(S04E14) Tonight's "jidges" included the return to the panel of Mia Michaels. In a reversal of Kristin's thinking last week, I'm actually disappointed to see Michaels joining Nigel and Mary on the dais this week for two reasons. First, I think she does some amazingly bizarre things with the dancers and I find myself always incredibly curious and mesmerized by her choreography, even if there are those times where I don't get it. But even more importantly, I hate hate HATE her as a judge. She's completely subjective and criticizes the most nonsensical things.And then tonight she completely surprised me by being generally pretty solid before derailing again to the point I wanted to throttle. But still she can't help but get all ethereal and bizarre leaving confusion in their wake. How do you learn and grow from a comment like "I wanted more movement"? And how do you respond to what was said to Will (which I'll get to later)? Overall, the night wasn't as strong as prior episodes, but there were still some gems among all that rough.
THE PERFORMANCES
Mark & Chelsie
--(Salsa w/ Alex Da Silva - "Fuego," Joe Bataan) I will give wardrobe credit for managing to make an incredibly beautiful girl look like a homeless peacock. Other than the fact that you could see a lot of her toned physique there was nothing about that dress that looked good. Luckily, Chelsea and Mark overcame this by putting together a pretty solid salsa. Chelsea definitely was more into the groove of the piece than Mark, who did dance stiff as the judges mentioned.
--(Broadway w/ Tyce DiOrio - "I'm a Woman," Smokey Joe's Cafe (Original Cast)) For their second number, Mark & Chelsie were able to get into characters. This worked out amazingly for them in their most recent hip-hop number as both are brilliant at acting a part while dancing. And they did it again. The battle of the sexes erupted all over that stage. I'm not sure if that lift toward the end was messed up or choreographed that way, but overall I think these two were G-R-A-T-E.
Thayne & Comfort
--(Hip-Hop w/ Tabitha & Napoleon - "Can We Chill," Ne-Yo) This is Comfort's first chance to show what she can do with someone else's hip-hop choreography. And damn if that girl didn't just show me everything I wanted to see from her. She's grown so much from the beginning of the competition, and it was a true joy to watch her on this number. As for Thayne, I thought he did an admirable job of keeping up with the steps at least, if it was a little out of character for him and it was as if they were dancing separately rather than together.
--(Contemporary w/ Mandy Moore - "A Different Corner," George Michael) There were some really beautiful moments in that piece, and Comfort even shared in some of them. I thought she really threw herself into the character and the choreography, but next to Thayne her inexperience showed in stiffness of movement from time to time. Thayne, however was masterful. This may have been the best I've seen him in several weeks. And yet, they again were two people dancing near one another but not necessarily together.
Will & Jessica
--(Contemporary w/ Tyce DiOrio - "Silence," Unfaithful (soundtrack)) Hey, look at that. After last week's drool-fest over Will's body they've managed to put him in even less clothing this time around. It's like they're treating the guys like ... gasp! ... girls in the wardrobe department. Less is best. Jessica's opening landing had more of a stumble to it than I needed, and while there were a few other awkward jumbles throughout, it was overall a masterpiece of the contemporary style. The fluidity of the motions across the stage mesmerized me through that almost absent music.
--(Quick Step w/ Tony Meredith & Melanie LaPatin - "Bandstand Boogie," Barry Manilow) Well, Will is supposed to be the Renaissance Man of SYTYCD this year, so this was the perfect test of his greatness as the quick step is easily the hardest style on the show. I'm not the expert that Mary is, but I felt a lot of the footwork looked more like jogging than quick step. And a lot of the choreography skipped the quick step altogether for other tricks, which were all executed very well. A good dance, but a good quick step? Not so much.
Gev & Courtney
--(Cha-Cha w/ Pasha Kovalev & Anya Garnis - "Don't Stop the Music (The Wideboys Club Mix)," Rihanna) You never know what you're going to get when former contestants come back to choreograph. Some are great dancers but not so great at choreography. Luckily Pasha and Anya put together a really hot and fun cha-cha. From the beginning Gev's carriage was dead-on. The pair of them were astounding with their footwork when they were separated, and really sold the emotion (hot hot hot) of the performance.
