Phenomenal.  It is a joke he is lopped in with most of the cast.  That dance was one heckuva an achievement.  He threw around Lindsey like a rag doll and he was on time with an outrageous number of flecks, while maintaining posture!   I've not seen anything like that before.

I don't "get" MJ like most do, so I definitely did not get how Laurie was all that tonight.   She was great.  Definite nine for me.   Paula and Debbie???!!!   Child, please.  

Kudos to James.  Could he be a Ken Berry if he wanted to be?  Why yes.  Yes, he could. 

George Harrison.  On DWTS.  Perfection.

Edited October 4, 2016 by Lonesome Rhodes

[friendperidot]

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People are free to interpret Julianne's comment any way they want to. But seemed to me that Amber took something one way, Julianne made a public statement defending herself, Amber realized she may have been wrong and chose to be an adult and admit that and Julianne accepted it and they moved on. But for some that's not good enough because someone always needs to be a bad guy here no matter what, so some are still looking for fault in what Julianne said or didn't say or how she didn't say it, etc. 

I just put the first couple of sentences here to give context to the last. I haven't been paying much attention to the controversy and I don't care a lot. Julieanne makes uncomfortable some of the time and that particular dance made me uncomfortable. But as to the part about someone always need a bad guy - this is so true! We no longer have public stocks and people throwing rotten tomatoes at the perceived bad guy, we no longer have actual stoning in this country, so we seem to have to do it publicly on national television. 

As for someone yelling out something or other during Ryan's judging, I hate when people yell out stuff. It always sounds like "mkoijnnajkgaak!" My nieces and great nephew will be in the car with me, see some one they know walking down the street and have to put down the window to yell, it sounds like "mkoijnnajkgaak!" Just stop it already! You come off sounding stupid.

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Two semi-old women need to vamoose as soon as possible and allow two young men to smile again!

This semi old woman has something to say to you young whippersnapper and most of it can't be said in public! But I will say, if you are very lucky, you might one day be a semi old person. But you will have to stop making those kind of statements so the already semi old people do not run over you in their wheel chairs or smack you with their canes! Getting older is a privilege denied to many and it ain't for the faint of heart.

Edited October 4, 2016 by friendperidot
more cleaver turn of phrase, your mileage may vary.

[RemoteControl88]

My favs of the night: James and Laurie. Both were showstoppers.  They both performed the hell out of their routines. I will go and watch again several times.  James was such a showman...and Laurie showed her sassy side.  They were having so much fun performing I can't help but have fun watching.

Calvin, Jana & Terra - all had really solid, clean routines.  I'm not sure yet, but I think one of these 3 will be in the finals.  All their dancing was great...I just wanted a little more on the performance side of things.

Amber - her dancing was slightly better.  She still dances small and her footwork was not sharp. The big improvement was in her showmanship. She looked the most invested in the routine I've seen her. I want Maks to push her even more though.  Unless she completely looses her inhibitions (which I doubt she will) she won't make it to the end.

Maureen - was somewhat slow and careful.  Even so, that was her best dance I think. However that package negated some of that good dancing. I'm exhausted for Artem.

Marilu - you can see the tension in her body when she dances. She seems stiff and unable to relax.  I think I would enjoy her dances more if she performed them better. More expression in her face that matches the dance.

Ryan & Vanilla Ice - based on dance quality...not the best in the competition...but for each of them...their best dance.  They are improving.

Babyface - the dance was too ambitious for his ability.  Might have been a safer bet for them to try to hit 1 or two spotlights in the beginning of the dance...then light up the dance floor and just dance.  Cool concept from Allison though....the beginning looked like a very unique and cool idea for a  female pro number.

Edited October 4, 2016 by RemoteControl88

[smiley13]

James and Carrot Top's dance did not appear to be much of a Quickstep to me.  Isn't that dance supposed to be in hold?  Where is Len when we need him?

