Danielle with… Kym Johnson Herjavec (Ballroom Breakdown DWTS 3503)

0:02Speaker 1:THE END Welcome back to Ballroom Breakdown. I am one of your hosts, Danielle Fishel, and joining me as always every week is Kim Johnson Herjavec. Welcome, Kim.

0:25Speaker 2:Thank you. So fun to be here again.

0:28Speaker 1:So fun. I was very excited to hear that week two was going to be viral hits night. We last season had TikTok night. But apparently this year they decided not to do the official partnership and it was just viral hits.

0:46Speaker 2:Exactly. Make it for what you will. Yes.

0:49Speaker 1:Exactly. And I thought that that was, I thought it was helpful and made it a little bit more clear that the only part that needed to be viral was the song choice. Because I know last year there was a lot of conversation about, do we need to incorporate whatever was, like if there was a TikTok move, Does everyone need a TikTok move in the dance? And it was like, well, some people had it, some people didn't.

1:14Speaker 2:Yeah, that was confusing.

1:15Speaker 1:It was confusing. I feel like calling it Viral Hits Night is a lot clearer.

1:20Speaker 2:Exactly. And then it wasn't so much focus on that, you know?

1:24Speaker 1:Exactly.

1:24Speaker 2:Yeah, for sure.

1:26Speaker 1:Something I am asked all the time by fans of the show, and I would love to be able to clear it up a little bit here on the pod, Can you elaborate on how song selection takes place on Dancing with the Stars? Whose idea is it? Is it collaborative? How does it work?

1:44Speaker 2:I'm not sure what happened on your season, but from what I know, the celebrities choose a bunch of songs in the beginning. They're asked what songs that they like. And I think that, you know, it's quite collaborative with the pro as well. But sometimes the celebrity is not sure what that song is. you know, is with the dance.

2:05Speaker 1:Yes.

2:06Speaker 2:So that can get a little tricky. But I think the production work with the celebrities, they obviously want to make sure that you're dancing to a song that you like. So it depends what week it is. I know Dedication Week is definitely all about the celebrity's song choice of what they want. But I think it does come down to the producers and the celebs. And back in my day it was very much the pros and, job to do that, um, to select the songs and things like that.

2:36Speaker 2:But I know that production have a bit more saying that now, I guess with, you know, the rights that they need to get and things like that.

2:44Speaker 1:Yeah. For my season last year, there is the, there was a form that we filled out ahead of time and they want you, they encourage you to put as many songs down as possible. So there are like, you know, descriptions, like if, you know, um, Songs that, songs that remind you of love or songs that, you know, whatever. And then they want to know every single thing you would, could possibly like. And the more songs you write down, the better. And the more open you are, the better.

3:17Speaker 1:And then certainly after submitting all of those, I didn't necessarily know I still don't know how to hear a song and know what dance would be good with that.

3:28Speaker 2:Of course.

3:29Speaker 1:I have no clue. So there would be times that I would have included a bunch of songs that I loved. And then Pasha was like, but we can't do the dance we have to do this week. None of those will work.

3:43Speaker 2:Yep. And so then it's chosen these songs. So the producers like, well, you like that song, make it work. Yes. Yes.

3:50Speaker 1:Or then Pasha would say, you know, let's listen to some of the songs that you like. And, and then let's, let me think of something that I think could be good that would kind of fit this. Or there were a couple of times that thankfully production would say, Here's a song that hasn't been done in a long time that we think, and they were great about it. Sometimes they had great suggestions.

4:12Speaker 2:That's good.

4:13Speaker 1:Have you ever felt like a song made or broke your performance?

4:19Speaker 2:I think actually when I danced with my now husband, Robert Herjavec on our first dance, you know, they won, especially the first dance, Robert was from Shark Tank. They wanted a little bit of a Shark Tank theme with money. And I can't remember the first song, but it was something not really appropriate. And Robert was like, oh, I don't know about that. Like it was really like, he's not very funky.

4:42Speaker 1:Okay.

4:42Speaker 2:And he's like, oh, I don't know about that. But we got what they wanted to do. And production were the ones that came up with the song Bills. And it had just come out. And that really made that dance for us. I've got bills. You know that song?

4:55Speaker 1:Yes, yes.

4:56Speaker 2:And so that was production that came up with that, not me. And we both loved that song. And then we had money flying at the end. Like we did a deal and we had the troop in it. So that song really worked with our theme and the cha-cha. That was great. Yeah, a recent one for sure.

