S24.E08: Week 8: Trio Night

[marykat71702]

8 hours ago, calipiano81 said:

 

I'm really surprised some people think Simone was angry during the paso critique

 

Ohhh, look at her eyes. She was pissed.

[tessaforever]

4 hours ago, spanana said:

I want to marry this post.  Not only has Simone dealt with criticism her entire life, but the original poster claimed she has never dealt with adversity.  She's also a young black woman.  There is adversity in this society in that alone, let alone being a young black woman in a sport where there have been a minimum of women of color on the elite level.  She was also a child in foster care at one point in her life.

Criticism and adversity are probably two things she faces and has faced on a daily basis.  Just because she's been cleaning up the awards and accolades for the last few years doesn't mean that it all came easy to her and she got there without any pushback.

I got the feeling that Simone was upset because she's being nitpicked to death, moreso than the other contestants. It must be galling for her to see David come out and dance just okay while she dances really well, and then get the same score. So it's not that she isn't used to criticism, but she can tell when she's being held to a different standard than the others. I thought Nancy was a beautiful dancer but often had a deer-in-headlights look and it wasn't mentioned nearly as much as Simone's smile. 

3 hours ago, TeeMo said:

I think lifts are just not Val's strong suit. I remember he did that dead lift with Janel and I thought they were both going to topple to the ground. His lifts always look a little shaky to me. Tony was the king of the lifts.

Oh yeah, remember when Val almost dropped Julianne?? But he did do the Swan Lake lift with Rumer really well. 

[Uke]

9 hours ago, ClareWalks said:

This is going to sound facetious but I am 100% serious: Sasha needs to take Simone to a karaoke night. She needs to get up on stage and (badly) ham up a classic Bon Jovi song, or something. She seems to be so used to being good at something that she can't just loosen the hell up and have fun out there. She is great at dancing, but I feel nervous watching her because you can see that she is petrified of screwing up in public. If she can forget about being great and just worry about having fun, I think she'd be much more watchable. As it stands, that sour puss she wore the whole time she was being critiqued turned off a lot of viewers.

Funny you mention it. I was just thinking how Mark got Bethany to loosen up during switch week.  He took her skipping around the outside of the rehearsal studio, had her blowing bubbles like a 5 yr old, etc.  Silly things to get her to relax and loosen up.  Maybe Sasha could have tried that tactic.

[katha]

I think Simone is not very engaging as a performer and also not very fluid in her movements and I also think it's mostly tied to all her gymnastics habits. I've also not been convinced by some of Sasha's decision making when it comes to how to present her.

In a situation like this the problem becomes the usual sadistic DWTS sledgehammer approach to everything. They recognize something real (Simone having some difficulties in performance) and turn it into melodrama central. Then the celeb and pro have to deal with the exaggeration and laser focus on issues that aren't actually all that bad. And yeah, it's usually done to female conestants. I remember how they dragged Alexa/Mark and Tamar/Val around the block almost every week and gave them weird passive aggressive critiques and weird packages because they decided those were the drama couples. If you're not watching DWTS for the fake soap opera, this aspect of the show is super annoying.

[Uke]

10 hours ago, realdancemom said:

Loved Normani's contemporary.   It's so easy to hide behind a keyboard.   Nobody should have to go through the kind of cyber bullying that she had to endure.  She poured her emotions into that dance. 

It's been my observation that generally fans will tend to follow the lead of whoever they are fans of so it's interesting to me that Normani's backstory is about cyber bullying and yet a lot of her fans go all out bullying anyone who disagrees with them and troll twitter to find anyone not adoring Normani.   

Every Monday (for years now!) I watch the show with the same group of twitter friends and we all chat back and forth. No one is unduly harsh on any of the stars but we do exchange our candid opinions.  About Normani the worst anyone said was she was overscored, producers fave, maybe her fans forgot to vote due to immunity, etc.  But boy! Did we ever feel the wrath of  Normani fans last night! Yikes!  Cussing us out, telling us to "take a seat", we don't know what we're talking about (we've all been watching since S5, give or take),  etc. and all in the foulest language.  I assume they were all teens, old enough but apparently not parentally supervised enough to know better.   It seems they don't associate what they're doing with what their "queen" (their term) is campaigning against.  We all just started blocking them as it wasn't worth attempting rational discussion with unhinged teens.  Yes, it's easy to hide behind a keyboard and maybe Normani needs to start talking to her fans.

