Tag Archives: sytycd

this summer’s tv

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I remember when summertime meant reruns on TV. Not anymore! This summer I’m spending my time with…

White Collar.
My favorite bromance is back. Though the show still features a “case of the week,” I’m really enjoying the tension just beneath the surface between Neal and Peter. It adds some depth to the show that wasn’t previously there. Good stuff! But I hate the new opening credits. Bring back the old credits!

Suits
Discovered this show thanks to Christie. I guess I can’t resist cute boys in suits (see above: White Collar) cause it’s become my new obsession. 😀 I love the mentor/mentee banter between Harvey and Mike. My only complaint is that I wish they wouldn’t spend any more time on Mike’s personal life, in particular his relationships with Trevor and Jenny. I know it’s necessary to show his time away from the office, not to mention his character growth but UGH… they are not interesting characters. Hopefully they’ll veer away from this storyline in upcoming episodes.

Game of Thrones
A few weeks ago, Rob arrived home after a weekend in Las Vegas and at the airport, he picked up the first book in this series. I hadn’t been particularly interested in it before but somehow, Rob convinced me to check out the show. And we devoured all 10 episodes in a few days. I absolutely love Tyrion and Arya (such spunk!) and can’t wait to see if I’ll enjoy them as much in the books. That is, if Rob ever finishes it so I can read it. 🙂

So You Think You Can Dance
As much as I love this show, it’s become too contemporary-focused, which is unfortunate. The first week of eliminations definitely proved that to me with Iveta and Nick getting the boot. On the other hand, I’m glad they’re using new choreographers this season. Routines were getting stale and the show needed some new blood to mix things up. So far, my favorite dancers are Tadd (can’t help it – he’s filipino!) and Melanie and Marko (talk about power couple!). Sasha and Ryan are my least favorites — they are OVER-HYPED.

I’m also working my way through the first seasons of True Blood and The Tudors (yes, again). WOOT.

It’s a good summer for TV.

In other fandom news, complete Comic-Con programming has been released. Just under 2 weeks now! I’m not 100% sure what panels I’m going to try and see but I do know that I’m bummed my TV boyfriend Joshua Jackson isn’t attending this year. Sadness.

in my head right now…

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The weeks have been absolutely flying by. Seriously, how is it almost September?! I can’t keep up.

Random stuff I’ve been thinking about…

I changed the theme of my blog! It’s pink now and much more ME than the blue craziness.

Work life has been insane. One of my managers left (*sob*) and we hired a new assistant… so with all these changes, I had the opportunity to travel to San Francisco for a few days (my first time in over a year!). I was looking forward to the hustle and bustle and cool weather of the city. Imagine my surprise when I arrived on Monday morning and was greeted by the VERY SAME HEAT that I left behind. WTF. Despite the heat, it was a good trip — I had fun dinners with great friends, caught up with co-workers, window shopped downtown, picked up late night frozen yogurt to cool down, and even managed to get some work done. I feel very lucky to have experienced the city again. But when I landed in Orange County last night, I was ridiculously happy. It definitely doesn’t have the energy of a big city but it’s home. “There’s no place like home” is a cliche for a reason.

I watched an episode of The Good Wife the other day and LOVED it. Now it’s my mission to watch the entire first season before the second premieres. The pilot is free to download on iTunes this week so I think it’s fate.

The Burn Notice summer finale was INSANE. In a good way.

I recently discovered the wonder that is the Google Reader. I follow 100+ blogs (it’s an addiction, what can I say) and I finally have a streamlined way of always being caught up. SO. AWESOME.

Maybe I’m judge-y or whatever but I think it’s kind of weird when I see that someone’s Twitter feed consists primarily of work updates and links to work-related articles. Or maybe I’m jealous that there are people out there that truly feel like their work is an extension of them. Believe me, I would NEVER be caught reading trade publications in my free time. Time away from work is too precious a commodity.

I have iphone rage. I updated my 3G to the new OS a few weeks back and now it sucks balls. It’s slow and is prone to freezing. Damn you Apple. I bet this was your evil plot all along — to make me hate my phone so much that I’ll eventually break down and buy the new iphone 4. Bastards. I’m annoyed but will totally fall for it. Hook, line, and sinker.