5:14Speaker 1:I love that. I love that. I know for my season, Pasha and I, for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame week, one of the songs I had put on my list was an Aerosmith song. And it just so happened that Pasha said, this song you chose is my favorite song of all time. And he said, if we can get this song, I would absolutely freak out. And we were like, oh my gosh, we have to do it. We have to do it. And they couldn't clear it.

5:45Speaker 2:Oh no.

5:45Speaker 1:And we just kept thinking, oh my gosh, what are we going to do? Like, oh, I want this so bad. And I started asking around, you know, we, my husband knows a lot of musicians. I started asking around, do we know anyone who knows Steven Tyler or, you know, who could we reach out to? And we ended up putting out a bunch of feelers. And at the last minute, Steven Tyler cleared it for us.

6:07Speaker 2:Okay. That is amazing. And I.

6:10Speaker 1:It just, it made our entire week. It was, it was everything.

6:15Speaker 2:So meant to be.

6:16Speaker 1:Yeah. So we were, we were thrilled about that. So I do think song choice is, it's just so important, you know.

6:22Speaker 2:Even when you, sorry, when you get the song, the dance, the costumes, all of that together, it really makes the dance. Yeah.

6:31Speaker 1:I mean, like you mentioned for your husband, it made him, he loved the song. Like if he had had to perform to a song he wasn't really confident in and something he didn't really like, it would have changed everything about his dynamic.

6:44Speaker 2:For sure. You would have seen it. It would have, you know, shown. So it does make a huge difference, I think.

6:50Speaker 1:Well, jumping into dance number one, we got Jenna Dewan and Val Shmerkovsky. I got to hang out with them this past weekend in Las Vegas for the iHeart Radio.

7:00Speaker 2:Yay! Oh, how fun.

7:02Speaker 1:It was so much fun. Jenna is an absolute dream. She is just, she's wonderful. She's so down to earth and beautiful and funny and she's all of the things. So that was really great to get to see them and see her and Val together and their dynamic. And it was very fun. We saw in her package that she really took Carrie Ann's feedback to heart. And that she was, you know, dancing solo and she needed to connect with her partner, especially since she has one of the best dancers in the world as a partner.

7:36Speaker 2:She sure does. Yeah.

7:38Speaker 1:Last week, they got a total of 19. This week, they danced a jive to the song Animal by Cat's Eye. So one of the fan favorites kicked off viral hits nights. What were your thoughts on this dance?

7:51Speaker 2:Well, I think they're amazing. And I do think that she had really thought about what the judges had said. It's, I think she's in a tricky position because she is clearly like so incredible. And I think that she does have the eyes on her as people being a little nitpicky. Um, and so I think tonight she was, she didn't really care. Like, I think she got out of her head and she was just in the dance and she loved what she was doing. I thought it was a really, really good dance. Um, and yeah, I thought she was incredible. I thought I loved them together. Obviously it was jam packed full of content.

8:29Speaker 1:I love these costumes too. These costumes.

8:32Speaker 2:I know. Weren't they incredible?

8:35Speaker 1:Really nice. You know, I have a, I get a little nervous whenever someone starts in the garage. There's something about the garage to me that just feels like an energy suck. You know, you're in It just feels like, how are we going to get out of here? And you always do. And I love the way that they're able to decorate it. But the minute they started in there, I was a little like, oh no, not the garage.

8:58Speaker 2:I know, because then you've got to get out of it. And it looks great on TV.

9:02Speaker 1:Looks great on TV, but it's hard to get out of quickly and get to the floor. But they did a great job of it. And these costumes, I thought these costumes were phenomenal.

9:11Speaker 2:Yeah, maybe they'll steal them for Halloween or something.

9:13Speaker 1:I know. You know. Seriously, they should. So Carrie Ann Inaba gave this dance a seven, said that they danced well in their partnership. She didn't act like it was a solo. Bruno gave them a seven, said great speed and she didn't miss a beat. And Derek Hough, who was the third judge to speak, which means he only got one word while there.

9:33Speaker 2:That was so tough tonight. I guess they had to get through it, but yeah, that was.

9:38Speaker 1:I mean, tonight's the first night they had 14 couples in only two hours.

9:43Speaker 2:Yes.

9:44Speaker 1:Like last, you know, last week they had four hours, 16 couples.

9:48Speaker 2:I know.