I am glad that I missed the Amber pity party.  I do not care for her or Julianne, but like it or not, it is Julianne's job to critique the dances.  Neither one of them come across as the brightest bulbs to me.  Julianne used to have a good girl image, but she through that out the window a long time ago.  Amber did come across as uncomfortable.  They should have known when they cast the former stripper that she would cause problems.

[aamankwah]

I don't understand why Julianne has to apologise to Amber because Amber misunderstood her and blew this incident completely out of proportion. Julianne explained her comments and she was correct, Amber's salsa was not a real salsa and very lackluster. It was uncomfortable to watch. Fortunately for Amber she was decent this week. I am happy Amber realised she may have made a mistake and apologised. Although I have to say I wish they dealt with this privately. If I was Julianne, I would be pissed that I am being made out to be a person I am not. Amber should have spoken to her privately.

Also James was awesome! He is a dark horse and Laurie should not be too comfortable, he might snatch that mirrorball from her. Calvin was definitely underscored and Terra was overscored with that nine.

[Dejana]

In Julianne's first year as a pro, she and Apolo Ohno did a dance to "Push It" that Len really disliked for being too raunchy or whatever, I doubt he was body shaming anyone. Of course, Amber isn't going to remember or care about all of the criticisms in the history of DWTS, just what was being said about her right now. Either way, I'm sure the producers loved having new drama to milk.

Edited October 4, 2016 by Dejana

[bybrandy]

7 hours ago, bantering said:

Normally Julianne Hough annoys me, but I'm not sure I would have apologized either if I really didn't mean ill-intent or malice with a word like "uncomfortable" (it's not a slur or anything like that  -- it's  a word which is very broad). Giving out an apology might have erroneously implied that she she really did mean to body-shame Amber when using the word "uncomfortable"

I don't see how saying, "I really was just critiquing the dance and not your body.  I would never do that.  But I'm sorry you interpreted it that way." In any way admits to culpability.   That is just a nice thing you do to acknowledge somebody's feelings even when they are the one that is wrong.  

[thesupremediva1]

5 hours ago, Lonesome Rhodes said:

Kudos to James.  Could he be a Ken Berry if he wanted to be?  Why yes.  Yes, he could. 

Bless you for mentioning the phenomenal Ken Berry. I have a massive crush on James. He's just so pocket-sized and talented and adorable, which is my perfect trifecta of affection.

I think it's James and Laurie as final 2 unless a massive catastrophe occurs in the next few weeks.

Laurie and Val's number had me off my couch dancing along. It was infectiously joyful and well choreographed by Val. He does great with large Broadway-style production numbers (see Janel's America number and Danica's Be Our Guest). They deserved the perfect 30.

The Cirque theme was one of my favorite themes since Halloween night two years ago. I LOVED the extra acrobatics. It really added to the ambiance and forced the dancers to step it up so they could shine and compete with the Cirque performers.

And then... we have Julianne. I'm totally, completed baffled by this show. I see Derek isn't the only child of the corn who's been deemed untouchable by the powers that be. Jesus, at least Derek is a positive person who sticks up for the contestants, whether they are his partner or not. Julianne is a real piece of work. How in the hell did Amber end up apologizing to her?! And why didn't Julianne have the class and/or presence of mind to offer an apology, even if the remarks were misunderstood? Dancing is, by definition, an act that purely involved the body, so if a dance makes Julianne uncomfortable, she is by definition saying Amber's body makes her uncomfortable. Sorry, no way around that one. Even a tepid acknowledgement of Amber's feelings would have been appreciated. But instead, she sat atop her pretty little perch and looked down on Amber while deigning to accept an apology she wasn't even owed. Wow, I am so done with her.

[Wyndsong]

I don't think Julianne owes Amber an apology either. The whole thing was ridiculous. They put Julianne on the spot just as much as Amber, and it wasn't fair to either one of them. I thought Julianne explained her point without needing to apologize. Her job is to critique the dance. That's what she did. How Amber took that criticism is on her. And I say this is someone who doesn't even like Julianne.