Totally late but YAY for Lauren winning So You Think You Can Dance. She was my favorite of the final 3 (awesome personality and versatility) — and I totally loved that she foiled the judges hope of a male contemporary dancer winning. Ok, they never said that but I firmly believe there are behind the scenes manipulations that happen on this show to get the results they want. I guess I’m a TV conspiracy theorist?

That’s all I’ve got. Sorry for all the text. Next time I’ll include pics. 😀

sytycd s7 changes

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Summer means… So You Think You Can Dance! (Ok, I know season 6 was in the Fall but that season was so forgettable – poor dancers didn’t even get a tour).

I’m excited that the show is back on but I feel like the dancers are (again!) getting the short end of the stick because of the changes…

— No Top 20. Instead, it was supposed to be a Top 10, making the competition even tougher. Unfortunately, the producers and judges decided to wimp out and cast a Top 11 because they couldn’t decide on just 5 guys. COME ON. Top 11 is silly! They should have either had the balls to cut a guy (Billy Bell would be my pick — he failed to impress unlike last season) or at least invited another dancer (Anthony Burrell!) and made it a Top 12.

— Partners change each week. I like this but have to admit I’m going to miss getting invested in “power couples” like Katee & Joshua or Sabra & Dominic. On the other hand, this means there won’t be another disaster like Mollee & Nathan who only seemed to bring out the worst in each other.

— AND instead of pairing up the dancers with one another, they’ve brought back a group of All-Stars from previous seasons who will partner with the newbies when their style is chosen. Part of me is super excited about this because… Pasha! Anya! Dominic! Courtney! Mark! Neil! Love them. Could do without Lauren (ugh). Anyway. Seriously though? This season’s dancers are totally getting the shaft with the introduction of the All-Stars. Viewers are already familiar with them so it’ll be that much harder for the actual contestants to break through and be memorable. The All-Stars will likely have an impact on the voting as well.

I also do NOT like seeing the contestants receive the good or bad news with their families. Was it really necessary to fly the judges around the country to tell people they didn’t make it to the Top 11? What is the point of that?!

All that said, I’m still excited. I love dance so much! It doesn’t hurt that the dancers are easy on the eyes. 🙂


All-Stars!

Top Eleven!

Early favorites so far – Kent Boyd (he is adorable), Alexie Agdeppa (she’s filipino! and a former Laker girl!), and ALEX FREAKING WONG (AMAZING).

sytycd top 20 performances

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So You Think You Can Dance season 6 has started and I already… do not like it. :/ I don’t like all the changes they had to make to the format of the show.

First. I don’t like the stage. Or the lights. It’s too big and showy and impersonal. Is it weird that I miss the stairs too?

Second. I hate that the results shows had to be sacrificed for the first 2 weeks because of World Series programming.

AND THIRD. I call shenanigans on the eliminations. I am SO ANNOYED that Noelle got a free pass when Ariana got cut. She’s injured. She cannot perform. So what is she doing in the Top 18 now? DOES NOT COMPUTE. I’m also annoyed for poor Brandon. Billy gets sick and bows out of the competition. Understandable. But why’d they even bother to bring Brandon back if the judges didn’t think he was ready for Top 20 anyway? They should have just “eliminated” Billy and Noelle and everyone else could move on to the next week.

I love this show but GAWD. I don’t get their logic sometimes.

There were only 2 good things about the performance show…

1. Actual constructive criticism from the judges this week. WTF. This never happens! Most of the time they compliment the choreographers or talk about how gorgeous the dancers look. That’s nice and all but tell them what they can improve on! For example, I was SO GLAD that Adam told Bianca that she was hunching her shoulders and needed to point her toes. I was griping about both of those exact things during the whole routine. (Rob loves watching this show with me, hehe).

2. Kathryn and Legacy’s hip hop routine. They were so awesome and charismatic! And I don’t even really care for Legacy. This was the only memorable performance of the night for me. Everything else was completely mediocre and forgettable (choreography and performances both).

I’m really, really disappointed so far. 🙁

For the record, my early favorites (based on Vegas week and the Top 20 preview show) are Pauline, Russell, and Ellenore. But none of them really “wow”-ed me last night.

