S16.E12: Top 8 Perform

[Drogo]

Each dancer has another opportunity to impress the judges and fight for the nation's vote after two said goodbye last week.

Airs 8/26/19.

[Quickbeam]

Ugh, stop trying to make Madison happen. 

[displayname]

My least favorite dancing was Madison's side of her ballroom. That is all.

[susannot]

• I had a lot to say about tonight's show until Benjamin was voted off.  He was the only male dancer that I liked.  Show is really pimping Bailey.  He is cute and a good dancer but a tiny 12 year old looking guy.
• Loathe Madison and love Mariah.  Let her win.
• Mark Kanemura:  Get what Nigel said.  He is one of the sexiest dudes and best dancers ever on the show.  Looked up his Tahitian dance.  I have been to Hawaii twice and boys and girls can shake their hips like nobody's business.

[displayname]

Well, no, that is not all. All dances sucked. Nothing stood out, even in solos. That bailey/mariah ballroom was horrid also.

[Mr. R0b0t]

This season is missing something.

[jewel21]

There were only two dances that struck a chord with me tonight, the Bailey/Mariah routine on the roof prop, and the Gino and Sophie dance to Elvis. I love me some Elvis. I ended up rewinding both of these routines. I also re-watched Bailey's solo because that dude is a power house!

I would have kept Benjamin over Ezra, I think, although I like them both. I'm fine with Anna going home this week but I hope it's Madison next week. 

Gino flubbing all his answers and Cat giving up on him cracked me up, haha. 

[cinsbythesea]

Wait...WHAT???  Benjamin is gone??  Going into a corner to pout if so.  NOOO!!!

[Sharpie66]

Ezra and Bailey are my favorite guys and Mariah is the only girl I like, so other than wishing Madison gone, I was okay with the results. 

I was happy hearing Gino’s song choice for his solo—Andra Day’s cover of “Burn” from Hamilton is just epically grand, and the video can rip your heart out: 

[RachelKM]

Well, shit.  That was expected, but unwelcome.  Madison bores me to tears with utter inability to connect with her dance partners.  It was evidenced in both her dances with Ezra as well as her parts of the small group dance. 

And holy hell, that Argentine tango exposed her lack of strength.  I've been trying to understand what about her movement bugs me so much and this dance clarified it for me.  She has fairly good lines and the appearance of extension (honestly, she's tall and long limbed so some of it is just her actual legs), but she has no control or power in her and the result is sort of floppy and gumby like. Blech.

I wasn't rooting for Anna to win and I don't necessarily disagree with her going home.  But i would 100 times rather watch Anna learn something new and be a genuinely engaging human and dancer over Madison's ungainly movement in a chemistry vacuum.

Sorry to see Benjamin go.  But I liked all 4 remaining boys.  So I cannot say there is someone I would have preferred leave over him. 

I think tonight was the first night I really enjoyed Sophie.  I enjoyed both dances and loved her in them. Gino was good of course, but I knew that.  I had previously just found Sophie pleasantly unmemorable.  I think she benefited from having a more dynamic partner.

Mariah is still my favorite.  And I like Bailey well enough; but I watch their performances for her.  I liked the roof dance, though I thought it was less from them than I expected.  The first dance ws charmingly not great.  I smiled through it even as I recognized that Bailey was waaaayyy out of his comfort zone.

Edited August 27, 2019 by RachelKM

[MVFrostsMyPie]

Ooohhh, WTF was that Polynesian dance travesty. 

Mary Murphy looked like she was auditioning for the new Cats movie. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Solos:

Bailey:

Benjamin:

Ezra:

Gino:

Anna:

Madison:

Mariah:

Sophie:

Edited August 27, 2019 by ElectricBoogaloo

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Partner dances:

Mariah & Bailey - cha cha (Dmitry Chaplin)

Mariah & Bailey - contemporary (Mandy & Elizabeth)

Madison & Ezra - Argentine tango (Miriam & Leonardo)

Madison & Ezra - hip hop (Randi & Hef)

Sophie & Gino - jazz (Jonathan Redavid)

Sophie & Gino - contemporary (KC Monnie)

Anna & Benjamin - Polynesian (Tiana Liufau)

Anna & Benjamin - Broadway (Al Blackstone)

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Group dances:

Opening number (Jonathan & Oksana)

Mariah, Madison, Benjamin, & Gino - contemporary (Talia Favia)

Anna, Sophie, Bailey, & Ezra - African jazz (Sean Cheesman)

[ElectricBoogaloo]

This episode was pretty underwhelming. The best part of it was getting to hear songs from Hamilton and Dear Evan Hansen.

