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. 🙂

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. 🙂

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. 🙁

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. 🙁 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. 🙂 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. :-)

Pure World of Dance, Season 2, Week 5 (Qualifiers) – Court’s Thoughts: The Good, The Bad, & the WTF???

So this week was supposed to be “a very special episode” of WOD…why? Because someone got injured right before they were due to go onstage? Sorry, but I wasn’t feeling the alleged mushiness that the “very special episode” description we got last week implied.  But we did get some good acts, and saw quite a few familiar faces this week – namely Rudy Abreu (the leader of Embodiment) and Audrey Case & Will Thomas (from Royal Flux), who are all SYTYCD alums. No doubt this show has definitely brought a few dancers we’ve forgotten about over the years back to the forefront of our minds 😉 Not a whole lot else to add, so shall we get to it?

This is What Happens When You Do Too Much of A Good Thing: Royal Flux. I’ll say this: generally, I enjoy Royal Flux and what their style of dance is. We only saw them pretty briefly last season (no qualifier performance shown, and I don’t even know that they got a full-length intro in the duels), but I went back and read what I had to say about them and it was neutral-to-positive. Here’s my concern: their routines tend more towards the DNA end of the spectrum – meaning they toe the line between and an above-average amount of content and wayyyyy too much content. They’re doing really cool lifts and tricks – but there is just SO MUCH going on onstage at any given time that it can get a bit hard to absorb and appreciate everything they’re doing. And part of me thinks that may have contributed to their teammate (who Justin on Twitter pointed out to me is Audrey Case from season 9 of SYTYCD – I thought she looked familiar!) getting injured while practicing – they are just going full-tilt, trying to do more and more interesting and complicated lifts and tricks that eventually, something has to give.  I’d like to see them pare down some of what is going on onstage at any given time, and maybe have those in the background stick to simpler steps in order to keep the focus on those doing the complex stuff.  They’re about 50/50 for me headed into the duels – I think their success is largely going to depend on who they’re pitted against: I think they lose if they’re put up against an act that’s very clean and fleshed-out like Fabulous Sisters, but they might be able to beat a less-realized act like Expressenz.

100% Skill, 0% Personality: Freshh. I’m not sure I’ve seen an act on this show yet that was so fully engaged and skilled in their performance – but had such a poker face about it, to the point that it felt a bit robotic.  I mean, these guys were doing some pretty intricate stuff, IN PERFECT SYNCHRONIZATION, but judging from the looks on their faces, they may as well have been doing the multiplication tables in their heads.  Yes, their faces were moving – but it somehow felt…rehearsed? Like they were used to not doing ANYTHING AT ALL, facially, and were forcing themselves to do SOMETHING to make the whole things seem more…human? I dunno…I’m just left with a really strange vibe from this group.  They’re fantastic, but there’s a peculiar hollowness to their performance that I’m having a hard time putting into words.  They’re another group that I’m on the fence about headed into the duels – depending on who they’re pitted against, they could advance or they could get bumped out.  Strange.

Eva Igo, Slightly Remixed?: Madison Brown. Oh, awesome…another teenage-ish female contemporary dancer. Perhaps I’ve just soured so much on Eva that any contemporary act in general kinda makes me yawn, but Madison just felt like a slightly tweaked Eva with slightly different packaging. I will commend Madison on having much better musicality than Eva, and more of a tendency to move with intent and understanding behind the choreography; whereas Eva tends to give more of an impression of just going through the motions and not being particularly connected to the music or choreo. But at the end of the day – are they really that different or special in what they do? Flex, flail, repeat – my guess is that they’ll pit them against one another in the duel, and we might get a surprise shock elim of Eva.

Rudy!…Rudy!…Ruuuuuuudy!: Embodiment. It’s good to see Rudy really coming into his own as a choreographer 🙂 I remember watching him on SYTYCD, and he seemed like he was often overlooked in favor of the more conventionally attractive male contestants, despite the fact that Rudy was impressively cross-trained – he specialized in contemporary, but had training in salsa/ballroom (with Manny Castro, no less) and seemed to fare pretty well in hip-hop as well. I know he did a stint on Derek & Julianne’s tour, and as he mentioned on WOD last night, he’s also been dancing in J-Lo’s Vegas residency. So for him to finally step out in front and choreograph, after being a backup dancer for awhile? That’s pretty impressive, and I daresay it was a pretty admirable effort for a first-timer – loved that there seemed to be two guys doing a pas-des-deux in the middle while the group danced around them; loved that everyone was very in-sync; also loved that it was a very edgy performance with a lot of musicality. And I’m going to disagree slightly with J. Lo with regards to Rudy’s ambitions for doing the show – I don’t think any act HAS to win in order to “get hired” or benefit professionally from the show.  Would winning improve their chances? Maybe, but I think the best thing this show has to offer is exposure – so I’m right on board with Rudy’s ambition to do well on the show, but have it be more about personal growth rather than being 100% eyes-on-the-prize.  I think this group could go far this season, though, if they can continue to switch up their routines week to week.