I hope next week will be better. *crosses fingers*

sytycd top 14

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Too tired and frankly kind of annoyed at So You Think You Can Dance to write my normal commentary. But I wanted to make sure I posted my predictions to see if I can get 2 out of 3 again…

Bottom 3
Randi/Evan – good Broadway choreography but lackluster performance
Caitlin/Jason – see above; I also think the general public won’t “get” it
Karla/Vitolio – surprisingly, really good! But they’ve been in the bottom the past 2 weeks and I don’t think a quickstep will keep them out out.

Rob and I voted for Karla/Vitolio for good measure. Fingers crossed!

sytycd top 16

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After a promising start in the first week’s eliminations, I thought last week was a little bit of a letdown (although I did predict 2 out of the bottom 3 again). I didn’t think Ashley or Max should have gone home — I would have sent home Caitlin (her technique isn’t any different than Kayla’s, imo) and Kupono (based on his lackluster hip hop performance and solo).

On to this week! Toni Basil is the guest judge. Her comments about “street” make me want to throw something at the TV so I fast-forwarded every time she opened her mouth. It’s too bad — I admire her dance and choreography career but she goes on and on and on during her critiques and doesn’t even really say anything constructive or helpful.

LOVED
Melissa and Ade – They’ve been OMGSOGOOD these past 3 weeks. And this rumba was fantastic. They got the hip movements and emotions down… their angles were gorgeous, lifts steady… I think they’ve just become my favorite couple.
Janette and Brandon – I haven’t been overly impressed with them so far but they totally killed this hip hop routine. Especially Brandon. I was not expecting him to be so good! It was energetic and fun — definitely my favorite of the night. WOW.

LIKED
Kayla and Kupono – A solid Viennese waltz. Very “dreamy” and ethereal feeling. But is it just me or was that routine really short? It felt like there were more tricks and lifts than actual waltzing.
Randi and Evan – The concept of this contemporary routine is pretty ridiculous but it worked. They were cute and performed it well. No complaints here.
Jeanine and Philip – Jeanine really shined in this Broadway performance. Philip’s lucky that the routine relied heavily on personality because he definitely lacks technique. Overall, though, they sold it.

EHHH
Karla and Jonathan – This Dave Scott hip hop was SO. DISAPPOINTING. First. Jonathan was waaaayyy out of his league. He couldn’t get the steps, he wasn’t in sync with Karla, and he had absolutely no personality. He seems like such a nice guy but SERIOUSLY, he is dragging her down. Poor Karla. I think she’s an amazing dancer but she’s saddled with a below average partner. Second. I really like Dave Scott but I think part of the problem was the choreography. It’s like he put all the effort into Janette and Brandon’s routine and slapped this one together.
Asuka and Vitolio – I didn’t like this jazz routine at all. I normally like Mandy’s choreography but this one didn’t do anything for me at all. A lot of it didn’t seem to flow very well from one step to the other… or maybe it was the dancers, I’m not sure. I actually stopped watching in the middle because Vitolio was so obviously out-dancing Asuka that it made me feel uncomfortable for her. Just like Jonathan, I think she’s out of her element — she’s not a very versatile dancer (yet) and it’s definitely starting to show.
Caitlin and Jason – Even with the dramatic music, I was bored out of my mind with this paso doble. They lacked the power and chemistry needed to pull this off. And it didn’t help that I could see the effort and concentration in their faces.

Predictions for the Bottom 3: Definitely Karla/Jonathan (insert sad face here) and Asuka/Vitolio. I’m wavering back and forth on Caitlin/Jason and Kayla/Kupono for the third spot but I’ll guess Caitlin/Jason. Ideally, I’d like Jonathan and Asuka to go so that would make way for a new couple in Karla/Vitolio…

sytycd top 18

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The So You Think You Can Dance judges totally got it right last week and sent Paris and Tony home. Wow! I was very surprised. And pleased. They were definitely the weakest performance of the Top 20.

Tonight’s episode was a little underwhelming compared to last week. 🙁 BUT. Shane Sparks is back (darn ABDC for keeping him away) and he choreographed 2 awesome routines! Too bad the dancers who got hip hop were disappointing. UGH, what a waste. I think I got spoiled last season with all the great hip hop dancers (Joshua, Twitch, Comfort, Gev).

