SYTYCD Top 9

So last week, Robert was in the bottom 3 and no one addressed the fact that it was probably because he pretended to puke when Cat was announcing his call-in number. And pretending to barf is not funny, and not cute - it's just weird. Not in a good way.

Then they voted Cristina off even though I think we all cared less about Melinda. But I didn't feel strongly enough about the elimination to actually bother posting.

Plus, RemoteKontrol was the guest artist and they were AWESOME, although the gold costumes brought to mind street performers you would totally avoid on Pier 39.

Anyway, on to the Top 9!

They begin the show by promoting one of my least favorite elements of the show. The awkward "get-to-know-the-dancer-Q-and-A" segment. Not boding well.

Filming of the opening montage has not improved, and the solos are not more interesting.

Why do we now need to show what dances are coming up ahead of time? This adds nothing to my enjoyment.

Show, you are making me cranky. GET DANCIN'.

Adechike, Hip Hop: Wow, I did not expect him to be so awesome at this. He was groovy, and his iso's were impressive. VERY well done.

Ashley, Contemporary: On the one hand, it's too bad she keeps drawing the same dance styles and isn't being given a chance to show range. On the other hand, she is TERRIFIC at contemporary.

Billy, Solo: These kids are BRINGING it tonight. He is so odd, and fluid, and extended. The kid is gifted.

Robert, Jazz: All snarly face, no substance. It seemed like nothing actually happened in this routine. Boring.

Jose, Solo: I believe I've used this critique before about a different b-boy or hip hop dancer, but there's nothing he does that makes me think "He does that better than anyone else." Plus he doesn't bring enough speed to his movements.

Melinda, Salsa: Remember when Ellenore got caught in her skirt and danced through the whole routine anyway? This lady is no Ellenore. And she's not much of a salsa dancer. It looked like she forgot stuff, and was trying too hard. Plus her personality just seems wooden.

Kent, Solo: This points out why Billy Bell is unique. Kent's was well-done, and perfectly serviceable, but it didn't seem... impossible. And some of what Billy does just seems so unexpected and impossible.

Ales, Solo: The roll at the end was very cool, but I would've liked to see him play with the ape theme more. If this guy could ACT, I think he'd be a lot more formidable.

Lauren, Broadway: She performed this capably, and demonstrated how to kick ass with a costume failure. But it was meh. I think I hate this choreographer.

Ashley, Solo: With her music choice, I thought she might do something more interesting. Nope. It was just athletic toe pointing.

Billy, Contemporary: Partnered with someone I don't find him nearly as intersting. And I thought that before the judges started talking.

Robert, Solo: He's good, but I don't care. Contemporary overload.

Jose, Samba: He did well! The only part I found distractingly terrible was his samba walk, and some of the standing postures were stiff. But he clearly felt the rhythm and moved his hips well.

Melinda, Solo: No. You cannot tap to everything.

Kent, Jazz: He looked suuuuper dorky. Closing his mouth might've helped, but it wouldn't've been enough.

Adechike, Solo: Terrific. I thought I was tired of contemporary male solos tonight, but he was great. Very sinewy.

Lauren, Solo: Her feet seemed to move very quickly for such a slow piece. Pretty good.

Alex, Hip Hop: What a clever, clever piece!! Tabolweon really choreographed to his strengths, and it was incredible. Just fantastic. So apparently he DOES have some comic chops.

Predictions: Bottom 3 doesn't really matter because clearly Melinda is going home. So let's say the other 2 are Lauren and Robert.

SYTYCD Top 10

Bold prediction before anyone even dances: 3 girls in the bottom tomorrow. It takes them longer to develop a following, and this sped-up format won't allow anyone to find their legs. Pun TOTALLY intended.

Marginally better intro - the camera style tonight seems to be "half her body, then full body shot, then garbled shot of the next dancer running up to take her spot". None of the dancing intros were that spectacular anyway. Most notable - Melinda wore horrid high-waist shorts. NO. Plus Robert needs to stop making goofy faces. He is too handsome to be that goofy - it just comes off as weird.

