S14.E04: Overwhelmed

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Chandi, Amanda, and Lisa were the standouts during rehearsal this week.

I hope Meredith isn't this season's Meagan Flaherty who they keep around because they think she's sooooo pretty but can't do the routines.

To be fair, not everyone picks up choreography quickly but that doesn't mean they can never learn it. Some people just need to rehearse a routine X number of times to get it to stick in their heads and then they're fine performing it. I'm not that concerned when the TCCs don't pick up new dances right away. They have all of training camp to keep practicing so as long as they can get those 50 routines into their memories by the time football season starts, they will be fine.

But girls like that really can't have jobs which means someone else has to financially support them so that they can spend all day practicing.

On 8/23/2019 at 8:36 PM, sATL said:

My hats off to the parents, grandparents, older working siblings, and anyone else who cosigns a month-to-month lease for the newbies.

when the one TCC told her father she could get cut up until august while they were moving in to her very nice apt , he probably was thinking "I'll just retire from work 3-4 mths/yrs later after the rent on this dream-chase sets me back $$". Love ya pops!

And I suspect the cowboy organization has a hand in the available apartment (or house-sitting) lists. They probably have corporate apartments for a variety of reasons and relax the rules on qualifying to move in. some of the TH have been filmed in quite nice house settings.

Ha, I know, right? The last time my parents paid for my housing was when I lived in the dorms (and they didn't pay for all of it since my student loans and work-study job covered a chunk of it). I'm trying to imagine their reaction if I had told them I wanted to move to a new city to pursue my dream so I needed them to pay my rent, car insurance, phone bill, credit card bill, and expenses like food, coffee, and clothes.

My high school dance coach was a Chargers Girl and she said that there was an apartment complex near the stadium where all the football players and cheerleaders received a discount on rent. A lot of the girls lived there because rehearsal was at the gym in the apartment complex so it was really convenient. It was also very close to the stadium (less than 10 minutes away) which made game days easy.

The Chargers didn't officially have any kind of program to house them there, but everyone knew about the discount (and who doesn't want reduced rent if you can get it?).

On 8/23/2019 at 9:44 PM, chrishunt said:

Guys I’m crying laughing out here every time they show Gina Marie her hair is crazier and crazier 😂😂😂 her hair is drenched in sweat and all over her face 

I'm glad I'm not the only one who noticed her hair getting sweatier/greasier/stringier at the end of each practice. I know you can't help how sweaty your head gets when you're working out (and there's no equivalent of antiperspirant for your scalp) but that was not a good look.

On 8/24/2019 at 3:24 AM, Route66 said:

When Kelli referred to the DCC as "the Ivy League of cheerleading" I thought it might be medically possible to die laughing. Ivy League of cheerleading?

That comment totally cracked me up too. Like WHAT? It's bad enough we get the annual blatant lies about how many girls auditioned for the team (400 vs 150) but now they're the Ivy League of cheerleading? Oooookay.

On 8/23/2019 at 7:04 PM, nrskim said:

we got to see Judy and Kelli look at a board of pictures and figure out who should be on the team..BEFORE they even dance.

I was okay with this because they weren't making any decisions. They were just looking at where everyone ranked based on auditions, which is a good example of why they do training camp. If they chose the team based solely upon audition scores/results, they would have a very different team. Training camp gives everyone the opportunity to prove that they should be on the team by learning the routines and performing well. Some people make a good impression at auditions and then can't handle the sheer volume of choreography they have to learn. Other people squeak into training camp by the skin of their teeth and then excel.

On 8/24/2019 at 6:07 AM, ATLGirl said:

I can admit Victoria has kept the weight off, is speaking more maturely and OVERALL dancing better. I will never get past her gummy smile but whatever...

However, I cannot let go of the fact she freakin’ fell out of a turn and still got a perfect score! This is WRONG. I get why she made it through to training camp but not on a perfect score. I do not.

That tells me all the judges, including Weatherman Scott, have sipped the Kool Aid and know  it’s in their best interest to go along.

