Summer is almost over which means I should have finished catching up with LAST season's stuff, but I haven't. Currently doing a marathon of Supernatural, half of it with my hand in front of my face half hiding my eyes. The other half with my eyes ogling the Winchester Brothers. Love the show but I still get freaked out watching it. Which is another reason I'm still behind on Fringe as well, and I haven't even started on Damages yet. Still, the new fall season is upon us and if I ever get it together, I may actually post about it (Glee and Modern Family are good, the rest? Who knows). Speaking of Glee, FOX (and now Global in Canada) will repeat the pilot (with deleted scenes) this Wednesday, Sept. 2nd at 9pm so if you haven't yet seen it, WATCH IT. Or I will track you down and perform the whole show myself, song and dance included. And that might get ugly.
Anyways, here's what the other TV bloggers were talking about this week:
With his new series, What Would Brian Boitano Make?, Brian Boitano proves that while the famed figure skater may not be a master chef, he is cute as a button. (TiFaux)
With September fast approaching, so to are 75 new and returning TV shows. And here to ensure you don't miss a moment of your favorite (or soon-to-be favorite) show is theTVaddict.com with our printable and downloadable season premiere calendar (The TV Addict)
Hot blood suckers playing football? See, we told you The Vampire Diaries was nothing like Twilight! (TV Fanatic)
Now that Project Runway is on Lifetime, Buzz wants to know which reality show on Bravo is your favorite. (BuzzSugar)
This week, Sandie interviewed 90210's newcomer Trevor Donovan. (Daemon's TV)
Since he is not a fan of conspiracy theories, Scooter is glad to see The National Geographic Channel try to dispel some of the common ones on the upcoming 9/11: Science and Conspiracy. (Scooter McGavin's 9th Green)
Afro Jazz. Capoeira. Disco that doesn't suck. This is the So You Think You Can Dance Canada Top 20, eh! and Vance rates the season 2 batch. (Tapeworthy)
This week, Jace offered an advance review of USA's fantastic and stylish upcoming drama series White Collar, starring Tim DeKay and Matthew Bomer. (Televisionary)
So You Think You Can Dance Canada - Top 20 Results Night - The Cut from 20 to 18 - Ep. 207 Judges: Jean-Marc Généreux, Tré Armstrong, Luther Brown, Blake McGrath
Well, the good news is, that at least the Canadian results show is only a half hour. And they trim the fat and get right to the all the main points. There's no time for dilly dallying.
The bad news?
Maddening results.
Yet again. Last year we lost Romina D'Ugo right away and I'm STILL annoyed by that. (Romina, you ROCK girl! And I enjoyed your 1 line in Degrassi Goes Hollywood. Were you at the "Red Carpet" premiere in Toronto tonight? I only saw Caroline and Tamina. Which sadly, made me more excited than anything else at the event (not that I didn't enjoy DGH but I've seen it before and other stuff I can't explain right now)). Anyways, MICHAEL JACKSON TRIBUTE. HUH? How were we allowed to do it here and the American version couldn't? (Or did we work around it all by using Jackson 5 songs?
Top 20 Group Dance Style: Michael Jackson Tribute Choreographed by: Gil Duldulao Song: "I Want You Back/ABC" - Jackson 5
While the individual moves probably weren't the most difficult looking dance moves out there, it certainly looked unified and by design, easily digestible. When there are 20 dancers on that small little stage, it can often look confusing and muddled, but with the 20 split into 4 groups each with distinctive costumes, and the choreo is organized with these 4 units of 5, it made for quite a clean Top 20 dance which was nice to see.
My Predictions From the Top 20 Performances: Bottom Three Couples: Kim and Emanuel, Tara-Jean and Everett, Corynne and Anthony (though Tatiana and Austin or Melanie B. and Taylor could be in danger too) Should Go Home: Kim and Emanuel Going Home: Emanuel and... um... Corynne?
