How tall is Cat? She seemed to tower over a lot of the dancers.
Not coincidentally.
Keep in mind that Kat is really tall (5’10" or so?) and usually wears very high heels.
I agree. It is unfair to boot people off after one dance as some got lucky with their selection, and some did not. At least they still get a chance to “dance for their lives” and those performances seem to carry a lot of weight.
Also we have seen some of the top 20 featured in the auditions, but there are other dancers we have not seen perform until now. Nigel seemed to be saying that some dancers had been noticed, while other had not, as opposed to this being deliberate as part of an edited television show.
Well, when they profile people in the auditions and follow their “story arc” through Vegas, they can’t possibly cover everyone, so they hedge their bets and do well with some of their predix, but others inevitably are stealth contestants who only come to prominence at the end of that Vegas week.
I exaggerated – apparently she’s 5’9" – but put her in heels and she’s 6’ or close.
Really? I thought the partners were picked at random. I remember in season 3 the first couple, I think the guy’s name was Ricky, that got voted off had a really tall girl with a short guy.
Hm, now that you mention it … I’m not sure. Seems like previous seasons, they’ve shown the drawing-for-partners footage, but they didn’t this year. Maybe that’s because they’re no longer doing it? Or maybe it’s because they’ve really trimmed down all the pre-competition stuff significantly.
This year’s competition looks very tight. Unlike previous seasons, there was only a very small difference between the best and worst of the dancers I watched, no one stood out as undeserving or poor, just some were slightly more distinctive than others.
It’s really tough chews fingernails because I think dancers are going to be voted out based more on the choreography/costume influence instead of the skill with which they danced. The Broadway/Chaplin routine was a case in point, the costumes and makeup were bulky and distracting, and the dance choreography was formulaic and unchallenging, so the dancers’ skill or accuracy performing the steps won’t be considered as highly.
At the very end they had some wording at the bottom of the screen about partners being chosen based on a variety of factors. I think that’s a good thing, to the extent they mean height matching and varying the contenstants’ backgrounds. I’m not sure I want to see two ballroom dancers struggle with their first hip hop together on the first show, which could happen with random assignments. Or see Evan with the tallest of the girls, whoever that is.
I know they’ve shown drawing for styles before, can’t remember if they showed drawing for partners.
I think Vittolio and Asuka and Paris and Tony will wind up in the bottom 3 couples. Not sure who else, maybe Ashley & Kupono–not because they were bad, but the routine was so odd, it didn’t help them emotionally energize a fan base, I don’t think. My guess is Tony going home for the guys. I think Vittolio will hold his own if called to dance for his life. I could see Asuka going home since anything she does as a solo will, by definition, not be her style.
There were so many good ones I can’t even sort out who I like best yet.
I think Ashley & Kupono will be safe. High concept, late in the show, & Goldfrapp can carry a lot.
Asuka & Vitolio did pretty well with what they were given. As Adam said, luck of the draw, having to follow a strong & distinctive dance with that cornball number.
I’d prefer to have three performance shows before elimination. I really like things on the contemporary/jazz continuum, & it’s hard to compare dancers when you see some do that, others do ballroom–& then someone else do a Bollywood number which just makes me think, “Wow, that’s hard.”
What I wish they would rein in is the fawning thanks to the choreographers. Because they do it for every single dance, no matter how good or lame the choreography actually is.
It comes across as logrolling: next week I might be a choreographer and s/he might be a judge…
Farewell,Tony & Pariswe hardly knew ye. Definitely the right choice, though. My wife always said he was a poser, and she was not as FillInTheBlank (cute, inspiring, talented, distinctive, exuberant) as any of the other ladies still around.
But it will definitely be more cutthroat from here on out.
I agree. Out of the ones I didn’t like, there’s were the only one that I didn’t like where I also didn’t hate the choreography. They just weren’t as good as the others. And Ashkur and such could at least blame the choreographer.
Yup. He only made it into the final 20 by the skin of his teeth, and I’m neither surprised nor dismayed to see him go. And the girl – pretty much a nonentity.
That said, I wish they had more than one chance before the first elimination, because of the luck-of-the-choreographic-draw element, as several of you have commented. It would be nice if they did what they do in Dancing with the Stars and have performances – and voting – each of the first two weeks, but wait until after the second performance to do the elimination, which is based on the cumulative votes/scoring of the first two.
Which probably wouldn’t have saved these two, but oh well.
I thought Asuka’s solo jive/samba thing was pretty good, actually. It looked to me like Karla & Jonathan didn’t expect to have to solo & just threw stuff together.
The things is, because of her Latin specialization, I suspect all her future solos are going to look exactly the same…
I agree that they should have a first week without eliminations. However, I really wanted to see Tony leave and… He did. So, I guess the system worked out for me this time.
I’m pretty amazed at the high quality level this season.
I do hope we get to see Asuka do at least one dance that really shows her off in her specialty. The thing is, I don’t think Vitolio is quite the partner to do that. I like him as a dancer, but he seems more at home with the flowing movements of contemporary than with the structure and precision of something like ballroom. So for us to see her really shine in her specialty, she may need to hang on a while. But I’d like to see her with Max or Evan.
It seems like planning out a variety of solos could be a really important strategic element of the show. I liked Jonathan’s solo, although it was heavy on the tricks, because it seemed like he was the only one of the six solos that really energized the audience. And it probably wouldn’t have been that hard to tie it together into more of a cohesive dance.
Really Good
Janette & Brandon: Wow. The best disco number the show’s ever had, and exactly the level of energy the Jive was missing. More than 70s moves, the choreography showed off both of their strengths to full advantage.
Melissa & Ade: He blended into the background a bit last week, but he really showed his under-the-radar partnering strengths here, and while less traditional than any other number tonight, the level of quality really came through loud and clear.
Good
Kayla & Max: I guess I’m still not feeling the Kayla love and thought Max outshone her tonight (though her abomination of a get-up really diminished her strong personality). Overall fun but a bit lightweight.
Randi & Evan: He was a little too casual when he needed to be on the nose. They’re ideal partners for each other, and not going anywhere anytime soon.
Asuka & Vitolio: They upped their game this week, and it was a better-than-average waltz for this show, but they’re still pretty vulnerable, I think.
So-So/Not So Good
Caitlin & Jason: Ouch. About as inauthentic and unconvincing as you can get.
Ashley & Kupono: Certainly a better hip hop routine than the Ouchers, but still only ho-hum, and these two seem decisively in the middle of the pack, so their numbers are up sooner rather than later.
Jeanine & Phillip: A for effort, and she’s enough of a hottie and he’s enough of a personality that they should be fine.
Karla & Jonathan: He just doesn’t quite do it for me, and it felt like he was her spotter more than her partner. The best number of this batch, but faint praise given the competition.
I think the Final 3 gals will be Caitlin, Asuka & Karla, with Asuka being in the worst position (returning to the bottom and having the fewest solo-friendly strengths). Of the 3 boys (Jason, Jonathan, Vitolio), Jonathan is the weakest, I think, and after last week’s weak solo, he may not have enough to stay in. Of course if this pans out, then Karla joins with Vitolio, which one hopes will generate more chemistry than who they’re currently stuck with.
I agree on the top Five, but… well, maybe it was because I was coming down with a cold, but overall it seemed this week’s performances were weaker than the first week’s.
I have a question, what exactly makes a dance ‘jazz’? Because if they’d announced Melissa/Ade’s a contemporary rather than jazz I wouldn’t have blinked at it.