ITA - all the judges knew to pick up their poms and cheer for VK. She does look better than last year (if she had been ANYONE else aka not Tina's daughter, they would have cut her for weight much earlier in training camp last year).

On 8/24/2019 at 7:28 AM, sATL said:

yeah - I thought so too the episode was "quick" was going to see was it really 47 minutes , like a regular hour show is...

Most hourlong network shows are 42 minutes long without commercials. DCC: MTT has consistently been under 40 minutes for years. It's usually 36-39 minutes of content without the commercials. This week's episode was around 39 minutes.

[Mardo2044]

11 hours ago, Peanutflutter33 said:

I’m curious how the board ranking works. Amanda had 11 judges say yes, 4 say maybe and 1 say no. Lisa, who was lower on the board had 14 yes and 2 maybe. Shouldn’t the girl with more yes’s and zero no’s be higher? 

I was watching the old seasons over vacation and season 4 she told them they were seated by how they were ranked.  So, yes I think the vets if one was lower would be seated with the rookies if that was the case.  But last year I think it was based more on seniority, at least at the top?  So I don't know if they are doing it that way anymore.  I was trying to see if Christina was seated on the far left of victoria in the second row... because that would indicate ranking.  IDK but I think scores include interview.

[Mardo2044]

On 8/24/2019 at 1:27 PM, seasick said:

I remember the years where the rankings were sort of used is weapons. The one year they brought all the vets in to show them where they stood on the board and had several of them in tears telling them that that's could definitely be cut this year if they don't step it up. Then there was the ranking by how they were seated in the pre-camp orientation.

I didn't see your post until now, so I guess that answered my question that they used to rank them by where they scored.

[cherryblossom]

One year they had them seated by how they scored on the test with some vets doing poorly.  

Someone mentioned that Kitty had taken DCC technical coach off her info on her website but when I checked over the weekend it was still listed.  I imagine she might have come but not on a day with filming.

[Teriyaki Terror]

I don't care about moving in new apartments or a personality test. I WANT THE DRAMA!

[seasick]

7 hours ago, Mardo2044 said:

I was watching the old seasons over vacation and season 4 she told them they were seated by how they were ranked.  So, yes I think the vets if one was lower would be seated with the rookies if that was the case.  But last year I think it was based more on seniority, at least at the top?  So I don't know if they are doing it that way anymore.  I was trying to see if Christina was seated on the far left of victoria in the second row... because that would indicate ranking.  IDK but I think scores include interview.

It seems they are seated alphabetically now. At least the tcc's are. It was kind of mean before but I liked it. Poor girl sitting at the end wanting to crawl into a hole

Yeah they say it includes their interview for scoring Etc but they still reference Yes No Maybe as their scoring. Girls work their butts off taking classes all year etc etc and then to be scored in such a vague system." You got three maybes". I think it's moronic and demeaning.

[RedbirdNelly]

I could not believe we were given personality test footage and apartment move in info. That was such a waste of time. I'm here to see the dance process. If they want to add apartment footage, then they might as well move them all into one house and add in Real World-style drama (I'm not actually asking for that).

I don't really root for particular people but since Lisa is a Razorback along with a being a good dancer, go Lisa! WPS!

At least on my TV, any time Victoria has a talking head I just feel bad for her. Having horse teeth is not her fault and maybe it's the way the tv stretches out the picture? but it's bad on my tv.

[DragonFlyzz]

We’ve lost some dance scenes that I used to enjoy.  I miss the kicks across the floor at the beginning of training camp.  You definitely heard from Judy then.

This season they completely eliminated the scenes from Kitty Carter’s Dance Factory. They had already cut it down to solos only when they used to show them rehearsing the DCC choreography for finals.  

I wonder what Kitty had to say about Kat’s dance and costume because both needed a total overhaul.  Reminds me of Angela Rene’s solo when she first auditioned. Good thing decisions weren’t based solely on the solos cause Angela’s stunk and Kitty wasn’t shy about telling her so.

We really need a 90 minute show so we get more dancing since they’re always going to include the fluff.

