SYTYCD Top 8 Power Rankings
I predict an “easy” solution to a very hard choice for next week’s unprecedented Top 6. Maybe I’m all wrong – you’ll have to let me know what you think. But here are my predictions for tomorrow night’s results…
Girls –
1. Mollee had two hits tonight, an impeccable chemistry with Jakob and a solid solo. It was her night, as far as the girls go, at least in consistency. She has come light years from where she was at the beginning and I’m completely in love with her partnership with Jakob. I want to see them dance together more!!!
2. Ellenore had the most phenomenal routine of the night – the Travis Wall contemporary with Legacy. While it was their first routine and the hip hop wasn’t as big of a hit, it was HIGHLY memorable. I’m glad that she had such a great routine so she could show herself off to best advantage. I liked her solo, as usual, and I did enjoy the hip hop, so she had a good night, in my opinion.
3. Kathryn and Ryan killed that cha cha! She was incredibly sexy and strong, out of her style. I only wished they’d had that chemistry in their disco (or another routine entirely – not a fan of disco). But her solo was strong and that cha cha gave that exceptional Travis Wall a run for its money. Plus, it got a standing O from the audience.
4. Ashleigh was completely adorable as she was begging to dance and I’ve really come to appreciate her. Ryan’s appeal on her behalf was a wonderful moment. But, when it comes down to it, we didn’t get to see her dance tonight. And while I would’ve loved to see her with Russell in the hip hop and Bollywood, it just gives us an “easy” way to make a really hard decision. And as much as it sucks for her, it’s the result I wanted last week anyway. Kathryn and Ellenore are my favorite and Mollee had a phenomenal night. I think it’s time for Ashleigh to go. :'(
Boys –
1. Jakob had two incredible routines, great chemistry with Mollee, his usually strong solo and a great track record this season.
2. Legacy’s a fan favorite and he had one amazing routine with Ellenore (that Travis Wall, whoooeeee) and a passable Nappytabs hip hop.
3. Russell not only danced with three partners this week (two on short notice, Rachel and Alisha), but he’s had to partner a replacement before (Melanie) AND he held his own with dance professionals in tough styles, especially that Bollywood. He’s had a great season. His solo was adorable.
4. Ryan is a great dancer and I LOVED that cha cha with Kathryn. I hate to put him in the bottom, but I think despite his strong routine, he’s struggled to pick up a following this season. He has atrocious solos, including tonight, and his disco was awkward and boring (I hate disco, sorry). Despite his heartfelt plea for us to vote #1 for his wife and all of the wonderful routines he’s had, I think he’s going tomorrow.
In short, I think we’re going to lose the married couple tomorrow night, for all of the reasons mentioned before and above. But I kinda feel like it’d be right for them to go the same week. Consider this article from BuddyTV posted earlier today that asks who is the better dancer between Mr. and Mrs. Di Lello (it also links to my post about Ashleigh’s lipstick). What if we never had to find out which one America likes better? I like the idea that they leave together, the same week, and I think this is the week for it. They’re in the Top 10, so they’ll go on the tour and we’ll get to see them dance together and all their best routines. That’s my choice, as hard as this “easy” choice is.
I think Ellenore and Ryan will go. I can’t see any other guy going before Ryan, but I said that last week and Nathan went home, so there’s a CHANCE it could be Legacy.
Ellenore was weak tonight. The contemporary was great but she’s terrible at hip hop and her solo was not very interesting. I voted for the other girls, but not her. There’s a good chance Ashleigh will go home but I don’t know. She’s got a stronger fan base than anyone expected, I think. This could put Kathryn and Mollee in danger.
I hope ou are right, Ben. I liked the Legacy/Ellenore piece, but I think Legacy made the piece great – not her. The hip-hop was horrible – not just the concept (like the alien routine last year), but really bad dancing. Combined with an akward solo (I don’t like the way she always pulls her knee up with a fleed ankle) and I’d prefer the 10 seconds or rehearsal footage I saw of Ashleigh to what I saw from Ellenore tonight.
It will be tough for the guys. Solo aside, I think this was Ryan’s best night of the season. But I don’t think he can compete with the other 3.
