Stay tuned.

In my youth, I was an avid comic collector.  I read (and collected) tons of the stuff.  In fact, I still have my old X-Men comics (including X-Men #1 from 1963) squirreled away.  Times have changed, and I’m an old geezer now.  Every now and then, I’ve picked up an odd issue but have been unimpressed with what passes for comic stories in the 21st century.  Now, DC is once again tempting me; they’re rebooting their entire line of comics including tried and true characters like Superman and Batman.  Additionally, they’re going to be delivering the new comics digitally at the same time as the print versions.  This is significant for me, since I now do all of my reading on my iPad.  As a result, I’m once again dipping my toe into the world of super heroes and shiny costumes.

DC’s first submission was Justice League #1.  It’s interesting that they dropped the “of America” from the name. I guess they don’t want to limit the group’s domain, though they are also resurrecting the old Justice League International as another of their reboots.  Still, it’s been ages since the group limited themselves to what was happening in a single nation.  The story, as far as it went, presented the (new) first meeting of Green Lantern, Batman, and Superman. It was, to say the least, very interesting to see how these three characters were presented.  I especially liked the cockiness of GL played against the suspiciousness of Batman.  The new costumes also have an up to date feel to them that I liked. 

At this point, I’m thinking “So far, so good”.  Next week will see the first full week’s results, including Action #1.  I’ll be able to dig deeper then, to see how welcome the coming changes will be.

I’m still skeptical that this will “take”. DC has tried several different “reboots” over the years, and none of them have worked out well. Ultimately, there was some messiness left over from the past that had to be somehow cleaned up, or the temptation was too great to do some other “event” that just further messed up their universe. I’m going to be looking to see what happens next year when the silly season says it’s time for another comic book “event”.

First, the results:

4th place: Tadd
3rd place: Marko
2nd place: Sasha

The winner: Melanie

4th and 3rd went as I expected. I’d thought that Melanie and Sasha were too close to call, but I was apparently wrong about that. According to Cat, Melanie actually got 46% of the vote, almost half for a single contestant!  I’ll be watching to see if Melanie indeed ends up with a part in the Dirty Dancing remake, as Kenny Ortega implied this week.

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It’s time for me to roll back up into a ball and get some rest until 2012 when AI will be back.

Melanie & Marko (Disco by Doriana Sanchez, danced to I Feel Love (12th Version) by Donna Summer) I wasn’t in love with  this. Unlike their earlier performances, there wasn’t a lot of emotion in Melanie & Marko’s performance, they seemed to just be going through the steps.

Sasha & Mark (Contemporary by Sonya Tayeh, danced to Raise Your Weapon by Deadmaus) This started out slow, but picked up and Sasha’s unique style started coming through.  Still, her performance didn’t have the emotional level that she usually brings, and I missed that.

Tadd & Joshua (Hip Hop by Lil C, danced to Hustle Hard by Ace Hood) I was great to see Joshua (The King) back onstage.  Tadd looked like a little boy next to him and never achieved Joshua’s level of commitment to the choreography. Tadd struggled with the style of the dance, often falling back to his own goofy style instead of the hyper-seriousness that the routine needed.

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At this point, it was clear that this wasn’t going to be the night of great performances that I was hoping for. sigh.
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Melanie & Robert (Contemporary by Stacey Tookey, danced to Sacrifice by Sinead O’Connor) Once again, there was something missing from Melanie’s performance; the emotion of the dance seemed subdued.  Still, her technique was flawless.

Sasha & Marko (Broadway by Spencer Liff, danced to Whatever Lola Wants by Ella Fitzgerald) Marko stole the show on this one, not an easy task when dancing with Sasha. But, Sasha never seemed to rise up to Marko’s level here.  Marko’s characterization through his expressions and style was fantastic to see, it looked right off the Broadway stage.

Sasha & Tadd (Cha Cha by Mark Ballas, danced to Raindrops by Basement Jaxx) This didn’t seem like a Cha Cha at all. For the level that these dancers should have been working at, it was a disaster.

Marko & Lauren (Contemporary by Tessandra Chavez, danced to Shirk by Me’shell Ndegeocello) This was probably Marko’s most emotionally challenging work of the season, and he nailed it while also meeting the challenge of the intense physicality of the choreography. This was what I’d been waiting for, a magnificent performance.

Melanie & Tadd (Jazz by Ray Leeper, danced to Show me What You’re Working With by Sista Monica) This was what I’d come to expect from Melanie; she was on fire!  She grabbed us at the start of the performance and pulled us through the whole thing.  Tadd was secondary, but still showed what he could do, providing his great characterization to the overall performance.

