World of Dance Season 3, WEEK 9 – Who Got ROBBED?? (Vote)

Well, I see it on Twitter – someone ALWAYS yellin’ at Derek or Jennifer or Ne-Yo for their votes on such and such dancer, saying it’s their fault they didn’t make it to the next round. This week I saw LOTS of yelling at Derek for his scoring of…I think it was Funkanometry. Well, now’s your chance to make your voices heard. πŸ™‚

As you may recall, the Junior Division Duel Winners competing in the Cut were:

Moving 4ward (90.3)
Funkanometry (91.3)
Lauren Yakima (91.7)
Julian & Charlize (93)
Kayla Mak (93.7)
Ellie & Ava (95.3)

The top three scorers will be advancing to the Junior Division Finals (you can vote for your favorite at this link), but the bottom three were eliminated. Let’s take another look at the eliminee’s dances.

Totally bummed about these guys – loved them. This dance just wasn’t strong enough, plus they had that slip on the table.

Next, Funkanometry…I love these guys too. Cute and funny dudes. I think they have some growing to do before they make it farther in the competition though.

Finally, Lauren Yakima…

I think Lauren is an exceptional dancer. Is she better than Moving 4ward or Kayla or Ellie & Ava?? Maybe. But the problem for me is that this dance was so cliched contemporary. It had all the stuff it was supposed to have. There was nothing new or different or exciting about it. And I think it’s because the emotion doesn’t feel authentic, in addition to the moves being quite standard.

ALL that being said, I am very surprised that she didn’t get a shot at the final. At the end of the day, she was out danced by Kayla Mak, not to mention Ellie & Ava, the other contemporary dancers in the division. But that doesn’t change the fact that she’s a very good dancer. I’m not sure she was robbed. I don’t think any of them were at the end of the day. What do you say??

As for the Upper Team Division…I need a reminder of who all was dancing in the Cut.

Fuego Dance Crew (89.3)
Exiles (90.3)
Radiance (92.7)
Unity LA (93.3)
The Heima (97.3)
The Kings (97.7)

The Top 3 Teams from the Upper Team Division will be dancing tomorrow night in the Division Final (click the link to vote for your favorite and rewatch their dances), but the bottom three were eliminated. Re-watching their dances…first, Fuego Dance Crew:

They overestimate their own sex appeal. I seem to recall in the earlier rounds them chatting up all the ladies. Perhaps some focus is in order. Sad to say, I didn’t remember who these guys were until I saw them dancing and remembered the (foolish?) advice they got to sex it up a bit. As if.

The Exiles:

I said it during the live blog, and I’ll say it again. The one guy wearing a white hat?? Why?? Why? For one little trick?? The trick was good, but it wasn’t enough for that distracting hat!! The guy wasn’t even the main focal point for half the dance. I love these guys though…love them. They are entertaining, but they need more polish.

Why do I like contemporary so much better when it’s done in a large group?? Love Radiance… they did have a few tiny mistakes though.

So, what do you all think?? As much as I love Radiance, I don’t think anyone was robbed. Remember, if someone was robbed, you have to deprive another team of their spot – and who is that going to be?? Noooobody, IMO.

April 27, 2019 I Written By

I'm a nerd and proud of it. Two degrees in geology also means I love BEER. :-) I'm also a Derek lover - proud of that too. So don't scream at those of us on this site and call us a bunch of "biased Derek-lovers" - it's just ME. :-) It may sound like I hate DWTS at times, but really, I'm just a snarky nitpicker from way back. And I'm cynical and jaded too. But I do love DWTS. :-)

World of Dance Season 3, WEEK 9 – The CUT Not-so-Live BLOG

Hi all! Sorry I didn’t blog yesterday – it was Easter and I was in a sugar coma. πŸ™‚ But I am going to watch the show now and blog as I go. Hope you all enjoyed it last night. It was all about the Upper Teams division and the Junior Division. Here we go…And I haven’t been spoiled.

Derek looks fineeee in a turtleneck. Love Derek singing to Ne-yo through the wall. Love Jennifer’s very strange outfit.