I’m disappointed we only get one more week instead of 2! But cuts next week would be extra tough.
I think that Ashleigh will pull through. When I voted right after the show I couldn’t get through to her number. She’ll get the sympathy vote and I’m ok with that. I haven’t ever really been a fan of Ellenore and like Kevin said she didn’t have a great week. The first piece was supercool but I wasn’t impressed by the hip-hop.
I kinda think Ryan will pull through too…he won a lot of women’s hearts when he campaigned for his wife…and maybe some votes too (And I think maybe people want to see the married couple dance). It’s a tough call though b/c I do like Legacy and he was pretty strong tonight and it’s hard to see the other 2 guys in the bottom but who knows.
My prediction is Ellenore and Legacy.
Oh and I don’t think Ryan’s solos are that bad…I just think they would be better if he had a partner.
I don’t want Mollee to be in the finals.
Her personality is so Disney and she’s terrible at being sensual while dancing. Based on performance, she’s the worst of the bunch but her fan base will pull her through. The young girls watching the show are going to connect with her because they love High School Musical and Mollee represents High School Musical to the letter.
I am shocked and horrified to see predictions that Ellenore will go… Wha-… HOW???
Ellenore is the one girl this week I think is completely safe. (Of course, if others think the same way and don’t bother to vote, lol…) But no, she’s here to stay. But beyond that, I can’t call the girls at all. I think Mollee, Kathryn, or Ashleigh could go.
People aren’t just voting for tonight, they’re voting for everything they’ve seen so far… and, more importantly, what/who they still want to see more of.
I do think Ryan will go, despite some extra votes for sweetness. *loves Ryan*
Btw, just because the Napptabs number keeps bringing up the Brian Friedman alien routine from S5… remember that Jason/Caitlin were SAFE the week they did that 🙂
I ‘m worried about Ellenore as well. She had an injury too and she wasn’t 100% either. But I’m worried she’s not connecting with America….only the really quirky ones.
I was actually sad that I didn’t get to see Ashleigh dance Bollywood and Hip hop. I mean the routines themselves sounded exciting but honestly i think having Ashleigh in there would have enhanced Russell’s performance too. Now if Kayla had to step in for Ellenore to dance the contemporary routine I would have watched it over and over 😛
Honestly I was really frustrated with this episode. It’s nobody’s fault that the dancers keep getting injured but I’m really just tired of hearing about all of these changes. Especially when you’re expectations get crushed or do a complete 180.
I think the one reason I’d vote for Ashleigh is that I feel like she never had her “last performance” And for it to happen at such a crucial time just adds to the havok of this entire show. But to pick 3/4 girls is really hard. Adam was right, anyone leaving now would be a huge loss.
I think the downside to this season was that it had too many changes from the previous season. It’s making the show completely different and although the premise is the same, it doesn’t exude the same feel it has in previous seasons.
Starting with the summer to fall season change which seemed really exciting in the beginning, and then appointing Adam as a permanent judge. Change after change followed. With the new and inconsistent airing schedule of the auditions. Then we have the intro top 20 episode (which was awesome!) but the staging and camera work was distracting as ever! The no-voting aspect due to the world series conflicts raised some issues not only with America but the dancers as well. I mean we’ve seen the injuries, the (potential and current) contestants flying in and out of the top 20 (literally… Paula Van Oppen, Ashleigh, Billy Bell, Brandon Dumlao, even Noelle didn’t participate in the first show), stating “our first and first ” and rule-changing havok. Then Mia Michaels leaving while new choreographers are coming in. And now introducing a top 6 finale is just mind-blowing. @_@ my head hurts just thinking about it…
I mean change is good, but there’s been so many changes that we have no sense of stability. Not only that, but not all the changes were particularly positive. I think that’s why we’re so undecided about this season and we latch onto the contestants that remind us of others from previous seasons. You could say that this is changing the gameplay of the competition. After 5 seasons, the producers probably saw a pattern to the winners and/or finalists and had to throw in different elements to see how it would not only affect America, but the dancers themselves.