[Egrace]

K

Edited May 10, 2017 by Egrace
Didn't like the comment

[crossover]

8 minutes ago, Uke said:

It's been my observation that generally fans will tend to follow the lead of whoever they are fans of so it's interesting to me that Normani's backstory is about cyber bullying and yet a lot of her fans go all out bullying anyone who disagrees with them and troll twitter to find anyone not adoring Normani.   

We all just started blocking them as it wasn't worth attempting rational discussion with unhinged teens.  Yes, it's easy to hide behind a keyboard and maybe Normani needs to start talking to her fans.

I don't see fans as following the celeb of their fandom.  They defend the celeb and send out positive vibes about her/him.  They are probably following leads but usually it's the perceived lead of the fandom. 

I would think the reason Normani's fans are so defensive is because of what she went through.  They are probably teens/young adults.  They think they are defending a friend in case someone wants to bully her.  They are probably not rational when they see negative comments about Normani because they think she's great.

[WhosThatGirl]

I haven't watched in the last two weeks. I'm reading the recaps and reading comments but I'm not invested in who wins. I'll probably watch the finale but I'm kind of meh on this whole thing.

[gohawks]

3 hours ago, Uke said:

It's been my observation that generally fans will tend to follow the lead of whoever they are fans of so it's interesting to me that Normani's backstory is about cyber bullying and yet a lot of her fans go all out bullying anyone who disagrees with them and troll twitter to find anyone not adoring Normani.   

This may be the most ridiculous thing on the internet today. It shows no understanding of millineals and no understanding of how social media operates. 

You seem to imply Normani deserves to see pictures of herself being lynched and deserves to be called the n-word. Blame the victim? She was not to blame!

[calipiano81]

24 minutes ago, gohawks said:

This may be the most ridiculous thing on the internet today. It shows no understanding of millineals and no understanding of how social media operates. 

You seem to imply Normani deserves to see pictures of herself being lynched and deserves to be called the n-word. Blame the victim? She was not to blame!

I don't think Uke was trying to say Normani was the cause of her own cyber bullying. It was being pointed out the irony that Normani's dance was sending a message against cyber bullying, yet a lot of her fans are going around online hassling fans of other couples. 

Edited May 10, 2017 by calipiano81

[gohawks]

2 minutes ago, calipiano81 said:

I don't think Uke was trying to say Normani was the cause of her own cyber bullying. It was being pointed out the irony that Normani's dance was sending a message against cyber bullying through her dance, yet a lot of her fans are going around online hassling fans of other couples. 

She/he stated that Normani's fans were following her lead. Further she/he implied that some kids telling her/him to have seat is equivalent to what Normani received. 

[crossover]

25 minutes ago, calipiano81 said:

I don't think Uke was trying to say Normani was the cause of her own cyber bullying. It was being pointed out the irony that Normani's dance was sending a message against cyber bullying through her dance, yet a lot of her fans are going around online hassling fans of other couples. 

I really don't see it as ironic.  Just because they are fans of Normani's doesn't mean they don't participate in cyber bullying.  Normani's message is for them as well as others.  She was just trying to relay her story and how she's trying to overcome. 

I don't think Uke meant that Normani is the cause of her own cyber bullying by anything she's done.  She was bullied because of how she looks.  But Uke did mean that Normani could control her fans' cyber bullying and that they follow her lead, which is false.  Just like people were harassing Normani based on their preconceived notions or ingrained ideas, some of her fans do the same to others because they have the preconceived notion that you are trying to hurt/embarrass Normani.  Since Normani's incidents, some of her fans are probably always on the defense especially if the conversation goes on and on.

