Welcome to the 2-hour season finale event of season 16 of Dancing with the Stars! After ten weeks of competition, we are down to our final four, which will soon be a final three. Those three will then battle it out one last time before we find out who is our new champion. As part of the usual finale celebration, we will see all the celebrities from this season return to dance as well as some very special guest performers. Scheduled for tonight are Pitbull, Psy, Wynonna Judd, and Jessica Sanchez. The show promises lots of surprises as well before the super special mirror ball trophy is handed out.
So, how do you guys see the competition measuring up? Well, polling here at MJ’s suggest that Jacoby & Karina will be the couple that is eliminated before tonight’s instant dance round. I agree with that one. The ladies were just so strong last night and Jacoby’s freestyle, though fun, didn’t show him off as much it could have. I think the other fan bases votes and judges scorea will spell the end for Jacoby. And that will leave us with three. Could Jacoby sneak into the top three with Aly being eliminated? There is a small chance it could happen. Put it this way, I wouldn’t be shocked.
Kellie Pickler is the favorite arond here (no real surprise considering the American Idol fans) to take the trophy, though Zendaya does have a nice amount of votes herself. In my eyes, it is definitely between those two. You have Zendaya, who has been just about perfect all season long and has also won all the twitter voting contests and her partner Val, who has yet to win this show. On the other hand, you have Kellie, who’s personality and fantastic dancing has kept her as a deserving front runner all season long and her partner Derek, the best choreographer on the show who has quite a large amount of fans of his own. This is so evenly matched! Either one would be worthy of raising that trophy high in the air.
In terms of last night, I thought Kellie took the freestyle round with her amazing contemporary routine with Derek. Zendaya took the Cha-cha-cha relay and both couples were even in round one. Unless one messes up on the instant dance tonight (they only have an hour to come up with a routine), this will more than likely come down to who’s fans voted harder. My heart says that Kellie will come out victorious but my head is screaming Zendaya. It is that close in my eyes. Unfortunately for Aly or Jacoby, I think they will have to settled for fourth and third, respectively. Aly peaked at a very good time and the judges have been loving her lately but I don’t think she has achieved enough to overcome either of the other two ladies.
All in all, it has been a strong season with these four, while everyone else has been predictably eliminated. It hasn’t been a boring season though. We had some fun theme nights, some great entertainment and some particularly riveting dancing. I look forward to seeing how tonight shapes up and I am glad you guys will join me on the ride. With all that being said, let’s get started with our last segment by segment recap of the season. :D
Segment 1
The pros and troupe members are out to kick us off with an intense and sexy number to Pitbull’s “Don’t Stop The Party.” Pretty soon, all the celebs of the season join in. Everyone is dancing in the ballroom. The finalists are last to join in. Wow. That’s a lot of people on the dance floor. Very fun opening number.
And now, a quick look back at last night’s competition.
Segment 2
So, who won the twitter contest? Kellie & Derek. They will dance their amazing contemporary routine from last night. Color me surprised that Zendaya wasn’t able to win the twitter vote, since she has won every twitter vote this season. Could this be a precursor of things to come? Or is Zendaya still staying the title? Stay tuned. And the dance is just as mesmerizing as last night. Kudos to both of them.
A package airs now featuring the judges discussing their thoughts on the final four. Of course, they all agree that thing is going to be very close. Due to the ABC.COM snafu last night, only voting via text/phone/facebook will count.
Time for the first results of the night…
The couple leaving in 4th place is… Aly & Mark.
Well, I said it was a possibility. Jacoby is obviously a fan favorite and even lower scores from the judges couldn’t stop him from getting more audience votes to overcome Aly. Aly is very graceful in her exit and wishes the final three the best. A package airs featuring the history of Aly and Mark.
The final 3 will have less than an hour to prepare the instant dance.
Segment 3
The female pros and the three ladies who made it to the finals will take it to the floor to dance. #GirlPower in the house as they all dance to Beyonce’s “Who Run The World (Girls).” Kellie, Zendaya, and Aly have a very limited role here naturally as the pros own the ballroom. Strong number!
And now, a look back at the first three week’s of competition.
Time for Wynonna to perform “I Wanna Know What Love Is.” I love this song. Tony and Peta are out to contemporary dance beautifully. Wynonna sounds fantastic. Talk about singing your heart out. Wynonna just slayed. Awesome!
Segment 4
A look back at how Lisa would do anything to get good scores.
Lisa and Gleb are out to perform the foxtrot. LOL. Lisa moves Gleb away (how could she?) and Len comes down to dance with Lisa. Len has some good foxtrot moves. Fun!
We now hear about Dorothy’s reason for doing the show and her unfortunate week two withdrawal. Tristan is not able to dance tonight. He has an injury. So, Dorothy left due to an injury and now Tristan can’t dance. So, Tristan and Henry will dance the viennese waltz. It is really sad that Dorothy wasn’t able to continue on. She made the right decision back in week two but she was such a wonderful person and I was rooting for her early on. At least she gets the opportunity to dance tonight. And she’s doing well. Kristi Yamaguchi (yes, you read that right) joins her! Aww, this is so nice. Dorothy gets to dance with the person who inspired her to do the show. That was fantastic.