Instead of wasting all that time showing each and every person drawing all-star names out of a hat, how 'bout just giving us a dance routine with the left-over dancers? Because a Twitch and Neil number would be pretty kick-ass.

Cristina, Paso Doble: OK, now I think I see the difference between salsa and ballroom. Salsa is bent, and curvy, and in constant motion. Ballroom is straight, and has excellent posture, and requires effortless precision. Cristina is a salsa dancer, and not ready for the Paso Doble.

Adechike, Contemporary: Oh no, Mandy Moore, how is he supposed to smile when this crappy song is playing?? The smiling just made him look insane. I was too distracted by the shittiness of the song choice to even notice the dancing. So I guess it had lots of extensions and fluidity.

Alex, Broadway: See, now THIS guy was ready to do Paso Doble. But the jazzy Broadway wasn't his element - he's too precise, and too elongated. Yeah, he hit everything, but there was nothing dirty about it. And it should've been at least a leeeeetle bit dirty.

Ashley, Jazz: WOW. That was STELLAR. Granted, it's her wheel house, but she was terrific. Very quick, and fluid, and pretty, and fun. Oh wait - it was jazz, not contemporary. But Nigel was right - it wasn't jazz, anyway.

Billy, Crump: Well, no surprises there. It certainly could've been a lot worse, but it also didn't look like it came naturally. Some of the twists and jumps were actually really cool, and I think he had a good understanding of the physicality of the dance. He just ain't buck.

Robert, Argentine Tango: Well, he's a very pretty tango frame. But his flicks seemed to end too soon, and he wasn't as quick as the dance demanded.

Melinda, Contemporary: The word that kept coming to mind was "flat-footed". Which is weird, because she DID point her toes and all, so maybe it was just... flat.

Jose, Bollywood: The DVR has been on pause while I got distracted by a hundred other things, bc I am looking forward to this roughly... not at all. OK, pressing play and... you know what b-boy would've killed this? Legacy. Sigh. This kid is no Legacy. BUT - he was game, and I was actually rather impressed that he never looked LOST. Not as bad as I'd feared, and actually fun to watch. Y'know, if he hadn't compared himself to Legacy off the bat I might've been able to warm up to him quicker, bc he was pretty cute.

Lauren, Lyrical Hip-Hop: Well that wasn't very lyrical at all. I thought it was choppy, and didn't go as far as it could have with the story. It was too much set-up, and not enough delivery.

Kent, Jazz: Surprisingly awesome - he packs a lot more power than I had originally thought, and pulled off masculine better than I expected. Oddly enough, may have been my favorite this evening, even though it was a Tyce Joykiller DiOrio number.

Bottom 3: Cristina, Melinda, and... Adechike. Even though I did predict 3 girls, I think Ashley's number was really great, and people will respond to Lauren's dramatic talent (and it was late in the show).

The All-Stars were still SO much better than the contestants that it was often distracting.

SYTYCD Week 1 Results

Why isn't there anyone from Season 6 in the opening credit sequence? That's weird. They had time to remix it over the winter, y'know.

Opening: Yay! It's just the contestants! Glad they got to do this on their own. The piece itself looked kinda sloppy, though. A lotta "girls as ropes", which was kinda weird.

The first four come up, and it's already clear my predictions were off last night. Also clear that the director learned nothing - way to miss the music cue and make Kat look bad (Kat is awesome so I doubt the overly long awkward pause was her fault). Anyhow, this cluster is not looking good for Lauren. But FAKE OUT! Which is totally OK if Kat does it, but not OK at all when the judges do it. I realize this seems hypocritical, but I can live with myself in this instance.

So I called 2 out of 3 - and I'm sad I got Cristina right, bc she's cute and I think it would be great to watch her learning curve.

