Dancing With the Stars Season 13 Week 7 Recap: Halloween Tricks and Treats
Halloween has taken over the Dancing with the Stars ballroom as six couples have to tackle two dances. The first will be a holiday-inspired routine. The second will split the cast into Teams Tango and Paso Doble.
Tonight the ballroom is covered in cobwebs and jack-o-lanterns as this week's theme is Halloween. Tom Bergeron is a little too into the Halloween puns ("Dead from Los Angeles" and such) but Brook is completely uninterested, so I guess it averages out. Anyway, the show will feature six couples dances and two team dances, so let's get started.
David Arquette and Kym Johnson are up first with a Cha Cha to "Abracadabra" by Steve Miller Band. Truth be told, I checked out of the show this season, so I'm not 100% up on what storylines have developed – aside from Maks yelling at Nancy Grace's boobs or whatever. Has David always sounded like he has been on Novocain? The performance begins with David pretending to be a slight-of-hand magician. His feet are all over the place to start, but I think that may be his shoes slipping under him. Len says tehere were lots of tricks and treats in the performance that was overall well done. Bruno tells David he is a natural at turning tricks. Carrie Ann says something in response, to which Bruno calls her a "pussy..............................................cat." That's what the seven-second delay is for. Carrie Ann says she is impressed with David's phenomenal improvement throughout the competition. David and Kym score 8's across the board for 24 points. The audience approves.
JR Martinez and Karina Smirnoff have the tough assignment of creating a Tango to the theme from Ghostbusters. Both the star and the dancer discuss how mental stress is kicking in at this point as the two struggle through rehearsal frustrations. The performance is difficult to judge, as the dance style and the song are at odds with each other. There's also weird After Effects stuff getting added in to the staging – the whole performance is a distraction. Ricki Lake looks bored as she watches from the balcony above. Bruno opens the critiques, calling the performance solid given how incredibly difficult matching the timing of the dance to the song was. Carrie Ann agrees, though she adds there were a few slips. Len called the performance substandard in relation to the previous few weeks, but that's a high bar JR has set for himself. Carrie Ann awards a 9, Len and Bruno give out 8's, giving JR and Karina 25 points.
Nancy Grace and Tristan MacManus have been given the Jive, the dance that Nancy has been looking forward to most. She's expecting the judges to gun for her, so she wants to make sure she has the fun and athleticism the dance requires. She demonstrates this spirit by doing a cartwheel. Impressive. The music begins and it is "The Devil Went Down to Georgia." Ugh, not just for the song choice but for this sorry excuse of a jive. There are no kicks or flicks. The judges don't gun for Nancy, but they don't have anything favorable to say. Len is the nicest when he says that some dances just don't suit some dancers, but the audience boos anyway. 7's down the line for 21 points.
Rob Kardashian and Cheryl Burke have to Tango to the theme to The Addams Family. What, did MC Hammer say no to clearing "Addams Family Groove"? That song was the jam at the roller rink when I was a youngster. Anyway, this performance was actually pretty good. Yeah, it easily fits into the theme of the evening, but if the theme was TV Theme Songs it would work just as well. Len thought the footwork and attack were on point and that Rob did a good job. Bruno thought Rob led well but reminds the Kardashian to keep his bum under his frame. Carrie Ann calls the performance Rob's best dance so far. Good for him. Carrie Ann gives them a 9, Bruno and Len give out 8's, so that's a total of 25.
Ricki Lake and Derek Hough have the Paso Doble set to Beynocé's "Sweet Dreams" in a Red Riding Hood motif. However, Ricki injured herself last week and got checked out. A nerve near her ribs enflamed, making just about everything as painful as possible. Derek interviews that he will draw on his experience working with Jennifer Grey to get through the remainder of the competition. As for the performance, this is a really impressive Paso. Ricki does a series of amazing turns and her costume has a flow to it that creates interesting shapes. The judges go gaga over the performance. Bruno and Carrie Ann mention that Ricki's shoulders did tense up, but that could be her injury's fault. Len's critique is almost incomprehensible, like a child describing a day at the amusement park. Ricki gets 9's from all three judges, putting her in first place with 27.
Hope Solo and Maksim Chmerkovskiy close out the couples' round with a "Werewolves of London" samba. Sure, why not? Maks injured his toe, so he has pulled Teddy from the DWTS troupe to help with rehearsals. Hope and Teddy have a good rapport that includes far more giggling than Maks prefers. You perform how you rehearse, and it looks like giggling has caused problems. Lots of missed hand connections and Hope's arms look awful. Frankly, the whole performance was dumb. The judges are rather vague in their critiques, saying Hope had fun, she coped with the Samba and she danced for her life. I get the impression that Hope and Maksim don't really like each other. The judges give the couple 8's across the board, so that's 24 points.
We still have twenty minutes to fill, so let's do some team dancing. First up is Team Tango with JR, David and Nancy performing a prison dance to "Disturbia" by Rihanna. The opening is impressive and in synch, but then the wheels fly off the wagon. Nancy's portion lacks content, David's legs look incredibly stiff and JR, while the best of the three, looks rather awkward in hold. The judges also found themselves underwhelmed. Though the overall performance was okay, the group portion was significantly better than the individual portions. Team Tango earned 23 points.
Closing tonight are the three pairs of Team Paso Doble. Ricki, Hope and Rob dance to "Bring Me to Life" by Evanescence. This performance was significantly better than Team Tango's, though the Paso is more visually impressive than the Tango. Hope stuck out like a sore thumb compared to the other dancers, looking rather stiff and emotionless. I am not impressed with her or her dynamic with Maks. The judges ignore that, instead effusing over the performance. Rob gets a special shoutout for keeping up with the male pros on the team. Team Tango scored 26 points.
So here are the standings after two rounds:
Ricki/Derek 53
Rob/Cheryl 51
Hope/Maksim 50
JR/Karina 48
David/Kym 47
Nancy/Tristan 44
Will Nancy survive another week? Find out with Kellee tomorrow night at 9pm Eastern! Justin Bieber and Boyz II Men will also swing by the ballroom.
Mike McComb – TVLatest.com
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