Great performances in week 2 on Dancing With The Stars
The rash of injuries continues this week on Dancing With The Stars. Lacey walked down the steps by herself for introductions, and Tom Bergeron quickly informs the audience that Steve-O was injured earlier today.
Here’s my recap of the performances on Dancing with the Stars tonight, in the order they danced.
Holly and Dmitry. Holly and Dmitry performed the Quickstep. I thought Holly looked beautiful and is so likeable to watch. She seems so willing to do whatever Dmitry asks of her to keep on dancing on the show. Maybe because I like her I didn’t see the problems that the judges pointed out during their critique. Len made some comments about her bust and bottom – personally I think he has one of her Playboy pictorials stashed under the judges’ desk. Bruno said she was always one or two beats behind Dmitry and always seemed as if she was trying to catch up. Carrie Ann said that it looked as if Dmitry was dragging her along like a doll. They ended up with a score of 18 out of 30.
David and Kym. I like David Alan Grier. He is a funny guy but it’s obvious he’s a hard worker and driven to succeed. I enjoyed his performance because I enjoy him. The judges on the other hand were brutal to him in their comments. I think the alien Len is gone and the cranky old fart is back. He said that it wasn’t a good dance; Bruno said that the character was right but the timing was off; Carrie Ann said that harder is not always better (David said he wanted Kym to push him to do a hard routine) and that the performance lacked musicality. Carrie Ann did say that she thought David was a good dancer and that something was happening between him and Kym but it hasn’t gelled just yet. They got a score of 17 out of 30.
Denise and Maks. This week they performed the Quickstep. I didn’t care for her performance last week – she just seemed really uncomfortable. This week I wasn’t too impressed either. It was good, don’t get me wrong, I guess I just like some of the other couples better. The judges were very positive in their critique of the performance. All three of them noted the marked improvement from last week’s Cha Cha Cha; Bruno said that a good dancer is hidden somewhere in her and it’s starting to come out. They ended up scoring 21 out of 30.
Belinda and Jonathan. I didn’t care for her performance last week so I was interested to see her performance of a Latin dance – that perhaps Ballroom dances would not be her strong point. She stared off her Salsa having fun and that’s how she performed it. I thought she lost some steam near the end. Len and Bruno stated her hip action was lacking. Bruno gave some half assed demonstration of a dance step that got a score of 1 from Tom. Carrie Ann began her critique by saying “no disrespect intended” and then you know that’s exactly how the comments will be taken. She said that Belinda’s performance lacked grace. She and Jonathan scored 18 out of 30.
Ty and Chelsie. The rodeo king is dressed to the nines, ready to perform a traditional Ballroom dance. I really hoped that he would be better than last week – more comfortable maybe. He’s so likeable I want to see him for a while. He did such a great job – I was so happy! The judges all commented on how much improved he was from last week. Carrie Ann said she was so proud of him. Bruno said that it was such an improvement from last week. Len said it was great, an excellent improvement. He and Bruno also thought that he has a strong core from his profession, and this helps him with the great posture he had tonight. The judges gave them 20 out of 30.
Shawn and Mark. It’s obvious to me that Shawn is going to be around for quite a while this season, if not make it to the finals. You don’t become an Olympic gold medalist without knowing what it takes to succeed. She’s not afraid of hard work, and this was obvious in her Salsa. She seemed so embarrassed and unsure in the behind the scenes interviews but when the performance started she was on fire. The judges thought it was clean and precise. Bruno told her that she needed to be more naughty. Tom reminds him that she is only 17 years old. Pervert. Len thought she needs to throw caution to the wind, especially in the Latin dances. Carrie Ann thought it was fantastic. They got 24 out of 30.
Steve and Karina. Poor Steve. I really like him. He’s the high school geek that made good for himself. He’s enjoying what he does. Plus he’s doing it on a fractured foot. But his Quickstep was not the best. It was fun, yes. The judges just commented on his charming personality and the fact that he brings fun to the audience. They scored 17 out of 30.
