12/9 Show Discussion Thread **SPOILERS**

[RomanticHeart]

I'm disappointed in the results tonight. Ashleigh annoyed me since the beginning. She was only there because someone else dropped out. Although I think she has improved quite a bit on the show, I don't think she belongs in the finals. I don't think her husband does either. He should've been out weeks ago. There were much better dancers cut when he was allowed to stay. All I can say at this point is I hope Jakob or Russell takes it all. I think Jakob is the best dancer and Russell is the most improved.

[superfly]

Ellenore was in the bottom 2, right?

Let's not pretend like how America votes is a good indicator of how good each dancer is. Does anyone really think that Allison Holker was the 8th best dancer in her season or that Will Wingfield was the 8th best dancer in his season?

[Critical]

Let's not pretend like how America votes is a good indicator of how good each dancer is. Does anyone really think that Allison Holker was the 8th best dancer in her season or that Will Wingfield was the 8th best dancer in his season?

That's why they say it's to find America's favorite dancer, rather than the best dancer. This show is, largely, a personality contest. A huge portion of the voters are young girls and that comes through in the dancers who end up in the finals, to a large extent. I think the voters also tend to vote against the judges - if the judges are really gung-ho about one dancer (ex: Brandon), voters throw votes behind someone else.

Most of us agree that Jakob is the best dancer on the show. Even if he doesn't win (and I really want him to, although I don't think he will), he's gotten great exposure on this show and that will definitely help his career.

After Travis lost, I stopped taking this show seriously. I won't be disappointed if any of the top 6 win this one, although I do have my favorites.

[Harmony2000]

Well.....you are definitely entitled to your opinion, but I (and am sure a ton of others) highly beg to differ with that comment. IMO Ashleigh is not even on the same level as Elenore.

As I posted in Ashleigh's thread, I was a bit torn about this. Ashleigh and Kathryn are my two favorite females and I wanted them both in the finale. I felt they simply out danced / gave more personality / showed more joy in dancing than both Ellenore and Mollee. Although I wanted her in the finale, I wasn't sure it was fair because I didn't think it was fair for Noelle to advance when she was injured.

However, I do have to disagree with this comment.

I'm sure there are plenty of people who think she doesn't belong there, however, there are clearly way more who felt she did or she would have never been voted through.

I hope she is cleared to dance next week because I love seeing her joy on that stage, it makes me want to dance with her. She exudes joy (unlike that fakish immature giggling that Mollee does) when she's on the stage and I want to see it again.

I'm disappointed in the results tonight. Ashleigh annoyed me since the beginning. She was only there because someone else dropped out.

Maybe I missed something? I do try and read all the threads......but I thought we'd already discussed this and established that we don't know for sure if this is the case. That actually it was played up for the drama of forcing the husband to wait for his wife to appear? That they already knew before the selection that she was going to drop out so it was never a matter of having an alternate since she was already out before they even started choosing. That they chose Ashleigh to portray this role so they could show Ryan waiting anxiously in the wings.

I'm just positive that we've hashed and rehashed this and came up with it's pretty certain that there never was an "alternate" and it was all manufactured for drama purposes.

[Critical]

As I posted in Ashleigh's thread, I was a bit torn about this. Ashleigh and Kathryn are my two favorite females and I wanted them both in the finale. I felt they simply out danced / gave more personality / showed more joy in dancing than both Ellenore and Mollee. Although I wanted her in the finale, I wasn't sure it was fair because I didn't think it was fair for Noelle to advance when she was injured..

I had more of a problem with Noelle moving forward without performing than I do with Ashleigh doing it. When Noelle was injured, she was pretty much an unknown quantity. We hadn't seen enough of any of the dancers to really form opinions about most of them. I thought Noelle should have been given a pass to the top 20 next season instead of keeping her and eliminating some who was healthy.

We've seen Ashleigh perform for weeks now and we know what her abilities are. I think she's a better dancer than Mollee, so I don't have a problem with her staying. I'll be disappointed if it turns out that she's not healthy enough to perform next week, but I hope she is.

