Encores and results

Posted: Wednesday, May 06, 2009 by Travis Cody in
18

Cue that theme music because it's live from Hollywood!



My first encore comes from Shawn and Mark, with a darn near perfect Paso Doble. Click here.


Next is the nearly flawless Foxtrot from Gilles and Cheryl. Click here.


Dance of the night goes to Melissa and Tony with a scintillating Samba that earned a perfect 30. Click here.


And that's your judges' encore selection.

Here's our leader board from last night:

57 Melissa and Tony
56 Gilles and Cheryl
56 Shawn and Mark
52 Kim and Derek
46 Ty and Chelsie

One of my favorite singer/songwriters is in the ballroom! It's Jamie Cullum! I first saw this young man when he was 22 years old, on a VH1 special celebrating the Songwriting Hall of Fame. The first song I ever heard him do was Twentysomething. I was blown away. Jamie is an impressive songwriter, a talented musician, and he's also dedicated to putting his own stamp on classic tunes.

He sang I Get A Kick Out of You, accompanied by a wonderful pro Quickstep. I don't know who the pair was. I encourage you to pick up one of Jamie's CDs. You won't regret it.

Dear Powers That Be...please please please retire any future Kenny Mayne features.

The first couple to advance to the Final Four is Gilles and Cheryl.

Macy's Stars of Dance was fantastic! And dammit...I didn't cacth the names of the choreographers. That is so frustrating.

Here we go with the pro competition.

Afton dances Samba with Cody Linley. Cody has forgotten what he learned about moving his hips. Afton made a very nice Samba, but she wasn't able to loosen him up all that much. Although, she did pull out a fun performance from him.

Pause for results...the next couple to advance to the Final Four is Melissa and Tony.

Mayo dances Quickstep with Lisa Rinna. I like his approach to teaching. His first step is to find out how his student learns. He did a great job with Lisa. He made use of her natural enthusiasm and helped her overcome the difference in their height. He made her look good. Well done.

Anna dances Tango with Maurice Green. Maurice chose a dance he hadn't done before, and that worked to her advantage. She was able to show how she would approach her work with a celebrity. Although he walked through most of it, she did allow him to lead her through the dance and he did that very well. Good job.

It's results time. The next couple to advance to the Final Four is Shawn and Mark.

So far there haven't been any surprises. Things have fallen out pretty much in the order of the leader board, with Kim and Ty in the bottom two.

But now it goes wonky! Ty and Chelsie advance to the Final Four, and that means Kim and Derek are out.



Whoa! That's a shame. She wasn't sharp last night like she was in the previous couple of weeks. But I have to say that the finals will be lessened in quality with her out of the competition.

Ty's fanbase was able to overcome the 6 point deficit on the leader board. And that's what it comes down to. This competition isn't necessarily about the best dancer. This is about who is watching the show, what catches their eye, and whether it makes them pick up the phone and spend their limited number of votes.

Unlike American Idol, you don't get to vote early and often. You get X many votes each week.

Next week, our Final Four dance two routines again in an effort to win some of those votes on the way to crowning the season 8 champion. You know what's on the line...it's the fabulous mirror ball trophy!



18 comments:

  1. Anonymous says:

    Well that was a shocker to say the least. And I think the only way to get rid of the popularity contest is to limit one vote per phone number. If your line is blocked it wont be accepted. That way they can't be stacked. Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge Ty fan but he isn't as good as Lil Kim was and yes she had a bad night the night before but that doesn't mean she should have been voted off. It's like Cloris last season. She was my favorite and she made it as far as she did because of her fan base. I wish Ty well. I think Shawn better watch out next week. I keep saying who's gonna go and I I'm always wrong...LOL. Aloha

  1. Sanni says:

    *Off topic*

    Thank you so much for the kind wishes on Luis 3rd birthday. You made our little Captain (and us, of course) very happy.

    I will miss your updates, Trav. We're moving today and there's no internet in the new home. It will take a few weeks to get an internet connection and I'm looking forward to catch up as soon as possible.