Chuck and Julianne. Their dance this week was the Salsa. I like Julianne but there’s just something this season that I’m not enjoying. She says all the right things in the behind the scenes interviews, but I think the fact that she and Chuck are a couple is playing a role in this season, and I don’t know if it’s a good thing. The judges were harsh in their critique. Len and Bruno said that it was all Julianne. Bruno said that she did all the work, while Len said the performance was all Julianne. Carrie Ann said that the two guys wouldn’t be so hard on him if they didn’t think he has potential. She said that the dance they did was not a Salsa. I was really surprised that the judges gave them the scores they did – they seemed really high compared to their criticism. They got 20 out of 30.
Lawrence (LT) and Edyta. LT is a competitor, and you know he wasn’t going to go out without a fight. He’s a very successful athlete and just like Shawn he knows what it takes to be successful and he’s willing to do whatever it takes to win. This performance was so much better than last week. It seemed as if LT got this shot of confidence and performance ability some time between last Monday and today. The judges all said it was well done and much improved. Their score was 20 out of 30, the same as Chuck and Julianne. My opinion is that the performances were like night and day. LT deserved much higher.
Steve-O and Lacey. Tom Bergeron leads in to the behind the scenes footage of the week in training for Steve-O and Lacey by explaining that just about 2 hours ago Steve-O hurt his back in the dress rehearsal (he fell on the microphone on his back) and went to the hospital as a precaution. According to the rules the judges base their scores on the dress rehearsal. This is somewhat unfair because there’s no way they perform at the same level during dress rehearsal as they do when it’s live. This was obvious. It was almost a disaster. Steve-O said he wanted to jackass up the routine and he did that. They completely lost the whole flavor of the Salsa. Len said he didn’t enjoy the performance; Bruno called it a series of unfortunate events that didn’t make sense; Carrie Ann called the tricks and antics unnecessary and not right for a Salsa. The judges gave them a score of 14 out of 30.
Lil’ Kim and Derek. I don’t know why I thought that Lil’ Kim would not do well on this show. I really knew nothing about her other than she was a rap and hip-hop artist. But she has completely surprised me. I loved her Quickstep. I’m no ballroom dancing expert so I don’t understand the complexities of a dance like hold, posture, and such so I was surprised that Len told her that the dance was packed with quantity not quality. What??? Bruno and Carrie Ann both loved the performance but commented on her posture and the hold during the performance. They got 23 out of 30.
Melissa and Tony. I didn’t watch the entire season of The Bachelor – all I saw was the finale show when the snake Jason proposed to Melissa and the two “After the final rose” shows when the snake took it back. I know nothing about this woman but I so want her to succeed, because isn’t success the best revenge? Tonight she and Tony had a week to work on their Salsa. She was smokin’ tonight. I loved the performance. She knows how to put on a show (maybe from her Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader days?) and Tony gave her a routine that let her shine. The judges loved it. Carrie Ann said finally – a real Salsa. Bruno called it a juicy salsa, and said he wants more, while Len said it was the Salsa of the night. They got the first 9’s of the season, scoring 26 out of 30.
Gilles and Cheryl. The final dance of the night was the Quickstep from the hottest man on the show. I waited all night to see him perform. I thought it was going to be interesting to see if he toned down the sexiness for this prim and proper traditional dance, or was he going to let his natural sexiness show through. After watching tonight’s performance I don’t think this man can play down the sex no matter what he does. His Quickstep was great. The judges loved him. Len thought that he might be a one week wonder with his Cha Cha Cha last week, but this is not the case. His dance tonight was well done. Carrie Ann said they are fast becoming the fan favorites. They got the best score of the night, 27 out of 30.
Tomorrow on the results show fallen celebrity dancer Jewel will be a musical guest, along with Big Bad Voodoo Daddy. There’s a Macy’s Stars of Dance performance and also the first ever dance off. I think that the producers want to beef up the content in the results show because as it stood during the first seven seasons the hour long show was boring and just dragged on and on. I hope this spices things up. Who’s going home? My gut says Steve, Belinda or Denise, but if Steve-O drops out because of his injury will they not eliminate anyone this week? We’ll see.
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