I don’t know about you but I knew Jane would never date a married man – not the old Jane and certainly not the new Jane. I also had my suspicions about who ended things between Vanessa and Will. I’m glad the truth came to light.
Grayson and Vanessa. Let’s start there. I have to admit I’m already kinda bored with this relationship. I really like Jaime Ray Newman (in fact, I think she’s great on Eureka right now) but she isn’t doing anything for me here. But she is a great romantic foil. There has to be something or someone keeping Grayson and Jane apart and she’s a good enough excuse. Things were a bit more interesting when Kim was that romantic foil – although I’m really enjoying her relationship with Parker and how Jane is managing to get her little digs in about it this week– but I guess I can’t have everything I want.
Anyway, back to tonight’s episode. During the course of Grayson’s case, he discovers that Vanessa has an ex-fiancé Will Casey who also happens to be the defendant in his case. He is closing up shop and moving his factory down to Mexico. His competitor is essentially running him out of town. Grayson gets this case because Vanessa represents Will and it’s a conflict of interest. There are two interesting things that come out of this case (at least for me): a) Grayson learns that Vanessa lied to him about her relationship but also discovers why it ended and b) Grayson finds out a way to keep the company local and saves over 100 people from the unemployment line. Oh, I guess there’s one more thing we learn: c) Will is a pretty good guy. Grayson knows he doesn’t like to loose, but he’s willing to overlook that for the good of his employees. I do have a question though. If Grayson was able to find out how to save Will’s company, why wasn’t Will? It didn’t take Grayson that long to come up with a good solution. I’m just sayin’.
Jane and Todd. Although Todd’s wife Hope Prentiss believes Jane broke up her marriage, there’s not enough evidence to go on to believe this is the case. But since Jane only has Deb’s memories, there’s no way to know what really happened unless she can track Todd down and discover the truth. Since Hope has pictures of Jane and Tony emerging from a motel it shouldn’t be that hard. Jane and her trusty sidekick Jane go to the motel and find a pair of prescription sunglasses Todd must have left behind. Terri works her magic and Jane finds Todd, who is very surprised to see her. After she explains to him that she has no memories from before the shooting Todd tells her what was actually going on. He discovered some dirty cops in his division and he was working with Jane so she could bring the evidence to the D.A. But when Jane got shot, Todd felt he had to go on the run since the dirty cops were framing him.
Now that Jane really knows what’s going on it’s up to her to find the audio evidence, which Todd gave to her 8 months ago, and get Todd out of trouble. When she does discover the recording the judge won’t allow it in to evidence. They turn to Kim to help them. She goes undercover and gets one of the dirty cops to talk and she gets all of that on tape. And as easy as that, the charges against Todd are dismissed. Now, I don’t believe that any cop – even a dirty one – would be that careless even with a pretty woman. But, Jane’s client is back home with his family so all’s well that ends well.
Well, kinda. Fred and Stacy. So Stacy knows how Fred feels and I think she’s wisely choosing to play dumb. He notices that she’s watching a lot of old movies to “hone her craft” and decides to make a recruitment video for the firm and cast Stacy in the lead. It’s more than that though. Stacy lets it be known that she won’t be dating until she gets her career into gear and Fred just can’t have that. So they spend some time making the video and when Fred shows it to Kim it’s a bit of a disaster. I would call it porn, but it’s not nearly that bad. It’s just very obvious that Fred is in love with Stacy from the way he shot and cut the piece together. Kim promises it will never see the light of day but Fred gets a kiss on the check for his efforts. At least he’s scoring some points.
One random thought: I had no idea Jane was so bad at telling jokes. Terri referring to Jane’s inability to make jokes was funny but Jane actually telling that horrible joke and then laughing hysterically about it was pretty fun.
Another random thought: Watching Stacy practice being a lawyer – then slipping up and throwing medical terms into her speech – was pretty funny. She’s such great comic relief.
Only one more episode before the 2-hour season finale. I’m excited. How about you?
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Eureka: Momstrosity by Heather M
One of my most favorite movies ever is Strictly Ballroom, and the scene at the end with everyone twirling to “Love is in the Air,” still makes me smile 17 years later. While only Andy burst into song (badly) in this week's episode, “Momstrosity,” it was a balm and an ode to love, in a way, as Carter finally manned up and admitted he loves Allison (just not to Allison) and Henry, in realizing he was falling in love with Grace, decided to tell her what happened and broke her heart in doing so. In the middle of all of that, we had tossed off one-liners in a cheeky nod to James Cameron that actually worked in the service of the story and were corny and fun.
The episode begins at the ¾ mark with Fargo behind the wheel of his Subaru (hey, Subaru logo, how’s it going?) driving like a bat out of hell through the woods as Carter, Kevin, and Charles holler about “Did we lose her?” only to find out pretty quickly “her” is Tiny, the Titan Rover, and that’d be a “no.”
Credits.
The episode begins with the familiar “12 hours earlier” placard, beginning that morning at S.A.R.A.H. as Jo showers and we see her through the shower door in emerging close-up. The door opens and she turns around to find a mini-bot named Emo lovingly admiring her frame. She is not amused. Once robed, she carries him into the kitchen and hands him to Carter, who introduces Emo as Kevin’s school project, Eureka’s answer to carrying around a bag of flour or an egg for a week.
Sheriff Andy drops in and S.A.R.A.H. is very pleased to see him. She tells him his readings are a bit wonky and offers to run a diagnostic, so he plugs into her mainframe (dirty!) and is overtaken with a goofy lovestruck grin just as Jo passes through and shakes her head.
At GD, Jack is delicately explaining to Allison about Kevin’s virtual peep on Jo via Emo, and she protests that because she’s a doctor, Kevin should be fine just asking her what he wants to know. Jack clues her in that mom outweighs doctor, and says he can talk to Kevin on their camping trip. She hedgingly agrees. Fargo nerds by and announces their departure time and makes overtures of delegating authority in his absence, which Allison greets with “uh huh, yeah, I had this job,” before realizing Emo has departed. We follow Emo on a little wander around the halls of GD (and hee that the wee robot gets no attention from anybody who passes him).
Carter comes across Henry, who begs off camping so he can stay and work with Grace on her memory project. They banter about Carter’s lack of traction with Allison and he says he has a long term plan. Elsewhere at GD, Emo has found Tiny. Back in Grace’s lab, as Henry sits in a chair wearing a diagnostic helmet contraption, she says she’s going to do some emotional tests. She starts with elation and is overjoyed to find that Henry associates joy with her. She bounds into his lap and in an act of supreme stupidity/mercy/love, he tells her what happened to the five plus Charles and that he wasn’t married to her before he jumped. She thinks he’s joking and he assures her he’s not. She’s struck and bails off his lap and leaves just as the device short circuits on Henry. I was afraid that would mean toasted or amnesiac Henry but it didn’t, thankfully. This is the first sign something’s twitchy with the GD equipment. Side bar – Grace could have seen for herself he was telling the truth if she had just tested his memories on confusion or fear. Just saying.
Commercial.
We pick up at GD where Grace is checking out her gear. Jo notices the frostiness between Henry and her but is called onto her next case…the Martian Rover, Tiny (who isn’t), is being packed up for NASA and has acquired a stowaway (Emo). At Allison’s, Fargo and Carter load their cars as Andy inquires about courting rituals instead of the police duty hand off, so Carter says if anything comes up to call Jo. Allison comes out with Emo and hands him to Kevin. Charles saunters up (not smoking!) and invites himself. Carter says no, Charles says he can go out with Allison instead, so Carter relents and puts him off to ride with Fargo. Good times!
Once in the woods, Fargo dispenses with the stake-in-the-ground-and-pull method of tent pitching and instead flings a box into the woods and presto, you have B.U.F.F.Y (biomechanical unfolding fully automated yurt), a swanky AI-loaded tent complete with mini-bar and flat screen. Kevin sits down to play videos and Charles tuts that this isn’t camping. Carter confiscates everybody’s gadgets (Fargo unloads so many he could have just handed over his vest) and they commence with “real camping experiences.” Kevin snits about giving up his gameboy and Carter tries to have “the talk,” but both Charles and Kevin shut him down, with Kevin asking when he turned into his “mom.”