9:48Speaker 1:So a lot more time. Yes. But Derek also gave them a seven and he, his one word was fast, fierce and fantastic.

9:57Speaker 2:It was really fast.

9:58Speaker 1:It was.

9:59Speaker 2:It was. Yeah. I mean, I think they're just going to get better and better every week. And I think it was fun. We got to see her in this style. And, you know, I always love the second week because they normally do a Latin dance if they've done a Boro dance. So you get to see the two different styles. So, yeah, I think she felt very comfortable dancing. in tonight's dance.

10:21Speaker 1:I think so too. What would you have given this dance?

10:24Speaker 2:I would have given a seven as well.

10:26Speaker 1:Yeah. Yeah. Okay.

10:28Speaker 2:Would you have gone higher?

10:29Speaker 1:I think I would have given an eight. I think, but you know what? A seven or an eight. I feel like I didn't notice, you know, like Bruno said that she didn't miss a beat. I didn't see any kind of, I couldn't point to a mistake or a flaw per se.

10:46Speaker 2:Yeah.

10:47Speaker 1:It was very fast. It was jammed full of content. Um, maybe I would say I could have, I would have like maybe higher knees. There could have been some moments where like very.

10:57Speaker 2:I think sometimes in the job, like for someone that's not a ballroom dancer, having the weight really over the balls of the feet. Yeah. Can it, it instantly changes you from like professional dancer to ballroom Latin. It's such a different, it's so strange. Um, yeah, the best, you know, commercial dancers in the world will still find it difficult getting into this style of dance. So that's going to come for her. So that would have been my only one thing.

11:25Speaker 1:Okay.

11:26Speaker 2:I mean, that's being super nitpicky. Yeah. Yeah.

11:29Speaker 1:I get it. I get it. Dance number two, we had Ciara Miller and Brandon Armstrong. In their package, we saw Carrie Ann's comment about her having a lot of trauma hit deep for her. She feels very vulnerable performing, but admits she blacked out and was just scared. Last week, they got a 15. This week, they danced a tango to No Broke Boys by Tinashe.

12:05Speaker 2:Yes.

12:06Speaker 1:What did you think of this dance?

12:08Speaker 2:I loved these two together and I liked her in the ballroom style. I liked her in the tango. I thought she had moments where her frame was really good. What did I write down here? She was very committed. She could fix her left arm a little, but I thought overall it was a really solid, good dance. Yeah. Yeah.

12:29Speaker 1:I think Um, I can't, I think it was definitely better than last week's. Um, and, and not necessarily even because of specific things in her technique or dance.

12:40Speaker 2:Yeah.

12:41Speaker 1:Last week, I didn't realize it cause I don't know her quite as a personality very well. I, I had never watched any of the shows she had been a part of, but seeing her this week compared to last week really makes you realize what a deer in headlights she was last week.

12:57Speaker 2:Right. The commitment. Yeah. She was committed. That was the first thing I wrote down. Like the commitment you could just tell.

13:03Speaker 1:Yes. She really seemed livened up. Like, all right, she got some of those, those first week jitters out of the way.

13:11Speaker 2:Yes. And now she's like, okay, I get this. I've been here before.

13:15Speaker 1:Yeah.

13:15Speaker 2:I'm going to own this floor, you know? So I felt that with her tonight and I saw moments of a great tango that her and Brandon did. Yeah.

13:26Speaker 1:Yeah. I absolutely love Brandon as a teacher.

13:31Speaker 2:Isn't he great?

13:32Speaker 1:He is just, he's just wonderful. And I think one of the greatest things about him is that he is, he can go from being a wonderful teacher and, you know, dance expert and two minutes later, be talking to you about any number of subjects. He can talk about everything and he's, he's relaxed and he's calm. And so, yeah, I think, I think this is a great partner for her.

14:00Speaker 2:I think so too. And I think she's just really coming into her own now. Like she, She's she's in it. She's like, all right, I got this.

14:07Speaker 1:I got it. Yeah, it was really nice to see her come alive. And I also in her package, she talked about the fact that she knew if she had started crying last week when Carrie Ann mentioned that to her about her pain, that she would have just been a wreck. And I could see that last week when when she just froze and she was really trying to keep it together. So it was great to see her come out of her shell. Carrie Ann Inaba gave her a six and said, Sierra has entered the building and very proud of her veracity. Bruno Tanioli gave it a six and said it was beautiful. Derek Hough said it was a six and she radiated. Very in it tonight, start to finish, and then said that she should watch the frame, that maybe she has some frame issues. That's what you're talking about with the left arm?

