In The Media: DWTS

[Andie1]

It's true though, that perfectly timed engagement likely gave him the edge over Nastia when the scores were so very close. All the casual voters who fall for that stuff likely gave him so many votes because of it.

 

I'll be forever pissed about his entire DWTS journey, it all just seemed like one long patronizing, vote getting nonsense, between Jamie surprising him Week 2 and the semis proposal, and the endless "you're so brave, here's a 9/10", it's prime example as to why I have issues with those types of contestants. At least Amy Purdy could dance.

Yep a Nastia Rumer Riker finale would have been one for the history books.  Instead we got a piece of shit that felt like we were forever patronizing.  

[Saylii]

See the Disney pics made me feel the opposite. Jamie was there as well and the pics of the two of them along with his children made it look like everything was great, especially the ones Jamie posted that really gave the 'happy family' vibe. That was only a couple of weeks ago so I wonder what happened since.

She was there, but I think only in the background of one picture he posted (at least at the time I saw them; they might have been there one or two more days afterwards). None of his captions mentioned her at all. I didn't even think she was there at first. But on her IG, Noah was very prominent. Seemed a little too one-sided to me, like he was over it but she clearly was not.

[OakGoblinFly]

It's true though, that perfectly timed engagement likely gave him the edge over Nastia when the scores were so very close. All the casual voters who fall for that stuff likely gave him so many votes because of it.

 

I'll be forever pissed about his entire DWTS journey, it all just seemed like one long patronizing, vote getting nonsense, between Jamie surprising him Week 2 and the semis proposal, and the endless "you're so brave, here's a 9/10", it's prime example as to why I have issues with those types of contestants. At least Amy Purdy could dance.

 

 

And don't forget the "flag waving and if you don't vote for me you hate America" maniuputation during several of the "theme" weeks.

Yep a Nastia Rumer Riker finale would have been one for the history books.  Instead we got a piece of shit that felt like we were forever patronizing.  

 

Ahhhh, what could have been.

[boyznkatz]

All the manipulation with Noah Galloway was so shady. As much as I admired his courage, the guy couldn't dance, nor could he be expected to. He really didn't have the physical ability to do half the dances, so they had to pimp him into the finals. He really doesn't seem like that nice of a guy, and I feel for his girlfriend.

[PBGamer89]

Football players and "war heros" are my least favorite types of contestants because they get such a pass for basically doing a whole lot of nothing.

 

Wait, i'll clarify; many football players have had decent technique, but by "a whole lot of nothing", I mean they often get praised for lackluster technique and just being a showman, while sailing to the finals and others have to work 10x harder to get even the littlest respect from the viewers and judges. A good example would be Donald Driver winning over Katherine Jenkins, who fully deserved to win and had a great personality to match.

Edited October 28, 2015 by PBGamer89

[crowceilidh]

I feel Donald Driver is a poor example.  He was a fan of the show and he knew how to play it, WAY different from Sapp or Ward or Taylor f'r'instance.

[radishcake]

Guys this is the media thread, please take the personal comments to general gabbery.

[Danseur]

From the beginning, DWTS has been as much "popularity contest" as it is "dance competition" and more than anything else it has always been Unreality Reality TV. When I remember this, I'm far less bothered by the manipulation. I like the show so I willingly suspend my disbelief. I have to admit it's getting harder and harder to do that and I don't like it nearly as much as I once did.

[Packerbrewerbadger]

Donald Driver totally deserved to win!! He took it very seriously and worked his butt off! It was very obvious by his comments throughout that he really was a fan of the show and watched it!!!!! Plus he was spectacular. Rewatch his trio dance !

[Natro]

Alek was honored at the World's Series in New York (with Lindsey) last night. Sweet video and really nice tribute... sorry, I don't know how to link it here.

