SYTYCD

View Date: 10/27/09

The first episode of the season, which provided us with an introduction to the new dancers in their own style, will be reported on at a later date once I see the entire thing. Tonight is the first competition episode. Due to the baseball playoffs, no results show will be seen this week. Instead, the judges eliminated two dancers tonight. Another sad bit of news was that Billy Bell, who was one of my favorite dancers from the auditions, had to drop out of the competition due to illness. He was replaced with Brandon Dumlao. Noelle also injured her knee this week and would not be able to dance, being replaced by her choreographer for this week's performance.

We were graced by our permanent table of judges tonight in Nigel, Mary, and Adam. The first pairing was Channing and Phillip performing a Jason Gilkison jive number. I thought this was a cute number, and Phillip's experience in tap gave him the right performance quality. I agree with Mary that it was not bad, but it left me wanting to see what else was to come.

Next up was Ashleigh and Jakob, who danced a Tyce DiOrio Broadway number. The steps were technically performed very well. Jakob was almost too perfect in his moves, particularly in his leaps and extensions. I actually enjoyed Ashleigh's performance, and thought she brought the right amount of sexiness to Tyce's routine.

Ariana and Peter were up next, performing a Tabitha and Napoleon hip hop routine. The routine started off really slow, but that was by no means the dancers' fault. It just didn't WOW me. They seemed rather uncomfortable, and they didn't really mesh well. They seemed really out of step at points, and their levels of movement were very different. What I mean is, he seemed to do a much more subtle hip hop, while she was hitting harder but more sloppily. He seemed to capture more of what the choreography seemed to mean, but it just wasn't very good all around.

The next couple was Noelle and Russell dancing a Foxtrot by Tony and Melanie. I really love Russell as he has amazed people every step along the way. Because Noelle cannot dance tonight due to a knee injury, Russell danced with Melanie, his choreographer. Seeing him on that stage, you would never know he was a krumper. I love the Foxtrot, and he look like he was made to dance it. This was the quality of dance that I was waiting for. The judges had some issues with the footwork, but they did commend his lines, extensions, and performance.

Bianca and Victor were up next, with a Travis Wall contemporary piece. Victor is a contemporary dancer, while Bianca is a tapper. I am sooooo glad they brought Travis back as a choreographer this season. There is a definite piece of him in everything he designs. I thought it was danced beautifully, and could really see the story that was intended come out through the dance. I also agree with Nigel that the pair was the most connected of all the couples we have seen so far tonight.

Karen and Kevin danced a Tony and Melanie Cha Cha. Karen is a Latin ballroom dancer, while Kevin is a hip hopper. I think it is hilarious that they danced to the Glee version of Push It, as in performed by the cast of Glee. I thought he tried really hard, but this was totally her dance. She looked totally at ease with this dance. He was gorgeous, but it was really hard to pull my eyes away from Karen. Karen was the first of the year to be put on Mary's Hot Tamale Train.

Ellenore and Ryan danced a contemporary jazz routine choreographed by Sonya. Sonya claimed that she had never been so inspired until the day she met this couple. If I didn't know better, I would never believe that Ryan is a ballroom dancer. He reminds me of Ade from last season because he is so powerful. It was a really good routine and seems like a really good pairing.

Pauline was to be dancing with Billy, but will now be partnered with Brandon. They danced a smooth waltz choreographed by Jason Gilkison. I usually not a huge fan of the smooth waltz, but the dancing itself was lovely. I looked like it could have come out of a romantic movie. Also, these two had some major chemistry between them. And considering he joined the show a day and a half ago, the performance was amazing.

Kathryn and Legacy were up next, with a Dave Scott hip hop routine. I totally expected Legacy to rock this performance, but he did even better than I thought he would. Kathryn, for being a contemporary dancer, was wonderful. Loved the story and thought that it worked really well with the music. Great hitting from both of the dancers throughout the routine, and they really brought out the humor in the piece. I also agree with Adam that they had great chemistry, and they can learn a lot from each other.

Mollee and Nathan were the last couple to perform, and they did so with a Doria Sanchez disco routine. There were lots of great tricks, but I could have used more from her. She did well, but she didn't seem to have the right groove throughout. Very showy, just like disco is supposed to be. He was a great partner, mostly because he was a great base for the tricks. The routine came across as effortless. I couldn't quite put my finger on what I didn't latch on to, but something just struck me as wrong.

The judges then had to nominate 4 dancers to be at risk tonight, when they would be judged on everything they knew of them since meeting them. The dancers selected were Ariana, Brandon, Pauline, and Russell. The announcement of Russell got huge boos and gasps from us at home. He was the only one I was really surprised about from that grouping. These four performed their solos, of which I enjoyed those of Pauline and Russell the best due to the energy involved. The other two dancers performed very well, but of the four, I would prefer to see Ariana and Brandon go home.

From the girls, Ariana was eliminated from the show, mainly due to a lack of charisma and love in her performances. Next up, the judges eliminated Brandon due mainly to an unfortunate sequence of events that got him into the top 20. Because of his circumstances, Nigel will be talking to the powers that be to see if he can come back next season. So next week, there will be a new coupling with Pauline and Peter.

10 words or less: Too close for Russell. Hope to see Brandon next season.