S25.E08: Week 7: Halloween Night

[OnceSane]

Quote

A Halloween-themed night with scary and chilling performances.

[McManda]

Can we appreciate Artem in glasses? Thanks.

Halloween night is one night I appreciate the themes and stories.

Jordan is great. The end.

Vanessa and Maks had a pretty spectacular, visually appealing Paso. No comment on the content, but I though it was a pretty great show dance.

I'm not connecting with Lindsey still. I don't know if its Mark, or maybe her injury this week, but something felt off. But it already feels like she doesn't quite keep up with Mark. She tries, but she's half a second behind and it looks kind of unfinished. I can appreciate the choreography and the intricacies (and her ability to power through the pain this week) and yet I don't find myself wanting to rewatch her dances. (I do want to re-listen to her sing though, I really liked that.)

Frankie is adorable and yet managed so sinister... might have been my favorite contemporary on this show. The story, the synchronicity, the very normal yet creepy feeling... it was just something I found myself wanting to watch. Probably my most enjoyed individual dance of the night. And I really liked how it was really world scary in a night of zombies, werewolves, skeletons and ghosts.

Sasha the plucky reverend in the background of Emma and Drew's Charleston cracked me up. He's not the best but I think the plucky, looser styles work better for him. I wouldn't have guessed that based on his height and the length of his limbs.

Team Monster Mash was cute. Maybe a little overstaged, but cute. I'd also have to disagree with the judges that the team dances are about synchronicity. That was Derek's strategy, but my favorite team dance - Team Nightmare - didn't rely on synchronicity and was awesome.

Um ... I was honestly neither overwhelmed or underwhelmed wth either team dance. For the first third of the dance I thought Team Phantom of the Ballroom might pull out a win akin to Team Past a few seasons ago, but it seemed kind of messy to me. Perfect 30 seems generous, but I'm glad for Franke and his perfect 60.

A surprise double elimination on Halloween night  delivered by the grim reaper was fitting, though I called it as soon as the grim reaper came for Tom. Not sure I would have pegged Vanessa and Nikki for the eliminating, though.

(And I'm going to pretend the grim reaper was Sasha.)

Edited October 31, 2017 by McManda

[mtlchick]

"Nothing says a perfect score like indiffence from a dangling bat."  When are the Emmys going to give the man another award?

I did agree about the concern for the Monster Mash: the idea was great.  The execution...eh.  The moving pieces meant a lot of limited space on the floor.

I don't think Phantom was the BEST team dance of all time (for me, it's the 2015 one) but that team did the damn thing.

I was wondering "wasn't there a double elimation due?...ah, there it is." I guess people forgot it was going to happen.  Especially it seemed from the judges table. 

[doLLish]

My favorite night of the Fall season after Disney Night, it’s Halloween night!! My expectations are super high for choreography, performance, sets and costumes tonight.

Opening number was a let down.

Victoria and Val: Val is so funny. It’s all good when he has a partner with dance experience but now he wants to talk about how hard it is for them because Jordan and Lindsey have been “dancing their whole lives”? I generally like Val but he sounds very salty not to mention hypocritical. The routine was okay, nicely danced. Pretty boring and definitely not what I want to see on Halloween night though. Victoria just doesn't do anything for me and she can really go at any time.

I like Carrie Ann’s blue hair lol

Jordan and Lindsay: Faves gonna fave. I loved this!! Exactly what I wanted from this night. Again I’m so happy to see Lindsay flourishing in her choreography. I knew she had it in her and I’m just glad to see it all just pouring out creatively for her this season. Everybody has their own reasons for watching the show, I personally watch this show to see great dancing and great choreography and they’ve given me that consistently.

Nikki and Artem: This was so cute and fun lol. Artem is someone I’m happy to see going further than usual in the competition. I do agree with Carrie Ann, there’s something about Nikki that’s so tense and it’s so visible. She reminds me of Jodi Sweetin, another one who had a lot of talent but could never just relax.

Vanessa and Maks: Clearly the Chmerkovskiy brothers are seeing Lindsey and Jordan and their nightmares. Can’t stop talking about them lmao. This routine could have gone so right, but for me, it just went so wrong. First, Maks loves wasting time. It takes forever to actually start dancing in his routines. It’s gotten so annoying. I agree with Len about the content lacking. Nowhere near enough actual Paso Doble. Vanessa’s solo portion was a mess. Very out of sync, she doesn't do the angry/passionate thing well at all and it just looked...bad. I really liked the theme of the routine but unfortunately, as a whole, it was not good.