Juniors going first, mentored by Jennifer. Haha…Funkenometry going first…little spacemen. They are all 12 year old boys in front of Jennifer. And she’s wearing some amazing shoes.

Here we go with their dance. This is actually pretty cute. Don’t know if cute will be enough, but it is cute. Fun little lean trick. Highly entertaining – not super difficult, but highly entertaining.

Ne-Yo wearing a helmet is hilarious. Jennifer says they added her suggestions, that it really came together and that it was fun and innovative. Ne-Yo says they’re becoming a favorite. It’s entertaining and they earned the funny and danced well. Derek says the concept and costumes were better than the routine, the choreography was elementary (agreed). Ne-Yo says he would still pay money to see it.

Scores: 93, 93, 88 for an average of 91.3. Wonder if there is discussion between the judges so that Jennifer doesn’t score her mentees low, and Derek goes low to offset her – because you know that is not going to end up being the best act in the division, yet 93 is a high score.

Sorry, this Derek-Ne-Yo thing is just hilarious.

Next is the probable winner of the Junior Division, Lauren Yakima.

Come on, Lauren, kill it. Dress is beautiful, lighting is beautiful, fairly standard contemporary choreography so far. It was very beautiful, but I don’t think it was as special as her last dance. It takes a lot to move me, and that didn’t really do it. Which disappoints me.

The judges loved it, saying the emotion was general, Derek points out the wobbly moments (I caught those – I guess they all did, based on the comments while they were scoring). It seems like they don’t have much else to say.

Scores: 91, 91, 93 for an average of 91.7 – a much lower score than I expected from her, actually.

Next up is Moving 4ward and they are edited straight out of the gate, you can tell by the way the dance gets started. And they had a slip on the table. Which is a shame because I actually prefer them to either Lauren or Kayla.

Derek says he lost excitement in the middle. Jennifer agrees. The whole thing is VERY truncated.

Scores; 90, 91, 90 for an average of 90.3 which is currently third place. The shortness of the routine means they don’t make it.

Julian and Charlize are up next. Jennifer likes the cat and mouse game, but says they have to go all the way there, but they don’t yet.

This is off to an excellent start. Really good, interesting, sharp moves. I LOVED that!! It told a whole story, it was lovely.

Derek starts off and he’s a bit on crack saying he saw the choreography more than he saw the dance. Well, I don’t agree with that. πŸ™‚ Great musicality there. Their hits are effective thought. But then he says he really liked it. Jennifer says it was an amazing routine, narrative was great, dancing was great, it was beautiful. Ne-Yo says there was so much beat manipulation, but it was danced exquisitely.

Scores: 94, 91, 94 (Ne-Yo, Derek, Jennifer) for an average of 93…and the top of the leaderboard. Well deserved. And they are guaranteed a spot in the divisional final, I believe. Moving 4ward is out.

Kayla Mak is up next. Dig the outfit. Seeing a bit more ballerina this time. The walking and her lines. Derek is right, she is exquisite. In the end, I feel like that was better than Lauren’s routine but…

Derek says exquisite again and says ballet can compete on this show. Jennifer talks about their discussion and that she really tapped into it. Derek talks about her transitions – how great they are. Jennifer says she’s so delicate but strong and courageous. Ne-Yo says there’s a edge to her that sets her apart.

Scores: 93, 94, 94 for an average of 93.7 which puts her slightly ahead of Julian and Charlize – only 0.7 points. Funkenometry is out, but gets props from the judges.

Ellie and Ava are up next. Sounds like they might be taking a risk. Jennifer going hard core on them, saying she doesn’t get it. She actually gives them pretty good advice, but man, big changes are risky.

They do move very well together even when not in sync. Great flip at the end. All in all, very powerful routine. I think I liked it better than Lauren’s.

Ne-Yo says the power was real. Now everybody is crying including me. Ne-Yo says it was very powerful. Jennifer says it was sooo badass. The tone was perfect. Derek says they embodied it all. Jennifer says the change was worth it.

