December 15, 2009
SYTYCD Top 6 Power Rankings
Written by: EmilieSign up to receive all the latest So You Think You Can Dance 2010 Music, News, Rumors and Updates.
- So You Think You Can Dance
- So You Think You Can Dance Power Rankings
- So You Think You Can Dance Season 6
I just don’t know, y’all. Part of me thinks this is a slam dunk for Jakob (John already proclaimed him the SYTYCD season 6 winner back on the 8th). But part of me thinks Kathryn or Ellenore might still win it. Wishful thinking? Let’s see…
1. Kathryn had a great night. While I felt like I’d already seen that samba with Ryan, I loved their chemistry and I enjoyed it a lot. Her second two routines, contemporary with Jakob and hip hop with Russell, were phenomenal. The show was early on proclaimed, “The rise of Kathryn” and Nigel several times professed his love (will that hurt her), so I think she had an amazing night. She’s had a great season, all along. She’s my pick to win, though I suspect she’ll be 2nd.
2. Jakob has had a stellar season and has a lot of fans. I think he generally had a pretty “meh” night, except for his contemporary with Kathryn. Though, I don’t think he’s had a bad routine all season and that includes tonight. I suspect he’ll take the cake, but I’m gonna put him in the #2 spot because I think Kathryn has a pretty strong chance and I’d love to see her win. She’s been picking up speed all season, whereas he’s been at the same high note the whole way. While I think he’s made a lot of growth personally and even as a dancer from his collaborations with these choreographers and Top 20 dancers, I don’t think it’s as visible as Kathryn’s trajectory.
3. Russell’s been having a great season, as well. Two injured partners and three subs, he’s demonstrated his versatility every time he’s performed. He’s likable and has memorable routines. Including his paso doble with Ellenore and that last routine, the Nappytabs hip hop. I don’t see him winning, but I think he’ll probably come in 3rd (regardless of whether my #1 and #2 are inverted, I still think he’ll be #3).
4. Ellenore had a great paso doble with Russell. It was really sexy and strong, lots of character and personality. Her jazz with Ryan might’ve been a bit weird for some folks, but I loved it. It suited her well. And she and Jakob could be on Broadway tomorrow, in my opinion. The judges heaped a lot of attention and love on her tonight and I think she deserved every bit. She’d be my personal #2, but I suspect Russell has a bit more fan support than her and will edge her out (and I can’t ignore that Jakob is likely to win).
5. & 6. I can’t predict which of the Di Lillos will be #5 and which #6 and I don’t think it will matter much. Sometimes, I think Ryan has more of an edge because of his great partnering and his numerous memorable routines, plus his endearing plea for Ashleigh that probably kept them both in the game for Top 6. But, more often than not, I think Ashleigh will edge him out just a little bit because she had a long, strong run with Jakob and the audience opinion of her changed more dramatically than I suspect was the case for Ryan.
Big breath. That’s it. Last Power Ranking of Season 6. And, after tonight’s performance, I still stand by my speculation about the Top 6 photo on the site and whether it predicts tomorrow’s results.
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25 responses to "SYTYCD Top 6 Power Rankings"
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I wasn’t a fan of Kathryn’s hip hop tonight…Russell took the cake on that one for me. But then again, I don’t think she’s all that likeable, but she is a phenomenal dancer. Then again, I felt that way about Kayla last summer as well.
I think Russell is charismatic and amazing–not the strongest dancer, but the most fun to watch and most entertaining to me.
Ellenore is the one that has both of these characteristics for me, and Jakob, too. Thus, I would be happy with Ellenore, Jakob and Russell winning, but not really with the other three.
I must admit that I was moved to tears by the Ashleigh/Ryan dance tonight. As a married woman, I couldn’t help but feel the love between them and it touched me. Was it the best danced routine? No. But I felt it. And I’m glad for that.
Best dances of the night for me? Russell and Ashleigh’s lyrical and Ellenore and Jakob’s broadway.
@Beth: Wow, you liked completely different routines than me.
I can kinda get the Kathryn-Kayla comparisons, but not really. To me, Kathryn is waaay more of a Jeanine.
I LOVED LOVED LOVED the NappyTabs routine. I think b/c of it Kathryn might have a chance to win. Especially since for me (and emile) Jakob only had a “meh” night. I also like the paso and who couldn’t apprecitate the emotion behind the Ashleigh/Ryan dance. Who knows what America will do though.
But I will say this…I watched the show late and didn’t vote til about 10:30. I got through to Kathryn’s line pretty easily but Russell’s was still busy. Makes me wonder a bit.