Partner dances:

Bailey & Madison

• It was clear that they were both out of their comfort zone with the cha cha and that Dmitry tried to give them simpler choreography to help them get through it, but it was pretty lackluster. Bailey had a few good moments where I thought he had the right posture/attitude but for the most part it looked very amateur in execution, particularly Mariah.
• Normally I'm not a fan of prop dances so I was already almost rolling my eyes before the dance even began, but I thought this was a good use of the roof/slide and I really enjoyed this performance. I expected Mariah to do well, but Bailey was surprisingly good at this. If I didn't know he was a b-boy, I never would have guessed that was his specialty from watching this routine. He had a great control and fluidity.

Madison & Ezra

• At the beginning, I was laughing at the lighting. No amount of shadowy/dark lighting is going to hide the fact that she is definitely not good at the Argentine tango, show. Once again she majorly flubbed a lift. The reason she was wobbling and her legs were going back and forth is her lack of core strength and hence her lack of control.
• I hate that they wasted so much time lowering the dancers onto the stage for their hip hop routine. I'm sure it was fun for them but it was a waste of time since they only get 90 seconds to dance.

Sophie & Gino

• The jazz routine suited both of them well. I thought they each did great in this dance. Even better considering that they are a new couple!
• Awwww, I love "You Will Be Found" so I was hoping I would like the choreography for this routine. I wasn't 100% in love with all of it, but I liked it and I thought that Sophie and Gino danced it well. But that goddamn spinning camera needs to be disassembled immediately. I hate it SO MUCH.

Anna & Benjamin

• While I appreciate the show trying to branch out from the glut of contemporary routines, I have mixed feelings about Polynesian every time they do it. The biggest issue is that it takes YEARS to learn Polynesian dancing so it feels like they're doing it a huge disservice when they know that none of the dancers have experience in this style because clearly no one is going to learn how to move their hips correctly in less than a week (and obviously Anna did not, which I feel bad saying because again, it's not her fault that they gave her five days to learn this style of dance which is very different from anything else that is done on this show).
• Broadway routines can be hit or miss on this show, but Al Blackstone is usually pretty good. But knowing that this couple got Polynesian AND Broadway in the same episode meant they were cannon fodder. If you get two routines and one of them isn't contemporary or hip hop, you're doomed. I thought Anna did much better in Broadway than she did in ballroom last week. She looked very comfortable with the choreography and style. Both she and Benjamin had a lovely lightness (both in their steps and their attitudes) which I loved.

Solos:

Benjamin - although it showed his power and grace, it felt a bit repetitive and little too gymnastics.

Bailey - he is obviously a performer who knows how to entertain a crowd! As a performer, there are sometimes tricks or moves that aren't technically super difficult but they are crowd pleasers. The handkerchief stuff was in that category. Definitely not the most advanced trick, but audiences LOVE stuff like that so smart move on his part.

Madison - typical contemporary solo aka boring.

Sophie - also typical contemporary routine but somehow I liked it more than Madison's.

Mariah - see above. It was fine but nothing to write home about.

Ezra - this looked like ballroom done by someone who doesn't specialize in ballroom. It wasn't sharp or precise or have good accents. It looked like ballroom steps taught to a jazz dancer. The only thing I thought was well executed in the entire routine was the tour en l'air. Everything else looked a bit juvenile in execution.

Anna - one thing I like about female hip hop dancers is that they don't focus on being overtly sexual in their costumes and choreography. I'm not a prude or anything, but sometimes it's nice to see an entire routine where there isn't any "I'm sexy" stuff and the dancer isn't wearing a crop top with booty shorts. Anna's solo was fine but I felt it didn't showcase her as well as it could have.

Gino - bonus points for using a Hamilton song! The choreography went well with the music but I thought his execution was good rather than great.

Group dances:

Opening - I wanted to like this dance more than I did. The theme, costumes, and music alone should have made it a winner but it was just okay. On a shallow note, I hated the white shoes that the guys were wearing. It was clear that they were just regular shoes (not dance shoes) because they couldn't point their feet in them.

