So you think you can Dance: Finals, Week 4

To be honest, I was thrilled when Nigel gave this season’s Dancers some tough love during last week’s result show. Ever since the beginning of the finals I had the feeling that the dancers were not living up to the statement that the judges had repeated over and over again during Vegas Week; that season six had the best dancers ever. While we did see some beautiful performances (Jakob, whenever he is on, Mollee’s and Nathan’s Bollywood, and I personally love Channing in the Rockin’ Robin Jive), this season clearly fell short of season five. Come to think of it, this may have to do with the fact that while this season boasts some of the best dancers, the last season featured at least six outstanding couples. Brandon and Jeanette, Philipp and Jeanine, Adé and Melissa, Caitlin and Jason, Ryan and Randy were – on top of their individual capabilities – outstanding as couples. Brandon and Jeanette were, as one judge put it, a “well oiled-dancing machine”; Philipp and Jeanine were stunning ever since their first live show performance; Adé and Melissa again on nearly everything they did, crowned by “This woman’s work” and their part-de-deux, Caitlin and Jason particularly in their Bollywood routine and Ryan and Randi in their consistent portrayal of the all-American boy and girl (remember “Halo”?) with some sexy twists added (if you didn’t guess: Randi’s Butt).

So I felt relieved when Nigel spoke those tough love words. It had been my feeling all along. I was even more relieved to see the effect they had on this week’s performances. As the judges pointed out, six out of seven performances showed remarkable improvements:

• Ashleigh and Jakob were stunning as ever, even though I found their Hip-Hop a little awkward – they are too elegant of dancers. I love to see Jakob dance. And Ashleigh is growing on me. I used to think her smile a bit fake, but I guess it’s not. As the judges said, it was superb, and even without jumps by Jakob. And they are growing as a couple. More than fun.
• Karen and Kevin were the exeption. Before I comment on this week, just one disclaimer. I don’t like them. I know that is subjective but Kevin is too full of himself, and Karen too much of a J-Lo lookalike. And they had lucky draws so far, Karen could draw off her sensuality and Kevin, well, even Adam Shankman was mesmerized by Karen. So it was only fair to see them in a routine that exposed their weaknesses.
• Noelle and Russell did a decent job in a tough dance. Foxtrot is tough. I must say tough that I thought Russell did better on his first. The Topline was not good, neither were his basics. But he is a crumper and I (a ballroom dancer myself) could never do in Crump, what he does in ballroom. He added an incredible smoothness and Noelle was undoubtedly elegant. What I love about Russell is his style, smoothness and entertainer personality – even though he is a crumper. So overall: great job.
• I always loved Channing and never really liked Victor. I liked Channing’s restrained personality, and I enjoyed how much she enjoyed this dance. Though Victor is undoubtedly a fabulous dancer, he also struck me to be “full of himself”. He did, however, do a great job on this routine and I loved ho the two of them got the comedy out of this routine and did win the battle against the music – which was hard to dance against.
• Katherine and Legacy are my favourite couple in these Top 20 – their chemistry, the way they support each other is unseen by any of the other contestants. Add to that Legacy’s outstanding growth and Katherine’s fabulous technique, they are in for the top position. PasoDoble always runs the risk of being cheesy. Their’s wasn’t, it was fabulous and unexpected. Bravo!
• Ryan and Ellenore are certainly fabulous. I like Ryan because he’s a ballroom dancer and he manages to stay on a show with a predominantly female audience despite being married. And I love Ellenore’s entertainer qualities, which she so often displayed. The experience of being in the bottom three certainly humbled them and it is good to see them back on track. What they lack is, well, a distinctive character. They are great dancing machines, but seem to lack a soul.
• Nigel’s feedback was particularly good for Mollee and Nathan. They needed a humbling experience and they learned from it. They certainly did better than last week but I couldn’t agree with the judges’ enthusiasm. While they certainly improved, their performance did not move me as much as the others on this show.

So I was excited to see the results, because for the first time I had little clue who would be in the bottom three, except for Karen and Kevin, who were basically put there by the judges. Channing and Victor faced stiff competition this week and their routine was certainly not as easy and appealing as their contestants’, so it no surprise (but sad) to see them there. Though I agreed with the audience that Mollee’s and Nathan’s performance wasn’t the best ever, I was surprised to see them in the bottom three – if their Salsa from last week didn’t get them there what could possibly do so?

As for the results: Of course the show would not let go their best marketable performers Mollee and Nathan. That said, their solos were stunning. Mollee’s was the only solo in two seasons of SYTYCD I watched that left me breathless. I agree with letting Kevin go, out of the three hip-hoppers on the show he is the least distinctive and actually rather weak in even his own style (compare him, for example, to last season’s Philipp Chbeeb, and to Legacy and Russell).

I am sorry to see Channing go. I also think it unfair.  Karen has survived on her sensuality alone. She has to be in her comfort zone – which is not so much her style as her sensuality. But outside that, as we have seen this week, there seems to be surprisingly little. Channing on the other hand was growing and has shown that she can do more than one thing – and her personality has grown so much in Tuesday’s show. But I guess television needs people who put their soul on a plate. Channing didn’t, and that – rather than her dancing – is the reason she’s no longer on this show. That’s TV, but hopefully not life.