Scores: 95, 95, 96 for an average o f95.3 and the top spot on the leaderboard, knocking out Lauren Yakima. Just goes to show, you never know what’s going to happen and you have to bring it every time.

That means the top three acts for the Junior Division are:
Ellie and Ava
Kayla Mak
Julian and Charlize

Unexpected, but I love it!!

Now for the Upper Team Division. Exiles are up first. These are the dads doing hip hop thing…they’re fun though. Good enough to win redemption. Ne-Yo says they are in an unfinished place. He tries to pump them to get them to believe in themselves. Hope it works.

Like their outfits. Only one guy with a hat??Seems like it worked. The hat guy seems to be the focal point but he’s not except sometimes. This is a pretty strong routine, but I don’t know.

Ne-Yo says they were feeling uncertain but they found the confidence. Jennifer says they were trying to tell them something with the song. Jennifer felt it. She says they nailed it. Derek loved the windmill trick. Jennifer says some of the spacing was off. Derek says some of the dancing in between dropped the energy.

Scores: 90, 90, 91 for an average of 90.3. I tend to think that won’t last but we’ll see.

The Kings are up next. Love these guys – hope they do well. Ne-yo seems to tell them to streamline it a bit, but I dunno.

Their outfits are really effective with a team that large. I’m at loss for words actually. That transformer move was super cool, and everything after that point was just amazing. Fantastic.

Jennifer is all like OMG. She says it was a very different routine. Ne-Yo said it had just enough comedy. Derek – at the beginning it was too much but when it got going it was fantastic. Derek and Jennifer both say insane. The judges are essentially raving.

Scores: 96, 98, 99 (Ne-yo, Derek, Jennifer) for an average of 97.7. Well deserved.

Up next, Unity LA – my favorites (with Kings a close second). Zack talking about how their careers have an expiration date.

Oh boy, they’re in trouble. They were edited to the point that the audience wouldn’t get the point of the dance, and it was still a bit messy and not as compelling as some of their earlier routines.

Derek says “interesting” which is not a good sign. Jennifer says it was super creative, but it can’t get too abstract so that they don’t get it. Yeah, even the judges comments are heavily edited. They’re not long for the show even with what will probably be decent scores

Scores: 93, 93, 94 for an average of 93.3. That puts them temporarily in second place.

Fuego Dance Crew is up next. Ne-Yo tells them to turn up the sexy.

Off to a pretty strong start. I’m not seeing the sexy but the moves in the middle are cool until they almost blew the roll. It was interesting, ,I don’ know if it was that great.

Derek says they improved their wave. Ne-yo says they brought the latin fire. Jennifer says they have improved and they are the most fun and would be great to hang out with. She thinks it’s a little elementary. Derek says it needed ore gasoline and it was a little elementary. Derek liked the pictures, but he doesn’t think it was strong enough for this stage of the competition. I would agree.

Scores: 90, 89, 89 for an average of 89.3, which puts them out of the competition.

This is going to be tight. Radiance up next. They were so fantastic last week, I hope they can hold it up. If they can bring the emotion they have back stage to the stage, they should be good.

I think they did it. I think it was beautiful. Derek asks what it was about. Derek got it I think. He says they did a great job with the narrative. From a competitive standpoint there were a few moments that weren’t together, Ne-Yo agrees. Jennifer loves when dancers convey what they’re feeling. She thinks the piece itself could have been stronger, she didn’t understand that it was about shootings.

Scores: 94, 92 92 for an average of 92.7 which moves them into third place, knocking out Exiles. This means that Unity LA and Kings are guaranteed a spot in the Divisional Final. So why did Unity get so edited??

The Heima are our last group of the night. No Mask tonight…This could help or hurt them, as they explain in their package. The Mask mask their insecurities.

I like their hands as masks. Off to a great start. Love that swing they created. The slow mo part was also awesome. Hell, the whole thing was awesome. Excellent.

