S24.E02: Week 2

[Wings]

It seems clear Charo will go next.  Then the fan base kicks in to a large degree.  I don't see Bonner as having a huge base.  He could easily be in the bottom with her. It isn't until later that they put someone who is not in danger there. 

[dleighg]

40 minutes ago, wings707 said:

t isn't until later that they put someone who is not in danger there. 

Can you explain? Is the second-from-the-bottom not actually "true"? Also, how do pros get matched up with the "stars"? Is it random? I imagine some of the pros are pretty darned disappointed when they find out who they got paired up with.

[Wings]

8 minutes ago, dleighg said:

Can you explain? Is the second-from-the-bottom not actually "true"? Also, how do pros get matched up with the "stars"? Is it random? I imagine some of the pros are pretty darned disappointed when they find out who they got paired up with.

You will hear Tom say, not necessarily the bottom three, when they do this.  He says couples, in danger. 

Pairing the pros with stars is not random, they have to consider height and certainly probable skill level.  They will never give Maks a Charo!  It is political. 

[Jax7917]

I just don't like how every season ,they give the same pros the obvious ringers. The only one i'm surprised they switched up was Witney getting good partners. After Alfonso winning, I thought for sure they'd stick her with the good ones every season.

[katha]

24 minutes ago, Jaclyn88 said:

I just don't like how every season ,they give the same pros the obvious ringers. The only one i'm surprised they switched up was Witney getting good partners. After Alfonso winning, I thought for sure they'd stick her with the good ones every season.

She had that farm Bachelor the season after her win, and he wasn't any good. But Carlos PenaVega and Von Miller certainly had potential, which IMO she didn't really exploit. I think TPTB now being more cautious about assigning her good partners might be tied to that: The perception that she won't get the best out of them. Lindsay (basically every season since she was made pro again) and Sharna (Nick and Noah and James) and Peta (Tommy Chong and Nyle) had strong seasons as well after Witney's win with Fons, that might play into it, too.

[Archery]

Usually I am all about rooting for the underdog contestant:  the older dancer who is game for anything; the non-show-biz person; the person with a disability, weight issue, or even just a normal person body. I rooted for Mark Cuban, Bill Engvall, Marlee Matlin, and even Ty the Rodeo Guy who stepped in at the last minute for his wife, Jewell.  And I am on record as being "in the tank" for Keo and hoping he finally gets a chance to go deep. 

But Charo is EXHAUSTING to watch -- I can't imagine what it must be like to deal with her shtick for hours on end in a competition.  So as much as I want Keo to not go out second or third this season, I...just can't with Charo.  Free Keo!

[simplyme]

15 hours ago, TiredMe said:

Why are they forcing Sharna to have a romance with Woody from Toy story? I don't see it. 

The Woody comment was hysterical. Omg.

I just find Bonner hard to watch. He's bowlegged when he dances, and when he talks I find I'm tense the entire time because to me he feels like he's thinking REALLY HARD to come up with basic, boring words. It's a relief when he stops speaking and I can relax.

15 hours ago, Superpole2000 said:

Maybe that's me losing interest in the show over the years, but I really think the names on this show have become so Z-list that it's tough to care.

This may be entirely generational or depend on your interests, too. I actually found I knew a higher percentage of this cast than normal. Of the women, I knew Charo, Heather, Nancy, and Simone, and I had heard of Erika even if I knew little about her. I didn't know Normani, but I knew of Fifth Harmony. Of the men, I knew Chris, Mr. T, David, and Nick. So really, Rashad, Bonner, and Normani were the only ones whose names I didn't know, and I consider it possible that I would have stumbled across Rashad or Normani's names soon seeing that I watch the NFL and consume music. (I admit that years ago I occasionally used to cross-stitch to PBR, curling, and Law and Order reruns when nothing else was on, but I believe that was before Bonner's time. I don't remember any cowboys, though, since I cheered for the bulls.)

I have to say, I don't watch The Bachelor/ette series and I've tended to find the Bachelors on DWTS annoying as heck. I don't remember Jake, I started calling Sean "Stompy," and Chris gave me weasel vibes in addition to not being a very strong dancer who simply would not go home. Omg. Nick so far is a pleasant enough change. As SimplyMom said, "Heck, at least this one is amusing."

