WE'LL DANCE, BUT NO ONE WILL DANCE WITH US IN THIS ZANY TOWN: Last night we were treated to the worst-case scenario for the new So You Think You Can Dance format, with every single all-star out-dancing every single contestant. Actually, Lauren (who I don't like) may have out-danced or matched Dominic (who I also don't like). But I wasn't watching the contestants plodding through uninspired choreography last night. I was watching Pasha struggling to keep Cristina airborne, veteran Lauren gamely trying and failing to convince Alex that the way to sell Tyce's steps is to turn the hips just so, Comfort making Billy look like a picture of crump that has been photocopied into its eleventeenth generation of degradation, Ade leaping and spinning, Kathryn finding an undiscovered cache of smolder in a non-smoldering Bollywood routine, Courtney playing a cartoon gypsy seducing a cartoon hayseed. Even in the Lauren-Dominic piece where Lauren was just fine, the highlight was Dominic doing a stop-motion series of tricks suggesting he was thrown across the ground. It was all worth watching, but mostly for the veterans, not the contestants. That makes it hard to care.
Incidentally, remember when the show spent several weeks prominently featuring Australian Nazi Barbie? Where did she disappear to?
Agreed. The all-stars are so interesting to watch that I tend to forget about the contestants, and that makes me not care about the results. Probably not great for a competitive reality series.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I can't figure out what Cristina is doing on the show -- she's just a hot mess to me.
Completely agree. I can't remember a contestant where I was so confused by the judges. She seems light on her feet but strangely heavy in the legs. I don't mean that her legs look heavy -- I mean that she moves as if there were weights strapped to them. And it's not just her. When Pasha caught her, he looked like someone had just dropped a barrel of bricks on him. He's strong and she's small, so I don't understand what the problem is.
ReplyDeleteBut I also think that she and Melinda dance a lot alike. Melinda benefited from some choreography that really hid her flaws. She never had to do any kicks, hard jumps, or leg extensions. I couldn't believe that Nigel complimented her lines. It's not her fault, but she seems to have legs that are short compared to her torso. I don't mean to criticize her for her looks (she's extremely pretty), but she just doesn't seem to have a dancer's lines.
That was me, and we got back from Italy about a lifetime ago, it seems.
ReplyDeleteI don't actually watch the show; I'm just liking the idea of spacewoman being in italy.
ReplyDeleteI just want Billy to stick around a while, because a) he's absurdly likable, and b) Cat so clearly wants to put him in her pocket, take him home, and keep him in a jar on a shelf in her bedroom.
ReplyDeleteI wish I were in Italy (especially since NYC is 95 degrees today).
ReplyDeleteI feel the same way about Kent. I know the show loves him and they play up his whole farmboy shtick, but I can't help it! I think he's adorable.
ReplyDeleteAgree. Agree. Agree. With everything that's been said.
ReplyDeleteAnd can we talk about how Travis looked like he could chew nails when Nigel told him his choreography was jazz, but contemporary (Ashley/Mark)?
I don't think it would have been a huge deal, since they praise Travis to the heavens on the dances they like, but then Nigel had to go and make a snide remark about Tyce's dance for Courtney/Kent being a jazz routine.
I think of the actual contestants last night, Robert and Lauren probably did the best with something that was not in his/her wheelhouse.
I also find myself watching and enjoying the all-stars (except for Anya, who does nothing for me). And I disagreed with most of the judges' assessments of the contestants last night.
ReplyDeleteI thought Melinda was terrible last night. I think they just want to keep some women around -- all bottom 3 last week were women, and the men (except for Jose) are much, much better than these women.
I'm also puzzled by Nigel's attack on Travis' (un)jazz choreography. In almost every show for the 6 seasons I've watched there has been contemporary choreography that is classified as jazz and vice versa. I gave up long ago trying to figure out what the show means by those terms. Travis also seemed puzzled and was caught mouthing some snarky remark in the background when Tyce was later complimented for his "genuine" jazz piece.
Yeah, I was wondering what Travis was saying. Even though I'm on his side, I think Travis should be careful, because I'm guessing Nigel is his principal employer and seems to be the kind of guy who thinks that his signature on the paychecks buys the right to criticize. And the criticism was pretty mild -- it only seems harsh because the show goes to such lengths to fawn over its choreographers.
ReplyDeleteI also don't usually like Anya, mostly because I don't like ballroom, but the speed and precision of her leg work last night made Robert look slow and soft.
I caught that Travis side-comment too and wondered what it was. I never realized how Mary Murphy's presence tempered Nigel's douchery. She is such a strong personality that he didn't push to assert himself in a consistently authoritative manner- she could (and did) easily neutralize him without even trying. I was never sure if they truly _liked_ each other, but their interplay had a life of its own that drew me in.
ReplyDeleteNow, I FF through all the comments except my beloved Shankman's. Nigel+Mia= death, and Nigel has risen to unknown heights of priggishness. It would not surprise me to learn he was behind Mary's "decision" to leave. Mia seems like she's making a concious effort to curb her natural bitchy tendencies and every word out of her mouth drips with fake-sweet condescension. No one wants to disagree with anyone else (a role Mary relished). They just aren't any fun anymore.
RE the all-star format.... I gave it a shot and have decided I don't like it. It may have suited me in small doses, if they had chosen to pepper the weeks with the occasional contestant/all-star pairing, but I fail to see how it's helping the show's concept. I don't like that they took 6 guys and didn't just take 6 girls to match.
If anyone but Kent wins it will shock me. He's a born superstar.
I wanted to clarify- I dislike the all-star format because I fail to see how it's supposed to help the show achieve its goal. Will seeing the contestants dance with "pros" really help us pick the winner? How, exactly? Has the shift really been explained anywhere?
ReplyDeleteI mean, if 2 contestants are dancing an unfamiliar style, we see how one contestant can outperforrm another. If a contestant is given an unfamiliar style and then paired with a pro, they may look bad despite a phenomenal effort, next to someone to whom that style is second nature. I want the contestants to be given as much opportunity to show their ability as possible. In this format, that is virtually guaranteed not to happen. To me that is a major FAIL.