Dancing with the Stars Juniors Week 3 Recap – Live Blog and Videos

In this third week of competition, the contestants are tasked to perform an unlearned routine as part of “Disney” night. It wouldn’t be a season of any ABC-related reality show unless we pay tribute to the people paying the bills. That being said, considering this is kids, it makes sense to have them dance to what I am sure is some of their favorite tunes.

As a reminder, please keep SPOILERS out of the discussion for those who want to enjoy the program without knowing any results. Let’s go…

Sophia & Jake (Mentor- Sasha) – Samba
Sophia is slowly (very slowly) coming out of her shell. The dancing is also improving, though just as slowly. I would have liked more samba steps in here, as well as what we saw to be more hard hitting. Jake is such a good pro and he is never matched by Sophia. It is continued improvement for sure but still, a ways to go.

Mandy wants her to work on her feet sometimes but she thought the samba was good. Adam thought she upped the performance. Val feels like she was a bit out of her comfort zone and wants her to finish her hands more.
Val- 7
Mandy- 6
Adam- 6

Mackenzie & Sage (Mentor- Gleb) – Contemporary
Very pretty. A solid contemporary piece danced really well. I especially enjoyed that both were very much in character and Gleb put together some nice choreo for them to work with. Solid stuff here.

Adam has chills. He calls it excellent. Val calls it breathtaking. He is very proud of what he saw. Mandy felt it was great contemporary.
Val- 9
Mandy- 9
Adam- 9

Ariana & Artyon (Mentor- Brandon) – Samba
See, this what I meant by more samba steps. I hope Sasha was watching since he let Sophia down in her samba. Really smart choreography here by Brandon, making it a samba but with a flavor perfect for kids. Ariana is just delightful to watch.

Val calls it incredible. He loved the bounce action in the samba. Mandy calls it awesome and she gives props to Brandon. Adam says Ariana has done consistent work on the show.
Val- 9
Mandy- 8
Adam- 8

Mandla & Brightyn (Mentor- Cheryl) – Jazz
Why call it a jazz when it basically is paso doble in disguise? Well, alright. Mandla was better here than he has been for me but he needs to work on really finessing those lines and steps. A little more work and it would look so much better. He has to get up to Brightyn’s level of commitment.

Mandy saw improvement from last week. Adam can see he is still working on his technique but loves the performance. Val thinks Mandla set the bar high but this dance left him underwhelmed this week.
Val- 7
Mandy- 7
Adam- 7

Miles & Rylee (Mentor- Lindsay) – Charleston
Nice. Next to Mack and Sage, this was the strongest of the night so far. Such good charleston material here and Miles handled it with the ease. The use of the junior troupe members elevated the performance as the whole thing told a cohesive story.

Adam says that Miles looked at the competition in the eyes and said don’t forget about me. Val loved the charleston steps and the production. Mandy thinks a lesser dancer would have been lost in that.
Val- 9
Mandy- 9
Adam- 9

Alana & Tristan (Mentor- Artem) – Foxtrot
Alana’s best dance of the competition. I am impressed that she actually handled a proper foxtrot decently. Sure, it could use a bit of refinement and better posture and frame but all in all, I was expecting a disaster if I am being honest and this wasn’t a disaster. She should be proud.

Val says watching her perform makes him smile. Mandy felt she was cool, calm, and collected. She feels she is getting better weekly. Adam says her performance is special and he is impressed.
Val- 7
Mandy- 7
Adam- 7

Sky & JT (Mentor- Alan) – Contemporary
So cute. I mean, really. JT is such a good dancer and Sky actually matched him here contemporary move by contemporary move. A really good piece of choreography from Alan and executed so well.

Mandy loved it but she has a critique. She wants her to watch her feet so they aren’t so floppy. Adam thought the range of emotion was great. Val loved it. He thought it was paced so well.
Val- 8
Mandy- 8
Adam- 8

Jason & Eliana (Mentor- Emma) – Foxtrot
I love how excited and happy Jason is to be on this show. He is precious. Unfortunately, the foxtrot itself doesn’t reach that level of enthusiasm. It was okay but needs work, especially when he and Eliana are in hold. A little polish necessary.

Adam thinks he is a great partner and he showed that in this dance. Val calls it adorable and enjoyed the footwork. Mandy liked some of the stuff in frame which is quite difficult.
Val- 8
Mandy- 7
Adam- 7

Akash & Kamri (Mentor- Witney) – Jive
LOL. Too much. Too cute. Akash might be my favorite dancer on this show even though he is one of the weaker ones. The kicks and flicks necessary in a jive were weak. A lot of the dance was thanks to Kamri. It would be considered a less than average jive by any standards but Akash is so damn committed and cute that I really don’t care all that much.

Val loved the personality. He wants him to work on his feet, especially for a jive. Mandy thought he was on beat. Adam says Akash wears his heart on his sleeve.
Val- 7
Mandy- 7
Adam- 7

Elimination Time (UGHHHH)
After combining the judges scores with the votes of those in the audience, the eliminated couple tonight is…

Sophia & Jake (Mentor- Sasha)

Aww. Sophia is crying her eyes out. Jake looks so disappointed too. The rest of the cast hoist them up in the air. It sucks to see kids upset and I feel that way each week with this show. There really is no good way of doing this that would make it easier but damn, it is really hard to watch. Sophia just never really broke through with her dancing and her shy personality kept her from catching on with the audience. There are obviously weaker dancers left but remember, it is better to be not so good but memorable than average but forgettable. We see it all the time.

Next week, we celebrate Halloween as the remaining pairs return to scare up some spooky routines. Well, that was lame of me but I tried. See y’all next week and thanks for watching along with me tonight. :D