Sasha & Melanie (Contemporary by Stacey Tookey, danced to Heart Asks Pleasure First by Ahn Trio) This was a tremendously emotional piece that both dancers brought their best work into.  The last time they danced together, they brought an aggressive power; this time, it was a wistful grace, appropriate for the ’50s period of the piece.  These two ladies showed everyone why they’re the top of the heap this year.

Marko & Tadd (Gumboot Stepping by Chuck Maldonado, danced to B.O.B. by Outkast) This was not as strong as it should have been. The style is an aggressive one that required more technique than the two dancers brought to it.  All through the performance, both dancers kept falling short.

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Well, it didn’t turn out to be as good as I wanted (or as good as previous finals). I think Kenny Ortega had it right when he said that there was just too much to learn for the evening (four dances apiece, plus their solos). Including the dance with the All Star probably broke the camel’s back for the night.  It was too bad, and I don’t think it changed the outcome at all.  It’s still down to Melanie and Sasha, too close for me to call (though I’ll be rooting for Melanie, sorry Sasha).

For the girls, Caitlynn is leaving.
For the guys, Ricky is leaving.

Caitlynn was a foregone conclusion; Sasha and Melanie are in a different class than her, so there was no way that she was going to make it past third among the girls. Still, I’m looking forward to possibly seeing Caitlynn returning in future seasons as an All Star.

The choice between Ricky and Tadd was less sure. As I’ve said before, Ricky has the technique, but Tadd has the characterization and better non-technique performance skills. Ultimately, it was Tadd’s skills that carried the day.

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Next week, we finally find out What it Was All About and crown a winner. And get to see the triumphant return of two of my favorites as All Stars: Mark Kanemura and Joshua Allen.  As a bonus, Lauren Froderman will be back, along with Robert Roldan.  This is going to be good.

All Star Performances

Melanie & tWitch (Hip Hop by Tabitha and Napoleon, danced to Roman’s Revenge by Nicki Minaj featuring Lil Wayne) Well, there had to be something that Melanie wasn’t great at; this was it.  The acrobatics were great, but the Hip Hop wasn’t.  She just didn’t hit hard enough, and her movement was too pulled in, not expressive enough. Still, the judges (including Lil C) gave her raves.

Sasha & Kent (Contemporary by Tyce DiOrio, danced to Fool of Me by Me’shell Ndegeocello) This was a hugely emotional performance, and Sasha hit all the high notes.  While I wasn’t particularly happy with the choreography, there was no denying that Sasha danced it superbly; she left the judges in tears.

Marko and Janette (Paso Doble by Dmitry Chaplin, danced to Zorongo (traditional) by Antonia Gomez, Eli “La Gambita”, Guillermo Basillisco, and Paco Pena)  I thought that Marko was too stiff. He was trying to express that machismo required for the Paso Doble, but didn’t achieve it. It was okay at best.

Tadd & Ellenore (Contemporary by Sonya Tayeh, danced to The Gulag Orkestar by Beirut) This was one of Sonya’s freaky dances, perfect for Ellenore, but Tadd had issues with it.  He never seemed to really commit to the performance and didn’t show enough emotion.

Ricky & Jamie (Contemporary by Dee Caspary, danced to Inside These Lines by Trent Dabbs) Those sticks confused me; they didn’t seem to serve any real purpose other than to distract the audience.  Once again, there seemed to be a lack of emotion by the contestant, Ricky this time.  This seemed more a collection of dance steps than an actual performance.

Caitlynn & Pasha (Samba by Dmitry Chaplin, danced to Drop it Low (District 7 Remix) by Kat DeLuna) I wanted a bit more hip from Caitlynn in the beginning, but she warmed up to it by the middle of the performance.  Overall, it was a great performance, with Caitlynn’s signature heat well represented. The judges had some comments about her facial expressions, but I didn’t notice it at all. I chalk it up to the required criticism of Caitlynn that’s been going on all season.

Solos

I’m not going to go into depth here, I’d expected them to be just more of the same that we’ve been seeing all along.  However, there were a couple of treats, one surprising:  First, Tadd was his usual best with a level of musicality that most of the other dancers didn’t come close to meeting.  Second was a huge surprise: Melanie did a marvelously choreographed solo that even beat out Tadd. It was so good that the judges were compelled to comment on it.

