Re: Strictly Come Dancing 2016/ 2017

by **Lesallee** Sun Oct 09, 2016 10:44 am

Now I've watched Danny and Oti, (best first) magnificent. Especially considering it''s only the third week. Just proves, give Oti a contender, she'll do the rest!

by **DeadManDancing** Sun Oct 09, 2016 12:26 pm

Just finished watching. Generally, it's amazing what these pros were able to make of the themes, especially since some of them have been used so often before. No one disappointed, some stood out- again. And: this was the Len I have liked for so long! Analytic, but never harsh. Constructive and detailed in his critics, yet empathic towards everyone. Some of the pros including Oti added little details or steps to their choreography that only an absolute expert would even recognize, and he spotted them all.
I had sort of a deja vú twice. I looked at Claudia and thought of Laurie for obvious reasons. I looked at Danny and was reminded of James. I'm happy beyond belief that both my major crushes, Sharna and Oti, got such great partners this fall. That Paso was final-worthy. Oti looks so sweet, shy, and innocent. Then she takes the stage and turns into a fury. To keep up with her energy takes some doing, but Danny was brilliant.
I also couldn't help but notice the chemistry between Greg and Natalie. Whatever happens there, it's been a long time since I've seen her so genuinely emotional. It even showed in her choreography!
Everyone would deserve to be mentioned, but I'll just pick two more. First, Ore and Joanne. I have seen Gene Kelly himself in the movie and, of course, Derek Hough filling his shoes. So I expected nothing and was blown away by the confidence and performance level of this man. The judges- Bruno in particular- rightfully pointed out how he was able to add his own flavour to it and praised Joanne's choreography.
Second, Louise and Kevin, who finished the night with Flashdance. I have to be honest. I had almost forgotten how sexy legwarmers look on a woman who knows how to wear them. And Louise can move those beautiful legs! Like Ore, she mastered getting into an iconic character (Jennifer Beales in this case). Craig saw room for improvement on the ChaCha, but still I could watch it again and again. You know me. Nothing wrong with a little eye-candy here and there. drooling

by **DeadManDancing** Mon Oct 10, 2016 2:21 pm

Bye, bye, Tameka. You were fun to watch, but being partnered with a new pro didn't help your case. I was shocked though that, despite having a rather high score, Laura and Giovanni were bottom two and had to be saved by the judges' verdict. Reminds me a bit of the situation Jamelia and Tristan were facing last year.

by **Lesallee** Tue Oct 11, 2016 3:14 pm

Will Young who was dancing with Karen has left the show for, in his words, personal reasons. As expected, lots of chatter now about just what those reasons are,

by **Lesallee** Sat Oct 15, 2016 4:20 pm

Wow, just saw on FB that Ore and Joanne scored 39 on their week 4 dance. I will have to watch that one as soon as I can. Apparently Len gave them a ten.

by **Lesallee** Sat Oct 15, 2016 5:13 pm

I've watched it now and all I can say, is THAT WAS A JIVE! Can Ore dance? Oh yes he can! Wonderful choreography by Joanne,

by **DeadManDancing** Sun Oct 16, 2016 7:37 am

This perfectly illustrates the difference between SCD and DWTS. Ore and Joanne were middle of the pack from the start and no one had them on the radar. Now they emerge as new leaders. Last week's performance was already a hint how much he improved. Last night they got 9/10/10/10=39. Lowest scorer on the other hand was Ed with 2/5/5/4=16. Scoring like this would have caused an earthquake in L A.

However, Danny and Oti in second place this time with 36.
I'll be back after watching.

by **DeadManDancing** Sun Oct 16, 2016 10:25 am

Lesallee wrote:I've watched it now and all I can say, is THAT WAS A JIVE! Can Ore dance? Oh yes he can! Wonderful choreography by Joanne,

I thought it, Len said it: step aside, Jay. That Jive was even better than Jay's last year. This season promises to become a battle for the trophy (as of now, between Ore and Danny) on the highest level I can think of. Oti's Quickstep routine was so inventive yet classy, and Danny did it with such ease and fun- I did not expect anyone would top that until Ore hit the floor. Louise also stood out again with a delicious Foxtrot, and Daisy was all woman in a tasty and emotional Rumba. Also want to mention that Lesley's Charleston would have killed most of the younger females, and she's 71!
Really, whom would you want to be sent home out of this cast? Even Ed keeps giving it everything he's got, and the audience went nuts again for him. He seems to get lots of sympathy votes; sth many other politicians might envy him for. I have an odd feeling the bottom two tonight may again not be the lowest scorers. I tend to name Anastacia and Naga for the dance-off.

by **DeadManDancing** Sun Oct 16, 2016 10:27 am

by **Lesallee** Sun Oct 16, 2016 10:35 am

Brother, a little musing here - imagine this present cast of DWTS were performing on Strictly. How do you think they would be scored? I think James and Sharna would be well ahead of Laurie and Val who would be in second place. After that I don't know how I would rank them from a Strictly viewpoint. Likely Ryan and Amber would be down in the basement bringing up some of those 2, 4 and 5 paddles.