But like gohawk stated, what Normani went through is nothing like what Uke stated Normani's fans sent to them.  If Uke see "take a seat" as cyber bullying, Uke wouldn't have been able to handle what Normani received.

Edited May 10, 2017 by crossover

[smiley13]

Normani and her sob story just did not "get" to me at all.  I had never heard of her before this show and to be honest, have found her boring and a non-entity during her dances.  That is why the judges overscoring and tongue baths for her have been ridiculous.

Rashad and David have been a joy to watch and I have also enjoyed Simone.  All three of them have been nit picked and harped at while Normani has sailed through as the judges pet.

[crossover]

35 minutes ago, smiley13 said:

Normani and her sob story just did not "get" to me at all.  I had never heard of her before this show and to be honest, have found her boring and a non-entity during her dances.  That is why the judges overscoring and tongue baths for her have been ridiculous.

Rashad and David have been a joy to watch and I have also enjoyed Simone.  All three of them have been nit picked and harped at while Normani has sailed through as the judges pet.

Enjoyment of dance is subjective.  But your tone sounds like you are upset because you feel the judges are too lenient with Normani.  Once you get something like this in your head/heart, it can cloud your enjoyment/judgement.   I really can't see why else you would prefer Rashad, David and Simone dance performances over Normani?

If you are talking about Normani doesn't have any in-your-face personal drama as being boring.  I agree.  But her dance performances aren't boring.  She's so expressive when she dances.

Normani's "sob story" did resonate with me.  Prejudice seems to be on the rise.  And trying to shame/bring down PoC has become rampant.

ETA:  Whereas I enjoy Normani, I don't think she will win. 

Edited May 10, 2017 by crossover

[NeverLate]

2 hours ago, smiley13 said:

Normani and her sob story just did not "get" to me at all.  I had never heard of her before this show and to be honest, have found her boring and a non-entity during her dances.  That is why the judges overscoring and tongue baths for her have been ridiculous.

Rashad and David have been a joy to watch and I have also enjoyed Simone.  All three of them have been nit picked and harped at while Normani has sailed through as the judges pet.

I blame the show. They want the sob stories, and honestly, they bore me to tears. 

I'm often moved by them, I'm not going to lie, but I tune in to see dancing. I don't need movie week or Disney week. Once in awhile a theme would be okay, but every week? Nope.

[iMonrey]

Quote

Simone seems to be getting the same criticism from viewers that Nancy was getting weeks ago. That she was coming off fragile and angry when things weren't going well. I've said before it's definitely an Olympic thing. These athletes are used to being drilled and critiqued to death every day for years on end by their trainers. Having said that I do have a feeling that Simone secretly thought this would be an easy mirrorball after her pal Laurie did the business last season and she's possibly showing signs of cracking as the judges nitpick her and it becomes apparent that she won't be winning her own mirrorball.

To me, the criticism of Simone just seems like Laurie Hernandez backlash and/or anti-gymnast sentiment. Both Laurie and Simone seemed somewhat stunted emotionally from having spent their entire lives growing up in gymnasiums; both seemed giggly and child-like in many ways; both were exceptionally competent technical dancers; both were criticized for being "robotic" and not connecting with the audience or their partners. 

The difference is the judges are validating those criticisms with Simone whereas they didn't do that nearly as much with Laurie, and I honestly feel like the show simply doesn't want a gymnast winning two seasons in a row so Simone is being held back on purpose. I hope to hell someone took her aside at the very beginning and explained to her that she probably didn't have a legitimate chance to win this thing because Laurie beat her to the punch.

[Uke]

9 hours ago, gohawks said:

This may be the most ridiculous thing on the internet today. It shows no understanding of millineals and no understanding of how social media operates. 

You seem to imply Normani deserves to see pictures of herself being lynched and deserves to be called the n-word. Blame the victim? She was not to blame!

Whoa! I implied no such thing!

I said "It's been my observation" - you know or have observed something different which is fine.  I was telling my experience Monday night.

Normani's challenge has been dealing with cyber bullying yet her fans are engaging in cyber bullying of others (crossover suggested their behavior was in defense of Normani).