Edited March 29, 2017 by simplyme

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it, here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

Dancing With The Stars Comes Out Swinging

After showing off what they learned in the second week of dancing, one couple is sent home.

[RedFiat]

Quote

I'm a ride or die Michelle Kwan fan! I will forever be emotionally scarred from that loss! Which should have been a gold for her! That being said, if she did DWTS I'd have zero chill or objectivity lol! I follow her on Instagram and she has not aged! She is in the greatest shape of her life! 

Add me to the Michelle Kwan lovers.  I still get chills watching her short program at the 98 Olympics. The Rachmaninov one of the best ever.   Tara who?  

Edited March 29, 2017 by RedFiat

[iMonrey]

Quote

It's nice see Artem get a partner who has the potential to go deep into the season.

Unfortunately the show seems to be burying him and Nancy. They were the second couple to dance last week and the first this week. The ones that go first are often forgotten by the end of the hour. 

You know, I'm not so much bothered by "ringers" and whether someone has more dance experience than someone else, but the blatant favoritism the judges show certain stars right out of the gate is something I cannot abide. I see celebs getting the same scores as Nancy when they are far inferior and it drives me up a wall. Or I see the judges nitpicking certain stars to death and then just tongue-bathing others who are about the same, ability-wise. It drives me nuts. 

It's really clear from the very first episode who the judges (and/or producers) have already written off as "also-rans" and I sense that Nancy is one of  them.

Quote

It seems clear Charo will go next.  

From your fingertips to God's ears, but I fear too many people find her antics "hilarious" and will keep voting for her for that alone.

[RedFiat]

14 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

I see celebs getting the same scores as Nancy when they are far inferior and it drives me up a wall. Or I see the judges nitpicking certain stars to death and then just tongue-bathing others who are about the same, ability-wise. It drives me nuts. 

It's really clear from the very first episode who the judges (and/or producers) have already written off as "also-rans" and I sense that Nancy is one of  them.

Yep. They are really trying hard to pitch the "I'm insecure" narrative when that Cha Cha was anything but. It was a really strong effort from Nancy, but let's not mention that Artem lost his mike and that could have affected the dance. Somebody sticks a mike in your face 24/7 asking if you're nervous, well yeah, sometimes you are. You are crazy if you're not. And other than the mishap back in '94 there has been ZERO buzz about this team on social media, as if she hardly existed. That's the show's fault. They've been pumping everyone else who is ahead of her.  She really should be in the top 4 or 5 to make a run at it, but they have her around 7th place and that's not going to get better unless they give her a better placement and better scores.  The producers are falling all over themselves that they have MLB on board so that's going to be the guy who stays too long.  David is delightful, but he's not going to suddenly be a great dancer.   

Edited March 29, 2017 by RedFiat

[Mindthinkr]

7 hours ago, marriedaniac said:

I loved Tom's "hands down" comment in Bonner/Sharna's intro. ;)  I love Tom.

And Bonner is so in love with Sharna.

I don't know that he's in love but he most certainly is in lust. 

[boyznkatz]

56 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Unfortunately the show seems to be burying him and Nancy. They were the second couple to dance last week and the first this week. The ones that go first are often forgotten by the end of the hour. 

You know, I'm not so much bothered by "ringers" and whether someone has more dance experience than someone else, but the blatant favoritism the judges show certain stars right out of the gate is something I cannot abide. I see celebs getting the same scores as Nancy when they are far inferior and it drives me up a wall. Or I see the judges nitpicking certain stars to death and then just tongue-bathing others who are about the same, ability-wise. It drives me nuts. 

It's really clear from the very first episode who the judges (and/or producers) have already written off as "also-rans" and I sense that Nancy is one of  them.

From your fingertips to God's ears, but I fear too many people find her antics "hilarious" and will keep voting for her for that alone.

Yeah I am pissed that stompy Bonner got higher scores than Nancy. What a bunch of crap. 

[Wings]

22 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

From your fingertips to God's ears, but I fear too many people find her antics "hilarious" and will keep voting for her for that alone.

Early in its run people did 'vote for the worst' and the reason Master P bumped some decent dancers.  Len was homicidal over this.  This show has been on so long I am not sure anyone cares enough to vote like crazy to keep the likes of Charo in the game.  

Who could she beat to stay in?  Nick probably has a big enough fan base to survive another week.  Not sure how many rodeo fans watch to keep Bonner.  Mr T is another contender for the boot. 