Segment 5
Time to see some Andy Dick footage. LOL. He is crying with hundreds of tissues surrounding him. He calls Carrie Ann a bitch (jokingly). Andy is pretending as though he is back in the competition, not just returning to dance. He and Sharna are repeating their funny and crazy jazz routine from earlier in the season with some added elements- and dancers.
Jacoby & Karina got salsa to perform in the instant jazz. Brooke is interrupting their practice as she does for every finale. I kid. I know she has to do this but they are losing valuable practice time.
And here comes Psy. He is doing his hit single, “Gentleman.” Those who watched the American Idol finale saw this number. I can’t deny though that it brings a smile to my face. This guy obviously knows how to make hits with dance steps that become trends. It looks like the entire ballroom is dancing. This is a party atmosphere, for sure. Even Andy, Victor, and Sean joined in!
Segment 6
Brooke interrupts Kellie & Derek. They are working on the jive. Kellie & Derek want to just have fun since it is their last dance of the competition. Brooke tells them to get back at rehearsing.
Time to look back at three more weeks in the competition.
Members of the troupe get to dance one more time to Little Mix’s song, “Wings.” The troupe are definitely a talented bunch and I bet one or two may join the regular stable of dancers next season. I really hope one of them is Witney because that girl is a firecracker, as she was on SYTYCD.
Segment 7
Time for Brooke to cut in on Zendaya & Val’s rehearsal. They are also doing the jive. Val got 14 stitches. Zendaya wants to have fun and enjoy her last dance with Val.
Pitbull is out to perform. And Latin fever has taken over the ballroom. This is another artist who knows how to get everyone up and moving. I have to hand it to the producers tonight. They are really bringing out some fun artists to perform.
Time to look back at the last three week’s of competition.
Segment 8
Time for the final dances of the competition.
Jacoby & Karina are up first.
A really solid routine. Jacoby is working those hips. A few minor mistakes throughout the routine that I noticed but it was a heck of a lot of fun. Some of the usual Jacoby steps of course. It was a good routine but it wasn’t fantastic. I don’t want to be too critical of any of these three finalists though because they only learned the music less than an hour ago. So, good job Jacoby!
Len says Jacoby always comes out and is unexpected. He calls him a breathe of fresh air. Bruno loves Jacoby’s charisma and showmanship. Jacoby’s mother is holding up her usual “10” paddle. Carrie Ann says Jacoby performed a dance of a champion.
Final scores- Carrie Ann- 10, Len- 10, Bruno- 10 for a total of 30/30.
I imagine all these couples will receive perfect scores tonight.
Segment 9
Kellie & Derek are up next.
A pretty darn perfect jive if you ask me. Kellie was in-sync with Derek the entire time. Some great fast paced jive steps and some awesome choreography. Great connection between the two and a great final dance.
Bruno says it is like watching the incredible siblings. He says Kellie reminds him of Julianne Hough (Derek’s sister and former pro on this show). Carrie Ann calls it a perfect ending to a wonderful journey. Len says Kellie is always clean and precise. He calls her awesome.
Final scores- Carrie Ann- 10, Len- 10, Bruno- 10 for a total of 30/30.
Yeah, we are getting three perfect scores so this will really end up being all about the audience votes.
Segment 10
Dancing last, Zendaya & Val.
Another superb jive. This one has more of a fun feel and the music totally fits it. Zendaya is having a blast. Wow. Some really amazingly quick jive steps. Fun! This is a different jive from Kellie in terms of the personality of the dance, which was really nice to see. Fabulous job.
Carrie Ann is going to be sad not watching Zendaya and Val dance. She says it has been a joy. Len says that for a young lady, Zendaya dances with such maturity. He says when the show is over, Zendaya will fly away. Bruno calls it a massive hit.
Final scores- Carrie Ann- 10, Len- 10, Bruno- 10 for a total of 30/30.
No more points to be awarded. Zendaya is in the lead by a single point. Has she won? Has Kellie? Did Jacoby come from behind and take it? It is almost time to find out!
Segment 11
Jessica Sanchez is out to perform “Feel This Moment” as we see highlights of the three finalists and their times on the show. Aww. What a nice tribute to the finalists. Great vocal by Jessica.
And now…results! Oh boy.
The couple in 3rd place is… Jacoby & Karina.
Jacoby makes a joke about how he will catch balls with elegance now. Some hysterical faces of Jacoby are on display. Jacoby is really funny. LOL. Sometimes, you can’t make out a single thing Jacoby is saying.
Segment 12
This is it folks.
The winners of season 16 of DWTS are… KELLIE & DEREK.
Congrats to the 2nd place finishers… Zendaya & Val.
I want to thank MJ for letting me come back to blog. I want to thank ALL of you who posted, read, and followed along with me all season. It wouldn’t be nearly as fun as it is without you guys. I have been so entertained by the show this season and had a blast live blogging. I will be back in the fall for season 17 and I hope everyone joins me. If it is another season like this, we will be in for a treat.
Stay safe everyone and thanks again! <3
#PrayForOklahoma