--(Broadway w/ Mandy Moore - "Standing There," The Creatures) A clever routine utilizing a map as a prop that was a lot of fun. There was some great steps in there and the unison from the pair of them was spot on. I think there was one point where Gev stopped and had to wait for Courtney to catch up to him. I think she was supposed to reach out and stop him, but she wasn't in place yet. Overall, though this was another solid outing from the duo.
Twitch & Kherington
--(Cr ump w/ Lil'C - "2 Buck 4 TV," Tha J-Squad) This is probably the hardest-crumping routine we've ever had on the show. After what Twitch has shown in different styles so far, I fully expected him to be all over this sub-genre of what he already does so well, but I have to say that I was impressed by how hard Kherington was hitting as well. And I'm not sure what her pants were made out of, but they looked absolutely amazing plastered onto her frame like that.
--(Smooth Tango w/ Jean-Marc Genereaux - "Assassin's Tango," Mr & Mrs Smith (soundtrack)) First Kherington had to find her inner gangster and now she had to follow it up with a fight tango. And once again, we had a chair brought on stage to up the stakes. I would have liked a little more strut from Twitch, especially early in the routine. The couple's roles were reversed with Kherington taking the stronger position. Overall, though, I have to say the routine was a disappointment for me as I didn't get the "fight" out of it that was promised.
Joshua & Katee
--(Viennese Waltz w/ Jean-Marc Genereaux - "Iris," Goo Goo Dolls) The concept of this performance where Joshua was a ghost dancer that Katee could feel but not see was an ambitious addition to this style, but something that fits beautifully with the flowing motions. What happened was one of the most emotional performances of the night, wrought with heartbreak and passion. There were technical issues throughout on the ground and Katee carried the number by being flawless herself. Luckily for Joshua your eyes couldn't help but be drawn to her!
--(Bollywood w/ Nakul Dev Mahajan - "Dhoom Taana," Om Shanti Om (soundtrack)) A new dance style and choreographer for the show. I was actually pretty thrilled to see this Indian (the country not the indigenous peoples of the Americas dontchaknow) style coming to a popular American show. There are so many cultures we just don't know very much about, and what a great opportunity to see an expression of dance from one of the most populous nations in the world. I was also pleased to see Katee & Joshua get it, as opposed to a more limited coupling like Comfort & Thayne. I will say that seeing Indian moves on an African and Asian looking couple was a real melting pot experience. I thought they both did the number a great deal of credit. Without knowing a great deal about the style, I thought Katee seemed really comfortable in it and owned it more than Joshua, though he did a great job with it as well.
BEST OF THE NIGHT
This was a tough night for the dancers. There weren't any standout performances at all for me. I thought individuals in each couple had great performances (Twitch's crumping and Katee's waltz as examples). That said, the best couple of the night was Gev & Courtney as they did very well on both of their routines. But, the best routine of the night for me was Joshua & Katee's amazing Bollywood routine. They truly brought another world to the stage in a very authentic way.
WORST OF THE NIGHT
While Comfort & Thayne took a stab at this with their incredibly awkward contemporary routine, it's a surprise to me to give the stinker of the night to Jessica & Will's awful quick step routine. It seemed almost as if the choreographers knew their quick step was a nightmare.
OUTFIT OF THE NIGHT
For the sheer transformation and beauty she brought to her Bollywood routine, I'm going to have to give the outfit of the night to Katee's Bollywood costume. She was just stunning in that Indian-inspired garb. And just for fun, I'll give Chelsie a shout-out for the most god-awful ugliest dress of the night that she opened the show in.
LINE OF THE NIGHT
The line of the night is Mia Michael's open-mouth-show-what-a-bitch-I-can-be. "You look tired of carrying her ... You've been carrying her this whole time ... You need a new partner." The out-of-line and offensive and shitty words of Mia Michaels to Will after his and Jessica's quick step routine. Bottom line is that they both sucked on this one and Mia needs to learn to be objective even about people she's smitten with.
