Yea, it's SYTYCD night! Even though I haven't loved this season as much as past seasons, I still look forward to Wednesday performance nights each week. I'm now officially glad that there's going to be a fall season of SYTYCD this year--I do not like being without this show.
Top 8 night can be tricky--we lost Will this time last year. Will there be any surprise exits this year?
The play-by-play:
- Yea for FOX for not preempting SYTYCD to show Pres. Obama's prime time talk. I hate presidential prime time talks (and I was a political science major). My reaction to the time that Pres. George W. Bush preempted The O.C. was not cute. They should make a rule that says that unless there's some sort of national disaster, presidents only get three prime time talks each year or something.
- During the introduction solos, I thought the dancers were trying to see who could do the most boring solo until Brandon got out there and really shook it.
- Cat's dress is stunning. I'm not entirely sure if it is stunning in a good way or a bad way yet, but it's definitely something. It looks like expertly-draped liquid metal. She has paired it with a sleek pony tail and chunky silver bracelet.
- Oh yeah, I forgot that Ellen DeGeneres was on the show tonight. It's funny that they put Mary in between Mia and Ellen to break up the spiky-haired blondes. It seems like there's a hair theme tonight, and I feel like now we just need to get Kate Gosselin up there. (She'd certainly be able to come up with some critical things to say about something.)
- Ellen says she learned her dance moves on the street of her gated community :-)
- I think Mary just said that this year is "crazy off the chain." That was a very poor use of late '90s slang...
- IT'S TRAVIS WALL AGAIN!!!!!!!!! Choreographing a group number! Wohoo! It's getting close to be Travis-overload these two weeks, but I love it!
- The featurette: The concept is a rave in the year 2200 or 2300. I guess raves won't change much in those 100 years...
- The dance: Is Nigel going to bitch about these costumes? They look a little alien-ish, and we all know how he feels about that. It is kind of hard to tell who is who. Besides for Evan and Kayla, they all kind of bend in. I think I missed some of the little individual showcases. I caught Brandon's there at the end. Overall, the dance was pretty good. It wasn't exactly up to Travis-Wall-orgasmic-awesomeness levels though.
- The judging: What the hell does Travis have on his hands? I guess they are the little light things that the dancers have. Nigel says he LIKES the costumes! What?! I'm getting the picture that Ellen's job tonight is just stalling. Mary's still trying to sell this load-of-crap line that all of these dancers are equally good. Mia recruits Ellen to wear one of these costumes with her on Thursday.
More musings:
- Where does one pick up a copy of Dance Spirit magazine, anyway? Not that I really want a magazine with one of these people on the cover...
- Wow, Wade's going to dance in "Ramalama" tomorrow! Woooooooo!
Evan and Janette (Sonya Tayeh jazz routine):
- The featurette: This combination of dancers and choreography could either be awesome or absolutely horrendous.
- The dance: The beginning was pretty good. In the middle it looked to me like Janette was really out-dancing Evan. I don't think he's got the arm motions quite right. Nevertheless, it wasn't a disaster by any means, and I really liked the Sonya choreography. I especially liked when Janette jumped up and Evan caught her. I would have loved to see this routine danced by some legit contemp/jazz dancers.
- The judging: Nigel says that he's finally getting "more" out of Evan. Do you think Ellen will say anything negative about anyone tonight? How, Mary, is this "way out" of Evan's specialization? This was jazz. He does Broadway-ish jazz, right? It was "way out" of Janette's specialty maybe. Let's home Mia smacks some truth back into these proceedings! Mia says Evan has gotten by on his adorable face. Mia says that Janette is her favorite, favorite, favorite this season. Whoa!
Kayla's solo: Dances to Imogen Heap while wearing a very pretty sparkly dress. This solo was eons better than most of the other ones she's done! She actually danced during this one, instead of just doing a rapid succession of splits and kicks. And there's her grandpa!
Brandon and Jeanine (Hunter Johnson waltz):
- The featurette: This looks like a power couple! But they drew the waltz... The two seem to be having major difficulties picking up the dance during rehearsal, and Brandon mentions something about thinking about birds and bunnies.
- The dance: I like Brandon's dress-shirt-and-vest look. This routine seems very slow. I'm getting a bit sleepy... It's not bad, but it seems like it could be better. Brandon namely looked a little awkward at times.
