UPDATE: I have added my thoughts (and the judges comments) for the three dances I missed initially.
Click to Watch Opening Number Performance Video
Awesome opening number. One of the better ones the show has done this season. And why? Well, it was a preview of the new DWTS tour. You can go to DWTStour.com for tickets. It kicks of on June 16th in Atlantic City. But yes, that was a fun number that showcased the pros who are on tour.
Tom and Erin welcome us to the show and bring out the stars. Round one will be business as usual- individual routines. And Julianne is back this week.
Rashad & Emma – Jive – Click to Watch Performance Video
A strong jive from Rashad & Emma. A couple of moments where the footwork was sketchy (only because you can tell how strong a pro Emma is as compared) but Rashad kept up. The kicks and flicks were there. It was a high energy performance with lots of great smiles from Rashad. He always brings the performance quality. I bet if they didn’t have two routines and just a little more practice, the jive footwork would have been perfect.
Len says Rashad has got to work on his feet but he thought it had lots of jive content and was fun. Julianne says it was so much fun. She agrees with Len on the footwork. Bruno loves the charisma. He wants him to be careful not to transfer his weight on his heel when he does the jive. Carrie Ann says Rashad is a true entertainer. She notes though the tiny details like his feet need work.
You can vote for Rashad by calling 1 800 868 3411 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 8PM Eastern the following day.
Carrie Ann- 9
Len- 9
Julianne- 9
Bruno- 9
36/40
Normani & Val – Contemporary – Click to Watch Performance Video
That was a really solid contemporary routine and thankfully, something a bit different than we are used to. Sure, it had the usual emotional flailing around that we see but I did like the inclusion of the other dancers to tell the story. The rehearsal package before the dance explains how Normani had a bad experience on social media and because of that, the significance of the dance meant something. It wasn’t just a usual contemporary piece but showed Normani’s strength through turmoil. Good stuff.
Julianne (standing and not sitting) is completely mesmerized. She loved the way the story was told. She loved the soloing that Normani did during the routine. Bruno loved it and says no one will ever break Normani. Carrie Ann saw healing tonight on the dance floor. She feels like Normani offered the audience healing as well. Len isn’t a huge fan of contemporary or jazz but he was spellbound by the dance.
You can vote for Normani by calling 1 800 868 3410 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 8PM Eastern the following day.
Carrie Ann- 10
Len- 10
Julianne- 10
Bruno- 10
40/40
Bonner & Sharna – Argentine Tango – Click to Watch Performance Video
Not a bad argentine tango. I was slightly surprised that Bonner was able to accentuate those lines and that his feet were doing so well when intertwined with Sharna in the usual argentine tango steps. That’s a big plus as compared to his usual. I think he needs to work on his expressions and getting into character. There’s more to this show than just dancing and if you aren’t the greatest dancer, you need to entertain. David is a good example of that. So, while Bonner has weeks where his routines are a bit better than other weeks, he needs to work on selling it better. Sharna is trying her best with him but I don’t think the actual dancing will improve beyond what we have seen up until this point.
Bruno says Bonner made the most of what he’s got. He feels like the linking between steps is clanky and it needs to continue with more gliding. Carrie Ann thought it was a great choice of music. She saw some subtle movements tonight that were a step in the right direction. She feels a bit of connection was lacking. Len thought it was too stiff. He tells Bonner to blame the viewers for the frustration because Bonner had stayed a bit too far. He does admire him though. Julianne says it always happens in week 8. But she wants him to put the frustration into the routine. She saw some of it and saw some improvement.
You can vote for Bonner by calling 1 800 868 3401 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 8PM Eastern the following day.
Carrie Ann- 8
Len- 7
Julianne- 8
Bruno- 7
30/40
Simone & Sasha – Foxtrot
Cute dance. And the song, despite what Simone might feel, fits her. The issue here was I think Simone got a bit too excited toward the beginning and was ahead of where she was supposed to be. It looked like Sasha had to speed himself up to match her. Things calmed down a bit midway through to the end and it was great but after the last couple of weeks, this wasn’t the nearly pitch perfect Simone routine I am used to. – Click to Watch Performance Video
Carrie Ann says she doesn’t know who Simone is. She wants to see more emotions. Len enjoyed the mix of stuff in-hold and out of hold. He felt it was full of youthful exuberance. Julianne calls it a pretty dance but nothing that made her go “wow.” She is worried that the dance was safe. Bruno says Simone makes it look easy, so the element of surprise needs to come into play now.
You can vote for Simone by calling 1 800 868 3412 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 8PM Eastern the following day.
Carrie Ann- 9
Len- 9
Julianne- 9
Bruno- 9
36/40
David & Lindsay – Waltz
Not a bad dance for David. It was choreographed nicely by Lindsay- elegant and simple. I saw a few iffy moments when they were in hold but I have seen them before from David. Let’s face it, he isn’t a natural dancer and we are in the quarter finals now. He isn’t going to magically get better, so this is the probably the best we are going to get. On the positive, he seemed to connect to the song and dance nicely and I felt that. – Click to Watch Performance Video
Len says it was a bit unsteady but he liked that David attempted to get the right footwork. He calls it David’s best dance. Julianne says David is what the show is all about. She calls him the heart of the competition. Bruno says it was the best father/daughter dance at a wedding. He says people see love, truth, and honesty in David. Carrie Ann says the technique and attention were there.
You can vote for David by calling 1 800 868 3404 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 8PM Eastern the following day.