My thinking is they'll keep Kim for now because she's a female white hip-hopper AND she's Vincent's girlfriend. Whereas they always seem to want to drop Corynne (based on auditions) and yet never do.
Here's the actual results:
Wow. I was TOTALLY WRONG. TOTALLY WRONG.
Bottom Three couples were:
Tatiana and Austin Melanie B. and Taylor Amy and Vincent
WHAAAAAAAAAAAAT?
First of all, 2 of my favorite guys are up there, and the ones I thought individually performed the best this week of all the guys. Austin and Vincent. And Taylor, while not perfect in his tango, was far from the bottom 3. Plus he's kinda hot in a so-hot-that-he-should-be-arrogant-but-instead-seems-to-be-the-nicest-guy-ever-f#$k-why-don't-I-have-a-boyfriend-like-that way.
And let me put this bluntly, where the heck is Emanuel in that bottom 6?
It's hard to do solo's as a latin ballroom dancer, though Heidi probably has since set the standard, and the fringe certainly does help. Melanie shakes it and shakes it well, in a good solo performance that is solid if unoriginal.
Amy Gardner Song: "Possession" - Sarah McLachlan Grade: B+
I have something against Amy for some reason and I really don't know why. She's perfectly lovely and considering her misstep in this week's performance, she still managed to stay on track for the rest of the dance, but it's still probably the judges pimping her to Top 4 ALREADY that annoys me. I know, not really her fault but still. Luckily, her solo, while standard contemporary stuff, is pretty good, and proves that she does have some skills.
Tatiana Parker Song: "Starstruck" - Lady Gaga ft. Space Cowboy & Flo Rida Grade: A-
I loved her when I saw her Top 20 performance live, but then realized all the flaws and posing she did when I re-watched it on TV. Still, maybe it's because I liked her from the auditions, but I thought her solo was great and showed she's got sass and style.
Taylor James Song: (Anybody catch the song?) Grade: B+
If they love Amy's solo, then they've got to love this one. Slightly above standard contemporary solo that's just solid with a soulful touch. Amazing coming from a vampire (see my True Blood comment from yesterday! ha!)
A great ballroom solo that adds a bit of spice and cheekiness, and one that actually tells a storyline, albeit a bit literally to the music, but one nonetheless. It's a bit like Dmitry and Evan's solo's combined, while looking like Pasha and... Josh Groban? WHO DOES VINCENT REMIND ME OF??? It's bugging me like crazy.
A bundle of tricks but OH WHAT A BUNDLE OF TRICKS THAT WAS! Not since Neil (Oh NEIL!) has the tumbling been so good and continuous, yet there seemed to be a bit more flow than what some of the recent tricksters did (see anybody from SYTYCD S4 and S5). Nice and strong and is definitely added to my radar now.
in the end, the judges were NOT unanimous with their decision for the girls and in the end, Tatiana Parker is kicked out. I'm not totally surprised from her weaker performance in the Capoeira but I would have chosen Amy, but remember, she's Top 4. They can't kick her out NOW just after they said that, can they?
There's no way they're kicking out Vincent, nor Austin after a strong showing in both his Capoeira and his solo, so by default, poor Taylor James gets the boot. "I Will Remember You". Perfectly sung.
Alas, so long Tatiana and Taylor. Two T's get eliminated this week (leaving Tara-Jean left, so not a total cut of all the T's in the competition). It shouldn't have been these two but alas, Canada kept Emanuel safe. And the judges kept Amy safe. Shame.
Now this leaves Mel B. paired with Austin. Could be a good mix. (I wonder if that ever gets considered in the vote off?)
So You Think You Can Dance Canada - Top 20 Performance Night - Ep. 206 Judges: Jean-Marc Généreux, Tré Armstrong, Luther Brown, Blake McGrath
Top 20!
So I was lucky enough to snag a ticket (via my sister's friend's boyfriend who won the online randomness ticketgrab. Yes, kind of convoluted) and they didn't kick me out! But I've had to keep it all a secret until now.
