(S03E10) So You Think You Can Dance, come for the dancing, stay for the drama... One of the things I really like about the show is that they stay pretty heavily focused on the competition. Sure, we get the sometimes useless backstage bits, but they have to fill out the two hours of their summer hit somehow. For the most part though, they do steer clear of the theatrics and keep the actual dancing in the spotlight. That broke down a little tonight, though maybe not as much as it could have. More on that later.First, look over there, it's dance legend (we can call her a legend, right?) Debbie Allen sitting in as guest judge. I had heard that she was going to be making an appearance and have been looking forward to it. She didn't disappoint either. Throughout the show she was a lot of fun. Nigel and Mary were, of course, along for the ride. So, with the introduction out of the way, on to the performances... and the drama.
Sara and Jesús - Leading off this week with a krumping routine by Lil' C. This was a nice respite for Sara after going out of her comfort zone last week in the pasa doble. Sara looked much more comfortable here and had a really good performance. The thing that impressed me most though was Jesús. Yet another style and he is right on. The only complaint I had with them was their synchronization. There were parts of the dance when they were supposed to be together but it didn't quite work. Debbie thought it was a great way to start the show and said she couldn't take her eyes off of Jesús. Mary had nothing but praise for both of them, saying that she loved it. Nigel praised Lil' C and what he is doing with krumping and called Sara a gangster.
Song - "It's Okay (One Blood)" by The Game featuring Junior Reed
Shauna and Cedric - And here is where the drama started. When I heard that they had drawn a contemporary piece by Mia Michaels I thought it was a lucky stroke. Her dances seem to do better than the average with the voting so I thought this might be just what they need to get through the week and get some time working together. That's not really how it went down though. There are two ways to look at this one, and Cedric doesn't look good in either of them. If this was actually Mia's complete vision for the dance, then she really didn't do him any favors. It's a dance competition and spending a quarter of the dance sitting in the corner emoting is really not what anyone is looking for. Especially when you spend the last thirty seconds walking to the edge of the stage and standing, emoting. On the other hand, if my crazy conspiracy theory holds any water, she was just fed up and didn't know what to do. So, Cedric, go sit in the corner while Shauna rocks a solo. Now come out and work some of your own stuff. And finally, go stand by the steps. Had they wanted to, I think there was quite the story to be told behind the scenes of this one. Shauna did a really nice job, but I think she got thrown under the bus by her partner and the choreographer on this one.
Debbie said she didn't know how Shauna ever ended up in the bottom three because she's amazing. She also said that Cedric touched her. Mary said that Shauna did a great job, for what she was given. She went on, saying that Cedric let his partner down, and continued to rip him, ending by saying that she didn't think he should stay in the competition. Nigel agreed with both of them, saying that Cedric is an inspiration, but he is now questioning whether or not they were right last week in keeping Cedric. To his credit, Cedric handled all the criticism very well.
Song - "I Thought We Had" by The Family Stand
Lacey and Kameron - Is it just me, or are these two the best looking couple every week? Great wardrobe, and Lacey is just as cute as the day is long. This week they were given the quick step with Tony Meredith. While the quick step isn't her specialty, Lacey's ballroom background certainly didn't hurt her. And anything she lacked in experience she more than made up for with her charisma. It's becoming very easy to root for her. For his part, Kameron was once again a good partner. He seems to be just a step below Lacey at this point to me, but he's doing a good job and the partnership should keep them both around another week. Debbie called it fun, sassy, and adorable. Mary thought Lacey did an amazing job and praised them for the extended closed hold. Nigel thought the shape was very good, but they could have covered more ground.
Song - "Big And Bad" by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
Anya and Danny - This is one that I have been waiting for. Danny has been so impressive so far in the competition, but hip hop with Dan Karaty is taking him out of his comfort zone. It was fine, but a step below what they have done in previous weeks. I just got the feeling that they were doing the steps Dan taught them very well, but not putting enough of themselves into it. Debbie called them the Dream Team, saying that there is nothing that they can't do. She also praised Dan Karaty's choreography. Mary agreed that they are sensational. Nigel thought they were uncomfortable with it.