I’m on that Nappytabs bandwagon. They are BACK as choreographers. That was hard-hitting and they really pulled the stops out. I think part of it was knowing that their dancers could do it! Kathryn rocks at hip hop and this was a happy moment for me.
I voted once for Ashleigh, and a bunch for Kathryn. None of the guys have inspired me to vote. However, I’ll be surprised if Jakob doesn’t win.
Yeah, Kathryn didn’t grow on me personality-wise like Jeanine did.
I voted for Ellenore and Russell.
I don’t like to hate on people but…is anyone else really tired of hearing Adam say “do you know what I mean?” I love Adam I do! But maybe we can not say that so often. I decided to watch Jeanine and Brandon’s Paso from last season again (btw much better than than Ellenore and Russell’s at least for me) and they had the judge’s comments and he said it there too. Anyways, just thought I’d put that out there.
I’d love for Jakob to win – although everyone knows that the most talented dancer wise rarely wins. His phone line was never busy, which worries me. I guess we’ll see tomorrow!
Of Course I voted for my hometown girl Kathryn! Everyone here in Augusta, Georgia are really proud of her. I gave Jakob two votes. My top 2.
Interesting thing about the phone lines…who knows what the deal is there. Maybe the figured out a way for as many calls to get through as possible.
Well, each time zone is going to be voting at different times, right?
I do want to say that hip hop is all about personality. Those steps are very insincere if you don’t get down and dirty and into the music. There’s a distinct characteristic involved with the style and that’s why we enjoy some dancers in it than others. For Kathryn to do as well at the style as she does (and as Jeanine and Katee did) says something about the level of personality she has.
Although I’m pulling for either Russell, Ellenore, or Ashleigh….something tells me it might come down to Jakob and Kathryn. Jakob seems to have a solid fanbase (which he deserves). I could also see Kathryn being that person who didn’t get alot of buzz all season but comes out and wins the whole show much like Jeanine did last season. Good look to all of em though
I agree with your thought! GO! Katheryn, GO!
While Jakob is the best technical dancer by far, I have a feeling its going to come down to Russell and Kathryn. Kathryn went from being one of the most unnoticeable dancers, to one of the best ones, while Russell just has this magnetic personality, excelled in just about everything he did, and remained humble throughout.
Emilie I completely agree with your post. I think it could go either way between Kathryn and Jakob, but my personal choice is Kathryn since she’s the only one I voted for. I only got through maybe 20% of my calls, so I take that as a good sign. I’m glad i’m not the only one that thinks Jakob is kind of meh. But I would rather see him triumph over Russell. Ellenore was amazing last night, but I think it was too late for her, she needed those performances like 2 weeks ago. My fave dances last night were Jakob?Kathryn contemporary and the Broadway, with the Samba or the Hip Hop coming in 3rd.
I’m also rooting for Kathryn! She’s been my favorite since Peter left. I couldn’t really vote because I had a huge paper due last night, but I convinced my husband to vote for her for an hour! He’s such a great guy…
After watching the show last night I was torn about who to vote for. Jakob’s the strongest dancer, but I think after seeing him do the things he does so many times, I’m kind of not impressed anymore, and other dancers who surprise my catch my attention. I’ve grown to really love all of them, so I decided to just throw some votes at everyone.
But between 10:30 and 11 when I was voting, Russell’s line was busy the whole time, while none of the other dancers’ were at all. Russell’s lyrical jazz with Ahsleigh was by far the routine that most resonated with me last night. So I think it’ll shake down thins way:
1. Russell
2. Jakob
3. Kathryn (she’s fantastic, but I think the guys generally have a stronger voting presence this season)
4. Ellenore
5. Ashleigh (after getting through without dancing last week, she wouldn’t needed something spectacular to keep people from feeling like being in the finale was her prize)
6. Ryan (nobody ever thought he should win, and probably most of his previous votes were people who just wanted him to stick around)
I should say, I wouldn’t be upset if any of them won, but I really don’t see Ryan or Ashleigh having a chance at that.
I can cosign with this list, Mike, though I’d probably put Ellenore before Kathryn for my personal tastes.
Jakob has been one of my top favorites since his audition, and I’ve loved just about everything he’s done since then too. I’m mesmerized by his quality of movement. However, I don’t think he’s going to win. People tend to be turned off by individuals that are near-perfect at their craft and that don’t apologize for their ability. It brings out a certain insecurity. I’m sure Jakob will place as the 2nd guy above Ryan, but I doubt he’ll win.