[Andie1]

I am so glad Victor Espinoza Grand Slammed with American Pharoah, the first in history to do so.  It certainly makes DWTS look damn petty giving him a partner so much taller and therefore no chance for him to go anywhere in this competition. Sexism in Ballroom dancing cuts both ways. Short people, especially short men, are treated with so much disrespect, it's going to bite this show in the ass the amount of crap some people take for a goddamn cheap laugh.  As the show gets more desperate for "stars" anyone who is anybody will continue to stay away.      http://www.wsj.com/articles/american-pharoah-wins-breeders-cup-classic-1446331549

Edited November 2, 2015 by Andie1

[anony mouse]

Victor Espinoza wasn't going to go anywhere no matter the height of his partner - the man can't dance. Karina was able to do more with the Woz than Victor. Some people have it, some people don't.

[McManda]

Also, jockeys are tiny. DWTS would be hard pressed to find a height-appropriate partner from their pool of pro dancers, especially when they add in her heels.

 

Victor Espinoza doesn't seem bothered by it. He had a great attitude and seemed to enjoy his time, which is all anyone can ask for. It's not like he acted like he needed a mirror ball trophy to feel validated.

[Andie1]

I haven't been watching the show, only a few dances on youtube. So I haven't watched Victor. But when I saw poor Victor with 5' 5'" Karina (not in heels) I thought this is some bullshit. If they are going to bring back females, bring back the short ones if the male partner is small.  Chelsie Hightower is 5' 2" those 3 inches are huge when it comes to the dance topline. Possibly the shortest male was Louis Vito at 5'4" and Chelsie was partnered with him. Louis couldn't dance at all, but at least he wasn't a comedy gag.

 

I don't know if Victor was bothered or not. He had to perform as per his contract and the partner he was given.  All I know is the short men that I know are very sensitive when it comes to their height. It definitely doesn't look good ascetically to have a woman almost 6 inches taller with heels dancing with a male, since the topline is all messed up.  Height is also the third most important observation of anyone going for a job, next to gender and race, so of course it plays into what an audience sees and their perception of Victor. This study at the University of Utah made some very interesting points about heightism.  http://epubs.utah.edu/index.php/ulr/article/viewFile/246/218

 

So the point is, if people are going to put themselves out there to be judged,then I think DWTS needs to at least give these contestants a little more respect. We know there are lots of qualified ballroom dancers who are smaller in stature and would love to compete on the show. DWTS decided to go for the cheap laugh instead.

Edited November 3, 2015 by Andie1

[McManda]

DWTS decided to go for the cheap laugh instead.

 

I don't think that at all. I don't think people though Victor was a joke, at least not for his height. He wasn't a great dancer because he seemed to be lacking natural ability (and admittedly had memory problems with the choreography), but he danced every dance with a gusto and seemed to have fun doing it. He got stressed just like any other celeb, but if it was because of his height (I don't remember exactly) that was secondary to the memory issues and the choreography issues.

 

He seemed okay with his situation, and isn't that all that's really important?

[Artymouse]

I agree that Victor seemed to have a blast, and the judges praised him for his gusto-filled performances.

And I think if he'd been a good dancer, he would've lasted. After all, Karina probably has a pretty substantial fanbase of potential voters.

I don't think height was a factor. Wasn't for me anyway. Karina and Sharna are my favorite female pros, so I'm already predisposed to like their partners. But i just couldn't with Victor.

[Uke]

"DWTS decided to go for the cheap laugh instead."

 

I don't think anyone treated Victor as a cheap laugh.  He came in to have fun and a new experience and I think he thoroughly enjoyed himself. He's 43 years old. I'm sure he's used to being shorter than most women in his life and it no longer bothers him.

 

I think the shortest females past and present are Lacey and Witney, both 5'3".  I don't think Lacey is coming back as a competing pro.  TPTB obviously wanted Witney with someone who realistically had a better chance of staying deep into the competition.  Personality-wise, Karina worked out just fine and according to her twitter, they are still spending time together. (Chelsie is listed as 5'4". I don't expect her back either)

[vibeology]

I don't think it's a coincidence that the two contestants with brain injuries got the most experienced teachers this year. I'm sure, for insurance reasons, Victor's memory issued were disclosed at casting and the show wanted to make sure his pro would be good at dealing with him.

Yes, they want the young hot pros to go deep in the competition but they also wants the stars to have positive experiences because if they don't it will get hard to book people in the future. I'm sure they put paring Victor with a strong teacher ahead of worrying about height since all their current pros would have been taller than him in heels.

