So You Think You Can Dance Season 5 Finale Discussion Thread
This should be one of the most interesting discussion threads of the season. Did America get it right? Yes, I understand the irony of that statement. If it’s America’s Favorite Dancer and America votes, then how could they be wrong right? Well, I’ll leave that for you to discuss. Are you happy with the winner of So You Think You Can Dance? Were there any dances that they should have featured on the finale of So You Think You Can Dance season 5? Anything else that shocked you? Let’s hear your thoughts!!
Also, I want to thank all of you for stopping by Pure SYTYCD so often. I’ve loved having so many people comment and provide new perspectives on their favorite dancers. I hope you’ll keep coming back to talk about the SYTYCD tour and also season 6 of So You Think You Can Dance. Also, if you like blogging about SYTYCD, I’m always looking for more people to help out so drop us a line.
At least Evan got third. It always sucks to come in second because then you get no goodbye video, and just get forgotton. And its also like, you were right there and lost it. So third is good for Evan. I am happy Brandon did not win. But hey, everyone else is right, in a few months another person will be crowned. Now I just hope that the Kodak Theatre is NOT permemnt home for SYTYCD. Why? Well during every single dance, they dressed it up with some fancy picture in the background and that fancy picture distracted me from the dance and/or made me dizzy. Not cool. I Loved seeing the judges dance, especailly Tyce’s little pose, that made me giggle. Well, now we wait for season 6!! Yayaya.
Well, I for one was not at all surprised by the results tonight, and I’m sure a lot of people think the same way. Jeanine didn’t receive a lot of screen time during the auditions/vegas, but once she and Phillip nailed that first hip hop, everyone knew she was someone to look out for. I was pleasantly surprised with the show’s turn around. The performance show seemed to be filled with so much drama. The results show was classy, well done, and entertaining. Although Jeanine was not my favorite this season, I think she is very deserving of this title.
Now on to the actual show. I was pleased to see (most) of my favorite routines from this season. I actually hoping to see a Wade Robson routine (Ashley and Kupono or Brandon and Janette), or maybe even a Sonya routine. I was also somewhat expecting to see Melissa and Ade’s rumba. One thing that kind of got on my nerves was that they repeated Jeanine and Brandon’s paso doble. It was a good routine, but we just saw it last night. I would’ve preferred to see more routines from the beginning of the show.
To me, the biggest surprise of the season was Brandon. Brandon started off the season as a pretty recognizable face. If I’m not mistaken Brandon (previous to this season) has auditioned twice, so he already had a bit of a reputation, however, I feel as if the show was trying to play him off as almost being the “bad boy.” First he lied about his age, and then this season they played up his ego and his struggle with Mia and Lil C. Maybe it was the result of good partners/routines, or maybe it was just sheer talent, but I was personally surprised by his success. I’m not trying to say that Brandon is a bad dancer, because he is definitely one of the best the show has ever seen. These were just some of my thoughts.
Finally, I really wanted to see Lil C in the “One” number that the rest of the judges participated in. I think that would’ve been really entertaining. I was also excited to see Kherington again (she was fav. last season). So those were thoughts from tonight. I’m excited to see what others have to say. For a season with not as much raw talent, there were some amazing routines and personalities. I can’t wait for season 6 and congrats Jeanine!
Congrats to Jeanine! I am very happy about the outcome…it’s about time a girl won again.
I was the great show I love it in the Kodak…what bothers me are too many close ups. Then again nothing distracts me from dance.
Overall great show…I love seeing the judges strut their stuff. It was nice to hear that Tyce’s friend is cancer free. Anyone else notice Christina Applegate in the audience?
Jeanine was not my favorite, but I can be happy for her winning. I don’t think she was the best this season, but she certainly has talent.
I agree with Johnny Mar – the background at the Kodak was awful. At least on my DirecTV feed, whenever they used a low camera shot the dancers got all pixely.
I missed the Brandon/Janette Wade Robson piece in the finale and I would have liked to see it instead of last night’s Paso. But perhaps they couldn’t do it because of the lack of stairs.
As a side note – any idea why they allow unlimited votes per phone number? I realize saying 21.5 million votes sounds nice, but if my daughter were on the show I’d have at least 50 people putting in 500 votes per show.