As far as the dancing, I like James the best. Laurie is amazing, no doubt, but she's actually ruining the season for me. She's so good that it seems like a foregone conclusion that she'll win, and that takes the fun out of it. She's deserving of it certainly, but it takes all the suspense out of it.

[Thadeeeyus]

Quote

Calvin was underscored.  That was a very busy routine and he did it well.  He deserved a 9 as much as Terra did

Quote

Calvin was robbed on his scores.  A man of his size taking on that dance and hitting it?  Phenomenal.  It is a joke he is lopped in with most of the cast.  That dance was one heckuva an achievement.  He threw around Lindsey like a rag doll and he was on time with an outrageous number of flecks, while maintaining posture!   I've not seen anything like that before.

Agree with these comments so much. Calvin danced the heck out of an awesome demanding routine and was definitely underscored.  That may have been my favorite routine in many years.  You could tell the judges were having a hard time finding words for his critique.  It was as if they knew it was an excellent dance but hadn't been given the green light to give him the high scores, so they had to tone down the praise.  I'm seeing Charlie White treatment here.  

MarciaMarciaMarcia needs to go.  I was a fan for the first week but I've had more than enough of Maureen.  I think Artem has as well.  

Edited October 4, 2016 by Thadeeeyus

[kitcloudkicker]

I haven't watched all the dances, but I'm pretty sure my favorite part of this episode was when Calvin almost dropped Lindsay on her head, resulting in a giant crash, and there was a woman behind them at a computer who didn't so much as glance up. Like she was an extra on The Office. Total indifference.

Calvin and James are fast becoming my favorites. Loved James' piece, and I think Sharna killed it on the choreo. Laurie was great because Laurie is great, and while she'll still likely win I think James can put up a fight. (Proud of calling this top trio early on)

Aaaah, Marilu's nervous energy gives me such twinges of my mom, which means I can't really enjoy her dances but can't fully hate on them either. I think Derek is frustrated, not with her, but with himself, that he hasn't been able to figure out how to get her to relax into the dances. I think he prides himself on being able to get his partners confident in their performances, and Marilu is so much in her head he hasn't been able to do that with her yet. 

Babyface was actually kind of an entertaining trainwreck. Every time a spotlight tripped and they weren't there it sort of became more and more comical. Like that could be a Jack Black skit, easy. 

And Amber finally didn't look like a deer in headlights being dragged around the floor by Maks, so that's good. And maybe Maks got the memo that his choreography has been awful all season for her and decided to stop fucking around with it. No wigs, no weird dry heaving moves, some progress Maks.

[truthaboutluv]

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I haven't watched all the dances, but I'm pretty sure my favorite part of this episode was when Calvin almost dropped Lindsay on her head, resulting in a giant crash, and there was a woman behind them at a computer who didn't so much as glance up. Like she was an extra on The Office. Total indifference.

She's officially my favorite person on the show. She was also present when Artem and Maureen were having their meltdown and it was the same disinterested, head glued to her computer screen. 

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Laurie is amazing, no doubt, but she's actually ruining the season for me. She's so good that it seems like a foregone conclusion that she'll win, and that takes the fun out of it. She's deserving of it certainly, but it takes all the suspense out of it.

The funny thing is for me personally, I actually don't think Laurie is that great. Better than 90 percent of the other celebrities this season, sure but I agree with someone who last week noted that she's looking more amazing than she really is due to a very weak group of celebrities this season. I still say Shawn and Nastia were far superior dancers to Laurie. It doesn't help that I continue to be underwhelmed by Val's choreography. I just feel like I'm told Laurie is amazing because we all expected her to be amazing but I'm still waiting to actually be wowed or amazed by her. YMMV. 

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How in the hell did Amber end up apologizing to her?!