[go4luca]

52 minutes ago, DragonFlyzz said:

We’ve lost some dance scenes that I used to enjoy.  I miss the kicks across the floor at the beginning of training camp.  You definitely heard from Judy then.

I miss this part too.  You could definitely get a better grasp of each TCC's training as well. 

[BullInChina]

I don't really see what it has to do with being on a dance squad, but if anyone would like to take the CORE assessment the TCCs were doing, I'm pretty sure this is it. I am an Innovator-Merchant! Whee.

Edited August 26, 2019 by BullInChina
Typo.

[Teriyaki Terror]

2 hours ago, DragonFlyzz said:

We’ve lost some dance scenes that I used to enjoy.  I miss the kicks across the floor at the beginning of training camp.  You definitely heard from Judy then.

This season they completely eliminated the scenes from Kitty Carter’s Dance Factory. They had already cut it down to solos only when they used to show them rehearsing the DCC choreography for finals.  

I wonder what Kitty had to say about Kat’s dance and costume because both needed a total overhaul.  Reminds me of Angela Rene’s solo when she first auditioned. Good thing decisions weren’t based solely on the solos cause Angela’s stunk and Kitty wasn’t shy about telling her so.

We really need a 90 minute show so we get more dancing since they’re always going to include the fluff.

Yes, yes, yes!!! I loved the kicks scene. The personality test was stupid. I don't mind the scenes where they speak about social media, or the etiquette class. 

[DCC-UK]

2 hours ago, DragonFlyzz said:

We’ve lost some dance scenes that I used to enjoy.  I miss the kicks across the floor at the beginning of training camp.  You definitely heard from Judy then.

This season they completely eliminated the scenes from Kitty Carter’s Dance Factory. They had already cut it down to solos only when they used to show them rehearsing the DCC choreography for finals.  

I wonder what Kitty had to say about Kat’s dance and costume because both needed a total overhaul.  Reminds me of Angela Rene’s solo when she first auditioned. Good thing decisions weren’t based solely on the solos cause Angela’s stunk and Kitty wasn’t shy about telling her so.

We really need a 90 minute show so we get more dancing since they’re always going to include the fluff.

I love across the floor, that's what you do in a regular dance class so it should be familiar to most of them but there's always a casualty or two! If you're a trained dancer, it's not hard to kick, turn and travel! Plus if you can't travel, you'll be no good on the entrance to the field.

[DCC-UK]

47 minutes ago, BullInChina said:

I don't really see what it has to do with being on a dance squad, but if anyone would like to take the CORE assessment the TCCs were doing, I'm pretty sure this is it. I am an Innovator-Merchant! Whee.

I'm an Innovator-Builder, probably because I'm a Capricorn! 

[NoChtngWhenEtng]

Man, this episode was boring! Give me kicks, give me Judy saying things like train wreck and struggle bus. Don't give me watching people take a quiz on a laptop!

Lisa was impressive! I wonder if she'll look too short in the uniform though

Kat is so bizarre. Everything she says is overly exaggerated to the point that I would consider her an "ambassador risk". Her dance technique is non-existent. She is beautiful and has the look, but that's it. If you watch some of the earlier seasons of the show Kat was maybe at their level, but the squad now? No way!

Meredith - Her voice kills me! I wonder if her veneers/caps give her a lispy sound? I don't know, but the way she said "indecisive" really bugged me. Even though she's gorgeous she really has a boxy figure. 

Gina Marie was more poised in the office than I expected her to be. Her look is very young and I'm not sure she has the look. 

The routine they taught at the first night did look tough! 

[kalibean]

I thought the addition of CORE was really interesting - wonder if they've used it in the past?  They didn't make it super exciting for us the viewers, but I think it could be a really great tool for group leaders.  I've used it in the workplace before and it helps the leader tailor the message to their audience and to help guide team dynamics.

Sometimes I think that kind of stuffy is fluffy HR nonsense, and other times I've gotten real value out of it.  Curious how the DCC utilized their results.

[dccfangirl]

2 hours ago, NoChtngWhenEtng said:

The routine they taught at the first night did look tough! 