- The judging: Nigel says that routine was extremely demanding. He says that the music was "like pulling teeth" and like "music for insomniacs." His eventual point was that because the music was so slow, they needed to be extremely good and they just weren't as good as he wanted them to be. Ellen continues to say only irrelevant things. Mary confirms that that waltz was slooooooooooow and probably the slowest one of the show ever (yea?). Mia says that maybe if Brandon wasn't dreaming about birds and bunnies during rehearsal, the dance would have been better. Mia now says that she wanted more because these two are "the tops."
Jason's solo: Does a few really nice switch-leg splits. Not a whole heck of a lot else to write home about though. Jason points out his brother in the audience. And, is it just me, or has Jason become a heck of a lot hammier in the last few weeks (since about the time Caitlin got the boot)?
Ade and Melissa (Tony and Meredith cha cha):
- The featurette: Ugh. This pairing feels like a tired rerun. Poor freaking Ade--it's back to shlepping Melissa around the stage for him. (Couldn't they have put Ade with Kayla and Jason with Melissa so everyone could dance with someone different? I don't get it.) At least they're doing a cha cha. There haven't been enough spicy Latin dances this year.
- The dance: The highlight is that Ade's wearing bright red pants! Something about Melissa isn't working quite right in this style. She can do the hip-wiggle turns okay, but when she has to move around the stage, it looks wrong. Ade looks okay to me. Geez, there haven't been many spicy Latin routines this year, and there really haven't been many good spicy Latin routines. (Have there been any good ones at all?)
- The judging: Nigel says they did well but then proceeds to kind of pick them apart a bit. Ade's smile is adorable! Ellen: "Are you two carpenters? Because you nailed it!" Mary says she feels like everything is in slow motion right now and that allows us to really notice technique. Ade's bum was too high. Melissa was turning her feet out too much and then turning them in too much. Mia thinks this was Ade's worst performance of the season. Mia says that Ade's movement "is so thick anyways." Mia gives Melissa a free pass because she's a ballerina.
Janette's solo: Dancing to slow music in the most clothing I think I've seen her wear all season. It was a very nice solo--she managed to contemporary-up her salsa moves a bit with some spiffy leg extensions.
Another musing:
- I wish Glee would just go ahead and start back up already. I'm getting really sick of hearing about it during every single SYTYCD commercial break. And I want to seem them perform "Gold Digger."
Jason and Kayla (Tyce Diorio Broadway):
- The featurette: Ugh, it's Broadway and Tyce. The routine is about a guy who is caught up in the music and a girl who wants to capture his attention.
- The dance: Kayla's dress is gorgeous. I'm really liking Kayla in this style. I think the dancers are doing a great job, but the routine looks a little under-choreographed. When the music was really pounding, Jason was just kind of standing there for a couple seconds.
- The judging: Nigel says that Jason's toes and feet were absolutely terrific, and at times Jason reminded him of Gene Kelly (take that, Evan supporters!). Oh my freaking heck, Mary has an actual train whistle! The interesting thing is that the whistle is far less annoying then her screaming. Cat suggests that Mary could sell her own line of train whistles. I'm not sure if that would catch on. Mia says that Jason needs to open up his upper body. Now Mia says that if Kayla can act and sing, she'll take Broadway by storm. So, basically, it sounds to me like Mia can't make up her mind of who her favorite actually is (Janette, Jeanine, Brandon, or Kayla).
Ade's solo: Is pure awesomeness. The music is just tones and rhythm, and he choreographed his moves well to it.
Evan and Janette (Tony and Melanie rumba):
- The featurette: Well, let's see if Janette can bring the sexy out of Evan. If she can't do it, no one can. Sorry, Evan, but I think most everyone falls into the sexy Latino mindset easier than you.
- The dance: Performed to a heavily-orchestrated version of "Heartless." Geez, I hate rumbas! They are so slow and boring that it looks like two random people off the street could do one after a half-hour of practice. I realize that that's not the case, but that's what it looks like. Aside from boring me to tears, the dancers did pretty well. Evan wasn't ridiculous at least.
- The judging: I think Nigel just acknowledged that people don't vote for rumbas because they're boring. Nigel doesn't think that there's anything passionate in Evan's face, and that he has heavy eyelids that make him look sleepy. Ellen says she loves Evan's eyes, and sadly that's the closest she's come to giving a substantive critique all night. Mary commends Evan for not losing his balance at any point, which does seem to be the general idea... Mia says that not everyone has to be a sexpot. Mia says that Evan was using a Zoolander face.
Melissa's solo: More interesting in the first 15 seconds than her entire solo was last week. Looks like Debbie Allen's comments hit home. The solo still didn't seem to be jam-packed with great stuff or particularly awesome for any reason, but at least it was less boring than last week's solo.