Because Amber is the one who brought this up on her show and allowed it to become a media story? Amber could have been an adult and addressed Julianne on Tuesday night and say why she was bothered. Instead, she publicly declared that she was body shamed and essentially made Julianne into a bad guy for in my opinion a very ambiguous comment. 

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And why didn't Julianne have the class and/or presence of mind to offer an apology, even if the remarks were misunderstood? Dancing is, by definition, an act that purely involved the body, so if a dance makes Julianne uncomfortable, she is by definition saying Amber's body makes her uncomfortable. Sorry, no way around that one.

I disagree. Maureen's dancing made me uncomfortable in Week 1 - why, because she looked like a deer caught in the headlights and didn't look like she was having an ounce of fun. It had squat to do with her body because Maureen, like Marilu has an amazing body despite their ages. In that same vein, I found myself feeling tense watching Marilu last night because I could see how tense she was during the dance and I just kept waiting for it to completely fall apart. So that was uncomfortable for me to watch. It had nothing to do with her body.

When Mark had Aly Raisman crawl across the floor and smack her ass in what was supposed to be a Salsa, that was uncomfortable for me to watch. There are many reasons a dance can be uncomfortable to watch that has diddly to do with the woman's body shape and in my opinion it feels like Amber, wanting to play victim and viewers who already hate Julianne wanting to latch on any reason to make her a villain, automatically jumped to believing that's what her comment meant. And nothing she says will change the minds of people who again already do not like her and will be predisposed to read something negative in whatever she says. 

Edited October 4, 2016 by truthaboutluv

[bantering]

7 hours ago, LotusFlower said:

I'm not sure what you mean by DWTS camera people.  She was mic'd, and talking to Peta and then Maks backstage, and the cameras caught the conversations.  

But wasn't there a moment when she talked directly to the camera about what Julianne said? What she said to Peta and Maks indicated agitation, but then she  seemed to elaborate on it when directly interviewed.  I'll admit I could be wrong though. I would have to play back the package. 

If she's mic'd and knew she could be heard, I would have probably not said anything in that instance either, because that gives the camera people fuel to directly ask a question, and then you're put in the awkward position of saying something about the judges.

Edited October 4, 2016 by bantering

[bantering]

1 hour ago, bybrandy said:

I don't see how saying, "I really was just critiquing the dance and not your body.  I would never do that.  But I'm sorry you interpreted it that way." In any way admits to culpability.   That is just a nice thing you do to acknowledge somebody's feelings even when they are the one that is wrong.  

 

I've seen the line "I'm sorry you interpreted it that way" criticized when other celebrities do it. It still puts the onus back on the person who was offended (i.e "you interpreted") rather than the person who said the offending remark. That kind of wording makes it seem as though you feel sorry for the person for taking the words the wrong way (and in a way unwittingly belittles the person for their feelings), rather than feeling sorry for actually saying the words. I could see that line landing her into trouble too. 

Edited October 4, 2016 by bantering

[crossover]

1 hour ago, aamankwah said:

Also James was awesome! He is a dark horse and Laurie should not be too comfortable, he might snatch that mirrorball from her. Calvin was definitely underscored and Terra was overscored with that nine.

I guess I've watched too much.  James was one of my picks for the finals.  So far so good.  I knew nothing about him but I saw they had paired him with Sharna.  TPTB have been trying to get her a win or at least to keep her in the game.   I THINK everyone knows that Laurie is suppose to win.  I don't like to see her dance with Val but she is a cutie and good (Kristi, Shawn, Meryl).  Since TPTB became so obvious with their manipulations, it's fun to try to figure out one of their pets.  But it looks like I whiffed on Marilu.

[crowceilidh]

Julianne had bitch face the second the issue was mentioned, far before Amber's explanation.  Despite my general lack of empathy for Amber Rose (of whom I expected fire and energy and from whom I am getting lazy and boring (including last night's dance)), I am in the camp that Julianne should have framed her explanation apologetically.  But I think Julianne is deeply unpleasant, so that's me.  