She is working her feud with Bruno very hard in interviews, she thinks it is cute.  

[calipiano81]

Regarding the "gymnasts + sexy" topic, I have to disagree with including Aly in the discussion. Aly actually did not have as hard a time with this aspect of performing. She even portrayed a harlot in her and Mark's Argentine Tango!

And Mark said Aly's issues were opposite from what you'd expect from a gymnast...Aly could not count music and had technical shortcomings, but she had no problem with and actually enjoyed the shimmying and shaking her hips. 

If you watch back Aly's dances from her season, the judges never had any criticism of her performance ability and Bruno even called her a "good little actress" at one point.

Edited March 29, 2017 by calipiano81

[tessaforever]

12 hours ago, boyznkatz said:

Maybe I'm in the minority, but I think Sharna and Bonner are hooking up. He looked like an absent-minded boyfriend doing the usual boyfriend thing and forgetting the camera was there. He is annoying and I don't care if they are dating or not, but I don't think it is forced. I don't like the producers forcing it down our throats though. He can't dance and he isn't that interesting either, so stop trying to make him happen.

He has a weird blank look I don't really like. But I remember when they kept questioning Kym and Robert about a showmance, and they played coy and refused to answer...and now they're married! So I think it's possible for Sharna and Bonner to hook up at least for the duration of the show. 

[Padma]

I couldn't be less interested in whether Bonner and Sharna are/are not a couple. They don't have anything about either one that makes their off-camera pairing or on-camera chemistry as engaging as Kym and Robert's.

Then again, I really want Bonner to leave (Charo can go first. I used to like her, but her screeching and "fighting" with Bruno was obnoxious.)  The show (through Carrie Ann, Julianne and Bruno) really seems to want Bonner to happen. I don't know why. Because he's cute? He has zero personality (and I hate bull riding). I thought his legs were bent and awkward through his dance (again) and was shocked by how--once again--he was praised where Nick (imo a better dancer) was given a lot of pretty tough criticism.  I did like how Len, searching for a word and not sharing the other threes' "crushes", said "you're supposed to be this butch guy". I think the word he was looking for was "macho", but "butch" was not so complimentary, so...bravo!

I hope Charo leaves next, then Bonner. After that, I'd like to see the Housewife go. Her dancing was better this week, but as usual I dislike Gleb's choreography. He apparently went to the school that says, "choreography must be sexy and sensual and raunchy to be creative"--though the actual dancing was better than last week. He so often overdoes the "sexy" stories that it's more awkward than provocative to watch his dances. "Less is more", ya know?    

[Zuleikha]

Yeah, the Housewife is a solid dancer, but Gleb does not know how to do subtle. I don't mind it, but I don't think focusing on the sexy usually works well for this show.

I don't really understand what Len thought Heather should have done during the hip hop music break other than dance hip hop. The music changed. Maks couldn't really choreograph a jive to that section. There have been plenty of dances that have had hip hop breaks when the music has a hip hop break! That's pretty normal for the show by this point (as is having competitors with professional dance experience). Dancing SHOULD follow the music, and as far as I know, the show still assigns music to the contestants.

[McManda]

3 hours ago, Zuleikha said:

Dancing SHOULD follow the music, and as far as I know, the show still assigns music to the contestants.

I'm sure tptb hold ultimate control over what songs they can get to clear and therefore what songs the couple dances to (there have been some stories in recent seasons about celebs having to relearn a dance last minute because they were dancing to a song they thought would clear and it ultimately didn't; I think one case was Derek and Bindi's quickstep), but I'm also pretty sure the pros get more input on song choices, too.

Sharna was polling people on social media for country song suggestions for Bonner's dances ... which sucks because that means it's likely every dance is going to be cowboy themed.

[RedFiat]

5 hours ago, Zuleikha said:

I don't really understand what Len thought Heather should have done during the hip hop music break other than dance hip hop. The music changed. Maks couldn't really choreograph a jive to that

Here's what I know.  The pros get a certain song, or request it, the song is normally 3-5 minutes long. The pro can cut it anywhere they like to do the minute and thirty for the show. So the fact that there's a break down section doesn't mean the pro has to use it. In fact, I would argue that it was lazy on the pros' part to include it. As per usual with Maks he leaves the stage for his celebrity to dance solo or with back up dancers . And this time in particular He didn't even have to choreograph that section, since  his pro dancer celebrity  is the expert not him.  