Terrell and Cheryl: Terrell looked great in those pants lol. Nice tango. I enjoyed it. Terrell continues to improve every week. Glad to see Cheryl being praised for her teaching abilities. Like I’ve been saying, she deserves a ton of credit. 

Lindsey and Mark: My other faves. I expected them to deliver and they did. I loved the “Day of the Dead” theme and I’m running out of words to describe Mark’s choreography. Maybe he needed the time off because while he was always excellent, he’s come back with a vengeance and is on another level creatively. I feel terrible for Lindsay, her pain was so obvious. I really hope she’s able to heal somewhat for next week.

Frankie and Witney: Last week really was a disaster. I agree with Witney “Let’s just forget that ever happened.” It was cool to see Frankie contributing to the choreography and really getting into it. OMG this was creepy as hell and I LOVED IT! Finally a contemporary different from the sad ass melodramatic “My heart is breaking I’m so miserable but don’t worry I’ll be happy at the end” contemporaries always seen on this show. This was amazing. Frankie played this role so well. One of my favorite routines of the season for sure. Maybe ever.

Emma and Drew: I really enjoyed this dance. So fun and it was nice to see Drew bounce back. I also loved their set lol.

Eh...I’m excited to see Corbin but bringing back old “stars” for trios is weird.

Interesting that they didn’t show how the groups were picked.

Team Monster Mash: Mark really commits to costumes lmao. He has to be HOT in that scarecrow get up. This was cute but extremely disappointing. I agree with all of the judges comments. The stronger dancers didn’t dance to their full potential, perhaps not trying to show up weaker dancers? It lacked synchronization and was way too broken up...I really expected this team to run away with the group dance and they should have. But they didn’t. I can already tell the other team has this in the bag. 

Team Phantom of the Ballroom: This narrative almost seems scripted lmao. The high scorers faltering and the underdogs prevailing. I really loved and appreciated this dance. They clearly weren’t the best dancers but they looked like a team. They were completely in sync, the choreography was beautiful as were the costumes and the set. It was everything a team dance should be. I don’t agree that that was the best group dance in the history of the show at all though. Those comments were very extreme. Short memories I guess.

That surprise double elimination was horrible. Wow. That seemed very mean spirited. I don’t even know what to say about it.

[truthaboutluv]

The fuck? Did they even tell the couples this was a double elimination? Man, that's just cold. Silly me,  I actually thought for a second there wasn't going to be an elimination when I noticed that Tom didn't add his usual, "on this night, the couple with the lowest combined score and therefore leaving..." He just said the two couples' names and there was just a pause. I'm sure Maks is thrilled to be leaving.

The judges looked confused like even they didn't know what was happening. What, did Nikki and Vanessa somehow manage to have the exact same score when they added judges' points and viewer votes and so they figured it would be unfair to send one and not the other? But again, they could have given the couples a heads up before the show. Well at least they both went out experiencing at least one perfect score. 

Speaking of the Team Dances, that's why viewers should never assume one team has it in the bag just because they have the top scoring pairings in their group. That team dance score pushed Jordan down to third and Frankie at the top with a six point lead over Jordan. Lindsay is down somewhere in the middle with 51 and Victoria jumped to second place with a 57. 

Edited October 31, 2017 by truthaboutluv

[sinycalone]

I think Nikki and Vanessa were the weakest dancers left...so not really surprised.

Not necessarily in order, but as I remember them:

Victoria/Val - OK....but while there were  some good spins, Val was doing 95% of them.

Drew/Emma - I knew it was a fall...why didn't the judges?  Scores should have been a little lower, but it was fun.

Jordan/Lindsay - was the best of the night, no doubt.

Nikki/Artem....needed more energy and was rough.

Terrell/Cheryl - she is really teaching him to dance properly, and he is learning each week. Might have given him one more 9.

Frankie/Witney - carried out the them well, but was not worth three 10s.  He was excellent portraying the character, but really didn't do much dancing.  Three 9s would have been OK.

Lindsey/Mark - second best of the night, but I was a little disappointed.  She seemed a beat behind him at times.

Team dances:  while Phantom of the Ballroom was the better of the two -- these judges have short memories.  I can remember several in past seasons that really deserved perfect scores.

[McManda]

4 minutes ago, doLLish said:

Finally a contemporary different from the sad ass melodramatic “My heart is breaking I’m so miserable but don’t worry I’ll be happy at the end” contemporaries always seen on this show.

Yes! This a thousand times. This dances made me forget I generally hate DWTS contemporaries.

[sab85]

Okay Artem looked HOT in that leather jacket and glasses. 

Keo's clown outfit deserves a mention. He was loving that thing. 

I don't care how many times they do it, I still love Sasha scaring everyone. 

