Usually being embarrassed on Dancing with the Stars is a bad thing (I’m looking at you, Woz doing the Worm). But that’s the whole point of Guilty Pleasures Night, where the 11 remaining will perform routines inspired by the things they are ashamed to love. I’ll try to resist mockery, especially because my guilty pleasure would be Avril Lavigne’s “Sk8er Boi.”
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The show opens with Tom Bergeron doing a fantastic job of dedicating the show to the victims of the mass shooting in Las Vegas. But the show must go on.
We also find out that Maksim Chmerkovskiy has a personal issue, so Alan Bersten is filling in for him. And there’s no elimination tonight.
Drew Scott and Emma Slater: Argentine Tango
His guilty pleasure is true crime shows, so he’s a detective and she’s a witness. He does a great job with the attitude and there are some impressive lifts, especially because he’s so tall. The height difference is a tad distracting and makes some of the moves awkward. Len Goodman says he’s on a roll and the others are very impressed with his growth.
Judges’ Scores: 8+7+8=23
He could be turning into a potential finale contender.
Derek Fisher and Sharna Burgess: Cha-Cha-Cha
His guilty pleasure is The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. He does his best Will Smith impression and does a lot of booty shaking, but he seems lost a few times and it’s more about the character than the dancing. Bruno Tonioli is happy that he had a good time. Carrie Ann Inaba likes that he’s learning and slowly improving, taking their notes.
Judges’ Scores: 7+7+7=21
That’s good for him, and we’ve reached the point of the season where there are no more 6s unless you really screw up.
Victoria Arlen and Val Chmerkovskiy: Quickstep
Her guilty pleasure is the song “Tubthumping” by Chumbawamba. Val hates the song, but she likes the message of getting knocked down, but getting back up again. She was bullied in high school, which seems extra vicious since she was in a wheelchair. Who bullies the sick girl in the wheelchair?
The routine and song are infectiously fun. Victoria makes a great nerdy chick and the whole thing is filled with pure joy. Her footwork isn’t supremely precise, which is understandable given her situation. Carrie Ann loves that they’re adapting to do the best they can with her condition, basically admitting that they have to judge her on a different scale from the others.
Judges’ Scores: 8+7+7=22
Tom tells kids at home that if they see someone who’s different, they shouldn’t be an ass.
Vanessa Lachey and Alan Bersten: Jazz
Her guilty pleasure is wild and crazy girls’ nights out. They bring in the female troupe members and add some lifts. It’s kind of underwhelming for me. Alan isn’t even in the first half and Vanessa is good, but she’s not at the level of the troupe yet. The judges disagree, with Len claiming that she was as good as the other women. Carrie Ann thought she wobbled a few times and criticizes her mounting during the lifts.
Judges’ Scores: 7+8+8=23
Len is nicer than Carrie Ann? That’s very rare.
Nikki Bella and Artem Chigvintsev: Viennese Waltz
Her guilty pleasure is 50 Shades of Grey. At first he thinks she likes Fabio-style romance novels, but instead they’re getting kinkier. It starts with some steamy elevator action and I like the reversal for them that Artem takes charge, but she seems to fight that a bit and wants to be the one leading. It works for these two. Her fiance John Cena comes out during the critique and calls them spicy. Len found it too aggressive and not quite from Vienna.
Judges’ Scores:7+7+7=21
That’s the default low score now.
Frankie Muniz and Witney Carson: Samba
His guilty pleasure is boy bands. Sorry Nick, but he prefers *NSYNC. I still love him and his moves are fantastic, but he seems a little too serious and doesn’t have quite the same swagger as last week. Carrie Ann loved the boy band elements, but the Samba was weak.
Judges’ Scores: 7+7+7=21
Erin Andrews shows a clip of Frankie when he was 14 singing *NSYNC poorly at an MTV event.
Lindsey Stirling and Mark Ballas: Jive
Her guilty pleasure is being in her pajamas all day. Also, she broke up with her boyfriend last week. It starts and ends with some very clever sheet-hogging in a bed. The whole routine is energetic, fun and she puts a smile on my face every time she dances. Her enthusiasm is infectious and Mark’s choreography is a delight. Len calls it the dance of the season so far.
Judges’ Scores: 9+9+9=27
That’s the new high for the season obviously.
Sasha Pieterse and Gleb Savchenko: Jazz
Her guilty pleasure is baking. The routine has too many props with the two playing competing chefs and Sasha doesn’t seem all that into it. But it ends with her shoving a pie in Gleb’s face, and I love that. Bruno compares them to the Swedish Chef from The Muppets, very loose and random. The judges were confused and don’t think it showed off her dancing ability.
Judges’ Scores: 7+6+6=19
Yikes, the 6s come out.
Nick Lachey and Peta Murgatroyd: Jazz
His guilty pleasure is rom-coms and they’re going full ’80s with hideous aerobic outfits. The whole dance is silly and stupid and not great, but enjoyable in a bad kind of way because he’s clearly having fun. This isn’t flattering, but he kind of reminds me of Mr. T as a dancer. The judges appreciate that he gave it his all and get distracted by talking about unitards, balls and juices.
Judges’ Scores: 7+7+7=21
That’s kind of generous. There’s no way he was as good as Derek, Nikki and Frankie.
Terrell Owens and Cheryl Burke: Salsa
His guilty pleasure is break dancing. He claims that on a 10-point scale, he’s an 8.1 at breaking, but Cheryl says he’s a 3. Cheryl does her best to sell it, but T.O. just doesn’t bring it and he seems slow and lazy in parts. There are a few moments of potential, but it doesn’t work as a whole. Carrie Ann loved it, except for one mistake.
Judges’ Scores: 7+7+7=21
Wow, tonight there’s a 5-couple pile-up at 21 points.
Jordan Fisher and Lindsay Arnold: Charleston
His guilty pleasure is comic books. Thankfully, his dreadful bleach-blond hair is gone. Now if only someone could fix Artem. He loves superheroes, especially the X-Men. The routine is so creative as they fight bad guys to save the stolen Mirror Ball, but they never lose the moves. The pop art lighting design is extraordinary. Len didn’t see much Charleston, it was more Quickstep and Lindy Hop.
Judges’ Scores: 9+7+9=25
Wow, that’s the kind of crazy scoring I’ve come to expect.
THE LEADERBOARD
Since there was no elimination tonight, the leaderboard is the combined total from last week and this week, which will determine next week’s elimination.
51: Lindsey Stirling
49: Jordan Fisher
46: Vanessa Lachey, Frankie Muniz
44: Drew Scott
42: Victoria Arlen
41: Sasha Pieterse
40: Derek Fisher, Nick Lachey, Terrell Owens
39: Nikki Bella
Dancing with the Stars airs Mondays at 8/7c on ABC.
(Image courtesy of ABC)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.