Song - "Oh Timbaland" by Timbaland
Sabra and Dominic - These two are officially my most surprising couple now. Sabra because she really came out of nowhere when the competition started and continues to impress week after week. And Dominic because he has more than surpassed any limitations that people thought he might have. This week they had the rumba with Jean-Mark Genereaux. I thought it was very beautiful and the two of them are really coming together as a pair. Sabra was very graceful and what I expected. Dominic though, he impressed me with just how polished he was. He's really taking advantage of this opportunity. Debbie thought they were beautiful together. Mary praised their partnership and singled out again just how great Sabra was. Nigel said it looked fantastic and praised their lines.
Song - "Stickwitu" by The Pussycat Dolls
Lauren and Neil - Back to back Genereaux performances as these two were sent off to learn the tango. I was looking forward to it because I really like these two, and the tango is such a great dance. Unfortunately, it just didn't really work. They were plagued with the worst music of the week. It almost seemed like my sound was down and the other TV had a Tom and Jerry cartoon showing. The dance didn't really work for me either as there just wasn't enough tango in it. I really liked the opening, but once they got into the main part of the performance it was more like a generic dance inspired by the tango. It's hard to mark them down for that as those were choices made by Genereaux, but we don't call in to vote for choreographers. I think they could end up paying the price for his choices. Debbie thought it was a little awkward, not as smooth as she wanted it to be. Mary liked the beginning, but thought it was a little sloppy once they got together. Nigel thought it was pretty good, but Neil over danced it.
Song - "Tanguero" by Sexteto Mayor
Jaimie and Hok - Jazz with Wade Robson is one of the great draws. We could argue all day over which style is best, but in the context of the competition, I think Wade Robson's stuff plays well on TV. He was very clever with how he choreographed the dance to play to the strengths of his dancers. Jaimie had some amazing lines and he reigned Hok in just enough. You could see a bit of what he does in there, but it was very subtle. Just enough to make it fit in with the rest of the performance, but not so much that it pulled you out of what he was trying to accomplish. Very nice. Debbie called it absolutely genius on the part of Wade Robson and thought they were wonderful in it. Mary called it unusual and intriguing. Nigel also called it brilliant and beautiful, saying it was their essence as dancers. He added, it was one of those routines that we will remember for a very long time.
Song - "The Chairman's Waltz" from the Memoirs of a Geisha Soundtrack
Jessi and Pasha - And finally, our other bit of drama. I was so looking forward to seeing these two in a Tony Meredith cha cha. That is right in Pasha's wheelhouse and could have really been a boost for both of them. It wasn't to be though as Jessi collapsed during rehearsals on Monday and was rushed to the hospital. The doctors kept her from performing so Pasha danced with Tony's assistant, Melanie. It was exactly what you expect from Pasha when he is working in his comfort zone. I'm curious to see how the voters react to all of it, but just based on his performance, he should be moving on. Either way, Jessi will be dancing for her life on Thursday night, if she is well enough to continue on. If she can't go on, she'll be the woman eliminated this week. Here's hoping that she gets better soon, competition or not.
Song - "Let's Get Loud" by Jennifer Lopez
So there we have it. Kind of a crazy week down at SYTYCD HQ. It's another tough week to pick a favorite because the level of competition is so high. Personally, I'm going with Jaimie and Hok because Wade Robson, while unorthodox, is my kind of crazy. That was a very cool number. As to eliminations, my guess is that time has run out for Cedric. And given the serious nature of Jessi's condition, I'd be surprised if she is able to come back and give a performance that will keep her in the competition.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-28-2007 @ 6:57AM
Georgia said...
I think Debbie Allen offering Cedric her school kinda nailed the coffin for him. I was thinking I needed to vote for him out of sympathy, but when she offered him the scholarship, I said never mind - he's good to go.
Wade Robison is awesome. He's choreographed a ton of dances since N'Sync. Such vision - great what he did with Jaimie and Hok.
Props to Pasha for pulling that out. I hope he stays, though I don't see him winning.
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6-28-2007 @ 8:33AM
Philip said...
What was the name of the song that Pasha danced to? That's the only one you didn't mention!
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6-28-2007 @ 9:01AM
Brett said...
Oops, my bad Philip. The song was "Let's Get Loud" by Jennifer Lopez. I've added it to the post.
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6-28-2007 @ 9:46AM
Erin said...
As beautiful and well put together Hok and Jaimie's routine was, is that really considered jazz? I know Wade Robson's different, but that looked more contemperary than anything. Just saying....