Carrie Ann- 9
Len- 9
Julianne- 9
Bruno- 9
36/40
TRIO-DANCES
Rashad & Emma (with Witney) – Argentine Tango
Wow. That was tough to execute. The argentine tango is a tough one as it is with one partner. I like the way this was put together. First Rashad did a section (well) with Emma and then a section with Witney (well). When they all came together, it was a nice blend. The solid staccato movements Rashad did in each section should please Len. It was a very good dance to a really tough style of dance for a novice to do with two professional partners. – Click to Watch Performance Video
Len loved the storytelling. He wants Rashad to work on his feet. Julianne loved the different dynamics when Rashad was dancing with each lady. Bruno wasn’t able to look at the feet because he was mesmerized by the chemistry he was seeing. Carrie Ann calls it Rashad’s best dance and disagrees with Len about the footwork.
Carrie Ann- 10
Len- 9
Julianne- 10
Bruno- 10
39/40
Normani & Val (with Alan) – Jive
That was awesome. Again, I loved the choreography of having Normani do a bit of jive with Val and a bit of jive with Alan. And they were all doing the kicks and flicks with vigor. Funny enough, the only issue here came from Alan, who seemed to have one little hiccup staying in sync and getting his shirt off. But my eyes were really concentrated on seeing how Normani would handle some really difficult choreography. It was all jive content and it was done extremely well. – Click to Watch Performance Video
Julianne says Normani was owning the stage and she loved the difference from the first round. Bruno calls it a glorious all American jive. He calls it brilliant. Carrie Ann calls Normani an incredible actress. Len loved the contrast from dance one as well. He wasn’t thrilled with the time wasted when Normani was dancing on the judges table.
Carrie Ann- 10
Len- 9
Julianne- 10
Bruno- 10
39/40
Bonner & Sharna (with Britt) – Jazz
Eek. Okay, that bored me to first. First, could Bonner have possibly looked more disengaged by the whole thing? He wasn’t playing up the character at all. Second, I know it is a jazz routine which basically means anything goes but the choreography was really pedestrian there and didn’t do anything for any of them. Even the pros didn’t have very much to do. I didn’t see any glaring errors on Bonner’s part, so that’s a plus, but really, it was completely fast forward worthy. – Click to Watch Performance Video
Bruno says a whole lot but not much of a critique. Carrie Ann calls it raunchy but she feels Bonner didn’t pop as much as he should have. Len felt it was too raunchy but he admires Bonner for not putting a step wrong. Julianne enjoyed it. Another non-critique similar to Bruno.
Carrie Ann- 7
Len- 7
Julianne- 7
Bruno- 7
28/40
Simone & Sasha (with Brittany) – Paso Doble
Interesting dynamic at play here. I dig the idea of seeing two girls dancing with the pro because I got to see Simone compared to a pro. She did everything Brittany did, which is great. But I do see what some of the judges remark about when it comes to her smile and the “acting.” This was a paso that may have called for some more serious acting and at times, Simone was still being the happy and smiling girl. Ain’t nothing wrong (at all) with being a happy person but I can see how lacking the ability to change emotions for a performance could hinder Simone when she is in direct competition with say Normani and Rashad. But she can change that next week with some practice. Good dance though. – Click to Watch Performance Video
Carrie Ann saw improvement in the emotions. She felt Simone was a bit nervous and uncertain. Len says Simone is his favorite to win if you count his scores but he wants her game up to get a “10” and win. Julianne found the dance a hit and miss for Simone. Bruno feels the artistry gets lost sometimes when Simone is too perfect.
Carrie Ann- 9
Len- 9
Julianne- 9
Bruno- 9
36/40
David & Lindsay (with Hayley) – Paso Doble
LOL. How dramatic. I loved David’s expressions in that. You can tell he worked on the character. The paso was decent- he was ahead of the music a few times but nothing too bad. I think Lindsay worked to his strengths here by not making it too overly technical and letting the performance quality shine more than the actual dancing. Between the sets and the music, it was certainly a sight to see. David has clearly had a better night than he has had in many weeks during this competition. – Click to Watch Performance Video
Len didn’t like it at all. He calls it rough and said there was no dance quality. Julianne says David was committed to the character. She says he lacked shaping and work on getting his tushy under. Bruno says at times David looked like Godzilla- work on the shaping. Carrie Ann feels like the first dance was much better.
Carrie Ann- 7
Len- 7
Julianne- 8
Bruno- 7
29/40
One final look at tonight’s leaderboard (Out of a total possible score of 80)
Normani- 79
Rashad- 75
Simone- 72
David- 65
Bonner- 58
ELIMINATION TIME!
The following couples were called in jeopardy: Bonner & Sharna, Rashad & Emma
The following couples were called safe: Normani & Val, Simone & Sasha, David & Lindsay
Eliminated from DWTS only a week shy of the semifinals is…
Bonner & Sharna
Bonner says he is very surprised at how far he went. He is thankful for the journey. They go to the center of the ballroom to say goodbye. It was definitely Bonner’s time, though you could make an argument his elimination should have happened weeks ago with some other folks still being around. But, it is America’s choice and that’s how the game is played. – Click to Watch Elimination Video
That’s all she wrote for the quarter-finals.
ETA: I have added my thoughts and judges comments for the first three dances I missed when the show originally aired. Again, my apologies for that. Everything (including the videos) should be a go now. :)
A brand new POLLS thread is minutes away from going up (be sure to check it out and vote) and I’ll be back with you guys a week from tonight from another new and exciting episode.