As a casual fan, I can’t muster that kind of interest in voting for my favorite, so it seems like a relatively small number of people can sway the vote pretty significantly.
So awesome. I loved the dances they brought back, but I really didn’t need to see Brandon and Jeanine’s paso or Kayla and Max’s cha cha again. I would have preferred Brandon and Janette’s Wade Robson piece, Melissa and Ade’s rumba, Jeanine and Philip’s chain hip hop, etc.
I was really glad that Jeanine won. I really think she deserves it. She’s been consistent all season long, she hasn’t messed up on one dance, that I can remember anyways. She’s really one of the strongest (overall) female dancers that the show has ever had. Her solos are really phenomenal and I think America got it right this year.
So, who’s ready for September 2nd and the “Best of SYTYCD” episode? π
Yay Jeanine! Before there was even a Jeanine bandwagon I’ve been saying all along she’s the one…
@Kevin–probably because the producers are the same from American Idol, with the same rules. The phone companies love this show. lol
I kinda wish it was like DWTS, though, that you had a limited number of votes. I noticed on the disclaimers at the end of each show, they note that they monitor calls to make sure that it doesn’t seem like it’s being rigged with technology, etc. They reserve the right to throw out votes that were made with bulk phone technology. So that’s good.
Oh, they also state point blank that all dances and dance pairings were assigned randomly. π
Evan was my favorite, but I did not expect him to win (and I was afraid that a win might cause a backlash against his brother…) Boy, did Dial Idol really get it wrong this time:
http://dance.dialidol.com/asp/predictions/Predictions.asp?week=4&sort=TD&type=score&season=5
And I’m delighted that it did. Delighted that Evan got third instead of last and delighted that Jeanine won over Brandon!
Hey, did anyone wonder if Brandon will be getting the “Best Opposite Sex” (that’s what we called it at rabbit shows, LOL) prize like Katee did last season? Strange that there was no mention of it.
As far as the other comments go, I agree with many of the repeated sentiments
— I thought the show was classy and well done, and I especially liked the end with the judges stepping out on stage.
— I thought the background moving graphics were terribly distracting and the spotlights (probably necessary for such a large arena) washed the dancers out often. I would prefer the finale NOT be at the Kodak again, unless they can fix those problems.
— Would have LOVED to see Wade’s “Thief” routine, but Kevin, you’re probably totally right about the lack of stairs! I didn’t think about that!
Can’t wait for next season! Good thing I don’t have to wait long. π
Although I hoped Kayla would take it, I was pretty sure it would be Jeanine and she is completely deserving of the title. For getting through the Russian Folk dance alone she deserves it!
I do have to say that I was a little disappointed at some of the choices of repeat performances though. Clearly they have to try and fit in all styles and all choreographers, which is a shame because I believe this desperate desire to not offend the choreographers sometimes detracts from the show. Personally I was sorry we didn’t get a repeat of Wade’s crush test dummies routine, which I absolutely adored, and I could have done without the Paso. I was also puzzled by Auska and Vitolio’s waltz, since I actually found Kayla and Kupono’s to be much more memorable. And if Auska and Vitolio were to be included, how about Stacey Tookey’s contemporary for Jonathan and Karla? Also, I rarely enjoy disco fan and would much rather have watched Janette and Brandon’s Dave Scott hip hop.
Still, very happy for Jeanine and all of the top four were fantastic. Hopefully the much advertised season six can live up to or surpass our expectations a month from now!
Congrats to Jeanine!! She completely deserves the title of America’s favorite dancer.
Totally agree with you on the Paso, Chelsea. The music is just…distracting haha. And I was REALLY, REALLY hoping to see Karla and Jonathan do Stacey Tookey’s contemporary as well! Same with Dave Scott’s hip hop with Janette and Brandon. But other than the Paso, I think all the routines the judges chose were awesome and definitely my favorites. The addiction piece by Mia reminded me how much I freakin’ love that dance.
Another thing I loved was when the judges came out to dance, hahahaha. It was so awesome to see them out on the stage rather than sitting at the judge’s panel.