Mark, maybe don't collapse on top of the girl with the hurt rib. Gentlemanly move with the knee seat though.  I think my problem connecting with Lindsey is the same problem that I've had with some of Mark's partners in the past- he's so creative and good at coming up with wacky ideas and costuming that his partner's can get lost in the characters a bit. For instance, even though Frankie is a good actor when I see him dancing I never forget that it's Frankie dancing. With Lindsay I remember the costume/concept/cheoregraphy more than I ever remember her.

 Frankie and Witney's dance was great but the guy outside in the black hoodie watching the girl through a window might have been a little too realistic. 

Having Sasha officiate Emma's wedding and them bop around in the background like a bobblehead was cute. 

It's just mean to make them dance right after telling half of the team they are in jeopardy. I love Team Monster Mash's concept but I think all the corn meant most of the time they couldn't see each other. It made the dance feel disjointed and I think led to some of the synchronicity issues.  And while I'll agree that Team Phantom was definitely better than the other, having the underdogs get perfect 10s while the other team got 8s seemed a little scripted. I though Team Phantom had  some syn issues, most notably from Victoria and Vanessa.  Also, no way was that the best team dance of all time- off the top of my head both Hayes's team Halloween dance and Brooke Burke/Warren Sapp's team dance were better. 

Saw the double elimination coming but it didn't look like the couples did. Artem looked like he had no idea what just happened. 

Edited October 31, 2017 by sab85

[mtlchick]

9 minutes ago, doLLish said:

OMG this was creepy as hell and I LOVED IT! Finally a contemporary different from the sad ass melodramatic “My heart is breaking I’m so miserable but don’t worry I’ll be happy at the end” contemporaries always seen on this show.

When you're assigned "Every Breath You Take", there's only one way to go with it.  Thankfully they pulled it off.  And hey, he was able to do lifts!  Not over the head stuff, but it's encouraging. 

[Uke]

Week 7:

Victoria:  Pretty but, as usual, too much time wasted at the beginning and end.  Very simplistic routine-she should be doing somewhat more difficult choreo by now, understanding her feet/legs challenges, but a bit more is in order.  She seemed to keep losing her frame and only did a few seconds of leaning back instead of pressing her whole body against Val.  Scored too high.  Should be 8s.

Oh my!  Just noticed CAI's hair! 

Jordan:  How many times do I have to say it - I don't like all the extras on the floor.  A little sync problem (unrelated to the door problem) but otherwise good job.  Not sure what Bruno was blathering on about the best ever paso choreo?  Yes, they love him. Scores as expected but a point too high if the sync error were recognized.

If CAI is going with that hair, she needs more to the outfit.

Nikki:  Balance and sync issues but waaaay more personality than all her other dances combined!  The kicks & flicks need work, maybe a forgotten step or two. But it wasn't horrible and she seemed to have fun with this one.  Scores were fair.

Vanessa:  Did Maks get a little help with production this week? Unusual choreo for him.  I notice he rarely looks at her during rehearsals or during the dance. Even the hug in front of the judges, I don't think they even glanced at each other.   Once again she dances a significant portion with only the troupe while Maks stands aside.  Funny how both she and Lindsay A. get "mauled" by the troupe to remove part of their dresses.  She needs another partner to really bring out what she's capable of because I really think she should be a front-runner along with Lindsey and Jordan. Maybe a point low for dancing so much without a partner.

Terrell:  A lot of repetitive face-choreo.  A little rocky during Cheryl's squatting spin. Too long of a pause in the middle for facial expressions.  His legs were bothering me for some reason.  Not as good as previous weeks.  Agree with the scores.

What's Halloween without the master prankster - Sasha! LOL!

Lindsey:  Wow!  That seemed like an Irish jig Paso.  I'm not sure if that last move was choreography or if she fell and then Mark covered by falling too?  Or was it choreography but she had trouble getting back up?   I was under the impression that the injury happened yesterday, not last week.  That was tough choreo.  All 9s?  Same as Victoria?  I guess no credit for difficulty.

Frankie:  Witney gets the prize for creepiest theme this week, for sure!  Great job by Frankie but there was waaaay too much camera focus on Witney - too many times she was between Frankie and the camera so he wasn't visible at all...plus the usual issue of black clothing and a dark background.  Saw on twitter some comparing to Alexa's contemporary choreography but I think it was adapted enough to call it different.  Agree with the score (the camera focusing on Witney wasn't his fault, though she should have been aware of it and called for changes).

Drew:  That was very fast and he did a good job.  I think Emma just slipped and he helped her recover which was nice to see.  A little out of sync here and there but enjoyed it.  Agree with the scores.