Mariah, Madison, Benjamin, & Gino - even at the beginning of the routine when they all had their hoods on, I could tell which one was Madison because of her sloppy leg positions.

Anna, Sophie, Bailey, & Ezra - I really liked this routine, so yay, Sean Cheesman! I loved the intricate arm movements when all four of them were stacked up on top of each other. I thought everyone did well in this dance too.

I would have kept Benjamin and Anna and I would have cut Ezra and Madison, but what the hell do I know?

[calipiano81]

I was preparing myself for Ezra to be sent home tonight, so I'm mainly just happy to get see him dance one more week. Out of all the guys, I think Ezra was the best choice to do the A Tango.

So Sophie has now done jazz, contemporary, contemporary, jazz for her duets. I'm gonna need to see something else before I consider Sophie part of a "couple to beat."

I'm surprisingly liking Dominic as a judge.

Edited August 27, 2019 by calipiano81

[displayname]

1 hour ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Benjamin - although it showed his power and grace, it felt a bit repetitive and little too gymnastics.

Bailey - he is obviously a performer who knows how to entertain a crowd! As a performer, there are sometimes tricks or moves that aren't technically super difficult but they are crowd pleasers. The handkerchief stuff was in that category. Definitely not the most advanced trick, but audiences LOVE stuff like that so smart move on his part.

Madison - typical contemporary solo aka boring.

Sophie - also typical contemporary routine but somehow I liked it more than Madison's.

Mariah - see above. It was fine but nothing to write home about.

Ezra - this looked like ballroom done by someone who doesn't specialize in ballroom. It wasn't sharp or precise or have good accents. It looked like ballroom steps taught to a jazz dancer. The only thing I thought was well executed in the entire routine was the tour en l'air. Everything else looked a bit juvenile in execution.

Anna - one thing I like about female hip hop dancers is that they don't focus on being overtly sexual in their costumes and choreography. I'm not a prude or anything, but sometimes it's nice to see an entire routine where there isn't any "I'm sexy" stuff and the dancer isn't wearing a crop top with booty shorts. Anna's solo was fine but I felt it didn't showcase her as well as it could have.

Gino - bonus points for using a Hamilton song! The choreography went well with the music but I thought his execution was good rather than great.

I think the solos did a way better job of exposing these people's weaknesses instead of showcasing their strengths. For instance, with Bailey, I'm starting to note he needs to sometimes really tone it down with the energy and really showcase layers -- he dances with soul, but sometimes it just looks like he's being hyper-energetic. For Gino, I think he has problems with showcasing emotion and commitment with performance, at least in a way that I can buy it. Some of this is because they're just so young though.

Benjamin's solo had the best performance aspect among the guys for me, and a bit of creativity with the movement at points, but it was just repetitive. Ezra's solo is limited due to his genre, and I agree he was just sloppy, but I thought his hammy performance worked with the music. He was definitely the least mature of the guys though, in all three of choreography, technique, and performance, for me.

I found Anna's solo to be entirely ordinary, but she's an OK performer. Mariah for me had the best contemporary solo, but entirely generic. Sophie is simply an unmemorable performer, with ordinary technique. But Madison for me is probably the worst technician to ever make it this far.

[Haleth]

11 hours ago, Quickbeam said:

Ugh, stop trying to make Madison happen. 

The over praising of her is sickening.  And so manipulative.  Wake up, voters!  She's not that good!

I've only watched the first half so far and the only dance that stood out in a good way was Sophie's and Gino's coming out dance which was lovely.  The Polynesian number with Anna and Ben was dreadful.  I was embarrassed for them.

Edited August 27, 2019 by Haleth

[crossover]

3 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Anna & Benjamin

• Broadway routines can be hit or miss on this show, but Al Blackstone is usually pretty good. But knowing that this couple got Polynesian AND Broadway in the same episode meant they were cannon fodder. If you get two routines and one of them isn't contemporary or hip hop, you're doomed. I thought Anna did much better in Broadway than she did in ballroom last week. She looked very comfortable with the choreography and style. Both she and Benjamin had a lovely lightness (both in their steps and their attitudes) which I loved.