I think my favourite thing about Strictly is being able to just watch the couples dance, the whole dance, no extraneous people cluttering up the scene. Watching DWTS with its full on Hollywood spectacle production can often be distracting.

by **DeadManDancing** Sun Oct 16, 2016 12:52 pm

Believe it or not, I had exactly the same thoughts. Just returned from a walk with my puggies, on which I reflected the show I've watched this afternoon. Have to be honest: James and Sharna would not be obvious leaders on Strictly based on what they delivered so far. But: the Strictly competition level would undoubtetly make them push even harder; which I would also expect from Laurie and Val. The rest of the DWTS pros could certainly keep up with their UK colleagues. The cast- even though they are not bad at all- would have a hard time indeed. Just imagine Marilu and Maureen (but not only them) dancing full routines of 2 minutes and more from the first week on...

by **Lesallee** Sun Oct 16, 2016 4:18 pm

Yes, you are right, bro. James and Sharna would need to step it up a notch or two. As would Laurie and Val. Otherwise they would just be middle of the pack. But Sharna and Val are accomplished choreographers and they have good partners so I think ultimately they could be competitive.

All the current crop of DWTS pros would do fine on Strictly, I mean, Artem and Gleb already have. But the bar is set much lower on DWTS so it is easier to excell.

by **DeadManDancing** Sat Oct 22, 2016 4:01 pm

What a coincidence- all my favorites had Rumba this week. I'd love to know what Len, Craig, and Darcey would have to say about James and Sharna.

by **DeadManDancing** Sun Oct 23, 2016 2:19 pm

by **Lesallee** Mon Oct 24, 2016 11:40 am

I was away this past weekend so I have to catch up on the dances over the next while. I know who went home and I will, as usual, start with Danny and Oti.

by **DeadManDancing** Sat Oct 29, 2016 4:44 pm

The leaderboard looks quite different after tonight's show. Laura and Claudia new leaders, Louise close behind, but both Ore and Danny took a dip. Anything seems possible this season.

by **Lesallee** Sat Oct 29, 2016 9:54 pm

I've only watched a couple of dances at this point. Danny and Oti are one of them. Their Foxtrot wasn't their best dance and I felt like it was Danny that was a little below par.

by **Lesallee** Sat Oct 29, 2016 10:00 pm

Just watched Laura and Giovanni. A classic tango, Len must have loved it.

by **DeadManDancing** Sun Oct 30, 2016 11:51 am

That's the way the cookie crumbles... Just when everyone else- even Ed- upped their game, both Danny and Ore messed up. While Ore just missed a lift and, according to Craig, could have had more Charleston swivel, Danny completely lost his footing around the middle of the routine. He still got encouraging comments for his posture, and Oti was praised for the concept and her choreography. It's tragic that Craig thought without the mistakes it would have been a ten. Anyway, I don't think they are in danger. Laura was unable to perform last week due to an injury (which would have forced her to withdraw on DWTS, but the UK rules are different). However, she returned to deservedly take the top spot tied with Claudia. Giovanni certainly learned his lesson from Len last season! As happy as I am with Louise (whom I find very appealing) in second place, I'm bummed about the 26 points for Greg and Natalie. Especially Craig's four was unnecessarily harsh, and it broke my heart to see Nat burst into tears. Bruno gave them an eight; which says a lot. They may easily find themselves in the dance-off against Anastacia and Brendan tonight, as Ed's huge fan base might save him once again.
Overall, it was another great show with so much attention for the details of the theme. It will be interesting to compare it to the DWTS Halloween night tomorrow.

by **Lesallee** Sun Oct 30, 2016 12:11 pm

Well we know DWTS Halloween show will be a huge glitzy production. I'm not complaining, I like to watch both concepts - Strictly with its attention to the dance basics and DWTS Hollywood production.

You know, bro, as I watched the various SCD performances I thought of our previous conversation about how current DWTS couples would fare on this season of Strictly. I really believe James and Sharna would top the leaderboard on SCD. Sharna is at the top of her game and she has her dream partner who is starting to look like a pro dancer himself. That Jitterbug was a piece of musical theatre and was amazing, that overworked word, but in this case accurate. The rest of this seasons DWTS would probably stack up middle of the pack on Strictly with Ryan and Marilu already gone.

by **DeadManDancing** Sun Oct 30, 2016 1:19 pm

I could also imagine Babyface and Vanilla would not have left so soon there with the opportunity of a redemption dance and being saved by the judges. James and Sharna would be facing even tougher competition (Claudia, Louise, Laura, Danny, and Ore- which makes not less than five potential winners), but that would probably just fuel them even more.

by **DeadManDancing** Sun Oct 30, 2016 3:45 pm

Update: Greg and Natalie have been called safe. So has Ed! Despite good dancing and scores, poor Daisy is in the bottom two again. The rest is yet to come.

ETA: Danny and Oti are safe; Daisy and Aljaz were saved by the judges; Anastacia and Brendan had to leave.

by **Lesallee** Thu Nov 03, 2016 12:52 pm

I see Aliona has announced a pending blessed event. Cute pic of Aliona and hubby Vincent.

by **DeadManDancing** Fri Nov 04, 2016 2:03 pm

Good to hear that things are going as planned for her, because this was the reason she left the show.

Strictly Come Dancing 2016/ 2017 - Page 2 CwTw6Q6WEAApLWo.jpg-large

Strictly Come Dancing 2016/ 2017 - Page 2 CwTw6Q6WEAApLWo.jpg-large

by **DeadManDancing** Sat Nov 05, 2016 4:46 pm

All couples have danced tonight, and Wiki is listing the scores already. Danny and Oti miss the top spot by just one point (38); Louise and Kevin with an impressive 39. Can't wait to see it.

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