I thought so too and they do really teach fast. I'd find the fact that they have a move on almost every half-count tricky, you have to be so agile!

[DCCFanInKy]

4 hours ago, NoChtngWhenEtng said:

The routine they taught at the first night did look tough! 

1 hour ago, dccfangirl said:

I thought so too and they do really teach fast. I'd find the fact that they have a move on almost every half-count tricky, you have to be so agile!

Do they only do ONE routine on the first night and isn't it always "Thunderstruck"?  I'm surprised the girls don't come into TC at least somewhat familiar with the choreo.  There's videos of it all over Youtube.  @dccfangirl are you a dancer/performer? Just wondering 🙂

Edited August 26, 2019 by DCCFanInKy
quoted too much of the top quote and had to fix it.

[HookEmHorns]

This forum loves to talk about Gina’s “extra pops”, but I gotta say in both segments where they showed the veterans dancing, she stood out without any of those extra accents. She was CLEAN and sharp and precise and powerful and the camera went straight to her every time. Couldn’t take my eyes off her. She was beside Amy both times and there’s just no comparison. Clarity. That girl has got it.

[dmeets]

"Is there anything likable about [Meredith]?"

"Sure!.... She... has pretty eyes."

Damn, ladies.

[Tornado]

Finally was able to watch the episode...for the love of god, just cut gina marie...girl, ain't no one got enough time to fix that disaster!

[Kayce]

11 hours ago, HookEmHorns said:

This forum loves to talk about Gina’s “extra pops”, but I gotta say in both segments where they showed the veterans dancing, she stood out without any of those extra accents. She was CLEAN and sharp and precise and powerful and the camera went straight to her every time. Couldn’t take my eyes off her. She was beside Amy both times and there’s just no comparison. Clarity. That girl has got it.

I'm not a huge Gina fan...BUT I am starting to come around 

[ElenaFR]

5 hours ago, Kayce said:

I'm not a huge Gina fan...BUT I am starting to come around 

Same. She is one of the few ladies that doesn't dance bored. 

[Tornado]

On 8/26/2019 at 2:21 PM, DCC-UK said:

I'm an Innovator-Builder, probably because I'm a Capricorn! 

Banker-innovator, also Capricorn

[chabelisaywow]

Quote

just cut gina marie...girl, ain't no one got enough time to fix that disaster!

She's a stronger dancer than Brianna - and we all know how long that was dragged out

[dccfangirl]

20 hours ago, DCCFanInKy said:

Do they only do ONE routine on the first night and isn't it always "Thunderstruck"?  I'm surprised the girls don't come into TC at least somewhat familiar with the choreo.  There's videos of it all over Youtube.  @dccfangirl are you a dancer/performer? Just wondering 🙂

I thought it would be thunder but it looked like it wasn't? 

[Tulip86]

46 minutes ago, Tornado said:

Banker-innovator, also Capricorn

Innovator-merchant, also a Capricorn.

[veronicamers]

23 hours ago, KnyghtRyder said:

I feel exactly the same regarding the personal communication profiles. I currently work in training for my specific job. I’ve taken no less than 9 of these, from MMPI to CPI to CORE, DISC, and INSIGHTS Discovery. 

I've taken a lot of these too. I'm an "S" DISC, INFP Myers Briggs, 9 Enneagram. Just took the Core and I am Merchant-Innovator. Astrology sign is Cancer.

I actually am fascinated by personality and how little it changes over time. Behavior we can change, but the essence of who we are, what motivates us, etc. does not really fluctuate.

[DCCFanInKy]

On 8/26/2019 at 7:55 PM, DCCFanInKy said:

Do they only do ONE routine on the first night and isn't it always "Thunderstruck"?  I'm surprised the girls don't come into TC at least somewhat familiar with the choreo.  There's videos of it all over Youtube.  @dccfangirl are you a dancer/performer? Just wondering 🙂

6 hours ago, dccfangirl said:

I thought it would be thunder but it looked like it wasn't? 

