Tonight’s performance episode certainly had its memorable moments!    From Nigel “going gangsta on us” with his snippy attitude to Mary’s ever-reddening skin tone to the repeated use of the words “butt” and “ass”, it was one for the record books.  I got to watch this one with my friend Jennifer, and it was fun to process what was happening with another person!!

The Good

• Cat’s dress and hair.  She was beautiful in her Grecian-inspired getup.  I didn’t expect her to top the white suit from last Thursday so quickly!
• Toni Basil, guest judge, talking about her Living Legend of Hip Hop Award, and her constant mentions of “the street”, “the groove”, and “the funk”.  All with that jauntily-placed beret on her head.  I would love to listen in on a conversation between her & Lil C, wouldn’t you? (”I would! Yes, I would!!!” - Mary)
• Vitolio’s rock star face.  He was using it like crazy tonight during judging (and it was much better than Janette’s, I’ve gotta say).  I also want to give props to Vitolio’s incredible sweetness towards Asuka during their rehearsal package.  Who uttered an “awww…” when you saw him comforting his partner?  (”I did!  Yes, I did!” - Mary)
• Kupono & Kayla’s Viennese Waltz choreographed by Jean Marc Genereaux.  Set to Jewel’s “Some Dreams For You”, it was so…  unexpected.  During their rehearsals, I said to Jennifer, “Kupono is going to let her down.  He’s not showing himself to be a very strong dancer.”  But I was wrong, and I happily admit it.  Despite Nigel’s conviction that their routine was nothing to stand up and cheer for, I was enthralled from the very first lift.  Everything about this performance was mesmerizing: the lighting, the song, the beautiful costumes, Kayla’s hair blowing around in the wind.  And Kupono was a revelation for me.  It is pretty much understood that Kayla will upstage anyone she’s partnered with - the girl is a force! - but Kupono more than held his own.  I thought they were a great match, and the fact that this was their first week together only impressed me more.  I thought it’d be sloppy.  Again, I was wrong.  I watched this one twice, and it is currently my favorite routine of the season.  (I will tell you right now, I never thought I’d say that about a waltz, or about these dancers.)
• Melissa & Ade’s Rumba choreographed by Tony Meredith.  First, Ade looked great in that classic black skin tight one-piece Rumba Outfit.  I remembered seeing Gev wear one - tiny Gev!, and Joshua, too.  Ade really rocked it, though, ’cause he’s so tall!  He and Melissa make a beautiful pair, plain and simple.  I didn’t like the song (”Emotion” by Destiny’s Child) it was set to, but I watched this one twice as well.  What can I say?  I love Ade!!  (I voted for them 5 times tonight.  Just throwin’ that out there.)
• Brandon & Janette’s Hip-Hop choreographed by Dave Scott.  What a cool concept: combining a rock attitude with hip hop moves.  It worked.  Brandon completed killed this one, in my opinion.  It was the first time I could get behind him and say, yes, I like him!  I loved his outfit.  He was slammin’ in those jeans & button-down shirt.  Maybe my opinion about Brandon will continue to change as the weeks go on, because it is clear that he & Janette will be around for the long haul.  They are the team to beat.
• Followed closely by Randi & Evan, of course.  Could there be a pair better suited for one another than these two?  (”No, there can’t!!” - Mary) They are so sweet.  I am really loving Randi’s personality - and her hair!!  Did you see her shirt in rehearsals?  It said, “Unitard Girl” on the front.  Loved it.  These two lucked out with the first Mia Michael’s contemporary routine of the season (not counting last week’s group number).  It was, how can we forget?, “all about the booty”.  Randi’s booty, to be specific.  Curl up that blonde ‘do and put her in a little nightie and she is transformed into Chicago’s Roxie Hart!  I wish I could say I loved this routine with all my heart - but Evan’s costume, a ridiculous, oversized suit contraption, took points off for me.  He’s already on the short side, and the high-waisted pants didn’t help that.  But his performance and ability overcame the clothes.  Their routine was saucy.  I liked what Toni Basil said about it, in what I think was a compliment: “The choreography can become the star” - but they didn’t let it.  They are clearly stars on that stage.  I don’t ever want to see them switch partners!  And Mia has yet to give us anything terribly emotional this season.  Is this a new trend for her, or is she saving the gutwrenching stuff for later?

