Dancing with the Stars, Episode 3: Jive Talkin’

Previously on Dancing with the Stars, the female celebrities did the rumba while the men performed the quickstep. Critiques were given, scores were tallied, and Trista Sutter, who was paired with professional dancer Louis van Amstel, was the first star eliminated from the competition.

Before we jump into tonight’s performances, I want to share some information that I learned during the past week. In my preview article, I said that the individual who wins the competition would only receive a trophy for his or her victory; however, according to an interview with Kelly Monaco at www.tvguide.com, “everyone got a lump sum of money up front” so technically, all of our stars get some type of compensation for their participation.

Now that that is out of the way and my dog is by my side to help me mellow, let’s get started! Our co-hosts Tom Bergeron and Lisa Canning explain that tonight, the dancers will be performing either the tango or the jive. Tom says, “Let the sequined showdown commence!” Our celebrities are introduced and unlike during the previous weeks’ openings, their professional dance partners are also introduced. Their exclusion from the introductions was really bothering me, so I’m happy with this change.

Tom states that the judges are looking for particular actions and emotions in the tango and jive. First, the tango, which was originally a dance performed between a showgirl and a cowboy, must be passionate. It must also include slow and deliberate walks, and sharp head snaps. Next, the jive is energetic and fast paced. It involves leg flicks with pointed toes and fast turns.

Our first couple of the evening is Edyta Sliwinska and Evander Holyfield. In order to prepare for tonight’s performance, the duo visits a jive club. During the course of the evening, one of Evander’s fans asks him for a dance, and being the gentleman that he is, he obliges. He says that last week was a setback, but tonight will be a comeback. For their performance, they will be doing the jive to “Reet Petite.”

I give Evander credit for giving ballroom dancing a shot; however, it seems like a lot of his moves look the same from week to week and dance to dance. Also, his performance this evening isn’t smooth or controlled. He does appear to have fun though and the dance is certainly energetic.

The judges are ready with their critiques. Our first judge Len Goodman says that the jive needs to be crisp like a pickled onion, but Evander’s performance was lumpy instead. It is hard to hear what he says at this point because the audience is booing, but I believe he states that Evander needs to go because he isn’t a dancer. Ouch! Carrie Ann Inaba is next with her evaluation. She says that Evander is too heavy on his feet. Bruno Tonioli finishes by saying that Evander is a cool guy, but his moves weren’t sharp. The judges really don’t have a chance to say much because Tom is moving them along quickly tonight. After moving backstage with Lisa, Evander receives his scores. Carrie gives him a five, while Len and Bruno each give him a four. His total is 13 points out of 30. When asked what he thinks of the judges’ critiques, Evander simply says that he respects their opinions.

The next couple to trip the light fantastic is Rachel Hunter and Jonathan Roberts. After coming in next to last the previous week, Rachel says that she is worried she isn’t getting many votes from the viewers; however, the real issue seems to be with her leading. Jonathan tries many different techniques to break her of this habit. Will she be able to overcome this problem and wow not only the judges, but the viewers at home as well?

We’ll find out as Rachel and Jonathan do the tango to “Toxic.” Their routine opens with Rachel doing a split while Jonathan moves her down a set of steps. Her flexibility and agility amaze me. Their routine is very passionate and Rachel seems to be doing what is required of the dance.

Len critiques the dance by saying that Rachel’s performance was passionate and aggressive, and that the choreography was also beautiful. Carrie states that she loves Rachel’s lines, but that she lost it for a second during the routine. Bruno says that the dance was sexy and agrees that Rachel has great lines. This translates into an eight from Carrie and a nine from both Len and Bruno. Rachel’s total is 26 points out of 30. Backstage, Lisa encourages everyone to vote as Rachel begs for the viewers’ votes.

Kelly Monaco and Alec Mazo are next with their routine. Kelly states that she was prepared for elimination the previous week; since she wasn’t, she feels a lot of pressure not to let people down now. Alec says that it is hard to get ready for the competition in only one week.

Tonight, they will be doing the jive to “Footloose.” During the routine, Kelly and Alec stand side by side as they do some leg flicks. Alec is moving his hands and arms, while Kelly doesn’t seem to know what to do with hers. This makes her moves look too intentional. When they are dancing together as opposed to side by side, however, her moves are smoother. Despite a few missteps, the couple does well. What do the judges think?

Bruno likes that she takes their advice and uses it to improve her dancing. Len feels that the jive suits her and that it was a great routine. Carrie says that Kelly is a firecracker and that this has been her best week so far. On a more negative note, she doesn’t think that Kelly feels the music. The judges are now ready with their scores; Carrie, Len, and Bruno give Kelly a six, seven, and eight respectively. She has a total of 21 points. Lisa asks Kelly what her reaction is to her scores and Kelly says, “We got out of the teens!”