THE TOP TEN
From here we get our Top 10, and it is those ten dancers who hit the road for the tour. So it's a tough night to have to pick which of these twelve dancers should be denied that opportunity. As disappointing as it is to say, I'd choose to eliminate Comfort and Thayne. That said, I suspect the judges might be quicker to cut Jessica and Mark in the elimination show.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
7-09-2008 @ 11:23PM
BG said...
first of all thanks for getting this written up so quickly.
did you mean to say G R E A T?
I thought Kherington spelled her name this way.
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7-10-2008 @ 12:22AM
Dee said...
I think the author's misspelling of the word "great" was a nod to Chelsie's misspelling of the word "wrap".
His misspelling of Kherington's name, however, was probably unintentional.
7-10-2008 @ 12:15PM
Lois said...
You may hate Mia Michaels but she is a brilliant choreographer and a "tell it like it is" judge. Will has been carrying Jessica all season. She is a clumsy dancer and even when the judges were oohing and ahhing over their contemporary number, I was thinking about all the times I watched her land and then stumble. I would love to see him dance with Courtney or Chelsea. I think Kherington is too tall for him.
Dancers know exactly what Mia is talking about, believe me.
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7-10-2008 @ 12:42AM
Tania said...
I love the coupling of Mark and Chelsie. They both compliment each other. His quirkiness and her technique. I wasn't a fan of their Broadway routine as much as I like Tyce's Broadways. But it was entertaining.
Thayne and Comfort have disappointed time and time again. Thayne was behind on the hip hop number multiple times. Comfort did stand out and show us what she's got but it wasn't there fore the contemporary routine. In my opinion Mandy Moore is a good choreographer but the movement wasn't so riveting. It was simple, boring and all on the floor. I must say that Nigel's word's were uncalled for but necessary. I don't feel the choreography was as strong as it should have been but at the same time he and everyone else is fed up with giving those two shot after shot and not raising their bar.
Will and Jessica... what to say about them? Mia said what everyone's been thinking. I don't blame her. A lot of us have been thinking it since day one. But I also don't see why they glorify him. He is great technically but I don't believe him when watching him the passion isn't there.
If we took Thayne's passion and Will's technicality that would be one unstoppable dancer.
Courtney and Gev are starting to grow on me although I don't think they will last long especially when they start picking other partners randomly. The cha-cha by Pasha and Anya was fun and hot. I do have a correction... their second number was Jazz not Broadway. And I thought it was cotton candy like Nigel did and I don't agree with him much.
Twitch and Kherrington did awesome with the Krump. She did start getting tired but who wouldn't? I was tired watching them because it was so tough and fast. The waltz was alright bu didn't grab my attention.
Joshua and Katee did great in both dances. And I agree that bringing Bollywood was great and having one of the stronger three couples dance it made it that much more lively. What a luck of the draw.
The bottom three has been prety predictable until now so my picks will be Comfort and Thayne, Will and Jessica, topping it off with Gev and Courtney. If that is the way the cookie crumbles then it will definitely come down to Jessica and Comfort with more favor of Jessica staying but I wouldn't be surprised if they held onto Comfort for top 10. The guys would come down to Gev and Thayne because they wordhip the ground Will walks on and then dis Jessica once again and blame the pairing saying he got a shotty deal. With Gev and Thayne in the bottom I think they would be more willing to lose Gev than Thayne. As they did last year with Hok. But Gev will be an alternate dancer.
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7-10-2008 @ 12:45AM
Tania said...
I love the coupling of Mark and Chelsie. They both compliment each other. His quirkiness and her technique. I wasn't a fan of their Broadway routine as much as I like Tyce's Broadways. But it was entertaining.
Thayne and Comfort have disappointed time and time again. Thayne was behind on the hip hop number multiple times. Comfort did stand out and show us what she's got but it wasn't there fore the contemporary routine. In my opinion Mandy Moore is a good choreographer but the movement wasn't so riveting. It was simple, boring and all on the floor. I must say that Nigel's word's were uncalled for but necessary. I don't feel the choreography was as strong as it should have been but at the same time he and everyone else is fed up with giving those two shot after shot and not raising their bar.
