Trav's Thoughts

What's better than one night of Dancing?

Two nights of Dancing!

Cue that theme music!

On Monday night, 13 celebrities took to the stage with their professional partners. Some danced Foxtrot while some danced Cha Cha Cha. On Tuesday, 12 pairs danced again while one pair was the first to be elminated from the competition.

We began with all the pairs on stage together, and each safe pair was revealed and then had to dance.

One dance is Quickstep, which is characterized by light and tricky footwork in a basic up and down swing motion at a fast pace, with a slow-quick-quick-slow-quick-quick movement. This clip is wonderful, despite the black and white. Please enjoy Igor & Irina Suvorov in a classic Quickstep.


And the other dance is Mambo, which is characterized by accentuated hip movements and sharp staccato steps with rhythmic backwards and forwards motion on the beat. Let's cross over to that other dance show, So You Think You Can Dance, and pick up Lacey's big brother and season 3 champ Benji Schwimmer with cousin Heidi Groskreutz.


This is tough. Each couple has no idea in what order they'll be dancing, or if they'll be dancing at all. The safe couples are announced and then have to dance after the 2-3 minute rehearsal footage. Geez!

So here we go.

Lance & Lacey are the first to be safe tonight and dance Quickstep. The hold was a bit sloppy in spots. He missed a few steps, but overall that was a pretty good Quickstep. They have energy and chemistry, and the musicality is excellent. It was an entertaining dance. Unfortunately, I have to agree with the judges that it was fun but it wasn't quite up to standard. We wondered if Lacey would struggled to choreograph the ballroom styles. So far we have to say she was much better with Latin. Judges say 7,6,8 for a total of 21. We agree with that score.

Misty & Maks are safe and dance Mambo. She's got it going in the hip department. And she's looking less awkward and more comfortable by herself on the stage. There's no doubt that Maks is working his magic with her. Sexy mambo hip swivels bay-bee! She still looked like an athlete on the dance floor, especially in the shoulders and upper arms, but she was much more feminine and OH MY look at those LEGS LEGS LEGS LEGS! Judges say 7's across for a total of 21. Again, we agree.

Maurice & Cheryl are safe and dance Mambo. Yet again, Maurice puts on a good show to begin but once the dancing begins he's too stiff. We got the impression from the rehearsal footage that he would be able to get the hips rolling, but we didn't see classic mambo hip action in that dance. It was frenetic and entertaining and fun. But it was also a bit wild and out of control. There's no doubt he's got potential, he just needs to dial it down a couple of clicks so he can control the movement and actually begin to lead Cheryl. We did enjoy it though. Judges say 7's across for a total of 21. So far, we're right with the judges.

Brooke and Derek are safe and dance Quick Step. Now if you want to improve your Quickstep posture, you just strap a baby to your chest while you rehearse. We knew those little rugrats were good for something! Ha! And it worked too because that was an excellent Quickstep. The dance was elegant and classy, fun and entertaining. And Brooke goes to the head of the class as the gal to beat at this stage. We didn't get to see LEGS, and there was one little bobbled step, but that dance was fantastic. Judges say 9,8,9 for a total of 26. Yup. That easily could have been 9's across.

Woooooooooooooooooo!!! Cloris & Corky are safe! They dance Mambo. Oh my goodness. That was so silly. I can't critique the dancing. Of course it wasn't a real Mambo. But it didn't have to be. I'll say it again...she is simply delightful. She's having a good time and she's doing her job as an entertainer. And Corky is a real pro to work with her, and make dances that let her have fun. That makes it fun for everyone, instead of something embarrassing. And just so we don't forget, nobody's career is at stake here. It's suposed to be about entertainment. Bleucher! **insert insane horse whinnies** Judges say 6,5,5 for a total of 16.

Toni & Alec are safe and dance Quickstep. Isn't it odd that something reflexive like breathing can become such a problem to remember when you're dancing. The rehearsal footage really emphasized how much trouble she was having with her stamina. But she seemed to solve that during the dance. It was a classic Quickstep. Toni is another front runner early in the competition. Her footwork was excellent for the most part. She got a bit tired toward the end and lost her frame just a bit. She and Alec look good together. We thought it was smooth and elegant and refined. Judges say 8,7,8 for a total of 23. That 7 from Len must have been for the dropped frame. We thought it was 8's across.