[RemoteControlFreak]

12 hours ago, escape said:

Laurie's gymnast training, which entails performing in front of the camera is an asset.  That's why I would love to see someone like James win.  This is totally outside of what he does professionally.  And this is what DWTS should be all about.  Hopefully, he will have the support that Helio Castroneves got.

Every single contestant on DWTS has a career that involves performing in front of the camera, including James and including Rick Perry.  Laurie doesn't have an advantage with cameras. She has an advantage because she is a professional gymnast which is a hell of a lot closer to being a professional dancer than the profession of any other contestants.

And a question about Laurie: how does it work when contestants are on tour while DWTS is taking place?  Laurie is performing around the county almost every night of the week -- obviously Mondays are excluded.  How do they do rehearsals? Does she fly to LA between events or does Val fly to wherever she is? How much time do they spend rehearsing each week? Does anyone know?

[McManda]

27 minutes ago, RemoteControlFreak said:

Does she fly to LA between events or does Val fly to wherever she is?

Val most certainly travels with her. Most pros  do, when their celeb has out of town engagements. As far as rehearsing, they probably fit it in whenever they can. I'm not sure if she has restrictions because she's a minor, but couples in the past just make time whenever they can. I remember training packages that had people practicing in the airport. 

Witney was/is traveling with Ice this season. 

[Gardencrown]

I would think Laurie's win is quite likely, but I certainly wouldn't count out Calvin's football fanbase -- that along with his charming personality could go a long way. James continues to delight, and I think he is my favorite partner Sharna has had. I keep forgetting that Terra had a baby only a couple of months ago. I kind of respect her for not bringing it up every seven seconds! But I also can't imagine how exhausted she must be.

I would think that Maureen is going home tonight. They overscored her a bit (it was solid but nothing wonderful), and I think the judges also did that overpraise thing they do when someone is likely leaving. I so much want to like her, but I think she's getting on my nerves as much as she is Artem's...interesting that Derek seemed flat out annoyed with Marilu at the end of last week's dance when he was explaining why they got the scores they did. I think he tries to keep his annoyance on the down low (as most of the pros try to do), but I haven't seen him this frustrated in quite a while. I like Allison immensely, less so as a ballroom pro than in other contexts, but she needed to keep it together better last night for Babyface. I never did quite understand what they were going for with the spotlights, and as he has trouble with the basics, it seemed like way too complicated of a routine. I would not be surprised if he's out tonight too.

Amber Rose (I'm not going to get into the whole conflict with J) was just okay in the Argentine tango -- boy, she and Max have very little connection. MMV -- but I didn't find their dance especially sexy. It was so overt that it didn't have that steamy under the surface vibe that I love in ATs. She could go home too, but I still think it will be Maureen and Babyface.

[RedFiat]

Just watched back Laurie.  It was MJ but it was an easy routine.  I think of everyone else who had to learn ballroom, especially Terra doing a lot of Samba, and the content for Laurie just wasn't there.   

56 minutes ago, crowceilidh said:

Julianne had bitch face the second the issue was mentioned, far before Amber's explanation.  Despite my general lack of empathy for Amber Rose (of whom I expected fire and energy and from whom I am getting lazy and boring (including last night's dance)), I am in the camp that Julianne should have framed her explanation apologetically.  But I think Julianne is deeply unpleasant, so that's me.  

Yep, I have to agree.  I am not a fan of Amber, but yeah, Julianne needs an attitude adjustment. 

[asuwur]

I'm no Julianne fan and the comment taken alone could mean one thing but paired with Bruno's follow on comment of "It's because she's not fully there" or something like that; I get the impression Julianne was saying that Amber appeared so "uncomfortable" in her dance (ie: out of her comfort zone or whatever) that it made HER uncomfortable. She has said similar things many times before. Context is everything and we were not granted that. Instead the producers worked to gin up a controversy when none most likely existed causing a LOT of hurt feelings all the way around.

