(S04E13) It was a long night on Wednesday getting through fourteen routines, most of which were lackluster. When do you think the judges will start admitting that season four is just not up to snuff? Now it's time to see who was able to snag enough votes to stay one more week on So You Think You Can Dance.The Opening Performance
The top fourteen dancers performed a Broadway routine to "Money Money" from Cabaret (Original Cast Recording) choreographed by Tyce DiOrio. The performance started off slow for me, but at the part of the song where the company starts whispering "money, money, money, money," I thought the dance picked up as well. I think that's testament to Tyce's ability to pace a number.
Tyce's take on the song was a little watered-down and very "appropriate" for network TV. Those of you who have seen the Broadway show know that the choreography is grittier and much raunchier than that. But, what could he do?
Another slight issue was that there are a lot of people who find Will annoying. If you're one of them, you may have not liked this routine right from the beginning. After all, it starts with his mug for the first ten seconds. I like Will; I thought he was strong. But, I think Mark should have been the lead male in this dance. He's just so quirky and he's a little effeminate. The part of the Emcee would have fit nicely.
When all the dancers started dancing in unison and the camera pulled away for that double pirouette, it was awesome. The editing worked very nicely there, really complimenting the action on stage. 
And this is an aside, but what did you think of the video package of Tyce DiOrio they showed after his piece? Filler?
The Results
Kherrington and Twitch [SAFE]
Katee and Joshua [SAFE]
Kourtni and Matt [BOTTOM THREE]
Courtney and Gev [BOTTOM THREE]
Chelsea and Mark [SAFE]
Comfort and Thayne [BOTTOM THREE]
Will and Jessica [SAFE]
The Guest Performances
The guest dancer was Robert the popper from Los Angeles who made it to Vegas then quit the first day. Dancing to C&C Music Factory's "Everybody Dance Now," he was downright brilliant. The sunglasses and the ending pose were the best. I didn't like how Nigel poked fun at him for quitting though. He's a guest star on your show. Leaving it at "We're sad he didn't continue in Vegas" was enough. I thought embarrassing him on stage by suggesting that he would back down from a popping battle was over-the-top and rude. Sheesh.
The Solos
Kourtni L. danced to "No Man" by Nina Storey. The choreography was great, but you could tell she's sick of being in the bottom three. I think she's lost a little energy and heart after being up for elimination so many weeks in a row. Her five pirouettes are always nice to see. The other piece of her choreography that was exceptional was the attitude turn that ended in an arabesque with her arms extended in high V. Kourtni does a nice job of peppering her solos with both turns and extensions as well as funky movements.
Speaking of extensions, Matt did his solo next. He danced to "Sweet Contentment" by Bradley James and the Roadies. But there were too many extensions. And he does the same thing every week: developpes, battements, penchés a la seconde, and rond de jambes. Matt also needs to do more with his expression -- the smile never changes. The pirouette into the drop was excellent though.
Courtney G. danced to "What's Another Day" by Maria Mena. It was like someone let a racehorse out of the gate. You could tell she was like "I'm doing everything that looks cool so I'll stay." She started with a huge leap. Then did some fouetté turns (a little sloppy getting into them). But she had incredible energy!
Gev danced to "Everybody Loves a Carnival" by Fatboy Slim. What musicality he has! I loved his routine. The ending was sick. He threw the front flip like he was going to jump off a building. Even Cat was scared. Never, ever, do that to me again," she said when she got up on stage.
Comfort danced to "Hit the Floor" by Twista featuring Pitbull. I think she's running out of choreography. I don't have much to say about this. What did you guys think of it?
Thayne danced to "Break Free" by Queen. I like the songs he picks for his solos. I think he worked on his solo from last week too. This one was much more polished. The beginning was fantastic. And he found a song that matches his super smiley face.
The Eliminations
Nigel said they were keeping Courtney G. because she's always risen to the occasion and done what's asked of her. He told Comfort that he didn't want to keep her but the others did. That meant Kourtni L. went home. Nigel kept Gev right away; he was thrilled with Gev's solo. Matt went home because he came into the program at a high level but didn't grow at all from there. The couples didn't change.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-04-2008 @ 10:14AM
Marilyn Singer said...
I do not agree that this is a lackluster season. I really like many, many of the dancers. I do think that some of the choreography isn't quite so brilliant. I'm missing Wade Robson and Shane Sparks.
As for Nigel "insulting" Robert Muraine, oh, please. The guy got a longer solo than any of the contestants. He can take the heat!
Finally, I wouldn't call Mark "effeminate." He's slimmer and quirkier than some of the other guys, but he has more genuine passion in his numbers with Chelsie than several of the beefier blokes.
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7-04-2008 @ 2:50PM
Kristin Sample said...
I meant effeminate in the best sense of the word. You may still disagree of course but I just wanted to clarify. I didn't mean it as a shot at him. I saw both Alan Cummings (or Cumming?) and Neil Patrick Harris in this role on Broadway. They were especially magical. The really infused a bit of gender / sexual ambiguity into the role. I think Mark's look and the way his moves would have produced a more convincing lead. Will is too hunky.
7-04-2008 @ 10:44AM
Saragee said...
