So You Think You Can Dance - Aired Aug. 9 - Full Recap
So you think I forgot? Ha! Sorry about the lateness of this recap, but between recovering from the crazy schedule I set for myself and taking time for other things... well, I'm back and catching up!
This was the penultimate episode of the season. The final four would perform one last time before the finale where we would ultimately get our Dance champion. This show would be different, as host Cat Deely pointed out, in that everyone would dance with everyone else. Not just the two men with the two women, but the two men with each other and the two women with each other. Sadly this is network television with a large young demographic, so "pro-family" groups don't need to get their anti-love knickers in a twist. I'm sure it'll all be quite chaste.
Our final panel of judges were Nigel "Never Had a Face Lift" Lythgoe, Mary "If Your Ears Aren't Bleeding I'm Not Doing My Job" Murphy, and Brian "Insert Nickname Here" Friedman. No time for small talk! It's a packed show!
Heidi & Travis (Disco) - Disco routines don't seem to go down very well, but this one was pretty good. I thought Travis was pretty awkward on the lifts, but if the judges agreed then they didn't say anything beyond Brian wanting Travis' arms a little stiffer on one of the lifts. You want Travis stiffer? Let him lift Benji! Ha! You see, because Travis is... Ah, never mind. As awkward as the lifts and that joke were, it's nothing compared to the flirting between Nigel and Cat. He said that with the shiny silver dress she was wearing, she could be a disco ball. That's when she replied that if he gets the right wire, he can hang her anywhere. Another reason I'm so far behind on the recaps? I've been drinking heavily to get that image out of my mind.
Donyelle & Benji (Viennese Waltz) - The last time we saw a Viennese waltz, the graphics department spelled it "Vienesse". That's how I noticed we weren't getting any graphics this episode. Also of note, nobody was drawing dances out of a hat, so these styles must have been deliberately chosen for each pairing. Also also of note, remembering misspellings makes me miss Jawyemaz. Also also also of note, I don't think there has been a waltz I've hated all season. If I'm wrong, please feel free to leave me a note in the comments section. If I'm right, please feel free to leave me a note in the comments section. If you don't care either way, please leave a damned note in the comments section! I need your love! Huh? Oh, I thought this waltz was beautiful too, but the judges didn't like it at all, and were particular harsh concerning the technique.
At this point we got to see how the final four got a special treat. Dressed up to the nines and in a limo, they went to the world premier of the dance movie, Step Up. Considering that the movie was soooo well reviewed it's no surprise that they enjoyed it. I shouldn't get too snarky though. I love Flashdance.
Heidi - It was a Heidi solo, so nothing really new but she did mix up her moves a little. I'm still disappointed that she hasn't taken what she's learned through this process and incorporate some of that.
Travis & Benji (Hip-Hop) - Travis and Benji, or as they call themselves, Tranji. I like it, and I'm very happy that they didn't go with Benvis. That wouldn't have been quite so humourously close to so many other words. The routine was incredible with the two of them taking on dancing nerd personaes, making me hope they do more same-sex pairings next season. It doesn't all have to be about romance and sexual chemistry. The most bizarre moment was Judge Mary (hmmmm, I see a new spin-off!) talking to her hand as if the hand were a puppet, then having the puppet hand scream. Judge Brian (which wouldn't be as crazy a show as Judge Mary) called it "dorktastic", and also screamed. Please. One Mary is more than enough.
Donyelle - I liked this solo, and it was reminiscent of the audition dance where I first fell in love with her, but it seemed to lack some energy. Never the less, it was still nice to watch and she does try different things with her solos which is refreshing.
Travis - Some brilliant moves here, but I couldn't enjoy it as much because he's still using the same damned angsty music he always does his solos to. The dancing itself should earn him the win, but I'm so tired of his music. Something faster would be such a nice change.
Donyelle & Heidi (Broadway) - Maybe it was the music they were given, but while they did the choreography I was left wanting so much more. These two women are more than capable of putting on as good a routine as the guys had earlier, but they didn't have the right music or choreography to do it. The judges didn't like it either, and for those keeping score, that's two in a row for Donyelle that they didn't care for.
Benji - Another high-energy Benji solo, and for him I'd like to see the opposite of what I want from Travis. It would be nice to see Benji slow it down. However, if he did that we likely wouldn't have had one of the best endings ever when he dropped backwards into the audience where they caught him and lifted him back up. Obviously people had to have been planted, because that would have been too risky otherwise and a broken neck may not be conducive to a long, productive dance career.
Donyelle & Travis (Blues Contemporary) - Oh, this was beautiful. Finally Donyelle was able to shine like we know she can. It wasn't the kind of energetic number that gets the huge applause, but it was a joy to watch and the judges agreed.
Heidi & Benji (Salsa) - It looks like the couples were given styles they are comfortable in for their last pairings. First Donyelle and Travis, now the cousins Heidi and Benji who did a kickass salsa. At the end, Heidi was standing arched backwards and without help in a way no human should be able to. Did the United States Air Force slip in a contestabot when nobody was looking? I loved it, the audience loved it, the judges loved it, and Nigel loved Cat all over the backstage area. I'm guessing. That last bit was pure speculation for legal purposes.
Group routine (Pop) - We're used to seeing group routines at the top of the results show, but this is the first one on the performance show specifically for the audience to help us judge the dancers, and it was an amazing dance with everyone doing a whole "model" schtick. Nigel said the last three dances showed why they all deserved to be in the final four, but then he added that not everyone deserves to win. He didn't name any names, but Travis was singled out as doing an amazing job in this last dance by the judges.
And so it goes. The last competitive episode of the season. As much as I love Donyelle, she's been lacking energy or something the last couple of shows, and Heidi is great but I don't see her winning. This should be down to Travis versus Benji. Benji has the popularity, but Travis has the moves. Let's see how it all works out.