Agree.  It use to be if you just got broadway, you were history.  Guess tptb wanted to make sure that they had a reasonable explanation to eliminate them when they fell in the bottom.  Granted, if you do well in the "other" style, you get the praise.  But, they had to have known that Anna wouldn't be good in this type of dance.  She wasn't even good in the cha cha.  Benjamin was ok.  No Mark K but Mark is from Hawaii.

So not surprised about Anna leaving.  I know people don't like Madison but Anna is the weaker.  But I thought they would want Benjamin through T6--maybe even do a routine with Benjamin and Gino.  On the bright side, we should get at least one great ballroom routine if they assign a ballroom AS to Ezra.  It looks like Bailey is bringing in the votes.  So they probably won't mess with him unless he starts messing up Gino's support. 

I still think Gino is the show's pick.  That's why they gave him mild criticism in week 1.  Now, no one can say that they never say anything negative about him.  And when he does hip hop again, they can go on and on about how much better the routine is than the first one.  They gave him the ballroom partner so that he could look his best in ballroom.  They could've given him Anna and he would've had to try to keep her upright like Benjamin had to instead of just performing.  Then, they eliminated her so that he could get with the contemporary partner.  Now, he can shine in contemporary and jazz.  They didn't even try to give them hip hop or ballroom (styles that Sophie hasn't done) because it's not about Sophie. 

I really can't see anyone else that the show would prefer.  But, we'll see shortly.  They need to cut down on audition episodes and add to the performing part.  Time is just flying now. 

[jewel21]

2 hours ago, Haleth said:

I've only watched the first half so far and the only dance that stood out in a good way was Sophie's and Gino's coming out dance which was lovely.

I actually forgot about this routine. So that was three routines that I enjoyed, both routines from Gino and Sophie and the roof dance with Bailey and Mariah. The other routines were lackluster.

[displayname]

I just watched the judges' comments... Mary really thought Madison's feet and leg lines were great in that Tango?????????

3 hours ago, crossover said:

They could've given him Anna and he would've had to try to keep her upright like Benjamin had to instead of just performing. 

Benjamin wasn't in the bottom 2 after his Ballroom though...

Edited August 27, 2019 by displayname

[Keekski]

Madison is the worst. 

Dominic is the best part of this season. 

[KLovestoShop]

Why does Cat ruin a perfectly nice dress with Herman Munster shoes?

When you look closely at Madison’s moves during the tango, she missed quite a few things.  Ezra was propping her up for a lot of the dance.  

[crossover]

3 hours ago, displayname said:

Benjamin wasn't in the bottom 2 after his Ballroom though...

In a way, that was my point.  Benjamin looked as good in his ballroom as Gino did, and Gino had the ballroom partner.   But would Gino had looked as good w/o a ballroom partner?

I guess I was just thinking they look to be at the same skill level.  It just depends on who’s the show’s pick. The pick gets the advantages like the ballroom girl in ballroom and the contemporary girl in the emotional contemp routine.  The other gets the obstacles like the hip hop girl in ballroom and the Polynesian routine.   

Gotta love the show’s manipulations.

Edited August 27, 2019 by crossover

[realdancemom]

10 hours ago, calipiano81 said:

I was preparing myself for Ezra to be sent home tonight, so I'm mainly just happy to get see him dance one more week. Out of all the guys, I think Ezra was the best choice to do the A Tango.

So Sophie has now done jazz, contemporary, contemporary, jazz for her duets. I'm gonna need to see something else before I consider Sophie part of a "couple to beat."

I'm surprisingly liking Dominic as a judge.

Ezra was the best one to do AT out of all the guys.  But man, he had to work hard since Madison is terrible at holding her core and helping with lifts.  I liked all four guys so I can't say that I preferred Ezra over Benjamin.

Yup on Sophie not getting anything but jazz and contemporary for her duets.  I said the same thing last night that she can't be part of a couple to beat if she hasn't done other styles yet.  I didn't even like Anna but that was unfair that Anna/Benjamin got Polynesian (Yikes!!) and Broadway while Gino/Sophie get contemporary/jazz and they're contemporary dancers.

I think Dominic is a great judge.  LaurieAnn needs to give more substantial critiques especially with her background.

