Was I simply grouchy watching this episode of So You Think You Can Dance, the first of the season to offer eliminations? Or am I still suffering from Comic-Con fatigue? Because I not only didn’t connect with a lot of the performances, but I found myself oddly appreciating one featuring a contestant I don’t connect with in the least.
I didn’t know this going in, however … not with the slightly creepy and visually pleasing Tabitha and Napoleon routine set to Marilyn Manson’s “Beautiful People.” All that red and black opened the show niftily for me:
With Adam Shankman joining regular judges Nigel and Mary, we’re off and running:
Lindsay & Cole began things with Lady Gaga’s “Teeth.” *meh* Frantic and flippy and fun, but not much dancing going on. This Christopher Scott routine garnered Lindsay some raking over the coals by the judges as they called her out for putting her character in the routine more so than projecting outwardly toward the audience. Food for thought the next time around.
Amelia & Will: There was one point where Will really “bull-in-the-China-closeted” into the side of Amelia to the point I believed it may have loosened a molar or two during this contemporary routine. Did you see that? Bet she’s got a nice bruise on her torso after that collision. Very interesting Sonya Tayeh piece that I thought terrifical. And Adam was right in his critique: There was no recognizing the size differential between the two performers, Will being so much taller than Amelia.
Nick & Amber: I saw a lot of flailing foot flings and missteps in this tango. It appeared messy and I wasn’t on board. The judges dug it, I didn’t.
Audrey & Matthew: Nope. Didn’t like this one either. There were a lot of acrobatics going on, but minimal dancing … and what little there was didn’t make any sense.
Janelle & Dareian’s dippy dopey routine didn’t do either of them justice. Commenting, Nigel was dead on in that both contestants are way better than the performance they committed and the choreography they were taught. Nope again.
Now this Sean Cheesman routine, as realized by Brandon & Janaya, was head and shoulders above the one Audrey & Matthew showcased before. Herein, there was, again, lots of acrobatics, but there was a crapload more dancing that brought the confusion together and made it a neat piece.
Cyrus & Eliana offered a jive routine that was rather painful to watch on Cyrus’ part. He was really lacking in the jive department and it showed. They can’t all be gems and I knew flubs like this were going to be part of the landscape with him. (We’ll see next week if the voters pay it any mind vote-wise.)
Alexa & Daniel: Well … here’s some (not) news for you: I don’t like Alexa. But I appreciated the fact both she and Daniel pulled out a highly interesting bathtub contemporary routine dripping with weird beauty and sensuality. It had me rather floored when all was said and done. The judges thought otherwise.
George & Tiffany: These two posited a fox trot routine technically well done, but it was rather boring. Or it could be I simply don’t like the fox trot. Or both. Yep … it was both.
Witney & Chehon. Bollywood confuses me just the same as Broadway does. In the end Witney & Chehon’s performance was strange and frantic, but somewhat pleasing, I found.
The routines completed, Nigel found it necessary to stress to everyone no contestant was being voted off, that that’s not what SYTYCD was about. I found this a little condescending, but then that’s Nigel. Suddenly, we find Janaya, Alexa, Witney, Nick, Daniel and Chehon in the bottom three groups of gals and guys. And, just as abruptly, Janaya, Alexa, Nick and Daniel are nixed from the competition. Chuck was correct in that we saw Janaya in the Bottom 3 and I had no problem with Alexa getting the boot from past posts. Nick didn’t do anything for me, but I was surprised by Daniel’s ouster based on last week’s technical accuracy.
Suddenly, we’re down to 16 hopefuls.
Clacked by Michael Noble 
on Jul 19, 2012 @ 10:29 EST5EDT