The professionals, doing a piece from "Come Fly Away": That was fan-TAS-tic. To make a gross over-simplification, dynamics in music often involves playing with volume - and I love how they added dynamics to this piece by altering the speed. VERY cool.

Solos:

Melinda taps to James Brown, and throws in some entertaing James Brown impressions. But the piece had no levels - it was just kinda hunched over, and moved in one horizontal line across the stage.

Alexie does a boring slow graceful stretching of limbs contemporary dance.

Cristina does a standard latin solo number. Also with no levels. Although it appears she moves in 2 diagonal lines, rather than one straight line across the stage.

Oi, none of those were very compelling. So I'm thinking it'll be Alexie, even though it's really cruel. But she doesn't seem to offer much in the way of bringing any variety to this season.

Usher: I didn't find that memorable, but I approve of Usher in general, and appreciate it when the show feature performers who actually spotlight dance in their act.

Justin Bieber video: I actually like this kid's voice, and had "One Time" in heavy rotation on my iPod after I downloaded it free on iTunes. I was set to be annoyed by the odd placement of this video on SYTYCD, until - BEAT FREAKS and POREOTIX were in it! And what may have been We Are Heroes but I couldn't quite tell! Dance shows collide and I LOVE IT!!!

So it is indeed Alexie, but as Adam said - the girl is hirable. She seems spunky enough to overcome, but I feel for her.

SYTYCD Top 11

I rewatched the showcase episode - just the dance numbers - and found I did not find the show quite as cheesy as I did on first viewing. I blame 1. the astroturf in the opening number, which created a jarring color contrast and 2. Tyce DiOrio's crappy Broadway routine. Yeesh, his stuff is a total joykill.

Dance intros: WTF happened here?!? Did they tell the new director this is a DANCE show, and the camera should be on the DANCERS?!? "Let's have no close-up for the very first dancer, cut the second one in half, hide the third one behind the audience, and for the fourth... just her arm!" That was AWFUL. AWFUL!

Billy Bell: Broadway, by Tyce "Joykiller" DiOrio. And my joy? Is killed. This routine was lame, and Billy couldn't pull off being a tough guy. Which is actually kinda hilarious, bc I never thought Kevin Bacon was all that tough in Footloose until just this moment.

Cristina: Jazz, by Sonia "All-My-Routines-Are-Starting-to-Look-the-Same" Tayeh. As a standard Sonia number, this was OK. But if she was supposed to actually evoke a snake with her movements, it wasn't fluid enough at all.

Jose: Hip-hop, by "Generally Entertaining" Taboleon. He was a bit clunky.

Adechike: Jazz, by Travis "How-Ya-Like-Me-NOW,- Benjy?" Wall. This was good, but it played right into his strengths. So I wasn't wowed, because it wasn't anything I wasn't expecting to see.

Melinda: Jive, by Tony and "Hellz YEAH I Can Still Dance This Shit If Need Be" Melanie. Starting with jive? Yowch - this is always a tough one for the newbies. Melinda was NOT the exception. While she tried to put on a show, she didn't interact with Pasha at all, which is not good in especially partner-centric ballroom.

We're (almost) at the halfway point, a digression on this year's format. I am struck in every routine just how much better the "all-stars" are than the contestants. It is distracting, and it seems really unfair. Since it's week one, it would be hard for anyone to demonstrate a great deal of chemistry with a partner - and that is especially so tonight, when only one person in the pair really has to be nervous.

Alex: Another Sonia piece. No doubt, boy has mad skilz. No criticism of his dancing - this one played to his strengths and let him give some good face. the first NOT to be overshadowed by his partner (and not just because I didn't think Alison was that great before - she's a lot better now.) Partner connection might have been easier to convey because this choreography actually discouraged eye contact anyway. Also- Dear Everyone: I have heard that Hallelujah song quite enough now, thank you.

Alexie: Another Taboleon piece. Cute. Adequate. Wish she looked at her partner more and the audience less.