Team Monster Mash:  Cute choreo - I loved how they kept switching up partners.  But it seemed like the camera people didn't know how to handle it.  Wow - judges really didn't like it.  And yes, CAI, they had to dance down to Nikki's and Terrell's level to keep it cohesive.  I figured they would handicap the scores with Lindsey and Jordan on the same team, but 8s?  That's really low.

Team Phantom of the Opera:  Numerous sync issues and once again, camera issues.   The camera would close in on one couple when they were all supposed to be in sync.  Massively overscored.

Maks couldn't even pretend to be sad and completely walked away from her? Rude!  No surprise at the eliminations.  Nikki did well and improved over time.  Vanessa never got a fair chance with her pro.  Maks - don't bother coming back! I'm just feeling disgusted with him right now.  Vanessa had so much potential but he just couldn't get over himself. 

Edited October 31, 2017 by Uke

[NeverLate]

I'm glad Maks and Vanessa are gone, and not Drew or Frankie.( happy dance)

Loved Frankie's dance tonight, spooky and evil.

Maks and his brother both mentioned Jordan and Lindsey..meow guys, meow!!! LOL

Lindsey and Mark, excellent, but that girl is really hurting, it didnt help Terrell bumping into her in the group dance. Jordan and Lindsey were good as usual.

Jordan always tries to sound humble, it just doesn't come across that way..lovely dancer though

 

Loved the phantom dance, beautiful.  That music always gets to me. No stand outs like last week, so I'll go with the group dance, Phantom :)

Edited October 31, 2017 by NeverLate

[truthaboutluv]

Quote

 That was Derek's strategy, but my favorite team dance - Team Nightmare - didn't rely on synchronicity and was awesome.

YMMV but there was a lot of synchronicity in Team Nightmare's dance. They added a lot of off beat quirks to it (not unlike Team Foxing Awesome) but that dance had a lot of movement as one group. But more importantly, they were uniformed in their costume. That is the biggest thing I have never understood why so many teams even to this day keep failing at and going for the whole mish mosh look. I have always said that being dressed as a team is half the battle in looking like a team on the dance floor. Because with a bunch of different costumes running around, it makes it a lot easier to to see any errors and mistakes and when the group goes off time. 

Edited October 31, 2017 by truthaboutluv

[NeverLate]

Quote

Victoria and Val: Val is so funny. It’s all good when he has a partner with dance experience but now he wants to talk about how hard it is for them because Jordan and Lindsey have been “dancing their whole lives”? I

This!!so much this, and why I dont like him 

[Callaphera]

So. Um. That double elimination. What the fuck? That was the most lackluster "oh, right, we totes forgot, double elimination, you're both going home. So sorry but whatevs" ending this show has had in forever. It was awkward and uncomfortable and just kinda shoe-horned in without any true build up or suspense.

Fail, DWTS. Fail. 

[NeverLate]

Has Val forgotten Amy, she had no legs ( eye roll) get on with it Val, you're not winning, so just enjoy! 

Edited October 31, 2017 by NeverLate

[chocolatine]

11 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

What, did Nikki and Vanessa somehow manage to have the exact same score when they added judges' points and viewer votes and so they figured it would be unfair to send one and not the other? But again, they could have given the couples a heads up before the show. Well at least they both went out experiencing at least one perfect score. 

Usually when there's a tie they go by cumulative scores, so that's not a reason to send both couples home. There was a week early in the season without an elimination, so a double-elimination week was going to happen eventually, it just sucks that the couples weren't told beforehand. Nikki and Vanessa were probably each standing there thinking "I still have a 50% chance of staying" then the rug was pulled out from under them. Not a nice way to treat the "stars" IMO.

[NeverLate]

Quote

Maks couldn't even pretend to be sad and completely walked away from her? Rude!  No surprise at the eliminations.  Nikki did well and improved over time.  Vanessa never got a fair chance with her pro.  Maks - don't bother coming back! I'm just feeling disgusted with him right now.  Vanessa had so much potential but he just couldn't get over himself. 

Sit out next season Maks..I loved the DE  but Maks and Vanessa laughing? strange! I think he asked to go.jmho

Edited October 31, 2017 by NeverLate

[smiley13]

So it looks like Victoria, whose individual dance was not at all Halloween, benefited from the overscoring of the Phantom dance.  I would have given each team 9's.

But at least we are rid of the wrestling chick.

[LexieLily]

8 minutes ago, Callaphera said:

So. Um. That double elimination. What the fuck? That was the most lackluster "oh, right, we totes forgot, double elimination, you're both going home. So sorry but whatevs" ending this show has had in forever. It was awkward and uncomfortable and just kinda shoe-horned in without any true build up or suspense.

