SYTYCD Recap: The Top 20 Show Their Stuff
The top 20 dancers for this season's So You Think You Can Dance were paired up and got their first chance to take the stage last night. For the most part, everyone was impressive but the true star of last night's show was judge Mary Murphy and her hot tamale train. We weren't sure when it would first make an appearance, but it has left the station!
The first guest judge to take a seat at the table is Adam Shankman -- who reminds us that Step Up 3D is coming out soon (which I am totally going to see). Nigel and Mary take their seats next to him, and the Mary Murphy Scream Count starts with a 1 for the audience of screaming girls.
The first couple to take the floor are Jeanine and Phillip doing a hip hop number from Tabitha (or Tabither if you're Nigel) and Napoleon.
Verdict:
Us: The choreography is slammin' and you can tell the pair have a lot of chemistry. It was a great way to start things off for the season.
Judges: Adam was left saying, "That was un-freaking real!"
Mary Murphy Scream Count: 2
The first couple to take the floor are Jeanine and Phillip doing a hip hop number from Tabitha (or Tabither if you're Nigel) and Napoleon.
Us: The choreography is slammin' and you can tell the pair have a lot of chemistry. It was a great way to start things off for the season.
Judges: Adam was left saying, "That was un-freaking real!"
Mary Murphy Scream Count: 2
Couple number two is Asuka and Vitonio doing a Broadway routine from Tyce. This was the first time of the evening where the outfits seemed a bit distracting, especially on Vitonio.
Verdict
Us: There was a lack of connection on stage between the two dancers and no passion.
Judges: Mary thought they played it safe and Nigel said there was a lack of personality. Still, he thought, "Your lines are fantastic!"
Couple number three was Karla and Jonathan doing a Cha-Cha number from Tony Meredith to Lady GaGa's "Poker Face." The strobe lights were bad but Jonathan's see-through white top put us over the edge. Calm down there with that outfit, Jonathan! Meanwhile, Karla looked hot! The two were on fire (the shirt especially).
Verdict
Us: Karla was fantastic; totally in it to win it. Jonathan mugged for the camera a bit much for our taste but overall it was pretty good.
Judges: Adam went nuts and Mary confessed, "I like my Cha-Cha rough!" TMI Mary. Love you, mean it. Nigel said, "You two just exploded on that stage!"
Mary Murphy Scream Count: 3
Randi and Evan did a Tyce Diorio jazz routine to Jamie Cullum's "I Only Have Eyes for You." We're pretty bummed that Evan's brother didn't make it to the show but it was nice to see him and their other brother in the audience. The routine overall is pretty sexy but gets less sexy when you see the audience of girls waving their arms from side to side in the darkness.
Verdict
Us: For some reason it's hard to find either one of these dancers sexy. Maybe it will just take time. They were enjoyable enough though.
Judges: Adam said they "...both danced like you were 8 feet tall," while Mary told them, "When we left Vegas, you were at the bottom of the pack for me. But the stars have aligned tonight." Not to be outdone, Nigel told Randi he loves her hair curly.
Mary Murphy Scream Count: 4
Next up were Paris and Tony doing another hip-hop routine from Tabitha and Napoleon. Tony comes in as the least-experienced dancer. To be honest, we didn't think he deserved to make it through to the top 20, but that's why those who can't judge, blog. Once again, their outfits were distracting. If they had been dancing to Michael Jackson's "Beat It," it would've been appropriate, but their routine was set to the Black Eyed Peas "Let the Beat Rock".
Verdict
Us: Good, not great. Not impressive.
Judges: Adam thought "...it was really good but I found the outfits distracting." Hallelujah brother! Mary contemplated, "Will this be memorable? I don't think so."
Caitlin and Jason delivered what may have been our favorite routine of the evening. Their costumes for Nakul Dev Mahajan's Bollywood routine were fantastic. Caitlin did a really impressive handstand which was only upstaged by the real kiss the two shared at the very end of the performance. Jason walked over to Cat Deeley with lipstick smudged all over his lips.
Verdict
Us: Like Billy Ocean's Carribean Queen, it was "Simply awesome".
Judges: Nigel thought they brought it, Adam yelled in excitement and Mary exclaimed, "All I can say is, I'm glad Bollywood came to Hollywood!"