Contestant Partners

Sasha & Ricky (Waack by Kumari Surai, danced to Schoolin’ Life by Beyonce) This was interesting to watch, sort of the inverse of Contemporary dancing where the emphasis is on hand motion instead of leg oriented leaps and spins.  It was a fun dance, and both contestants handled it well.  There probably could have been an even higher challenge level to the dance, which would have stood the contestants in better position with the judges.

Melanie & Tadd (Broadway by Spencer Liff, danced to Love Story by Shirley Bassey) She’s back!  Melanie redeemed herself with this dance (as if her solo weren’t enough).  This was both an amazing story and dance at the same time. Both dancers brought a level of characterization and performance that should have been on the Broadway stage. It was easily my favorite performance of the night.

Caitlynn & Marko (Jazz by Sonya Tayeh, danced to Heavy in your Arms by Florence + The Machine) This was another explosive dance from Sonya. It was terrific to watch, both dancers were completely committed to the performance. The characterization was so different from what we’d seen either Caitlynn and Marko do that it made an even greater impression. It was right up there with Melanie & Tadd’s performance.

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As I said last week, this was probably Caitlynn’s swan song.  It would be a huge upset for either Sasha or Melanie to go home instead of Caitlynn. As good as Caitlynn is, and as good as she was this week, both Sasha and Melanie are just better dancers.

Regarding the guys, I have absolutely no idea who is going and who is staying, at least between Ricky and Tadd.  Both dancers had similar highs and lows in their performances, so it’ll come down to what the voters want: Ricky has the better classic technique and Tadd has the better characterization.

In the bottom:
Jordan
Caitlynn
Jess
Tadd

As it turned out, Ricky has bigger support than Tadd after all.  I’m not sure why this is going the way it is, the two dancers seem well matched with Ricky excelling in technique and Tadd excelling in style flexibility and character portrayal. I wonder if Lady Gaga has anymore openings.  All other choices were obvious once Sasha, Melanie, and Marko were considered safe.

For the guys, things played out as I expected, and Jess went home. That choice really came down to who the judges want to see competing head to head next week, and they do want to see Ricky and Tadd vie for that last male slot for the final episode.

For the girls, things happened as I’d hoped but not expected and Jordan went home.  This was apparently a tough choice for the judges and they finally decided to just follow the votes.  That made sense, since neither girl was going to make it to the final show (Sasha and Melanie locked that up weeks ago). This was just about who’d dance next week.  While it seemed to me that Nigel at least favored Jordan, I was happy to see that the voters prefer to give Caitlynn another week. I won’t go into this whole thing again, since I’m even annoying myself by repeating Jordan’s shortcomings (which seemed to be missed by the judges until this week).  Instead, let me just say that it would be great to see Caitlynn return in a couple of years as an All Star.

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Next week, it’s all about Caitlynn’s swan song, and the battle between Ricky and Tadd. And, of course, more exquisite performances from our three stars, Sasha, Melanie, and Marko.

Finally, a big shout out to Mark Kanemura, an ex-contestant and one of last season’s All Stars.  He was there dancing with Lady Gaga last night, looking like a million bucks.

All Star Couples:

Sasha & Pasha (Quickstep by Jonathan Roberts, danced to Puttin’ On the Ritz by Terry Snyder) There’s so much to say about this performance. First of all: Sasha and Pasha? Really?  The name based cuteness factor was off the scale. I’ve said this before, the Quickstep is my favorite ballroom dance. When done well, it’s a marvel to watch.  Unfortunately, even on SYTYCD, it’s not often done well.  This was an exception. Both dancers looked marvelous moving across the floor in that distinctive Quickstep style. As is often the case, the straight Quickstep was interspersed with other styles, to provide some interest to the audience and, to be honest, to give some relief to the dancers. Still, Sasha looked marvelous here (much better than her dubious Paso Doble). This was a winning performance.

Caitlynn & Ivan (Hip Hop by Marty Kudelka, danced to let Me Love You by Mario).  A quick note about Ivan: He was from season 2, so this was the first time I’d seen him dance. The man is amazing; he has a professional’s style and presence when dancing that only the best show. But, this is about Caitlynn. I thought that she was a star in this performance.  This was a softer, more “lyrical” performance, that can make the dancers look weak and unprepared. This wasn’t the case with Caitlynn; her performance actually legitimated the style.  The judges had negatives to say, but they seemed to be mainly around the fact that Ivan was a better performer than Caitlynn. It’s hard to argue with that, Ivan was amazing to see.  Still, I’m getting the feeling that Caitlynn’s getting a raw deal from the judges.