[Andie1]

I don't buy it. There's lots of great teachers, Karina is okay, but she's not the best teacher.  And if Chelsie grew a couple of inches from season 9, so be it.  Bring in Oksana Dymetrenko she was a little dynamo as a troupe member and for sure she's very tiny.  It would have went a long way to make the optics so much better for Victor.  Sure Victor wasn't a contender and they made sure of it. 

Edited November 3, 2015 by Andie1

[boyznkatz]

Does Witney really claim she is 5'3"?  Maybe she means in stiletto heels, LOL. Her body and legs look a lot shorter. And Val definitely doesn't look 6'0". I guess he could just have short legs, but I'm not buying it. Victor didn't seem to mind making fun of himself, but they never gave him a chance. He was more entertaining than a lot of the folks who went after him.

 

Okay, back to the media. I can see Trista Sutter is trying to get in the news again. She is going to be on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire for anyone who cares. I guess she ran out of money again.

Edited November 4, 2015 by boyznkatz

[kitcloudkicker]

Info for the duo dances next week, according to the Glamour blog: 

 

Looking ahead to next week, things are going to be a bit different—and confusing. "It’s a whole new challenge that we’ve never done," revealed Sharna. "We are teamed up with Tamar and Val, and we’re going to Vegas to watch the Cirque show Love. The four of us have to create a dance inspired by that. Tamar and Nick will have to dance with each other in that number somewhere, so it’s a brand new challenge. Some people will travel to New York, some will go on a cruise ship.”

 

If you're not quite following, not to worry, because even the dancers don't quite understand how this will all work out yet. But Mark Ballas did admit that he and Alexa, as well as Bindi and Derek, are the couples traveling to New York. "They are sending us to a show, and we have to take inspiration from a show," explained Mark. "[The fact that] we’re going with Bindi and Derek is kind of like the dream team!"

 

And from Carlos' Instagram where they have sent them on a cruise? This feels like some sort of weird cross promotional advertising thing: https://instagram.com/p/9rGgjjiPa_/

Edited November 4, 2015 by kitcloudkicker

[spanana]

Val is more like 5'10"-5'11".  He may claim taller, but he's danced with two ladies that were at least 5'10" and it's been a stretch. 

 

As for Karina and Anna, I don't think they were brought in because of their teaching skill necessarily, but because they are experienced pros with the right personalities for the job.  The show usually doesn't like to put celebs that they consider difficult with either newbie pros or pros they don't fully trust.  Now I don't know if the show knew off the bat that Victor's memory issues would make this difficult for him, but what Karina is is experienced.  Karina has taught a wide variety of celebs, from novices to ringers.  I think the show probably felt she would be up for the challenge and had enough teaching experience to handle what may prove to be a difficult teaching situation.  The show is not likely to hand over someone with a brain injury to a newbie unproven pro for their first time out.   I also agree that the show didn't want to "waste" Witney, someone they view as one of their biggest up and coming stars, with someone they didn't expect to last far into the season.

 

That also translates to Anna.  Gary was going to be difficult to handle and they needed someone that could be stern enough if needed to keep him in line, but that also had enough experience to roll with the punches.  The only one of our current pros that I could have seen handling Gary okay is Sharna.  They most certainly weren't going to hand Gary over to one of our troupe girls for their first season out.

 

I also think Lacey and Chelsie are pretty much done with this show.  TPTB for whatever reason have pretty much washed their hands of both.

[boyznkatz]

Karina just seems to be one of those pros who is very popular with the celebs she teaches. I've never heard a bad word about her, and she seems to stay friends with a lot of her former partners. Same goes for Anna. I didn't get the feeling that Lacey and Chelsie were as easygoing, although I could be wrong. They certainly weren't willing to play TPTB's games, anyway. 

[Andie1]

You should ask Apolo Ohno what he thought of Karina.  Yeah, that didn't go so well.  So many assumptions about these pros, I'm sorry but anyone who is hired on this show, has experience and lots of it training all kinds of people, or they simply aren't hired.  It's interesting, I remember Fab being brought in specifically for Marlee Matlin, and no he had no training  in dancing with the deaf, but he had a ton of dance experience. One season.  The reason we season Karina or Anna in the mix is because they are still on contract, they don't have magical powers with old or infirm, they are older so they just look better with older people, but that doesn't negate the excellent dancers that are lining up to get this gig.  .  

