JoltBlog

I'm glad Barry went out on a really high note. I'm fully ok with him going, especially with Jason and Charity in the bottom three, but it is disappointing to see him go after a really fun dance-off. I thought it was Barry's best work and, not only that, he REDEEMED himself with the cartwheel trick that him and Peta messed up on in the jazz. Any redemption that a celeb can have before their elimination is always satisfying.

I'm sure Barry/Peta were aware they could go, so I'm glad they went all out this week in hopes for higher points.

I'm very, very happy Alyson made it through this week. Her growth has been Iman levels for me and although she's not going to produce any award-nominated dances, it's her journey that has been a joy to watch. I just remember her first two weeks were SO bad, they were Harry-levels of bad. But she's grown and improved and has done so much this season that makes me, honestly, want her to get to finale night. Like, eight weeks ago, no way she would have been able to do that handstand trick on Sasha. Look at her now! And her dance-off vs Harry was well done technically.

Speaking of Harry, the dance he did last night was technically the best he's done yet, but it's once again filled with holding Rylee, moving across the dance floor without tripping, and then doing tricks with her. Now, his hold was a bit better and his footwork wasn't sloppy, so he DID genuinely improve. Unfortunately, because they gave him 6s last week, his improvement needed better scores. I did laugh at the two tree analogies that were given to Harry, though. He really isn't improving much, though, so I think we need to be prepared for Harry to knock out dancers like Alyson, Charity or maybe even Jason to get a spot in the finale. 

Jason was definitely off last night so it sucks to know that he was really sick. I do want to point out that the judges LOVE to make reference to the female celebs being injured/ill during their dances, but Jason's illness wasn't mentioned a peep. Jason's definitely plateaued the last few weeks, which is disappointing. He could be so good and he clearly has the potential but we are in week 8 and he's been very up and down. He was underscored last week but appropriately scored this week. Dani needs to take a risk and go all out with Jason for next week, though. She needs to push him into a new territory to get him to stand out like she did for their Jive. He's very much almost there, but he's been making too many mistakes and he's starting to fall from the front of the pack.

Xochitl is such a joy to watch. She really could win it all, and I wouldn't be mad. Val's also given her some extremely tough choreography, which I love. She's delivered in all of her dances. This week was definitely one where she played it a bit safe, but I assume that's because of her ankle. I'm just glad she's still around and doing very well.

Ariana's great to watch but I have to admit, I'm not fully invested in her. It's great to see Pasha get far and I'm glad he's a lock for the finale. I think the choreography was a BIT weird this time around; fun, but weird. I guess I'm not rooting for her in the way that I was hoping. 

Charity's getting better at embracing the competition but I guess she can't fully shake the Pageant Presence. Plus, I think Artem's very similar to her, so it creates a slightly more low energy type of connection. She was great in the dance-off, though. That's the energy I want to see more of. But at this rate, she's not going to make the finale, I get the feeling she's going to be a semis boot over Harry or even Alyson. She's had beautiful dances, and she had a break-out contemporary, but I think Artem needs to push a more unique routine next to really show why she's a frontrunner, or should be.

5 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

What was Derek doing when he was pinching the back of Carrie Ann's neck? Was he just trying to shut her up because he didn't agree with her? That was weird.

It was a reference to Barry's wife telling Peta to pinch Barry on the back of the neck to get him to move his hips lol

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