[displayname]

20 minutes ago, realdancemom said:

I didn't even like Anna but that was unfair that Anna/Benjamin got Polynesian (Yikes!!) and Broadway 

Is Broadway still a bus? I mean, a Tyce broadway used to be a big bus. But Al Blackstone Broadway is much better.

[realdancemom]

1 minute ago, displayname said:

Is Broadway still a bus? I mean, a Tyce broadway used to be a big bus. But Al Blackstone Broadway is much better.

They actually looked lovely doing the Broadway.  I was mainly doing a comparison of two contemporary dancers doing jazz and contemporary vs. a hip-hop/contemporary couple doing Tahitian and Broadway. 

[RachelKM]

32 minutes ago, realdancemom said:

Ezra was the best one to do AT out of all the guys.  But man, he had to work hard since Madison is terrible at holding her core and helping with lifts. 

Good lord, yes.  That boy deserves his save for lugging Madison's floppy arse through two dances in one night.  Good grief. 

I suspect his ability to do so actually does have something to do with his being saved, though less as a reward and more because it's not at all clear that any of the other guys could convincingly drag her through routines in anyway that would disguise the fact she is doing nothing to hold herself.  

[hula-la]

16 hours ago, MVFrostsMyPie said:

Ooohhh, WTF was that Polynesian dance travesty. 
 

Thank you! I’m a Tahitian dancer, and while I applaud their ability to do a duck walk (I couldn’t do that, even in my younger days), I just couldn’t with that dance.

Though, I’m happy that there is some sort of Polynesian on my tv. I highly recommend that people watch a group like Les Grands Ballet de Tahiti if you want to watch some amazing dancers.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

4 hours ago, displayname said:

Is Broadway still a bus? I mean, a Tyce broadway used to be a big bus. But Al Blackstone Broadway is much better.

For me, it's not the choreography that's an issue so it's not a knock on Al at all (although it IS a knock on Tasty Oreo). It's that the voting audience tends not to connect with Broadway pieces as much as they do with contemporary and hip hop (and Broadway pieces are usually less flashy in terms of tricks) so Broadway routines are not going to get you votes the way contemporary and hip hop will, which is why it's still a bus in my opinion - ESPECIALLY if your other routine for the night is not contemporary/hip hop. Giving one couple Broadway and Polynesian on the same night was a guaranteed elimination.

[MVFrostsMyPie]

3 hours ago, hula-la said:

Thank you! I’m a Tahitian dancer, and while I applaud their ability to do a duck walk (I couldn’t do that, even in my younger days), I just couldn’t with that dance.

Though, I’m happy that there is some sort of Polynesian on my tv. I highly recommend that people watch a group like Les Grands Ballet de Tahiti if you want to watch some amazing dancers.

I think normally Polynesian dancing is one of the most entertaining and impressive dances to watch, but not on the SYTYCD stage. It just looks like a half-assed attempt even though I'm sure they were trying their hardest to make it work (although Anna seemed checked out anyway in general). 

On the bright side, at least we didn't have to watch Madison do that dance, that would have been even more hilariously awful.

[RachelKM]

2 minutes ago, MVFrostsMyPie said:

On the bright side, at least we didn't have to watch Madison do that dance, that would have been even more hilariously awful.

I don't forgive you for putting this in my head. 

[Law Mom]

Wow, this season's format is not giving us nearly enough time with the finalists. I just want to remind everyone that the reason Bailey can do these other styles is that he was a dance major in a very well respected arts magnet high school. I know a lot of kids who went there and they emphasize modern, ballet, jazz and contemporary. Also, despite his age he has an extensive professional resume. They love to act surprised that a b-boy can actually dance, but it's intentionally misleading to downplay his training.

Here is a short clip from a school dance performance:

[Law Mom]

Another school performance. Typical Las Vegas Academy style. It's pretty easy to spot Bailey, lol. 

[cinsbythesea]

I think Bailey is a supremely gifted dancer...but given his size can be make it as a dancer?  I ask this as a 5'1" person without a dancer bone in her pathetic body.  