Fail, DWTS. Fail. 

This. I think we all knew a double elimination was coming once they called off the elimination the day after the Las Vegas shooting, but usually they announce them at the top of the show. They don't just spring it on them like they did tonight. For once, I thought it was rude.

[McManda]

27 minutes ago, truthaboutluv said:

YMMV but there was a lot of synchronicity in Team Nightmare's dance.

I think there's a difference in synchronicity and cohesiveness as a team and synchronicity and cohesiveness in a dance.

Team Nightmare had synchronicity and cohesiveness as a dance, and I thought that Team Monster Mash tried that route - synchronized celeb dances, a cohesive theme and story) - whereas Team Phantom of the Ballroom went with synchronicity and cohesiveness as a team (Derek's tried and true method) - all synchronized movements and same costumes. The layer doesn't seem as much of a team dance to me as much as it feels like a synch of people doing the same dance. MMV.

That said, I'd agree Carrie Ann is smoking because there no way Team Phantom of the Ballroom was the best team dance ever. I thought it was sloppy and out of sync ... a lot.

Edited October 31, 2017 by McManda

[boyznkatz]

It looks like some probable low vote getters needed some help this week. Blah.

[doLLish]

1 minute ago, boyznkatz said:

It looks like some probable low vote getters needed some help this week. Blah.

That’s definitely what it looks like. First the extremely strange grouping without us seeing how they picked the teams, then the ridiculous overscoring of Team Phantom of the Ballroom. Like I said earlier with the underdogs prevailing and the high scorers faltering, they way it happened all just seemed very VERY scripted.

[smiley13]

And the band should never be let back in the studio for butchering one of the greats, Super Freak!

[crowceilidh]

Both team dances suffered from a lack of sparkle in the music, but team Monster Mash in particular.  That was a pedestrian (see, CAI, I can use that word and even use it correctly? jury's out on you) version of that song and it was very slow - I ffed through it.  Phantom was great until about the last 20-25 seconds which took a painfully long and awkward time.

I want CAI's hair. What an amazing colour.

Get Frankie back in the ballroom.  The inability to see the contestant was egregious.  Good and creepy though - there's no doubt Frankie can act.

The fact that Alan had to bare his chest in order to howl like a werewolf made me dislike him even more.

Sharna looked really awkward in the opening number - somebody didn't look through the cameras at her.  And that opening number was pretty sparkle-less.

[Callaphera]

1 minute ago, smiley13 said:

And the band should never be let back in the studio for butchering one of the greats, Super Freak!

I cringed hard during one part of Every Breath You Take. So hard I think I pulled something in my face.

Holy shit, the band seems to be worse this season than ever before. 

[crowceilidh]

Was that Keo in the clown costume for the beginning of Super Freak?  He looked very American all of a sudden - I'd like to see him krump.  I don't imagine good things.

[sab85]

Just now, crowceilidh said:

Was that Keo in the clown costume for the beginning of Super Freak?  He looked very American all of a sudden - I'd like to see him krump.  I don't imagine good things.

Yup, he was in the bumper before the commercial in it to throwing candy. He looked like he was having a ball. 

[Toonces464]

I'm loving Frankie and thought his dance was fabulous. As much as I love having Mark back and would love to see him win another MBT, I'm throwing more votes each week to Frankie.

Hey look, Alfonso is coming back! But how can you come back when you've never gone away?

There was no way Drew was going home this week. TPTB want Rashad back next week and so does Toonces.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought the whole team dance thing felt manipulated for the underdogs to pull off an upset. Best team dance ever? Not even close. My favorite will always be Gilles' Team Tango.

Oh Maks, at least try to look semi-disappointed. Although, to be fair, Vanessa was the one who turned away from him and made no effort to interact with him after the announcement, even when Nikki turned away from her to hug Artem. Down on the floor, it was Vanessa who grabbed Nikki and started dancing with her, not acknowledging Maks or even talking with Tom and Erin. And when everyone converged, it was Erin who was right there hugging it up with Maks. I wonder if these two will even try to pretend anymore that they don't despise each other. Maks and Peta not going to Vanessa and Nick's Halloween party this weekend so they could carve pumpkins was a pretty big neon sign.

Come on out Rashad.........I'm waiting for you! :)

[Emily-D]

Maks is the absolute worst, he was trying not to celebrate that he was going home at the end. I didn’t particularly have strong feelings for Nikki (I liked her but didn’t love her) but I was absolutely gutted for Artem seeing his face at the end. He truly deserves so much better than what this shows throws at him. I’m sure they’ll reward him next season by going back to his partner of type and tossing him some Charo like no hoper.

