pandas. bitch. run. now.

pandas. bitch. run. now.

Thursday, June 14, 2007

So I Think I Can Predict!

I promise I'll stop with the lame play on the title soon. But before the results are revealed tomorrow, I'm going to take a stab at who the Top 10 will be - provided their partners don't get in their way. I'm just going down the line in the order they performed tonight, it doesn't really reflect what I think of them.

Hok, Danny, Anya, Sara, Jesus, Pasha, Jessi, Lauren, Kameron, Lacey

It's a toss-up for me between Kameron/Neil and Lacey/Faina...I'm going to go with Kameron and Lacey. I like Neil and Faina a lot, but after tonight Faina may have some trouble down the road and I bet Benji's fanbase will carry over onto Lacey, and if Neil ends up in the bottom the judges may give him some flack about his somewhat upper-stiffness.

What do you guys think?

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

So I Think I Can Watch!

Yes, it's been exactly two months since I've posted, yadda yadda ya. So just in case you missed it:

-It's Raz-B, aka DeMario Thornton, aka one of my husband's, birthday today. He's 22. :)
-Chris Richardson did not win American Idol. :'(
-Neither did Melinda Doolittle. :(
-Jordin Sparks did. >:O

In light of these revelations, I'm seriously contemplating moving to Canada based on these facts.

In the mean time, there's So You Think You Can Dance. Which is quickly becoming my favorite reality tv show. So much so that I took NOTES tonight. Here's my mini recap and grades (score of 0-10 in chemistry, performance, likability and synchronization), based on tonight's 2 hour show (the one where America starts voting! Yay democracy!)

1. Jamie & Hok
Now unfortunately I missed about the first 15 minutes of the show, so their performance was the only one I missed entirely. However, from the recap of the dancing at the end, it appears I didn't miss much. From what I saw in the auditioning stages, Jamie (i before m?) and Hok can each dance - they obviously wouldn't be here if they couldn't. I just felt like something was lacking with them - in their chemistry, in their performances...we'll see how they do next week, seeing as how I don't think they're going home.
Chemistry: 9, Performance: 8, Likability: 9, Synchronization: 8
Total: 34 (out of 40)

2. Danny & Anya
If my memory serves me correctly (which maybe it doesn't), I got this cocky vibe off of Danny that made me think I was going to hate him. After seeing tonight's performance, I've done a complete 180. These two were AMAZING! And they were really extremely humble/gracious after getting all the praise they got, and I'm pretty sure it was genuine. I would've given them all 10s had I seen the entire performance - besides, I can't start them out too high, right?
Chemistry: 10, Performance: 10, Likability: 9 (I'm still not sure if he's cocky!), Synchronization: 9
Total: 38

3. Kameron & Lacey
Oy. Contemporary always throws me off, because I'm not sure if it's "supposed to be" as awkward as it usually comes across. And Kameron & Lacey's performance didn't really make me love the style - I don't think anyone can outdo Travis and Alison's contemporary towards the end of last season (the one with the bench? I STILL get chills thinking about it! TRAVIS AND ALISON WERE ROBBED!) I want to give them slightly higher marks, but I won't due to my confusion. They get the highest mark in chemistry, because it's quite obvious they work well together.
Chemistry: 10, Performance: 9, Likability: 9, Synchronization: 8 (something about those leaps and drags felt off, right?)
Total: 36

4. Dominic & Sabre
I love "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)", the Donna Summer song these two disco'd to, and probably for all the wrong reasons. It's such a gay song. Like...really gay. It makes me happy. :) And I think that's partially why I enjoyed their performance - it was kinda gay. But gay in a good way, and it made me happy. I don't agree with Dan (is that his name?) entirely, but I do think something about it kept it more in the "OK" realm than the "awesome" realm.
FYI - Dominic's ass? AMAZING. Enough is not enough in that department. :)
Chemistry: 9, Performance: 9, Likability: 8 (I brought it down a notch because Dominic was really hamming it up at the end of the show, which I guess is what they're told to do but still - it was offputting. And could he have BEEN any bitchier in answering Nigel about how long he's dance with a partner?), Synchronization: 9
Total: 35

5. Ricky & Ashlee
I feel bad for Ricky & Ashlee. The choreographer was all "this is a very sexy dance style" but the dance didn't scream that to me at all. And it wasn't because of them, or at least not entirely. It was such an upbeat song, but the moves didn't seem to go with it. That being said, they still seemed a little out of their element and Ashlee being taller than Ricky didn't really help them out. I hope they don't go tomorrow, because I like them.
Chemistry: 8 (Ricky seems to be a little more invested than Ashlee), Performance: 8, Likability: 9, Synchronization: 7
Total: 32