The “Meh”

• Mandy Moore’s choreography to “Heartbreaker” with Asuka & Vitolio.  Mandy said she was going for “thrash-rocker-jazz”, but the whole thing was kinda lackluster for my friend Jennifer and me.  Nigel raved about it, but I agreed with Mary: their movements weren’t always in sync, and the routine lacked “oomph”.  It was kinda like Pasha & Sarah’s jazz routine from season 3, without the fun suspenders angle.  Mandy can do better than this.  I can’t wait to see what else she has for us this season.
• Caitlyn & Jason’s Paso Doble choreographed by Jean Marc & France.  I felt the choreography was great, but the performance merely decent.  I like both Jason & Caitlyn, but I haven’t seen them quite match what they did with their Bollywood in the Top 20 week.  (Jennifer was all about Jason’s costume and attitude.  )

The Bad

• Karla & Jonathan’s hip hop.  This was also done by Dave Scott.  Karla has a hip hop background, and it showed.  She made it look easy.  Unfortunately, she had a partner who couldn’t keep up.  Poor Jonathan.  After last week’s high, they crashed right back to the bottom with this.  Did anyone else think Jonathan looked like a young Travolta in his outfit tonight?  (”I did!  Yes I did!!!” - Mary)
• Jeanine & Philip’s Broadway choreographed by Tyce Diorio.  To be clear: Jeanine was great and held her own.  At the beginning of the season, I thought she was going to be carried by Phillip’s popularity.  Now, she’s starting to shine in her own right, especially in these styles that Phillip can’t seem to master.  I love Broadway and I feel that Tyce can really bring it to life on the SYTYCD stage.  But this did not meet its potential because Phillip lacks so much technique. 

So, a word about all this Chbeebery going on: in a season with all these tremendously talented dancers (of whom we’re constantly reminded), an inexperienced but likable dancer can only go so far.  We all know the judges like to have at least one “fresh off the street” dancer that they can mold and teach and sing praises over (Ivan, Cedric, and Twitch all fit this role to some degree).  I don’t think Phillip will be able to keep up with the 15 other dancers he’s up against.  But the judges will definitely want him on tour, so we can expect him to stick around until at least the top 10.  And since this is the search for “America’s favorite dancer”, he should be around for awhile after that, too.  Unless something big happens.  Tonight, Phillip had that awesome couch jump and the huge slit down the back of his pants to make up for how he couldn’t quite deliver Tyce’s routine.  I’d bet a few pennies that next week he’ll have hip hop again, something to make him look good, so the judges and America will be justified in keeping him around longer.

Predictions for the bottom 3:

1. Karla & Jonathan
2. Asuka & Vitolio
3. Caitlyn & Jason

with Karla & Jonathan going home.

What had you mesmerized tonight, fans?  Who do you predict will be in the bottom 3?  Did any dancer win your heart or surprise you tonight?  Can Phillip keep up with the what the other dancers bring to this season?  Does Toni Basil make any more sense than Lil C?  (”She does!  Yes, she does!!” - Mary)

Wow!  What a roller coaster.  Amanda & I are still texting about it!

MIA!!!  This is the “awe” portion of the show.  I have no recollection of Mia ever bringing the funk before.  Would not have predicted in a million years that her choreography would be to Stevie Wonder.  And it worked.  I really enjoyed this number.  It had all kinds of chess pieces moving at once, and it wasn’t one of those badly-lit hip-hop routines where you can only spot maybe one dancer’s face.  I felt like we got to see at least half of the dancers highlighted during the performance.  And did you notice?  Ade was strongly featured in the front, nailing his every bit - and I couldn’t see Brandon at all.  I was searching for him big time.  The drama continues!  Would sure love some background info on this situation.  Cat, can you help us out here?  (She blogs weekly about the show for ew.com now.)

CAT!!!  She rocked that white suit.  She has never looked better; what a stunner.  This was also “awe”-some.

Before we get to the results, I thought I’d mention the package that poked fun at Lil C (”Lil C’s Dictionary of Dance”) was laugh-out-loud funny.  The audience reaction shots were priceless.  Whoever edited this did a great job.  I think this season has really tapped into a lot of humor and fun.  (Last night’s “fun counter”, case in point.)  Lil C was a great sport, and proved he had no intention of watering down anything he says when he started going off on Ashley & Kupono when they found out they were in the bottom three later on.

But I’ll get to that.

In the comments of Amanda’s brilliant post yesterday, I predicted who would be in the bottom three and who would be going home.  Tonight, I was starting to think I was some kind of SYTYCD psychic.