Derek is up…and he hasn’t been for a while. Jennifer says they are explosive and exciting. They know who they are, all their athletic talent. Derek says they defy physics. Ne-Yo says they took amazing risks, he loves seeing their faces, loves the smiles, they brought personality on top of being technically sound. Quality work.

Scores: 98, 95, 100 for an average of 97.7 – which knocks out Radiance. Hooray for the Heima but boo for Radiance. I’ll have more to say about that tomorrow in my recap post.

End of the show leaves us with (for the Upper Team Division):
The Heima
The Kings
Unity LA

April 22, 2019 I Written By

I'm a nerd and proud of it. Two degrees in geology also means I love BEER. :-) I'm also a Derek lover - proud of that too. So don't scream at those of us on this site and call us a bunch of "biased Derek-lovers" - it's just ME. :-) It may sound like I hate DWTS at times, but really, I'm just a snarky nitpicker from way back. And I'm cynical and jaded too. But I do love DWTS. :-)

World of Dance Season 3, WEEK 8 – The CUT LIVE BLOG

Tonight we’re going into the Cut with the Upper and Junior Team Divisions. As I recall, all the competitors dance and the top three in each Division move to the next round. If you want to refresh your memory on who the readers of this blog voted for as the top three in each division, check out the post at the link.

Show starts in 15 minutes…you have just enough time to review the above linked blog and get yourself a glass of wine…or soda, if you’re not of age. πŸ™‚

Here we go!!

Derek’s pants are…FINE. Yummy. πŸ˜‰

Upper Division is going first, mentored by Derek. Jonathan Y Jorge are up first, and they love them some Derek. πŸ™‚

Great outfits. Death defying move to start with! Followed by many ore great moves. I love these guys. They’re exciting. Seems like a lot more dancing this time around. Read more..

April 14, 2019 I Written By

I'm a nerd and proud of it. Two degrees in geology also means I love BEER. :-) I'm also a Derek lover - proud of that too. So don't scream at those of us on this site and call us a bunch of "biased Derek-lovers" - it's just ME. :-) It may sound like I hate DWTS at times, but really, I'm just a snarky nitpicker from way back. And I'm cynical and jaded too. But I do love DWTS. :-)

Update on New World of Dance Host Scott Evans

Previously, when I posted that Derek Hough had told us who the new host was, I linked to the wrong Scott Evans. Which is why it didn’t make sense that he was the host of a dance competition. World of Dance tweeted the correct Scott Evans…

And I’m still not sure why he’s the host. πŸ™‚ He is an Access Hollywood correspondent, so he’s a more natural fit than the other Scott Evans when it comes to hosting….but does he have any actual dance experience in the way that Jenna does?? No idea. Jenna was such a great host because she had a very nurturing personality. Perhaps Scott will as well.

December 29, 2018 I Written By

I'm a nerd and proud of it. Two degrees in geology also means I love BEER. :-) I'm also a Derek lover - proud of that too. So don't scream at those of us on this site and call us a bunch of "biased Derek-lovers" - it's just ME. :-) It may sound like I hate DWTS at times, but really, I'm just a snarky nitpicker from way back. And I'm cynical and jaded too. But I do love DWTS. :-)

And the New ‘World of Dance’ Host is…..

Scott Evans, according to Derek Hough!! Not sure what he has to do with dance…and he’s going to have his work cut out for him, replacing Jenna Dewan.

December 13, 2018 I Written By

I'm a nerd and proud of it. Two degrees in geology also means I love BEER. :-) I'm also a Derek lover - proud of that too. So don't scream at those of us on this site and call us a bunch of "biased Derek-lovers" - it's just ME. :-) It may sound like I hate DWTS at times, but really, I'm just a snarky nitpicker from way back. And I'm cynical and jaded too. But I do love DWTS. :-)

World of Dance – Are You Ready for Season 3??

Because Jennifer Lopez, Derek Hough and Ne-Yo sure are!! That’s right, filming has started. πŸ™‚

Judge Derek has me curious with this little clip of dancing with last season’s contestant Daniella…..