Edited November 4, 2015 by Andie1

[TeeMo]

Wasn't Anna a last minute addition when Peta had to pull out? I think Allison was slated to get Gary until that happened.

[boyznkatz]

You should ask Apolo Ohno what he thought of Karina.  

 

What happened with Apollo and Karina? Inquiring minds want to know, LOL

Edited November 4, 2015 by boyznkatz

[Andie1]

Disaster. Apolo was upset all season, he was begging for Julianne to come back and do the All Stars, but she was involved in some movie. Apolo didn't like the way Karina taught, Apolo even talked of how her and Julianne's approaches were "different". They apparently had a major disagreement that was smoothed over and not talked about. Then they were given an old school hip hop number that he loved and she couldn't deliver because she doesn't dance hip hop. She wiped out and disolved into tears over it.  It was a mess and not a great experience for either of them. 

Edited November 4, 2015 by Andie1

[boyznkatz]

Oh yeah, I remember they got the "no chemistry" schtick but I don't usually put too much stock into that. They did look sort of awkward, though. I really liked his partnership with Julianne and was disappointed that she didn't come back.

[spanana]

Nobody is suggesting Karina and Anna are miracle workers.  Nor does any pro get along with every celeb they teach.  Karina has done how many seasons of the show?  It stands to reason she got along with some celebs better than others.  That is true for every pro.  Also I don't remember anything bad happening between Apolo/Karina outside of the partnership didn't have nearly the magic that Apolo/Julianne had and her being upset about the hip hop thing.  I just don't totally understand condemning gossip about certain pros/celebs because we don't know them, but then indulging in hearsay about others pros/partnerships.  It's all gossip and hearsay and none of us know the truth about any of them.

 

There is also a HUGE difference IMO between pros having real world dancing/teaching experience and having DWTS experience.  DWTS is a whole different ballgame than real world ballroom teaching because you can't legitimately teach a student the way you would in the real world.  There are so many aspects to DWTS and many of our DWTS pros have said it has taken them several seasons themselves to settle into the show and feel comfortable.  Most pros in their first season of DWTS are so busy just trying to figure out how the game works and trying to figure out their own role on the show.  Teaching in the real world IMO is a completely different skill set than what DWTS entails.  My only point was for people like Karina and Anna, they could focus on their "challenging" celebs because DWTS is old hat to them.  Whereas someone like Jenna would have been just trying to adapt to being a pro for the first time on top of having to deal with a Gary type.

 

Also I don't think Allison was ever supposed to have Gary.  That is one rumor I never heard.  They shifted Andy from Peta to Allison, but I don't think Allison was ever supposed to get Gary.  I think in some cases there were just people that were supposed to sign on the dotted line that never did.

Edited November 4, 2015 by spanana

[Mbeaker]

Not a disaster at all, and seeing as he still "likes" and comments on her Instagram posts, I don't think there's any bad blood there. They had an argument (post Hip Hop, not before) as I'm sure most couples on the show do, and then got over it. And her teaching being "different" was actually a compliment; Apolo said Karina taught him technique and fundamentals of the dance, whereas Julianne had him just memorize choreography/steps. Had you asked him to do a Samba before All Stars, he said, he'd just know how to do his "Move It" routine.

Old news, so bringing it back to this season and Victor, I don't see how he would've gotten further with any of the other pros. Witney and Allison are the shortest pros, but even they are taller than Victor in their heels. On top of that, the height difference was not even his main problem. He had little to no dance ability, and I refuse to believe a non-ballroom trained Allison would have brought out better technique in Victor than someone of Karina's talent and experience. And though I agree they didn't want to waste Witney on Victor, and she's certainly more talented than Allison in the context of the show, let's not pretend she could have made Victor into a dancer. Perhaps, just based on her popularity as a pro, Victor would have lasted another week. But he was never going to be in for a long season.

[Bella]

Hey, folks- this is the media thread. If you could take discussion of past seasons and/or contestants and/or dancers to the appropriate threads, we'd really appreciate it.

