So You Think You Can Dance 7/12

Cafe Society
1

I don’t know what to do. I don’t want any of these dancers to be eliminated! Why can’t they all win???

That being said, FOX pulled a fast one on us tonight by starting the show early. My newspaper said BONES was supposed to be on at 7pm (CDT). But when I tuned in about 25 minutes into the show. . . there was a repeat of last Thursday’s results show, minus the pop star! Whew! At least I saw the whole new show.

I was not terrifically emotional about Ivan and Allison. . . but theirs was the first Contemporary dance that I did not think totally sucked.

Martha looked fabulous all tricked out in her ballgown. And Travis should consider always wearing his hair like that.

Musa? Wayyyyy hot!! But the routine wasn’t.

Heidi and Ryan’s cha cha was smokin’!

And I loved Benji and Donyelle’s Broadway routine. Loved that Nigel said Benji should win! I honestly think he’s the best dancer on the stage from week to week.

Dimitri and Ashleigh? Kinda meh, but he’s a hunk and she’s much more adaptable than one would think. I give her lots of credit for being plucky.

As I said, I don’t want any of 'em to go home.

2

annieclaus, it looks like you and I have the same TV schedule!

My reactions to the dancing are worth less than my fashion reactions (which ain’t worth much either), from a technical perspective, but here they are anyway. I should note that this is the first Wednedsay show I’ve seen since they picked the final twenty because I had a night class all during June…

Martha/Travis (Martha looked SO BEAUTIFUL) and Benji/Donyelle were awesome. I loved their energy and their polish. I’ve been following these threads and everyone has commented favorably on these pairs. I can certainly see why people say what they say about them.

Musa was one of my favorites from the tryouts, and I still like him, but I think Musa/Natalie and Ashleigh/Dmitry were my bottom two pairs. Again, take this with a grain of salt, as it is the opinion of someone with no technical dance knowledge…I’m just going with how drawn in I was and how I reacted.

I preferred Allison/Ivan to Heidi/Ryan, but they were close for my middle pairs.

3

I have to say, I was really impressed with Ivan last night. I have discovered through watching this show that I’m not a fan of contemporary dance, but man, he was really good. I’m glad he didn’t get cut the first week. He’s got more potential than anybody ever imagined, and it makes me happy to see him using it.

Of course, I can never find fault with Benji and Donyelle. I’m going to be very upset when I have to choose between the two of them.

With only six couples left, I can’t begin to guess the bottom three. There’s nobody left I truly dislike. Ryan is kinda meh for me, but Heidi offsets him. The best I can do is tally who the judges will not get rid of–Benji, Donyelle, Martha, Travis, Heidi, Allison, and Ivan. I’d probably look for Ryan and Ashlee to go home tonight.

4

Draelin, you & I are on the same page. In last week’s thread I predicted that Ashlee & Ryan would go home this week, and based on the dances I still think that. I haven’t really liked Ashlee since the beginning, and Ryan is just sort of hiding in the middle each week; nothing stand-out bad OR good, though I thought he did well last night. It’s just getting tougher to make decisions when everyone’s doing well.

Also, I like your list of seven people the judges won’t boot. That list contains my 3 fav couples: Benji/Donyelle, Ivan/Allison, Travis/Martha, in that order. Benji’s my fav guy, Allison my fav girl. I hope they’re the last two. I too am completely surprised by Ivan’s growth. I wanted him gone the first couple of weeks so that Allison, my fav since day 1, would have a better partner, but they’ve turned out great. I agree w/annie who said it was the 1st contemp. dance that didn’t suck. From Ivan! Who would have predicted THAT in week 1?

Musa/Natalie was lots of fun, and Musa was great, though I didn’t vote for them. I think they’ll be bottom-3. Liked them way more than Dmitri/Ashlee’s pop. I think Dmitri has a small chance leaving. Dmitri/Ashlee definitely bottom-3 and both possibly going home. Ivan/Allison seem to have trouble getting votes, so they might be bottom-3 but there’s no way either of them will get judged off. I hope Ryan/Heidi are bottom-3 so Ryan can go home. A Dmitri/Heidi pairing might be fun.
Does anyone think any of the couples are having ‘extra-curricular activities’? There is some MAJOR vibe action working it’s magic up there. I realized that this is the reason I like SYTYCD infinitely more than American Idol (which I’ve only seen bits of a couple times, while I watch SYTYCD religiously). Dancing is HOT. Singing is NOT. Dancing is fun to watch, singing is not.

5

Weren’t Dimitri and Heidi partners during the auditions? If so, I don’t think the judges would pair them up again. However, I do agree that Ashlee and Ryan are the most likely to leave tonight. . . but it will be sad. They are both very appealing dancers. Ashlee has gotten stuck with some rotten draws. And Ryan is a lovely dancer, but is lacking in personality so far.

6

I like Ashlee, but I don’t think she’s quite at the same level as the other women. Ryan is a good dancer, I can’t deny that, but he’s never made me say “Wow, Ryan’s awesome.” I usually forget he’s there. That’s partially due to Heidi overshadowing him, but I just don’t think he’s got the personality or the … oomph, for lack of a better word … to make it to the end.