At the lab, Allison’s experiment on Larry goes awry when it tries to commence with a brain dissection while she’s insisting, “Stop, no!” and Larry pretty much wets himself. She gets him out of the device and that’s strike two for AI glitches of the day. Next, Zane is checking diagnostics and finding out that it’s one of eight SNAFUs in the queue as Jo’s called away to Café Diem, where Vince and AI Vince 2.0 are arguing because kale is being delivered to tables requesting cholesterol specials. Andy is sticky sweet with Jo and starts to serenade her. When she shuts him down, he asks if that’s what heartbreak feels like and she twigs that all the AI has gone crazy.
Henry and Grace have a sad chat in his garage about whether he loves her and Henry realizes how grief stricken she is about losing her Henry and being lied to. He says he wanted a chance to know her and she says she just wants her Henry back. He apologizes again. She sobs about losing her husband.
At Camp Testosterone, Charles and Carter start measuring each other as a mate for Allison and Kevin stomps off in a huff, so they go look for him. In the interim, Fargo tries to leave his hut and she shuts him down and then cocoons him. Back at GD, Zane runs a list of all the AI models affected by feelings overwhelming their programming, and hey, look, there’s Tiny. Out on the highway, in the back of a truck, Tiny wakes up.
S.A.R.A.H. calls Jo and asks moony Qs about Andy and Jo realizes S.A.R.A.H. was the culprit because Andy knows he went wonky at 8:27 am, so they trek off to discuss with her how to hit undo. Zane laughs about her download roofie while Jo huffs that ”hello, it’s gone rogue,” and then he gets to work.
At the empty truck, Allison mounts the troops, including sharpshooter Jo, to bring Tiny in, especially because she’s out in the woods in fairly close proximity to the boys weekend, and she has a laser that can slice and dice a planet, which the boys find out for themselves pretty quickly.
In the woods, Carter and Charles snit and search as it grow dark. At a stopping point in the hunt for Kevin, Charles tips his hat about being lonely in the present day and just as quickly lets the moment go. Kevin emerges from the woods and confronts Carter about hiding his feelings for his mom when he thought they were friends. Carter can't answer him when Kevin asks if he loves her. The trio reaches Fargo and Carter cuts him loose from B.U.F.F.Y and acts as the diversion to sweet-talk Tiny while the guys high tail it to the car. They’re gunning it out of the woods, when Kevin yells about Carter, so Fargo impressively swings back around, dodges Tiny, and throws the door open for Carter with a very serious “Come with me if you want to live.” Hee. Carter calls Allison from the car and they catch up on everyone’s MO. Then we’re back at the starting scene.
They lead Tiny back to the arsenal at the end of the highway and bail out. Tiny descends upon Kevin, pinning him to the ground. Allison screams, “Get away from him, you bitch” (hee #2) and is greeted with Tiny repeating it about Emo, who’s nestled in Kevin’s backpack, and who we realize was why she broke out. Carter and Charles wrestle Tiny’s laser away from Kevin while Allison sets Emo down in front Tiny. Tiny unpins Kevin to scoop Emo up, and order is restored. Kevin runs to Allison and Carter concedes that they were lucky Charles was there to help.
Back at S.A.R.A.H., Zane has reprogrammed everybody except Andy and realizes he doesn’t want to, so he leaves him and S.A.R.A.H. to sort out their new romance. Henry comes to Grace’s and gives her his wedding band and agrees he’s not her Henry, “yet.” She’s packed him a care pack and takes the ring with a sad smile that maybe she could love this Henry, too. So many emotions.
The next morning at S.A.R.A.H., she’s remarking on the lovely morning when Andy emerges, getting dressed. (Let that spin around a bit.) Carter and Jo agree they don’t wanna know. At Café Diem, Carter admits to Kevin that he does love Allison. Kevin says he can pursue her as long as he doesn’t hurt her. Carter puffs out a bit and essentially tells Charles (who’s reading USA Today and not NYT or WSJ (??)), “Game on,” and Charles bemusedly remarks, “Good luck with that.”
So, COME ON already with Allison and Carter. If we find out at the summer cliffhanger (BOOO) that in this reality, Nathan never died, you and I will be fighting, SHOW. Four seasons/five years is enough now, y’all. Let’s put them together, see how things go, and let them torpedo it themselves. Kay? I will say, though, that Allison has compartmentalized the kiss now that she's so focused on Kevin being normal. I'd like some glimpse that she still wants Jack.
I liked that Jo figured out the McGuffin this week, instead of Jack, and that she’s settling into the security role. This week she didn’t moon as much over Zane, which I also liked. No sense in pining over him when he doesn’t remember everything. Much like Henry and Grace, if she still wants a relationship with this Zane, pursue that, but don’t shoehorn this Zane into who he was before. Interesting that there was a small glimpse into Charles’s emotional state because he’s been fairly calm, cool, and collected about being dropped into 2010 alone. As long as THAT’S not the way they try to throw him with Allison, pursue it. I'm not totally on board with Henry telling Grace the truth, although the ethics do get sticky if they had resumed/started a sexual relationship, so I guess he pre-emptively chose the high road. I hope they do work out a way for them to be together. I certainly feel for Grace's lost past. I'd like to know how long they were married. I've missed it if the show said.
Only three eps left until hiatus (again, BOOOO). Colin Ferguson Tweeted last week that they would know something about whether there will be an S5 pretty soon and today teased that something is "afoot." Pull the trigger, already. Sister network USA has no problem renewing its established shows.
The episode begins at the ¾ mark with Fargo behind the wheel of his Subaru (hey, Subaru logo, how’s it going?) driving like a bat out of hell through the woods as Carter, Kevin, and Charles holler about “Did we lose her?” only to find out pretty quickly “her” is Tiny, the Titan Rover, and that’d be a “no.”
Credits.
The episode begins with the familiar “12 hours earlier” placard, beginning that morning at S.A.R.A.H. as Jo showers and we see her through the shower door in emerging close-up. The door opens and she turns around to find a mini-bot named Emo lovingly admiring her frame. She is not amused. Once robed, she carries him into the kitchen and hands him to Carter, who introduces Emo as Kevin’s school project, Eureka’s answer to carrying around a bag of flour or an egg for a week.
Sheriff Andy drops in and S.A.R.A.H. is very pleased to see him. She tells him his readings are a bit wonky and offers to run a diagnostic, so he plugs into her mainframe (dirty!) and is overtaken with a goofy lovestruck grin just as Jo passes through and shakes her head.
At GD, Jack is delicately explaining to Allison about Kevin’s virtual peep on Jo via Emo, and she protests that because she’s a doctor, Kevin should be fine just asking her what he wants to know. Jack clues her in that mom outweighs doctor, and says he can talk to Kevin on their camping trip. She hedgingly agrees. Fargo nerds by and announces their departure time and makes overtures of delegating authority in his absence, which Allison greets with “uh huh, yeah, I had this job,” before realizing Emo has departed. We follow Emo on a little wander around the halls of GD (and hee that the wee robot gets no attention from anybody who passes him).
Carter comes across Henry, who begs off camping so he can stay and work with Grace on her memory project. They banter about Carter’s lack of traction with Allison and he says he has a long term plan. Elsewhere at GD, Emo has found Tiny. Back in Grace’s lab, as Henry sits in a chair wearing a diagnostic helmet contraption, she says she’s going to do some emotional tests. She starts with elation and is overjoyed to find that Henry associates joy with her. She bounds into his lap and in an act of supreme stupidity/mercy/love, he tells her what happened to the five plus Charles and that he wasn’t married to her before he jumped. She thinks he’s joking and he assures her he’s not. She’s struck and bails off his lap and leaves just as the device short circuits on Henry. I was afraid that would mean toasted or amnesiac Henry but it didn’t, thankfully. This is the first sign something’s twitchy with the GD equipment. Side bar – Grace could have seen for herself he was telling the truth if she had just tested his memories on confusion or fear. Just saying.
Commercial.
We pick up at GD where Grace is checking out her gear. Jo notices the frostiness between Henry and her but is called onto her next case…the Martian Rover, Tiny (who isn’t), is being packed up for NASA and has acquired a stowaway (Emo). At Allison’s, Fargo and Carter load their cars as Andy inquires about courting rituals instead of the police duty hand off, so Carter says if anything comes up to call Jo. Allison comes out with Emo and hands him to Kevin. Charles saunters up (not smoking!) and invites himself. Carter says no, Charles says he can go out with Allison instead, so Carter relents and puts him off to ride with Fargo. Good times!