@ShellyB can you clear this up for us?  Do they always learn "Thunderstruck" on the first night of TC? 

Edited August 28, 2019 by DCCFanInKy
formatting

[Agent Gully]

I am a Banker - Innovator and I'm a Leo.

It would be interesting to know how they would use an assessment tool such as CORE. In other words, do they have or hire someone to explain these results to TPTB? Do the girls receive knowledge of what "type" they are?

I would imagine though, that they most likely make sure they have one of each "type" in each of the four team groups as much as possible. It's hard to imagine them getting more complex than that.

[seasick]

23 hours ago, dmeets said:

"Is there anything likable about [Meredith]?"

"Sure!.... She... has pretty eyes."

Damn, ladies.

Oh no. There's much more to to like about Meredith than that.

Meredith recognized and acknowledged the fact that Kelli is a " visionary".

[pisces125]

I got the impression last season Meredith was simply calm and a little more laid back than some other girls.  However she now is starting to seem vapid 😕 Kelsey L was at least bubbly to make up for it instead of having low energy as well

[ByTor]

Taking the personality testing discussion to Small Talk.

[chabelisaywow]

Quote

That comment totally cracked me up too. Like WHAT? It's bad enough we get the annual blatant lies about how many girls auditioned for the team (400 vs 150) but now they're the Ivy League of cheerleading? Oooookay.

This. lol

[pasdetrois]

I just read an article that debunks most of those personality tests as not being based on science and data, and how they are misused in the workplace.

Victoria has pulled herself together. The long legs, big blonde hair and toothy smile will  have presence on the field. That's what Kelli and Charlotte and the Cowboys organization want.

The tricky choreography is kind of a TV gimmick, because the DCC choreography is simpler and of a certain type for the field. It's pretty limited, which makes sense. Lots of this this show is stupid filler, when there's so much more they could be showing us about training camp.

I don't miss nasty Kitty. She's another one who really knows what the organization wants, and her opinion matters to them, but she's just mean.

[ShellyB]

On 8/27/2019 at 6:00 PM, DCCFanInKy said:

@ShellyB can you clear this up for us?  Do they always learn "Thunderstruck" on the first night of TC? 

Yes...but the first night you saw, was not their first night, just the first night of cameras at rehearsal. It’s been like this for a few years. 

[vmcd88]

Is no one going to mention the Marge Simpson hair Kellie was rocking during her talking head segments.  It was hilarious.

[DCCFanInKy]

13 hours ago, ShellyB said:

Yes...but the first night you saw, was not their first night, just the first night of cameras at rehearsal. It’s been like this for a few years. 

Most generally how many nights into training camp is the first filmed rehearsal?  Does it vary?

[Mardo2044]

On 8/26/2019 at 4:16 PM, kalibean said:

Sometimes I think that kind of stuffy is fluffy HR nonsense, and other times I've gotten real value out of it.  Curious how the DCC utilized their results.

I guess maybe when they announce group leads?  I think they need to discuss the results, at least in general terms or that segment was just a snoozer.  IDK maybe it was an explicit op for VK to say she isn't that girl anymore.

[Mardo2044]

On 8/27/2019 at 2:48 PM, ElenaFR said:

Same. She is one of the few ladies that doesn't dance bored. 

I used to say although she can't help it the face isn't quite HD.  But now they have so many girls that are just okay looking who can tell?  This is why I am pulling for Meredith -we need some pretty please -even though it doesn't look good with her timing. 😞

[KatebytheSea]

On 8/24/2019 at 8:54 PM, BraelynnJ said:

Gina Marie seems like a sweet girl but she is way in over her head and I see her getting cut soon. She is just not picking it up.

I love Amanda. She has the ability to learn this and make the team. I have loved her since her solo.

I really like Gina Marie, but also think she's on the cut line. She seems overwhelmed. If she does get cut, I hope she'll come back next year. She's adorable.

I also really like Amanda. She gets right down in there and makes it work.