[kitcloudkicker]

I really wish they would stop making the songs so lopsided for the team dances. The last few seasons it feels like one team is saddled with something super cornball, and the other one nice and dramatic (Monster Mash vs Phantom, Ghostbusters vs Nightmare, one of the spring ones where one of the teams got stuck with Surfin USA and the other one got something much more modern.) The cornball one usually sucks. I wish they were more evenly matched. 

I liked: Jordan and Lindsey, Frankie and Witney, Lindsay and Mark (though you could tell she was in pain.) I also thought Victoria stepped it up this week, though could be hurt by going first and getting a waltz for Halloween night. And surprisingly, because they've been annoying me all season, I actually liked Maks and Vanessa this week. I thought the theme was fun. The others I found fairly forgettable. (Though I love how Cheryl is whipping Terrell into shape.) I hated the weird Starbucks theme for Nikki and Artem's dance. You're given Hocus Pocus and you don't do anything Hocus Pocus-y?!?! Such a missed opportunity.

[Sile]

I feel kind of cheated that I wasn't surprised about the double elimination.  For some reason, I thought there was a double elimination scheduled for tonight and, since I recorded the show, didn't know any different when I switched over the last couple minutes to see who was leaving.

After they announced Terrell and Cheryl safe, I was expecting the don't let the door hit ya music from the band and was surprised that it seemed that only one was going home.  I didn't even have enough time to be surprised at a single elim when Tom stopped his lowest vote spiel after saying their names and I knew that signaled the "yer all outta here!" 

Glad Vanessa is leaving, sorry Artem is leaving.  At least I have those shirtless overalls to look forward to...

Now that I think about it, Tom not saying anything about having the lowest votes might have had a hidden meaning.  Makes me wonder if Nikki and Artem was the real elimination and Maks and Vanessa requested their ouster, thereby turning it into a double and relieving the need for a double in the quarter finals.  Because they usually harp incessantly when there's a double coming up at the end of the show

Edited October 31, 2017 by Sile
To add afterthought

[Annber03]

Really liked Frankie and Witney's dance-especially loved the whole thing with the window at the beginning. My only issue was that, since I regularly watch the Investigation Discovery channel, at times the dance kinda made me think of what a dance-themed promo for one of the creepy shows on that network would look like as a result :p. But yeah. It was good.

I also really liked Lindsey and Mark, though I was so worried about her during the dance, given everything with her rib. Props to her for forging ahead, though-that's always a risky move, but I admired her "the show must go on!" attitude about it all. And I liked the team dances, too, though I agree with the whole thing about the Monster Mash one being a bit too convoluted with all the props and such. Everyone's dances were pretty fun and cute tonight in general, though. 

33 minutes ago, kitcloudkicker said:

I hated the weird Starbucks theme for Nikki and Artem's dance. You're given Hocus Pocus and you don't do anything Hocus Pocus-y?!?! Such a missed opportunity.

Yeah, that was the one thing that was bugging me about some of the dances, too. A few of the songs and setups didn't really feel all that Halloween-ish. The only thing that made them look spooky was the fact that everyone was dressed up in costumes.

I wasn't expecting the double elimination tonight, either. Bit surprised at who went home, but at the same time, it kinda makes sense, too. 

Edited October 31, 2017 by Annber03

[jay741982]

Booooo! Vanessa was better than Drew and Terelll. Now I have to be scared that they take out Frankie 

[sab85]

I will say that it is awfully convenient for Maks and Vanessa that they were eliminated the same night as another couple. Now all of the media will be about Vanessa and Nikki and the double-elimination instead of about Maks and Vanessa. 

[MsJamieDornan]

54 minutes ago, Toonces464 said:

TPTB want Rashad back next week and so does Toonces.

Your wish has been granted !

[McManda]

27 minutes ago, Sile said:

sorry Artem is leaving.  At least I have those shirtless overalls to look forward to...

Those overalls seemed like they were pretty lowcut and baggy around the hips. I was actually worried we might have the first semi- wardrobe malfunction for a male on the show.

I'll also admit to wondering recently if Artem was still dating the Chicago Med actress Torry Devitto. Guess not, with how they were pushing that he was single tonight.

Edited October 31, 2017 by McManda

[marykat71702]

Wait, what just happened?! Ok, picking my jaw up off the floor now...

Victoria--I enjoyed this dance. She's kind of growing on me, but I still don't understand the whole "I can't feel my legs" but she can dance, walk, jump, etc. like that.

Jordan--I loved it. I also like how he told Alan to keep his shirt on. :)

Oh, my gosh, I am so shocked by the eliminationse , I can't remember what my thoughts were on all of the individual dances!