Once in the woods, Fargo dispenses with the stake-in-the-ground-and-pull method of tent pitching and instead flings a box into the woods and presto, you have B.U.F.F.Y (biomechanical unfolding fully automated yurt), a swanky AI-loaded tent complete with mini-bar and flat screen. Kevin sits down to play videos and Charles tuts that this isn’t camping. Carter confiscates everybody’s gadgets (Fargo unloads so many he could have just handed over his vest) and they commence with “real camping experiences.” Kevin snits about giving up his gameboy and Carter tries to have “the talk,” but both Charles and Kevin shut him down, with Kevin asking when he turned into his “mom.”
At the lab, Allison’s experiment on Larry goes awry when it tries to commence with a brain dissection while she’s insisting, “Stop, no!” and Larry pretty much wets himself. She gets him out of the device and that’s strike two for AI glitches of the day. Next, Zane is checking diagnostics and finding out that it’s one of eight SNAFUs in the queue as Jo’s called away to Café Diem, where Vince and AI Vince 2.0 are arguing because kale is being delivered to tables requesting cholesterol specials. Andy is sticky sweet with Jo and starts to serenade her. When she shuts him down, he asks if that’s what heartbreak feels like and she twigs that all the AI has gone crazy.
Henry and Grace have a sad chat in his garage about whether he loves her and Henry realizes how grief stricken she is about losing her Henry and being lied to. He says he wanted a chance to know her and she says she just wants her Henry back. He apologizes again. She sobs about losing her husband.
At Camp Testosterone, Charles and Carter start measuring each other as a mate for Allison and Kevin stomps off in a huff, so they go look for him. In the interim, Fargo tries to leave his hut and she shuts him down and then cocoons him. Back at GD, Zane runs a list of all the AI models affected by feelings overwhelming their programming, and hey, look, there’s Tiny. Out on the highway, in the back of a truck, Tiny wakes up.
S.A.R.A.H. calls Jo and asks moony Qs about Andy and Jo realizes S.A.R.A.H. was the culprit because Andy knows he went wonky at 8:27 am, so they trek off to discuss with her how to hit undo. Zane laughs about her download roofie while Jo huffs that ”hello, it’s gone rogue,” and then he gets to work.
At the empty truck, Allison mounts the troops, including sharpshooter Jo, to bring Tiny in, especially because she’s out in the woods in fairly close proximity to the boys weekend, and she has a laser that can slice and dice a planet, which the boys find out for themselves pretty quickly.
In the woods, Carter and Charles snit and search as it grow dark. At a stopping point in the hunt for Kevin, Charles tips his hat about being lonely in the present day and just as quickly lets the moment go. Kevin emerges from the woods and confronts Carter about hiding his feelings for his mom when he thought they were friends. Carter can't answer him when Kevin asks if he loves her. The trio reaches Fargo and Carter cuts him loose from B.U.F.F.Y and acts as the diversion to sweet-talk Tiny while the guys high tail it to the car. They’re gunning it out of the woods, when Kevin yells about Carter, so Fargo impressively swings back around, dodges Tiny, and throws the door open for Carter with a very serious “Come with me if you want to live.” Hee. Carter calls Allison from the car and they catch up on everyone’s MO. Then we’re back at the starting scene.
They lead Tiny back to the arsenal at the end of the highway and bail out. Tiny descends upon Kevin, pinning him to the ground. Allison screams, “Get away from him, you bitch” (hee #2) and is greeted with Tiny repeating it about Emo, who’s nestled in Kevin’s backpack, and who we realize was why she broke out. Carter and Charles wrestle Tiny’s laser away from Kevin while Allison sets Emo down in front Tiny. Tiny unpins Kevin to scoop Emo up, and order is restored. Kevin runs to Allison and Carter concedes that they were lucky Charles was there to help.
Back at S.A.R.A.H., Zane has reprogrammed everybody except Andy and realizes he doesn’t want to, so he leaves him and S.A.R.A.H. to sort out their new romance. Henry comes to Grace’s and gives her his wedding band and agrees he’s not her Henry, “yet.” She’s packed him a care pack and takes the ring with a sad smile that maybe she could love this Henry, too. So many emotions.
The next morning at S.A.R.A.H., she’s remarking on the lovely morning when Andy emerges, getting dressed. (Let that spin around a bit.) Carter and Jo agree they don’t wanna know. At Café Diem, Carter admits to Kevin that he does love Allison. Kevin says he can pursue her as long as he doesn’t hurt her. Carter puffs out a bit and essentially tells Charles (who’s reading USA Today and not NYT or WSJ (??)), “Game on,” and Charles bemusedly remarks, “Good luck with that.”
So, COME ON already with Allison and Carter. If we find out at the summer cliffhanger (BOOO) that in this reality, Nathan never died, you and I will be fighting, SHOW. Four seasons/five years is enough now, y’all. Let’s put them together, see how things go, and let them torpedo it themselves. Kay? I will say, though, that Allison has compartmentalized the kiss now that she's so focused on Kevin being normal. I'd like some glimpse that she still wants Jack.
I liked that Jo figured out the McGuffin this week, instead of Jack, and that she’s settling into the security role. This week she didn’t moon as much over Zane, which I also liked. No sense in pining over him when he doesn’t remember everything. Much like Henry and Grace, if she still wants a relationship with this Zane, pursue that, but don’t shoehorn this Zane into who he was before. Interesting that there was a small glimpse into Charles’s emotional state because he’s been fairly calm, cool, and collected about being dropped into 2010 alone. As long as THAT’S not the way they try to throw him with Allison, pursue it. I'm not totally on board with Henry telling Grace the truth, although the ethics do get sticky if they had resumed/started a sexual relationship, so I guess he pre-emptively chose the high road. I hope they do work out a way for them to be together. I certainly feel for Grace's lost past. I'd like to know how long they were married. I've missed it if the show said.
Only three eps left until hiatus (again, BOOOO). Colin Ferguson Tweeted last week that they would know something about whether there will be an S5 pretty soon and today teased that something is "afoot." Pull the trigger, already. Sister network USA has no problem renewing its established shows.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Lite Bite Top Chef: Kenny is Eliminated by Kara Howland
I just watched this week's episode. Now I know a lot of people think Kenny has a huge ego - I'm not disputing that - and the judges have mentioned more than once that he needs to edit his dishes. And even if Team 2121 was the losing team in this week's restaurant wars, I still think the judges sent the wrong chef home.
From what we saw, it looks like Alex had almost no hand in preparing any of the food. Yes, he was asked to butcher the lamb (which Angelo had to redo because Alex was screwing it up). Yes, he was asked to prepare the fish (which Tiffany had to redo because it was still scaly and boney when Alex got through with it). So what did Alex do other then harass the wait staff and tell the judge's they'd be eating pork when they were actually eating lamb? A whole bunch of nothing. But I think Amanda should have been up on the chopping block too. It sounds like her one dish was almost inedible; the beef was overdone and the greens were horrible. Why didn't she get put up on the block? I'm trying to remember if Top Chef has always sent the team leader home from the losing team during restaurant wars. Do you guys know? I would have been more than okay with Amanda going home since Alex was "safe" this week. I'm not quite sure why Amanda's still in the competition. I think she's been safe in the middle (or near the bottom). She needs to step it up or be sent home.
But let's revisit Alex for a moment. It seems like he's aware that his team had absolutely no confidence in him. And if that was the case he should have fought to prepare something of his own just in case Evoo was the losing restaurant. Having a hand in prep isn't nearly the same as preparing a dish. And Padma was very clear that each team member had to prepare a dish. For whatever reason, the culinary Gods have chosen to keep Alex in this competition but that had better end pretty soon. I want to see him step up and prepare an amazing dish (hopefully not involving a pea puree) or be sent packing.
I would have liked to see "the beast" hang around for a few more episodes. I don't think Kenny would have won the competition but his rivalry with Angelo was great for watercooler talk. Somehow, I think Angelo might be a little less compelling next week. I will definitely tune in to find out.
Want to know what Kenny really thought about this elimination? Check this out.