I’m glad that Evan didn’t take the title. Evan is indeed my favorite male dancer but if he had won it wouldn’t have sit well with a lot of people, including myself. He’s an amazing dancer and very versatile, and talk about humongous fan base…but it wouldn’t have been right. Adding on last night’s reaction, where the whole crowd chanted his name because he was being hammered so much from the judges, it would’ve seemed like he won out of pity, and I’m sure Evan wouldn’t have wanted to win that way. So I’m glad that America got it right.
So stoked for September 2nd!
Yay. my predictions were like exactly correct π they’re usually wrong so i’m smug like crazy now. so ignore me if you want to. π
i couldn’t be happier for jeanine. she’s a wonderful girl and a wonderful dancer. and she’s a fine example of what the show exempifies, which is to turn dancers into better dancers and stars. that’s great π
i know they wouldn’t encore karla and jonathan’s contemporary, but yeah. i’m still kind of sad.
not the best season, but i’m waiting for a better one. and i think one a year is enough for me. sytycd’s great, but it’s killing me cause i have so many things to do and i’m still addicted to this show! π
kyle! the karla and jonathan contemporary totally needs an encore. karla is still my favourite dancer besides janette, and i don’t care what people say about her. π
I agree basically word for word with buggy! Hooray for Janine and being right for ONCE about this crazy-addicting show!
You didn’t like the waltz, Chelsea? Asuka was my least-favorite female and Vitolio was in the bottom half of the males, for me. But that was still one of my favorite dances of the season. I liked the music, Asuka’s dress was stunning, and overall it just was really enjoyable.
I’m super bummed that Evan didn’t win, but if he couldn’t take the title I would have wanted it to be Jeanine. Nevertheless, still bummed Brandon placed higher than he did. Win or not, I at least wanted him to beat Brandon, lol. But he did well!
I didn’t get to watch the entire finale since I got sick last night, but I watched it long enough to go “whaa?” when they brought out Asuka and Vitolio for that waltz. It’s not that I hated the dance or anything, but compared to some of the other dances that I would have LOVED to see in its spot… it was just blah for me.
Hey Kelsey: Congrats to Jeanine but there’s nothing bad about finishing second and being the best guy dancer of the season. No way Brandon will be forgotten. His season on SYTYCD will be a beginning for him, not an ending, and we’ll be seeing him dance on stage or in movies or choreograph for years to come. SYTYCD has an interesting history of finalists achieving more in the dance world than winners.
I’m so freakin happy that Jeanine won!!! She’s awesome! Even during the shock of her win she cracked all these jokes and totally made me glad she won cause Brandon would’ve just been:”thank you yay (insert smile here)”. “Thank you, Academy” was hilarious and after Cat asked what she’d remember most she said, “um, right now for one.” Just the way she reacted to it made me think that America got it right.
Amanda, I saw Christina Applegate too! I wasn’t sure it was her until I came on here. I think she’s had breast cancer before so that dance really struck her hard i guess.
Did anyone else notice Travis’ yelling at one point when Cat was announcing something in the aisle? I thought it was awesome he just kept going WOOOOOOOOOOOO.
Congrats Jeanine! Either you or Brandon would have taken it, and I am fine with you doing so.
I do want to add that Jeanette was my star that night. Even in the clip section, hers was the only elimination shown, showing how much the producers and judges were affected by her leaving. But it was okay, because she was in the most performances that night. I don’t know, I never look at the ballroom dancers, but this year and last year, the girls (Jeanette and Chelsea) have grown on me because they have really shown their versatility.
See you guys in the fall!
So happy that it turned out the way it did.
Jeanine showed everyone we were right in choosing her after she won. She was hilarious and gracious.
Now that I’m watching the interviews and especially learning of Jeanine’s health problems (via TVGuide), I’m even more astounded that she didn’t turn it into a sob story and did so well.
This has got to be one of my favorite seasons ever. π
Kevin, no I wasn’t a huge fan of the waltz. I agree with Mrs., it was nice, but not very memorable for me and I thought there were better dances to be showcased (and better waltzes as I enjoyed Kayla and Kupono’s dream waltz more).
[…] Time for my thoughts on the finale. You can find a lot more discussion from other people here. […]
Nice thoughts. I had so many, I had to post them as their very own post: https://puresytycd.com/2009/08/07/my-sytycd-season-5-quick-thoughts/
Lance Bass was sitting next to Christina Applegate who, yes, was crying because it struck home. She’s also a singer/dancer.