I predict Russell. It’s almost like this finale was crafted for him to win. He pulled three great dances, was praised consistently by the judges who kept telling us he has no training outside of krump (which, at this point, I don’t buy). Russell also keeps a masculine quality to his dance, which I can see resonating with a lot of viewers, both male and female.
Kathryn will probably place after him. I think the battle for 2nd will be between Jakob and Kathryn. But, the winner to me is clear, it’s going to be Russell.
Although I really want Jakob to win at this point I also think it will be Russell. In the end its a popularity contest like anything else. Kathryn is my favorite for the girls to win even though honestly I like Ellenore’s personality in her dancing more. I just think Jakob did consistantly the best all season and is the better dancer. I think his routine with Kathryn last night did push him more than what we have seen before and that showed how brilliant he can be. I think there is so much emphasis placed on watching the dancer grow and change that it often falls flat when the most talented dancers start out and don’t have the awesome transformation that most of the other dancers go through. I think this is what happened to Kayla last season. She was consistantly good all the way through the season but didn’t have to overcome Russian Folk Dance etc. or have the Cinderella moment that Janine had with her routine with Jason where we finally saw how awesome she is too. We seem to reward the dancer that starts out as meh and becomes brilliant and not reward the dancers that start out as brilliant and progess only a fraction beyond that…
I disagree. I see that people are drawn to the journey of seeing a dancer improve, but I think it’s equally compelling to see a brilliant dancer in one style really delve into many other styles and excel at them. Jakob’s routines have usually been adorned with his signature contemporary moves, so nothing seems like enough of a departure. The one time I remember that not being the case was with his and Ashleigh’s hip hop. He performed well, but not so well that he stood out over Ashleigh or even the cool use of the back screen, and not so well that it didn’t come across to me as a contemporary dancer making a respectable effort.
Don’t get me wrong, I like Jakob a lot. I don’t mean to be contentious. I just don’t think it’s too much to ask that a dancer have an exceptional moment in a dance that does not include his own style before it’s declared a travesty that he didn’t win.
James, you are of course correct in your distrust of the judges saying that Russel has had no training outside of Krump. Here is his bio:
“Russell Ferguson, a 2007 graduate of the Boston Arts Academy (BAA), is one of the Top 20 finalists on Fox TV’s “So You Think You Can Dance.” Russell came to BAA with no formal dance training. During his four years at the school, he studied Ballet, Modern, Jazz, Tap, African, Repertory, Choreography, and Dance History, in addition to the school’s rigorous college preparatory academic curriculum. Russell is now a sophomore at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia”
So, no formal training since age 3 like many of the contestants, but 5.5 years of 5-day-a-week dance school hardls puts him in the category of “just krump”.
Good info, kevin! That’s awesome. It’s almost as if russell could have been a dizzy feet recepient had it been around back then, huh? Very cool.
Wow, it’s kind of amazing what qualifies as no formal training. And how the judges keep pushing that.
@Kevin: That’s what I suspected about Russell, that’s he’s had training in multiple styles on that level. I’m still proud of him, of course, he’s an amazing dancer and this in no way detracts from that. BUT, it is annoying how the judges have been so “surprised” by him because of his so-called lack of training. That’s pretty dishonest. I’m surprised by him because he’s an amazing dancer, pretty consistently, but by about week 3, I knew there was no way he hadn’t studied other styles and I stopped listening to the judge’s “surprised” reactions.
Even so, what he has been trained in and the amount of time is no where near what is considered “formal training”. I think it’s dishonest to say he hasn’t been exposed to other styles, but he doesn’t have that much training to speak of. The fact he spent four years in high school taking 8-9 different styles of dance (and classes, etc.) doesn’t tell me he’s been formally trained–it tells me he’s expanded his dance repertoire beyond “krump”. I think we have to be careful not to read too much into the type of training he likely received and how much just because of the school he went to. I didn’t start dancing until I was in high school, and even with a gymnastics background, I didn’t get close to catching up with those who started at ages 3-5. I danced every day for 8 years straight and never got close.
Just to keep in mind.
@Beth: That’s a great point. But, the judges make it sound like Russell’s walked straight in from krumping and has never been exposed to other styles. My complaint is with them and their representation of his background, not with Russell himself. I think he’s done amazing work, regardless of what level his exposure to other styles has been. However, I think it’s clear, if only in his confidence that he can attack other styles, that he’s engaged with more than just krump on a rigorous level. More power to him for getting that exposure and education at Boston Arts Academy.