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« Dancing with the Stars
Episode Recap: Double Eviction Night
All the magic in the world couldn't keep Penn Jillette and Monica Seles in the competition. Good job, America. I wonder how long Adam Carolla will hang on? Marissa and him may be hanging on by the skin of their teeth.
In the midst of the hour-long fluff that is the results show, I started thinking about what a colossal waste of time it is. Do I need two performances by the Jonas Brothers? Do I need to see people flying in mid-air? No, I don't. With the sixth installment under way, I must say this show is in need of a makeover. So let's get a discussion started: What do you want to see changed for next season of Dancing with the Stars? Maybe if we make enough noise, ABC will listen. Mmmm…not bloody likely. But at least we can say we tried! Here are a few of my suggestions:
• Enough with the fluff
Those two hour shows could easily be 90 or 60 minutes if they cut out the intro pieces before the contestants dance. Another option would be to considerably shorten them (do I need to see Karina and Mario practicing on the beach?) or only pick a few contestants to profile per week.
• The Samantha Harris Solution
I don't despise her like some most of you do, but her interviews after the performances are pretty pointless. At the very least, they are far too long. Just show me the scores! I don't want to see her disappear altogether, but Tom doesn't seem to need much help hosting so I'm at a loss as to what to do with her! Maybe just put her on the results show. Speaking of which…
• The results shows are too long
With the exception of finale night, I don't see why this show needs to be more than 30 minutes. One performance in addition to the encore dance is enough and the remaining twenty minutes can go to some recaps, interviews (where Samantha can come in) and the elimination itself. Sorry Macy's.
• Less is more
Dare I say it, but I think 2 installments per television season is one too many. Fans are fickle and we don't want the viewers getting tired. It would also help to keep it fresh and leave us wanting more. If that isn't an option, I'd like to see fewer contestants per installment. This could allow them to add more of that fluff they love so much without packing on the minutes.
What are your thoughts? Are my suggestions valid or ridiculous? Give me your feedback and offer some suggestions of your own. Remember, we don't do this to pick on the show but because we want to see it continue and remain entertaining. We have some time until the lights go up in the ballroom again, so let's get to chatting!
POLL: Who's your favorite? Vote here.
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Mar 25, 2008 10:06 PM
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Krista, I do agree with you on the length of the results show, I usually fast-forward all the singing parts but I do watch the dancing segments. I think a half an hour would be fine. I do disagree with you on the "fluff" piece before each dance. I enjoy the practice sessions just as much as the dance itself. I like to see the chemistry between partners and how the whole dance comes together by show time. Keep up the good comments!
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Mar 25, 2008 10:25 PM
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Okay, I confess, I didn't even bother to watch the recap. When I saw there was an hour long recap and then an hour long results show ...I thought, "how worthless is that?" Of course, one reason I thought that was because I was watching the hour and a half live show of American Idol. It was perfect timing in my opinion, that when AI was finished I switched over just in time to see Penn eliminated. (Which was totally justified!) I then watched the last half hour to see Monica leave as well. Oh yeah, there was obviously way, WAY too much filler for a results show! I also confess that I did rewind just far enough to hear Steve Guttenberg's interview  You just gotta love him!
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Mar 25, 2008 10:29 PM
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I like the Macy's stars of dance segments. I thought Wade Robson's crazy circus thing last season was awesome, and I'm pretty sure I saw Sabre (So You Think You Can Dance?'s latest winner) on tonight. Its cool to highlight these dancers.
That being said, yes its long, yes I played my nintendo ds while I watched, but it was relaxing fluff after a long day. Some of its really corny, but I forgive them as long as there's good dancing!
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Mar 25, 2008 11:15 PM
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All reality shows are too long. That is why I always dvr them and do other things while they're being recorded then zoom thru the nonsense and commercials. I watched Idol(on Dvr) then Dancing right after and therefore I controlled the evening and the time to my schedule. It's a great way to enjoy your favorite shows.
I would have to bet that Adam leaves us next week as well he should. The special acrobatic dance was very impressive.
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Mar 25, 2008 11:37 PM
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FINAL ORDER OF FINISH (subject to change):
1 - Kristi
2 - Mario
3 - Cristián
4 - Jason
5 - Priscilla
6 - Shannon
_______________________________________
WEEK 2: unchanged from week 1
There are some striking similarities with last year. Kristi and Mario are in a class by themselves. Like Helio, Kristi is from the world of sports. Like Mel B., Mario is from the world of music.