Will and Jessica... what to say about them? Mia said what everyone's been thinking. I don't blame her. A lot of us have been thinking it since day one. But I also don't see why they glorify him. He is great technically but I don't believe him when watching him the passion isn't there.
If we took Thayne's passion and Will's technicality that would be one unstoppable dancer.
Courtney and Gev are starting to grow on me although I don't think they will last long especially when they start picking other partners randomly. The cha-cha by Pasha and Anya was fun and hot. I do have a correction... their second number was Jazz not Broadway. And I thought it was cotton candy like Nigel did and I don't agree with him much.
Twitch and Kherrington did awesome with the Krump. She did start getting tired but who wouldn't? I was tired watching them because it was so tough and fast. The waltz was alright bu didn't grab my attention.
Joshua and Katee did great in both dances. And I agree that bringing Bollywood was great and having one of the stronger three couples dance it made it that much more lively. What a luck of the draw.
The bottom three has been prety predictable until now so my picks will be Comfort and Thayne, Will and Jessica, topping it off with Gev and Courtney. If that is the way the cookie crumbles then it will definitely come down to Jessica and Comfort with more favor of Jessica staying but I wouldn't be surprised if they held onto Comfort for top 10. The guys would come down to Gev and Thayne because they wordhip the ground Will walks on and then dis Jessica once again and blame the pairing saying he got a shotty deal. With Gev and Thayne in the bottom I think they would be more willing to lose Gev than Thayne. As they did last year with Hok. But Gev will be an alternate dancer.
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7-10-2008 @ 12:46AM
Tania said...
sorry for the double post... :(
7-10-2008 @ 2:14AM
Jen said...
Just waiting until Jessica, Will, Thayne, and Comfort leave..
They should just get rid of the Quick Step, really nobody looks forward to seeing it if 8 times out of 10 it's not done well.
Mia Michaels needs to get off her high horse.. I like love her routines and when she's having fun she seems cool, but maaaan.. who tinkled in her Cheerios this morning??
*Loved* the Bollywood routine, glad it J&K got it - I loved how the choreographer told Joshua his hands needed to be a specific way or he'd "offend half the world" ha! No pressure!
The Indiana Jonesy- Gev/Courtney routine was cute but I was a bit concerned there'd be some kind of flippydo and Courtney would get caught in Gev's satchel deal.
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7-10-2008 @ 3:22AM
SImpression said...
I agree with Mia.
You can find her comments as rude and whatnot, but all she said is what a lot of people have been thinking. Jessica does bring Will down, and I think he did look tired of it.
But, I also don't agree with the Judges high appraisal of Will either. I don't find him that fantastic.
Bottom Three:
-Comfort/Thayne definitely.
-I can see Will/Jessica being there too
-As for the third, I'm unsure.
I wouldn't want mark to leave, as you've suggested. I think he is great.
I would be happy with Comfort leaving, and I could see Thayne going too.
Personally I wish Jessica would leave though. And Will too (though i know THAT isn't going to happen).
Ah well.
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7-10-2008 @ 7:41AM
GMMR said...
I thought the Bollywood routine was hands down the best of the night. So fun and how interesting to watch!
I gotta say that I'm on Team Mia. I think she brings so much to the show, and yes, sometimes she can be harsh, but I do agree with SImpression - she says what we (or at least I) am thinking.
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7-10-2008 @ 8:31AM
goldie said...
PLEASE, please, please...send Comfort home!! She should have gone home last week, and if she doesn't go home this week, it will be so disappointing. She has shown no improvement, and I wasn't particularly impressed with her own style last night. She danced the hip-hip ok, but she did by herself, almost completely ignoring that Thayne was dancing too. She has no connection with her partner or what she's dancing. Ugh, go home already!