NO ONE should have to deal with cyber bullying or racism.   

 

"She/he stated that Normani's fans were following her lead. Further she/he implied that some kids telling her/him to have seat is equivalent to what Normani received. "

I did not state that Normani's fans were following her lead. Just the opposite.  Normani's against cyber bullying and some of her fans are engaging in it.   No where did I equate the messages we received to anything Normani's reportedly received.

 

Also, just for the record, we weren't criticizing Normani - we discussed and critiqued ALL the DANCES, not the people.

Edited May 10, 2017 by Uke

[Toonces464]

6 hours ago, crossover said:

Enjoyment of dance is subjective.  But your tone sounds like you are upset because you feel the judges are too lenient with Normani.  Once you get something like this in your head/heart, it can cloud your enjoyment/judgement.   I really can't see why else you would prefer Rashad, David and Simone dance performances over Normani?

Well, it's really not for you to make determinations as to why people prefer someone other than your favorite. Many of us prefer Rashad, David and Simone to Normani. Personally I'd rather watch Mr. T come back and dance than Normani. But I don't owe you an explanation for why I feel that way nor do I need you telling me why I feel that way.

[vdw84]

The judges are not lenient on normani. She is just not giving them anything to complain about. Do not hate the girl because she is good. Some seasoned pros that are not even on the show anymore says she is best technical dancer and performer in the competition and is the one to beat. Normani was fortunate to get a good pro to be her partner too. I mean you can say what you want to about Val but he is good teacher and really connects to his partners on deeper level than just lets go dance and that is why their dances have been very impressive this season.

Rashad is good but he needs to work on technique and Emma seems like she wants to screw him, he looks uncomfortable when she is all over him and stuff. I bet she hate she can't start fake showmance to garner extra votes.

Simone needs to work on feeling the dance because she is a good dancer and connecting to sasha more. They seemed like they are losing that connection they had in the beginning and sasha needs to treat simone like a woman instead of giggly teenager.

No comment on David, I hope he is gone next week so the competition can truly begin.

[calipiano81]

3 hours ago, iMonrey said:

To me, the criticism of Simone just seems like Laurie Hernandez backlash and/or anti-gymnast sentiment. Both Laurie and Simone seemed somewhat stunted emotionally from having spent their entire lives growing up in gymnasiums; both seemed giggly and child-like in many ways; both were exceptionally competent technical dancers; both were criticized for being "robotic" and not connecting with the audience or their partners. 

The difference is the judges are validating those criticisms with Simone whereas they didn't do that nearly as much with Laurie, and I honestly feel like the show simply doesn't want a gymnast winning two seasons in a row so Simone is being held back on purpose. I hope to hell someone took her aside at the very beginning and explained to her that she probably didn't have a legitimate chance to win this thing because Laurie beat her to the punch.

While voters may have gymnast fatigue, I don't really think the criticism (by the judges or viewers) of Simone in and of itself has relation to Laurie. Laurie was a more natural performer and was more connected and expressive in her dancing. Simone does have a more difficult time with this aspect.

As I said in a previous post, I feel the judges' comments on Monday were valid, but the timing was very suspect. Rather than backlash, I think the show is trying to keep Simone out of the finals to make room for someone else they would rather have.

Edited May 10, 2017 by calipiano81

[spanana]

13 minutes ago, vdw84 said:

The judges are not lenient on normani. She is just not giving them anything to complain about.

The judges can always find something to complain about.  Normani is good.  She's not a pro.  Even her being one of the best ever of the celebs, if she is, does not mean she is perfect.  The judges have nitpicked plenty of amazing celeb dancers over the years.  If anything they have a habit of nitpicking the people who are really good because they are held to higher standards.  See Corbin.  While I never loved his dances myself, I could see how badly the judges would nitpick every little thing he did while giving other dancers a pass and 10's.  I get it to a degree because he came in at a way higher level, but that is exactly the point.  Usually the judges do nitpick the ones that come in with the highest level of skill (see Heather). They aren't doing it to Normani for whatever reason.  The only time I see them criticize her is when they criticize Val's choreography.  I have seen her be legit off balance in a dance (her salsa I think?), though still quite good of course, and the judges say nothing.  Nor do I think her kicks and flicks were on point this week.  She sells the crap out of whatever she does, don't get me wrong.  But the point is the judges can always find something to complain about if they want to find something to complain about.  They just choose not to with Normani.