Cristián will edge out Jason for the third spot. Jason is a much better dancer than Cristián, but is too big and tall for his partner. Cristián has the look of a dance champion and big advantage of having 2-time winner Cheryl Burke for his partner.
Spots 5, 6 and 7 will go to women. Priscilla is this year's Marie Osmond, but doesn't have Donnie and the gang rooting for her. Priscilla would have won this competition 30 years ago. Her main competition is Shannon. Like Jennie Garth, Shannon is a knockout and can beat Priscilla with the help of male fans. Marlee has a slight chance of knocking one or both of them out with the help of fans.
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Mar 25, 2008 11:51 PM
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Krista I get where you are coming from--really I do. But you forget that this is a business and therefore what we want (keeping the show original, not burning out etc) is irrelevant to the powers that be. More time means more ad dollars and with 20 million plus viewers a showing, Dancing with the Stars isn't going to be trimmed down (even if the majority of the show is fluff some nights).
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Mar 26, 2008 1:19 AM
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I might be the only one out here that enjoys the results show but i do. I like to see the professional dancers dance. They always have a special guest on the show and lots of dancing. I don't want to see that fluff as i've heard some people call it, taken away from the people yhat enjoy it.
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Edited by shellbelle521 at 03/25/2008 11:57 PM
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Mar 26, 2008 2:56 AM
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The results shows are an hour. The recap hour is optional and a bonus for people who forgot to tape the previous night's show. In a results show, you typically get two songs performed, one or two professional dances, and a repeat dance from one of the contestants. I think an hour is the perfect length. I just wish it were on at eight so that my nieces could watch it before bedtime.
With that said, I wish they would get rid of Samantha Harris. She's cringe-inducing and her questions are so incredibly inane. I'm all for getting rid of the idiotic interview portion.
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Mar 26, 2008 2:58 AM
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cmleidi, I had to laugh. That was nearly word for word what I was going to say!!
Personally, I enjoy the interviews and would love to see more of the professional dancers' lives. And I'm all for the professional dance segments. Those are the best! So I don't mind anything about the results show..anything except Samantha Harris. What in heck do the producers see in her? Obviously the vast majority of viewers can't stand her. And what was with her dress tonight? As much as I don't like her, I usually like her dresses but this one was horrendous.
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Mar 26, 2008 3:48 AM
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Krista, I agree with you that less is more, but I doubt the producers of DWTS will ever get it. Personally, I could do without the special guests and special dance numbers, neither of which is ever very special IMO. I enjoy the interviews and the pre-dance pieces. Usually it seems the couple is never going to pull it together, and then they dance and it's fine. I could do with a little less Samantha, but obviously the producers feel otherwise.
I agree with the eliminations last night, don't know how much more of Penn I could take. He got more obnoxious with every show. I will be dreadfully upset when it's Marissa's time to go. She obviously loves being on the show.
The advantage of the fluff-filled results show on Tuesday night is that it's really possible to flip between DWTS and AI and not miss anything important.
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Mar 26, 2008 8:22 AM
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I agree - too much fluff, too many commercials.
if they want to keep all the fluff then have a double eviction every week.
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Mar 26, 2008 8:41 AM
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I'm all for getting rid of all that extra stuff too--I don't mind the dancers' thoughts after they receive their scores, see them practicing, etc. I also like the professional dances they show. But everything else? No thanks.
I'm so peeved because for some reason, my dvr stopped recording at the second hour, which means all I had the pleasure of watching was all that...fluff!!! I so wanted to see Penn's reaction when he got booted! He so deserved it.
Will definitely watch it LIVE next week.
~Sangeeta
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Mar 26, 2008 9:01 AM
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I agree with decreasing the length results show. It could be 30 minutes. I like to watch the professionals dance together. There was so much good tv on last night that I only tuned to DWTS for the last 5 minutes to see who was out. Between Big Brother, American Idol, and a Hockey game,(Go Pittsburgh Penguins). There was so much more to watch that the Results Show was kind of indispensable.
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Mar 26, 2008 9:07 AM
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Yeah, the results show probably doesn't need to be an hour long, but ABC probably gets paid by Macy's to include that crazy dancing stuff. And the Jonas Brothers, or whatever other musical act that's there, brings more viewers to the show (or I'm guessing that's what the purpose of them is).
I disagree with you about getting rid of the intro segments before each couple dances - that's one of my favorite parts! Most of the time, they're so hilarioius, and I think it helps us see what they've been working on and such. I think one thing they could get rid of is the encore dance on the results show night, but that would only save a couple of minutes, so really, it wouldn't make that much of a difference.
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Mar 26, 2008 9:15 AM
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