Edited March 30, 2017 by RedFiat

[boyznkatz]

2 hours ago, McManda said:

I'm sure tptb hold ultimate control over what songs they can get to clear and therefore what songs the couple dances to (there have been some stories in recent seasons about celebs having to relearn a dance last minute because they were dancing to a song they thought would clear and it ultimately didn't; I think one case was Derek and Bindi's quickstep), but I'm also pretty sure the pros get more input on song choices, too.

Sharna was polling people on social media for country song suggestions for Bonner's dances ... which sucks because that means it's likely every dance is going to be cowboy themed.

I didn't know the pros got that much influence over the music. Most of the music they use sucks and is totally inappropriate for the dance, so that's surprising.

[boyznkatz]

14 hours ago, calipiano81 said:

Regarding the "gymnasts + sexy" topic, I have to disagree with including Aly in the discussion. Aly actually did not have as hard a time with this aspect of performing. She even portrayed a harlot in her and Mark's Argentine Tango!

And Mark said Aly's issues were opposite from what you'd expect from a gymnast...Aly could not count music and had technical shortcomings, but she had no problem with and actually enjoyed the shimmying and shaking her hips. 

If you watch back Aly's dances from her season, the judges never had any criticism of her performance ability and Bruno even called her a "good little actress" at one point.

Aly's dancing was horrid. She was easily the worst gymnast on the show. At least Simone, Laurie and Nastia can all dance. She was a classic example of someone who outlasted better dancers because she was nice.

[katha]

My understanding is that pros and celebs submit song suggestions, but the actual song assignments are in the show's discretion. Hence why there's been so many non-sensical and inappropriate song/dance combinations throughout the years. Often there's also a problem with clearing songs. My impression has always been that pro and/or celeb getting the song they want is the exception, not the rule. It might happen during "Memorable Year" week and perhaps one or two times more in a season, but mostly they're at the mercy of the show and their "ideas".

Edited March 30, 2017 by katha

[McManda]

27 minutes ago, katha said:

My understanding is that pros and celebs submit song suggestions, but the actual song assignments are in the show's discretion. Hence why there's been so many non-sensical and inappropriate song/dance combinations throughout the years.

This is my understanding, too.

So Sharna would take a list of 25 songs to tptb and say hey, this is what we'd like to dance to and then tptb comes back and says great, here's song z and you're dancing a y, instead of Sharna taking a list to tptb and saying, hey, we'd like to dance a y to song x, please.

Sometimes the song assignments work and they're things I never would have though would work, (Evan Lysacek's Paso was one I didn't think would work but did) but sometimes ... it just doesn't.

[Mocking Bird]

On 3/27/2017 at 9:27 PM, jackjill89 said:

Charo is ridiculous. It is a old, sad act. There is not one funny thing about it. 

I've been a victim of severe second-hand embarrassment perpetrated by Charo for at least 50 years--give or take as she and I don't agree on her age--and she's been doing the exact same shtick the entire time.  Rattles off her ridiculously long name  (because that's just so side-splitting); screams "cuchi-cuchi" while undulating; spouts intelligible babble then tells the befuddled talk show host she "doesn't understand what the hell he's talking about" because she can't understand his accent.   Lather-rinse-repeat.  I don't give two flips that she's a flamenco guitar master because she's always mostly been an annoying-ass cartoon and in present day, near 70, she's just too fucking old for that shit.  Still has a great figure minus the ridiculous boobs, I'll give her that.

[Jax7917]

What is with Charo's hate for Bruno? Man that woman is annoying as it gets.

[Uke]

7 hours ago, boyznkatz said:

I didn't know the pros got that much influence over the music. Most of the music they use sucks and is totally inappropriate for the dance, so that's surprising.

I do think tptb play games with the pros over the music.  What the pros have said over the years is that they submit a list at the beginning of the season (in addition to whatever music production wants) and someone in production tries to get the permissions for the songs.   But what seems to happen is production plays little games like "it's approved" "nevermind, it's not approved" "oh hey we worked miracles and you can use this part of the song but not that" designed IMO to keep the pros and/or stars off balance.  I remember one of Aly's songs, for the "afro jazz" , 30 minutes before showtime they decided she could use the song but not certain sounds so they removed all her cues in the music, sounds she could identify since it was known she couldn't hear the beat.  They were out in the parkinglot during the show as Mark raced to teach Aly new music cues. Production is just mean sometimes.

