There are a whole lot of dance shows on TV, but only one has the explosive entertainment value of MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew, which returns tonight at 10pm for season 6. The show always brings innovative, hip-hop dance crews together, which makes for some of the most entertaining television. It’s basically like a full hour of the Tabitha and Napoleon routines from So You Think You Can Dance, without any of that boring Viennese Waltz stuff in between.
Season 6 of America’s Best Dance Crew also has something else in common with SYTYCD: Dominic Sandoval. The hip-hop specialist, SYTYCD All-Star (you may remember him as the one who couldn’t stop flirting with Cat Deeley) and former ABDC champion in season 3 with Quest Crew, is taking over for Omarion as a judge. He joins other judges Lil Mama and J.C. Chasez, plus host Mario Lopez.
As a former contestant and dance show expert, Sandoval (nicknamed D-Trix) will bring a much-needed insider perspective to the judges’ table. He’ll also provide plenty of entertainment since he proved with his Cat flirtations on SYTYCD that he has enough charisma for a whole crew. Let’s just hope he can keep his eyes off Lil Mama and on the stage.
This season there’s an added twist as each week the crews will all perform songs from a single musical superstar, ranging from Justin Bieber and Ke$ha to Rihanna and the Black Eyed Peas. For tonight’s premiere, the first five crews will dance to songs from Lil Wayne. While there are 10 crews competing, the show has split them in half for the first two weeks of performances.
Here’s a quick rundown of the 10 crews competing. Sadly, none of them feature transgendered dancers, cloggers or jump rope experts like previous seasons did.
787 Crew: They have a bit of a Latin influence, but specialize in acrobatics and tricks, which are always crowd and voter favorites.
FootworKINGz: If these fast-footed Chicago guys seem familiar, it’s because they made the Top 20 on season 4 of America’s Got Talent.
I.aM.mE: This hop-hop crew has a truly global mix of dancers, including members from China and the Czech Republic.
ICONic Boyz: This New Jersey crew features one dancer who’s only 10 years old.
Instant Noodles: This is the b-boy crew of the season, which means this is the crew to beat.
JAG6ED: A group of all-female pole dancers. I think that sound you heard was Dominic’s jaw dropping.
Eclectic Gentlemen: These professionals focus on precision and looking good.
Phunk Phenomenon: A co-ed Boston crew, they mix modern and traditional movies.
ReQuest: A group of New Zealand women who are the 2010-11 World Hip Hop Dance Champions.
Street Kingdom: A co-ed, Los Angeles krumping crew.
Check out a special preview of the group routine for the first five crews performing tonight, and stare in awe at how many people they manage to fit onto that tiny stage.
America’s Best Dance Crew (Season 5) – MTV Shows
America’s Best Dance Crew airs Thursdays at 10pm on MTV.
(Image and video courtesy of MTV)
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.