October 7, 2018 I Written By

I'm a nerd and proud of it. Two degrees in geology also means I love BEER. :-) I'm also a Derek lover - proud of that too. So don't scream at those of us on this site and call us a bunch of "biased Derek-lovers" - it's just ME. :-) It may sound like I hate DWTS at times, but really, I'm just a snarky nitpicker from way back. And I'm cynical and jaded too. But I do love DWTS. :-)

The Finale of World of Dance Season 2! Live Blog!!

Just a few more minutes until we start the finale. Who do you think is going to win?? I’m no longer sure of anything. I think I would like to see the Lab win.

Love to see the judges dance on TV…remember, what was shown on TV was a short version of the full dance you can see online.

Each group or dancer dances twice – once to a song picked by their mentor and once to a song of their choice.

Love that shot from the LA museum with Charity and Andres, where all the lamp posts are. So cool. They’re up first with Derek as a mentor.

Derek picks “Ain’t No Sunshine” which is a remix of the original. Love when he gets in there and dances with them.

Love the start, with her in silhouette, and then they turn up the heat. This is very good – contempofusion style dance which I appreciate. I don’ know if it’s enough to win it all but they’re damn good.

Derek stands for them, loves the partner work, loves the silhouette. Asks the how they feel being this close, they are grateful. Ne-Yo mentions the broken toe again – the big toe which she did all those crazy spins on. Jennifer loves how the compliment each other, says it was a great routine, but there were moments where they had nerves. Read more..

September 12, 2018 I Written By

I'm a nerd and proud of it. Two degrees in geology also means I love BEER. :-) I'm also a Derek lover - proud of that too. So don't scream at those of us on this site and call us a bunch of "biased Derek-lovers" - it's just ME. :-) It may sound like I hate DWTS at times, but really, I'm just a snarky nitpicker from way back. And I'm cynical and jaded too. But I do love DWTS. :-)

World of Dance Season 2! WEEK 14 Live Blog!! Divisional Finals!!

Well, let’s see if I like this week more than I liked last week. Maybe Misty Copeland will even things about a bit…although she’s a notoriously tough scorer. This week is the divisional finals where we whittle it down to one team/dancer per division. Ugh. Super hard. Thanks to WoD twitter for summing up the groups in once nice tweet. πŸ™‚

Who do I want to go through? Having a tough time with that one. I sure do love The Lab, but the Fabulous Sisters are great too. Juniors? I think Charity and Andres. Upper – Karen y Ricardo or there is no justice in this world. We don’t need another contemporary dancer. Although I do think Ashley and Zach bring something new to that style. Upper Team? I still like S-Rank although Poreotics could take it. I think the Ruggeds were a fluke last week. We’ll see!!

Here we go….
Read more..

September 5, 2018 I Written By

I'm a nerd and proud of it. Two degrees in geology also means I love BEER. :-) I'm also a Derek lover - proud of that too. So don't scream at those of us on this site and call us a bunch of "biased Derek-lovers" - it's just ME. :-) It may sound like I hate DWTS at times, but really, I'm just a snarky nitpicker from way back. And I'm cynical and jaded too. But I do love DWTS. :-)

World of Dance Season 2! WEEK 13 Live Blog!! THE CUTS, Part 2!!

Ten more minutes until the second round of THE CUT!! I already discussed my hopes for tonight – we’ll see how right (or wrong) I was.

Tonight – Upper Team and Junior Divisions! Let’s go!!

Upper Team is going first with mentors Paula Abdul and Jenna Dewan. Desi Hoppers are going first – I love them. All are starstruck by Paula.

They can’t understand her…don’t feel bad, most humans can’t. πŸ™‚

They’re all in white with gold trim. Wow, what a formation!! Love the bollywood feel and the great formations. It makes them unique. But they don’t seem quite as tight as normal.

Ending was awesome. Elephant. πŸ™‚

Jennifer says she loves watching them – traditional and modern at the same time. Respect for the culture. Derek loves the opening picture and all the shapes, all unique moves. Ne-Yo loves how they represent where they’re from, they’re going to be remembered. Says it had everything.