Also, IMO, the band + singers are awful.  The singers massacre songs so badly, I wish they'd just use recordings or bring back Harry Wheeler & his band and singers.

Edited March 30, 2017 by Uke

[iMonrey]

Quote

 I don't know why. Because he's cute? He has zero personality (and I hate bull riding). I thought his legs were bent and awkward through his dance (again) and was shocked by how--once again--he was praised where Nick (imo a better dancer) was given a lot of pretty tough criticism. 

Really? I thought Nick was awful (and I thought he was OK last week). His posture was atrocious and he never finished a move - he sort of started to do things then just stopped and went to the next thing. I thought Bonner had a very good frame and was much better than Nick although he was stiff (or, "woody," as Bruno put it) doing turns in hold.

I don't think Bonner's bad looking but he's got an amusingly high-pitched voice for someone that tall. 

[calipiano81]

6 hours ago, boyznkatz said:

Aly's dancing was horrid. She was easily the worst gymnast on the show. At least Simone, Laurie and Nastia can all dance. She was a classic example of someone who outlasted better dancers because she was nice.

Aly was the least natural dancer of all the DWTS gymnasts, but I would no way call her dancing "horrid." And which better dancers exactly did she outlast in Season 16? Ingo Rademacher? Sean Lowe the Bachelor? Andy Dick?

And anyway, that was not the point of my post. Someone asked if there was ever any gymnast that felt comfortable portraying sexy, and my answer is that would be Aly.

[boyznkatz]

4 hours ago, calipiano81 said:

Aly was the least natural dancer of all the DWTS gymnasts, but I would no way call her dancing "horrid." And which better dancers exactly did she outlast in Season 16? Ingo Rademacher? Sean Lowe the Bachelor? Andy Dick?

And anyway, that was not the point of my post. Someone asked if there was ever any gymnast that felt comfortable portraying sexy, and my answer is that would be Aly.

Something about her dancing reminded me of Bristol Palin. JMO though. The judges seemed to love her.

Edited March 31, 2017 by boyznkatz

[calipiano81]

8 hours ago, RedFiat said:

Here's what I know.  The pros get a certain song, or request it, the song is normally 3-5 minutes long. The pro can cut it anywhere they like to do the minute and thirty for the show. So the fact that there's a break down section doesn't mean the pro has to use it. In fact, I would argue that it was lazy on the pros' part to include it. As per usual with Maks he leaves the stage for his celebrity to dance solo or with back up dancers . And this time in particular He didn't even have to choreograph that section, since  his pro dancer celebrity  is the expert not him.  

Where did you learn that the pros get to cut the music? They sometimes show on air the couples getting handed CDs for the following week's dances...I've always assumed the CD already contained the cut piece of music that the couple is to dance to and that the band will play on the live show.

Although, we have have heard of instances of dancers rearranging their song (e.g. Babyface and his AT music, Mark and a friend also arranged his Toy Story quickstep song with Paige), but I think that's the exception for those with a lot of music experience.

Edited March 30, 2017 by calipiano81

[PBGamer89]

I always remember during season 20 when Allison and Sharna publically stated that they requested "Worth it" by the Weeknd for their own celebs to use and they got turned down, just for TPTB to give the song to Rumer and Val in the semis for the Viennese Waltz.

There have been so many music issues throughout the seasons, and I don't think the dancers cut each track to their liking. I've seen in some packages the CD they get and it says "Song, Artist, and Length of track" so sometimes it's already cut for them.

I don't think Maks put in a few counts of 8 of Hip Hop to be mean to the Len or waste time. It was likely from having a Latin dance and beingf criticized that Heather didn't show enough personality.

There have been moments in past dances just the same amount of counts of 8 were used for props, walking down stairs, or generally messing about and Len just decided to be an ass about this time because of his hatred of Hip Hop.

Edited March 31, 2017 by PBGamer89

[TeeMo]

16 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Really? I thought Nick was awful (and I thought he was OK last week). His posture was atrocious and he never finished a move - he sort of started to do things then just stopped and went to the next thing. I thought Bonner had a very good frame and was much better than Nick although he was stiff (or, "woody," as Bruno put it) doing turns in hold.