Lauren: Pop Jazz by Mandy "My Hair Is Distracting" Moore. I like this girl, and I liked her in this. Same partner-connection complaint, but big kudos to her for being fearless. Granted, I think Ade probably inspires some confidence that you will not be dropped on your head.

Kent: Cha Cha by Melanie & Tony. Oof. His form was TERRIBLE. He looked like a kid pretending he knew ballroom, and all he remembered about it was that ballroom guys pull lots of ridiculous faces. Which is exactly what he himself just said, so now I'm in love with him, bless his little heart.

Ashley: Lyrical Jazz by Joykiller. She was lovely. This is the first time I've had a chance to really see her dance (she blended in to the showcase number and I had a hard time picking her out) (although they DID show her arm in the intro, so there was that) and she seems like the standard talented contemporary dancer who will at first seem blandly good but might later develop a spark to be one of the bestest ever (like Kathryn).

Robert: African Jazz by Sean "Don't Laugh At My Name" Cheesman. Before watching, I'm already excited because I'd been hoping they'd spend more time on African Jazz. His movements were a little too pretty for this piece, but he's hot so hopefully he'll be sticking around so they can rough him up some.

BOTTOM 3 PREDICTION: Cristina (too early in the line-up), Melinda (stuck with ballroom and didn't nail it), Adechike (too many other contemporary boys, and they had bigger followings going into this).

Who I'd Cut: Jose. He bores me. I've been annoyed since he said he was better than Legacy in the audition rounds because - he's no Legacy. Or Gev. Or Dom (as annoying as he is, kid is an uh-mazing b-boy). Or even Phillip Chbeeb (who I still love as a solo artist but wow he was not very good at anything else).

Finished watching too late to vote, but I might have had to go for Kent because of the Aw shucks factor. I mean, COME on. That kid is ADORABLE.

Season 7-11

Kathy trivia fact: I was 7 lbs 11 oz. at birth, resulting in a lifelong relationship with the Slurpee.

OK, so SYTYCD. I have been slow to start recapping this season for a few reasons, but chiefly among them - I'm not all that excited. I will probably learn to love this plucky crew as I have in years past, but I am very, VERY skeptical of the format change.

First off, I had NO PROBLEM with 20 dancers. I LIKED 20 dancers. I thought it was FUN to watch people pair up and see what sort of chemistry resulted between the contestants. Katee and Joshua! Gev and Courtney! Sabra and Dominic!

While the audition rounds seemed especially painful this year, they probably weren't any worse than they were in year's past. I take no joy in watching delusional nutcase after delusional nutcase baffle the judges with their narcissistic refusal to acknowledge what little talent they possess. The pathos was laid on WAY too thick, and I was pretty irritated when the show tried to manipulate me into crying about the dancer who was overweight - Oh, the humanity! And this season seemed very light on people dancing in unusual styles who weren't going to make the show - Cloggers! New Orleans bounce! Juggling! (OK, that last one is just on my wish list.)

The hour-long "I'm sorry to tell you this trick is going to be so overplayed that it will be meaningless and wasn't that much fun the first time but you're out... of toilet paper because I was just in your bathroom playing dress-up sparkle bath product bride, but don't worry because there's more toilet paper... in LA where you're going to be on the show!" ... was really, really grating and way too long.

So now we're finally at our top 11 (kinda irritating that they couldn't pick a number and mean it, but not gonna harp on that much) - and the season is once again chock full of contemporary dancers and very little else. Not that contemporary dancers aren't talented, but come on!

I am pleased to see the all-stars because I really do like each of them very much, and I'm happy they are getting work. And I was thrilled to see Mark's goofy little pose at the beginning of the "Fame" number, but as I continued to watch I thought... what is this reminding me of? With all the dancers that I already know doing a staged number to a cheesy song with an obvious theme? Then it hit me. THIS SHOW HAS BECOME SOLID GOLD. NOT a good sign.

The show begins, and... they're going to dance with the all stars right off the bat??? This is going to be distracting, because I would like to watch the NEW people and learn to like THEM.