Score: 92, 90, 90 for an average of 90.7. A bit on the low side for the first act – not a great sign. We will see.

Embodiment is up next. Paula tells them there are a few things the need to work on. Queen of Clean. She thinks they bring something special.

Time to dance…another very cool opening. There are so many of them that when they are in sync it is something to behold. And this is really something, but I feel it might have been too calm, with not as much Pow. Beautiful though. Hmmmm….were they edited??

Derek says it was so beautiful and powerful, they filled out the music with their rhythms. Derek loves it. Ne-Yo loves that they’re the perfect blend of elegant and masculinity. Ne-Yo says almost tooo much movement in parts. Jennifer says they need quite moments, stick to the story. Says they danced it well and it was clean but not to over-choreograph.

Scores: 89, 91, 93 for an average of 91 – thanks to Derek they’ll take number 1, for now. Scared for my Desi Hoppers.

Lock and LOL Crew, highly edited and no package, they get an 86.7. They aren’t long for this world.

The Bradas DO get a package with mentoring. Serious critiques from Paula. Again, they are highly edited, we don’t see even most of the dance and just bits of the judging. They score a 90, 88, 89 for an average of 89, so they bump Lock and LOL Crew.

Connection up next! They explain the story of their dance to Paula and Jenna, about their country. The ladies love them.

Let’s dance…Nice heartbeat move but it’s been done a lot. It’s a pretty tight routine.Starting out a little too much like a cheerleading team for me, I think. Love that huge spring move. And the ending is very effective.

Jennifer calls it amazing, of course – didn’t think it was THAT great. She calls it their best. Derek says their name suits them, they are one, says they did really, really good. Ne-Yo says he underestimated them, cleanest they’ve seen them. Sounded like consolation scores??

Scores: 94, 91, 89, for an average of 91.3 which moves them into first place – no agreement from me on that one. Derek was on the right track.

Poreotics are up next. They’re talking about how their dance took a while to get there. They say they’re going to take his notes. No more jelly donuts – their whole dance isa bout that with donuts in the background – very cute. The whole routine is quite good, but no sign of Paula and Jenna so that makes me wonder if they’re going to make it. That was a very funny, great dance.

Derek loved that they burned him, says they are so creative and it made him happy. Ne-Yo says he loves the pictures, that it was humorous – darn near perfect. Jennifer says it was so creative and innovative and fun – one of their best.

Scores: 93, 91, 91 for an average of 91.7. Poor Desi Hoppers just got the boot. πŸ™

Poreotics are guaranteed a spot. Next up are The Ruggeds. Paula likes the different tricks but their roll offs – off on the timing. Very short package.

Quiet start. Might be too much going on. and not clean enough. Their roll offs have improved and they do have some good tricks. It definitely tightens up towards the middle.

Derek says it was unbelievable and I have to wonder what he’s smoking. Perhaps it’s just better in person. He’s seriously raving. I do think it was very good but this level of raving I don’t quite get. Ne-Yo says the choreo was smart, says they do things others can’t do. Jennifer says this is their first full, complete routine. She’s giddy. They pushed the envelope.

Scores: 92, 92, 94 for an average of 92.7. Poor Rudy was crying even before the scores were read. πŸ™ But dude, you work for both Derek and Jennifer – chin up, dude.

Now, will it be Connection or S-Rank. I called S-Rank a sure thing earlier in the week and I certainly didn’t think that the Ruggeds would knock out Embodiment.

S-Rank has been on top the whole time…are we going to get a surprise here? Paula loves them, calls them smart and clever. Says they need one more “moment”.

Time to dance! Great opening move with with the creepy girl. Dang there is a lot of them. That girl is the focus and it works. This dance is excellent, possibly the best of the night. Not sure what it is, but it has a real musicality and it’s exciting. Super clean. And that girl is dope.