My roommate and I discussed the fact that last night, we thought Ivan was kinda hot, and that was mildly disturbing. :smiley:

Didn’t they audition together?

I don’t know what’s actually going on, of course, but Benji’s got a planet-sized crush on Donyelle, which is just plain adorable.

7

Agree with most of what others have said here. Bottom 3 will be Ashlee/Dmitri, Heidi/Ryan, and probably Natalie/Musa. With Ryan and Ashlee going home (although there’s a chance Dmitri might get cut; how long before the judges decide HE’S the reason his partners keep disappearing? I’d love to see him and Heidi dance together, though.).

Random observances:

  1. Natalie and Musa are either getting “extra-curricular” or they want to really badly.
  2. Benji has a crush on Donyelle.
  3. Ivan is getting better every week. He has surprised me by his growth throughout the show.
  4. Someone in wardrobe hates Donyelle. That dress was awful.
  5. Brian whatsisname the judge needs to fire his stylist.
  6. Mary is still annoying.
8

Oh, I dunno, I kinda liked Brian’s bodacious necklace thingie.

And Mary is starting to grow on me! (Do I need therapy?)

9

I forgot about Dmitri & Heidi auditioning together. I don’t think that fact will keep the judges from getting rid of Ryan & Ashlee though.

Benji & Donyelle is puppy love. (Isn’t he a Mormon, anyway?) Musa & Natalie is hot, steamy, jungle love. (I don’t really think they’re getting it on, but they are sure playing to the crowd.) Ivan & Allison are…like teenagers. Did he touch her breast during the performance?

Nightingale, re judges:, are you talking about Brian’s hair or his open shirt and huge gaudy necklace? However he looks, I like him. Mary couldn’t control herself during I&A’s contemporary routine? It was good, but didn’t make me want to cry. What kind of medication is she on?

The more I think about it, the more I want Dmitri to leave instead of Ryan. I still think Ryan will go, though.

10

It was that necklace thing. He’s actually a nice looking guy (and he offers some good comments on the performances), but that outfit was just. . . ugh. Distracting, to say the least.

And yeah, I agree that Benji and Donyelle is puppy love, and probably mostly on his part. It’s sweet though.

It’s a bunch of young, attractive people who spend all their time in close physical contact. I imagine it would be difficult NOT to develop at least some sort of infatuation, if you were working with someone whom you genuinely liked.

11

I’m not in the group supporting “puppy love” for Benji and Donyelle. I just think these two have such wonderful personalities and both enjoy the heck outta what they do. It shows through in everything, from their dancing to their joking and enjoying each other. Wonderful. (and I agree that Donyelle’s wardrobe last night wasn’t the greatest!)

Is anyone else kinda sick of hearing the judges tell dancers, seemingly at random, that they are the ones who will win? I mean, can we please just tell them they did a great job? I think it’s a tad early to pick a winner, especially since the audience might put all their favs in the bottom three one week and force them to be eliminated. We all have our favorites, and that’s the whole reason for being involved, but it’s just too soon to tell who’s going to win, so these comments annoy me. YMMV.

12

I’ll start by judging the judges:

Nigel: He’s going a lot easier on the dancers than I recall from last year. Of course, once all the finalists who turned out to be kinda meh are gone, I expect him to be uncompromising with the remainder.

Mary: Last year, Mary was a real hard-ass during auditions and early voting rounds, extremely demanding and serious. Then she was absent for a couple of weeks, and then returned to comment on the finals, where she was pretty much like what we see now. I guess she’s decided that works for her.

Brian: Hey, if you didn’t like what he wore last night, you shoulda seen the stuff he wore last year. That was toned down, last night, that was. He used to show up in oversized jackets with a big floppy junior pimp hat.

Now, the dancers:

Natalie/Musa (hip hop)
Their dancing: He was sensational, she didn’t embarass herself, but didn’t blow me away.
Their relationship: Srrictly professional. But he’d be just as happy if it weren’t.

Heidi/Ryan: (cha cha)
Their dancing: She was sensational, he was very good, and contrary to the judges opinion, I thought they had a real chemistry in that piece for the first time. The judges just don’t like him.
Their relationship: Strictly professional.

Ashlee/Dmitry (pop)
Their dancing: Ashlee scores major points all the time for sheer gameness. She will throw herself into anything. He sucked at this.
Their realtionship: I think Dmitry’s steamy realitionship with himself precludes all other possibilities.

Allison/Ivan (contemporary)
Their dancing: Very well done on both sides, but I didn’t see any choreography that moved me to tears.
Their relationship: She’s way more mature than he is, and they both know it. I think he’s just thankful for any choreography that lets him put his hands on her. I’ll say that Ivan seems to have been humbled by this competition, as is quite likeable now.

Martha/Travis (foxtrot)
Their dancing: Great to see these two back in top form. That was great.
Their relationship: Very good friends without benefits, but they’re both silently trying to remember when the paperwork said the benefits are supposed to kick in. I expect this to build slowly as the show goes on, although if either of them were to be unexpectedly voted off, they’d both end the night smiling, if you know what I mean.