Cognitive Dissonance On Fleek: Marissa & the Heartbreakers. Like Heidi, I’m generally not a fan of “hairography” – anyone that has followed us over at PureDWTS knows how we groan and shake our heads whenever the female pros are reduced to Beyonce-esque hair-flipping and mugging to the camera while the male pros get to do really athletic, impressive choreo that really shows off their skills. So normally, what Marissa & the Heartbreakers (the name is pretty cringe-y, while I’m at it) did would not be my cup of tea.  HOWEVER – I am actually familiar with Marissa and have seen her dancing in some of of Yanis Marshall’s (a fairly well-known choreographer from Britain’s Got Talent who has become known for “heels” choreography) YouTube videos, and I will say that the girl can DANCE.  Additionally, “heels” is becoming a more well-known and well-appreciated choreography style these days, and I have a definite appreciation for the difficulty of it. It may not look like much, because heels do impose some limitations to the type of movements that can be done (gymnastic tricks are pretty much out, and balance/flexibility tricks like extended legs tend to be risky), but the fact that these girls can still turn and and spin and stretch in those shoes is pretty remarkable.  So I’m left somewhat torn on this act – part of me really appreciates the difficulty of what they do, and part of me is also “This isn’t competitive enough for this show.” I will agree with Derek that they need to come up with some more dynamic ways to fill time in their routine, aside from just sexily walking from spot to spot. My gut feeling is that they probably won’t make it past the duels – but I do think what they do is valid, and maybe just not super-compatible with this competition.

Cool In Theory, Maybe Not So Much in Practice: Silverbeat. I feel like I’m beating a dead horse by saying this again, but this is yet another act that I think was probably sought out by producers and enticed into trying out to fulfill the “we truly are the biggest dance competition in the world!” quota that seems to be getting emphasized more this season; and they perhaps weren’t necessarily a great fit for the show, but that doesn’t invalidate the importance and skill of what they do. I thought they had great energy, and loved how unique the moves were; however, the dance vocabulary just wasn’t there, relative to other acts.  But I’m glad we got to see them, and I hope the show is good exposure for the great work they’re doing 🙂

Derek & Aneta Jr: Daniel & Mishella. How they managed to find mini-Derek is beyond me 😛 And they managed to find a little girl that at least bore a passing resemblance to Derek’s old partner, too! Loved their spunk and their stage presence, but I do agree with whichever judge (Ne-Yo, maybe?) pointed out that they needed to clean up some of their steps and up the ante a bit – and I agree, although I do think they may just be a tad limited by their age.  Part of me worries that they’re going to end up pitted against an older ballroom couple (namely Jonas & Ruby, who are leaps and bounds ahead of them in age and skill) and they’re just going to get trounced and heartbroken, but who knows. I don’t know that I see them lasting past the duels…

Thoughts?

June 27, 2018 I Written By

Medical device sales by day, reality TV blogger by night. Makeup artist, baker, hair model, and wannabe DIY-er when time permits, and a potty-mouth 24/7. Read more of me at puredwts.com, and follow me on Twitter & Instagram: @putuincespence

Pure World of Dance Season 2, Week 5 (Qualifiers) – Music from Tonight’s Show

Here it is – the music from tonight’s episode, in chronological order. I’ve included a description of when in the episode it played in parentheses.

“Champion” by Fallout Boy (intro)

“Tip Toe” by Jason Derulo feat. French Montana (judges intro)

“My Way” by Calvin Harris (Embodiment intro)

“Believer” by Imagine Dragons (Embodiment performance)

“One More Light (Steve Aoki Chester Forever Remix” by Linkin Park (Embodiment scores)

“I’m Ready” by AJR (Daniel & Mishella intro)

“Runaway Baby” by Bruno Mars (Daniel & Mishella performance)

“I Want Candy (Remix)” by Aaron Carter (Daniel & Mishella scores)

“Love Myself” by Hailee Steinfeld (Marissa & the Heartbreakers intro)

“Love So Soft (Cash Cash Remix)” by Kelly Clarkson (Marissa & the Heartbreakers performance)

“Woman” by Ke$ha feat. The Dap-Kings Horns (Marissa & the Heartbreakers scores)

“Rise Up” by Andra Day (Madison Brown intro)

“The Fire” by Bishop Briggs (Madison Brown performance)

“Just Like Fire” by P!nk (Madison Brown scores)

“Its Like That (Original Mix)” by Dusty Tonez (Freshh performance)

“Once In A While” by Timeflies (Freshh scores)

“Recebe (Afro House)” by Gaia Beat (Silverbeat performance)

“The Ocean” by Mike Perry feat. Shy Martin (Silverbeat scores)

“Don’t You Cry For Me” by Cobi (Royal Flux performance)

“I Am Here” by P!nk (Royal Flux scores)

June 26, 2018 I Written By

Medical device sales by day, reality TV blogger by night. Makeup artist, baker, hair model, and wannabe DIY-er when time permits, and a potty-mouth 24/7. Read more of me at puredwts.com, and follow me on Twitter & Instagram: @putuincespence

‘World Of Dance’ Season 2, Week Five Qualifiers – The Performance Videos

Here we go again! If you missed episode five of World Of Dance, here are the performances that qualified. I loved Marissa and The Heartbreakers the most this time…

I Written By

Just a music and dancing fan here ....and a lover of life, nature, animals, and spending as much time as possible camping all over in our travel trailer. Favorite Quote at the moment: "Sing like no one is listening. Love like you've never been hurt. Dance like nobody's watching, and live like it's heaven on earth." ~ William Purkey. Follow me at: Voguerista Twitter & Voguerista Soundcloud. To view my photography site, see Lisa Kay Photography.