Not!Blackpool
Last week’s ITT was mainly about Shirley going ‘absolootely’ this week. An interesting observacut>tion from Oti about how she adapted after seeing Bill’s performance/energy level on the first Saturday night, which has led to her getting the best out of him/the staggering improvement since
Strictly ‘Blackpool’ night
The pros’ opening routine was perfectly pleasant, but about as insubstantial as candy floss, because all I can think to say is that I liked Oti’s dress. (ETA: I forgot the inserts of the judges and presenters.)
As ever, Shirley’s colour choice was A1, and I preferred Claudia’s look to Tess’s with the random transparent bits. With the Blackpoolified music, the judges totally mistimed their sitting.
A nice nod to the pros’ history at Blackpool, and then Bill and Oti’s (liftless) American smooth was classy, but it didn’t thrill me like his past dances have done, and I wasn’t as enamoured as the judges.
Suddenly remembered the second slot is the slot of doom when Maisie was in it, although do normal rules apply this year? But I loved her salsa after a moment’s panic of thinking Gorka had made it inappropriately sexy. The way she moved throughout, so loosely, was great, the ending of that one lift aside. I thought it was her best dance yet and a strong comeback.
I liked the illuminations fo JJ’s quickstep. He really is a ballroom boy, although I have to admit my attention wandered during the routine, so I was more with Craig’s scores than the other two’s.
Clara wore my favourite outfit of the night, I think, and I loved her for failing to say the cheesy line in the VT properly. I hated the messing abaht, and the fact it was such a themed samba and the spoonography made my heart sink. I thought it got better - there was bounce action - once she started dancing, but it’s all very well doing a brilliant Charleston, but Clara’s never mastered any technique, so if the footwork was dodge, I’m nt surprised at the low score. I thought Craig was going to give her 4 or less.
HRVYY next, and I had many thoughts and mixed feelings about the theming, easy gag about those are the masks we’d like to wear and Stictlifying the song ‘Golden’ was just…weird, but I loved the gold detailing in Janette’s hair and on HRVY’s jacket. Were the falling golden sparks overkill? There were some very, very good bits in his tango. I didn’t spot the mistakes, but I wasn’t entirely convinced he was leading throughout. Still, I so want to see his paso after that.
And then (or is this where I’ve got the order wrong?) Jamie’s street dance, which I own I was looking forward to. I don’t think it came from quite the place of love that Bill’s did, but it was less ironic than I feared, and though I thought you could always tell Karen was the real deal throughout, his timing was impeccable and the breakdancing and unflagging energy were undeniable. Fair enough that it was his best score by a mile, and even that he was top of the leaderboard.
I giggled at Johannes’s entry on the fire truck in the VT, but the comedy bits of their cha cha did not work for me at all. Still, between them, she pulled off a creditable cha cha in a year signally missing them - apart fro being her best score. (ETA I thought they'd got 25, so my impressions of what happened next and in the results were wrong.)
And then finally, the first Argentine tango of the series. Giovanni was exceedingly camp in the tutorial and yet I had no doubt the AT would be smouldering. And lo, it was. Very clever choreography, because I thought it gave Ranvir gorgeously complementary stuff to do while he was more flashy in the opening (working with the theming of their outfits) and then there was intricate legwork. There was one bit that I thought was slightly placed (relatively speaking) from her, but that has set the bar so high for that style of dance for the rest of the series.
Why was Dianne in the studio? Anton brought Len to mind a lot. Shirley did get OTT in response to Ranvir’s dance, and Motsi and her fab-u-lous earrings reminded us to look forward to her return to judging.
Squizz at the leaderboard, and although I accepted Jamie’s place on top of the leaderboard, and really liked Ranvir and HRVY’s routines, as I though it was her best dance yet, I voted for Maisie, slightly surprising myself.
Strictly results Lovely pro dance. I loved how Dianne and Giovanni, as the featured couple interweaved with the other supporting couples whirling around, and the touch of ballet in the skirt lengths and Dianne’s expressive hands. Gorgeous lifs and watching pros use props is less anxiety-ridden than when celebs do it.
Craig’s houndstooth jacket was the only colour and Shirley had tanlines if we’re being penitechy. Oh, no, Bruno brought the razzle dazzle for the recap, which reminded us that those who were close to the bottom, Bill, JJ and Caroline, had danced decently. So, it would become a question of popularity: Bill is popular, Caroline and Johannes are not, or perhaps the comedy didn’t work for many others either. Shirley was disingenuously ‘I don’t understand how you’re here’ as if the judges hadn’t put her in the joint second from last position.
They do like tantalising us with what Bill is going to do next week every week, don’t they?
Two couples dancing on the floor to Billy Ocean. Nadiya and Grazzianno pulled off an impressive catwheel thingy, but I prefer watching Neil and Nancy overall.
About all that I remember of the dance debrief was that it was an Anton love-in. Motsi’s ‘I’ll hug you, oh no, I can’t’ was 2020 crystallised.
JJ and Amy are popular, and so are Clara and Aljiaz (likeable though they are, I am tired of them getting through when she is the weakest left on technique.) The dance-off would have been more interesting if JJ (or Bill) had been competing in it, but it was a fait accompli. I feel really sorry for Maisie, being this year’s designated good dancer that the voting public shun (even before we were informed Clara was ‘doing a Tina Turner’, which must mean something Latin, I was thinking of Alexandra et al.) It’s worse this year, though, because she can’t get a hug from her mum.