That being said, that whole exchange last night was weird and made ME uncomfortable. Julianne appeared frigid and taken aback as opposed to warm and accepting. If she had provided additional context or something, it would have been helpful to the conversation. Amber was put on the spot about something she really was not wanting to get into....ugh! 'm one who is exhausted of people getting offended about everything but even I thought the whole thing last night wasn't cool.

Oh, where in that dance did Lauri and Val actually dance together? Yes, it was a dance number but there was very little partnered dance feel to it. It felt like they were prancing in a video.

[spanana]

10 hours ago, Picture It. Sicily said:

Now she knows how Julianne felt when she decided to start a public beef, accusing her of body shaming. This isn't the only site I've seen people bringing up the blackface again. I'm sure julianne loves having that thrown back at her. I hope Amber gets sent packing for her desperate ploy for votes.

I find it very concerning and problematic that there is a school of thought where people are more concerned with Julianne's feelings about having her blackface incident thrown back at her as opposed to the fact that she actually did blackface in the first place.  Speaking for myself, that is not something I will ever let slide.  Nobody gets to play ignorance on why blackface isn't okay in this society and it's certainly something that is completely valid for people to continually bring back up.

I brought up Julianne's blackface incident as a way to say that Julianne herself isn't always great at knowing where to draw the line on things and she hasn't always shown the best judgment.  I stand by that assessment.  I don't think she is an evil, evil person but I'm certainly not going to feel bad that she continues to get called out for something so heinous.

[kitcloudkicker]

1 hour ago, RemoteControlFreak said:

And a question about Laurie: how does it work when contestants are on tour while DWTS is taking place?  Laurie is performing around the county almost every night of the week -- obviously Mondays are excluded.  How do they do rehearsals? Does she fly to LA between events or does Val fly to wherever she is? How much time do they spend rehearsing each week? Does anyone know?

Val usually travels with her - this week, I think because of the Whitehouse thing, he didn't, and they didn't start on the dance until Friday. Which is why it may have seemed "simple" to some people.

But I do think Laurie has the most natural performance ability out of any of the gymnasts that have been on so far - maybe challenged by Shawn, but I think it took a bit for Shawn to settle into it. That lets her carry the performances with pizazz, and I think Val is wise to exploit it especially if they have limited time. Her schedule is insane though, and while she seems to be taking it well, it is a danger to become a limiting factor on them. (I feel like I would be crying from exhaustion if I had tour stops every night, had to do schoolwork and study for SATs, was crisscrossing the country on planes, and then also deal with perfectionist Val, but then hey, I never had to have the discipline to train for elite athletic competition, so maybe it's easy for her.) 

Edited October 4, 2016 by kitcloudkicker

[Hoi Polloi]

12 hours ago, Marmiarmo said:

Ryan has improved considerably over even last week.  He actually danced! (When Bruno was giving his critique, did someone in the audience shout out "You're a cheater!"?  Because Ryan's a liar and a douche, but did he cheat at something?  I missed it if he did.)

 

11 hours ago, JenMcSnark said:

Also, what was yelled when Bruno was talking to Ryan and Cheryl?  I couldn't understand it.

The person yelled "Go Gators" because Ryan is a graduate of University of Florida and the mascot is a gator.  Not the brightest idea to yell something at Ryan during judging even if it is supportive.

[Callaphera]

4 hours ago, smiley13 said:

James and Carrot Top's dance did not appear to be much of a Quickstep to me.  Isn't that dance supposed to be in hold?  Where is Len when we need him?

As someone who rocks the same hair colour as Sharna and looks damned good doing it (if I may say so myself)... ouch. That colour of red usually can't be referred to as "Carrot Top". Not enough orange. 

[RedFiat]

Quote

Val usually travels with her - this week, I think because of the Whitehouse thing, he didn't, and they didn't start on the dance until Friday. Which is why it may have seemed "simple" to some people (a criticism I've seen a few places, mostly from people who wanted James or Calvin scored higher.) 