Our first couples getting their news were Melissa/Ade (love!), Caitlyn/Jason, and Phillip/Jeanine.  I called Caitlyn & Jason, so it was fun to see MelAde safe so early on, and no surprise whatsoever to see Phillip/Jeanine safe.

Next round: Brandon/Janette, Jonathan/Karla, and Ashley/Kupono.  I had predicted that AshKup would be bottom three.  I was feeling pretty proud of my reality-tv-results-show-wisdom. 

** We interrupt this program with breaking news:  Ryan Kasprzak has just been given his second ticket to Vegas in the same calendar year!  The man’s LA audition was featured prominently in tonight’s program, making us love him even more.  After all, his tap routine was phenomenally good, sans whoopie cushion, and full of invention and, dare I say it, passion. 

I’m scared, though.  First of all, after everything this guy’s done for season 5, must he really do it all over again?  What else must he prove?  He’s not going to get hair plugs.  His style isn’t going to change.  He’s not getting any younger.  Are the judges going to set him (and us) up for disappointment, string him (and us) along, and make him (and us - okay, not so much) audition year after year, having no intention of ever putting him on the show?  I really hope this guy is guaranteed season 6.  Otherwise, it is going to be a cold, bitter pill to swallow.  I’m having Natalie flashbacks!!  Make it stop!!

…  Back to our regularly-paced results show**

Our final round of couples was Evan & Randi (who, in celebrating their safety, apparently busted the back of her outfit, proving that maybe unitards really are the way to go…), Vittolio & Asuka, and Kayla & Max.  This seemed like a no-brainer.  In my arrogance I had already written “bottom 3″ after V & A’s names and “safe” after K & M.  Um, WHAT?

SHOCKER!  I couldn’t believe it.  Vittolio and Asuka, he of great determination and heart and (fair) skill and she of the strangely unappealing personality made more people “pick up the phone” than Kayla (”I am universally beloved”) and Max (”I’m lucky to be paired with Kayla because I have the misfortune of resembling a 50-year old actor“).  Okay, so maybe that’s their problem.  I thought immediately that Max might have been to blame for their bottom-3 position.  Even though he endeared himself to me last night when they showed him cooking for the other dancers (aww!), he was was saddled with a really bad costume in a strange routine - after the voting audience had already seen one strange routine in the program courtesy of Sonya Tayeh, Ade, & Melissa.  And the comparison to Kevin Spacey must have only further alienated himself from the tween viewers.  Bye, Max, it was nice while it lasted.  Someone else will have to pick up the slack and make the cast their dinner. 

Right after that shock was handed to us in one of Cat’s little perforated envelopes, we were treated to a guest dancer.  And that is all I can say on the subject, because my mind was teeming with a combination of swirling red skirts and the realization that this week’s bottom 3 is entirely different from last week’s!

Which is both a fun and heartbreaking conclusion.  It’s fun because it keeps us guessing each week as to who will fall below.  It’s heartbreaking because this season’s cast is so darn solid that any little misstep will send you packing. 

And that leads me to the six who had to dance for their lives.  Real quick:

• Caitlyn’s was okay - but impressive enough for the judges.  I wanted her gone more than Ashley or Kayla.
• Ashley’s was not enough!  We have seen before that you never spend half of your solo time on the stairs.  (Faina!)  She was super adorable in her old-style getup/hair/makeup.  A younger Bebe Neuwirth.  I’m clearly not a tween if I know who Lilith and Kevin Spacey are!!
• Kayla’s was too much!  Ah, the ever-changing expectations of what dancing for your life should look like.  In season 3, Shauna saved herself from an earlier cut by doing pretty much what Kayla did tonight.  Nigel, you confound us all. 

And Ashley is given the boot.  She was disappointed but all smiles.  I loved her low-key demeanor and thought she had the talent to go a long way this season as a dark horse.

• Jason - excellent solo.  Nigel called it the best he’s ever seen in the series.  Uh, hello?  Not hardly.  (Go to 2:15 in that video, and then witness the only standing ovation from all 3 judges on a dancer’s solo I’ve ever seen.)  Perhaps he was speaking quickly and meant best so far this season.
• Kupono - no substance, more bling than Mary Murphy.  I really felt Max could sneak in with this one and this would be the end for Kup, but I was wrong.
• Max - very solid ballroom solo set perfectly to the last 30 seconds of “Footloose”.  Comparing this to Kupono’s, as well as remembering Max’s performance last night compared to Kupono’s, it seemed only fair that Max stay!  But Kupono’s personality won out in the end.  It’s a pity, really.  Ashley was the stronger of that pair last night and she is the one saying goodbye.