[displayname]

9 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

It's that the voting audience tends not to connect with Broadway pieces as much as they do with contemporary and hip hop (and Broadway pieces are usually less flashy in terms of tricks) so Broadway routines are not going to get you votes the way contemporary and hip hop will, which is why it's still a bus in my opinion

But this is where I'm not sure... The audience sure didn't connect to Tyce routines with their terrible choreography. But is it still true with Al Blackstone? IDK if it was just because of the big tricks that the audience didn't like Broadway. I do agree it's a less popular style than Contemporary or Hip-Hop because it lacks the emotional/exciting music choices and flash, but I don't think getting a Broadway puts someone back the same way, say, a Waltz did, because they could still impress in a great Broadway. I 100% agree that getting a Broadway along with Tahitian is a death sentence though.

Edited August 28, 2019 by displayname

[Quickbeam]

9 hours ago, cinsbythesea said:

I think Bailey is a supremely gifted dancer...but given his size can be make it as a dancer?  I ask this as a 5'1" person without a dancer bone in her pathetic body.  

I did find his partnering hard to watch. I admire his dedication but the physics are against him in those lifts. 

[Law Mom]

I don't think it's realistic to think that Bailey can succeed professionally in every style, but he can definitely have a career in hip hop. That's what he wants, anyway.

[AllAboutMBTV]

I still say Gino and Mariah (or Madison, if the producers get their way) will be the final two, with Gino the Chosen One.

Since Cat (and her clown boots) was pimping the SYTYCD tour last night, I wonder how long the tour lasts. Gino has already booked the West Side Story revival on Broadway with previews beginning Dec. 10. No idea when rehearsals will start for it, but if this season of SYTYCD ends in three weeks-ish and the tour starts almost immediately he surely can't be with it for long.

Edited August 29, 2019 by AllAboutMBTV
editing for mistyping

[ElectricBoogaloo]

16 hours ago, cinsbythesea said:

I think Bailey is a supremely gifted dancer...but given his size can be make it as a dancer?  I ask this as a 5'1" person without a dancer bone in her pathetic body.  

The short answer (no pun intended) is that it’s very possible to have a professional dance career as a short person but with certain limitations. The Rockettes have height requirements for uniformity. And if you are a male ballet dancer, they tend to favor taller men because when women are en pointe, they end up being almost 12” taller.

But in general, it is very possible to have a successful dance career despite not being tall. There is a lot of work in commercial dance (music videos, music tours, Broadway, etc) where height doesn’t matter and casting directors are looking for some variety in what the dancers look like. 

And to be fair, a lot of successful dancers like Travis are not very tall either. 

Didn’t Bailey say during auditions that he dances at a show in a casino? I remember footage of him on top of a piano. If he’s already booking gigs like that, it seems safe to say that his height isn’t holding him back in his dance career. 

When I was in high school, it was the typical lots of girls, very few guys in dance, show choir, and the musicals. We would take any guy who was willing to come to rehearsal. As a result we ended up dancing with guys who were really short and it wasn’t really a problem. Our lifts/partner tricks weren’t super dangerous but still. The guys managed to pull them off even if they weren’t the optimal height for their female partners. Sometimes having a shorter male partner is easier. The first time I did that famous Dirty Dancing lift, it was with a really tall guy so I had to really plié and then jump as high as I could!

[TVbitch]

Ay yi yi. I can't believe I used to love this show so much I couldn't wait for each new episode and was on the edge of my seat that one of my favorites might go home. Now it sits on my DVR for ages and is a chore to watch. I remember dancers and routines from years ago much more vividly than I remember anything I saw on Monday's show.

[kechara]

This was the only show I have watched in a long time, but I think I am done. I haven’t even checked the clips except for the solos this week. Sigh. I used to love this show so much

[cinsbythesea]

The show feels rushed and forced now.  I'm with those of you who say it isn't what it used to be.  I used to call it "my happy show" as it made me feel so good watching it.  But now it seems they're just trying to fill the hour (or two) and get rid of dancers as fast as they can.  I won't even mention their obvious biases that they don't try to hide.  

[realdancemom]

15 minutes ago, cinsbythesea said:

The show feels rushed and forced now.  I'm with those of you who say it isn't what it used to be.  I used to call it "my happy show" as it made me feel so good watching it.  But now it seems they're just trying to fill the hour (or two) and get rid of dancers as fast as they can.  I won't even mention their obvious biases that they don't try to hide.  

I agree with you and others.  I used to look forward to this show and want to watch it right away.  Now, I don't even care if it sits on my DVR for a few days. 