14:48Speaker 2:Yeah, she's got to watch her frame a little bit. But again, it's so foreign to me. Yeah. put in that position. So she's just got to watch her frame a little, but Brandon, he's great and he'll, he'll fix that. Yes.

15:01Speaker 1:So that was an 18 for 18 out of 30 for her. What would you have given this dance?

15:06Speaker 2:Yeah, I would have, I would have given a six as well.

15:09Speaker 1:Okay.

15:10Speaker 2:Yeah. Yeah.

15:11Speaker 1:I think, I think a five or a six again, I feel bad saying a five because I don't think there was anything that was wrong with it. Um, but, but personality wise, I'm going to give it a six because it was so nice to see her personality. And it was, it was really, I'm like, yes, if she can work on some of the dance frame issues, some of those things and keep the personality she had tonight, she's going to go far.

15:38Speaker 2:She is. She is. I think she's a crowd favorite too. People love seeing her and she's yeah. You just want to see people comfortable on that floor. And that's what I felt with her tonight. Yeah. Yeah.

15:49Speaker 1:It was, it was nice. I feel like this, honestly, I think everybody felt and seemed more comfortable. You could really see the, the pressure of the premiere and the two nights and knowing people were going home. You could see that that had really kind of weighed on everyone.

16:06Speaker 2:Yeah.

16:06Speaker 1:And this, this week felt a little better. Dance number three, Tyler Cameron and Sharna Burgess. Uh, in there, in the, I know in he, we already got a shirt off sexy moment.

16:19Speaker 2:Week two and the shirts are coming off. They're not messing around.

16:23Speaker 1:Not messing around at all. I wonder if now it's going to be a more regular thing or if this is going to be their, their time. They pull that card and not again.

16:30Speaker 2:Oh, I think he, I think he's probably going to do that again.

16:33Speaker 1:I think you're probably right. Uh, in their package, we see that he is feeling more confident and he is rediscovering himself. Last week, he got a 17. They performed a salsa tonight to the song Girls by the Kid LAROI. I mean, I do not remember Dylan or even Robert taking off their shirt this late. early in the competition. What were your thoughts on this dance?

17:01Speaker 2:I mean, it was like, it felt very Magic Mike.

17:04Speaker 1:Yes.

17:05Speaker 2:Yeah, I was like, okay, we're doing this. It was, yeah, I mean, you know what, they went for it. And I think it was so entertaining. I mean, that first lift they did, I can't wait to see people at home try that.

17:20Speaker 1:I know. Hopefully on a padded floor.

17:23Speaker 2:I know. I know. I was like, what on earth? Was he holding her with one hand?

17:29Speaker 1:He was holding her with one arm, which by the way, is something Brandon does on tour with Jenna. But Jenna is in more of a fetal position.

17:40Speaker 2:Yes, I've seen that. She was straight up.

17:43Speaker 1:Uh-huh. Straight up and in a straight line.

17:47Speaker 2:I know. I'm like, okay, this is how we're starting. Wow.

17:51Speaker 1:And then the ending. Yes. With her face so close to the floor.

17:58Speaker 2:To the floor. Can't wait for people to do that one. Yeah. I know. So all of the tricks were amazing. I want to know what happened when they went to the audience and Did you see that at one section? Like it was just like a shot of the audience for a minute and I'm like, what's going on? Yeah, and then they went up in another lift, you know, like this shoulder press. I'm like, what is happening? But it was great. I would have personally liked to have seen a little bit more salsa, I think, but Shana's so clever. Like she played to his strengths, you know. She's like, right, you're strong, you're fit, we're going to take your top off, you're going to lift me with one hand above your head.

18:43Speaker 2:And then they obviously did the salsa and he had the whole body thing going on. It was a very Magic Mike sexy. I mean, Shana's very sexy. He is. So they really played into that and I thought it was great. But I understand where Derek was coming from with a little bit more salsa, but it was a very the song was sexy. They really played into everything. Yeah.

19:08Speaker 1:I mean, so much of this show is about highlighting your celebs strengths and camouflaging as much as possible, some of the weaknesses. So you have to assume there wasn't more salsa content because Sharna felt like it wasn't going to show him in the most favorable light.

19:29Speaker 2:She's done this. This is, she's an old pro at this. So she's like, yeah, okay. The hips are a little, you know, stiff.

