Showing posts with label episode 6. Show all posts
Showing posts with label episode 6. Show all posts

Friday, June 17, 2011

Episode 6: Ashley and Chris, Iveta and Nick

Ashley and Chris
Hip hop, Christopher Scott, "Forget You" by Celo Green

This was a fun routine but it was placed in the wrong line up on this episode.  After the emotional gorgeousness of "Turned to Stone", this was a jarring note.  However, it was very good and Ashley, a ballerina, tore it up!  That's my belief: the ballet dancers are always ah-mazing because of the intense training they undergo, so it doesn't matter what style is thrown at them.  Their bodies are fine-tuned machines that are trained to move any way they have to.  Anyhow, I thought Ashley was better than Chris.  He looked a little uncomfortable in choreography and Nigel called him on it during the commentary.
Here's the video with no sound.  You'll have to sing to yourself since there's some copyright nonsense.  So make it dirty and sing the "Fuck You" version instead. The actual routine starts at about 1:44.
I see you pulled the sound from my video and I'm like
FUCK YOU
It seems my disclaimer wasn't enough and I'm like
FUCK YOU

Ah, Fox.com has posted it. Here we go:
http://www.fox.com/dance/videos/997037543001/ashley-chris-top-20?sortby=date&bctag=performance


Iveta and Nick
Quickstep, Gilkison, "Ballroom Blitz" by Sweet
This was pretty much an exhbition piece for Iveta.  Not only is she dacing in her style, but she is the WORLD CHAMPION in quickstep.  It was fun to see, but kind of bullshit honestly.  More on that later when I get to the "elimination" show (on which no one was eliminated.)
It was fun, Nick the tapper has fast feet so he kept up beautifully, and it was probably one of the only times quickstep has been done well on this show.  That might have been why they did it as well; to show that quickstep isn't a total drag when it's done right!  The music and costumes were just right and I think it was a good way to end the program.

Missy and Wadi, Melanie and Marko

Missy and Wadi
Jazz, Sean Cheeseman, "Judas" (R3HAR Mix) by Lady Gaga
I liked the idea of them breaking out of the boxes.  Wadi does parkour, so I thought he would use the surfaces more than he did.  The second part was way more excited than the beginning.  Mary and Nigel both liked this routine a lot more than we did.  It was good, but this season is going to be about being exceptional, as evidenced by the next routine


Melanie and Marko
Contemporary, Travis Walls, "Turned to Stone" by Ingrid Michaelson
It's no secret that Melanie is my favorite.  There's just something about her that has grabbed me from the beginning.  She was so spectacular in this unbelievable piece that I almost wept.  Everything from her eyes to the tips of her fingers expresses the dance.  I felt that the silly greek statue costumes actually detracted from this performance.  There was no need for them.  The dance itself was all that was needed.  Marko was phenomenal too, but I was obsessed with Melanie.  It instantly rocketed up the charts to one of my favorite routines of all time.

There are so many amazing moments in this.... my favorite is at about 3:09 when she throws herself into the air with such abandon and yet such control...  another is at about 3:23 when takes a breath in, creating this tension.... I can't.  It's too gorgeous.  Clearly the judges agree, as all of them were on their feet.


Aside: Melanie, "I used to wear a helmet because I'm narcoleptic"?
And Marko is from Guam?  That's kind of random.

Episode 6: Ryan and Ricky, Caitlyn and Mitchell, Miranda and Robert

Ryan and Ricky
Lyrical hip hop, Christopher Scott, "Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone" by Lighthouse Factory
This was a great routine and Ryan's locks and isolations were terrific. However, Jim called it when he pointed out her pasted on smile. Nigel wondered why she was grinning like a maniac while Ricky was ripping his heart out.


Caitlyn and Mitchell
Jazz, Sonya Tayeh, "In for the Kill" by La Roux
Mitchell hurt his elbow so Douchebag of Season 7 Robert filled in for him. I thought it wasn't the greatest routine. I love Sonya, but I thought it was just a standard mix of a Sonya techniques, nothing amazing. I also wasn't that impressed with Caitlyn. Apparently, I have no clue, because the judges fell over themselves telling her how wonderful she was. Meh.

Aside on this one? Ew, Mitchell clearly has a sweating problem, yet he chooses to wear that weird rag that doesn't even cover his torso in rehearsal. Gross!

Miranda and Robert
Jive, Jason Gilkinson, "Runaway Baby" by Bruno Mars
I loved the vision of this piece: the mod black and white clothes, the sliver go-go boots, but I just didn't think the dancers did a great job. There was something off about it, for me. Jim hates Robert and is ready to stab him for the constant "WOO"ing. We were pleased when Nigel pointed out that having a trademark "woo" is not enough to get him through the competition. Mary loved it.
I can't find the video. What a drag.

Episode 6: Jordan and Tadd, Sasha and Alexander, Clarice and Jess

Jordan and Tadd
Afro-Jazz, choreographed by Sean Cheeseman, performed to AfroCelt Sound Machine.
It was quite good. She already has that wild style down from her sexy jazz style so I thought she was a natural. The routine was interesting and fun. Tadd pulled it together and was quite credible despite his hip hop background. As an aside; she mentioned she wants to be a Pussy cat Doll. Ugh.
The video won't play here, click through to YouTube

 I also don't understand why the hair and makeup people made him look like Ruffio from "Hook."  It's not the first time they've done this look either.  Not good.


Sasha and Alexander
Contemporary, Travis Walls, "Stupid" by Sarah MacLachlan
I thought the title of the song described the outfits perfectly. HOWEVER it was beautifully choreographed and performed. Sasha in particular was remarkable. The judges got down on Alexander for not "making a connection" with Sasha, but I thought the story was that she was his conscience. It makes sense to me that he avoided facing her. Nigel clarified that he wanted more emotion from Alexander and I can kind of see that. He has that clenched-jaw thing going on that so many guys do. Nerdy aside: I found it interesting that he's from Alhmabra CA and looks like he could be a Almoravid Prince at the real Alhambra.



Clarice and Jess
Broadway, Tyce Diorio,"Me and My Baby" by Liza Minelli
Jim and I didn't think we saw any chemistry between them, but the judges didn't seem to agree. Jess is just so damn talented. The judges warned Clarice that she might be left in the dust by the other "beasts" among the girls and indicated that Jess out danced her. I thought they were a little hard on her.

Episode 6: Performances

I normally watch the show live (at a slight delay on my DVR so I don't have to watch commercials) but this week's performance show coincided with Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals which trumped it this week.  Therefore, we watched both the performance and the results show on Thursday night.
Let's get down to the performance show.

Cat's wearing a LBD in a slinky black sequin fabric.  Love it.  She has a smudgey eye and has JBF hair.  Jim comments that she looks like she's doing the Walk of Shame.  Hilarious.  She's gorgeous, of course, but he was totally right.



The guest judge is Megan Mullaly, who I can only see as Tammy Swanson from Parks and Recreation.

She looks kind of crazy with a big mahogany bouffant, and I was wondering what she was doing on the show until they revealed she used to dance with a ballet company and studied at ABT. Didn't see that coming at all.