I also hate the fact that we only get 10 instead of 20 contestants.  We don't get to know them.  Next week is the semi-finals and at the end of the show, we get the four finalists.  Sophie could be one of them since she and Gino got the jazz and contemporary pieces.  It seems really unfair if this happens when all her duets were jazz or contemporary.  How does that show her versatility?

[displayname]

Guys, stop DVRing. Save disk space, stan YouTube!

[luvthepros]

12 hours ago, cinsbythesea said:

The show feels rushed and forced now.  I'm with those of you who say it isn't what it used to be.  I used to call it "my happy show" as it made me feel so good watching it.  But now it seems they're just trying to fill the hour (or two) and get rid of dancers as fast as they can.  I won't even mention their obvious biases that they don't try to hide.  

Why should the judges try to hide who their favorites are? How do you think Broadway shows are cast? How are actors and dancers cast for movies? Of course.....the producers and directors pick their favorites. Their favorites are the ones who will give them a great show and put asses in the seats.

TPTB favorites are those dancers (for this show) that will be great TV entertainment and are also good to great dancers. I've come to the realization the dancers don't have to be the "best" dancers of those who audition. However.... it sure does help if said dancer has a great personality who will reach the viewers and make them want to vote for them. Those dancers are the favorites of the judges and TPTB. They are casting a TV reality show and pick those dancers who they feel will bring in the viewers. Their end goal is to keep this show on the air.

This is how I see it and is just my opinion, of course.

Edited August 30, 2019 by luvthepros

[alexa]

I was coming back to this show after not watching for several years, and I was enjoying the auditions, some of the dancers, etc, but I just can't anymore.  I tried to watch the episode on dvr, and I felt like every time I looked up I saw Madison, and I just can't watch her anymore.  And the show is really dragging and lacking something.  I didn't finish the episode...I gave up.

[luvthepros]

6 minutes ago, alexa said:

I was coming back to this show after not watching for several years, and I was enjoying the auditions, some of the dancers, etc, but I just can't anymore.  I tried to watch the episode on dvr, and I felt like every time I looked up I saw Madison, and I just can't watch her anymore.  And the show is really dragging and lacking something.  I didn't finish the episode...I gave up.

I agree with you about Madison. I want her off my TV screen ASAP!!!

Did you see Gino and Sophie's Jazz number to Elvis Presley's "Trouble"? BEST dance of the night for me. Gino is my favorite and I really think he is worthy of the win. The video of "Trouble" is posted above with all the other videos from this episode. It is numbers like that that keep me coming back to this show.

I even force myself to watch Madison's dances just to confirm how much I do not care for her dancing. Hope she is gone next week.

Edited August 30, 2019 by luvthepros

[alexa]

11 minutes ago, luvthepros said:

I agree with you about Madison. I want her off my TV screen ASAP!!!

Did you see Gino and Sophie's Jazz number to Elvis Presley's "Trouble"? BEST dance of the night for me. Gino is my favorite and I really think he is worthy of the win. The video of "Trouble" is posted above with all the other videos from this episode. It is numbers like that that keep me coming back to this show.

I even force myself to watch Madison's dances just to confirm how much I do not care for her dancing. Hope she is gone next week.

I don't think I did.  Part of the issue was that Fox changed this show to on demand only on the streaming dvr--all of the early episodes were true dvr and I could fast forward.  But since this was a two hour episode, and Madison kept appearing, I just couldn't do it anymore.  lol.  I do like some of the other dancers, so I wish there was equal focus on everyone.  

[WhineandCheez]

Quote

I agree with you about Madison. I want her off my TV screen ASAP!!!

I actually watched her and Ezra's AT twice. After the second viewing, I realized I like the choreo--and not the actual dance so much.  I did like Madison's feet in it, but she gave the effect of being hoisted around. I have to trust you pros here, stating that her core isn't good enough that she can assist herself in these lifts.

This may not be a nice thing to say, but she wouldn't be in the show now if she wasn't bald.  That makes her stand out and be recognizable.  If she had had hair, she wouldn't have made the top ten IMHO (though still would have probably been highlighted, because of her and her BF dancing together.)

By the way, is that AT tango choreographer, Mariam is it, the most gorgeous woman who never ages or what? And Leonardo--I wouldn't throw him out of my bed.