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Final Five Recap on ‘Dancing with the Stars’
Its getting down to the wire on ABC’s hit show ‘Dancing with the Stars’ and with the competition so close one bad night could spell disaster for each competitor’s quest for the disco ball trophy. And so Monday night was step up or get ready to step out as the five once again had a ballroom and Latin dance to prove their skills.
Ian Ziering took the floor first with Cheryl Burke and their foxtrot stalled. Ziering took a beating from Len Goodman and Bruno Tonioli who called the dance “skippy” and replaced the fox with another four legged animal saying the dance “was like a jumping goat.” After the judges had their way with the 90210 alum they handed out a score of 22 out of 30 and Ian had a lot of work ahead to stay in the game.
Joey Fatone and Kym Johnson opted for the straight-up waltz and right away there was going to be a problem. Fatone was forced to make a decision concerning what judge to please because they differed on what made Joey a solid competitor. Goodman doesn’t like the over-the-top Joey while Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba feel that is what has defined Fatone. So the couple kept it simple to the delight of Goodman and the scorn of the other two judges. Despite the obvious disappointment from Bruno and Carrie Ann the par picked up a 26 and looked safe.
There is little doubt about who should be sent home after watching Billy Ray Cyrus and Karina Smirnoff take to the floor with a foxtrot. In the same manner that it wasn’t Sanjaya’s fault people kept voting for him on ‘American Idol’ there is really nothing Billy Ray can do about his tenure on ‘Dancing.’ Truth be told he has grown on just about every viewer who tunes in and despite his missed timing and awkward manner he brings a calming effect to the competition, the one guy that really is just there to have fun. Unfortunately that doesn’t translate into points and after hearing Tonioli tell him “this was crap” Billy Ray was presented with an 18.
As the only woman left in the competition Laila Ali has had the added pressure of knocking out the men and holding the floor for the ladies. For a world champion boxer that’s all in a day’s work; once again she lit the judges up with a 27 in her waltz with Maksim Chmerkovskiy. While she did hear some comments about her posture, she was complimented on the emotion she brings to each dance.
The last to dance in the first round was once again the best as Apolo Anton Ohno and Julianne Hough danced the tango to near perfection. The two were called “fantastic” and their dance “electric” and “dynamic.” At least that’s what Tonioli and Inaba relayed. Goodman took a different stance saying “it lacked passion.” Even with Goodman’s criticism the pair topped the first round with a 28.
The second round proved to be a little kinder to Ziering and Burke who managed to total a 25 on their rumba. As was the case most of the night, the judges couldn’t seem to come to a unified opinion about the dance with Carrie Ann and Len critical about the flow while Bruno complimented the pair for their technique. The two dances gave Ian a total of 47.
With a mambo Joey and Kym left little to chance and solidified their spot in the top four with a score of 29. Fatone was praised for “giving people a good time” and for stepping it up. Carrie Ann told Joey “you are bringing it.” The dance couple should be able to crack the top three and that’s when the competition should really get interesting. Joey totaled a 55 between the two dances.
Likened to a wild beast, Billy Ray pretty much punched his ticket back home with a mambo that the judges wouldn’t even bother addressing. Rather than criticize the dance the judges just bid their good-byes and congratulated Billy Ray on his entertaining ways and healthy outlook to the competition. Billy Ray was given a 20 for the dance for a total of 38 for the two dances.
Laila Ali took to the floor with a jive that the judges felt carried too much fluff. Living up to the expectations the judges have placed upon her, Ali is in a tough situation where any little slip is seen as a major disappointment in the eyes of Carrie Ann, Len and Bruno. Ali picked up a 26 for a two dance total of 53.
If the competition ended last night chances are Apolo Anton would more than likely walk away with the ‘Dancing’ crown. His final dance, a paso doble, earned him a perfect 30 and gave Carrie Ann “chills.” The two dance combo for Apolo and Julianne equaled a 58 to land them atop the leaderboard.
With the night Apolo had and the consistency shown by Laila and Joey the bottom two should be Ian and Billy Ray. As is the case on most of the reality competitions it will come down to who has the stronger fan base and it wouldn’t be that big of a shocker to see Billy Ray dancing one more week.
Read who was voted off at: https://news.finditt.com/NewsStory.aspx?storyid=16077&ret=AccountDtl.aspx