I hope we don't get dumbed down routines for the rest of the season, this girl is capable of so much more. It was very much a stop and pose routine, much like you'd get from the video of the girl in that song, an attitude but not a lot of great dancing.  It was the Cirque du Soleil dancers that actually did the heavy lifting in terms of GREAT dancing on this routine.  When you see others like Terra bust themselves  to get the Samba down, this felt a bit like let's just reve up the MJ and she'll get big scores.  

Edited October 4, 2016 by RedFiat

[SpikeGal]

48 minutes ago, McManda said:

Val most certainly travels with her. Most pros  do, when their celeb has out of town engagements. As far as rehearsing, they probably fit it in whenever they can. I'm not sure if she has restrictions because she's a minor, but couples in the past just make time whenever they can. I remember training packages that had people practicing in the airport. 

Witney was/is traveling with Ice this season. 

They showed that in this week's package. Maks was with the choreographers learning the routine in New York and he sent Laurie videos detailing the dance, and Laurie studied them in her off time, learning the movements that way. When she and Maks finally got together Maks saw that she really studied the video and was impressed that she had. He said to her, "I love you. You really watched that video!"

[MooCat Pretzel]

I just re-watched Laurie's dance from last night and I'm not sure the content was really there for a 30.  It seemed like a lot of posing, strutting, and riding on that bench for a good part of the dance.  It was still enjoyable though.  I can't really start "breaking down the scoring" on this show or I would lose my mind--it seems like it never makes sense.  Another example--Julianne praising the heck out of Calvin's dance and then giving him a 7.  Craziness.

[iMonrey]

A-ha! So they can hear the judges talking while they're doing a dance. I wondered that last week and everyone said "Oh, no, they can't hear the judges." Maks and Amber weren't even that close to the judges' table and could still hear them. Now I feel bad for all of them. That's got to be distracting.

I can't be the only person here who finds Cirque du Soleil creepy, can I? That weird clown woman with the long nose that kept popping up everywhere was nightmare inducing. And too many of the performances were lost in the overly produced production numbers. It was downright distracting.

[RedFiat]

I agree on Laurie,  and don't get me wrong I enjoyed Calvin's dance, but where was the Charleston?  There were no swivels, no step sequences that are Charleston, it was a Swing 

[Callaphera]

1 minute ago, iMonrey said:

A-ha! So they can hear the judges talking while they're doing a dance. I wondered that last week and everyone said "Oh, no, they can't hear the judges." Maks and Amber weren't even that close to the judges' table and could still hear them. Now I feel bad for all of them. That's got to be distracting.

I assumed that Amber heard the comment during the package on the results show, not on the live show.

[LotusFlower]

9 minutes ago, Callaphera said:

I assumed that Amber heard the comment during the package on the results show, not on the live show.

Right.  She even said "I was taken aback by what Julianne said about me on Tuesday night..."

[Evenshorter]

22 minutes ago, SpikeGal said:

They showed that in this week's package. Maks was with the choreographers learning the routine in New York and he sent Laurie videos detailing the dance, and Laurie studied them in her off time, learning the movements that way. When she and Maks finally got together Maks saw that she really studied the video and was impressed that she had. He said to her, "I love you. You really watched that video!"

Val, not Maks. But amazing she was able to learn it via video.

[LadyMustang65]

8 minutes ago, LotusFlower said:

Right.  She even said "I was taken aback by what Julianne said about me on Tuesday night..."

That's the way I took it as well.

[crowceilidh]

Nevermind Calvin's showmanship and great dancing -- let's get more shallow -- the man is so damn handsome.  I don't see him winning, but thus far, I'd be happy if he did.  He's pretty.

[RedFiat]

4 minutes ago, Evenshorter said:

Val, not Maks. But amazing she was able to learn it via video.

