So You Think You Can Dance - Air Dates August 2 & 3

So you think you can dance? More like, so you think I forgot about this show! No fear, my little fuzzy-wumpkins, we're following it through to the bitter end! And when I say "bitter", what I mean it I'm going be sad to see it end as we've been witnesses to some great performances and choreography and we're at a place where some very deserving people are going to go home, just as Allison did the previous week.
I've only commented on a couple of host Cat Deeley's wardrobe choices, my favourite being the one that depicted the knight with the angry goose helmet. The dress she wore for this episode... I've been trying to find a way to describe it and it just occurred to me that it looks like she had it made out of parachute scraps. I've let some pretty questionable choices slide, but not this time. I've got space to fill and snark to try and hand out, but with all the talent that's left it's not like the dancers are going to give me much to work with. It's all on you, Cat. It's all on you.
The "judges" tonight are Nigel "They Like My Show!" Lythgoe, Mary "This Show's Paula Abdul" Murphy, and Mia "I'm So Artistic It Seeps Out Of My Ears" Michaels. We call them "judges" but without any power, they're more like commentators. Much like the 6th District Court! No, I don't know what that means, but if you find it funny please let me know because I'd like to be in on the joke too.
With only six dancers left and two dances per couple plus one solo each, the show has been whittled down to an hour so there wasn't even any small talk. It was right to the picking of our first pair of dancers.
Ivan drew Natalie's name, and she in turn drew Contemporary and Jive.
Ivan and Natalie (Jive) - I think I may have picked on Ivan a bit in these pages, but my earlier recaps are a bit fuzzy to me. There is a possibility that I may have commented on how young he looks, but all appearances are that he's finally had his first shave as he has really grown in this competition. These two did a nice little jive that wouldn't have been nearly as good last month. The judges did not like it at all though. While I may not have a trained eye, I'd like to think that after watching the show and hearing the criticisms that I'm starting to see what they're talking about, and yes, Ivan did seem to be a little heavy on the feet, but I thought there was some chemistry there. Obviously more than the judges did. Nigel did say this was the final six though, and they are not going to take it easy on anyone now.
Travis (Solo) - It was a Travis solo. That is, it was very good and he is a truly excellent dancer. However, I was left feeling like I've already seen him do this. I'd like to see him try something faster if he gets to do another solo, and really mix up the style.
Benji drew next, and he was obviously going to get either Donyelle or Heidi as a partner, so either way we are going to be in for a treat. And he picked Donyelle! Donji's back together! Benyelle! Donyelle then picked their dance styles and drew Hip-Hop and Broadway.
Benji and Donyelle (Broadway) - This is Donjibenyelle, the Golden Couple. So why was their performance disappointing? It didn't suck, they're too good for that, but it didn't get me all worked up either. Donyelle particularly seemed to lack some energy, which is a shame because she's still my sentimental favourite in this thing. The judges agreed, and pointed out that some of Donyelle's technique was lacking.
Natalie (Solo) - I don't want to spoil things for you, but this was the best friggin' solo of the night. Say what you want about Natalie, but she has some, how do the kids say it? Mad skillz. She also changes her solos up and isn't afraid to try different moves (except that flip she always does) and some different tempos.
My favourite part of the drawing of names is the last one, because there doesn't seem to be any point in doing it. We know it's going to be Travis and Heidi. The only thing we don't know are the styles, and they drew Pop and Smooth Waltz.
Travis and Heidi (Smooth Waltz) - I've melted over some waltzes in this show before and the judges completely disagreed with me. This time it was different and this beautiful, classy performance impressed everyone. These two have teamed up before and it looked like Travis was carrying Heidi, but not this night. She was his equal on that stage.
Ivan (Solo) - I'm sorry, but there is just something about Ivan's solos that doesn't do it for me. He had one that I enjoyed a few weeks ago, but nothing since. He's good at what he does, but my favourite performances of his have been with partners.
Benji and Donyelle (Hip-Hop) - Okay, thank you Donyelle for bringing your energy back! This was much better and a lot of fun! A little on the violent side, especially at the end when Donyelle's character "punched" Benji's character and knocked him out, but what's dance without a little violence? Their chemistry worked well for this number. The most confusing thing was when Mary told Benji that he had backbone, wishbone, and funnybone. The first and third, yeah. The second one... what the hell does that mean? That we should close our eyes and snap him in two?
Heidi (Solo) - After some criticism a few weeks back, Heidi landed in the bottom three and came back with a killer solo that blew everyone away. That was the high point of her dancing without a partner on this show. As with Travis, it would be really nice to see something different. Travis should try something with a faster tempo, Heidi I'd like to see slow it down a little. I know she's a ballroom specialist so solos are alien to her, but I'd like to see her show us what she's been learning since this show began and incorporate some of the different styles. Not too much, but enough to really give us something that we haven't seen from her yet.
Kaysar (Big Brother) - Kaysar came out and saw Heidi dance solo, so he immediately went to Benji and Donyelle and said they needed to get the "floater" evicted. Julie Chen then walked on to the stage and escorted him back to the Big Brother house.
Ivan and Natalie (Contemporary) - I like Ivan better as a contemporary dancer than I do as a hip-hop dancer. After this show is over, I hope he decides to persue that route and take the neccessary classes. This routine was a pleasure to watch, or so I thought. The judges did not like it, the bastards! It seems like Ivan's lack of training really showed through on this. Natalie was there too, but as before when Ivan was paired with Allison, she was too much better than him to really say anything about.
Benji (Solo) - I've been wondering what Jayeyzms has been up to since he was eliminated from the show, and now I know. He's been making signs for the audience to hold up as evidenced by the one that said "BENiG". It's bad enough that he doesn't go by "Ben" or "Benny", Jyaaamiz, don't be making matters worse. Not that there is a problem with the name "Benji", it's just that neither that spelling or "Benjy" seem quite right. Speaking of whom, his solo was pretty good, but not his best.
Travis and Heidi (Pop) - Don't be fooled by the "pop" in this dance, there was a lot of African influence in this dance and it was absolutely amazing! Good enough that I actually rewound the tape and watched it again! Both dancers held their own and really brought it to the performance. The best part? The judges agreed with me!
Donyelle - Like Natalie, Donyelle seems willing to bring new things to her solos and it shows. This was different from when we've seen her dance solo before, and it was good.