I have to wake up really early tomorrow so I’ll try to write up some quick comments…

LOVED
Melissa and Ade – I haven’t been a fan of Sonya’s jazz choreography in the past but I *really* loved this. And these two were so great. Everything looked so effortless and they were totally in character. I have to agree with the judges that in watching this routine you wouldn’t know Melissa is a ballerina. Ballet requires “lifted” posture and elegant port de bras (arms), which is pretty much the complete opposite of what this jazz piece required.
Karla and Jonathan – This contemporary routine was my favorite of the night. All the lifts and partner work! So beautiful. But Karla really carried the performance — Jonathan is good (not great) and I’m worried he’s going to hold her back.
Kayla and Max – Yay, Brian Friedman’s back! I’ve loved him since he choreographed for Britney and NSync back in the day. I have to admit that I watched Kayla for most of this pop jazz routine. Max just isn’t as charismatic on stage. Kayla is a beautiful dancer with fantastic technique and I thought she really pulled off this dance.

LIKED
Janette and Brandon – This disco routine was HARD. Damn, Doriana. But I thought they did really, really well. And that spread eagle lift! WHOA. They did have a couple of slip ups so that’s why it’s not in the “love” column for me.
Asuka and Vitolio – Beautiful waltz but for me, kinda forgettable. Which is too bad because I really like Vitolio.

OK
Randi and Evan – I had high hopes for them but their technique just wasn’t there. Their leg flicks made me sad. But their personalities and high energy saved this jive for me.

EHHH
Caitlin and Jason – This routine reminded me of Shane’s hip hop routine in s3 for Dominic and Sabra, which I LOVED. I can’t even think about this one because Caitlin and Jason didn’t do it justice. They weren’t even synchronized most of the time. 🙁
Jeanine and Philip – I cringed through most of this tango. Jeanine was FAR better than Philip but the whole thing was really sloppy.
Ashley and Kupono – There were parts of this hip hop that were promising but overall it was disappointing. Kupono didn’t have any flair at all and poor Ashley being the “shadow” couldn’t carry the routine on her own. This routine should have been so good.

Predictions for the Bottom 3: Caitlin/Jason, Jeanine/Philip, and Ashley/Kupono. I got 2 out of 3 last week… tomorrow will be interesting!

sytycd s5

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I know one of the girls in the Top 20 of So You Think You Can Dance — Melissa Sandvig (well, when I knew her she was Melissa Watson). We used to dance together at Long Beach Ballet and were in the same class from when we were about 5 or 6 all the way until high school when I stopped serious training. I must have seen her at least 3 times a week for years — even more during times when we were touring and performing. It’s really such a small world. CRAZY.

SO. It’s finally Top 20 time!!! WOOT. Tonight was the first performance show and it was probably the best of all 5 seasons so far. I don’t think I’ve loved this many routines ever.

LOVED
Jeanine and Phillip – I have to admit that I really enjoy Tabitha and Napoleon’s (lyrical) hip hop routines. And Jeanine and Phillip danced the heck out of this one.
Randi and Evan – I’m not a huge fan of Tyce’s choreography (plus he has serious bitchface all the time) but GUH. This jazz routine was smoking. I didn’t realize how technically gifted Evan is until this performance.
Karla and Jonathan – Solid cha cha routine. Plus, Karla’s pinay!
Melissa and Ade – I adored this. The LIFTS! Their LINES! GORGEOUS.
Kayla and Max – Fun fun fun samba routine. I can’t believe Kayla has never danced ballroom before. WOW.

OK
Janette and Brandon – Their foxtrot was good but there was no “oomph.”
Caitlin and Jason – Damn, that Bollywood routine was HARD… all those plies and intricate hand movements. But I’m not sure why the judges were gushing. They weren’t quite in sync in a few parts and as cute as they are, I just didn’t think it was that spectacular.
Ashley and Kupono – I didn’t like the whole crash test dummies storyline (sorry Wade) and honestly, I just couldn’t get past that to care about their dancing.