From what we saw, it looks like Alex had almost no hand in preparing any of the food. Yes, he was asked to butcher the lamb (which Angelo had to redo because Alex was screwing it up). Yes, he was asked to prepare the fish (which Tiffany had to redo because it was still scaly and boney when Alex got through with it). So what did Alex do other then harass the wait staff and tell the judge's they'd be eating pork when they were actually eating lamb? A whole bunch of nothing. But I think Amanda should have been up on the chopping block too. It sounds like her one dish was almost inedible; the beef was overdone and the greens were horrible. Why didn't she get put up on the block? I'm trying to remember if Top Chef has always sent the team leader home from the losing team during restaurant wars. Do you guys know? I would have been more than okay with Amanda going home since Alex was "safe" this week. I'm not quite sure why Amanda's still in the competition. I think she's been safe in the middle (or near the bottom). She needs to step it up or be sent home.
But let's revisit Alex for a moment. It seems like he's aware that his team had absolutely no confidence in him. And if that was the case he should have fought to prepare something of his own just in case Evoo was the losing restaurant. Having a hand in prep isn't nearly the same as preparing a dish. And Padma was very clear that each team member had to prepare a dish. For whatever reason, the culinary Gods have chosen to keep Alex in this competition but that had better end pretty soon. I want to see him step up and prepare an amazing dish (hopefully not involving a pea puree) or be sent packing.
I would have liked to see "the beast" hang around for a few more episodes. I don't think Kenny would have won the competition but his rivalry with Angelo was great for watercooler talk. Somehow, I think Angelo might be a little less compelling next week. I will definitely tune in to find out.
Want to know what Kenny really thought about this elimination? Check this out.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
So You Think You Can Dance: The Finale Part 2 by Kara Howland
And the winner is…
…usually I would torture you a bit. I’ve never understood why the finale is 2 hours long. I understand that they want to heighten our expectations and I’m sure Fox and all it’s affiliates want to make as much money as possible (on commercials, of course). But it’s a whole lotta torture as far as I’m concerned. So I’ll tell you right now who the winner is: it’s Lauren.
And what about the highlights from tonight’s show? You know I have to start with the wonderfully delicious Cat Deeley. I feel like she’s really stepped up her game this season. I’ve always loved her but this year I enjoyed the back-and-forth dialogue she got going with both the dancers and the judges. It’s nice to see her personality come out beyond the audition episodes. I hope we get to see even more of that next summer. Oh, yeah. I forgot to talk about how she looks tonight. Divine. The dress is a bit over-the-top for me but it’s the finale. I’ll allow it.
Group Dance
Ra / Nathan Lanier
Nice spotlight moment for Melinda doing her tap thing. I love seeing Dom and Jose battle it out in their style. Twitch surrounded by his girls in red is hot. Oh, I love that Alex is there. He’s not allowed to stand unassisted but I love that he’s there in a chair. Great spotlight for the rest of the guys. And then they all come together (contestants and all-stars) with the final 3 at the front of the pack. Christopher Scott from LXD choreographed.
Finally. There’s my Mary Murphy. I have missed her all season. Seriously.
What do the judges want to see again?
Kenny Ortega chooses Tyce DiOrio’s Shoeless Joe – Kent and Neil
Nigel picks Stacey Tookey’s Mad World – Billy and Ade
Special Guest #1: Quest
Suzy / Caravan Palace
Hok’s hair gets stranger and stranger but I still love him. Ryan is still great too. I love the b-boys. Always so inventive and visually stimulating.
What other performances do the judges want to see again?
Mia wants to re-view NappyTabs’ Fallin’ – Adechike and Comfort
A judge doesn’t pick it, but Kent and Anya’s My First Kiss piece is next.
Tyce would like to re-visit NappyTabs’ Scars – Robert and Dominic
Nigel takes to the stage for his performance. He claims the Season 7 curse has happened again. He’s got two stand-ins but a 7 year-old interrupts. Luke wants to fill in for Nigel. The kid has some chops. It goes on for a bit too long for me but he was adorable. So talented.
The Menzari Brothers impressed Nigel on National Dance day so they get their time in the spotlight. Very nice precision. Great job and fun to watch.
Another favorite routine of the judges?
Nigel picks Miriam and Leonardo’s Oblivion – Lauren and Pasha
Adam chooses Travis Wall’s Fix You – Robert and Allison
Last season’s winner Russel performs with Lil’ C
Hazardous / Buckmouth
Krumping is so cool. It’s nice to see two amazing technicians battle in this style. They are really amazing. And I like that it’s a slower version of what we’d usually think of Krump. This way we can really see everything.
What other highlights do the judges want to see from this season?
Mary Murphy requests to see NappyTab’s Battle for the Beat – Jose and Dominic. Was it just me or did Jose seem very low energy in that? It was a little disappointing this time.
Nigel invited this season’s SYTYCD winner from the UK version. She performs a Mandy Moore piece with all-star Neil. Her name is Charlie Bruce.
I Surrender / Celine Dion
Pretty impressive after a quiet start. Wow. This piece is very lift-heavy but I’m really enjoying it. Nice job.
It’s time to see the final three on the stage. For one of them the journey ends now. The dancer in 3rd place is Robert.
What’s the next stand out routine?
Adam wants to see NappyTabs’ My Chick Bad – Lauren and Twitch
Cat picks Sonya Tayeh’s Hallelujah – Alex and Allison
There’s time for two more favorite performances. What are they?
Stacey wants to see Nakul Dev Mahajan’s Ganesh – Billy and Robert
Mia picks the final piece, Travis Wall’s How It Ends – Kent and Neil
It’s time for some music. Black Gold with Shine.
There’s one last surprise that Cat claims everyone will be talking about tomorrow. I had heard it was Ellen Degeneres but I had to see it to believe it. She’s no Alex but I’m really enjoying Outta Your Mind with Twitch. It’s making me laugh if nothing else. And then they bring Alex out on his crutches. Nice!
Let’s get down to business. Lauren and Kent come back out on stage. Kent takes the runner-up spot and Lauren takes it all. I’m genuinely shocked but so incredibly happy for her. Wow. WOW.
…usually I would torture you a bit. I’ve never understood why the finale is 2 hours long. I understand that they want to heighten our expectations and I’m sure Fox and all it’s affiliates want to make as much money as possible (on commercials, of course). But it’s a whole lotta torture as far as I’m concerned. So I’ll tell you right now who the winner is: it’s Lauren.
And what about the highlights from tonight’s show? You know I have to start with the wonderfully delicious Cat Deeley. I feel like she’s really stepped up her game this season. I’ve always loved her but this year I enjoyed the back-and-forth dialogue she got going with both the dancers and the judges. It’s nice to see her personality come out beyond the audition episodes. I hope we get to see even more of that next summer. Oh, yeah. I forgot to talk about how she looks tonight. Divine. The dress is a bit over-the-top for me but it’s the finale. I’ll allow it.
Group Dance
Ra / Nathan Lanier
Nice spotlight moment for Melinda doing her tap thing. I love seeing Dom and Jose battle it out in their style. Twitch surrounded by his girls in red is hot. Oh, I love that Alex is there. He’s not allowed to stand unassisted but I love that he’s there in a chair. Great spotlight for the rest of the guys. And then they all come together (contestants and all-stars) with the final 3 at the front of the pack. Christopher Scott from LXD choreographed.
Finally. There’s my Mary Murphy. I have missed her all season. Seriously.
What do the judges want to see again?
Kenny Ortega chooses Tyce DiOrio’s Shoeless Joe – Kent and Neil
Nigel picks Stacey Tookey’s Mad World – Billy and Ade
Special Guest #1: Quest
Suzy / Caravan Palace
Hok’s hair gets stranger and stranger but I still love him. Ryan is still great too. I love the b-boys. Always so inventive and visually stimulating.
What other performances do the judges want to see again?
Mia wants to re-view NappyTabs’ Fallin’ – Adechike and Comfort
A judge doesn’t pick it, but Kent and Anya’s My First Kiss piece is next.
Tyce would like to re-visit NappyTabs’ Scars – Robert and Dominic
Nigel takes to the stage for his performance. He claims the Season 7 curse has happened again. He’s got two stand-ins but a 7 year-old interrupts. Luke wants to fill in for Nigel. The kid has some chops. It goes on for a bit too long for me but he was adorable. So talented.
The Menzari Brothers impressed Nigel on National Dance day so they get their time in the spotlight. Very nice precision. Great job and fun to watch.