 

Thanks!

[Uke]

Apparently Carlos/Witney and Alek/Lindsay are on the same Royal Caribbean cruise that Karina is on.

Carlos:   https://instagram.com/p/9rGgjjiPa_/

Karina has been posting lots of pics today: https://instagram.com/karina_smirnoff/

 

What a beauty! http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/cruises/2015/11/04/royal-caribbean-anthem-new-york/75097020/

I wonder if DWTS cruises will be on this ship. 

It seemed to be a big deal having DWTS pros on the ships for a while but then it either stopped or I just didn't hear much about it.  I think Kym did a couple cruises in Alaska (?) last year.  It seemed like it was really popular so I don't know what happened.

Edited November 5, 2015 by Uke

[Morrigan]

There have been 14 DWTS-themed week-long cruises on Holland America and the last two are coming up (starting January 3 and 10) with Kym, Tony, Carson Kressley and Florence Henderson. I don't know why they're ending - guess they've run their course.  Kym, Tristan and Emma have been on 10 (six in Alaska), Sharna on 4, Mark/Artem/Henry on 2, Derek/Lacey/Chelsie on 1, plus Sabrina Bryan, Joey Fatone, Shawn Johnson, etc.  Sheesh I sound like a salesperson. Anyhow, here's a link to the final two cruises:

 

http://www.hollandamerica.com/pageByName/Simple.action?requestPage=DWTS&WT.ac=footer_DWTS

Edited November 5, 2015 by Morrigan

[Uke]

Ahhh so the cruises are currently still running. (I didn't know Derek did one of the cruises.) Maybe they are changing from the Holland America line to the Royal Caribbean line after the final 2 scheduled cruises.

 

It looks like this is a 2-night pre-inaugural cruise.  Some of the cruise bloggers are chatting about it.  Basically they just go out into international waters (so they can open the casinos), party hearty, then cruise back to shore.  I went on one years ago and it was toooo much fun! Ha!  Generally the pre-inaugurals are by invitation, for travel agents, travel writers, bloggers, etc. who will help sell the cruises and/or create buzz.  I guess you can't get much bigger buzz than getting it on DWTS.

 

Here's one blogger if you want to follow along: http://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/podcast/episode-118-anthem-of-the-seas-cruise-preview#.VjraML4o6mY   There are others if you google

Edited November 5, 2015 by Uke

[Brownie]

 

Sharna Burgess Verified account ‏@SharnaBurgess 5m5 minutes ago

The crew is about to get together in Vegas baby!!! @TamarBraxtonHer @iamValC @nickcarter @DancingABC

 

[smiley13]

What a ladylike pose for a picture Sharna....not!

[Uke]

Jeez Louise!  Look at the "cabin" the cruisers got!

https://instagram.com/p/9uQln3iPRr/

https://instagram.com/p/9uQZVMCPRb/

[McManda]

Probably because for a 3-night cruise (I can't imagine they're doing anything longer than that since they have to be back in LA Sunday) that suite (or one very similar) costs ~$1,125. I think it's unlikely anyone is going to pay that much money for 3 nights on a boat, so it was likely available and comped in return for the promotion RC and the ship are likely to get from DWTS on Monday night. It's also the only room that would sleep enough people to accommodate both couples plus the camera and sound person.

 

But seriously, though. Who spends $1,125 on a 3-night cruise? I'd almost get wanting a spectacular room if you're doing a 6 week worldwide adventure, but for 3 nights? An interior stateroom is fine, thanks. I'm probably not spending much time in there, anyway.

Edited November 6, 2015 by McManda

[Uke]

There's plenty of avid cruisers who'd pay that and more for a 3-night cruise...and consider it a bargain. (I used to be a travel agent before people started booking themselves on the internet.)   But yes, I'm sure it was comp'd.

[Morrigan]

Wow - when I looked last night, they had an inside cabin for $499 for a whole week on the first of the Holland America cruises coming up in January (Eastern Caribbean.)