Kelli said the personality/character test would help in sizing up the girls' potential and leadership skills. I'm wondering if the whole Jenna situation brought this on, or if they've done it all along. I think it was telling that Jenna wasn't made GL1 leader till her 6th year. I think she was a 2nd GL in previous years, but it was almost like they needed to honor her time there and made her GL1. Now maybe they're retooling their management style to put people in leadership positions who are actually leaders and not followers.

Kat is interesting to me. Came in with lots of confidence (kinda like VK last year), yet seems like its going to be a challenge to get the DCC style under her belt. I'll be watching with interest!

[scorpio1031]

4 hours ago, KatebytheSea said:

I think it was telling that Jenna wasn't made GL1 leader till her 6th year. 

Leader of Group 3 in her 5th year.  Just saw that on Pluto:)

[KatebytheSea]

46 minutes ago, scorpio1031 said:

Leader of Group 3 in her 5th year.  Just saw that on Pluto:)

Thanks for the info. 🙂

When you think that Jennifer Amburn was GL in her 2nd year, 5 years seems a long time for Jenna to wait to become a GL. But then, I don't agree with Kelli when she said she expected all DCCS should be "leaders." I think they're examples, but that doesn't translate to being a leader.

[DCCFanInKy]

Just now, KatebytheSea said:

Thanks for the info. 🙂

When you think that Jennifer Amburn was GL in her 2nd year, 5 years seems a long time for Jenna to wait to become a GL.

Wow I didn't remember that!

[KatebytheSea]

2 minutes ago, DCCFanInKy said:

Wow I didn't remember that!

I just watched S9 again. lol

[lkxydhfinl ghsdv]

21 minutes ago, KatebytheSea said:

Thanks for the info. 🙂

When you think that Jennifer Amburn was GL in her 2nd year, 5 years seems a long time for Jenna to wait to become a GL. But then, I don't agree with Kelli when she said she expected all DCCS should be "leaders." I think they're examples, but that doesn't translate to being a leader.

Jennifer A was 2nd GL (to Emma) in her 2nd year...

[KatebytheSea]

38 minutes ago, Tootie said:

Jennifer A was 2nd GL (to Emma) in her 2nd year...

Thanks for the correction. It's still pretty good to get 2nd GL in a normal year. I mean, Heather got it after the fallout with Holly and Erica leaving. And while still great, it was by default.  

[ShellyB]

On 8/29/2019 at 11:05 AM, DCCFanInKy said:

Most generally how many nights into training camp is the first filmed rehearsal?  Does it vary?

The past few seasons we’ve had 1st meeting, then two nights w/o cameras, then full throttle for 4-5 days straight. This summer we had a streak of 10 filming days...exhausting. 

[dreamcatcher]

On 8/30/2019 at 5:40 AM, KatebytheSea said:

Thanks for the info. 🙂

When you think that Jennifer Amburn was GL in her 2nd year, 5 years seems a long time for Jenna to wait to become a GL. But then, I don't agree with Kelli when she said she expected all DCCS should be "leaders." I think they're examples, but that doesn't translate to being a leader.

Jenna became a 2nd leader in her 3rd year I think? Maybe her 4th. But it was during a time they had multiple upper year vets to choose from. No offense to the selected girls, but when you only have 4 upper year vets (4-5 years) and a weak class of 3rd years, you don’t have that many options really. But JennK was much older than Jenna with lots of teaching experience so it makes sense. Jenna started at 18... not that I honestly feel she deserved the GL position, just saying that in general they give these positions out based on seniority and dance skill, but neither actually show teaching ability and leadership capabilities. They don’t need a personality test to see who’s got it.

[liliparis]

On 8/25/2019 at 1:19 PM, scorpio1031 said:

There was an article about the new president at CMT and the new producers for the show - even though MTT is a reality show, they don't want conflict - they want positivity, show the girl's empowerment, etc.

That would explain A LOT!  The horrendous new song, the over the top sob stories this season.  I'm cool with some changes, I like them showing the big board and Kelly and the deliberations but IMO its so boring to watch these girls move into their apartments segment after segment.  Give us more dancing and actual TRAINING camp coverage!