Totally disagree with Jennifer, who says she likes the choreographer up front. Petty. Derek loves it – says they are a musicality clinic. This I agree with. Ne-Yo says they are the cleanest team in the competition. Says they are great. I wonder who Jennifer is pulling for and if she’ll get her way again.

Scores: 91, 93, 93 for an average of 92.3 putting them in second place, knocking out Connection. Low scores for some of these teams – don’t get it.

The Junior Division is next with Ne-Yo and Mel B – both are singers more than dancers, so I guess they go together.

First performance goes to Josh and Taylor. I remember this duo, but…not sure that I cared about them.

Some interesting moves in this dance, but it seems a bit simple. It definitely improves past the half way point. I don’t get the whole date thing. It was just all right.

Jennifer calls it a “great little routine” – not a good sign when she adds the word “little”. Comments on the LED and calls it new. She wants to know if it’s good enough for the cut. Ne-Yo says it’s quality work and that they shouldn’t relay so much on the stage, says when they were separated they lost some of the magic. Derek says he loves them, that there were a lot of cool moments, that the added drums didn’t match their choreography. But great job.

Scores: 86, 83, 87 for an average of 85.3 – very low but I agree with that. They are highly unlikely to last.

Victoria Caban up next – here is another one that I don’t know about. She is EXCELLENT, but her style is pretty narrow, which makes it hard to show something new….and I was right. She gets neither a package nor mentoring shown which is never a good sign.

She got tripped up on the skirt, but the audience loves it. She only got an 85.3 – another score unlikely to last.

Jonas and Ruby up next. Being mentored by two people who wouldn’t know ballroom from a hole in the ground. But both mentors seem to get it. Comment on Jonas’ face. Ne-yo says he forgets they’re juniors. That’s ballroom for you, especially.

The dance….Nice bicycle move. Very sharp – making ballroom pretty contemporary so it’s stands up with the other styles on excitement. Matrix move was super cool. Lifts were great. Holy crap, that was an excellent dance. Best of the night, perhaps.

Derek says they always come to play. They always attack, loved all the different styles, says they brought their A-game. Ne-Yo got the matrix inspiration. loved the concept, great job. Jennifer says they smashed it, they were perfectly in sync, really innovative. Jennifer says they stand out from the Ballroom routines – diss, they stand out from all.

Scores: 85, 89, 91 for an average of 88.3 which is an absolute joke. I’m sorry, who are you holding the scores down for?? Jaxon? I’m kinda pissed right now because that was the hardest routine of the night and they got fucked over for more heavy contemporary. BOO.

The next girl has serious potential, Madison Brown, but she gets heavily edited so she’s not long for the competition.

Next up is Sean and Kaycee. They’re cute and Sean is a very good choreographer for his age. The mentors spend all their time shipping but man get over it. Talking about relating to the song.

The dance: The fog machine got into over drive, but I like all the lights Kayce walks through. this is not contemporary or hip hop but a nice combination, very cute dance. They are not in sync in one part, but not sure they’re supposed to be. They step it up towards the end and it’s quite good.

Jennifer says they move her. Ne-yo says the boy is a genius. Kaycee tells what the dance is about to a big audience “awwww”. Jennifer says it is “cut worth”. Derek says they are masters at “action – reaction” – subtle but effective. Ne-Yo says his choreography has his signature.

Scores: 88, 94, 94 for an average of 92 – can’t complain about that! Victoria AND Josh/Taylor both get the boot because both were tied at the bottom.

Avery and Marcus are up next. The kids who knocked out Eva Igo. Ne-yo says they need to add power, Mel says she likes it when they’re together.

Very balletic as usual. But I think they are too..and the dance was edited I think.

Derek says this is a ballet that he would go to watch. Overall a great performance. Ne-Yo says the music is big and the dance was too pretty for the power of the music. Jennifer says the end was sooo good but it started slow.

Scores: 85, 86, 85 for an average of 85.3 which means they don’t make the Cut.

Charity and Andres up next. Another contemporary couple. Quite tired of contemporary. Why do the judges – even the ballroom expert who is trained in other areas as well – default to loving contemporary?? Are they that susceptible to the sob story??