Jordan & Ade (Jazz by Tyce DiOrio, danced to Nutbush City Limits by Tina Turner) Wow, this was one athletic number. Tyce really pulled out the stops here.  Once again, Jordan succeeded in dancing the piece well while simultaneously treating her partner as a coat rack. It is amazing that she does such a good job while dismissing her partner so thoroughly. 

Melanie & Neil (Contemporary by Mandy Moore, danced to Total Eclipse of the Heart by Bonnie Tyler) Melanie showed once again that, among this season’s crop, she’s the best at portraying emotion through dance. It was amazing watching her dance. And, just when I thought that I’d seen her best, she kicked it up another notch; she brought that same “single mind” synergy that she’d shown dancing with Marko to her partnership with Neil: they both made the other look even better.

Ricky & Anya (Jive by Jason Gilkison, danced to River Deep Mountain High by Celine Dione) This was a fun dance to watch, and Ricky did a commendable job, keeping his footwork going. The Jive is almost as difficult as the Quickstep (and another of my favorite ballroom styles as a result) and Ricky did a great job with it. I did want more exuberance in his movement, but he did keep up with Anya which is no small feat.  The judges also pointed out that Ricky was dancing too high, and needed to get down into the floor more; I agree, this would have improved his performance a lot.

Jess & Lauren Gottlieb (Hip Hop by Tabitha & Napoleon, danced to Take a Bow by Rihanna) It seemed that Jess’ Broadway sensibilities were in charge of this one. His Hip Hop just didn’t have the right sensibility to it. He seemed to be  hitting hard enough, but somehow it came across as more of a Broadway stage performance than a Hip Hop performance. He especially paled in comparison to his partner, Lauren, who was fantastic. I’d like to see Lauren and tWitch do something sometime.

Tadd & Lauren Froderman (Jazz by Mandy Moore, danced to Another One Bites the Dust by Queen) This was a Michael Jackson inspired routine, and Tadd looked like he was actually channeling Michael during the performance, but doing it better than Michael ever did. Losing his hat was unfortunate, as it distracted from what should have been a great routine for him.

Marko & Allison (Contemporary by Sonya Tayeh, danced to I Know it’s Over by Jeff Buckley) In this case, the choreography was not Marko’s friend.  Too much of the routine gave the spotlight to Allison, who was certainly up to the challenge and gave a superb performance.  Still Marko handled himself well, and in the end, the routine was enough to bring tears to the judges’ eyes.

Contestant Couples:

Caitlynn & Tadd (Foxtrot by Jonathan Roberts, danced to Top Hat, White Tie, and Tails by Ella Fitzgerald) This was an exquisite performance by both contestants (though I especially enjoyed Caitlynn here). The whole thing was marvelous, with the right level of style and grace. the whole thing looked like a dance number out of a 50′s musical (as it should have). As I expected, Nigel picked a bit at Caitlynn.  Nigel seems to have some sort of problem with Caitlynn, due to her perceived youth.

Marko & Ricky (Hip Hop by Tabitha & Napoleon, danced to Bad Boy for Life by Diddy featuring Rob & Mark Curry) This was the first twist of the night, partnering up to of the male contestants.  The ramification of this was pretty clear: it meant that two girls would also be partnered. Ricky really killed it here. His styling looked great, where Marko, for the first time, showed a bit of weakness.  Marko didn’t hit hard enough and didn’t show enough swagger.  Nigel did point out that Ricky is still dancing too high again.

Jordan & Jess (Rumba by Jason Gilkison, danced to Set Fire to the Rain by Adele) Jordan did her usual thing, looking fabulous while not caring one whit about Jess.  Still Jess gave it his all, doing a great job as a partner. Jordan was finally called on the lack of chemistry by the judges, though they did act as if this was the first time it happened. Hey, Nigel, this has been going on all through the season.

Sasha & Melanie (Jazz by Sonya Tayeh, danced to Game On by District 78) When I saw Marko & Tadd dance together, this was what I was hoping would be the outcome: the two best dancers of the season partnered. Well, here we were!  This was one of Sonya’s avant-garde pieces that left me cold, however the judges ate it up.  Sasha, of course, has already shown herself to be a particularly fierce dancer. This was Melanie’s opportunity to show the same. Both dancers met the challenge of the dance, and gave us a suitable ending for the night.

What this all means:

Heh. I forgot this part earlier.

Who’s Safe: Sasha and Melanie (of course), and Marko.