Donyelle/Benji (broadway)
Their dancing: The routine was lackluster, but they danced it excellently.
Their relationship: Benji is being groomed as a professional ballroom dnacer, like his father. He is no stranger to holding pretty young women closely at this point, so I don’t buy the “puppy love” angle. These two are hot and heavy, and he just has a rougher time holding back on the PDA in front of the camera.

My pick for the bottom three would be:
Allison/Ivan (the style doesn’t play well with the show’s demographic)
Ahslee/Dmitry (lackluster overall in comparison)
Martha/Travis (the style doesn’t play well with the show’s demographic, and their less-than-perfect performances of the past couple of weeks have eroded their support)

The judges love Allison, and I think Martha is professional enough to have something good prepared, so I think Ashlee is going home.
Travis is a good dancer, and we know they now love Ivan, so I think Dmitry’s going home.

13

Natalie/Musa

I thought they danced great, but am getting a little tired of their “don’t we have a smokin’ chemistry?” attitude. It appeared she made a mistake at the very end of the routine and tried to cover it up with a strut.

Heidi/Ryan:
I agree with the others that Ryan is kind of forgettable. No doubt that he can dance, but he is the moon trying to compete with the sun and it ain’t working. I’ll go along with everyone else who says that he’ll be the “guy” going home. (Note to Cat: you’re allowed to call them “men” and “women” as that is what they are.)

Ashlee/Dmitry:

For some unexplicable reason, she bugs me. Maybe it’s her looks. (I am soooo shallow!) I still like him, even though he does think that he’s the cat’s meow. I’m going to once again go along with the consensus and say that she’ll probably go home.

Allison/Ivan:
Beautifully done. I kept clapping my hand over my mouth.

Martha/Travis:

I agree that Martha looked stunning. They did great, though I’m not sure that America would be motivated to pick up the phone.

Donyelle/Benji:
I’m not buying the “puppy love” thing at all as he makes my Gaydar go “ding, ding, ding!”

My bottom 3 are all surprises: Ashlee and Dmitry, Natalie and Musa and Martha and Travis.

14

Well, my Musa is gone. As soon as he and Natalie were put in the bottom three, I knew he was history. Sigh! (But I agree with the reasoning that he was just so-so in any dance style other than hip-hop, but he sure was stallar at that!) I will miss his beautiful face!

I thought Dimitry’s solo was fabulous!

And I agree with the judge’s admonition to Natalie that she doesn’t always need to be the sex kitten. Well said. (However, why did they let those skanky Pussycat Dolls onto their stage?)

Should be interesting starting next week as partners are assigned randomly and partnering and solos figure into the competition which will be judged only by viewer calls. (Here’s where we leave the dance contest and enter the popularity contest!)

15

I was on an airplane tonight, so I missed the show. I gather Musa is gone – not too astonishing – which female is outta there?

16

Ashlee is out–she was pretty much doomed due to the other contestants. I would have been shocked if Martha went home (I was actually surprised at the severity of Nigel’s comments to her, but then again, my technical dance knowledge is non-existent) and Natalie did a really bang-up solo. I was sad to see Musa go. He has been one of my favorites since the auditions.

By the way, all Benji and Donyelle fans should get themselves to the TWOP discussion thread for the show at the earliest opportunity–but do be warned that there are mega spoilers in that thread.

17

I think the judges took the opportunity to remove Musa from the equasion. I mean, America would continue to vote for him based on his carisma and energy. The show is about dancing. He’s dang good in his element, but they were right about his technique and lack of training. Since we (the audience) are, going forward, the sole decision makers on who stays/goes, they were taking him out of the voting process.

18

I’m not too bummed to see Ashlee gone – now, if we could just get rid of effin’ Dmitry…

19

Do you have a link to that thread? I floundered around a bit at TWOP and couldn’t find anything for SYTYCD.

20

I thought the disco number at the beginning was a riot, up until the multiple crotch lifts.

The solos:

Ashlee - fine in her own style as usual, and she took the judges’ notes from last time to heart and didn’t wear her trademark hat. Choreographers and producers are going to notice that willingness to take suggestion. I thought she was really good. She simply has the bad luck of being the least strong of a very strong field. When you’re up against Heidi, Martha, Natalie, Allison, and Donyelle, you’ve got your work cut out for you.
Martha - an interesting showing, she’s not bad on her own. I expected no less.
Natalie - If you look past her tarted-up self, that was a really neat solo.

Dmitry - Shows some adventure, but I thought it was weak.
Travis - Very good, as he better be if he’s going to wax all poetic about himself like that.
Musa - The strongest solo, I thought. The judges went by his track record and potential, overall. He dances non-hip-hop styles OK, but not that great. If you saw his ballroom on a Vegas stage after paying Celine Dion prices, you’d feel a little gypped.

Now comes the suck. Dmitry’s obvious ego and Ryan’s inability to project personality aside, they are both really good dancers, and everyone else is inarguably talented and a wonderful performer. So watching them get picked off one by one each week from now on is gonna be a mite painful.