Nikki--danced well, she's improving week to week. Then again, I was thinking before Len talked that it lacked pizzazz.

Vanessa--thought it got a little shaky and out of step.

Terrell--another one who's improving week to week. I really like his attitude now, he seems to be having fun.

Lindsey--that was another very impressive dance! I hope she is able to stick it out and doesn't have to withdraw.

Frankie--holy cow, he really came back from last week! I love his enthusiasm and desire to be on the show and put his all into it.

Drew--same thing as with Frankie. This was one of his better dances, but he should be the next to go.

 

On paper, Team Monster Mash should have wiped the floor with Team Phantom, but I think they had too much going on and weren't able to pull it together.

Did Carrie Ann really say something about trying to fool the judges with identical costumes right before team Phantom went on?

Team Phantom did a great job. 

 

Everybody was surprised by that double elimination--did you see Tom's and Erin's faces when they pulled out those cards? And then the Judge's reactions...

 

Wasn't really sad, shocked, but not sad, to see Vanessa go. Would have liked to see NIkki for one more week. Drew should have gone home.

Edited October 31, 2017 by marykat71702
remembered what I was going to say about Nikki's dance

[Toonces464]

14 minutes ago, marykat71702 said:

Everybody was surprised by that double elimination--did you see Tom's and Erin's faces when they pulled out those cards? And then the Judge's reactions...

I don't know why anyone was surprised since George Pennachio basically said last week there would be a double elimination this week.

[Uke]

Just realized Lindsey & Mark are second to the bottom on the leaderboard.  How does this happen!  Only 2 points above Terrell & Cheryl?   I hope she's getting the votes!

[boyznkatz]

I had to LOL at Val for bitching about competing against Lindsey and Jordan. Does he not realize that his mediocre partner is way ahead of Lindsey? She should be the next to go, but Terrell will probably take the honors. 

[madpsych78]

No, I think this double-elimination thing was last minute and the cards were intended to reveal to Tom and Erin who the second couple would be going home in addition to the one already established in advance. (I think Nikki/Artem were already in place, whereas Vanessa/Maks was the add-on.)

[PBGamer89]

Honestly what a terrible night for this show.

Lindsey deserved 10's for delivering that amazing routine without mistakes and still being powerful and aggressive but danced so well.

Really irritated we lost 2 good female celebs while the mediocre Drew and Terrell and the inconsistent Frankie stayed. It's like last season all over again where if you're a good to great female celeb, bye bye.

Phantom was the most overscored dance i've ever seen. I noticed quite a few out of sync group moments. All 9's would've been fine but that 30 to the other team's 24 really screwed Lindsey's overall score over.

She's second to the bottom, only 2 points higher than Terrell, and Jordan at 54 and the rest are 56-60. I'm scared for her next week honestly.

[Uke]

1 hour ago, kitcloudkicker said:

I really wish they would stop making the songs so lopsided for the team dances. The last few seasons it feels like one team is saddled with something super cornball, and the other one nice and dramatic (Monster Mash vs Phantom, Ghostbusters vs Nightmare, one of the spring ones where one of the teams got stuck with Surfin USA and the other one got something much more modern.) The cornball one usually sucks. I wish they were more evenly matched. 

 

I usually like the cornball ones! LOL! (except for Gangham Style-all I remember was Gilles holding Peta upside down and making a face at her crotch).  I hated all Derek's marching in lockstep team dances-boring!-but I guess that's all that's important to the judges (or Derek himself was).  I think that's why they have the songs so different for each team...one to entertain and one for the synchronicity that the judges want to see.

[Emily-D]

I said earlier in the week, it doesn’t matter how good your team is, you are screwed without good music. Having said that Phantom was no way a perfect score, it had sync issues and probably should have had all nines. Best team dance ever CAI? Do me favour, it’s not even in the top five. I’d rather watch team foxing awesome 50 times over before watching that again.

[marykat71702]

20 minutes ago, Toonces464 said:

35 minutes ago, marykat71702 said:

Everybody was surprised by that double elimination--did you see Tom's and Erin's faces when they pulled out those cards? And then the Judge's reactions...

I don't know why anyone was surprised since George Pennachio basically said last week there would be a double elimination this week.

Who? And I for one hadn't heard/read anything about a double elimination tonight.

[Andie1]

2 hours ago, truthaboutluv said:

Speaking of the Team Dances, that's why viewers should never assume one team has it in the bag just because they have the top scoring pairings in their group. That team dance score pushed Jordan down to third and Frankie at the top with a six point lead over Jordan. Lindsay is down somewhere in the middle with 51 and Victoria jumped to second place with a 57. 