This was the penultimate episode of the season. The final four would perform one last time before the finale where we would ultimately get our Dance champion. This show would be different, as host Cat Deely pointed out, in that everyone would dance with everyone else. Not just the two men with the two women, but the two men with each other and the two women with each other. Sadly this is network television with a large young demographic, so "pro-family" groups don't need to get their anti-love knickers in a twist. I'm sure it'll all be quite chaste.
Our final panel of judges were Nigel "Never Had a Face Lift" Lythgoe, Mary "If Your Ears Aren't Bleeding I'm Not Doing My Job" Murphy, and Brian "Insert Nickname Here" Friedman. No time for small talk! It's a packed show!
Heidi & Travis (Disco) - Disco routines don't seem to go down very well, but this one was pretty good. I thought Travis was pretty awkward on the lifts, but if the judges agreed then they didn't say anything beyond Brian wanting Travis' arms a little stiffer on one of the lifts. You want Travis stiffer? Let him lift Benji! Ha! You see, because Travis is... Ah, never mind. As awkward as the lifts and that joke were, it's nothing compared to the flirting between Nigel and Cat. He said that with the shiny silver dress she was wearing, she could be a disco ball. That's when she replied that if he gets the right wire, he can hang her anywhere. Another reason I'm so far behind on the recaps? I've been drinking heavily to get that image out of my mind.
Donyelle & Benji (Viennese Waltz) - The last time we saw a Viennese waltz, the graphics department spelled it "Vienesse". That's how I noticed we weren't getting any graphics this episode. Also of note, nobody was drawing dances out of a hat, so these styles must have been deliberately chosen for each pairing. Also also of note, remembering misspellings makes me miss Jawyemaz. Also also also of note, I don't think there has been a waltz I've hated all season. If I'm wrong, please feel free to leave me a note in the comments section. If I'm right, please feel free to leave me a note in the comments section. If you don't care either way, please leave a damned note in the comments section! I need your love! Huh? Oh, I thought this waltz was beautiful too, but the judges didn't like it at all, and were particular harsh concerning the technique.
At this point we got to see how the final four got a special treat. Dressed up to the nines and in a limo, they went to the world premier of the dance movie, Step Up. Considering that the movie was soooo well reviewed it's no surprise that they enjoyed it. I shouldn't get too snarky though. I love Flashdance.
Heidi - It was a Heidi solo, so nothing really new but she did mix up her moves a little. I'm still disappointed that she hasn't taken what she's learned through this process and incorporate some of that.
Travis & Benji (Hip-Hop) - Travis and Benji, or as they call themselves, Tranji. I like it, and I'm very happy that they didn't go with Benvis. That wouldn't have been quite so humourously close to so many other words. The routine was incredible with the two of them taking on dancing nerd personaes, making me hope they do more same-sex pairings next season. It doesn't all have to be about romance and sexual chemistry. The most bizarre moment was Judge Mary (hmmmm, I see a new spin-off!) talking to her hand as if the hand were a puppet, then having the puppet hand scream. Judge Brian (which wouldn't be as crazy a show as Judge Mary) called it "dorktastic", and also screamed. Please. One Mary is more than enough.
Donyelle - I liked this solo, and it was reminiscent of the audition dance where I first fell in love with her, but it seemed to lack some energy. Never the less, it was still nice to watch and she does try different things with her solos which is refreshing.
Travis - Some brilliant moves here, but I couldn't enjoy it as much because he's still using the same damned angsty music he always does his solos to. The dancing itself should earn him the win, but I'm so tired of his music. Something faster would be such a nice change.
Donyelle & Heidi (Broadway) - Maybe it was the music they were given, but while they did the choreography I was left wanting so much more. These two women are more than capable of putting on as good a routine as the guys had earlier, but they didn't have the right music or choreography to do it. The judges didn't like it either, and for those keeping score, that's two in a row for Donyelle that they didn't care for.
Benji - Another high-energy Benji solo, and for him I'd like to see the opposite of what I want from Travis. It would be nice to see Benji slow it down. However, if he did that we likely wouldn't have had one of the best endings ever when he dropped backwards into the audience where they caught him and lifted him back up. Obviously people had to have been planted, because that would have been too risky otherwise and a broken neck may not be conducive to a long, productive dance career.
Donyelle & Travis (Blues Contemporary) - Oh, this was beautiful. Finally Donyelle was able to shine like we know she can. It wasn't the kind of energetic number that gets the huge applause, but it was a joy to watch and the judges agreed.
Heidi & Benji (Salsa) - It looks like the couples were given styles they are comfortable in for their last pairings. First Donyelle and Travis, now the cousins Heidi and Benji who did a kickass salsa. At the end, Heidi was standing arched backwards and without help in a way no human should be able to. Did the United States Air Force slip in a contestabot when nobody was looking? I loved it, the audience loved it, the judges loved it, and Nigel loved Cat all over the backstage area. I'm guessing. That last bit was pure speculation for legal purposes.
Group routine (Pop) - We're used to seeing group routines at the top of the results show, but this is the first one on the performance show specifically for the audience to help us judge the dancers, and it was an amazing dance with everyone doing a whole "model" schtick. Nigel said the last three dances showed why they all deserved to be in the final four, but then he added that not everyone deserves to win. He didn't name any names, but Travis was singled out as doing an amazing job in this last dance by the judges.
And so it goes. The last competitive episode of the season. As much as I love Donyelle, she's been lacking energy or something the last couple of shows, and Heidi is great but I don't see her winning. This should be down to Travis versus Benji. Benji has the popularity, but Travis has the moves. Let's see how it all works out.
posted by Tabby at 1:03 p.m.
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