Anyways, I've added a Live grade for this week since I sometimes find that dances look different live on stage than they do on TV. Sometimes for better, sometimes for worse. Plus usually with the excitement of seeing it live, along with my sole viewing angle (sometimes blocked by the cameras), I usually tend to get excited more over the dances that I can slowly pick apart more at home. But did you see my head? I was close to the judges table. My head is huge. Hats do not work for me.
So before we get to the Top 20! They trot out last years winner Nico! As well as pointing out S1'ers Tamina, Brea, Caroline, Natalie, Romina, and Miles who will all appear in the MTV (and CTV) TV movie Turn The Beat Around which Tre also choreographed. SYTYCD S4 finalist Courntey Galiano was also in the house, in Toronto to film Camp Rock 2 (because the first one was just begging for a sequel... groan. Well, at least Courtney is in it!).
Anyways, onto the show!
Tara-Jean Popowich & Everett Smith Style: Jive Choreographed by: Melissa Williams Song: "Lust for Life" - Iggy Pop Grade - Live: B+ Grade - ON TV: B
Okay, so Everett's feet were a little heavy and it didn't pop for a jive as much as it should have, but Tara-Jean is quite the spunky girl isn't she? She could have popped a bit more too (Blake wanted a bit more energy too). Still, I kind of adore the energetic Everett and overall it was still kind of fun, if lacking some Jive skills.
Is it me or does Amy look like every "that" blond? Malin Akerman. Kherington Payne. Even Leah Miller herself a bit. Well, either way, this impostor is not fully convincing me yet, so it doesn't help that she missed the lift.
Well thank goodness for Vincent who was just awesome and totally in his element. Okay, Amy at least recovered well and she was fine the rest of the time, but I still can't shake the poor-woman's Malin Akerman just yet. I know, it's probably not fair to her since she didn't have much audition screen time to show her skills, but the judge pimping that she's "TOP 4" is a bit irritating, especially when she screwed up. Don't forget, all that pimping probably helped Adam Lambert lose (a-ha! go KRIS!).
Here's the video of Amy and Vincent's Samba:
Melanie Mah & Cody Bonnell Style: Contemporary Choreographed by: Stacey Tookey (with help from Nico Archambault) Song: "Taking Chances" - Celine Dion Grade - Live: B+ Grade - ON TV: B+
On TV, the moments where Cody needs to connect with Melanie looks more hesitant, where he seems to float effortlessly on his own. It was almost the opposite live on stage. But heck, I'm being nitpicky here because this cutie patewtie couple is clearly going to be one of the frontrunners so I'm just giving some tough love to help them improve since they're going to be here for a long long time.
Okay okay, I loved it. It looked great on stage and it looked great on TV. Yah, Cody could probably use a bit more confidence (you can even see that he jumped the gun before the music started) but heck, he's a Hip-Hopper on his first week and doing quite well with contemporary. Let the Ivan comparisons continue.
Melanie. LOVE. She's doing a great job representin'! (Both my race and my hometown!) Woot Woot!
Here's the video of Melanie and Cody's Contemporary:
Kim Gingras & Emanuel Sandhu Style: Hip-Hop Choreographed by: Sho-Tyme Song: "Here Comes the Hammer" - MC Hammer Grade - Live: C Grade - ON TV: C
HAMMERTIME! I never thought I'd actually reminisce about early 90's "hip-hop/rap" but man, does Hammer bring back memories. Who would have thought I'd ever miss it?!
Meanwhile, Kim is probably a lovely girl. I mean, she has good taste in boyfriends (Vincent from last season, who was SOOOO awesome) but for some reason I just don't really like her yet (maybe because she's Vincent's girlfriend. Bitch!). But hey, she knows her hip-hop and she hit that hammer HARD.