Edited 1 hour ago by truthaboutluv.

My prediction was they were going to hose Team Monster Mash, much more entertaining than that overwrought crap of Phantom, and whats with Frankie doing choreography now... geez imagine if Jordan was such a smug pos... he would be gone. But it seems Jordan will be gone anyway because Mr. Integrity Frankie will take the mirrorball.  Does not matter than he cannot dance.

Edited October 31, 2017 by Andie1

[Callaphera]

2 minutes ago, PBGamer89 said:

Honestly what a terrible night for this show.

I will totally agree to this. It wasn't the best Hallowe'en show they've ever done. The best part of it, imo, was the annual Sasha Scares The Shit Out Of Everyone segment. I'm still sad that Sasha wasn't a pro this season for whatever reason. He always makes me smile.

 

3 minutes ago, PBGamer89 said:

Lindsey deserved 10's for delivering that amazing routine without mistakes and still being powerful and aggressive but danced so well.

This, though. I thought the 9s were deserved. It's not her fault that she's injured but there were points in the dance where you could tell, because when her and Mark were bending at the waist to opposite sides, she had a much more aborted, barely to one side move that she'd do (only on the one side) but it was enough to make it look like the moves were slightly out of sync even though they weren't. 

I also thought Frankie deserved 9s, because although it was a greatly performed dance, there were a few spots - turns, maybe? - where it looked like he had been a little aggressive causing Witney to almost stumble but I realize that's really nit-picky and for all I know, maybe it was intended and my untrained eye just sees it funny.

[Lady Calypso]

So, it definitely felt like the double elimination was thrown in last minute and then the producers didn't bother to fill in the judges or Erin/Tom. I can buy that everyone was taken by surprise. Especially remembering Bruno's comment to Nikki about how "she'll definitely be around for the following week", and it did seem like he had been sincere. Something definitely happened behind the scenes last minute that got producers adding the DE. I feel like maybe, it was for dramatic effect or next week was supposed to be the DE instead but they switched it to this week. 

As for the dances, Frankie/Witney and Lindsey/Mark had the best ones for me. Lindsey, in particular, looked like she was in pain and seemed to have trouble holding her movements, but she still looked like she was doing it flawlessly. I still very much enjoyed her dance, despite how pained she looked to be in. I do agree with her scores, mostly because her pain did somewhat affect the dance. 

Frankie/Witney's was just amazing. He is not very consistent from week to week, but when he gives a good dance, it's really good for someone who has no dance experience and had no passion for dance before this show. I absolutely loved their dance and felt like he owned the performance, but also owned the dance moves. I guess those lifts are the only ones he's capable of doing, unlike people like Drew and Terrell, who are able to do the over the head lifts.

I liked Jordan and Lindsay's dance, but what puts them third here is the troupe. I've complained about this last season with others like Normani and I'll do it here. The troupe, for me, was too distracting. The dance was great but the troupe got in one too many shots for me. Honestly, I wouldn't have personally given it all 10s, only because I've also seen Jordan do better.

Drew/Emma's dance was definitely fun. He is improving bit by bit. 

Terrell/Cheryl's dance was not good for me. I admire his passion, but I'm ready for him to go home.

Victoria/Val's dance was just good, but I thought Nikki/Artem's was better. 

As for the Team Dances, I personally preferred Team Monster Mash. I thought it was more fun and showcased the couples as well as the celebs better. Plus, the band may have butchered both songs, but Phantom moreso. I thought Team Phantom was off in several places, just as much as Team Monster Mash. No way that team dance deserves all 10s. Maybe all 9s, if they REALLY wanted that underdog story. 

LOL at Maks looking relieved to be off the show. Maybe he can take a three year hiatus....or a forever hiatus. 

[Andie1]

5 minutes ago, Callaphera said:

I also thought Frankie deserved 9s, because although it was a greatly performed dance, there were a few spots - turns, maybe? - where it looked like he had been a little aggressive causing Witney to almost stumble but I realize that's really nit-picky and for all I know, maybe it was intended and my untrained eye just sees it funny.

That entire dance if you want to call it that was terrible in every sense of the word. There was little if any real jazz movement, it was flailing not dancing.  The lifts were poor to non existent again, the jump off the couch was odd and did not go anywhere.  The acting was dumb, and I laughed at the camera angles,  Saturday Night Live does creepy better than Frankie Muniz.  But hey he had a perfect night,  stiff dancing so what!  He is a choreographer now. 

Edited October 31, 2017 by Andie1

[boyznkatz]

Frankie was overscored, but he was still much better than Drew. What a hot mess that was. Plus Drew comes off as whiny and he's just not funny. Time for him to go.