6. Sara & Jesus
To further add to Ricky & Ashlee's pain (but an added bonus for Sara & Jesus), the following act was the best one of the night. Hands down (Well...almost. Danny & Anya are a RIDICULOUSLYCLOSE second). And it wasn't just the choreography - Wade Robson is insanely talented, blah blah blah - but they just definitely gave it their all, and did so while seemingly out of their element. Anyway, it was one of those performances that sticks with you even after you're watching other people dance, so that's also good. On a weird side note however: maybe it's because I'm still getting used to them, but I could NOT remember their names for the rest of the broadcast until the recap at the end. I kept calling him Jose and thinking Sara's name started with an A. Does that mean they're somewhat forgettable?
Chemistry: 10 (they seem to have a lot of fun together), Performance: 10 (!), Likability: 10, Synchronization: 9 (a liiiiittle off)
Total: 39

7. Pasha & Jessi
Pasha might be my new husband. Something about the Russian ballroom dancers (Dmitri, anyone?!) must work for me on a subliminal level. I will agree with Dan (?) on this one though: I thought I'd be bored out of my mind watching this, and I was actually very engaged. They didn't have much to do it seems though, in showing off their talent, so either they lucked out tonight or they're just THAT good. (I'm hoping it's the latter.)
Chemistry: 10 (who WOULDN'T love Pasha?!), Performance: 9, Likability: 10, Synchronization: 10
Total: 39

8. Faina & Cedric
Faina annoyed the shit out of me in auditions. I felt for her tonight though, because, as the judges kinda hinted at in the auditions, Cedric is GOING to kinda mess up his partner. They both seemed to hit the choreography in sync, but of course, Cedric being able to perform in his strong style, outshone Faina. I didn't like Nigel's "by the numbers" comment on Faina's dancing - hip-hop IS kinda by the numbers, and if Cedric wasn't so "fluid" I'm sure they would've said the same thing. I commend Faina for holding it down out of her element, but I wouldn't be too bothered if these two went home tomorrow.
Chemistry: 8, Performance: 9, Likability: 7, Synchronization: 9
Total: 33

9. Lauren & Neil
Based on their rehearsal footage alone, I think I love Lauren & Neil. They seem to be hilarious, which can be extremely refreshing in a competition like this. Their performance was cute, but kinda read to me as "we SO obviously don't dance salsa!" I think their chemistry is fine - if my background knowledge is correct, Neil has a girlfriend, so I wouldn't be too caught up on him not really paying attention to Lauren. And if you're watching this show to see how much it looks like the dancers want to sex each other down, then you probably need a life. Or some help.
Chemistry: 9, Performance: 10 (I thought it was one of the better ones of the night), Likability: 10, Synchronization: 9
Total: 38

10. Shauna & Jimmy
Before the commercial break I was a little worried that this would be a terrible pairing. Watching them dance though, it's obvious I was wrong. This was a great number to end the show on - upbeat, fun, great song and great dancing! Anyone who knows me in terms of theatre will tell you that The Wiz is the most fun musical I've done EVER. So maybe I'm a little biased, but I thought it was really good. I think the style may have helped them out this week though, because I still get a kind of odd couple vibe from them. Can you see these two doing a convincing Argentinian waltz together?
And I disagree with Nigel about Shauna's dress.
Chemistry: 10 (this could very easily change next week), Performance: 10, Likability: 9, Synchronization: 10
Total: 39

So let's look at my end of the show scoring!
1st (3-way tie): Sara/Jesus, Pasha/Jessi, Shauna/Jimmy [39]
4th (tie): Danny/Anya, Lauren/Neil [38]
6th: Kameron & Lacey [36]
7th: Dominic & Sabre [35]
8th: Jamie & Hok [34]
9th: Faina & Cedric [33]
10th: Ricky & Ashlee [32]

That's just going by numbers though. If I had to rank them based on performances alone, I'd go with this.
1st: Sara & Jesus
2nd: Danny & Anya
3rd: Pasha & Jessi
4th: Shauna & Jimmy
5th: Lauren & Neil
6th: Kameron & Lacey
7th: Dominic & Sabre
8th: Faina & Cedric
9th: Jamie & Hok
10th: Ricky & Ashlee

Ricky and Ashlee are still in last, but again, I don't think that's their fault. I do however think it's pretty safe to say they'll be in the bottom tomorrow, but hopefully not going home. I also think that Faina & Cedric and/or Dominic & Sabre could be joining them. The third will be a toss-up, but I'm going to stick with 2 of the 3 I just mentioned being in the bottom tomorrow. We'll have to see how it turns out! I'll post pictures next time.

See you tomorrow night!