Also unrelated to this quote, the Simone thing has blown up to such a point that there is going to be some major backlash if Simone gets the boot this week.  Maybe not from DWTS fans, but the general larger media.  It's all over the press.  As a result I fully expect Carrie Anne and the judges to 100% backtrack this week and praise her no matter what she does.  So she's going to get her 10's.  She may be walking out the door while that happens, but I don't think the show has the balls to not kiss her ass this week unless they want a PR disaster.

[vdw84]

The judges were telling the truth though. Could they have went about in a different way, yes im sure but simone should be use to tough criticism being from the Gymnastics world. Those coaches I have heard are pure hell at times. Im sorry but she shouldnt get special treatment because she is best gymnast of all time.

[spanana]

39 minutes ago, vdw84 said:

The judges were telling the truth though. Could they have went about in a different way, yes im sure but simone should be use to tough criticism being from the Gymnastics world. Those coaches I have heard are pure hell at times. Im sorry but she shouldnt get special treatment because she is best gymnast of all time.

Nobody is asking for her to get special treatment.  What some are asking for is people to not demand females smile on cue, off the dance floor, when they don't feel like smiling.  Especially while they are already being criticized for their facial expressions and overall demeanor. That has nothing to do with anything that happened on the dance floor.  Let people take criticism however they choose to take criticism.  Asking for basic respect is not special treatment.

[calipiano81]

41 minutes ago, vdw84 said:

The judges were telling the truth though. Could they have went about in a different way, yes im sure but simone should be use to tough criticism being from the Gymnastics world. Those coaches I have heard are pure hell at times. Im sorry but she shouldnt get special treatment because she is best gymnast of all time.

Nobody is saying Simone should get special treatment. The judges' comments had truth, but why have they not been saying those things to Simone much earlier? We've been making similar comments about Simone here on this board all season long.

Yet, they waited until the week where voting determines the finalists, for all 4 judges to come down hard on her? And the comments didn't make sense for a foxtrot, which doesn't require much emotional depth anyway.

[classique]

Isn't Tom the one who asked her about not smiling, off the dance floor? The judges were talking about her smiling/not smiling during her dances.

[spanana]

2 minutes ago, classique said:

Isn't Tom the one who asked her about not smiling, off the dance floor? The judges were talking about her smiling/not smiling during her dances.

Yes, and her gold medal comment was in response to Tom.  It wasn't in response to the judges.  The whole exchange is in this thread.  Tom wanted to know why she wasn't smiling while the judges were talking.  She answered. 

Edited May 10, 2017 by spanana

[Uke]

Interesting that for the "Judges Challenge" next week, CAI was assigned to Simone.  

I just posted the press release in "In The Media" thread.

[Toonces464]

2 hours ago, vdw84 said:

Some seasoned pros that are not even on the show anymore says she is best technical dancer and performer in the competition and is the one to beat.

Some seasoned pros that are not even on the show anymore say Rashad is the one to beat. Some say it's Simone. Any seasoned pro who's no longer on the show is entitled to their opinion.

[Venee]

1 hour ago, vdw84 said:

The judges are not lenient on normani. She is just not giving them anything to complain about. Do not hate the girl because she is good. Some seasoned pros that are not even on the show anymore says she is best technical dancer and performer in the competition and is the one to beat. Normani was fortunate to get a good pro to be her partner too. I mean you can say what you want to about Val but he is good teacher and really connects to his partners on deeper level than just lets go dance and that is why their dances have been very impressive this season.

Rashad is good but he needs to work on technique and Emma seems like she wants to screw him, he looks uncomfortable when she is all over him and stuff. I bet she hate she can't start fake showmance to garner extra votes.