Another favorite routine of the judges?
Nigel picks Miriam and Leonardo’s Oblivion – Lauren and Pasha
Adam chooses Travis Wall’s Fix You – Robert and Allison
Last season’s winner Russel performs with Lil’ C
Hazardous / Buckmouth
Krumping is so cool. It’s nice to see two amazing technicians battle in this style. They are really amazing. And I like that it’s a slower version of what we’d usually think of Krump. This way we can really see everything.
What other highlights do the judges want to see from this season?
Mary Murphy requests to see NappyTab’s Battle for the Beat – Jose and Dominic. Was it just me or did Jose seem very low energy in that? It was a little disappointing this time.
Nigel invited this season’s SYTYCD winner from the UK version. She performs a Mandy Moore piece with all-star Neil. Her name is Charlie Bruce.
I Surrender / Celine Dion
Pretty impressive after a quiet start. Wow. This piece is very lift-heavy but I’m really enjoying it. Nice job.
It’s time to see the final three on the stage. For one of them the journey ends now. The dancer in 3rd place is Robert.
What’s the next stand out routine?
Adam wants to see NappyTabs’ My Chick Bad – Lauren and Twitch
Cat picks Sonya Tayeh’s Hallelujah – Alex and Allison
There’s time for two more favorite performances. What are they?
Stacey wants to see Nakul Dev Mahajan’s Ganesh – Billy and Robert
Mia picks the final piece, Travis Wall’s How It Ends – Kent and Neil
It’s time for some music. Black Gold with Shine.
There’s one last surprise that Cat claims everyone will be talking about tomorrow. I had heard it was Ellen Degeneres but I had to see it to believe it. She’s no Alex but I’m really enjoying Outta Your Mind with Twitch. It’s making me laugh if nothing else. And then they bring Alex out on his crutches. Nice!
Let’s get down to business. Lauren and Kent come back out on stage. Kent takes the runner-up spot and Lauren takes it all. I’m genuinely shocked but so incredibly happy for her. Wow. WOW.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
So You Think You Can Dance: The Finale Part 1 by Kara Howland
You can call me crazy, but watched every single episode again. I don’t tend to erase any episodes (including the results shows) until the end of the season. And I’m glad I kept them all because I was reminded of a lot of great performances. I still mourn the premature loses of Alex and Ashley and I’m still sad Billy isn’t in the finale. But I’m confident Kent, Lauren, and Robert will dance their asses off tonight and we should have a great show tonight.
And what of Cat you ask? I like her sparkly little black number. Her hair and makeup look great and she’s adorable, as always.
I think I see something I already like. The judge’s panel consists of only 3. Good. That’s the way it should be. And I just learned that everyone dances 5 times tonight. Nice.
The highlight reel makes me remember that we haven’t seen Hi Hat or Mary Murphy all season. I know Mary choreographed something but Hi Hat didn’t. Boo. I was looking forward to seeing what Hi Hat could do and I would have liked to see Mary Murphy on the panel (with her subbing in for Mia or Adam) at least once this season.
Kent
All-star partner: Lauren
Nakul Dev Mahajan / Bollywood
Rehearsal: It’s about a couple at the altar and the groom gets cold feet. Bollywood is campy so Nakul encourages Kent to bring on the faces.
Om Mangalam / Kambakkht Ishq (soundtrack)
Performance: I like this dance when it’s fast. I’m really enjoying it so far but I don’t need to see Kent flipping around the stage. Great energy and it looks like they’re having a blast. Very nice job.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel says it’s great fun choreography, great costumes, and great dancing. Mia thinks it’s perfectly tailored to Kent. He hit everything precisely. Kentish. Adam thinks the energizer bunny should retire. He’s the feel good dancer of the year.
Further critique: I agree. I thought it was highly enjoyable and I didn’t mind Kent’s crazy faces. This time.
Lauren
All-star partner: Twitch
Tabitha & Napoleon / Hip Hop
Rehearsal: It’s about struggle so it’s a presidential debate – a debate through dance. Their movements mirror the lyrics and their speeches.
Power / Kanye West
Performance: It’s cool so far. Lauren’s hitting it very hard. She’s great in this style. Great side-by-side and individual dancing. Interesting concept, very nice execution.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel says art inspires art. NappyTabs is just so good at inspiring people to dance. She dances that so strongly. Lauren brings out strength. She’s transfixing. Mia calls her filthy. What a season NappyTabs has had. Mia doesn’t know if there’s anything Lauren can’t do. She loves the masculine/feminine balance. Adam says Lauren makes him proud to be sitting in his chair. She’s one of his favorite girls the show has ever had.
Further comment: Love her.
Robert
All-star partner: Mark
Tyce DiOrio / Jazz
Rehearsal: The piece is a power surge of electrical energy.
Whip It / Devo
Performance: Great song choice. Fun opening. They aren’t perfectly in sync, which is throwing me off a bit. I think Robert’s nerves might be getting to him. I am enjoying it but it’s a little weird.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel says Tyce has done an incredible job of choreographing something that doesn’t look like him. He likes that Robert and Mark had fun doing it. Mia wants them to be on tour with Adam Ant. She loves the look. For her, Robert is the most improved of the season. The piece is awesome. Adam thinks this piece is a testament to the addition of the all-stars. Robert dances like he’s not competing.
Further comment: I just didn’t love it as much as the judges did. Even though I love Mark in perhaps a slightly unhealthy way, I think they did Robert a disservice tonight to pair him with a guy for this style. It’s just my opinion.
Kent’s solo
The Finish Line / Train
A bit too frenetic for me. Why is he dancing like he’s desperate? I didn’t enjoy it at all. He rushed through his tricks and didn’t seem to have much control. Take a deep breath, Kent.
Lauren and Robert
Dee Caspary / Contemporary
Rehearsal: It’s about them going home and being at piece with how the journey has been. They’re having trouble with their prop pillow.
That Home / Cinematic Orchestra
Performance: The piece is so cool but the pillow is a huge distraction. Make it go away! Great technique. Wow. Amazing connection – physical and emotional. I loved it. And I warmed up to the pillow.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel complements Dee on the choreography. There are touches of genius. Strength sums them both up. Very beautiful from the pair of them. Mia calls Dee unreal. The use of the pillow, the fluidity, the connection is never-ending. This is the most delicious performance from Robert to date. He’s so open and humble. Mia expected perfection and Lauren is perfection. She’s such a proud Mama Mia right now. All Adam saw up there was how much they love and support each other, as well as beauty.
Further comment: These two dancers have come a really long way. Lauren is strong yet vulnerable. Robert managed to put that wacky personality away so we can focus on his dancing. I love these two, together and apart.
Kent and Lauren
Mandy Moore / Jazz
Rehearsal: Mandy wants the piece to embody quirky and cool just like Lauren and Kent do. There’s no kissing this week. Yes, there is.
Hip to be Square / Huey Lewis & the News
Performance: Great music. The piece is very cute but it’s not really doing anything for me. Is it just me or does it seems a little low energy? I can see that they’re doing some tricks but the energy feels off.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel doesn’t feel they were challenged enough. They kept the characters well and did what was asked of them. Mia isn’t sure what to say. It was fun, right? She enjoyed the quirkiness. They killed it but she didn’t like it. Adam loves them, that was crazy, get out of here.
Further comment: I’m glad the judges managed to put into words what I couldn’t. I didn’t care for it either.
Robert’s solo
The District Sleeps Alone / The Postal Service
Great quality of movement. Interesting body positions. Nice levels. Very nice control. A great showcase for his talent.
Kent
All-star partner: Allison
Stacey Tookey / Contemporary
Rehearsal: It’s about looking into a relationship everyone thinks is perfect but they have a lot of problems they don’t talk about. Who’s going to break first? Stacey is digging through to an honest place.
Sundrenched World (Live Session) / Joshua Radin
Performance: A nice, quiet start. Great connections. They are dancing with and off of each other so well. Kent is really giving us something here. That string/puppet thing is really cool. Very nice dancing and great emotion.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel thinks Kent’s lines get better and stronger each week. Emotions are real. Honesty to the performance. The only chink in his armor is his upper body strength, although it didn’t show here. Mia feels like he’s so invested. Kent’s technique and solidity is flawless. When he says “Get off of me” at the end, it’s genius. It’s a love fest from Mia. Adam is wondering what’s going on with Kent right now. Kent just became an artist. Adam is so proud of him. So special, brilliant.
