What an energetic, exciting, and fun start to this season!  There was a lot going on tonight, from Cat’s white spiderweb bejeweled mess dress to Mary’s general craziness to one standout routine after another.  Plus, it was just plain awesome to see our beloved SYTYCD stage again, don’tcha think?

From the 3-second “intro dances”, I had one overall response:  Whoever Ade is, I think I like him.  (I was not disappointed when he showed up again way later in the show.)

Typically, the Top 20 episode tends to have one or two forgettable or disappointing pairings, making it easy to predict who will be in the bottom 3.  After perusing my notes, and having seen each routine only once, I had a difficult time guessing who might be hanging out there at the bottom.  But I’ll try.

Their first (and last?) week on the show(?):

Karla & Jonathan, Cha Cha - First off, Amanda, ha!  You called it:  they brought out Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face” in the third routine of the season!  Featuring two of the “unknowns”, I thought this routine was kinda middle-of-the-road.  The judges loved it, however.  Mary redefined innuendo when she declared, “I like my cha-cha rough!”  Overall, I think the show-ending Samba from Max & Kayla will overshadow this, putting Karla & Jonathan at risk.  Plus, I can’t remember Jonathan’s face.  I keep seeing Jason’s.

Asuka & Vitolio, Broadway - Not Tyce’s strongest choreography, in my opinion.  I love Broadway, but this was subpar.  I thought it was a little stiff, and the dancing seemed way slower than the music.  Mary & Shanks had similar opinions, saying A & V were “playing it safe”.   Nigel reminded them that their big personalities needed to translate on stage.  I predict they’ll be bottom 3, and they’ll be saved by the judges.  Nigel won’t let his favorite hottie go just yet.

Middle of the pack and therefore safe:

Paris & Tony, Hip-Hop - For the first ep of the season, I thought this was stronger than the judges declared.  I loved Paris in this: she went all out!  It’ll get a little old if they’re going to keep up with this “Tony, you will need to grow!/Tony, you’ve grown so much!” shtick.  And Tony mugs for the camera a little to much for my taste.  Judging from the audience scream-o-meter, though, they’ll be around for a few weeks longer.  Tony’s got the cuteness factor to save both of them. 

Janette & Brandon, Fox Trot - It stinks for them that they had to start the season with a ballroom routine, but they killed it.  What a seamless lift at the end!  And Janette’s dress - all that crazy pink material - didn’t slow Brandon down one bit.  I think Janette is good for him, personality-wise.   And this was the part of the show when Mary uttered that completely hilarious remark about not being able to raise her eyebrow:  “I can’t anymore ’cause of Botox!!!”  This and her screaming at herself in disbelief just afterwards made me laugh out loud.  Janette’s Botox-imitation response - so funny!

Melissa & Ade, Contemporary - I was about to get on Melissa for doing that finger-in-her-mouth coy look twice already tonight - she had better watch it with that gimmick!  But I shut up when I realized how down-to-earth she is.  She and Ade are a perfect, beautiful couple, and their Mandy Moore-choreographed-routine was my favorite of the night.  (Tough call - so much good stuff to choose from, right?)  They made Shanks cry, and Mary’s assessment of Ade as a “gentle giant” was sweetly true.  Ade has this unassuming brilliance to him, and I like him.  A lot.  The question for the future is, will Melissa’s age hold them back, popularity-wise?  Can you see her believably doing hip-hop? 

Kayla & Max, Samba - I think they could easily be in the next category, too.  They had the show-closing money spot, and their Samba was fast-paced, fun, and expertly performed.  I chafed a little at Max’s comment about how he can help Kayla learn ballroom - he’s quite sure of himself and it showed onstage, too.  Kayla brought it.  She will be one to watch this season.

Top o’ the Heap:

Randi & Evan, Jazz - First off, Randi’s married?!  Didn’t see that coming.  She and Evan make a great pair!  They were so good.  So.  GOOD.  Evan was brilliant.  The judges agreed.  Tyce redeemed himself tonight with this one.

Ashley & Kupono, Jazz - Sheer weirdness.  This was a good weird, ’cause it was Wade & his wife Amanda who dreamed it up, after all.  Like the judges said, love it or hate it, you’re gonna remember it.  (”It” being a crazy-cool take on crash-test dummies coming to life.)   My favorite part was Ashley - she was a great performer!  Kupono was good too, but I thought more than once that Mark from season 4 would have killed it.   Couples who get Wade Robson routines are generally guaranteed safety for another week.

Caitlyn & Jason, Bollywood - My hat’s off to them.  For the very first episode, they are given the challenging intricacies of Bollywood movement, and for that reason alone, they should shoot to the top of people’s lists.  Not only that, they did a great job with it, and they were clearly having fun.   Jason has that “Neil Appeal“.  What they did tonight was certainly memorable, and they did not come off like a weak copy of Joshua & Katee’s routine from last season.  I will not forget Caitlyn’s handstand & footwork in those early moments.  Plus, it’s “Jai Ho“!!!  Love that song.

And last but not least,

Jeanine & Philip, Hip-Hop - The producers wasted NO time.  For the first routine of the season, we are given the Chbeeb, hip-hop, and a routine that is eerily reminiscent of last season’s most beloved NapTab number, “Bleeding Love” (even Jeanine’s outfit was a copy of Chelsie’s).  You’ve got all that emotion, playacting, romantic drama, and the cutest SYTYCD couple since Courtney and Gev.  Of course they’re safe.

Final thoughts:  Mia was conspicuously absent.  I’m betting she choreographed Thursday’s Top 20 group number.  Even though I wasn’t a fan of Cat’s first outfit, I loved her loose hairstyle.  And though it won’t always be this way, I loved how generous the judges were with all of the Top 20 dancers.  We never once heard, “I’m sorry, I don’t think that will be enough for America, and you’ll be dancing for your life tomorrow.”

Do you agree, fans?  What predictions have you made?  What was your favorite number, and who is your favorite dancer (mine’s Ade.  Have I mentioned that??)  Let’s talk SYTYCD!

This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 10th, 2009 at 10:28 pm and is filed under Cat!, Mandy Moore, Recaps, Scream Alert!, Season 5, Shanks, Tabitha & Napoleon, Tyce, Wade Robson. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.