<p>Mary is my favorite judge. Nigel is great because he always puts the performance in a greater context, but isn’t as constructive as mary tends to be.</p>
<p>I wish that they just had three judges (Nigel, Mary, and a guest judge). Four is just too many, especially when there isn’t much constructive criticism. I find myself fast-forwarding through the judges’ comments, which I never did previous seasons.</p>
<p>SPOILER</p>
<p>Once again, they won’t split up a couple. I am ready for them to mix it up a bit already…</p>
<p>I was glad to see Nigel bust Jordan on her excessive use of developpes. </p>
<p>I’m getting less and less impressed with Ryan. She’s really dramatic on stage, and flinging all that blond hair around is certainly eye-catching. But her technique isn’t in the same league with most of the remaining girls. I’m an afficianado of a beautiful ballet hand, and Ryan looks like she’s holding tennis balls when she dances. Has the girl ever taken a ballet lesson?</p>
<p>Yeah, I agree with Jordan and her repetitiveness in her solos. It’s pretty awesome, but we have seen that already…</p>
<p>I was shocked that Sasha and her partner were not in the bottom three couples…</p>
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<p>They had the worst dance of the night…not necessarily the choreography, but their performance of it. They should have been the ones going home. Do you think Sasha has a big fan base because she and her sister were featured so much in the audition shows?</p>
<p>Yeah, I do think that Sasha has a huge fan base. Actually, I really love her dancing (not this weeks piece, though), but not her partner so much. My D, the dancer, pointed out that he really messed up in the guy’s piece. If you watch the section where they are supposed to be dancing really tightly together, he is behind the beat the entire time (he is stage left in the group, i think). I was thinking they’d get in the bottom 3 couples and he would go…</p>
<p>Oh, well…</p>
<p>I don’t like Sasha’s partner either. I hate to call any of the dancers “bad” because they’re great. But some are not good at all out of their element.</p>
<p>^^^ I think THEY were surprised that they weren’t in the bottom three.</p>
<p>I thought Chris was the weakest male dancer left in the competition and it really showed his lack of versatility with his latest Samba performance. Ashley had the misfortune of being his partner. I thought that, weeks ago, Chris should have gone home before Wadi. </p>
<p>Comparing Chris and Alexander (Sasha’s partner), I personally think Alexander is the more talented and versatile dancer.</p>
<p>I am just not enjoying the show this year. Something feels off, different from previous years. Anyone feeling this?
Are they going for ratings? If feels more glitzy and commercial- all the praise from the judges, the costumes, the choreography, the likability and similarity of all the dancers.
It used to feel more arty, more funky, more edgy, more about developing dancers across and into styles than polishing gems…
I am losing interest…
(Even though I still feel that the dancers are AMAZING!!!)</p>
<p>I totally agree, performersmom. I’m not losing interest, but not enjoying it as much as prior years. If all the the critiques from all of the judges but one or two for one or two dances are going to be glowing, why have the critiques at all? I think for the judges to be worth their pay, they should have at least one bit of constructive criticism for each dancer.</p>
<p>^For me, I liked the first few seasons the best. The judges were ALL “experts” without the guest appearances. So, in that regard, I agree with others and don’t think the guest judges add much to the show. I think having just 3 judges who all know their stuff is the perfect combination. Never thought Lil C was the right choice for a 3rd judge compared to the likes of Tyce D. or Adam Shankman, or possibly Mia Michaels. </p>
<p>The judge’s lack of differentiation is sounding more and more like this season of American Idol without Simon…</p>
<p>I would *love *it (and I’m sure the dancers would, too) if they had guest judges who actually hire dancers. That’s why I liked Adam Shankman-he actually was in charge of projects (like the Academy Awards) for which he hired dancers. Get folks who hire for awards shows, movies, Broadway, music videos, touring ensembles, etc. The dancers want to make a career of it. Why not get critiqued by someone who makes hiring decisons all the time?</p>
<p>They would have to tread carefully, because I bet a lot of hiring decisions are based on who of the good dancers at the audition has the body type, is the ethnic group, etc, that they are looking for for the particular gig. Would it be terrible if a judge told Jess, “look, I only hire male dancers for the ensemble who are over 5’8”…so to be able to work, you need to concentrate on this type of job and that type of show?" or to tell another, “I love you. But your leaps would not be high enough to join my company?”</p>
<p>I am loving the show this season but agree it’s a bit overwhelming when all the dancers are just so darned great. I wish they had not sent those that offered some real variety home so early (the tap guy is my biggest gripe!!).</p>
<p>I am one of the few and proud who really miss Mia Michaels as a judge. Yes she could be harsh and speak before thinking how what she was saying would sound, but she definitely knew her stuff and DID offer the dancers constructive critique.</p>
<p>I know that the studio audience doesn’t like criticsm. But if I was a dancer who wanted to make a career of it, I’d be up there thinking, “unless I’m so perfect that you are ready to hire me for your professional company right now, tell me some way in which I can improve.” And maybe they do, just not on the air.</p>
<p>I agree with the comment that something seems “off” this year. I am enjoying the dancing, but I don’t feel like I have connected with any of the dancers like I have in the past. That doesn’t mean I don’t think that some of them are amazing; I just am not really “rooting” for anyone in particular.</p>
<p>I did NOT like Mia Michaels as a judge, but I miss seeing her choreography. I wonder if she will be doing anything for the show this season.</p>
<p>As far as the critiques go–the guest judges need to be eliminated! They don’t seem to contribute anything constructive. I think constructive criticism IS important, and I wish the regular judges would give it on a more consistent basis. I don’t want them to be mean, just helpful, so that the dancers can improve.</p>
<p>What I do NOT like, however, is when the criticism is given to the dancers and it is really for the choreographers (that was like hip hop 101, I couldn’t connect with the routine, etc.). That’s just not fair.</p>
<p>This is my first year to watch the show. I am curious why they pair the dancers permanently. Has this ever been explained? It seems unfair to me. I think they should rotate partners weekly.</p>
<p>This permanent pairing is new this year . I wish they would mix it up !! Someone finally told Jordan to stop with all that develope -it’s too 1 dimensional ! Nigel finally gave some good critiques last nite .</p>
<p>I think they mix it up until they’re down to 5 couples, then they mix it up. </p>
<p>The cycle before last, I remember that Jakob was paired with Ashleigh and basically carried her through the early rounds because he was so awesome. </p>
<p>I just looked up that cycle, because I thought that the audience didn’t vote from the beginning. It turns out that that was only for that fall cycle, because they couldn’t fit in two weeks of results shows due to the world series.</p>