That, and I am so tired of Jessica being put down. She is not bad at all. It seems even when they give her a compliment, its like "Jessica, you didn't make Will look horrible this week, good job." Seriously, Will is not a god, get over it already.
And, will they please stop putting the quick-step on the show if they hate it so much.
It seems complaints all around, but I really love the show...haha!
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7-10-2008 @ 8:47AM
Danielle said...
I agree w/ the PP...I abs loved the Bollywood routine! The music was very catchy and was intrigued on what they were going to do next.
Def think Comfort/Thayne will be in the bottom three..along w/ Will/Jessica and maybe Twitch/Kherington.
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7-10-2008 @ 8:59AM
Jessica said...
Wow - Courtney and Gev were awesome last night!!! But I have a feeling they are going to be on the bottom three, but there is no way the judges will send either one of them home.
I hope Comfort is sent home. While she may have rocked the hip hop routine she got so into her steps and doing her thing, she completely forgot she had a partner. I thought Thayne did a great job and I could see him trying to connect with Comfort during the routine. He would look over to her when the dance called for it, but she never looked at him. She just did her thing. She let them both down last night. Mandy Moore did let Comfort off easy. She was barely given any steps in the Contemp routine. Thayne basically danced around her and lifted her a few times and when she came down, it wasn't pretty.
Will and Jessica's quick step wasn't very good. I do think Will has carried Jessica's lack of confidence. However, she is a very good dancer, if she had confidence in herself she would be great. Their first number was different, but it was good. Though I did get the feeling that Jessica wasn't all that sure on her feet coming down from the lifts. It was a powerful, slow-moving number, the amount of control one needs is huge. I think she kind of lacked the strength there.
Twitch and Kherrington's first number was good but I did see her get tired. She kept up with Twitch until the last few seconds. There second number, I didn't like it so much. Not enough partnering or dancing together for me. I still love them thought!!
Chelsea and Mark were almost as good at Courtney and Gev. I love Chels and Mark too. I thought they did a good job on both there routines. Wow, Chelsea has some crazy hips, she can move. I love Mark's uniqueness and he cleans up so good. He has interesting features. Sort of like Jim Carey - he can contort his face to look all crazy, but can also take on this sort of debonaire look.
Josh and Katee's Bollywood routine was so great and wonderful to watch. I have seen clips of Bollywood movies and the dancing is beautiful, lively, and full of color! Their energy while doing this dance could really be felt and seen. They were awesome! Their first dance was OK for me. Would have liked to seen it more smooth and fluid, but they were both good. Just a preference.
Prediction for the bottom three: Thayne and Comfort, Will and Jessica, and sadly Courtney and Gev will be in the bottom three. Comfort and Thayne will be going home.
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7-10-2008 @ 9:00AM
fowak said...
I love Mark & Chelsie. They are my 2nd favorite couple. I enjoyed their first dance, but their 2nd was fantastic! I feel their chemistry with one another is at it's best when they have characters to play. Mark is my favorite guy in the competition.
I'm so ready for Comfort to go. I'm not sure she even deserved to make the Top 20. I guess they needed a hip-hop girl. Anyway. I love Thayne, though. His smile scares me a bit, but his dancing is always a treat. I was actually more into him during their hip-hop than her, even though it was her style. I thought the choreography looked great on him. Their second dance also really showed what a great dancer he is. Her... not so much. I'd love for Thayne to make the cut into the Top 10 over Will, but like that would ever happen...
Will & Jessica have hands-down been my least favorite all along. Something about both of them rubs me the wrong way. Their first dance I think would be greatly enjoyable to someone who feels like they can connect with them, but I do not. Therefore, it was nothing special to me. Their second dance was not good at all. I agree with the others who've been saying that yes, Will is the better dancer, but he's not the dance-god the judges make him out to be.
COURTNEY & GEV! I heart them! They clearly do have the best chemistry of any couple this year, which makes it so sad that this was their last week as a couple :( I'm so happy they had such a great week. Before tonight, they'd only been given one or two really great routines. Which isn't their fault. I was so thrilled to see Pasha again :) And I have to say that I really think Gev is proving to be the better dancer. He's easily my 2nd favorite guy.