19:35Speaker 1:Yeah.

19:36Speaker 2:Let's, you know, go in another direction. And I think everyone at home would have loved it. So I thought, yeah, it was, it was hot. It was very sexy.

19:48Speaker 1:Yes, it was. And we mentioned. last week that we were a little surprised I don't remember what the partnership was but it was with a male celeb and we mentioned we were surprised they didn't do more lifts in their salsa.

20:00Speaker 2:And so that was Adele and uh Connor.

20:03Speaker 1:Connor yes and so you know we'd That's exactly what we said we would have done in those shoes. Because you are allowed. You are allowed lifts.

20:14Speaker 2:Which is rare. Exactly.

20:16Speaker 1:You don't get very many of those. So his score was a 16 out of 30. Bruno gave it a 5. He said it was a great view, more muscle power Terminator exhibition than salsa.

20:29Speaker 2:Yeah.

20:30Speaker 1:Derek Hough gave it a five. He said he held up Sharna like he manned in his sword, but that there wasn't much salsa. Felt more like cabaret and hard to judge, but he knew it was a crowd pleaser. And Carrie Ann gave it a six. And she said that her one word she chose was impressive, but she also agreed with the guys.

20:50Speaker 2:Yeah.

20:51Speaker 1:What would you have given this guess?

20:52Speaker 2:That's a tricky one because I can see where Derek and Bruno are coming from, but a five seems pretty harsh, I guess.

20:57Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah.

20:58Speaker 2:You know, for... how entertaining it was. Um, I don't know, probably a six, I guess.

21:05Speaker 1:Yeah.

21:06Speaker 2:Yeah. I don't know, but that's a tricky one. I know I'm on the fence, a five or a six.

21:14Speaker 1:Yeah. I think I would have gone with a five. You know why? I think I would, I think I would try to think to myself, I'm not going to be wooed just because you took your shirt off. And, and it's great that you're strong and I'm really happy I saw that lift and maybe, you know, to start with a lift and end with a lift and do something fun in the middle. But I, I, I definitely felt like, um, I saw, I saw through the reason we had so many He-Man like lifts and, uh, while very entertaining.

21:46Speaker 2:Yes. Yeah. I would have liked maybe a few, a little bit more of the hip action and the basic, even if it was like a little bit more of a basic salsa in there. Yeah.

21:56Speaker 1:Yeah.

21:57Speaker 2:So I don't know, maybe a five.

21:59Speaker 1:Okay.

21:59Speaker 2:It feels so harsh, but.

22:01Speaker 1:I know. Especially to go back because last week he got a 17. So it's always like you get in this mindset that you want to improve every week.

22:11Speaker 2:And with that means.

22:12Speaker 1:You feel like you want to be getting higher scores every week.

22:16Speaker 2:Yeah.

22:16Speaker 1:But last week he had a 17, which is not bad. And so this week for him to have a 16... or had they all given him fives, he would have had a 15 would have been, would have felt bad.

22:28Speaker 2:Exactly. But that's the beauty of the show. It's like every week you go up and down and, and now they can get rid of that dance and come back with something, you know, completely new. So you got to love, that's what you love about it. Yep.

22:42Speaker 1:There's a rollercoaster of dances. Yes.

22:45Speaker 2:But I can't wait to see, is it TikTok? I don't even, I think I just got TikTok. Oh, okay. But I don't use it. Is that why they do all these lifts when you see the viral, like people are trying the lifts at home? Or is it Instagram?

22:57Speaker 1:They do both. TikTok. TikTok's big on them. And then Reels.

23:00Speaker 2:Yeah.

23:00Speaker 1:Instagram Reels will have them too.

23:02Speaker 2:I'm pretty sure we're going to see some of that.

23:04Speaker 1:I mean, honestly, I want someone. So their lift that they ended with, with Sharna with her nose to the ground is very similar to the lift. Pasha and I did at the end of our Argentine tango on Wicked Week where I was upside down and my legs were in the air. She was, Sharna was a little closer to the ground than I was because her arm was extended. I want to try. I'm like, okay, sign me up. I want to do it. I want to do it again. That's so funny. I just need to find someone to do it with this week.

23:32Speaker 2:It's wonderful. Yeah.

23:47Speaker 1:Our fourth dance of the night was Julia Stiles and Ezra Sosa. The package showed us that she has a funny relationship with being in the public eye, that she used to love it and then she took a step back and now she is re-entering and kind of re-confronting her career as a forward-facing person, which I thought was very cool. good for her to share.