***

Which brings us to the results show, and one of my favourite ensemble pieces yet. It was choreographed by Mia Michaels, so brava Ms. Michaels, it was excellent!
Unlike the previous night there was time for small talk and behind the scenes footage. What? You want me to describe it to you in detail? Sorry, I've got to put this puppy to bed soon so I can squeeze in Last Comic Standing before Big Brother comes on!
This time around there are so few dancers left that there wouldn't be a bottom two because everyone is in the bottom three for their respective sexes. Because the voting is already over the solos won't count towards anything, but instead will just be a chance to dance for the audience one more time.
Natalie - Nowhere near as good as the previous night, but really laden with emotion. She was in tears when she was done, and she said she was dancing for former competitor Allison who was sitting in the audience, also crying like her dog just got Cheneyed in the face.
Heidi - After some criticism a few weeks back, Heidi landed in the bottom three and came back with a killer solo that blew everyone away. That was the high point of her dancing without a partner on this show. As with Travis, it would be really nice to see something different. Travis should try something with a faster tempo, Heidi I'd like to see slow it down a little. I know she's a ballroom specialist so solos are alien to her, but I'd like to see her show us what she's been learning since this show began and incorporate some of the different styles. Not too much, but enough to really give us something that we haven't seen from her yet.
Yes, that was a complete copy and paste of her last solo. The only thing she's really changing up is the end, and she is finishing her solos off quite spectacularly. She can touch her foot to the back of her head, for cryin' out loud!
Donyelle - The best solo for the women this night, and again a lot of emotion. She didn't cry, but looked like she was going to, at least more than normal. I love Donyelle and she is a very beautiful woman, but for some reason she always looks like she's trying to keep from crying.
Travis - Okay, I could do the copy and paste thing again but I won't. But remember how I said I'd love to see him do something faster? The music this time was even slower! We know you can do well at slow tempos, Travis! Now take our breath away with some speed!
Ivan - Not bad. There were some moves and transitions he made that let me enjoy this more than his usual solo.
Benji - Pretty damned good. Now one thing I haven't done in this section was get into the judge's comments, and some of them (okay, Mia) were pretty damned harsh. But the judges did have something to say after each one and Mary took this opportunity to explain her backbone/wishbone/funnybone comment. The backbone is Benji's style, the wishbone is that he really wanted this and to be there (ah!), and the funnybone is that Benji is funny. Thanks for clearing that up, Mary! And a big thank you for not screaming over the course of two whole episodes!
After the solos, there was a performance by some singer that I've never heard of, proving once more that I'm getting too old and I should be in Vegas throwing my panties at Tom Jones.
When the song was finished, Cat brought the women over and got really tedious by reading a lot of comments about each one. She then told Heidi she was safe, then threw us into commercial. Evil!
Coming back from this short break, she called the men over, did the same loooong read through of comments, and then Travis found out he was safe.
Then it was time for the eliminations. Natalie and Donyelle stood there, hand in hand, waiting for the axe to drop. Natalie would be going home. There were some gasps from the audience, a fraction of a second for her to absorb this, then with a big smile she raised her arms and shouted "OPA!" Her heritage is Greek, you see. It was actually a great way to say goodbye, and she was rewarded with laughs, cheers, and even a standing ovation from the judges. Now that's the way to go out!
Finally it was the two men left, Ivan and Benji. If the Benmeister was to leave now, it would be one of the biggest upsets ever in the history of reality dance competitions. Bigger than even some of the people Master P beat in last season's Dancing With the Stars. You never know what treacherous audience members are going to get up to with a little voting power in their hands. It wasn't to be, however, Ivan was sent packing and all is right with the world.
We're now down to a very good final four, and there is only one competition episode left. See that little "Comments" thing underneath this? Who do you think is going to win?