What did you think of tonight’s shocks & awes?  What kind of pairing will Kayla & Kupono make?  (Kayla certainly seemed upset by Max’s departure.)  Does Ryan Kasprzak need this show?  Is every week going to be this unpredictable?  Are you loving season 5 yet?  I think I just might be!!

And cut they did.  Holy moly, Wednesday’s Vegas episode was fast and furious.  The judges weren’t playing any games.  But we’ll get to that in a moment.

First, I want to answer for my earlier Top 20 predictions.  I was wrong about Gabi, Sammy, Amanda, Chimeze, and Priscilla.  Oh.  And Natalie.

Natalie!

Weren’t we all wrong about Natalie?  I thought she was a clear lock for Top 20 - heck, to win this whole thing!  So to have her be cut so unmercifully after the Jazz round (choreographed brilliantly by Sonya Tayeh - the few seconds of dance we saw were so fresh!) was a shock to my system - not at all what we saw coming.  Especially after we had seen her do the routine in front of the whole group (with Brandon), at Sonya’s request.  Sonya clearly loved Natalie and saw her genius.  So I am stunned as to why she is now gone - while lots of other, nameless girls remain in her spot.  Natalie handled her dismissal with class.  I don’t think we’ll see her again.  After last year, and now this, it seems SYTYCD is not in the cards for her.

The episode started off with each of the 172 dancers doing their solo routine, one by one, for the panel of judges including Nigel, Mary (unusually subdued tonight), Shanks, Lil C, Mia, and Debbie Allen.  44 dancers were cut right out of the chute, including Travis, the coach’s son from last week.  I didn’t expect him to go far, and it was kind of a relief to see him and other dancers say goodbye without extra time or sentiment.  (Makes me wonder why they get so much screen time during audition episodes, though.  It’s like they want us to get invested early in, and then rip out our hearts the second their plane lands in Vegas.)

They moved on to the Hip Hop round (with NapTab), and 33 more dancers were given the boot.  Fifteen minutes in, and we’re already down to 97!  The ballroom round followed (with Jean-Marc Genereaux & France).  Even though Philip Chbeeb “doesn’t know how to not pop”, according to Adam Shankman, they waved him through.  Also sailing through was Japan’s Nabuya, who cried like a baby and said, “I love here, I really love here.”

I’ve already mentioned Sonya’s jazz routine, and I just want to say again that I think Mia better watch out: she might soon be replaced as SYTCYD’s most beloved choreographer.  Then again, I incorrectly predicted six Top 20 dancers, so whatevs.  I want that song Sonya used for the choreography.  It was super catchy!  It’s what got me through the Natalie Shock.

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I think we’re all clearly ready for the Vegas rounds.  Tonight’s episode had me (Dawn) reeling in frustration at all the time spent on the talentless.  By my count, extra time was given to only 9 good dancers.  Let’s focus on the highlights, shall we?

Amanda: I think we learned two lessons this evening. One, having the ability to fast forward through the audition show is a must. Two, don’t piss of the Executive Producer.

Dancers Who Are Nearly Guaranteed a Top-20 Spot:

• Sammy Ramirez

Dawn: Crazy red hair.  Charismatic megawatt grin.  Popping & locking.  Adam Shankman said, “I love you so much.”  Shone in choreography round.  Will shine when he does his “hair choreography” when he dances for his life later on.

Amanda: He reminded me of Dominic in Season 3. He was certainly entertaining and a standout amongst the rest of the auditions.

• Amanda Kerby

D: Complete with background footage of her playing football in slo-mo with her dad (diagnosed with MS), Amanda is a beauty who went straight through to Vegas.  Nigel said what I was thinking, which was essentially, “You’re so pretty I didn’t quite notice your dancing.”  Which reminded me so much of Kherington’s audition that I had a little deja vu.  Time will tell with this girl.  I feel we’ve seen other dancers in her style this season who can edge her out, talent-wise (Natalie, Gabi, Kayla, & Caitlyn come to mind.)  I can’t wait to see who rises to the top.

A: Of course, as a blonde Amanda myself, I am a little biased. I am hoping she goes far and she doesn’t pull a Kherington.

• Kuponohi’ipoi Aweau (”Pono”)

D: Mia loved this guy, who reminded Nigel of Mark from last season.  I think he’ll go far on Mia’s endorsement alone.

A: I was watching his hair and not his dancing. Yeah, if it comes down to him and one other guy and Mia is on the panel. Then he is getting the pick.

Other Great Dancers:

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