Simone needs to work on feeling the dance because she is a good dancer and connecting to sasha more. They seemed like they are losing that connection they had in the beginning and sasha needs to treat simone like a woman instead of giggly teenager.

No comment on David, I hope he is gone next week so the competition can truly begin.

At the end if the day it is a reality show. It's certainly not a dance contest, thus the mix of experience of the "celebrities" and the rule of "Vote for your favorite". I say that to say this:  Dance wise Normani is circling an empty rink. The only dancer that truly could have given her a run for her money is Heather.  It should be an all female top 4 if this was based just on dance, composed of Heather, Normani , Nancy and Simone. The fact that that's not the case leads me to believe that were in for a Rashad win. Normani needs that casual couch voter. The casual couch voter for this season resents experience. I think even if David gets Cub nation behind him, the judges scores will knock him out of the running. Looking at Social Media Simone and Normani have similar numbers when you combine Instagram and Twitter fandom. It's possible they will split the vote further making room for a Rashad win. It also doesn't help Normani that Val won last season.

[Toonces464]

9 minutes ago, Venee said:

Looking at Social Media Simone and Normani have similar numbers when you combine Instagram and Twitter fandom. It's possible they will split the vote further making room for a Rashad win. It also doesn't help Normani that Val won last season.

Anyone who's watched DWTS for any length of time knows social media fans mean nothing. If they did, Zendaya and Bethany Mota would have cleaned up.

[Venee]

4 minutes ago, Toonces464 said:

Anyone who's watched DWTS for any length of time knows social media fans mean nothing. If they did, Zendaya and Bethany Mota would have cleaned up.

I think it  keeps them in the game possibly until the finals.  I never said it would determine the winner, which is why I emphasized the casual voter impact. That is always the unknown and determining factor.

Edited May 10, 2017 by Venee

[crossover]

5 hours ago, Toonces464 said:

Well, it's really not for you to make determinations as to why people prefer someone other than your favorite. Many of us prefer Rashad, David and Simone to Normani. Personally I'd rather watch Mr. T come back and dance than Normani. But I don't owe you an explanation for why I feel that way nor do I need you telling me why I feel that way.

You are so right.  You don't owe me an explanation.  But I don't recall asking for one?  There are probably tons of people who would prefer watching MrT over Normani.  Afterall, if people watched DWTS for the dancing, the PBS dance shows would be a hit.

[HappyDancex2]

On 5/9/2017 at 0:42 AM, Beyoncheyyy said:

First, shout out to Len for bringing the sass and finally laying the truth on the table for Bonner. We've all been thinking it, finally Len said it. All I could hear was my elementary Super Nintendo saying finish him while playing Mortal Kombat. Between Bonner's Hannibal outburst in the first rehearsal footage to his creep master creep towards the trio situation in the second..

 

Mortal combat reference...CRYING...cuz I actually could hear it in my head.  Nostalgic.  Well done.

[gimmeegimmeegim]

UAL?

Sans the video.

Boo len. Send him home with Gleb, the unmagnif.

Edited May 11, 2017 by gimmeegimmeegim

[crossover]

On 5/9/2017 at 10:42 PM, marykat71702 said:

Ohhh, look at her eyes. She was pissed.

I saw a Simone interview where she said she was trying to hold back tears.  MAYBE this is what people saw.

ETA:  "You don't know which wild card of sexy or of happy they want to bring, and you almost have to read their minds and find it," she explained.  While Biles dealt with the criticism like a pro, the young star admitted that she nearly started crying.   I had tears in my eyes," she recalled. "I almost ran to the bathroom at one point, but I pulled it together."

Edited May 11, 2017 by crossover

[realdancemom]

19 hours ago, calipiano81 said:

While voters may have gymnast fatigue, I don't really think the criticism (by the judges or viewers) of Simone in and of itself has relation to Laurie. Laurie was a more natural performer and was more connected and expressive in her dancing. Simone does have a more difficult time with this aspect.

As I said in a previous post, I feel the judges' comments on Monday were valid, but the timing was very suspect. Rather than backlash, I think the show is trying to keep Simone out of the finals to make room for someone else they would rather have.