New format, you have distressed me mightily. I'm having a tough time focusing here.

It is beginning to look like I'll be fast-forwarding judges this season. This self-adulation is unbearable.

I...I...I feel as though I have finally realized the Emperor is naked. Was this show always so CHEESY???

Cristina is the first stand-out for me, but that could also be because she only had 2 others to work with.

Billy and Alex only have to work with ONE all star? I am all ready to complain and THEN... Shit, that was amazing. What a gift Mia gave these three - it spotlighted everyone well, and Ade was just fantastic.

Sonia, on the other hand, kinda screwed the new guys by showcasing Neil right off the bat. Yeah, Neil is incredible, but we KNEW that.

OK, show. Please have some mojo back when the competing begins.

30 for 30: The Band That Wouldn't Die

Towards the end of this episode, I felt like I was channeling Liz Lemon because I kept yelling "Nerds!" at the screen. Which is not very nice, because these people seemed very sincere and harmless. But still. "Nerds!

One of the pivot points of this story was the incredible bonding power of the Baltimore Colts fight song. Which I don't know. stSo... um... maybe they could have... played it??? Seriously, wouldn't that be a perfect "follow the bouncing ball" number? I think it would have made me feel more included, and it would have made the piece more joyful. Instead, it was focused more on the sadness of losing the first team. 24 minutes of that sadness, before actually addressing the main theme (or at least the titled theme).

Plus, I never really understood what obstacles there were for Baltimore getting another team. Without further details, I have to take the pragmatic view that it just wouldn't earn enough money. In that vein, I don't think the Maryland legislature eventually went for the cost of bringing back football because of the incredibly catchy theme song - I think it must have been a pretty worthwhile revenue stream.

Moment I cried: I didn't. But I did get a little misty picturing band members pouring in from the streets of Annapolis to perform on the steps of the Capitol. Because I'm a sucker for the "slow clap".

The Part Where I Cried

I don't know why sports documentaries always get to me. One of my favorite parts of the Olympics has always been the incredible Bud Greenspan documentaries that follow them. I believe I have cried while watching every one of them. Probably more than once.


Not to say that my chain can be jerked that easily. Sure, I have cried at one or two Disney sports films (Miracle, for instance) but will not reach for a hanky every time the slow-clap sequence starts, signalling that the protagonist has overcome overwhelming odds or finally won the hearts of the crowd. But - come to think of it - I would not mind having a slow-clap at my funeral one day. Keep it in mind, folks.


Recently, ESPN launched a documentary series called 30 for 30, and like the Greenspan films, my eyes have welled up during every one so far.

• "Kings Ransom" - Gretzky gets traded to the Kings. I remember just being baffled when this happened, and thought it must have meant Gretzky was incredibly greedy. I take it back. I didn't care for the overly dramatic jump cuts throughout this film, and still don't understand how the owner of the Oilers thought they would ever lose money if they had Gretzky, but this did a solid job examining the trade. WHERE I CRIED: Gretzky's inability to finish his sentences during his press conference at that hokey little log cabin building, because he was so torn up about leaving Edmonton.
  
  



• "Small Potatoes: Who Killed the USFL?" - The rise and quick demise of the USFL. My favorite film of the series so far, since I remember being amused at how low-key and fun the league seemed and that it brought teams to smaller cities without other pro sports franchises. Donald Trump killed it by deciding he needed to prove he could be better than the NFL. He's an asshole. I really enjoyed the section where Jim Kelly and Steve Young reminisce about "The Greatest Game No One Ever Saw". WHERE I CRIED: Saw this one a while ago, so I can't remember more details, but there's a scene where one of the former players talked about how much fun the league was and how it was the best time of his life, then when it folded he didn't get to keep playing. The weight of his bittersweet dream that ended too soon got to me.
  