Brandon and Jeanine (Laurie Ann Gibson pop jazz)
- The featurette: Whoa, Laurie Ann is no joke! She's working them hard and reaming Jeanine out!
- The dance: This is some sort of military-themed routine that would be a lot cooler if it weren't set to a mawkish Jordin Sparks song. The dancers are trying to infuse it with a lot of strength and feeling and emotion but the song just doesn't go there with them. The dancing was good but the song ruined it for me.
- The judging: Nigel says this has been the flatest night ever on SYTYCD until this routine (which is an odd thing to say since he's given most everyone decent critiques up until now). Ellen says that they made it look appealing to join some sort of armed forces. After a long build up, Mia lets out a few loud screams. Mia says Brandon is such a powerhouse (I don't understand why she sees this now, but hated everything about him a few months ago).
Evan's solo: Hey, look, he's wearing a fedora, dress shirt, tie and suspenders. Who'd have thought? He accidentally drops the fedora, but covers it pretty well. The solo was charming, but nothing we haven't seen from him before.
Jeanine's solo: Very fun, different, nice solo to "Let the Drummer Kick" by Citizen Cope. I would have liked to watch another few minutes of this one. The girls' solos have been better over all this week, I'd say.
Ade and Melissa (Tyce Diorio contemporary):
- The featurette: The routine is designed to be a powerful piece about a woman battling breast cancer.
- The dance: Melissa's wearing a head scarf like a cancer patient would. Some gorgeous lifts and jump/catches. Not sure I really "got" the full story there though. I could tell Melissa was fighting something, but I didn't really get why Ade was there. I didn't really understand the resolution either.
- The judging: Nigel is almost in tears and says that he'd be surprised if Tyce doesn't get an Emmy nomination for this. He thinks it was one of the most memorable routines on the show ever. I'm not sure I agree. I've been more touched by other SYTYCD routines (and I honestly don't really feel the need to be "touched" by SYTYCD routines anyway). Ellen says it was the "most beautiful thing she's ever seen." Maybe it looked better in person? Mary is in tears. I'm not really understanding this "thanks to Tyce for shedding light on this situation" stuff either--yes, it's a tough subject, but it's not like breast cancer is something no one has ever heard of before, you know? I do agree that it's a good thing for us all to think about, but please don't act like none of us knew about how devastating cancer is until Tyce depicted it for us. Mia is also in tears (her dad passed away due to cancer). Tyce is crying too. One of the girls in the audience looks really familiar, like Sarah Drew from Everwood maybe. (BTW, when I Googled Sarah Drew to make sure that was really her name, I read that she is Ben McKenzie's second cousin!)
Brandon's solo: This week he's wearing no shirt, which is far more Brandon-like than his fully-clothed look last week. And this solo is really good, complete with nice dancing, fancy tricks, awesome splits and a slammin' series of back handsprings into a huge back layout.
Jason and Kayla (Shane Sparks hip hop):
- The featurette: Jason is a zombie who beats Kayla up. This seems like a very strange choice for a follow-up to the cancer routine (and a little bit insensitive). This will give both Jason and Shane the chance to redeem themselves for that horrendous hip hop routine they did with Caitlin a few weeks ago. And just for the record, so far this year we've had vampires, aliens and now zombies. What's left--werewolves?
- The dance: Zombies and dancing is very "Thriller," which Jason (the MJ fan) should like. I'm enjoying this routine a lot. They're hitting the moves well and syncing well with each other. My favorite part was Jason's little solo dance after he knocked Kayla to the ground. That was so cute! This was the first time Kayla's done hip hop, and she was great. And Jason was definitely way better in this than he was in his previous hip hop number.
- The judging: Jason is really into this zombie thing. Nigel likes the routine. He says that he's been a bit disappointed with the hip hop this year, but this one was really good. Ellen says if they keep dancing like that, they'll have their own talk show some day. Mary thinks Jason, her "little puppy dog," must have gotten rabies. Mia says this is her favorite Shane Sparks routine on the show ever and that she especially liked the strangling pose at the end.
Favorites: Jason and Kayla's hip hop, Evan and Janette's jazz, Jason and Kayla's Broadway
In trouble:
The guys: I honestly don't know who is going to get this boot this week. Personally, I'd go with Evan, but he seems to have a substantial following, so he might get through. So that would mean that the guy going home would be Jason? Maybe Ade? Maybe Brandon if people forget to vote for him? I have no idea.
The girls: Send Melissa hoooooooooooome. Her cha cha was no good, her solo was okay, and her contemporary was lovely, but the other girls are better.
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