And how about Olympic figure skater Emanuel? Well... at least he TRIED. I give him points for putting all his efforts and energy into trying to get down and dirty but it was kind of a mess. Both live and on TV. It was just a mess. Those oversized suits didn't help. And to think the 90's styles are slowly coming back. Lord help us all.
Here's the video of Kim and Emanuel's Hip-Hop:
Corynne Barron & Anthony Grafton Style: Viennese Waltz Choreographed by: Pierre Allaire Song: "The Time of My Life" - David Cook Grade - Live: B+ Grade - ON TV: B
With all the twirling, it's easily seducing on stage and it was quite lovely. On TV, it's easier to nitpick some of the minor fumbles and it could have used more confidence, but for first week, it was expected since they probably needed more time to gel together.
Anthony's footwork was acceptable and could have floated more, but his has the right stance and attitude that it's hard not to love him still. Corynne is lovely and her major fault is still that she's such a shoo-in to do well that it's almost annoying (even though part of that is coming from me! ha!).
Here's the video of Corynne and Anthony's Viennese Waltz:
Natalie Lyons & Danny Lawn Style: Hip-Hop Choreographed by: Sho-Tyme Song: "Get Buck in Here" - JF Felli Fel (feat. Akon, P. Diddy, Ludacris & Lil' Jon) Grade - Live: B+ Grade - ON TV: B+
My sister's friend's boyfriend hated it when we were there live but I thought it was great, and I still do, now that I've seen it on TV (then again, he hates Natalie, I don't really have any opinion of her at this point).
Plus, maybe it's cause I love seeing the whitest-people-ever doing Hip-Hop. Then again, Natalie is a krumper so she was basically in her element. (Though that's the second female Hip-Hopper who got their own style... hmm...) Meanwhile, I was hugely impressed by Danny. Come on, he's as white as you can get, AND he's contemporary! You gotta give him props! He hit that pretty hard! It wasn't the hardest it could have been but it was pretty darn good!
Here's the video of Natalie and Danny's Hip-Hop:
Jayme Rae Dailey & Daniel Dory Style: Afro Jazz Choreographed by: Sean Cheesman Song: "The Path" - Ralph MacDonald Grade - Live: A Grade - ON TV: A-
Is Afro Jazz just designed to look good no matter what? Kinda like Bollywood? Or is Jayme Rae and Daniel just awesome? Since Jayme Rae was pretty awesome in auditions, I'll assume it's a bit of both, and it has definitely put Daniel on my radar!
Okay, so there's a moment before Jayme Rae does handstand flip over Daniel where she seems too hesitant (which I only noticed on TV), but the rest of the dance just seemed designed to showcase Jayme Rae and Daniel. Lovely and yah, where did this Daniel come from!? He's adorable!
Also, has anybody ever walked on that back wall on SYTYCD? Nicely done!
Here's the video of Jayme Rae and Daniel's Afro Jazz:
Jenna Lynn Higgins & Nicolas Bégin Style: Disco Choreographed by: Melissa Williams Song: "Waking Up in Vegas" - Katy Perry Grade - Live: B+ Grade - ON TV: B+
Okay, that BIG smile on Nicolas would be total cheese if it weren't so cute and funny and coming from Nicolas, the French B-Boy. Plus it kinda works for Disco set to Katy Perry and a Vegas sparkly piece, with glitter confetti and all! Seriously, I can't stop grinning thinking about Nicolas' HUGE grinning smile. He seems SOOOOOO happy just to be on stage there. It's hilarious and infectious.
It's amazing how different these Canadian disco's seem compared to Doriana's usual drab. So much more fun! I still can't get last year's Lara and Miles' Disco routine "Shake It" out of my head. This one wasn't as great but it was way better than most of the US versions. Plus, the sparkles was such a gimmick but it sure worked! Shiny!
Jenna Lynn was great. I still detect a hint of arrogance there but she's mostly covering it well, and to be paired with Nicolas, who truly seems overjoyed just to be there, it should balance off. About the only thing that throws it off is that Nicolas is kinda short isn't he? He's quite a little guy, no? And that skin tight outfit only accentuated his small body which threw the balance of the couple off a bit, but man, he sure danced the heck out of it to make up for his size!