Warren & Kym are safe and dance Quickstep. This is going to be a test. The man is definitely light on his feet. And he's also very suave and so very charming. (Pam said that) Yup...the football players can dance it up! That was terrifically entertaining. There were some issues with his technique and posture. We do agree with the judges that although he got the steps with no problem, his footwork wasn't up to standard. But we had fun watching and he really performed the character of the dance. It's nice to get Quickstep out of the way early. Judges say 7,7,8 for a total of 22. We'll agree with that.

Ted & Inna are safe and dance Mambo. That was oddly enjoyable. He's not the most musical, but he manages to find the beat. His posture is good and he hits all the steps. He performs the character well, and she choregoraphs a very masculine part for him to play. The Latin dances are going to be difficult for him because he doesn't have the hip action. But the two of them together are entertaining and Inna is doing a great job of teaching him. Judges say 6,6,7 for a total of 19.

Cody & Julianne are safe and dance Quickstep. OK. We're doing Quickstep to I Want You To Want Me. He had his feet in all the right places. The dance had all kinds of energy, but it was also graceful and elegant as it should be. They did a great job of holding frame and keeping posture. It bordered on wild, but stayed on the right side of that edge. We enjoyed the dance. Very entertaining. They look great together. This is one of those perfect pairs because she knows what she's about with teaching and choreography, and she can communicate easily with him because they are basically the same age. Judges say 8,7,8 for a total of 23. A good score.

Rocco & Karina are safe and dance Mambo. Well! He actually did learn how to move his hips. That was quite surprising. That was actually one of the better Mambos of the night. I'll let Pam tell you what she thought...HAWT SEXY HAWT SEXY HAWT SEXY HAWT SEXY!!! Rocco led Karina through the dance. He was a strong partner, and we didn't see him miss a step. We thought he was in danger, but after that dance we're glad he's safe. And he looks like he's having a great time. Judges say 7's across for a total of 21. Good for them!

Susan & Tony are safe and dance Quickstep. She immediately looks more comfortable on the floor. She's still a bit stiff, but that helps her in this style. That was much better! The footwork was good and she looked like she was enjoying herself. She sold the performance. And she looked fantastic. It was tough for her to begin with Latin, but at least she got a chance to dance the ballroom style. She showed off her elegance and class. Good for her! Tony always says that the man's job in ballroom is to put the woman in the spotlight, and he definitely managed that with his choreography for Susan in that dance. Judges say 7,7,8 for a total of 22. Excellent!

Kim & Mark are safe and dance Mambo. No no no. We're dancing Mambo to Big Butts? She's a bit of a disaster. We didn't like that at all. They have no chemistry between them. She doesn't seem to have any confidence in what she's doing. Granted she had to stand there all night to find out whether she was going to dance or not. It had to be tough to get ready to dance at that point. We don't know very much about Kim, but she's definitely not what we expected. So we'll cut her some slack for being in a tough spot and doing her best. Judges say 6's across for a total of 18.

That means Jeff & Edyta had the lowest vote total and are eliminated. Jeff says "they told me Edyta was going to be easy on the eyes", a reference to getting poked in the eye on Monday. No more Edyta's LEGS LEGS LEGS LEGS. Dangit.

Here's our leader board:

26 Brooke and Derek
23 Cody and Julianne
23 Toni and Alec
22 Warren and Kym
22 Susan and Tony
21 Misty and Maks
21 Rocco and Karina
21 Lance and Lacey
21 Maurice and Cheryl
19 Ted and Inna
18 Kim and Mark
16 Cloris and Corky

Well, I voted again for Lance & Lacey and Warren & Kym. Pam stuck with Misty & Maks, but switched to Brooke & Derek. Just as a reminder, DWTS actually limits the number of votes per phone. So we only had 12 votes each.

Tune in at 9pm tonight for results. And tomorrow I'll have encores!