Dancing With the Stars – Week two and the stars are already testy

The judges and viewers voted against World Peace, and sent Meta/Ron Artest home. And now it’s week two of Dancing With the Stars and the Jive and the Quick Step are already pushing the stars over the edge. Does no one realize how hard this actually is? Well, let’s take a look at how they did on the dance floor.

Hope & Maks (Jive) – It’s fun watching Hope compare soccer training to learning the jive. The dance started out good with a booty shake, lost it a bit in the middle, but a kiss to Len’s bald pate should earn her an extra point. Len felt it was crisp and sharp, but pointed out she lost her timing (so true). Bruno said she has thighs that could crack a walnut, but also pointed out her timing and flicks vs kicks. Carrie Ann said fun and flirtatious but needs to relax into it. Score: 19

Kristin & Mark (Quick Step) — Can Kristin live up to the potential the judges saw in her last week? I do believe she has. The footwork was sharp and precise, she looked great in her Marilyn-esque wardrobe and makeup, and seemed to be having a great time. Bruno — she was twinkling with pleasure, but lost a bit of her frame. Carrie Ann — stunning, a complete transformation. Len — wasn’t as good as she looks, broke hold (Mark admitted he broke the rules), needed cleaner footowrk but a great improvement over last week. Score: 22 (with an 8 from Carrie Ann)

David & Kym (Jive) — Can David relax and not get lost in the dance? Unfortunately, the dance was sloppy and lacked a lot of the sharpness required … and I don’t know how to describe what David did on his own. But it was nice to see two Arquette sisters, Courtney and Coco cheering him on. Carrie Ann — Carson has some competition, very enthusiastic, bit too loose. Len — almost speechless, “Isn’t it time for Castle?”, any connection to the jive was a coincidence, but liked the enthusiasm. Bruno — like a runaway train but on the border of derailment, lost timing and technique, but starting to find persona and performance, so the technique will come next week. Score: 18, and the audience is not happy.

Elisabetta & Val (Quick Step) — Was next to last last week, and the rehearsal with Val did not go well. But … nice footwork, glided across the stage, but broke hold. Len — not great, but better than last week. Bruno — back on track, the pistons were pumping. Carrie Ann — came back and nailed it. Score: 21

Rob & Cheryl (Jive) — Is Rob gaining weight? Even he joked about his man-boobs. Then he put his foot through the wall. Didn’t have a lot of life to it, and was really clunky at times. Bruno — starting to blossom, good timing, great improvement. Carrie Ann — Rob is a better dancer than Kim. Len — high energy, fast-paced, great improvement. I must have been watching it in slo-mo then because I saw something completely different. Score: 21

Carson & Anna (Quick Step) — Carson felt this was his dance … until they got to the fancy footwork part of it. Whether it was good or not, it was a lot of fun. Carrie Ann — saw improvement, but was a little wobbly, needs to balance the partnership. Len — “If I held my knife and fork like you held Anna, I’d starve to death.” The problem is the worst dancers are the most fun to watch. Bruno — Pee-Wee Herman goes to the prom, looked like he was dancing on banana skins, but he put the work in and entertained. Score: 18

Ricki & Derek (Jive) — Good footwork and lots of shimmy, but Derek seemed to do most of the work in the first part of the dance. Len — didn’t like the dance, liked the fun, not enough jive content. Bruno — first person to do kicks and flicks correctly, and she got to sit on Derek. Carrie Ann — best jive of the night so far. Tom said Len was watching a different show. Brooke asked about weight loss and Ricki’s lost 12 inches in 3 weeks! I’m going dancing. Score: 23

Chaz & Lacey (Quick Step) — Chaz complained about his knees all through rehearsal … they actually click! Had to take some of the fancier moves out of the dance. Some good kicks, but Chaz almost lost his hold on Lacey at one point. Bruno — likable, like watching an Ewok dancing with Princess Leia, did well for the circumstances. Carrie Ann — can see the pain, not so quick for a quick step. Len — admires determination, but Len moves faster through a car wash. Score: 17

Chynna & Tony (Jive) — Had three weeks for the Viennese Waltz and four days for the Jive. Chynna sure does make it look easy, even if some of her kicks weren’t very sharp. Carrie Ann — enjoys watching her dance, felt she played it safe. Len — expectations too high, good, neat, precise, needed more wow, too polite. Bruno — needs to bring out the sexy siren inside, can’t hold back, a little muddy. Score: 21

Nancy & Tristin (Quick Step) — Nancy shut down in practice, Tristan walked out. Will bring more confidence to the dance. And she did! Seemed to have fun, singing along with the song (and maybe counting a bit too), nice kicks and flicks and Tristan didn’t drop her like Maks did with Kirstie. Okay, what was with the shots of the audience sitting stock-still but the audio had applause and cheering? Tom made a comment about something being appropriate for the European version of the show, so maybe there was a costume malfunction. Len — refreshing, didn’t break hold or break the rules. Bruno — vivacious, alive and confident, a bit top heavy at times, great performance. Carrie Ann — saw improvement, managed hold despite height and body types, wanted more flash, loved teamwork. Score: 21

J.R. & Karina (Jive) — Wow! The guy can dance! Great kicks, flicks, everything about the dance was top notch. Bruno — born to dance, charismatic, athletic, good feel for music, most satisfying performance of the night. Carrie Ann — freaked out about the lift, but fun and fabulous. Len — got a Lindy Hop instead of a Jive. Great dance, but not a jive. Score: 22 with an 8 from Bruno. Carrie Ann took a point off for the lift.

At the end of the night, Ricki & Derek are in the lead with Chaz & Lacey at the bottom of the leader board. There weren’t many great dances this week and with four teams with scores under 20 — and a lot of them real fan favorites — this elimination will come down to fan votes. Don’t be surprised if there is an upset this week. Carson probably should go, but I’m going to cast my vote for Elisabetta solely based on what I perceive to be a lack of viewer familiarity and fans wanting to save their favorites. Who do you think should go home?

Clacked by Chuck Duncan
on Sep 27, 2011 @ 00:21 EST5EDT