Here's the video of Jenna Lynn and Nicolas' Disco:
Tatiana Parker & Austin Di Iulio Style: Capoeira Choreographed by: Paul Becker Song: "Segura O Coco" - Axé Capoeira Grade - Live: A- Grade - ON TV: B+
I'm not sure how Capoeira that was, since it basically slipped in a lot of Salsa and other stuff, but hey, at least it's something different (ahem, I'm talking to you Season 5 of SYTYCD).
I loved Tatiana when I saw it live, but now rewatching it on TV, I'm actually a little disappointed. She's quite hesitant a lot and does a lot of posturing. Meanwhile, Austin is even more impressive on TV.
The problem capoiera has, as the judges also point out, is that it doesn't really allow for a full connection between the dancers, since they're really fighting each other, pretending to kick and smack each other without actually kicking or smacking each other (which might work better when it's two guys). So for that, Austin's tricks and skills lend him more to this dance than Tatiana (who was one of my early faves based on the auditions) who really relies on applying the "entertainment" portion to this dance (as Tre points out).
Here's the video of Tatiana and Austin's Capoeira:
Melanie Buttarazzi & Taylor James Style: Tango Choreographed by: Melanie LaPatin & Tony Meredith Song: "Diferente" - Gotan Project Grade - Live: B Grade - ON TV: B
Shouldn't these two be on Make Me A Supermodel or something? Or since Taylor got knocked in the teeth and started bleeding in his mouth, maybe True Blood?
It was shaky at times and Taylor seemed a bit hesitant, but maybe it's because he just got smacked in the face which drew blood. Who would have thought it would be Tango that was dangerous on a night there was Capoeira? There were some nice moments. Sometimes they looked like they were modeling, especially Taylor, but again, maybe he was in a daze from being smacked in the mouth.
Despite the flaws, I still enjoyed it though and I'm really liking Melanie B. and poor Taylor. Just his apologetic reaction to the blood made me love him even more. He's SOOOOO Canadian!
Here's the video of Melanie and Taylor's Tango:
- - - - - - - - - - - - - The Final Roundup:
Best of the Night: Jayme Rae and Daniel's Afro Jazz Second Best of the Night: Melanie and Cody's Contemporary Third Best of the Night: Natalie and Danny's Hip-Hop
Best Male of the Night: Vincent Desjardins who saves his dance with his flair. Second Best Male of the Night: Austin Di Iulio
Best Female of the Night: Melanie Mah Second Best Female of the Night: Jayme Rae Dailey
Worst of the Night - Couple: Kim and Emanuel's Hip-Hop Worst of the Night - Single: Emanuel
At this point, I kinda like all the boys except Emanuel. While Melanie and Jayme Rae are my faves for the girls. Jenna Lyn, Amy, Kim are good but there's just something about their personalities that irks me, but that's just based on the little we know about them.
Predictions: Bottom Three Couples: Kim and Emanuel, Tara-Jean and Everett, Corynne and Anthony (though Tatiana and Austin or Melanie B. and Taylor could be in danger too) Should Go Home: Kim and Emanuel Going Home: Emanuel and... um... Corynne?
My thinking is they'll keep Kim for now because she's a female white hip-hopper AND she's Vincent's girlfriend. Whereas they always seem to want to drop Corynne (based on auditions) and yet never do.
Results on Wednesday at 7:30pm with the Michael Jackson tribute by choreographer Gil Duldulao.
As much as I love the cable stuff, I'm glad fall seasons main network TV shows are starting up again, cause at least we'll be on the same timeline up here in Canada as it is in the states. I'm tired of being 4 weeks behind on everything. At this point, I'm behind several weeks on Burn Notice, Weeds, Nurse Jackie, 10 Things I Hate About You, The Secret Life of the American Teenager, Leverage, Royal Pains, Top Chef Masters and I haven't even started Project Runway, Top Chef or Mad Men nor have I even checked out Make It Or Break It or Drop Dead Diva.
