Just bumping this thread because tonight was the final ‘Dancing with the Stars’ NZ version.
I didn’t expect to like this series. I am happy it is over, but it was kinda fun.
I am curious about who the ‘Stars’ were in the English, American and Aussie versions were though (and anywhere else it infiltrated…Canada?).
In order of being booted off we had…
A NZ Paris Hilton wannabe
A comedian
A Minister of Parliment! (First transexual MP in the world it seems)
An ex-soap star, female (our only soap. I think she also had a role or 2 in Zena/Hercules)
A Silver Fern (NZ rep netballer)
A Mayor (of NZ’s 5th/6th ? biggest city)
An ex-soap star, male (same soap obviously)
And the winner… An All Black (NZ Rugby team) so no suprise there. An All Black will always win anything.
So who were your ‘stars’. I see a Kiwi featured in the American version but are we the only nutters/starved of options, country that includes members of the govt?
The American version ‘stars’ are a bunch of c-listers: boxing champ Evander Holyfield, Seinfeld’s “Mr. Peterson” (John O’Hurley), Former New Kid on the Block Joey McIntyre, Bachelorette Trista Sutter, Supermodel Rachel Hunter, and Playboy playmate turned soap actress Kelly Monaco.
So far the woodenly stiff Trista and Evander have been booted off. Evander was painful to watch doing the waltz. His jive was actually his best dance, but it still wasn’t that good. Trista was just uninspired. She was marginally better than Kelly (what, looking pretty isn’t enough?), who I suspect is only remaining in the competition because of her General Hospital fanbase.
Of the rest of the field Rachel the uber-flexible and John the ‘ham it up with the ol’ college try’ are the best actual dancers. Joey McIntyre is fairly good, but his footwork is off. Rachel’s partner is using her slinkiness to good advantage, while John realizes that the steps are important, but so is playing to the crowd and making it look like you’re a) having a good time and b) telling a story.
Watching the show can be annoying because the director doesn’t realize the key part of any dance competition is footwork, and so we keep being treated to close shots of the stars’ faces. When the dancers are performing a quick dance like the jive, this is tragic!
DeVena, tell your husband that these people are dancing routines which bear the same resemblance to what you’ll learn in class (and use in a club) as figure skating does to hockey.
She’s a kiwi? I didn’t know that. Her main claim to fame here is as Rod Stewart’s ex – the one whose as yet incompleted divorce is holding up Rod’s marriage to the latest tall blonde he’s knowcked up. She’s scored gigs in a couple of reality-type shows (the offensively awful Am I Hot with the offensively awful Lorezo Lamas, and a “Ginger” role inThe New Gilligan’s Island). She’s definitely the best dancer of the six* – but since she lacks any kind of built-in fan base, it may not be enough to get her to win.
Which reminds me, I haven’t voted yet this week (opens another window)…
*guess they couldn’t find any pols willing to help fill out a whole roster of eight – for this season, at least, I’m sure they’ll do another season and have better luck recruiting celebs, now that it’s a hit show.
Her high school is about 10 mins drive from my house (she had a crush on my cousin but he turned down the ‘high school reunion’ programme option, everyone I knew had a crush on him).
Rod Stewart once quipped that when he visited NZ he was known as ‘Rachel’s husband’.
LORENZO LAMAS is a STAR? I am feeling better about our collection of sporty types and politicins!
I first watched this tonight. It was interesting. I didn’t think Rachel’s Samba was that good, it was different and unique and I’d give her points for that but in between the unique moves it seemed like they were playing it too safe. I thought John O’Hurley was great and Kelly Monaco wasn’t too bad, which is hard for me to say because I can’t stand her. I think Rachel’s waltz was rather dull and I’d guess that she doesn’t really win over people that much to vote for her because she’s tall and gorgeous ,still I’m surprised that the scoring is so dumb that she would be kicked off after being in second place from the judges scores.
I need somebody to check my math and my memory, because…well,
There were four couples, so the points awarded were 4/3/2/1, both from the judges AND from the viewers. That adds up to 20 point total, yes?
Didn’t Rachel’s pair come in first with the judges last week? If so, they got 4 pts from the judges and had to get at least 1 pt from the viewers vote, or a minimum of 5 pts.
Leaving 15 pts to divide between the other three couples. Which means they AVERAGE 5 points. IOW, either they were 5-5-5 OR if any couple got more than 5 points, another couple got LESS than 5 points.
And if any couple got less than 5 points, THEY should have been the ones to go.
So it seems to me we must have had a situation where the voting went:
Judges …4…3…2…1
Viewers 1…2…3…4
And if so, how did they decide which of the four tied couples should go? Huh?
Oh, wait, Wily says Rachel was in second, so 3 pts +1 = 4, leaving 16 for the other three, so the voting must have gone:
Judges 4…3…2…1
Viewers .2…1…3…4
6…4…5…5
Which shows the viewers are not really voting on dancing skill, so they might as well call it a popularity contest and skip the dancing.
I thought she looked really, really awkward this week. Her partner looked great, but her shoulders and arms… no.
(but, what do I know?)
Oh - I hate the scoring. Hate it.
A lot.
Starving, I also did the math - but it was this week’s judges with last week’s voting (another reason to hate the scoring system). So Joey & Ashly could have had, at most, 5 (1 from the judges, 4 from the viewers). Which means Rachel and John had to be tied at 4 each (3/1 and 2/2 respectively. Kelly must have gotten 4 from judges, 3 from voting). Not sure how they broke the tie. But either way, it sucks.
At least as much as I do, if not more. Usually Rachel is the best (grr, I’m still mad she got voted off), but last night she fumbled one of her “splits while standing up” high kicks and it looked really awkward.
And yeah, the scoring sucks. Massively.
marymargaret – I believe it’s doing fine in the ratings – the ABC promo last night called it the #1 show (though who knows what the list is on which it is #1 – amongs left-handed reality junkies ages 45-50, perhaps? Oh wait, I’m not left-handed. )
I’m thinking that now I know the powerful bad mojo connected with my vote, I can bring down someone I don’t like – whaddya think, Joey or Kelly?
Meh. Either, but DeHusband really likes Kelly, especially with the malfunctioning wardrobe. So she might need to go. Bwa ha ha ha. Actually, when she started losing her costume she looked like she was having fun. Finally!
I just voted for John and Charlotte. I probably jinxed them.
I will assume, then, that you’ve never seen the video for “Stacy’s Mom” by Fountains of Wayne? You know, the one with Rachel Hunter working the pole in her kitchen? Pretty fabulous stuff, that. Seriously. It was pretty ubiquitous on MTV two or three years ago, I think.
Good old Rachel.
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