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6-28-2007 @ 10:05AM
Vince said...
Cedric's gotta go. He is great by himself but not with a partner. Glad to she Debbie Allen offer him a scholarship.
Hope Pasha stays as his performance was wierd with a substitute and thats not his fault.
Jesus and Domineic and Hok all are extremely impressive in these early days.
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6-28-2007 @ 10:19AM
stummies said...
I agree with the poster above about Jamie and Hok. Yeah, their performance was amazing (I love Wade!) but how the heck is that jazz??? It definitely seemed contemporary to me. I'm no expert though, so if someone could explain that, that'd be great.
Does anyone else think that Danny and Anya were given too much credit this week? I like the two of them, and Anya was really adorable in the introduction, but the dance was really lacking for me. And it wasn't just the choreography. They seemed to be out of sync *a lot* and, like Nigel said, they seemed uncomfortable. It really shocked me how the judges were so supportive of it and any negative comments were "oh we just hold you to a higher standard."
I was also really pleasantly surprised with Lacey and Kameron. When I saw they got quickstep I had low hopes but they were awesome and entertaining. They were one of my favorite routines of the night, but they're also one of my favorite pairs so I may be biased ;)
I think the two to go this week will be Cedric and Jessie, though I also think Neil and Lauren deserve to go. Their performance this week was (to me) the worst of the night (well, maybe aside from Cedric). And what was with the cat noises in the background of the music, and Lauren singing along with the meows?!?! Did the choreographer (I forget who it was) have to hit us over the head with the cat/mouse analogy?
Even though I think it's time for Cedric to go, I think he was a class act yesterday.
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6-28-2007 @ 11:37AM
La-di-dah said...
1. I was impressed with Sarah and Jesus's krump routine - it was aggressive and Sarah seemed so comfy in it (and no heels!) Lil'C seems like a great choreographer - I like "the bathroom stall."
2. Let's contrast this to Danny and Anya's horrible, horrible hip hop rendition - it lacked aggression or any feeling that the dancers were comfortable in the routine. There was this point in their where they both had their hands up and they both looked like they were in "The Nutcracker" or something, rather than in a hip hop routine. I am especially bitter about that performance because the judges soft-pedalled their critiques incredibly and gave them the title of "dream team" on a night when so many dancers (maybe all) were better than Danny and Anya. I am disgusted with the love-fest, but it seems the judges have made up their minds that Danny and Anya can walk on water.
3. Lacey and Kameron performed their routine well, but again, on a night where many of the pairs shined, their not-so-traditional quick-step was just okay. The thing I noticed most was that they really, really try to sex-up Lacey a lot.
4. Zoom to Lauren - who wore a red dress like Lacey, but unlike Lacey's flambe-I-am dress, hers was a grandma-deconstructed. I don't think so. That was the big crime to put Lauren in a horrible dress. A bigger crime was the lackluster tango (it did look promising from the chair at first, but it fizzled after 10 secs). The biggest crime though was that Neil lacks the capability to look at that girl like she's interesting or sexy. Forget that the tango lacked smoothness or sexiness. How about it lacked passion/fire.
5. Oh Mylanta. Sabra and Dominic brought something = and it was my jaw to the ground. My jaw stayed open from the beginning of their dance until the end. I was awed. It was beautiful. I was jealous of Sabra -that girl has only been dancing for 4 years and has those muscles and those moves and Dom. And how Dominic stood up like a man and twirled her and supported her. I actually started shouting "it was hot, it was hot" and screamed the Mary before Mary did. They were amazing to watch together, and they are my new favorite couple.
6. And I thought Sabra and Dominic were a spicey scintillating appetizer, then Wade Robson brought out the entree and I was shaking my head in disbelief and how incredibly beautiful Hok and Jaime as Hummingbird and Flower were. Wow. I don't know if it was Jazz, but it was their essence choreographed and danced beautifully. The way Hok and tweaks his body was perfect perfect perfect! And Jaime (non-talking Jamie) brought her lines and control and stuffed down our throats. Delicious. Oh, and Robson = genius. Interpretation of Hok and Jaime = double genius.