[JavaJo]

Critical, I agree with you 100%. Ashleigh has been terrific the entire season. Her only "miss" for me was the vampire hip hop with Legacy. I would really love to see her and Russel do that Bollywood routine. I'm hoping they can perform it someway somehow for the finale.

I also agree with you about Ellinore. Pretty girl with loads of talent and she seems really fun. You can see that in the rehearsal clips, but it doesn't translate on stage. I just don't "feel" her. I do think she's a better dancer than Mollee, but I don't think I would think that if Mollee had been paired with Jakob in the beginning. He brought something out in Mollee that was wonderful to watch.

That said, I voted for the first time EVER after Tuesdays show. I voted until my fingers hurt for Russel and Kathryn. I also threw a handful of votes Ashleighs way for two reasons..the girl worked her fanny off and was terrific the whole season and I couldn't resist Ryans' plea. Yeah, I'm a sap, but I love a good romance and those two....they just seem so in love. I'll even admit to tearing up when they panned to him backstage on his knees when Ashleigh got a spot in the finale. Some think it was contrived, but I'd like to believe that he just loves his wife that. damn. much.

[Bloomers]

Critical, I agree with you 100%. Ashleigh has been terrific the entire season. Her only "miss" for me was the vampire hip hop with Legacy. I would really love to see her and Russel do that Bollywood routine. I'm hoping they can perform it someway somehow for the finale.

I also agree with you about Ellinore. Pretty girl with loads of talent and she seems really fun. You can see that in the rehearsal clips, but it doesn't translate on stage. I just don't "feel" her. I do think she's a better dancer than Mollee, but I don't think I would think that if Mollee had been paired with Jakob in the beginning. He brought something out in Mollee that was wonderful to watch.

That said, I voted for the first time EVER after Tuesdays show. I voted until my fingers hurt for Russel and Kathryn. I also threw a handful of votes Ashleighs way for two reasons..the girl worked her fanny off and was terrific the whole season and I couldn't resist Ryans' plea. Yeah, I'm a sap, but I love a good romance and those two....they just seem so in love. I'll even admit to tearing up when they panned to him backstage on his knees when Ashleigh got a spot in the finale. Some think it was contrived, but I'd like to believe that he just loves his wife that. damn. much.

I am watching this season as a newbie but as a veteran DWTS watcher and boardie. Although the shows are different in some ways, I can't help but draw some marked comparisons. Your post has stirred some reactions in me...

First, while DI is not accurate, it is an indicator, and the last 2 weeks, it has been pretty close. Legacy and Ryan were on the bottom this week and too close in DI to differentiate who actually was pulling in the least calls. That said, I am noting that Legacy had 2 fairly bad reviews by the judges: the vampire number and the alien number whereas Ryan basically got good reviews with some constructive criticism mixed in. Therefore, I wasn't surprised to see Legacy fall out.

Elenor was pimped last week by the judges, and she was on the top of DI. This week when she and Legacy were panned for the alien routine, she and Molly were on the bottom very close together - too close to differentiate.
Molly, on the other hand, as we know had been trying to play catch up with the other girls after being dissed by the judges all of those weeks partnering with Nathan.
I believe Elenor was simply a little stronger than Molly with the fans.

Russell is a natural type dancer, built well, and gifted with charisma and stage presence ( and a pleasing, humble personality). He also was pimped to high heaven by the judges. He blew out the top of DI, and I think the judges did help that along.

Ashleigh actually was ahead on DI by several points over Kathryn who was called safe first.
What happened?
Kat interviewed Ashleigh who showed beyond a doubt she was ready to put on her costume and dance that very moment. We were told that Ashleigh popped her own shoulder back into place which was gutsy. All of this showed her desire and ambition.
**Kat told the audience to view Ashleigh's entire season when they considered voting.
***Nigel went on and on about voting and voting for your favorite dancer and who you wanted to see be in the finals...yada, yada.
The conclusion is that the people who voted for Ashleigh - and there were a very great many of them because it wasn't close - listened to what Kat and Nigel said and did that.

This very thing was done on DWTS, so I wasn't surprised that it happened. It wasn't quite the finals, but it was close enough, and the contestant that week blew everybody else out of the water in all of the voting polls - not just DI. She too was injured in the rehearsal right before the performance, and it was obvious that the effort had been made to perform and the desire was there. Not only her fans voted for her, but I believe that she must have received the good faith vote that week of other fans as well.