24:12Speaker 2:Wasn't it? I feel like she's so real and I've, I'm loving the packages of getting to know her, you know? Um, and I thought like the, the way it started with just her, she's so committed to it. Like she's in this and she clearly loves performing. She's just embracing this whole thing. So I thought, wow, here we go. Um, I love the start of it. Um, It was hopping up and down a little bit. I would have liked to settle into the floor a little. Yeah. And not be so up and down. Yeah, so the weight needed to be into the floor a little bit more. Yes.

24:50Speaker 2:Like on a technical standpoint. But I really like her arms. What about her muscle tone in her arms? My gosh. I know.

24:59Speaker 1:She is.

25:00Speaker 2:I was like, whoa.

25:02Speaker 1:She is built like a dancer. Like she's got dancer's arms, dancer's shoulders.

25:06Speaker 2:Yeah. Yeah. So her frame like was great. Um, but yeah, I would have liked her weight to been a little bit more into the ground, um, which is normal. Your adrenaline kicks in, your weight rises. So you've really got to keep thinking about that. Um, but yeah, she's made me want to Go to the gym and do some weights.

25:28Speaker 1:Gotta get those two pound weights while we're watching.

25:30Speaker 2:I know, right?

25:32Speaker 1:Seriously. I might do that next week. Yeah. They did a tango to the song The Door by Teddy Swims. Last week, she was given a score of 18 total. This week, she got a 16 out of 30. Carrie Ann gave it a five, said her posture is great, but that it is also working against her. She needs to contract and let it go. And I thought that was a really good note that I could totally picture. Like while I was watching her and I could tell that her posture is just gorgeous, but then it's almost as if there is a, maybe a lack of flexibility.

26:08Speaker 1:And so when it calls for contracting or.

26:13Speaker 2:Yeah. Like a throwaway or something. Yeah. It's like, oh, like one.

26:18Speaker 1:One piece.

26:19Speaker 2:Yes. Yeah.

26:20Speaker 1:And so I thought the way she described it and even the way she imitated it and showed her back contracting, I thought that was helpful. Yes. So I hope that that was helpful for her too. Bruno gave it a five, said that she likes the idea that she is moving out of her comfort zone, but she lost the flow a little, but don't get discouraged. She is learning. And Derek Huff gave it a six, and his one word was good performance. So... What would you have given this dance?

26:51Speaker 2:You know what? If I'm going back and we set it on a five. Yeah. For Tyler, I probably do a five as well. Yeah. I would say. Yeah.

27:01Speaker 1:I think for this one, I thought I couldn't agree with you more where this started. I was like, oh, wow. She was locked in with the camera and the hand on the face. And I could see that Ezra had really just dialed that part in with her. And then Ezra was, of course, so great in this dance. And there was just something that felt... not like she wasn't quite there with him.

27:31Speaker 2:Yes.

27:31Speaker 1:And so I think it was great. I thought it was very, I thought she did a wonderful job, but I agree. I do think I was looking at about a five.

27:41Speaker 2:Yeah, I think so too. But I think she is really going to improve. I think we're going to see a lot of improvement from Julia because she's loving it. And I think she really wants to do well and grow in this. So I think- And I love them together as well.

27:58Speaker 1:I do too. I love them together. And I think you're absolutely right. I think she's just going to continue to get better every single week, which is why everyone wants to tune in. That's what the goal should be. Dance number five, we had Jackson Olsen and Emma Slater. We saw in their package that he is fired up to get better and they have been traveling between banana games and practice, which has to be insane.

28:25Speaker 2:That has to be hard. Yeah, I know.

28:28Speaker 1:Traveling wipes me out. And then to be on a plane and then get off and have to not only practice and rehearse for your banana game, play a banana baseball game, and then find three to four hours in a day.

28:43Speaker 2:Yeah, I know. It's a lot. Yeah. And then it's also hard for Emma being on the road, having to choreograph, you know, on her own. She's probably choreographing on the plane, listening to the music. You know, I've done that. It's hard, you know.

28:55Speaker 1:Yeah.

28:57Speaker 2:But they're both young. They can do it. They've got the energy.