I don't think Bonner's bad looking but he's got an amusingly high-pitched voice for someone that tall. 

I agree that Nick did not look great this week but I think he looks like he has more potential to be a decent dancer than Bonner does. I think the stuff you described about Nick's dance this week (not finishing a move, etc) is actually more of an issue with his training than his own talent. From his rehearsal packages and his dance week 1 he looks to me to be a more natural/graceful mover tthn Bonner is. I think Peta gave him a kind of lousy and overly frantic dance this week and that was a big part of his problem. 

I am no fan of Nick's from his time on the Bachelor (at all) but I'd prefer to watch him dance than Bonner. And this will be an unpopular opinion but I also think he is a better natural mover than Nyle whose dancing I never really enjoyed. Peta's partners often seem to end up with a rather stompy style with poor posture that I don't really like (I did not enjoy James Maslow's dancing either for the same reasons) so it may be her training style that I just don't like.

[Toonces464]

11 hours ago, TeeMo said:

And this will be an unpopular opinion but I also think he is a better natural mover than Nyle whose dancing I never really enjoyed. Peta's partners often seem to end up with a rather stompy style with poor posture that I don't really like (I did not enjoy James Maslow's dancing either for the same reasons) so it may be her training style that I just don't like.

I thought I was the only one who didn't care for Nyle's dancing and wondered why no one ever called him out on all the stomping and his horrible posture.

[Wings]

1 hour ago, Toonces464 said:

I thought I was the only one who didn't care for Nyle's dancing and wondered why no one ever called him out on all the stomping and his horrible posture.

I LOVE your user name!  

[Uke]

1 hour ago, Toonces464 said:

I thought I was the only one who didn't care for Nyle's dancing and wondered why no one ever called him out on all the stomping and his horrible posture.

I didn't like Nyle's dancing either - he never progressed from week 1 and I don't think he learned anything.  I believe the reason Maks was in rehearsal so much was so Nyle could just mimic Maks + Peta doing each dance.  IMO he was just trying to get famous by being on a bunch of reality shows and did not deserve to be awarded the MBT.   

[babyhouseman]

9 minutes ago, Uke said:

I didn't like Nyle's dancing either - he never progressed from week 1 and I don't think he learned anything.  I believe the reason Maks was in rehearsal so much was so Nyle could just mimic Maks + Peta doing each dance.  IMO he was just trying to get famous by being on a bunch of reality shows and did not deserve to be awarded the MBT.   

I didn't care for Nyle either. I have a mild hearing loss and can sympathize, but I thought he was overhyped. 

[Toonces464]

2 hours ago, Uke said:

I didn't like Nyle's dancing either - he never progressed from week 1 and I don't think he learned anything.  I believe the reason Maks was in rehearsal so much was so Nyle could just mimic Maks + Peta doing each dance.  IMO he was just trying to get famous by being on a bunch of reality shows and did not deserve to be awarded the MBT.   

That was what made his win even more annoying --- he was being trained by two pros and then you look at people like Amy and Noah and how far they went with just one pro teaching them. It was so unfair.

[RedFiat]

11 hours ago, Toonces464 said:

I thought I was the only one who didn't care for Nyle's dancing and wondered why no one ever called him out on all the stomping and his horrible posture.

Nyle is probably one of the worst winners they've had in terms of actual dance.   But this is the show wanting Nyle to happen, and it bored me . 

[RedFiat]

Quote

On 3/30/2017 at 4:36 PM, calipiano81 said:

Where did you learn that the pros get to cut the music? They sometimes show on air the couples getting handed CDs for the following week's dances...I've always assumed the CD already contained the cut piece of music that the couple is to dance to and that the band will play on the live show.

 

Because its not always CD music, it is often LIVE music where the arrangement has been changed, modified, cropped, etc. Band Leader Ray Chew often provides live music. There is no reason why that shitty hip hop breakdown could have been taken right out of the song, because it was a very easy rockabilly style that an orchestra can do.I listened to that stupid song they used, and in fact they could have kept going doing Jive, and not break down because that section still had the back beat moving in a rockabilly style. In fact the show slowed it down more than how it sounds on youtube .  So I think Maks wanted that section highlighted for his celebrity, and the hell with dancing a jive.  If the showrunners are playing games and telling their pros you must put in the breakdown then the show has changed and not for the better.  