Mary Murphy Scream Count: 5 & 6
Louis Van Amstel choreographed a Foxtrot number for Brandon and Jeanette, which was kind of a slow piece to follow the Bollywood routine. In our opinion, they might be the couple to beat. They both seem like very strong dancers and as long as Brandon has Jeanette by his side, he might be safe from the wrath of Mia Michaels.
Verdict
Us: Nice job, kind of a snoozefest, but that's the Foxtrot.
Judges: Adam thought, "It was lovely". Nigel agreed and said, "Absolutely beautiful. Wonderful routine."
Quote of the night: When asked for Mary's reaction she only said, "I can't give a reaction anymore because of Botox".
Mary Murphy Scream Count: 7
Our second favorite routine of the evening was from choreographer Wade Robson. He put together a jazz routine for Ashley and Kupono, turning them into dancing crash test dummies.
Verdict
Us: Completely unique, great conviction to character. Their routine seemed to flow seamlessly. Also, Kupono is super cute.
Judges: Adam thought, "Your technique is exquisite." Mary was taken on the trip with them and Nigel said, "Dance-wise I was in a different world." Mary actually put the robot dog on the hot tamale train.
The next couple to take the stage was dirty ballerina Melissa and her partner Ade doing a Contemporary routine by Mandy Moore (who was obviously going through some old mix tapes and found Richard Marx's "Right Here Waiting" when she chose her songs). Melissa needs to stop doing the "bite finger to appear sexy" thing because it is more annoying than it is sexy. The routine though was fantastic and Ade is one of the strongest males on the show.
Verdict
Us: Very pretty, executed flawlessly.
Judges: Adam was pretty much crying and thought it was "special".
Mary Murphy Scream Count: 8
The final couple to take the stage was Kayla and Max doing a Samba routine. This happens to be the only routine we disagreed with the judges about.
Us: Completely unique, great conviction to character. Their routine seemed to flow seamlessly. Also, Kupono is super cute.
Judges: Adam thought, "Your technique is exquisite." Mary was taken on the trip with them and Nigel said, "Dance-wise I was in a different world." Mary actually put the robot dog on the hot tamale train.
The next couple to take the stage was dirty ballerina Melissa and her partner Ade doing a Contemporary routine by Mandy Moore (who was obviously going through some old mix tapes and found Richard Marx's "Right Here Waiting" when she chose her songs). Melissa needs to stop doing the "bite finger to appear sexy" thing because it is more annoying than it is sexy. The routine though was fantastic and Ade is one of the strongest males on the show.
Verdict
Us: Very pretty, executed flawlessly.
Judges: Adam was pretty much crying and thought it was "special".
Mary Murphy Scream Count: 8
The final couple to take the stage was Kayla and Max doing a Samba routine. This happens to be the only routine we disagreed with the judges about.
There was something familiar with Louis Van Amstel's routine -- it reminded us a bit too much of one of last season's routines involving Chelsea Hightower. While we can admit that Kayla is a great dancer (and her grandpa makes us cry), she didn't really do it for us last night and Max seemed a little out of sync.
Verdict
Us: Not great, didn't see much chemistry between the two.
Judges: We must've been watching completely different routines because Mary Murphy gave them first class tickets on the hot tamale train. Adam was going nuts and thinks Kayla is the best thing since Jonathan's see-through shirt. Nigel thought it was "sensational".
Mary Murphy Scream Count (end of night total): 9 and one couple on the hot tamale train.
At this point, it's really hard to say who might be up for elimination tonight -- and even worse, who is out of the competition. What do you think? Do you have any favorites for now? Do you have any dancers you can't stand? Let us know in the comments!
Verdict
Us: Not great, didn't see much chemistry between the two.
Judges: We must've been watching completely different routines because Mary Murphy gave them first class tickets on the hot tamale train. Adam was going nuts and thinks Kayla is the best thing since Jonathan's see-through shirt. Nigel thought it was "sensational".
Mary Murphy Scream Count (end of night total): 9 and one couple on the hot tamale train.
At this point, it's really hard to say who might be up for elimination tonight -- and even worse, who is out of the competition. What do you think? Do you have any favorites for now? Do you have any dancers you can't stand? Let us know in the comments!
Comments
We have enjoyed watching sytycd every season. The dancers are fantastic and wonderful to watch. However, Mary Murphy's yelling and screaming has gotten to be too much. When she addresses performers in a normal tone of voice she's easier to hear. Can she tone it down?
Posted by: Jim Talcott | July 8, 2009 10:52 PM