I enjoyed Caroline’s routine a smidgin more this time. I chuckled once, at least This entry was originally posted at https://shallowness.dreamwidth.org/445186.html.
Strictly ‘Blackpool’ night
The pros’ opening routine was perfectly pleasant, but about as insubstantial as candy floss, because all I can think to say is that I liked Oti’s dress. (ETA: I forgot the inserts of the judges and presenters.)
As ever, Shirley’s colour choice was A1, and I preferred Claudia’s look to Tess’s with the random transparent bits. With the Blackpoolified music, the judges totally mistimed their sitting.
A nice nod to the pros’ history at Blackpool, and then Bill and Oti’s (liftless) American smooth was classy, but it didn’t thrill me like his past dances have done, and I wasn’t as enamoured as the judges.
Suddenly remembered the second slot is the slot of doom when Maisie was in it, although do normal rules apply this year? But I loved her salsa after a moment’s panic of thinking Gorka had made it inappropriately sexy. The way she moved throughout, so loosely, was great, the ending of that one lift aside. I thought it was her best dance yet and a strong comeback.
I liked the illuminations fo JJ’s quickstep. He really is a ballroom boy, although I have to admit my attention wandered during the routine, so I was more with Craig’s scores than the other two’s.
Clara wore my favourite outfit of the night, I think, and I loved her for failing to say the cheesy line in the VT properly. I hated the messing abaht, and the fact it was such a themed samba and the spoonography made my heart sink. I thought it got better - there was bounce action - once she started dancing, but it’s all very well doing a brilliant Charleston, but Clara’s never mastered any technique, so if the footwork was dodge, I’m nt surprised at the low score. I thought Craig was going to give her 4 or less.
HRVYY next, and I had many thoughts and mixed feelings about the theming, easy gag about those are the masks we’d like to wear and Stictlifying the song ‘Golden’ was just…weird, but I loved the gold detailing in Janette’s hair and on HRVY’s jacket. Were the falling golden sparks overkill? There were some very, very good bits in his tango. I didn’t spot the mistakes, but I wasn’t entirely convinced he was leading throughout. Still, I so want to see his paso after that.
And then (or is this where I’ve got the order wrong?) Jamie’s street dance, which I own I was looking forward to. I don’t think it came from quite the place of love that Bill’s did, but it was less ironic than I feared, and though I thought you could always tell Karen was the real deal throughout, his timing was impeccable and the breakdancing and unflagging energy were undeniable. Fair enough that it was his best score by a mile, and even that he was top of the leaderboard.
I giggled at Johannes’s entry on the fire truck in the VT, but the comedy bits of their cha cha did not work for me at all. Still, between them, she pulled off a creditable cha cha in a year signally missing them - apart fro being her best score. (ETA I thought they'd got 25, so my impressions of what happened next and in the results were wrong.)
And then finally, the first Argentine tango of the series. Giovanni was exceedingly camp in the tutorial and yet I had no doubt the AT would be smouldering. And lo, it was. Very clever choreography, because I thought it gave Ranvir gorgeously complementary stuff to do while he was more flashy in the opening (working with the theming of their outfits) and then there was intricate legwork. There was one bit that I thought was slightly placed (relatively speaking) from her, but that has set the bar so high for that style of dance for the rest of the series.
Why was Dianne in the studio? Anton brought Len to mind a lot. Shirley did get OTT in response to Ranvir’s dance, and Motsi and her fab-u-lous earrings reminded us to look forward to her return to judging.
Squizz at the leaderboard, and although I accepted Jamie’s place on top of the leaderboard, and really liked Ranvir and HRVY’s routines, as I though it was her best dance yet, I voted for Maisie, slightly surprising myself.
Strictly results Lovely pro dance. I loved how Dianne and Giovanni, as the featured couple interweaved with the other supporting couples whirling around, and the touch of ballet in the skirt lengths and Dianne’s expressive hands. Gorgeous lifs and watching pros use props is less anxiety-ridden than when celebs do it.
Craig’s houndstooth jacket was the only colour and Shirley had tanlines if we’re being penitechy. Oh, no, Bruno brought the razzle dazzle for the recap, which reminded us that those who were close to the bottom, Bill, JJ and Caroline, had danced decently. So, it would become a question of popularity: Bill is popular, Caroline and Johannes are not, or perhaps the comedy didn’t work for many others either. Shirley was disingenuously ‘I don’t understand how you’re here’ as if the judges hadn’t put her in the joint second from last position.
They do like tantalising us with what Bill is going to do next week every week, don’t they?
Two couples dancing on the floor to Billy Ocean. Nadiya and Grazzianno pulled off an impressive catwheel thingy, but I prefer watching Neil and Nancy overall.
About all that I remember of the dance debrief was that it was an Anton love-in. Motsi’s ‘I’ll hug you, oh no, I can’t’ was 2020 crystallised.
JJ and Amy are popular, and so are Clara and Aljiaz (likeable though they are, I am tired of them getting through when she is the weakest left on technique.) The dance-off would have been more interesting if JJ (or Bill) had been competing in it, but it was a fait accompli. I feel really sorry for Maisie, being this year’s designated good dancer that the voting public shun (even before we were informed Clara was ‘doing a Tina Turner’, which must mean something Latin, I was thinking of Alexandra et al.) It’s worse this year, though, because she can’t get a hug from her mum.
I enjoyed Caroline’s routine a smidgin more this time. I chuckled once, at least This entry was originally posted at https://shallowness.dreamwidth.org/445186.html.