 

Derek did most of a week-long cruise in the Western Caribbean in January 2014 - he and Emma got off the boat one or two days early to fly to another gig. Tristan, Kym and Sharna were also on that cruise, which was the "champion" cruise - each cruise had a last-night competition where a few of the guests were paired with the ship's pro in couples (like on the tv show) and the DWTS pros were judges. Then on the champion cruise, they had an overall winner for the year. Oh, something like that.

 

I went on one and loved it! There were four dance lessons on the ship and the pros took turns showing up to pick winners after the lesson (who would compete at the end to be ship winner) - then there were meet and greets, two separate picture taking and autograph sessions where you could meet the stars, question and answer sessions, and a fashion show with dresses from DWTS. And they did a big pro-dance show, repeated twice, with lots of group and couple numbers and comedy sketches (Carson Kressley, Joey Fatone).

Edited November 6, 2015 by Morrigan

[kitcloudkicker]

It seems Royal Caribbean is getting their money's worth out of this whole advertising/cross promotion deal. It kind of seems like they're the whole point of this challenge, while the other two are much more random. I mean, I'm sure the Beetles show and Chicago will enjoy the promotion, but they aren't necessarily splashy new shows in the midst of an ad push. It's also kind of weird that they missed highlighting Chicago when Rumer was starring in it, by turning up about 3 days after she finished her run. (Though looks like they at least hung out a bit https://instagram.com/p/9u8O8OTPC2/) 

[Danseur]

Bing Predicts says Carlos will be eliminated tomorrow night. I have no idea how accurate they are or how often, but they also predicted he would go home last week. Has anyone read any Las Vegas Odds for the semi-finals?

[Danseur]

I found the Wynn Las Vegas Odds:

http://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/article/Bindi-Irwin-Derek-Hough-Top-Odds-to-Win-DANCING-WITH-THE-STARS-20151002

I don't ever pay attention to these but do think it's interesting that both foresee a Carlos elimination. Does anyone know anything about the past accuracy/inaccuracy of either or both?

[jhlipton]

What a ladylike pose for a picture Sharna....not!

 

I'm resisting the urge to quote Storm Large (if curious, Google "Storm Large Ladylike" [WARNING: language]

 

To me she looks relaxed and comfortable, which is perfectly "ladylike" to me.

[boyznkatz]

I found the Wynn Las Vegas Odds:

http://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/article/Bindi-Irwin-Derek-Hough-Top-Odds-to-Win-DANCING-WITH-THE-STARS-20151002

I don't ever pay attention to these but do think it's interesting that both foresee a Carlos elimination. Does anyone know anything about the past accuracy/inaccuracy of either or both?

 

I just remember they predicted Donald Driver as the winner of his season. I don't know how they come up with their odds. I wouldn't be surprised if Carlos was eliminated however.

[Andie1]

Last week Tamar was 14-1, this week 5-1,  they need to make up their minds whether they gonna dump her or not.  She's been a solid dancer who's been jerked around enough.  

Edited November 9, 2015 by Andie1

[Danseur]

http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/gossip/illness-knocks-tamar-braxton-dancing-stars-article-1.2430696

Evidently, Tamar has a pulmonary embolism. This is a serious issue and I wish her all the best.

[kitcloudkicker]

I wonder if this causes the show to change it's rules on exactly how medically cleared you have to be to return to the competition after needing to go to the hospital for an issue. Their legal team is probably having heart palpitations, she very well could have keeled over on live TV.

 

I do wish her the best, and hope this gets her to slow down a bit.

[Artymouse]

I wonder if this causes the show to change it's rules on exactly how medically cleared you have to be to return to the competition after needing to go to the hospital for an issue. Their legal team is probably having heart palpitations, she very well could have keeled over on live TV.

 

That's exactly what I thought. Given that it's live TV, things could have gone really badly. I think the show would be foolish not to adapt the rules, considering what could have happened. 

[BW Manilowe]

People magazine (for which the PenaVegas, perhaps not so coincidentally, have been blogging about their DWTS experience) is also reporting on the possibility Alexa could be asked to return (though also pointing out she & Mark wouldn't have much time to get a proper routine/proper routines together for Monday night, if she were asked & she agreed to return).

http://www.people.com/article/dancing-stars-alexa-penavega-could-be-reinstated-post-tamar-braxton-dropout?xid=socialflow_twitter_peoplemag