29:00Speaker 1:That's exactly right. Must be nice. Must be nice. So this is his first dance in frame. Last week he got a 15. They did a foxtrot to That's So True by Gracie Abrams. I did not understand. When they came upstairs to the Skybox, Julianne said, from bananas to pickles. And I missed, I didn't understand, is it because, I thought maybe because they were in like a mint green outfit and I was like, wait, what's pickles? Maybe.

29:35Speaker 2:Was it the mint? Yes. I didn't hear Julianne say that.

29:39Speaker 1:That's so funny. It was something about pickles. And I was like, wait, I missed what that was. What's the pickle comment?

29:45Speaker 2:Maybe it's an inside joke.

29:47Speaker 1:Yeah, exactly. I was like, maybe it's something we missed.

29:50Speaker 2:Yeah. Okay.

29:51Speaker 1:Well, what did you think of the dance?

29:54Speaker 2:Uh, well, I was really pleasantly surprised to see Jackson's frame. He's got a really nice frame. I think his head position was coming in a little bit. I'd like to see him fix that a little, but it's the first ballroom dance that they have done. Um, But I think, yeah, he's got a really nice frame and I think he's going to do great in the ballroom dances. Yeah.

30:15Speaker 1:I thought his frame looked so good. I mean, he, he, last week he got a 15. This week he got an 18. So he went up one point from every judge.

30:26Speaker 2:Yes.

30:27Speaker 1:He went up a lot.

30:29Speaker 2:Yeah.

30:29Speaker 1:Kariana Naba said he was much improved. The partnership is working. He's more relaxed now. She said there's still work to be done, but very solid. Derek Hough said he was impressed with his frame and that he was on the right path. And Bruno said he was charmed. They all gave him a six. Um, yeah, I was so happy. I thought he really did a great job. What would you have scored it?

30:51Speaker 2:I would have done a six as well. Cause I thought it was, you know, Emma put a lot of content in there, the frame. That's what I was really looking for. You know, especially the first time they do a ballroom dance, are they going to be able to hold that frame, especially for the men? Um, you know, they, they are the frame, the ladies, the picture. And I thought he, he was great head position could have, could do some work, but that's okay. Yeah. But yeah, I, I did a six as well.

31:17Speaker 1:Okay. I think we're right on.

31:19Speaker 2:Yeah.

31:19Speaker 1:A six was a six was the right score for him. And then we get to see, I'm happy to see the return of the Sephora Glam Room.

31:27Speaker 2:Yes.

31:29Speaker 1:I had high hopes that the baguette dance was going to be a recurring theme, but not this time. No more baguette dance, but the Sephora Glam Room is back.

31:38Speaker 2:Yes.

31:39Speaker 1:For dance number six, we had Giada De Laurentiis and Alan Burstyn. In their package, we saw that she was getting overwhelmed. She felt like there was not enough time. They were both getting frustrated. It seems like it was a very emotional week. And I, as I was watching it, thought these are the kinds of packages that can go one of two ways. They can either make the audience feel like, you want to go home because you're struggling.

32:12Speaker 2:Yeah.

32:12Speaker 1:Or if you come out and absolutely crush your dance.

32:18Speaker 2:Yes.

32:19Speaker 1:They make the audience go that I am, gosh, I love the realness of seeing the hardship, but look at the payoff.

32:27Speaker 2:Look at the payoff. Exactly. I know. It's tricky, isn't it?

32:32Speaker 1:It's tricky because it could, it really could go one of two ways. It also, of course, also depends on what kind of frustration and friction you're having if the audience feels like you're being a diva they're not going to enjoy that either but in this case it really did feel like she was just she was struggling with the dance And she wanted to be picking it up faster. And he was really trying to tell her, we have time, we have time, let's slow it down.

32:58Speaker 2:Yeah.

32:59Speaker 1:So they danced a salsa to the song Bella Ciao, the Hugel remix by El Profesor and Hugel. What did you think of this dance?

33:10Speaker 2:Well, I really like her and I was wanting her to be so good. Yeah. But again, I think she got in her head, which, you know, in this– as we saw with some of the other ones, they were a lot more relaxed on the floor this week. Yeah. I think she was still a little bit in her head. But I thought that, like, she was doing salsa, would have liked to have seen a little bit more hip action in the salsa. I love that she started off with a trick. Alan's obviously great. But, yeah, I just think that she was just overthinking things. I would have liked if she had have just, you know, tried to give in to it a little more, maybe we would have seen a little, get a little more wild with it, you know, which I think is what everyone was wanting to see from her. But I thought it was adorable.