Further critique: I was really feeling this piece from Kent tonight. I do feel the brilliance. And you can see how emotionally invested in it he is.
Lauren’s solo
I’m Goin’ Down / Mary J Blige
Nice levels. Great technique. She’s showing us her heart and she looks like she’s really enjoying it out there. I heart her.
Robert
All-star partner: Kathryn
Spence Liff / Broadway
Rehearsal: An interrogation room. Kathryn is a sexy, hot interrogator. Robert’s got to keep his cool for this number.
Cool / West Side Story (1961 soundtrack)
Performance: I like his solo at the beginning. Great chemistry with Kathryn. I’m really enjoying them dancing together. Great movement across the stage. I saw a lot of typical Broadway dancing but I really enjoyed it. Great job.
Judge’s critiques:
This is one of Nigel’s favorite pieces of music. Robert danced it very well. He is showing all the different sides to his dancing technique. He’s delighted with Robert’s journey on the show. Mia got a little nervous when she heard the music. She loves the classic feel. He put his own story behind it. She wanted a little more simmer. This is a special piece of choreography for Adam. Spencer put a fresh spin on it. Jerome Roberts would have been proud of Robert.
Further critique: I am not familiar with the original. Having no reference point I really loved it. And you know how I usually feel about Broadway so that’s really saying something.
Lauren
All-star partner: Pasha
Melanie Lapatin & Tony Meredith / Cha cha
Rehearsal: Lauren sees Pasha and she loses her mind. Sometimes she gets a little dirty.
Not Myself Tonight / Christina Aquilera
Performance: Great connection at the beginning. Very sexy. I’m loving it. I want her to have a better connection with Pasha. She’s dancing a little too much to the crowd for me. Those lifts were very intricate, and very well done.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel says it’s a fabulous routine. The foot-action, knee-stops, everything. It looked near-perfect. She’s the best contemporary girl they’ve had do a ballroom routine. It looks like she got everything right. Mia wants to know who Lauren is. Mia’s so happy she stood up for Lauren’s butt this season. She owns everything. If Mia was still dancing she’s want to dance just like Lauren. She never gets bored watching her. Adam says Lauren feels the music like no one else on this show. She understands the notes and rhythms and embodies it.
Further critique: Technically, I did think Lauren was quite impressive. I still wanted a little bit more of a connection between Lauren and her partner.
Kent and Robert
Miriam Larici & Leonardo Barrionuevo / Malevos
Rehearsal: It’s a fight. Malevos means gangster. They’re from the outskirts and they’re ready to battle it out, Tango-style. The footwork is crazy.
The Chosen/Drum Addict / Taylor Long
Performance: I always love new things on this show. It’s interesting because it’s basically a Tango but with two guys. I’m enjoying this. The footwork looks pretty crisp but not flawless. I think they’ve got their characters down. I want them to be going after it a little harder though. The intensity at the end is nice but it looks like they have a little technical difficulty.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel had never heard of this routine. It’s what the men do to practice the Tango before they dance it with women. All of the dancers have worked so hard this week and throughout the competition. Nigel asks the audience to vote. They all deserve it. Mia loves the feel of this piece. There was a debonair quality as well as a hood quality. Great performance. The legwork could be tighter. It wasn’t perfection but she loved it. There were some elements that weren’t quite right but at this point it doesn’t matter. The final three have become Adam’s favorite dancers from any season. They entered as kids and came out seasoned professionals.
Further critique: I would have loved to see it danced completely clean, but I still enjoyed the emotion and the story. Great job.
Even though it might not seem like it, I will be happy if any three of these dancers take home the crown tomorrow night. I think they all danced brilliantly and I want to see them all succeed in the dance world and in life.
What did you think of the finale? Who got your vote? Who do you think will win it all?
And what of Cat you ask? I like her sparkly little black number. Her hair and makeup look great and she’s adorable, as always.
I think I see something I already like. The judge’s panel consists of only 3. Good. That’s the way it should be. And I just learned that everyone dances 5 times tonight. Nice.
The highlight reel makes me remember that we haven’t seen Hi Hat or Mary Murphy all season. I know Mary choreographed something but Hi Hat didn’t. Boo. I was looking forward to seeing what Hi Hat could do and I would have liked to see Mary Murphy on the panel (with her subbing in for Mia or Adam) at least once this season.
Kent
All-star partner: Lauren
Nakul Dev Mahajan / Bollywood
Rehearsal: It’s about a couple at the altar and the groom gets cold feet. Bollywood is campy so Nakul encourages Kent to bring on the faces.
Om Mangalam / Kambakkht Ishq (soundtrack)
Performance: I like this dance when it’s fast. I’m really enjoying it so far but I don’t need to see Kent flipping around the stage. Great energy and it looks like they’re having a blast. Very nice job.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel says it’s great fun choreography, great costumes, and great dancing. Mia thinks it’s perfectly tailored to Kent. He hit everything precisely. Kentish. Adam thinks the energizer bunny should retire. He’s the feel good dancer of the year.
Further critique: I agree. I thought it was highly enjoyable and I didn’t mind Kent’s crazy faces. This time.
Lauren
All-star partner: Twitch
Tabitha & Napoleon / Hip Hop
Rehearsal: It’s about struggle so it’s a presidential debate – a debate through dance. Their movements mirror the lyrics and their speeches.
Power / Kanye West
Performance: It’s cool so far. Lauren’s hitting it very hard. She’s great in this style. Great side-by-side and individual dancing. Interesting concept, very nice execution.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel says art inspires art. NappyTabs is just so good at inspiring people to dance. She dances that so strongly. Lauren brings out strength. She’s transfixing. Mia calls her filthy. What a season NappyTabs has had. Mia doesn’t know if there’s anything Lauren can’t do. She loves the masculine/feminine balance. Adam says Lauren makes him proud to be sitting in his chair. She’s one of his favorite girls the show has ever had.
Further comment: Love her.
Robert
All-star partner: Mark
Tyce DiOrio / Jazz
Rehearsal: The piece is a power surge of electrical energy.
Whip It / Devo
Performance: Great song choice. Fun opening. They aren’t perfectly in sync, which is throwing me off a bit. I think Robert’s nerves might be getting to him. I am enjoying it but it’s a little weird.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel says Tyce has done an incredible job of choreographing something that doesn’t look like him. He likes that Robert and Mark had fun doing it. Mia wants them to be on tour with Adam Ant. She loves the look. For her, Robert is the most improved of the season. The piece is awesome. Adam thinks this piece is a testament to the addition of the all-stars. Robert dances like he’s not competing.
Further comment: I just didn’t love it as much as the judges did. Even though I love Mark in perhaps a slightly unhealthy way, I think they did Robert a disservice tonight to pair him with a guy for this style. It’s just my opinion.
Kent’s solo
The Finish Line / Train
A bit too frenetic for me. Why is he dancing like he’s desperate? I didn’t enjoy it at all. He rushed through his tricks and didn’t seem to have much control. Take a deep breath, Kent.
Lauren and Robert
Dee Caspary / Contemporary
Rehearsal: It’s about them going home and being at piece with how the journey has been. They’re having trouble with their prop pillow.
That Home / Cinematic Orchestra
Performance: The piece is so cool but the pillow is a huge distraction. Make it go away! Great technique. Wow. Amazing connection – physical and emotional. I loved it. And I warmed up to the pillow.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel complements Dee on the choreography. There are touches of genius. Strength sums them both up. Very beautiful from the pair of them. Mia calls Dee unreal. The use of the pillow, the fluidity, the connection is never-ending. This is the most delicious performance from Robert to date. He’s so open and humble. Mia expected perfection and Lauren is perfection. She’s such a proud Mama Mia right now. All Adam saw up there was how much they love and support each other, as well as beauty.
Further comment: These two dancers have come a really long way. Lauren is strong yet vulnerable. Robert managed to put that wacky personality away so we can focus on his dancing. I love these two, together and apart.
Kent and Lauren
Mandy Moore / Jazz
Rehearsal: Mandy wants the piece to embody quirky and cool just like Lauren and Kent do. There’s no kissing this week. Yes, there is.