YAWN
Asuka and Vitolio – Disappointing. This was sooo boring. Tyce’s choreography wasn’t particularly memorable but they made it worse by phoning it in. No spark, nothing.
Paris and Tony – UGH. This hip hop was the worst of the night for me. The routine itself was ok but they failed to BRING IT. Not to mention I kind of have irrational dislike for Paris. I can’t help it.

I can never predict the couples in the bottom but I’m going to guess Asuka/Vitolio (really, the routine was terrible), Karla/Jonathan, or Melissa/Ade (the last two couples because they haven’t been “featured” enough so far and that’s going to hurt them). I definitely think Paris/Tony should be in the bottom but his teen girl fanbase will totally save him. GRRR.

tv upfronts again

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It’s TV upfronts time again!

I’m a dork and love the anticipation of show renewals and cancellations and the excitement for new series to come. So far, FOX, ABC, and NBC have announced their fall schedules. Nothing terribly exciting…

FOX
I don’t like So You Think You Can Dance moving to the fall. It’s my summer show! Humph. For the past few seasons, I’ve been looking forward to it as a “break” from the rest of my shows. Oh well.

Glad to see Fringe is back (which reminds me, I need to watch the season finale). But they moved it to Thursday at 9. THANKS A LOT. I watch 3 other shows in the same time slot.

Dollhouse was renewed. I don’t watch the show but maybe I will now. I read that the show got off to a slow start but built up to a solid season ending episode. Plus, I’ve always loved Joss Whedon’s shows. Hmmm.

The only new show I’m going to check out is Glee. I haven’t watched the pilot yet (it aired tonight after American Idol) but based on opinions from friends who saw it early, I think I’m going to like it. I mean, come on. It’s a show about a high school musical choir. Tell me that’s not TOTALLY UP MY ALLEY.

ABC
I don’t really watch much on ABC anymore besides Lost and Grey’s Anatomy and of course, those were easy renewals. I’ve long since given up on Private Practice, Ugly Betty, and Brothers and Sisters but I’m not surprised to see them on the fall schedule again.

As for their new shows, I’ve never been a huge sitcom fan so their Wednesday night comedy block doesn’t interest me at all. Eastwick looks promising though (based on the movie Witches of Eastwick) and it stars Rebecca Romijn and Lindsay Price. Love both of them.

NBC
PHEW. SO happy Chuck is back on NBC’s midseason schedule. Even if it’s only for 13 episodes. It’s such a good show! I’ve had a love/hate relationship with Heroes for the past few seasons but the finale definitely picked up so I have to admit I’m (cautiously) looking forward to season 4. I watched the premiere of Southland a few weeks ago but I guess Ben McKenzie isn’t as big of a draw as I thought because I never remember to watch this show. Too much going on Thursdays. Maybe Friday will be a better night for it? Although Friday seems to be the day where networks put shows TO DIE a slow death (recent example: Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles).

Are new medical dramas like Trauma and Mercy really necessary?

Also, it is VERY WEIRD to see The Jay Leno Show on the schedule EVERY NIGHT at 10pm. I like Jay Leno but he is taking away too many precious PRIMETIME slots. Couldn’t he have just conceded the Tonight Show to Conan and left it at that? Grrr.

sytycd

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Work has started to calm down (YES)… we even hired an assistant, finally! It’s been a challenging week training her (she is fresh out of college) and keeping up with my own workload but the countdown to the wedding keeps me going… 17 days, guys. 17 DAYS.

To distract me from the craziness of wedding planning, I have become completely obsessed with So You Think You Can Dance. I don’t normally follow TV over the summer but somehow, it’s become appointment TV for me (and Rob too!). I watched casually during the first 2 seasons, I missed the 3rd season but caught the whole thing during a marathon on MTV, now I’m finally watching the original run. And it’s been so fun! I pretty much love the entire Top 8 right now, though I do love Katee just a tad bit more than all the others. I’m usually a very lazy fan when it comes to these reality competitions but Katee has totally turned me around. Sadly (for me, not for her), her number was busy during the times I called in tonight so hopefully she’ll be safe tomorrow (*crosses fingers*). I am so nervous… it’s ridiculous.

Ok, it’s 12:50am and I’m not even sure why I’m still awake… time to head to bed. One more day until Friday! WOOT.