It will be nice when we can ALL watch Glee TOGETHER! (Starting NEXT WEEK ALREADY!!!). At least we have So You Think You Can Dance Canada over you. And if the second season is anywhere close to being as great as the first season, then it'll be great.
Meanwhile, here's what the other TV bloggers were talking about this week:
This week, Jace had an exclusive interview with True Blood's Anna Camp, in which they discuss Sarah Newlin, Camp's original audition (for the role of Sookie, no less!), the love triangle between Sarah, Jason, and Steve, Sarah's darker side, Camp's theatre work (opposite Daniel Radcliffe in Equus), whether the Newlins are gone for good, Mad Men, and lots more.. (Televisionary)
It may be summer vacation, but TiFaux was back in high school this week with three separate posts about the new DeGrassi: The Next Generation. For one, Marisa provided a "Where Are They Now?" for some of the more notable DeGrassi alumni. (TiFaux)
TV Fanatic doesn't care if FlashForward is a rip-off of Lost. Each preview looks better than the one before. [TV Fanatic]
Buzz is thrilled to see some new pics from the upcoming season of How I Met Your Mother! (BuzzSugar)
This week, Sandie took at first look at Wil Wheaton guest starring in Leverage's new episode "The Two Live Crew." (Daemon's TV)
GMMR has been sucked into summer reality shows in a big way this week. Big Brother has been crazy, America's Best Dance Crew has been hot, and now we get new episodes of Project Runway - a blessing or a curse? (Give Me My Remote)
Who knew Veronica Mars and Ned the Piemaker were an item? Well, that is only in the When in Rome trailer which also features Gob Bluth. Despite being a romantic comedy, color Scooter excited. (Scooter McGavin's 9th Green)
It's not TV related but Vance loved the new production of A Streetcar Named Desire at the Donmar Warehouse in London starring Rachel Weisz. (Tapeworthy)
The Good Wife (Season 2) CBS/Global 10pm ****1/2 (Low: 4)
Mondays
Tuesdays
Wednesdays
Thursdays
Fridays
Saturdays
Tapeworthy Shows On Hiatus
Grade system
***** - 5 Stars TAPEWORTHY AND WILL watch it LIVE for fear the recording will mess up. Do not attempt to call or try to make plans during this time.
**** - 4 Stars Tapeworthy and I will TRY to watch it LIVE
*** - 3 Stars Tapeworthy, will watch it live if I'm around but if not, will catch it later in the week.
** - 2 Stars Might tape it to watch later as long as I have space and no conflicting shows that have higher priority.
* - 1 Star Won't tape it but if I need something to watch while I fold my laundry (and I'm done all my tapes), I will watch it (ie. Reba).
0 - 0 Stars Will NOT turn on the TV for fear of coming across this show. (ie. According to Jim).
Grades only reflect current new airings. Does not necessarily apply to previous seasons. Grades are subject to change at any moment. Apologies to TV Gal for half borrowing her system.
Summer is almost over which means I should have finished catching up with LAST season's stuff, but I haven't. Currently doing a marathon of Supernatural, half of it with my hand in front of my face half hiding my eyes. The other half with my eyes ogling the Winchester Brothers. Love the show but I still get freaked out watching it. Which is another reason I'm still behind on Fringe as well, and I haven't even started on Damages yet. Still, the new fall season is upon us and if I ever get it together, I may actually post about it (Glee and Modern Family are good, the rest? Who knows). Speaking of Glee, FOX (and now Global in Canada) will repeat the pilot (with deleted scenes) this Wednesday, Sept. 2nd at 9pm so if you haven't yet seen it, WATCH IT. Or I will track you down and perform the whole show myself, song and dance included. And that might get ugly. 