Next are Charlotte Jorgensen and John O’Hurley. John says that the celebrity to watch out for is Joey; he may make a big move at any time. Charlotte threatens John when he makes a mistake, but he is understanding and knows why she is the way she is.

The couple will be performing the tango to “Dance with Me.” Throughout the routine, John’s expressions add to the performance. Also, the couple seems to tell a story with their moves. Their steps are slow and deliberate, but John’s head snaps could be a bit sharper. Overall, it is another entertaining performance by Charlotte and John.

Before receiving the judges’ evaluations, Tom asks John if it is true that he lost weight. John says that yes, he has lost 13 pounds. Charlotte says that if he loses 20 pounds, he’ll dance in a red Speedo. Yikes! Pet the dog and think happy thoughts, Jill.

Carrie is ready with her critique. She says that last week she declared Charlotte and John to be the couple to beat, and she still feels the same way this week. Bruno says that it wasn’t as good a performance as last week and that at times, John went from Rudolph Valentino to Ricky Ricardo. Len says that John was like a panther stalking his prey. He also says that John’s performance wasn’t as good as it was last week, but it was still great. With that, the judges give John his scores. Carrie awards him a nine, Len gives him an eight, and Bruno gives him a seven. His overall score is 24.

Ashly DelGrosso and Joey McIntyre are the last couple to dance this evening. Joey wants to perform tonight, but Ashly isn’t sure how to do that. While she is a more technical person, he is more playful; their goal is to mesh those two characteristics together and come up with a performance that takes it to the next level.

They will be doing the jive to “I’m Still Standing.” The routine is certainly energetic and it does incorporate more performing; however, at one point, Joey does a move with his arms and has a look on his face that reminds me of Carlton from The Fresh Prince of Bel Air! If any of you watched this show, you know what I mean. In any case, there is a lot going on during the routine and the performance is very entertaining.

Bruno begins the critiques by saying that Joey rocks. Len states that there was a great blend of different elements in the routine, but it was a little loose at times. Carrie says that Joey’s performance was great, but the competition is getting serious; he was a little sloppy at points, so he needs to be mindful of these things. Ashly and Joey move backstage with Lisa to receive his scores. Carrie and Len both give him a seven while Bruno gives him an eight for a total of 22 points out of 30. He says that he is a little surprised by who gave him which scores, but he is still happy with his performance and the results.

I’ve tried being calm all evening, but there is something happening that is going to send me over the edge. Tom continuously asks people questions when they are out of breath. It takes them a while to respond, so he rushes them to the point that they don’t have a chance to answer. This is getting to be quite annoying. My poor dog is going to be hairless by the end of this series.

The overall current scores have been calculated and are as follows:

Rachel and Jonathan – 26 – 5

Charlotte and John – 24 – 4

Ashly and Joey – 22 – 3

Kelly and Alec – 21 – 2

Edyta and Evander – 13 – 1

The last number provided above is the ranking points that each couple receives. While information regarding this has been posted on the show’s web site (www.abc.go.com/primetime/dancing/index.html) for the past week or so, this is the first week that it has actually been discussed on the show. Basically, ranking points will be assigned to each couple as determined by their position on the leader board. For example, when there are only three couples left in the competition, the highest number of ranking points will be three.

It is now time to add the viewers’ scores from last week with the judges’ scores from this week, and determine which celebrity will be eliminated from the competition. In no particular order, the following couples will return next week:

Charlotte and John

Kelly and Alec

Rachel and Jonathan

This means that the couples with the lowest overall scores are Ashly & Joey and Edyta & Evander. With that, the next couple to be eliminated is… Edyta and Evander. Tom tells Evander that it has been a pleasure watching him each week. When asked if he will continue dancing, Evander says he isn’t sure. He genuinely seems upset by his elimination! The couple takes to the floor and dances one last time to “Too Much, Too Little, Too Late.” That is harsh! No matter what you think of Evander’s dancing, he certainly was a class act during the competition. He also brought something unique and special to it.

By the time you read this recap, it will be too late to vote via the telephone; however, you can still vote online, so make sure you support your favorites. Also, it’s important to vote because there are a lot of people watching Dancing with the Stars and casting their votes as well. In fact, the show had 15.1 million viewers last week, which was a gain of 12% over the premiere episode.

Next week, the couples will be performing two dances apiece. This should be tiring and a lot of fun! As always, my wonder-dog and I will be back to recap the program. Until then, keep on dancing.

Jill is an east coast mama who loves sharks, zombie movies, and reality television. She welcomes your comments about these and other subjects, and can be reached at jilljones@verizon.net.

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