 I remember entire segments devoted to Harold Wheeler working with pros like Derek and Cheryl  basically re-arranging entire songs so that they would work for a specific dance.  Ray Chew does basically the same thing as Harold Wheeler did, except the show has more canned music in the ballroom now. But the fact remains that if there is a LIVE Orchestra available they can re-arrange the music to suit the celebrity. Wheeler was the best in terms of capturing musical stylings that you thought could only be done in a studio. Like the Gotan Project music he re-created for Derek and Nicole Scherzinger, or my favorite was when he did classical night in Season 12. It was incredibly good. He could even do that shit beat box crap.  Maybe that is why he was fired. He was too good at his job. But he is doing just fine as the Academy Awards orchestra conductor  Ray Chew with the bunch of canned music in the studio now is probably not as expensive as Harold.  This is a quote from another forum 

Quote

I love that Harold was the one who did the musical arrangements for every song that they’ve played over the last 17 seasons. I love that he’s ALWAYS been very respectful of the music, of the original, and many times, of the professional dancer and the dance itself.

It can’t be easy to basically rewrite that many songs every week, so that they everything meshes best… Harold and the orchestra were truly the best!!

I’ve always loved the dances where the professional worked closely with Harold to change details in the songs to better fit the dance… Derek was always great with that, but several others were, too. 

 

 

 

Edited April 1, 2017 by RedFiat

[limecoke]

Late to the party this week and just got the time to Hulu this.  Thoughts...

Nancy:  Don't quite understand the lack of self-confidence but she got chumped a few times in her skating career which might have something to do with it.  Add me to those who would love to see Michelle Kwan on DWTS.  Got to see her do her gorgeous routine to "Fields of Gold" a few years ago-right from a front row seat-and she is amazing to watch. 

Erika:  Annoying beyond words.  

Charo: Oh, for the love, can someone please make it stop.

Nick: Don't care.

Heather:  Don't care.  I don't think Len is well-pleased when the producers bring on a contestant who is a pro dancer.  Love that he mentioned the Beyoncé thing.  

Bonner:  Dancing was fine but there's some sleeze that oozes from him that I don't find attractive.

Simone: She's great, I just don't want to see another gymnast winner.

Chris: Don't like his attitude but I am sorry about his afflictions.  I have to wonder why he signed up in the first place.  

Normani: Don't care.  

Rashad: Love him.  Great dancer and seems to be another NFL potential winner.  

Mr. T:  Attutide-wise, the complete opposite of Chris.  Working hard to do his best and appreciating and learning from his scores.  Nice man.

David: So entertaining and such a great spirit.  I love that we finally get an MLB pro!!  Hope he sticks around.

I don't mind Grumpy Len one bit.  He is the lone voice on the panel for true ballroom dancing and the show needs at least one.  Keep making them boo, Len!

[Lamb18]

Posted in wrong episode thread.

Edited April 3, 2017 by Lamb18

[backformore]

On ‎3‎/‎28‎/‎2017 at 11:21 AM, Callaphera said:

ETA: Full disclaimer: I don't like Chris Kattan. I never have. I don't find him funny in the least. More annoying than anything and he used to cause me to go flailing for the remote to change the channel whenever he'd show up in old SNL reruns (I call it the Will Ferrell Effect because the above goes double for him). So I'm not sorry to see him go and I may be biased because of my dislike of him. 

I agree.  Over the years, I thought many of his SNL impressions were more mean-spirited than funny.  I saw him interviewed a few times and came away with the impression that he was an asshole.  He was on a cooking show  (Rachel and Guy? I don't recall the name of the show)  and he came across like a complete jerk who was trying to be funny but failing miserably, and there was talk that the filming was held up because he was drunk or high and passed out during a break. 

I'm glad he's off DWTS.

[backformore]

On ‎3‎/‎30‎/‎2017 at 1:33 PM, Jaclyn88 said:

What is with Charo's hate for Bruno? Man that woman is annoying as it gets.

OH, she couldn't care less about Bruno.  Charo has been doing that same shtick forever.  She says something nobody can understand, someone else says something, and she tells them they have a terrible accent and she can't understand a word they're saying.   The funniest thing decades ago, about Charo was when she appeared on the Tonight Show.  It  less about her, and more about the deadpan reaction Johnny Carson had with her.  Other than those bits, I've never found her act funny or appealing  at all. 

Edited April 4, 2017 by backformore