  



• "Muhammad and Larry" - The fight between Muhammad Ali and Larry Holmes that never should've happened, because Ali was in no shape to fight a current champion and it put a really sad bookend on his career. I'm sure it wasn't easy to argue with him, since he had so much bravado and was so loved, but it's too bad someone couldn't talk Ali out of it. WHERE I GOT MISTY: An interviewer mentions to Ali that he'd been talking to Holmes, and Ali keeps demanding to know "What'd he say about me? What'd he say about me?" The interviewer responds, "He said he liked you." Ali nods quietly and said "I like him, too." WHERE I CRIED: Ali is taking pictures with a dorky little white boy in glasses, and the kid starts shadow boxing with him. Ali chuckles, and takes the kid's glasses off. The parents are talking in the background and you can tell they don't want to impose or take too much of Ali's time, but the kid gamely keeps at it, and Ali is happy to play along with him and taps him on the head.
  
  



• "The Legend of Jimmy the Greek" - about - well, Jimmy the Greek. Namely how he brought gambling out into the mainstream, his rather tumultuous relationship with the co-stars on the CBS football show, and the ridiculous racist remarks that got him shut out of the public eye. WHERE I CRIED: Jimmy and his wife lost 3 of their children to cystic fibrosis. When speaking about their adult son in an interview, Jimmy's wife started out calm, but then started saying they knew what the outcome would be... and broke down crying. I was so sad for both of them, and for the siblings who survived - but also sad that Jimmy's response was to create even more distance between himself and his son since he apparently couldn't deal with the pain of losing him.
  
  



• "The U" - the rise of the University of Miami football team in the 80s. The first in the series to be given 2 hours. Which seems fitting for the hubris of Miami. Initially, I found the story to be inspiring - a city rejuvenated by sport, and a willingness to reach across the tracks to promote local talent - but in the end, I was left thinking they were kind of a bunch of assholes. This was encapsulated by Randal Hill saying you should blame everyone else in the world for his over-the-top celebrating, but don't blame him. I found this "my celebrating wasn't my fault" attitude a lot more offensive than any of the actual celebrating, which I admit was kind of entertaining. WHEN I CRIED: I didn't. I almost got choked up when the first coach talked about his regret at leaving the school after such a short tenure, but that was it.
  
  


• "Without Bias" - the incredible promise and terribly sudden death of Len Bias. This was a terrific entry in the series, and very moving. The poor kid made one bad decision that I could see a lot of people - not just young famous athletes - making. WHEN I CRIED: Oddly enough, I didn't cry here, either. I think because the whole story was so sad. The saddest moments were flashbacks of his parents, receiving the Celtics jersey Len didn't get to wear, and the father being interviewed after the death of another son.

DVR Cleaning

• I finally got around to watching Colma: The Musical, and fell a little bit in love with the cast somewhere around the opening number. I love the constant fog, the fact that the actors don't have great voices, the gay character who doesn't act like a stereotype (he's just a random kid who happens to be gay), the incredibly awkward conversations with potential love interests. Some of the language made me cringe, but overall - really enjoyed it.
  
  
• So have you heard of this Craig Ferguson fellow? He has apparently been doing a late night talk show for 5 years, and I just watched it about a month ago. And now it's set in my DVR. I don't watch every episode, but sometimes get hooked watching one night to the next because of the ridiculous not exactly continuous continuity. One night Craig declares he's learning Spanish, the next night his intro is in Spanish with absurd subtitles, and by night 3 it's mentioned but practically abandoned. And will no doubt show up again around Cinco de Mayo.
  
  
• Also had an episode of "Human Wrecking Balls" to watch - Pumphreys vs. Post Office. Who knew the P.O. boxes were so flimsy? And that I would continue to find 2 big guys breaking stuff entertaining? Not a fan of Nurse Abby, though - she cringes a lot. When it would be way more fun if she demanded to get in on the action once in a while, and hurl something through some plate glass. Which is totally what I would do if I were a Registered Nurse and also on "Human Wrecking Balls".