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Dancing with the Stars 6, Grand Finale: And the Winner Is…by Jill Jones -- 05/21/2008
Dear diary, Tonight, another season of Dancing with the Stars comes to an end. While I’m happy to have a break from Samantha’s horrible interviewing skills, I’m also sad that one of my favorite seasons of the show is ending. In just two short, filler-filled hours, we’ll know who the new champion is. It’s a momentous event and one I’d like to record and reflect on fondly. 
9:00 PM Tom and Samantha open the show by recapping last night’s program. Of course, I already did this, so I momentarily tune out. 9:05 PM Samantha talks to the remaining couples backstage. Kristi mentions the friendships she has made; Cristián notes the journey he’s been on; Jason promises to keep on dancing… for the right price. 9:06 PM Tom reviews the current standings:
9:07 PM Usher sings “In this Club.” In true Usher-fashion, he works his magic and has even the most uptight of people in the audience tapping their toes. 9:13 PM Celebrities from the past five seasons tell us what they think of the remaining three stars. Vivica A. Fox says Jason knows how to shake that thing. Wayne Newton says that Cheryl & Cristián can win the entire competition. Leeza Gibbons is impressed with Kristi’s consistency. 9:15 PM Tom and Samantha reveal the two couples dancing this evening for their final scores from the judges. It is Edyta & Jason and Kristi & Mark. That means Cheryl & Cristián have been eliminated. Cheryl, in her dominatrix get-up, and Cristián look sad to be finished dancing at this point and it’s understandable. Cristián thanks Cheryl for working with him. He also says in an interview that he’ll be Cheryl’s friend forever. Back at the live show, Cheryl begins to cry. 9:20 PM Cheryl & Cristián, who have been eliminated at this point, dance their paso doble routine again. My boyfriend Tony says they should have danced before learning their fate; he’s not into it at this point. Yoko yawns. 9:26 PM The producers show us clips of all of the stars throughout the season. Next, all of the previously eliminated couples dance. Really? I’m trying not to become angry, diary, but this is testing me. And it only reminds me of how much I like Penn. Here are the highlights:
9:40 PM Clips of weeks three and four are shown. What happened to performance? 9:41 PM Oh, they’re back. Here are some more highlights.
9:49 PM That didn’t last long. It’s now time to look back on the junior ballroom dancers and determine a winner. Samantha quickly tells us that the junior champions are Brittany & Brandon. Awww, they’re great, but I will always have a special place in my heart for Cara & Jaryd. Several members of The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders give a smaller version of the disco ball trophy to the champions. Brandon is thrilled since he said on the show he’d love to dance with the cheerleaders. Tom says Brandon grew up a bit. Thank goodness it was up and not out. 9:52 PM We see more clips of the season. 9:53 PM 
Priscilla and My Louis dance. They’re told they will be interviewed later. Run! Run before Samantha can get a hold of you! 9:55 PM Jason and Cristián talk about their bromance. Thanks for that term, Will and Boogie. 9:56 PM Marlee & Fabian perform. I’m still blown away be her abilities. I also hope that Fabian returns to the show next season. He’s a doll. 10:03 PM Shannon & Derek return to the dance floor. Like Monica, Shannon appears to be more at ease. Samantha asks Shannon about her relationship with Derek. Shannon ignores her and thanks the judges for something. 10:06 PM More clips from the season are shown. 10:09 PM Karina & Mario dance. I miss Mario. I also told reader Margy that I think he would have done a wonderful job with the freestyle dance. I think he could handle almost anything Karina choreographed for him. 10:11 PM Samantha bothers Drew Lachey, Kelly Monaco, and Helio Castroneves. Helio plugs his upcoming race. Drew rips on the trophy. Ha! 10:16 PM Marissa & Tony perform for us. MY Tony and Yoko leave the room. They can’t take any more filler. 10:19 PM The judges talk about the remaining stars and what their strengths are. Jason is called an entertainer. Kristi’s mental and physical strength are mentioned. It’s all good, baby; nothing negative is said. 10:22 PM Usher returns and sings a jazzed up version of “Yeah.” Diary, I have to admit that I once ate a jazzed up piece of cheese. Turns out it was just mold. I’m kind of digging this arrangement. The singing and dancing comes together nicely, and is quite entertaining. It even draws MY Tony back into the room. Yoko is done for the night though.
10:31 PM As “Gonna Fly Now” plays, the final two couples walk out. Tom tells us that Kristi & Mark are first to perform. Remember, only the judges will score these dances. They perform their jive again to “Rip It Up.” As always, the couple does a great job. Kristi is so relaxed during the dance and obviously has fun. It’s nice to see her go out on a high note. Len tells Kristi she is the most consistent dancer on the show… ever. He also worried she was going to lose her knickers. Bruno calls the dance another great achievement. Carrie Ann thanks Kristi for representing women everywhere. 10:36 PM Samantha talks to Kristi and Kristi tears up. Yeah, that happens to most people who have to encounter Samantha face-to-face. The judges all give the dance a goober. At the end of the finals, Kristi & Mark have 90 points out of 90. That’s incredible, much like the sweet potato chips I was eating last night during the show. 10:45 PM Edyta & Jason give their final performance. They dance the quickstep to “The Dirty Boogie.” The facial expressions that Jason gives are cute and add to the feel of the dance. It’s a charming performance that ends once again with Jason doing a handstand over Edyta and landing centimeters away from her face. Bruno tells the couple this was its best performance. Carrie Ann says there is a showdown tonight. Len calls Jason the people’s champion. 10:48 PM Jason calls Edyta a spark plug. Vroom, vroom. They continue their chitchat while the judges tally their scores. Of course, all of the judges give the dance a goober. Edyta & Jason have 81 points. 10:49 PM Tom talks to some of the stars in the audience. We finally hear from Priscilla, but Tom cuts her off. Diary, this makes me angry. It’s so impolite to interrupt people. Mario gives props to everyone and Shannon cries. Marlee wipes away her tears.
10:56 PM It’s finally time to reveal the champion. After almost two hours we learn the new champs are Kristi & Mark. Hooray for them and congratulations! Kristi & Mark thank everyone for their support. Edyta & Jason look sad, but they are sweet as they congratulate the winners. 10:59 PM Tom hands over the disco ball trophy. Cheesy confetti falls from the ceiling. The winners get a boost literally from the other participants. 11:00 PM Justice is served. As the show closes, Samantha is cut off. 11:01 PM It’s been a great season, diary. Even though the show drove me crazy from time to time, it’s been a pleasure watching and recapping it for my readers. I look forward to another season and hope that everyone has a wonderful summer. See you in the fall! Jill is an east coast mama who loves Michael Kors, Bea Arthur, and Maksim Chmerkovskiy. If she were in a room with the three of them, she might explode. She can be reached at jillcjones@zoominternet.net to discuss these individuals and other topics. Be sure to sign up for our e-mail update so you can stay informed about new articles on the site! And take a look at the rest of the site. You can find out about some other popular shows at our Survivor: China and our Dancing with the Stars page; and don't miss The Reality TV Hall of Shame. You can even buy reality show stuff at our Reality TV Store! For more news about this show, be sure to check out SirLinksALot: Dancing with the Stars! |