I think the fact that Nigel was not in Comfort's corner this week means she'll be the next to go. I can't see keeping her over any of the other girls left, except maybe Jessica.
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7-04-2008 @ 2:50PM
Kristin Sample said...
Good point.
7-04-2008 @ 11:07AM
Ryan said...
Gev's solo was SICK. Oh man, he's the one dancer I'm rooting for even though I'm sure he'll end up right around where Dominic ended up in last season.
Also, does anyone think that Twitch already has this in the bag? I mean he's clearly the most popular dancer and he hasn't slipped up yet. Joshua might give him a run for his money, but those two will be in the final four unless something weird happens.
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7-04-2008 @ 12:09PM
deebopalula said...
Gev's solo -- WOWIE WOW WOW!!!!! That is by far the best solo I've ever seen on SYTYCD. Maybe HE should be choreographing the hip hop routines for the show ;-)
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7-04-2008 @ 2:14PM
Tania said...
I feel sorry for Matt and Kourtni because their pairing didn't seem spicy enough. Matt didn't have strong upper body strength to do the lifts and make them look effortless. Watching closely you could see that he struggled and it didn't help that Nigel was always pointing out that Kourtni is a not the ideal dancer type. I find it incredibly rude when he would stumble and say "uh uh tall" when referring to Matt lifting Kourtni.
As for Comfort... I think she has a great personality but thats about it. She hasn't been able to commit to anything else and I was really excited to see her in the beginning because they didn't show her audition in Texas.
The Tyce DiOrio bit was a filler and the other judges were just as mean as Tyce. Some were even downright rude. Not just Tyce.
Maybe it will really get interesting when they have to start picking partners out of a hat when we get to the top 10.
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7-04-2008 @ 2:25PM
Vince said...
Comfort should have gone last night. But they want to pretend she is improving each week and they love the hip hop stars learning other dance steps.
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7-04-2008 @ 3:10PM
Kristin Sample said...
@ Vince -- Agreed. I wonder how much of the decision had to do with the possible new partnership between Kourtni and Thayne. Think about it-- Tall Kourtni (who Nigel clearly thinks doesn't have the quintessential dancer's body) with Thayne who is probably more average height with short legs. They would have looked absurd together. But, I think Comfort should have gone home and they should have shuffled the couples again instead.
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7-04-2008 @ 5:34PM
Frances Magbual said...
I though Nigel was pretty rude with Robert and made it pretty clear that it wasn't his choice to have him as a guest this week. He definitely seemed more prickly this week since a lot of his comments on Wednesday were quite rude as well. I am so glad Courtney and Gev had good solos. I can't believe they were in the bottom three instead of Jessica and Will. I'm getting so tired of hearing how Will is so great and Jessica isn't dancing to his level...I guess the voting public hasn't gotten the hint that the judges want Jessica gone!!
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7-05-2008 @ 2:10PM
nattyff said...
i'm ready to see confort go next week.
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7-06-2008 @ 3:30PM
alexis said...
i think courtney's solo was the worst out of all of them. but, courtni lind's solo was sooo lackluster. you could just tell that she wasn't into it. every other time she danced she was full of energy and lit up the stage. And, i don't think that nigel was against her body type. the only thing that nigel kept pointing out was that she is tall. she should have been killing that choreography! everytime she danced, her arms were never fully extended, she never used the power in her body. she was boring to watch when she was paired with matt. she was the right choice to go home. comfort has grown and has been outdancing both her partners. i'm excited to see her dance again.
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7-07-2008 @ 1:13PM
I miss my stars! said...
I don't believe Mark is effeminate, either. He just isn't beefed up like the other guys in the lead this season. A lack of muscles doesn't mean feminine to me. He reminds me of old Hollywood, i.e. Tyrone Powers or a young Gregory Peck.
Could the judges love affair with Will have anything to do with their foisting of Cedric on Debbie Allen last year on air? I agree with the previous poster who commented that the Hip Hop dancers get more chances than any other dance style. I knew Kourtni and Matt couldn't last much longer - they just had no chemistry.
So far in group dances the men are seeming to take center stage while the women are supporting dancers. The Hip Hop one had Twitch in the predominant role and last week was Mark. I guess it was only fair that someone else like Will get the attention this week. I hope they will choreograph a number that lets the women shine soon.
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7-08-2008 @ 9:40AM
Jessica said...
I was sad to see Matt and Kourtni go. However, they both kind of lost any spark they had. Plus, if one were to go, the other would have to as well because of the height thing. Which is too bad.
I still can't believe that Courntey and Gev were in the bottom three over Will and Jessica.
I agree that hip hop dancers are given more chances than the others. I am over Comfort especially after her solo. It looked the same as last weeks, but the moves were in a different order.
This is a good season - I have more dancers on my favs list than seasons before. First season through third I have two maybe three couples I loved/liked and that was it. This season I have four couples. Of the four, I just can't choose a favorite. Last season my favorite guy and girl was an easy pick - Sabre and Danny (GAWD, I loved watching him dance. I still think he is the best dancer the show has had.)
My bottom three prediction for this week is Thayne and Comfort, Will and Jessica, and Courtney and Gev. Comfort and Thayne will be eliminated Thursday.
I want to see more Paso Doble!
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