Anyway, Ne-yo gives them some critique but Mel B loves it.

Extremely typical beginning, nothing new. Still nothing new. Okay his flip was good. they synchronized cup was lovely. That lift was rather unsteady. I liked it when it sped up more. Audience loved it but I’m a bit ambivalent.

Jennifer calls them exceptional. She then says they’re awesome, don’t let your head get in your way. Ne-Yo says get out of your head, show your greatness. Ne-Yo says it was amazing. Derek says he didn’t like it…he loved it. Dude – cheesy cliche. He proceeds to rave. He’s annoying me tonight and I love him. He does think they should follow the drums a bit more. Over all he loves them.

Scores: 89, 93, 96 for an average of 92.7 which puts them temporarily in first place. Derek’s score is on crack, I’m with Ne-yo.

Now it’s Jaxon Willard versus Jonas and Ruby and I’m already pissed off. Seriously, we’re going to have all contemporary dancers in the divisional finals?? Christ. Give me a break.

More of the same from Jaxon. Dude is a great dancer but all of his dances are very, very similar. Mel and Ne-yo are raving, trying to give him confidence. I appreciate Ne-Yo’s efforts with Jaxson, he does need the help and the confidence. This part of him touches me, but his dances all look the same. But he’s just a baby yet, so there’s that.

Side Note…what the hell is Mel wearing? Damn.

Jaxon – Okay, great opening. Not a sob story, just strength and toughness. Much better!! Extremely strong as usual. But you can see the confidence as well. He’s got some swag in this one. Not a fan of the gymnastic moves disguised as contemporary though.

Ne-Yo is on his feet. It was markedly improved in terms of personality. Ne-Yo goes to hug him, he’s so great. Jennifer says it’s beautiful thing to watch and a tremendous well of emotion. She wants the routines to mean something to him. Derek raves, says he believes him, his movements, his intentions. Says he’s a beautiful artist, beautiful dancer.

Scores: 90, 90, 92 for an average of 90.7, beating Jonas and Ruby.

You know, Jaxon did a great job, but the judges ridiculously underscored Jonas and Ruby. Now the Juniors division is uniformly contemporary with a bit of hip hop thrown in by Sean and Kaycee. This is the first time I’ve called bullshit on this show. I’m annoyed. Most difficult style routinely getting the shaft even from Derek. Come on, dude.

August 29, 2018 I Written By

I'm a nerd and proud of it. Two degrees in geology also means I love BEER. :-) I'm also a Derek lover - proud of that too. So don't scream at those of us on this site and call us a bunch of "biased Derek-lovers" - it's just ME. :-) It may sound like I hate DWTS at times, but really, I'm just a snarky nitpicker from way back. And I'm cynical and jaded too. But I do love DWTS. :-)

World of Dance Season 2 – What’s Coming Up on Week 2 of the CUT

Paula’s getting feisty, that’s what. πŸ™‚ And the commercial makes it appear that she’s getting feisty with Rudy Abreu and his troupe.

Last week we got the Upper Division and the Junior Team Division. The dancers moving to the Division Finals are:

Upper Division
Karen y Ricardo
Michael Dameski
Ashley and Zach

Junior Team Division
Fabulous Sisters
The Lab
The Rock Company

I think that it’s Karen y Ricardo’s to lose in the Upper Division, but the Junior Team Division is mind boggling. I love all three groups with a special fondness for the first two. I would like to see both the Fabulous Sisters and The Lab win for different reasons. That’s going to be the hardest division, for me.

As for the next dancers to face The CUT?? Read more..

August 26, 2018 I Written By

I'm a nerd and proud of it. Two degrees in geology also means I love BEER. :-) I'm also a Derek lover - proud of that too. So don't scream at those of us on this site and call us a bunch of "biased Derek-lovers" - it's just ME. :-) It may sound like I hate DWTS at times, but really, I'm just a snarky nitpicker from way back. And I'm cynical and jaded too. But I do love DWTS. :-)