7. So Shauna and Cedric - what's there to tell? I was impressed with Crazy Mia's utilization of space (off the stage, all over the stage), but from the clip and from the choreography, you could tell Mia had zero confidence in Cedric. Shauna underdanced from her Dance for your Life performance, but Cedric did not match that even. But Cedric still showed he was the best man with his maturity in front of the judges and good boy got himself a scholarship to the Debbie Allen School of Dance. Go, child.
8. Before Cat opened her mouth, I knew something was up in the drama department, and its name was Jessie. Pasha's dance - another what can I say? He threw his all at it, and moved those hips - cha cha cha. (His substitute partner's underdancing was a great distraction though, but it was his showcase, not hers). I would have loved to see how it was really supposed to be danced with Jessi, but that was not meant to be. You could tell that boy needed a partner fix, as he jumped right over to Anya as the credits rolled.
9. I wish Jessi goodluck and a get-well. I thought she would have gone a bit far in the competition, and she was versatile and perfect for Pasha. I don't really how see is going to be staying in the competition.
10. Best couples: Sabra/Dom, Hok/Jaime (tie) and Sarah/Jesus.
Best oner: Pasha!
Bottom couples: Anya/Danny, Lauren/Neil and Anya/Danny. At least the judges admitted L/N were not up to par.
Bottom oner: Cedric.
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6-28-2007 @ 11:38AM
Allen said...
Debbie Allen was a moron. The look of shock as she acquiesced to giving cedric free lessons was one thing. But when she compared the national dance champion to Bette Midler because she is an ignoramous was another. God she is pretentious. And her choreography is severely lacking. Please, god, don't have her back!
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6-28-2007 @ 11:42AM
La-di-dah said...
To go home: should have been Neil and Lauren - they were not bringing anything OR I would have taken the overhyped A/D, but that ain't happening.
To go home (for real): Cedric and Jessi, but not
without drama.
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6-28-2007 @ 11:50AM
lucyfan62 said...
I loved the little hand flutters Hok did as the hummingbird. That really was an amazing number. I hope the voters don't penalize Pasha. He did a great job under the circumstances. I think it's time for Cedric to go, and he seems to think so too. Poor Debbie seemed dumbfounded when Nigel sprung the "free" lessons on her. It was like she had to dig down deep to pull out the words "full scholarship" and it nearly killed her! LOL Talk about a "deer in headlights" moment! I think this is one of the best competition shows on TV because we get to see these people work, and work hard and the judges actually have some input as to who stays and goes. I hope it never devolves into just a pure popularity contest like Idol. All of these people are talented and it's hard to see any of the leave each week. I won't watch Idol anymore after this season's debacle, but I will look forward to more dancing each summer!
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6-28-2007 @ 12:09PM
David said...
Why do we have to listen to the asshole judges? Honestly it's clear that they don't give a shit about what the person danced on Wednesday when they kick the people off Tursday. The woman last week they thought was amazing and the only reason why she would be in the bottom three would be because of that asshole guy. Yet she get's kicked and the asshole guy doesn't. Instead they kick off Jimmy who was good.
Which leads me to belive that at least the old British guy is homophobic. Think about it, he has said several times this season, including last night, that the guys dance like guys and he likes that. Jimmy was the most feminine guy up there. He obviously didn't go because he couldn't dance, he could. So I think it was the old Birt being a jackass.
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6-28-2007 @ 12:10PM
rvkey said...
I'm so glad someone else heard that cat! I looked at my roomate and was like "Do you hear that? It sounds like someone killing a cat?" He didn't notice so I thought I'd had one too many diet dr. peppers.
I felt a little uncomfortable when Mary went on and on about how "clever" Mia was with Cedric's choreography. I was like "that's a little rude", but I felt exactly the same way about it. What was he doing up there? I guess if your Mary Murphy you can say whatever the hell you want.
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6-30-2007 @ 12:08AM
Leanne said...
I need to find out who made that cute little dress that jessi wore a few episodes back. it was a little babydoll dress with a red flower on her chest. how would i get this wardrobe info??
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6-30-2007 @ 12:33AM
Leanne said...
how can i contact the person who does wardrobe? i want to get that same dress that jessi was wearing a few episodes back when she was in the bottom three.
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7-19-2007 @ 10:31PM
sheila said...
Does anyone know who the designer was for cat's dress on the July 19th? I thought it was lovely.
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