These should be self evident by now.  Marko didn’t have as good a night as Sasha and Melanie, but he was better than the other guys by a wide margin, and he has a very strong following after his stint as Melanie’s “second half”.

Who’s On The Fence: Tadd, Ricky

Tadd had a very good night, and is probably the fourth of the top four, but someone needs to end up in the bottom with the other three. It’ll be one of these guys, probably Ricky.

Who’s At Risk: Caitlynn, Jordan, Jess

Caitlynn and Jordan end up here because they’re the other half of the two girls who are going to be in the final.  It’s a bit of a rough call for Caitlynn (whom I really like), but she’s not going to be higher than third among the girls anyway.  Hopefully, this will be Jordan’s time to leave and we’ll at least get one more opportunity to what makes Caitlynn such a magical dancer.

Jess just can’t help to be in the bottom. Unlike Tadd, who’s sucked up just about every style thrown at him, Jess continues to pull toward his Broadway roots. As Rob Marshall said, he’s going to do fine on Broadway, but he’s really not competing with the other guys. If Ricky ends up joining him in the bottom, there is a chance that Ricky still hasn’t recovered sufficiently from being Ryan’s partner to hang around. Still, it should be Jess’ time to go.

In the bottom:
Mitchell
Clarice
Ricky
Jordan

Ricky was the biggest surprise here.  He rocked his performance this week. I guess he hasn’t built up enough of a following to keep him out of the bottom.  Hopefully, his solo during the results plus his performance next week will change that. I do think he’s in the top two or three guys this season.

I was both happy and surprised that Caitlynn dodged the bullet and Jordan ended up in the bottom.  They both had great performances this week, but Caitlynn’s Argentine Tango must have really resonated. Or, as I’d like to believe, the voters are with me in seeing Jordan’s detachment from her partner while she dances.

In the end, Mitchell and Clarice went home (as expected).

Mitchell has been an uneven dancer since the beginning, having great nights and not so great nights. This week was a particularly bad one for him.  While he was dancing with Caitlynn, he could fall back on supporting her, which was easy for him. Now that he was dancing with an All-Star, there was nowhere to hide.

Clarice has been on the edge for a while.  Among the current crop of contestants, she’s definitely the trailing girl.  That made her leaving a no-brainer.

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Things are going to be tough now.  The girls fall into two groups, with Melanie & Sasha way ahead and Caitlynn & Jordan trailing.  Even then, the difference is so small that any mistakes in performance could be fatal.  The guys are a bit different. I’d say that Marko is the definite front runner, with Ricky & Tadd trailing him, and Jess bringing up the rear.  The three bottom guys have all had voting issues, and it’s difficult to see how Jess could keep up in anything other than Broadway.

Marko & Chelsea (Samba by Jason Gilkison, danced to Cinema Italiano (The Ron Fair Remix) by Kate Hudson) This was hot, hot, hot.  Marko showed that he didn’t need Melanie in order to give a top notch performance. I wanted a bit more hip action from him, but he was otherwise superb.

Sasha’s Solo (danced to Syrup & Honey by Duffy) This solo was full of Sasha’s signature style. It could have used more thought toward musicality, but it showed her uniqueness and talent.

Jordan & Brandon (Contemporary by Dwight Rodin & Desmond Richardson) I was interested to see what kind of chemistry Jordan and Brandon would have, after weeks of seeing little to none between Jordan and Tadd.  In the end, I was foiled by the choreographers.  They have us a routine that built around Jordan not interacting with Brandon.  The conspiracy theorist in my wants to believe that they played to Jordan’s lack of connectedness with her partner, but I’m going to need more evidence for this.  Ultimately, Jordan showed that she is a top notch dancer regardless of how she connects with her partner.

Jess’ Solo (danced to Come By Me by Harry Connick, Jr.) Now, Jess had tons of musicality in his solo.  There were a couple of slow places, but overall, it was a very entertaining solo.

Tadd & Comfort (Hip Hop by Chuck Maldonado, danced to Look At Me Now by Chris Brown featuring Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes) I was looking forward to this, since Tadd’s B Boy sensibilities should play well with Hip Hop and Comfort’s talents. I was disappointed.  I didn’t think that Tadd was hitting hard enough. Nigel made some comments about it being a fast routine, but it really wasn’t (though the music was).  I think Tadd’s B Boying has made him more suited for Contemporary styles than Hip Hop.

Melanie’s Solo (danced to You’re the One That I Want by Angus & Julia Stone) As much as I’m a big fan of Melanie (The Princess), I actually liked the music more than the dance. Like so many other great dancers on the show, Melanie can’t seem to put a decent solo performance together for herself.