Hip to be Square / Huey Lewis & the News
Performance: Great music. The piece is very cute but it’s not really doing anything for me. Is it just me or does it seems a little low energy? I can see that they’re doing some tricks but the energy feels off.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel doesn’t feel they were challenged enough. They kept the characters well and did what was asked of them. Mia isn’t sure what to say. It was fun, right? She enjoyed the quirkiness. They killed it but she didn’t like it. Adam loves them, that was crazy, get out of here.
Further comment: I’m glad the judges managed to put into words what I couldn’t. I didn’t care for it either.
Robert’s solo
The District Sleeps Alone / The Postal Service
Great quality of movement. Interesting body positions. Nice levels. Very nice control. A great showcase for his talent.
Kent
All-star partner: Allison
Stacey Tookey / Contemporary
Rehearsal: It’s about looking into a relationship everyone thinks is perfect but they have a lot of problems they don’t talk about. Who’s going to break first? Stacey is digging through to an honest place.
Sundrenched World (Live Session) / Joshua Radin
Performance: A nice, quiet start. Great connections. They are dancing with and off of each other so well. Kent is really giving us something here. That string/puppet thing is really cool. Very nice dancing and great emotion.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel thinks Kent’s lines get better and stronger each week. Emotions are real. Honesty to the performance. The only chink in his armor is his upper body strength, although it didn’t show here. Mia feels like he’s so invested. Kent’s technique and solidity is flawless. When he says “Get off of me” at the end, it’s genius. It’s a love fest from Mia. Adam is wondering what’s going on with Kent right now. Kent just became an artist. Adam is so proud of him. So special, brilliant.
Further critique: I was really feeling this piece from Kent tonight. I do feel the brilliance. And you can see how emotionally invested in it he is.
Lauren’s solo
I’m Goin’ Down / Mary J Blige
Nice levels. Great technique. She’s showing us her heart and she looks like she’s really enjoying it out there. I heart her.
Robert
All-star partner: Kathryn
Spence Liff / Broadway
Rehearsal: An interrogation room. Kathryn is a sexy, hot interrogator. Robert’s got to keep his cool for this number.
Cool / West Side Story (1961 soundtrack)
Performance: I like his solo at the beginning. Great chemistry with Kathryn. I’m really enjoying them dancing together. Great movement across the stage. I saw a lot of typical Broadway dancing but I really enjoyed it. Great job.
Judge’s critiques:
This is one of Nigel’s favorite pieces of music. Robert danced it very well. He is showing all the different sides to his dancing technique. He’s delighted with Robert’s journey on the show. Mia got a little nervous when she heard the music. She loves the classic feel. He put his own story behind it. She wanted a little more simmer. This is a special piece of choreography for Adam. Spencer put a fresh spin on it. Jerome Roberts would have been proud of Robert.
Further critique: I am not familiar with the original. Having no reference point I really loved it. And you know how I usually feel about Broadway so that’s really saying something.
Lauren
All-star partner: Pasha
Melanie Lapatin & Tony Meredith / Cha cha
Rehearsal: Lauren sees Pasha and she loses her mind. Sometimes she gets a little dirty.
Not Myself Tonight / Christina Aquilera
Performance: Great connection at the beginning. Very sexy. I’m loving it. I want her to have a better connection with Pasha. She’s dancing a little too much to the crowd for me. Those lifts were very intricate, and very well done.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel says it’s a fabulous routine. The foot-action, knee-stops, everything. It looked near-perfect. She’s the best contemporary girl they’ve had do a ballroom routine. It looks like she got everything right. Mia wants to know who Lauren is. Mia’s so happy she stood up for Lauren’s butt this season. She owns everything. If Mia was still dancing she’s want to dance just like Lauren. She never gets bored watching her. Adam says Lauren feels the music like no one else on this show. She understands the notes and rhythms and embodies it.
Further critique: Technically, I did think Lauren was quite impressive. I still wanted a little bit more of a connection between Lauren and her partner.
Kent and Robert
Miriam Larici & Leonardo Barrionuevo / Malevos
Rehearsal: It’s a fight. Malevos means gangster. They’re from the outskirts and they’re ready to battle it out, Tango-style. The footwork is crazy.
The Chosen/Drum Addict / Taylor Long
Performance: I always love new things on this show. It’s interesting because it’s basically a Tango but with two guys. I’m enjoying this. The footwork looks pretty crisp but not flawless. I think they’ve got their characters down. I want them to be going after it a little harder though. The intensity at the end is nice but it looks like they have a little technical difficulty.
Judge’s critiques:
Nigel had never heard of this routine. It’s what the men do to practice the Tango before they dance it with women. All of the dancers have worked so hard this week and throughout the competition. Nigel asks the audience to vote. They all deserve it. Mia loves the feel of this piece. There was a debonair quality as well as a hood quality. Great performance. The legwork could be tighter. It wasn’t perfection but she loved it. There were some elements that weren’t quite right but at this point it doesn’t matter. The final three have become Adam’s favorite dancers from any season. They entered as kids and came out seasoned professionals.
Further critique: I would have loved to see it danced completely clean, but I still enjoyed the emotion and the story. Great job.
Even though it might not seem like it, I will be happy if any three of these dancers take home the crown tomorrow night. I think they all danced brilliantly and I want to see them all succeed in the dance world and in life.
What did you think of the finale? Who got your vote? Who do you think will win it all?
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Haven season one, so far by Heather M
When I decide to watch a new show, it’s usually a decision reached according to a few unwritten criteria:
As the case is wrapped, Audrey is shown a picture of a woman who visited Haven during “the Troubles” and is clearly her doppelganger. Her interest is piqued since she’s never met her birth parents and was raised in the group home system. Audrey trades her Feeb status for newest town detective and begins investigating her birthright while lending a hand to Nathan’s everyday caseload of the wacky.
Subsequent cases had a boy projecting butterflies and energy out of grief and guilt and musically-driven psychosis and anger-fueled food as weapons (really). The most recent outing involved the show’s third lead, a swarthy boat-captain/”importer” by the name of Duke Crocker, and inhabited by the dashing and ever-so-cheeky Eric Balfour. Duke found himself on the receiving end of a really bad one-night stand that sentenced him to rapid aging and certain death at the hands of a succubus who turned out to be the alternate identity of a straight-laced law pro. Duke was saved, and the succubus had to ride out her succubal mood swings chained to a lighthouse. Oh, and Duke’s progeny was handed off to a social worker because any physical contact with the child would kill him.
For starters, I love the show’s mood – visual and written. Shooting in Halifax, Nova Scotia (in lieu of Maine), it has the rainy secretive aura of X-Files as well as two other Canadian-filmed sci-fi series, Poltergeist the Legacy and Friday the 13th the Series, of which I was extraordinarily fond in the 90s. Neither was based on their namesake films and instead were about investigators/regular folks drawn to cases of the supernatural tied to phenomena and objects. Both shows could be out-there gross and weird but then dial back into a really sweet sensibility, and Haven does that too.
The initial 42 minutes of each episode can be sort of hard and violent and icky and then when they get around to the denouement, the person who caused the episode’s crisis du jour is always treated very respectfully and sweetly and usually sent on his/her way as long as they’ll steer clear of causing harm again. I love that. Everybody gets a second chance.
The majority of the screen time is garnered by Lucas Bryant (formerly a regular on SoapNet’s dishy M.V.P) as Nathan and Emily Rose as Audrey, with an assist from Balfour. Nathan is scarred by his own physical deformity as well as a previous encounter with “The Troubles,” a period of time tied to unusual events that hasn't been completely explained but seem to be returning. His history and animosity with Duke, who’s been a “friend” since childhood, isn’t entirely explained either, but Duke seems less inclined to maintain the war than Nathan, who feeds on it. Audrey is settling in with a little bit of Dr. Fleischman-meets-Cicely going on but on the whole she seems to embrace that staying in Haven is a means to accessing her identity and that goal supersedes all of the strangeness. She also has a knack for resolving the weird and unexplainable, so she’s pretty happy to stick around. There’s a nice camaraderie between Nathan and Audrey, and Duke definitely has more romantic intentions but she’s holding that at bay for now.
