Here are my rankings for the best and worst dances from the fifth week of Dancing with the Stars season 23, Most Memorable Year Night. Also, check out my recap of this episode.
#18 Amber Rose and Maksim Chmerkovskiy
Dance: Samba
Song: “Woman Up” by Meghan Trainor
Judges’ Scores: 8+8+8=24
#17 Amber and Maks’ Performance
Amber always looks like she’s dancing in precarious high heels, tentative and unsure like a newborn baby deer. This was yet another weak performance from her.
#16 Ryan Lochte and Cheryl Burke
Dance: Contemporary
Song: “A Song for You” by Leon Russell
Judges’ Scores: 8+8+8=24
#15 Ryan and Cheryl’s Performance
Perhaps it was his best dance yet, but that’s a low bar. My biggest complaint was the overly dramatic story they were trying to tell that didn’t really feel like dancing.
#14 Laurie Hernandez and Val Chmerkovskiy
Dance: Paso Doble
Song: “Rise” by Katy Perry
Judges’ Scores: 8+9+8=25
#13 Laurie and Val’s Performance
This is probably the lowest they’ll ever be on my rankings. It just didn’t come together. She may be excellent at movement, but the footwork was uneasy and a tad sloppy, especially coming from someone who achieved perfection last week. It may not be fair, but the bar for her is much higher than for anyone else.
#12 Maureen McCormick and Artem Chigvintsev
Dance: Foxtrot
Song: “From the Ground Up” by Dan + Shay
Judges’ Scores: 8+8+8=24
#11 Maureen and Artem’s Performance
This was a pretty wedding dance filled with grace. It got a little sleepy at times, but it was still beautiful and showed real promise for her in the future.
#10 Terra Jole and Sasha Farber
Dance: Contemporary
Song: “Stand by Me” by Florence + The Machine
Judges’ Scores: 9+9+9=27
#9 Terra and Sasha’s Performance
Good but not great, it’s always hard to judge Contemporary routines. There wasn’t enough actual dance content for me, just a lot of Terra raising her arms to the sky. And when you have such a small contestant, maybe it’s not a smart idea to cover the ballroom with smoke because it obscures half of her body.
#8 Marilu Henner and Derek Hough
Dance: Viennese Waltz
Song: “Surprise Yourself” by Jack Garratt
Judges’ Scores: 9+9+9=27
#7 Marilu and Derek’s Performance
The best she’s ever been, Marilu showed a lot of potential with this brilliant routine. She captured the emotion and it was a lot less stilted than usual. She still needs to find a better flow to her movements and body, but it was a huge leap forward.
#6 Calvin Johnson and Lindsay Arnold
Dance: Jazz
Song: “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell
Judges’ Scores: 8+8+8=24
#5 Calvin and Lindsay’s Performance
Megatron has a megawatt smile and radiates charisma. This was an extremely fun and entertaining dance to watch. He was smooth, engaging and demonstrated some amazing lifts and throws.
#4 Jana Kramer and Gleb Savchenko
Dance: Contemporary
Song: “In My Daughter’s Eyes” by Martina McBride
Judges’ Scores: 9+8+9=26
#3 Jana and Gleb’s Performance
This is the kind of Contemporary routine I love, filled with a lot of raw, powerful movements executed beautifully. It was an emotional performance by a strong woman for a strong woman of the future, Jana’s daughter.
#2 James Hinchcliffe and Sharna Burgess
Dance: Tango
Song: “The Right Time” by Yves V featuring Mike James
Judges’ Scores: 10+9+10=29
#1 James and Sharna’s Performance
This guy has announced himself every week as the true master of the ballroom. He’s a chameleon, able to adapt to any style or character and pull it off beautifully. This Tango was fast but sharp. It was exciting and yet more proof that this may FINALLY be Sharna’s year after coming so close with many of her recent partners.
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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.