Mitchell & Melody (Broadway/Jazz by Tyce DiOrio, danced to Take Off With Us from All That Jazz (soundtrack)) This was not good. Fosse inspired choreography has a certain style to it, and Michell didn’t get it; he wasn’t making those staccato moves that the routine called for. He was also missing those small emphasis points that make Fosse’s style so popular.

Ricky’s Solo (danced to Daylight Breaks by Cassidy Haley) Ricky put some thought into his solo. It could have used more, but he did show some great technique anyway.

Clarice’s Solo (danced to Royal T by Crookers featuring Roison Murphy) Clarice showed a lot of musicality in her solo (which could help her out with votes for the week), however it fell apart toward the end, as if she ran out of ideas on how to interpret the music.

Caitlynn & Pasha (Argentine Tango by Miriam & Leonardo, danced to Maljunta by Orquesta Color Tango) I wanted Caitlynn’s kicks to be sharper, but it was otherwise a beautiful performance.  This time, Caitlynn focused her intensity on Pasha, which made for an extremely romantic dance.

Mitchell’s Solo (danced to This Time by John Legend) Mitchell showed no musicality at all, but did show great technique.

Sasha & tWitch (Hip Hop by Christopher Scott, danced to Misty Blue by Dorothy Moore) This was a fabulous routine, with Sasha finally freed up to give it her all. The combination of Sasha and tWitch was a marvel to see. More than anything before, this performance showed that Sasha could go all the way to win the season.

Jordan’s Solo (danced to Tonight by Lykke Li) I was expecting great things from Jordan, and she didn’t disappoint. I’ve given her a hard time about her paired performances, but she can really shine in her solos.

Jess & Kathryn (Contemporary by Stacey Tookey, danced to The Lonely by Christina Perri) Jess did a good job here. I’m usually mesmerized by Kathryn’s dancing (and it was once again fabulous here), but Jess’ performance kept pulling me back to him. He really have this performance his all; it was his best to date. Like some other dancers, I think Jess is being helped by getting a higher caliber of partner now.

Tadd’s Solo (danced to Everything I Can’t Have by Robin Thicke) This solo was amazing. There was more musicality in this B Boy’s solo than in most of the other, more formally trained dancers’, solos.  This is why Tadd is so popular, he understands ultimately what makes a performance good.

Melanie & Pasha (Viennese Waltz by Jason Gilkison, danced to Everybody Hurts by Tina Arena) I was very curious to see how Melanie would do with a partner other than Marko. Well, it was magical.  It wasn’t the “Two Bodies, One Mind” we’ve seen before; now Melanie shined in her own right. Of course, a lot of this was due to Pasha’s superb partnering, but this was Melanie up front, surpassing all other dancers.

Caitlynn’s Solo (danced to Cosmic Love by Florence & The Machine) This was a so so performance, not what I wanted to see from a real firebrand like Caitlynn. I need more, more, more from her.

Ricky & Allison (Jazz by Tyce DiOrio, danced to Precious Things by Tori Amos) This was Ricky’s best work to date. His technique merged with the stark emotion of the piece to create both a memorable routine and character.  Ricky’s now ready to fly as a performer.

Marko’s Solo (danced to More than Antonella (stripped version) by Gavin DeGraw) This had strong athleticism from Marko, but not much musicality.

Clarice & Robert (Bollywood by Nakul dev Mahajan, danced to Aila Re Aila by Khatta Meetha (soundtrack) This was a strong routine and very fast.  That meant that there was less emphasis on technique, but the Bollywood essence still shined through in Clarice’s performance. It was a lot of fun.

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Overall, this was a great week, with the All Stars allowing dancers that have been shackled to reach their full potential and raising up other dancers to greater heights.  Selecting the bottom four will be harder still.

Safe:
Guys: Marko, Ricky
Girls: Sasha, Melanie

These four either had amazing routines, have solid fans, or both.  Ricky, with a weak fan base, is the most likely to slip from this group, but I don’t think that will happen; his performance with Allison was too powerful for that.

On the fence:
Guys: Jess, Tadd
Girls: Jordan, Caitlynn

None of these four had bad routines, but they all suffer from a weak or picky fan base. I’d say that Jess and Caitlynn are the most at risk, though I think that Caitlynn deserves better.

At risk:
Guys: Mitchell
Girls: Clarice

 Mitchell had a singularly bad performance, and Clarice has weak support with an unusual dance style for the week (Bollywood).