I love Jeanine; I’m so glad she won. Definitely one of the underdogs in the competition. Her acceptance speech was quite good, too.
Today, right after I thought to myself, “Darn, I have to wait another month”, I just saw Tina Parol’s music video to “Who’s Got Your Money” and I saw Kayla (in the pink dress – it’s clearer towards the end).
Anyways, I think that once the tour’s over, we’ll be seeing so many of the dancers in different places. Can’t wait for Season 6 =]
First time posting, though I’ve been reading all season π
And I’ve been down with SYTYCD since Big Poppa was on the show π
I, too, am happy Jeanine won. Of the finalists, she was the only “total package.” Each of the other 3 were lacking in some capacity, whether it be personality (Kayla & Brandon) or technique growth (Evan).
Her acceptance speech was awesome. At the verrrry end of the show, she was talking to Nigel and I read her lips saying “I promise to represent you well” (DVR folks, go back and check it out!) It made me love her all over again π
I’m so happy they’re doing a show in the fall… I can’t get enough of this show. Football and SYTYCD? Best.Fall.Ever! lol!
Jeanine was worthy of the win. I am ashamed to say I am mostly glad that Brandon or Kayla didn’t win. Yeah I am a sulky Janette fan. I would have loved to seen her and Max partnered for any ballroom style, epecially Latin. I so wish we could get all the past seasons on DVD. Looking forward to Sept. Can’t see Ryan doing as well as Evan if he would make it to top 20. The closest the tour would get to my home is Columbus OH. Would love to go. Anyone going to one of the shows????
Deah,
Glad you stepped out of lurking and joined the comments. Always good to have more people contributing to the discussion. Nice job on the lip reading. Jeanine has always been stand up. However, I always find it a little creepy when Nigel’s hugging the girls on the show.
Glad to know there are some other football lovers on the site as well. I’m planning to go to see the first football game in the new Cowboys stadium…woot!!
Why is EVERYONE dissin’ on Brandon?? I, personally thought he was THE best DANCER & what is this with his ‘personality’ being ‘full of himself’. He came off (to me) as an insecure, almost shy young man that just happens to be a Damn Great Dancer! I was disappointed that Brandon didn’t win and would rather have seen Kayla win! Jeanine is a GREAT dancer as well, but I don’t think she should have won. (Everyone has a right to their opinion, but it is not very nice to PUT THESE young dancers down, when YOU KNOW nothing about them…I mean really!!) Evan is a GREAT dancer and should do well any way, no matter what! So as for me, I LOVE Brandon & wish he could have won, but I’m sure he’ll be fine, dispite what all of YOU have to say about him!!
No one else has mentioned this, so maybe it’ just me, but here’s something that really, really bothered me about the two Finale episodes.
This especially applies to Wednesday’s episode. It seems like Nigel had such an agenda about who he wanted voted out. Most obvious and disturbing example: what in the world was that stupid rodeo dance they gave Evan and Kayla?! That was one of the worst dances they’ve had on the show ever, and then they follow it up with Brandon and Jeanine’s huge, epic *Matrix-soundtracked* Paso Doble. Nigel was begging America to look at Evan and Kayla as complete jokes. Thatβs not the finale-quality dance those two deserved to show how good they are. That was rigged.
And what’s with Adam Shankman insulting Tony and Melanie’s choreography? Clearly the choreographers are not to be blamed for this. There was no picking out of a hat this week – the producers assigned genres and really hurt Kayla and Evan’s chances. That was unfair. In the judgesβ comments Adam insinuates that it’s not a dance people are gonna vote for. Mary tells them they’re not waving their arms around enough – but the choreographers obviously told them to put their arms out like that. Nigel and the other judges have insulted Tony and Melanie’s dances on at least three separate episodes now – they should stop using them if they don’t like their style. But I think that’s exactly why the producers had Kayla and Evan dance that genre/choreographer pairing.
Add to that the fact that two of Evan’s routines were him getting punched around on stage. Nigel said after the first one, “That’s the last time I want to see you thrown around this stage tonight.” He clearly knew that Brandon would be doing exactly that in their next routine. Then Nigel gets condescending and tells him he’s got a “happy, choochy” face and that it’s “unfortunate” he was dancing in a song about “nasty boys.” Again, I don’t believe that was unfortunate – that was planned.