The guest cast have been some familiar Canadian faces. Nathan’s dad is the police chief and he’s played by Nicholas Campbell (see Davinci’s Inquest/City Hall and get back to me) and his genius is always welcome. No word yet on a second season, but I hope so. The show has a nice rhythm and energy that’s a relaxing tonic at the end of the week. 13 episodes have been ordered. Here’s hoping Syfy gives it a chance. You can catch up with the aired eps on Hulu and Syfy.com and catch the next new episode Friday at 9 pm Eastern.
- Is it shot in Canada – pretty much an automatic yes (closet Canadafanatic).
- Do I have a positive history with a writer/actor/producer – see above.
- Is it a medical drama – yeah, sorry, next.
- Is it supernatural-oriented – Sure, show me whatcha got.
Which brings us to Haven, the newest Syfy summer drama running on Fridays through September. It is:
- Shot in Nova Scotia, doubling as Maine.
- Features beaucoup talent with whom I’m friendly.
- Has a supernatural bent that’s weirdly warm and very welcome.
As the case is wrapped, Audrey is shown a picture of a woman who visited Haven during “the Troubles” and is clearly her doppelganger. Her interest is piqued since she’s never met her birth parents and was raised in the group home system. Audrey trades her Feeb status for newest town detective and begins investigating her birthright while lending a hand to Nathan’s everyday caseload of the wacky.
Subsequent cases had a boy projecting butterflies and energy out of grief and guilt and musically-driven psychosis and anger-fueled food as weapons (really). The most recent outing involved the show’s third lead, a swarthy boat-captain/”importer” by the name of Duke Crocker, and inhabited by the dashing and ever-so-cheeky Eric Balfour. Duke found himself on the receiving end of a really bad one-night stand that sentenced him to rapid aging and certain death at the hands of a succubus who turned out to be the alternate identity of a straight-laced law pro. Duke was saved, and the succubus had to ride out her succubal mood swings chained to a lighthouse. Oh, and Duke’s progeny was handed off to a social worker because any physical contact with the child would kill him.
For starters, I love the show’s mood – visual and written. Shooting in Halifax, Nova Scotia (in lieu of Maine), it has the rainy secretive aura of X-Files as well as two other Canadian-filmed sci-fi series, Poltergeist the Legacy and Friday the 13th the Series, of which I was extraordinarily fond in the 90s. Neither was based on their namesake films and instead were about investigators/regular folks drawn to cases of the supernatural tied to phenomena and objects. Both shows could be out-there gross and weird but then dial back into a really sweet sensibility, and Haven does that too.
The initial 42 minutes of each episode can be sort of hard and violent and icky and then when they get around to the denouement, the person who caused the episode’s crisis du jour is always treated very respectfully and sweetly and usually sent on his/her way as long as they’ll steer clear of causing harm again. I love that. Everybody gets a second chance.
The majority of the screen time is garnered by Lucas Bryant (formerly a regular on SoapNet’s dishy M.V.P) as Nathan and Emily Rose as Audrey, with an assist from Balfour. Nathan is scarred by his own physical deformity as well as a previous encounter with “The Troubles,” a period of time tied to unusual events that hasn't been completely explained but seem to be returning. His history and animosity with Duke, who’s been a “friend” since childhood, isn’t entirely explained either, but Duke seems less inclined to maintain the war than Nathan, who feeds on it. Audrey is settling in with a little bit of Dr. Fleischman-meets-Cicely going on but on the whole she seems to embrace that staying in Haven is a means to accessing her identity and that goal supersedes all of the strangeness. She also has a knack for resolving the weird and unexplainable, so she’s pretty happy to stick around. There’s a nice camaraderie between Nathan and Audrey, and Duke definitely has more romantic intentions but she’s holding that at bay for now.
The guest cast have been some familiar Canadian faces. Nathan’s dad is the police chief and he’s played by Nicholas Campbell (see Davinci’s Inquest/City Hall and get back to me) and his genius is always welcome. No word yet on a second season, but I hope so. The show has a nice rhythm and energy that’s a relaxing tonic at the end of the week. 13 episodes have been ordered. Here’s hoping Syfy gives it a chance. You can catch up with the aired eps on Hulu and Syfy.com and catch the next new episode Friday at 9 pm Eastern.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Random Thoughts on Mad Men: The Good News by Kara Howland
Gentleman, shall we begin 1965?
Christina Hendricks' Joan. What an interesting character. She goes to the doctor to make sure everything is in working order for whenever she and her husband decide to start adding to their family. Not only do we learn that Joan’s had two abortions but we also learn that she doesn’t trust her husband’s medical skills. When she cuts herself badly she wants to go to the hospital despite the fact that her husband is a surgeon. Now, I’m sure there’s much more behind her decision not to trust him. First, he’s a rapist. I think for Joan to go on in her everyday life she has put that out of her mind. She’s kind of resigned to her home life. Maybe that’s why she such a take charge kind of girl at work. And second, she has no idea when he’ll be shipped off to basic training. After that, he can be sent to Vietnam at any time. Whether or not she has any intention of starting a family with this man – and it seems like she does – there’s real hesitation here. Maybe part of her is realizing what a mistake it would be to settle for this guy. It will be interesting to see how this all plays out.
Jon Hamm’s Don. What a debauched character. He’s been on a downward spiral so far this season and in some ways I think he’s hit rock bottom tonight. He learns that the first Mrs. Don Draper has cancer but she doesn’t know about it. I still can’t believe there was a time – and in the not so distant past – when doctors weren’t required to tell their patients what was going on with their own bodies. Anna has a right to know. If the cancer is as advanced as everyone seems to think it is, doesn’t she have a right to know so she can live her last weeks or months how she sees fit? I don’t think Don will get to bring his kids out to see her for Easter. I’m sure she’ll be long gone by then. And how many people will Don corrupt before he wakes up and tries to be a better man? Not only was I embarrassed – for both him and Stephanie – when he made a move on her niece but I was a little appalled. I know she’s in college. I know it’s 1964. But really? Will Don try to have sex with every single woman he meets? And what about Lane? At first I liked that they were doing some male bonding. It’s nice to see Lane lighten up a bit. He’s always so serious and dour all the time. And even if his marriage is breaking up, I don’t really think that’s a reason for Don to introduce him to a prostitute. I’m sure it was accepted back then but that doesn’t make it ok. Lane wanted a distraction and he certainly got one.
What will 1965 bring to our favorite characters? We'll have to wait and find out.
Christina Hendricks' Joan. What an interesting character. She goes to the doctor to make sure everything is in working order for whenever she and her husband decide to start adding to their family. Not only do we learn that Joan’s had two abortions but we also learn that she doesn’t trust her husband’s medical skills. When she cuts herself badly she wants to go to the hospital despite the fact that her husband is a surgeon. Now, I’m sure there’s much more behind her decision not to trust him. First, he’s a rapist. I think for Joan to go on in her everyday life she has put that out of her mind. She’s kind of resigned to her home life. Maybe that’s why she such a take charge kind of girl at work. And second, she has no idea when he’ll be shipped off to basic training. After that, he can be sent to Vietnam at any time. Whether or not she has any intention of starting a family with this man – and it seems like she does – there’s real hesitation here. Maybe part of her is realizing what a mistake it would be to settle for this guy. It will be interesting to see how this all plays out.
Jon Hamm’s Don. What a debauched character. He’s been on a downward spiral so far this season and in some ways I think he’s hit rock bottom tonight. He learns that the first Mrs. Don Draper has cancer but she doesn’t know about it. I still can’t believe there was a time – and in the not so distant past – when doctors weren’t required to tell their patients what was going on with their own bodies. Anna has a right to know. If the cancer is as advanced as everyone seems to think it is, doesn’t she have a right to know so she can live her last weeks or months how she sees fit? I don’t think Don will get to bring his kids out to see her for Easter. I’m sure she’ll be long gone by then. And how many people will Don corrupt before he wakes up and tries to be a better man? Not only was I embarrassed – for both him and Stephanie – when he made a move on her niece but I was a little appalled. I know she’s in college. I know it’s 1964. But really? Will Don try to have sex with every single woman he meets? And what about Lane? At first I liked that they were doing some male bonding. It’s nice to see Lane lighten up a bit. He’s always so serious and dour all the time. And even if his marriage is breaking up, I don’t really think that’s a reason for Don to introduce him to a prostitute. I’m sure it was accepted back then but that doesn’t make it ok. Lane wanted a distraction and he certainly got one.
What will 1965 bring to our favorite characters? We'll have to wait and find out.
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