I actual wouldn't be all that surprised if Twitch & Kherington end up in the bottom this week. While the krump routine was really enjoyable, their tango was not. It really hurt them telling the backstory was supposed to be fighting, because the lack of it in the dancing was a let down. I love them, but we'll see what happens...
Katee and Joshua are a roller coaster for me. They're never just downright horrible, but some weeks they are off. I didn't really feel their waltz and was glad that for once they didn't get all this praise for a number. With that said, the Bollywood was good. I was a little distracted while it was being danced, but I enjoyed what I did see and from the comments, most everyone else did as well. And Katee did look beautiful.
I think the bottom 3 will be: Comfort & Thayne, Jessica & Will, Kherington & Twitch. I would prefer Jessica & Will to go home, but will be fine with Comfort leaving.
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7-10-2008 @ 9:06AM
Sarah said...
i think the one thing everyone looks over is that the judges glorify Will; Will is not the one glorifying himself. so there is no need to say untruths like "he is not that great of a dancer" to downplay the fact that his partner deserved every word Mia Michaels said to her. if this were a real audition of some sorts, Jessica would have gotten it even worse. truth be told, i thought their quickstep was kind fun in a sock-hop sort of way, but technically, it was very heavy to the fault of Jessica. its such a shame because i think they were paired because they are both great contemporary dancers. and Will is the real deal. he is amazing! so is Jessica, but she doesnt believe it yet.
i love Comfort, but its time for her to go. and, out of every guy still in, i have to say Thayne should leave too. neither have really risen to the competition. its gonna be tough though because the top ten is going to be really solid.
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7-10-2008 @ 10:52AM
Vince said...
It's Thane and Comfort going home, no doubt about it.
The judges try to prejudice voters every week and they telegraph their opinions about this couple relentlessly.
Poor Thane was stuck with poor partners so he won't get to the single competition.
Bottom three couples, Thane & Comfort, Gev & Courtney, Will & Jessica.
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7-10-2008 @ 11:18AM
Alyson said...
There is no way that Mark is cut instead of Thayne IF he and Chelsie land in the bottom 3 couples (which they don't deserve, b/c they didn't have a really bad routine last night, like at least 3 couples did). Mark is a better dancer and actor than Thayne, and his fan base is definitely bigger. People like his quirkiness. And there's no way the producers let him go when they are definitely going to want to have Chelsie and Mark's hip hop routine on tour.
Now, I could see Jessica possibly going home instead of Comfort if she lands in the bottom three. They'd probably like to have a hip-hop girl on the tour, and I don't think the judges like Jessica as much. It'll be close.
I agree that Gev and Courtney were the best of the night, as a couple over two dances, and that Katee and Joshua's Bollywood rocked the kasbah.
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7-10-2008 @ 11:36AM
Ryan said...
Gev and Courtney were AMAZING since they did have two strong performances unlike everyone else who had one bad or one good (or two bad ones but whatever).
I feel like they'll be in the bottom, but I really really really hope not. And if they are they I think they're relatively safe. The judges don't want to get rid of them after praising them the night before.
Thayne is going home. And it'll come down to either Comfort or Jessica.
Go GEV/COURTNEY!
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7-10-2008 @ 12:51PM
MarcDom7 said...
I absolutely agreed with Mia about her honest, no-bullshit take-down of Jessica. Will has been carrying her for weeks, and I feel it's pretty obvious. The only reason Jessica isn't gone is because people like Will so much that they've been keeping the couple in via votes. Mia finally said what needed to be said. If Will is to go far, he needs a much better partner.
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7-10-2008 @ 12:50PM
alexis said...
I'm totally on the Mia michaels boat. and i agree that her comments might not make sense to the average viewer, but as a dancer, they are spot on everytime. and just to clarify, when she says that there wasn't enough movement, it usually means the dancer was too stiff.
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7-10-2008 @ 1:39PM
Rmpr said...
I cant stand Mia michaels a s a judge!!! i die a little bit inside when she talks!
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