    Please don't forget me :-)

    *SMOOCH*

  1. DrillerAA says:

    Stunned! Just stunned, that's all I've got to say.

  1. Marsha says:

    Man was that not a shocker! While Kim's never been my favorite, she's done well. Props to Ty for getting better than I thought he ever would. But I guess it just goes to show you there are a lot of 'cowboys at heart' out there huh?

  1. Was this the episode where Melissa had the "wardrobe malfunction"?

  1. Ivanhoe says:

    Wow! That sure is a surprise to me. I would have thought that it's the end of the road for Ty...

  1. Dianne says:

    I was watching late at night on the DVR and I thought I had fallen asleep and heard/dreamed wrong!

    I can't believe it and yes, the finals are lessened by the fact that Ty is in them. I thought he should have gone weeks ago.

    But hey! All's fair is love and dancing ;)

  1. Kanani says:

    I guess herein lies the generation gap. I don't recognize any of these "stars."
    Anyway, sounds like fun. I used to watch that other dance show --So you think you can dance?" Loved it.

  1. they don't publish the actual votes do they? it would be interesting to know....wellllll...maybe for mathgeeks like me.

    If every phone and IP number only had a single vote...it would probably still fall the same way....even dance crazies like you travis put your full force behind a single pair at this point.

    I wonder if Ty (if addition to his own fan base...)gets a bit of a boost from his wife's fans?

    I'd bet Lil Kim goes on with her dancing...musical theater could really use the new blood that her performance style...AND her fan demographic would bring.

  1. Anonymous says:

    No more Kim? That is shocking!

    I had to goodgle Kenny Mayne - I don't watch ESPN unless the Red Sox or Patriots are on. *grin*

  1. Akelamalu says:

    Great clips Trav :)

  1. Thom: I think they do ok with limiting the votes. There's no way to stack a whole bunch of votes for one contestant. I think it just comes down to who you like and whether you care enough to vote.

    Sanni: Good luck with the move! And who could possibly forget Sanni??? That's just crazy talk right there!

    Drilleraa: It was definitely a shocker.

    Marsha: Kim was one I would have converted over to if my favorites had gone out early.

    Southern: That happened Monday night.

    Ivanhoe: That was the general thought for most of us I think.

    Dianne: You're right! And all is fair when the fans are calling the shots.

    Kanani: That's why I always try to refer to them as celebrities. And that other show returns on May 21!

    Katherine: I don't think they've ever indicated the actual voting numbers. And I agree. Some are simply going to watch for entertainment, and some are going to watch and vote. And still others are going to take the results much too seriously. LOL!

    Barb: It's a shame about Kim. I really enjoyed her progress.

    Akelamalu: Thanks!

  1. Jan says:

    I was so shocked to see Kim voted out. I'm proud of Ty for hanging in there but I sure do hope Melissa wins!

  1. Jamie Cullum is made of freakin awesome. I love his voice and I love the way he does standards! Excellent vid choice!

    Ty ain't Lil' Kim. That is all I am gonna say. Sometimes fans like someone so much they want them to be better than they are.

  1. Tookie: It should still be a pretty good final. Watch for the judges to be very harsh with scores if Ty doesn't measure up.

    Starr: Jamie is made of 10 different kinds of awesome! And that was well said about the way fans sometimes vote, if they vote at all.

  1. Yes well I have been guilty of casting a vote or two for an Idol singer who had a bad night cause I really just liked them as a person.

    I think that is what made the David's so great last year. They were obviously friends. I saw that with Adam and Allison. Poor guy was nearly in tears last night. Allison said he took it harder than she did.

  1. Shocker...is right. I agree it is about the fans and not necessarily the best dancer, but...

    And then Allison going home..man that was set up by the judges IMHO...their comments lead the fans where TPTB want them to go me thinks...

  1. Julie says:

    Yupyupyup! I was shocked....yet kinda happy with Ty staying another week. He isn't the better dancer but his humility and desire to succeed is just adorable.