I think that's the way a lot of people learn dance. No biggie, especially for one who has jazz fundamentals already.  

[LadyMustang65]

I loved this show.  This has to be one of the best theme nights they've ever had.  All of the contestants seemed to really get into their dances, and for us it was just a whole lot of fun.

I think Calvin was underscored - he was terrific.  Terra was a bit overscored - don't think I would have given her a 9 but again she did a great job.  Only Babyface really seemed to struggle.  I'm honestly still not sure what was wrong with the dance, but it just didn't look good.  It didn't really look like he was missing steps or messing up or anything - it just wasn't good.  I blame Allison for that.  I love to watch Allison when she does contemporary.  I was a huge fan while she was on SYTYCD.  But she's not a ballroom dancer, and it shows.  I think another pro could have done more with him, but I'm guessing (hoping??) he'll be going home tonight.

I have no idea who else will go.  Aside from Babyface, I thought the rest did anywhere from a respectable to a great job.  Loved Laurie's dance.  It was jazz, so no you don't see much 'partner' dancing.  But she nailed the attitude and everything else.  My favorite of the night.  James was another one who was great.  We really enjoyed him.

Even Ryan seemed to do so much better this week.  He's growing on me, and I hope he stays around a while longer.  Maureen and Marilu seem to be two of thd weaker dancers left.  I guess my preference would be to see Marilu go this week but only because I want Artem to stay around a while longer.  But I thought it was fascinating to learn about Marilu's 'condition.'  I didn't realize that was a real thing.

Anyway, we all thought it was one of the best nights of DWTS ever.  We loved the Cirque people and the themes and the costumes and the make-up.  Just loved it all.  :)

[RemoteControlFreak]

54 minutes ago, kitcloudkicker said:

Val usually travels with her - this week, I think because of the Whitehouse thing, he didn't, and they didn't start on the dance until Friday. Which is why it may have seemed "simple" to some people. 

Yes, apparently the White House event was on Thursday but later that day the gymnastics tour was in Dallas and on Friday it was in Houston -- (tour schedule). And the "package" showed a phone call between Val and Laurie in which Val was in Las Vegas, and Laurie was ... where?  And apparently with a television crew accompanying her to shoot her phone call with Val.  Then they showed what they said was the team's first rehearsal on Friday at 4 pm and the rehearsal room was a familiar space that's been used in the past on DWTS, so I'm guessing in L.A. It seems unlikely that Laurie flew from Dallas to LA for a late Friday afternoon rehearsal and then somehow made it back to Houston for that evening's performance.  Either the show is making things up about times and places or Laurie is missing stops on the gymnastics tour to fit in the DWTS rehearsal and performance schedule.  There's nothing wrong with her missing stops, I guess.  I'm just curious about how it all works.

Edited October 4, 2016 by RemoteControlFreak

[MsJamieDornan]

3 hours ago, Thadeeeyus said:

MarciaMarciaMarcia needs to go.  I was a fan for the first week but I've had more than enough of Maureen.  I think Artem has as well.

It's very annoying to watch her, it's time for her to leave.

I think Derek gets upset with Marilu because she just wont shut up. We havent seen much of it in their practice, but the woman has never been able to shut up. It's not just "high energy",, she a pain in the ass !   AND, as we found out, cant dance.

[Primetimer]

The stars don't deliver much in the way of acrobatics, but many do deliver their highest scores of the season, including the first perfect score.

View the full article

[RemoteControlFreak]

58 minutes ago, SpikeGal said:

They showed that in this week's package. Maks was with the choreographers learning the routine in New York and he sent Laurie videos detailing the dance, and Laurie studied them in her off time, learning the movements that way. When she and Maks finally got together Maks saw that she really studied the video and was impressed that she had. He said to her, "I love you. You really watched that video!"

The package stated that Val, not Maks, was in Las Vegas, not New York.

Edited October 4, 2016 by RemoteControlFreak