It’s the final round of season 13 of Dancing With the Stars, and with two of three dances performed tonight, the leaderboard is all shook up. Ricki Lake has remained pretty consistent, J.R. has fallen hard but had a huge comeback (more on that in a bit), and the dark horse of the competition has suddenly become the front runner. Could Rob Kardashian actually take that mirror ball home? Ricki’s partner Derek has won the competition three times based on his freestyle, and Rob’s partner Cheryl has won twice and lost once. Karina has never won, but with a partner like J.R. she could find herself in that elite group of DWTS pros. It’s up to the fans now to vote, and you can continue to vote at ABC.com through Tuesday, 11:00 AM Eastern. Let’s have a quick recap of a quickly moving show.
First round: Each team must dance a style not attempted yet:
Ricki & Derek, Cha-cha– Carrie Ann gave pointers in rehearsal, Ricki talked about her body issues and insecurities and Carrie Ann told her to let the old Ricki go. In the dance, Ricki had fun, let the sexy out, good footwork and lines. Len said it was action-packed, had good timing and rhythm, and was a dance deserving of the finals. Bruno called it a cha-cha running at full stream, saying Ricki has never been hotter or sexier, had some lack of fluidity, but fantastic overall. Carrie Ann said Ricki was living the dance, did everything she asked them to do, but got a little confused at the end. Score: 27
Rob & Cheryl, Waltz– Bruno gave pointers on walking and playing the part of the prince. Rob did very well in the dance, even if he looked a little lost at times. It was still graceful and accomplished, showing Rob’s amazing growth from his very first dance, the Viennese Waltz. Bruno said Rob was glowing, full of expression, good continuity of lines, but even though he messed up some footwork, it was very good. Carrie Ann said Rob was the male version of Cinderella, and he’s made it to the ball. Len said Rob had good form, good posture, it got a bit heavy, he lost his posture in places, but it was simple and simply beautiful. Score: 27
J.R. & Karina, Cha,cha — Len gave him tips on his hips, told him to make Karina proud. The dance was good but not great, entertaining, but Ricki’s was much better. Carrie Ann said J.R.’s musicality was off, told him to watch his arms. Len thought it was brave doing a lot solo work without a partner to keep him in time, but it wasn’t that good, he was off time, there were a lot of mistakes, he attacked the dance too much. Bruno liked the mood, the hands were out of place, but character was honest. When chatting with Brooke before scoring, J.R. said he knew he was off a step and was trying to bring it all back into sync but he just couldn’t get it. Score: 24
Round Two: Freestyle Round – This is the dance that can make or break a champ. If history repeats, we could have a very surprising winner.
Ricki & Derek — Technically very good, nice lifts, but didn’t use a lot of the floor, wasn’t overly flashy. Len: It was fun, entertaining, but lost it a little in quick step portion of the dance. Bruno: It was the most demanding performance with two different dances, good job. Carrie Ann: impressed with how they moved effortlessly from Quick Step to Salsa. Score: 27, with 54 out of 60 for the night.
Rob & Cheryl — Dare I say … perfection? Great lifts, spins, content, I’ve got to hand it to Rob for truly growing from week to week, peaking at just the right moment. But will the Kardashian backlash impact his viewer scores? Bruno: brilliant content, brilliant execution and brilliant performance, Rob peaked at the right time. Carrie Ann said to get a ten, you have to blow the judges away … consider her blown. Len: Rob has given his all, great job. Score: 30, with 57 out of 60.
J.R. & Karina — To me, this was a very loose dance, not a whole lot of content, Karina did all the work while J.R. just waved his arms around and occasionally lifted her, caught her or held her. I don’t know what the judges were drinking, but they saw a completely different dance than I did. Carrie Ann said that’s the way to come back while jumping around like a maniac and knocking her jewelry off. Len quipped, “Two things were revealed: Karina’s body and your talent.” Fantastic. Bruno said the dance was wild, exuberant, with raw animal physicality, and what a comeback. (Seriously, what were they on to not realize this dance was crap?! Play back the tape!) Score: 30, with a 54 out of 60 for the night.
As we go into the final round of dances, Rob finds himself in first place with 57, Ricki and J.R. are tied with 54. It really could be anyone’s game at this point. Will Ricki’s fans carry her to the win? Will Rob’s marked improvements help him snag that mirror ball? Or will sympathy and/or patriotism factor into a win for J.R. despite his rather lackluster final dances? Who’s your favorite to win? Cast your vote in our poll (and hurry — you can vote once right up to showtime), and then head on over to ABC.com and cast a vote that really counts!
“You had more rises and falls than Pam Anderson jogging.” — Len Goodman, critiquing Rob Kardashian’s Waltz
“What an explosive coming out. You’ll never go back in again.” — Bruno Tonioli, critiquing Ricki Lake’s Freestyle dance
“Too close.” — Karina after J.R. hit her in the face … with his crotch.
Clacked by Chuck Duncan 
on Nov 22, 2011 @ 01:41 EST5EDT