Yes, I don't compare Simone to Laurie just like I don't compare Rashad to any other football player that's been on this show.

The judges have said something to Simone before.  When she showed a vulnerable side in Most Memorable Year, they said that she had a breakthrough and that's what they've been waiting for.  Now, I don't want Simone to only have sad dances but you can tell that she goes on autopilot.  But it could be too ingrained in her to change.  I still think that Simone has lots of fans and I wouldn't be surprised if she still won.  That's what I like about this season.  It's less predictable.

[saber5055]

I love seeing everything David, it's so rare to see a person who is genuinely kind, nice and wholesome. Especially these days, it's almost impossible to find someone who is even partly nice. David's dad waltz brought tears to my eyes. His second dance, yeah, it wasn't so good, but he looked SMOKIN' in that gladiator outfit (shallow, I know) and his smiling and laughing and being happy during his critique was in such a contrast to Simone's "Smiles don't win gold medals" snotty snark. For the first time in ages, I voted all my votes for David, just because I am so happy to watch someone who is NICE every week. I'll be okay if Rashad wins though, as I think he is talented and a nice person too. And why does Val go out of his way to pimp Alan on air when he should be talking to TPTB behind the scenes. They are the ones making decisions of who stays, who goes. Val wasted airtime on his useless Alan pimp.

[ClareWalks]

It is interesting to see the difference between David and Simone. Both are athletes who are coming off amazing "seasons." David, though, seems less competitive, and it might be because he retired and the idea of competing is kind of old at this point. It could also be because David played a team sport, while Simone is a gymnast which is basically an individual sport. David definitely seems to be having more fun with the whole process, but that could also be because he has no expectation or pressure of winning the whole contest. I feel kind of bad for Simone at this point because I really don't think she knows what to do to get the judges on her side.

[realdancemom]

1 hour ago, saber5055 said:

I love seeing everything David, it's so rare to see a person who is genuinely kind, nice and wholesome. Especially these days, it's almost impossible to find someone who is even partly nice. David's dad waltz brought tears to my eyes. His second dance, yeah, it wasn't so good, but he looked SMOKIN' in that gladiator outfit (shallow, I know) and his smiling and laughing and being happy during his critique was in such a contrast to Simone's "Smiles don't win gold medals" snotty snark. For the first time in ages, I voted all my votes for David, just because I am so happy to watch someone who is NICE every week. I'll be okay if Rashad wins though, as I think he is talented and a nice person too. And why does Val go out of his way to pimp Alan on air when he should be talking to TPTB behind the scenes. They are the ones making decisions of who stays, who goes. Val wasted airtime on his useless Alan pimp.

I previously wrote that my favorite partnerships this season is David and Lindsay and Rashad and Emma.  David and Lindsay have a nice father/daughter type relationship.  All the things you said about David being kind, nice, and wholesome can describe Lindsay too.  Emma has always seemed so patient and kind to me.  I'm glad she finally has a contender.  I also reallly love Rashad's personality.  Like others have expressed, I really hope that he will get picked up by either a team or as a TV sports analyst.

[nic]

Monday will be all about Simone. The judges' critiques weren't wrong, but their delivery was a little harsh and they've received quite a bit of backlash from the media/public. Now with Monday's theme, and CAI getting Simone (no coincidence there), it'll end up being her shining moment of the season. It's almost like they tore her down, just to build her up stronger for the final push.

[luvthepros]

On 5/10/2017 at 3:13 PM, Toonces464 said:

Well, it's really not for you to make determinations as to why people prefer someone other than your favorite. Many of us prefer Rashad, David and Simone to Normani. Personally I'd rather watch Mr. T come back and dance than Normani. But I don't owe you an explanation for why I feel that way nor do I need you telling me why I feel that way.

Scratching my head about this. Mr. T. is notorious as the most obstinate and horrid dancer ever to appear on this show. I can only assume your statement is merely hyperbole.