Kathryn is a beautiful dancer, but she does not have the charismatic pull or charming personality of Russell, nor does she have the fluidity and bonelessness of Jacob. I would be surprised if Kathryn wins over the other two.

[kiariclois]

I'm sooo happy that Ashleigh got through the finale; out of all the girls, Ashleigh is my top favorite. It's not just about her dancing that fascinates me, but her determination was really admirable. I really do hope, somehow, we're able to see her and Russell perform the hip hop cause from the footage, Ashleigh was really doing great job, despite the fact that her body felt like jello (she said it in her twitter). Also, I really wished that they would at least show us how Ashleigh did that hip hop routine during rehearsal (the one they showed us at the end of the show). Perhaps one of the judges might wanna see this being performed at the finale live result show. lol.

Ashleigh got the spot fair and square. It's reality TV after all, anything can happen when it comes down to the audience voting. For those who thought that she doesn't belong in the top 6; let see it this way... what if Jakob was the one who got injured and can't perform. Would you be happy if the line to vote for him is closed? Would you agree that the other three are more deserving to be at the finale because they perform on the last week before the final than PERFECT Jakob who wouldn't be able to dance that same night? No... So same goes to Ashleigh. She proved week after week that she's a very good dancer. I think, so far, the only bad performance coming from Ashleigh was the hip hop routine, which I blame more on the choreography.

So yah, people vote for so many reasons. It's not just about that one night, it's about everything... Their ability to adapt to other style of dance, their personality, etc. If the winner should be determine by their ability to dance, then I think there's no need to vote. Just let the judges decide. lol. But what fun would that make? The beauty of reality TV like this... it's the audience who "control" the show.

As for Ryan; he deserves to be at the finale as much as the other guys who made it. For someone who said that he should be out weeks ago... don't think so. People vote, so he stays... There's no "should be" or "should not be" in this matter.

Also, I'm thrilled to see Jakob at the final. He's a fantastic dancer...

I don't really care for the others really... For me, there's only Jakob, Ryan and Ashleigh. They're all great, dance wise... and personality wise...

I'm so mean for saying this.. but I think Russell is cursed. lol *joke* and I think luck always sided with Ashleigh. I really think that she's a genuinely nice person and got rewarded with all this bliss she's been blessed with. She almost didn't make it to the top 20, and miracle happened and there's a spot for her after all, and now this... So yeah... I really think Ashleigh is one lucky lady. lol.

[MiaT2]

I am pleasantly surprised by the resutls. I started out this season really disliking Ashleigh but her performances turned me into a fan. Mollee hasn't been able to shake that little girl image for me because she cannot dance as a woman. Yes the waltz and broadway were done very well but those particular routines required no sensuality. Everytime she's had a sultry dance she comes off as a kid dancing in mommy's clothes. She absolutely cannot bring the sexy. Even the can can felt sterile - it had no titillation at all and wasn't that part of the history of that dance?

Yay for Ryan! The highest placing ballroomer in this show was Pasha and with next week being the finale, we won't actually get to know if Ryan would beat that (ie making to F4) but I'm happy to see someone who's a real solid partner get acknowledged.

I hope next week's performance show doesn't feel too rushed. They have a lot to cram in with 6 dancers dancing with each other in just one hour.

[Harmony2000]

Yay for Ryan! The highest placing ballroomer in this show was Pasha and with next week being the finale, we won't actually get to know if Ryan would beat that (ie making to F4) but I'm happy to see someone who's a real solid partner get acknowledged.

I have no idea how Benji won when he's so often forgotten when people discuss ballroom dancers. He was one and won. By the way, I try to forget him too. Couldn't stand him, still can't but he sure could dance when paired with Heidi or when he choreographed that number ("West Coast Swing" for Pasha & Sara (Rockefella Skank)).....yowza lol probably one of my favorite routines.

I can't remember what place Heidi and Lacey finished in? Anybody? I could have sworn that Heidi made top 4 as well but can't be positive.