We’ve managed to isolate our favorites despite all this. It makes me wonder if that’s the reason why we don’t latch onto Ellenore. She’s so different from everyone we’ve seen but this season has already been different from any we’ve seen. Jakob has been the best technical dancer on the show and although traditionally, there’s always been a VERY talented male contemporary dancer, they never win and America votes for the underdog. Jakob’s personality isn’t very loud, or quirky really but that’s really okay. He has a quiet confidence about him and seems like a focused dancer with a positive attitude. At least, those are the reasons why I like him aside from his technical prowess. Anyone else is an underdog to me.
This was a long post T_T
Gee, I guess I’m not alone in not connecting with Ellenoare. Kathryn is my favorite girl and I have done a complete 180 on Mollee. I really enjoy her solos, she has the type of musicality that Jeanine has.
Missed not seeing Ashleigh and I disagree that people vote based on what they’ve seen over the season. All too often it seems like – do a bad routine – get voted off the next day. Which I’ve never understood. Like the collective short term memory is less than 24 hours. Meh.
I like Jakob too, but I hope all this proclaiming him the winner beforehand doesn’t end up backfiring for the guy. I like Legacy alot too, I think he has grown the most out of all the dancers and I like seeing/watching that happen.
Man, I just think Ellenore is the most amazing girl on this season. I guess I’m a bit surprised to see the lack of love. Hmm. Kathryn is an amazing dancer, but her personality has irked me since Vegas week. Ashleigh, to me, has already reached her ceiling, and she’d definitely not half the dancer that Ellenore is (as great as Ashleigh is).
I think Mollee is growing on me. I couldn’t stand her at first because I thought her silliness was juvenile and trying to deflect a lack of confidence–that she was faking it to cover herself. Now she seems like she’s coming into her own, and I think that’s great. Her dancing has been phenomenal lately and I give her mad props for that.
I think that Legacy and Ryan have gone about as far as they can go, and Ashleigh too. The other 5, well, I think they’ve got miles and miles they can still go and I would LOVE to see it.
I think the married couple leaves this week, too. They just weren’t that memorable this–or last–week, IMO.
I’m surprised by the comments about Ellenore. I think she’s incredible and have no problem connecting with her. The person I feel no connection, ever, is Mollee. Even on a night when she’s fantastic, like last night, I just don’t feel anything about her. I vote based on the whole season, and the woman I did not vote for yesterday was Mollee. She had a great night, but even with Ashleigh not dancing, Mollee was just too far behind any of the other girls to catch up.
The only guy who surprised me last night was Ryan, not just with his plea for votes for Ashleigh, but with his performance during the disco routine. The cha cha was better in general, but he really became much less stiff and more rhythmic than he had been and than I expected him to be. Ryan and Russell seem to be to be continuing to grow as dancers, where I think Legacy and Jakob have leveled. Jakob is amazing. Legacy seems the clear choice to go to me, not only because of everything I just said, but also because I just like the other three better.
@beth and mike:
It’s not that I don’t like Ellenore. It’s just a theory that I think America might be thinking this way which would cause them not to love her. I really do like her quirkiness and I think honestly she is the most well-rounded dancer in personality, partnership, and performance. But sometimes when you seem rather disconnected from earth (aloof?), it’s hard to follow them and maybe you lose interest. I just wonder how she would have fared in a different season.
My feeling about Ellenore is this: I think she’s incredible. But, like Jakob, she is good but I feel her technique trumps her personality. Her face conveys so much oddity. I love her non-dance personality but I find myself enjoying the other three female dancers a heck of a lot more.
Re: Ellenoare’s personality. Let’s not forget its America’s Favorite Dancer. I think Jeanine won last season not because she was the best technically, but because her personality shined and won people’s hearts. I don’t think there has been another dancer that was able to use the behind-the-scenes footage to their advantage the way she could. Ok, I am biased because I really fell for her, but who else had great sound bites like “Roll reel of lifts” or “What if I fall…no big deal (in squeaky voice)”. As much as people don’t want to admit it, it IS a popularity contest. That being said, I have absolutely NO idea who is going home tonight.
[…] made my predictions last night and called them the “easy” solution to a hard choice. But in the meantime, I remembered […]