Sorry for the late start this morning. It's hard to imagine we'll see our last show of the season tonight. Remember, it starts at 8pm ET/PT, not the usual 9pm we've become accustomed to on Thursdays.
Each dancer had to learn 4 choreographed pieces and prepare for a solo. I think it showed in a lack of polish on several of the routines. I wish they had longer than 3 days to prepare.
Brett Love at TVSquad is always worth reading.
Danny and Neil met up with Mia Michaels for a contemporary piece. I thought the concept was great, and the two of them performed it very well. My only issue with the whole thing was how different the judges reactions were to this, compared to Lacey and Sabra's performance. They took that one to task for not showcasing their abilities, but here was Mia Michaels with Neil and Danny sitting in chairs for half of their performance. Don't get me wrong, I thought the acting of their parts while they were in the chairs, particularly from Neil, was excellent. I just didn't get how they saw the two pieces so differently. Perhaps they were just that impressed with what went on once the chairs were left behind in the second half and they got to some of the bigger moments. Although, did anyone else think that Neil missed the move where he was supposed to jump over Danny's shoulders? It was in the preview package, but on stage he went low and to the side. That's possibly not even a mistake though, and the entire performance was very good. Nigel thought it was great, very masculine, and very strong. Mary loved it, adding that it was very believable and showcased their talents. Dan called the athleticism insane.
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Liza D at Water cooler Convo:
In the solos, no doubt that Danny delivered probably one of the best solos if not THE best solo ever on this show. The speed in which he did his running split jumps at the beginning was jaw-dropping, and that spin that lasted forever ... WOW. Neil may have given his best solo performance. Sabra still hasn't surpassed her first solo. Lacey's was much improved and more well-thought out, although I think I liked her last one better than this. Nice shout-out to her brother in that stage dive, but overall it was the weakest solo of the four.
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There's usually a stripper pole involved when the guys at betting site Bodog Beat watch a dance, but even they were wowed by what they saw last night:
Of the four remaining contestants for the $250,000 grand prize on the Fox reality TV program, one stands out. It's the funny thing about great artwork - even if you know jack about it most of us can recognize when something's good. Danny Tidwell is holler-out-loud good. We couldn't really tell you why except he makes the waltz worth watching and that's got to mean something.
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