[MsJamieDornan]

41 minutes ago, luvthepros said:

Scratching my head about this. Mr. T. is notorious as the most obstinate and horrid dancer ever to appear on this show.

Not even close....

[gimmeegimmeegim]

t taketh the t tank

close enuf for me and my gal

Edited May 11, 2017 by gimmeegimmeegim

[Toonces464]

1 hour ago, luvthepros said:

Scratching my head about this. Mr. T. is notorious as the most obstinate and horrid dancer ever to appear on this show. I can only assume your statement is merely hyperbole.

I think you're confusing Mr. T with Master P.

[Uke]

14 hours ago, crossover said:

I saw a Simone interview where she said she was trying to hold back tears.  MAYBE this is what people saw.

ETA:  "You don't know which wild card of sexy or of happy they want to bring, and you almost have to read their minds and find it," she explained.  While Biles dealt with the criticism like a pro, the young star admitted that she nearly started crying.   I had tears in my eyes," she recalled. "I almost ran to the bathroom at one point, but I pulled it together."

The way I read this is, she doesn't associate dance with emotion. She's trying to guess which display of emotion fits the situation.  It makes me wonder if Sasha is explaining the "story" of the dance to her as he teaches her the steps.  While each dance doesn't necessarily tell a story,  the packages (and also instagram stories/snapchats) often show the pros explaining "do this ____ as if you are feeling ____"  .   I don't know.  I'm feeling a little sorry for her.

[Autistic Queer]

I'm sure I've seen Sasha do that, Simone possibly thinks she's doing that but it isn't what the judges are seeing, so she's not really sure what she's supposed to do.

[calipiano81]

The movements and emotions of dance are driven by the music. Maybe Sasha could do an exercise of letting Simone listen to their music and ask her how it makes her feel, let her improvise some movements, or ask her to create a story based on what she hears in the music.

[Selkie75]

On 5/8/2017 at 11:59 PM, gohawks said:

Henry failed when rat-face put an end to that because his partner actually had chemistry with Henry.

I know this is going all the way back to page one, but I just had to respond.

Henry failed because he has an ego the size of Texas and felt that he was better than being a troupe member assisting a celebrity and pro. Source for that is Shirley Ballas on Afterbuzz. Some might agree with him on that, I actually would have before that season, but arrogance is never a good look.  Sasha proved he could be a team player and I've been overjoyed to see him as a pro three times after that.

Edited May 11, 2017 by Selkie75
Clarification

[Selkie75]

On 5/9/2017 at 1:35 AM, crossover said:

They've been shading Simone for a few dances.  And her packages haven't been positive.  It APPEARS they are manipulating the viewers against her.  They never did this to Laurie and I think Laurie was running away with her season from the start.  I think they either don't want back-to-back gymnast winners or they just prefer Normani in the finals.  Afterall, I don't think Normani has more support than David or Rashad.  They need a male winner.

Agree 100% with this, though in my opinion, it's gone beyond appears to actually doing. There is a clear agenda this season and I would say it's less about Normani winning than it is about Val winning. Normani seems like a sweet girl, talented and clearly can dance; not surprising as I remember reading somewhere she began training at a very young age and dancing is a large part of her career now. But, I feel like I know almost nothing about her, other than that. David is not the best dancer by far but I can't help but cheer for him because he wears his heart on his sleeve and is just so authentic. What Normani went through in terms of the bullying was horrible, but her dance this week was like another my most memorable year dance where people are likely to vote for the emotional connection rather than solely on the dance. That's fine, but other celebrities should have the same opportunity. They are tipping it so far in her direction - the over praising, the lack of critique, the nauseating hyperbole - that their agenda is becoming more and more crystal clear by the show. I feel like it could have been anyone partnered with Val (though no matter who they would have had some advantage, as has been the case historically) and they would be getting the same treatment. Because of him. Would really be interested to see him win once without so much help.

[luvthepros]

1 hour ago, Toonces464 said:

I think you're confusing Mr. T with Master P.

OMG....yes, you are so right. I apologize to Mr. T and his fans. Of course..... I was thinking of Master P.