And then after Evan’s solo – as someone else mentioned – Adam points out that he adapted it from a previous solo he did. But they raved about Brandon’s repeat solo and kept quiet about him using it twice. Adam even implies that it might make people not vote for Evan. There’s no need to say that β unless itβs specifically meant to incite doubt about the quality of a performance. And then Nigel says, “Yeah you’re special, because people see you and say “Ah, isn’t he cute?” And later he calls him a “lovely, lovely lad.” Are you kidding me? I found Nigel’s condescension to be really offensive.
Now, if Nigel’s bias were not shown enough – he mentions almost a half dozen times how he wants Jeanine and Brandon to be the top two. He doesn’t want the winner of his show to be anyone else. And Mary and Adam both refuse to say who they think will win – but of course Nigel readily says again that Brandon and Jeanine will be the top two. He’s fishing for votes.
Thank goodness for Mia Michaels choreographing a dance for Kayla and Jeanine that still seemed genuine and artistic. And Jeanine and Brandon danced incredibly, without question β Iβm happy with Jeanine winning. But I’m truly disappointed in the finale. I loved this show all along, and then they became as cheap and fake as any other show out there. This week, SYTYCD stopped being a show that was about dancing, showing some great personalities, and highlighting the quality and diversity of the dances and the people performing. Instead it became about Nigel’s ratings and getting the popular result that he wanted. The season started and ended like this, unfortunately, as we all know how shamelessly these shows highlight the awful auditions and parade their failures just to get viewers. This season redeemed itself from that with the top 20 episodes. And then the finale brought it all back. I hope season 6 is better β both in the overall quality of dances and in the way they treat their performers.
@Peter:
I know a lot of people entertain the notion of the “conspiracy theory” of dance selections for this show (yes, John, I know you love it, lol). But the disclaimers at the end clearly emphasize that all pairings and dances are randomly assigned. I could easily have claimed that Melissa and Evan getting a quickstep the week before was rigged, since we all know it’s the kiss of death, but it was just the “luck” of the draw. Can you imagine how ticked most of the fans would be if it came out that the show was rigged? The show would be over, IMO. No way they’d let that happen. It’s not good business sense.
Plus, Kayla had been the judges favorite ALL season long. They liked Jeanine, but Kayla was their girl. Hot tamale train right off the bat, first person into the Top 20, etc. They loved her. So I doubt they would have intentionally sabotaged her, even if they would have for Evan.
Additionally, the judges playing favorites often backfires on them (e.g., the Brandon/Mia stuff got him into the finale and Janette’s “my favorite of the season” from Mia got her voted off). It’s clearly not a foolproof strategy to implement on the judges part if that’s what they’re trying to do.
With that said–I hated how biased they were against Evan during the finale. I was very disappointed in that. I was not a huge Evan fan, but that treatment almost made me vote for him over Jeanine, because it was so unfair, IMO. However, Nigel is pretty straightforward in most finales (remember him hating the fox piece with Lacey and Sabra two years ago? I can think of other’s too, including telling Courtney last year that she wasn’t as good as Katee). I really think that Nigel felt Evan was not living up to his potential, and it got to him. He couldn’t contain himself any longer. It’s a shame, because I’d rather there be more respect shared during the finale, but none of those judges are–or have ever been–Paula Abduls on SYTYCD. There’s no “nice” judge on the panel that you can guarantee get something positive from. It’s just one of those moments for me.
Finally, it may not be the dancer’s fault if they get cruddy choreography, but it definitely plays into whether they will win or not. That’s why there’s an air of luck to it all–and that’s what makes it interesting from week to week. You have to not only hope your favorite executes their chosen style, but that the choreographer delivers as well. Tony and Melanie usually deliver, but that jive was not their best, IMO. I agreed with Adam–it was forgettable. Not the best quality for a finale.
I am with you, though–I don’t like the bad auditions. They make me so uncomfortable to see people making fools of themselves and the show getting ratings because of it. But SYTYCD has always done it, just like Idol, so I’m guessing that’s just the price we pay for an otherwise awesome show.
beth,
No, I can’t say I love it. I thing the producers produce the show, but I don’t think it’s rigged.