34:02Speaker 2:I thought it was cute. There were really nice moments in there. And she, you know, was doing the salsa. I just would have liked a little bit more hip action and for her to get into it a little more.

34:14Speaker 1:I feel like this was possibly a scenario where the song and therefore the dance style, which came first, you know, who knows whether they were like, we're going to do a salsa this week. So we got to put the, pick a song for that. Or if the song said we have to do a salsa. I just, I feel like this was a hard dance for her. And as the pro, it is also like, you have to, there's so many things to think about, but you have to think about strategy wise. Yeah. Do we front load? Do we pick a harder dance for you and do it early on where we think maybe the competition won't be, there'll be more people to choose from, you know? So maybe the competition won't be as fierce because I really do feel like this was a, it seemed to me like this was getting that hip action and loosening up enough to really play into the flirtiness of a salsa was something she was fighting against.

35:13Speaker 2:Yeah. I think, I think last week she felt a lot more comfortable with the ballroom. It seemed very much more her style. I thought she was really elegant and graceful last week and she was elegant and graceful this week as well. But the salsa does need you to let loose a little more. So I think that was just a struggle for her. And probably so far from what she's done before, she's probably not been out salsa dancing, you know?

35:41Speaker 1:Yes.

35:42Speaker 2:So especially on a stage like that.

35:45Speaker 1:Yes. And to be fair also, she is the oldest contestant this season at 56. And so, you know, to be comfortable with a young man on the dance floor shaking your hips and you're not used to that, it– there is a level of trust and vulnerability you have to be comfortable with that if you have never done it before is hard to just buy into.

36:10Speaker 2:Yeah. So I know I'm so sad she's gone because I was personally like, so with her on her journey, you know, I love that she was doing something new at the age she is and, you know, representing for women 50 over, but it's a shame, you know.

36:26Speaker 1:It's such a shame. Well, she got a total score of 12. Bruno gave her a four. He said it was a salsa without spice and that she needed to let it go emotionally. Derek also gave her a four. He said he loved the character moments, but there were missteps and it felt timid. And Carrie Ann Anaba's one word was shaky. And she also gave her a four.

36:53Speaker 2:I know.

36:54Speaker 1:That's tough. Do you agree with the four? You know what?

36:57Speaker 2:I probably, I do agree with the four. Yeah. Sadly.

37:01Speaker 1:So do I. Yeah.

37:02Speaker 2:I know. I know. It's tough.

37:04Speaker 1:It's tough. And like you said, I, I do think she needed to loosey goosey up a little more and maybe even if there had been the mistakes, the missteps, whatever.

37:16Speaker 2:Yeah.

37:17Speaker 1:At least if she had not been so shaky.

37:21Speaker 2:Yeah. It felt careful. It felt sort of she was, you know, being careful with it instead of just like, you know, I'm just going to go for it.

37:29Speaker 1:Just going to go for it. And he's got me so I can, you know. Yeah. I feel like maybe it wouldn't have, maybe she would have even scored higher even if she kept all of the same mistakes, just loosened up a little bit.

37:40Speaker 2:Salsa's not super technical, you know. Yeah. like a jive or a cha-cha. So you can get away with, obviously you don't want your bass to be super wide or anything like that. You still want hip action. Yeah. But, yeah, you can afford to just be a little bit more loosey-goosey with it. Right. It's not as technical. So, yeah, I wish we had been able to see that.

38:02Speaker 1:Yeah, see it a little more.

38:04Speaker 2:Yeah.

38:05Speaker 1:Well, dance number seven, Connor Wood and Riley Arnold. Our packages show them that he is no stranger to going viral, and he mentioned his grandmother. Last week, he got a score of 16. They did a tango to In a Room Full of People by Royal Sadness. What were your thoughts on this dance?

38:27Speaker 2:I love these two together.

38:29Speaker 1:Me too.

38:30Speaker 2:I really do. he was again, you know, so committed to it. The two of them together have this great connection. His frame needs work. I have, I have to say, but there were moments where I'm like, okay, this is great. Like he was then going along the floor really well, but then he'd come out of it. So it's just having that fluidity through the entire dance and not bringing me in and out. I felt like I was taking in and out of the performance. Um, but I think he's got all the charisma in the world. So much potential.

39:06Speaker 1:Yeah.

39:08Speaker 2:Yeah. I really enjoyed it. I agree with what the judges said. I think that there were a few moments where he went wrong a little and came out of the routine, but, and his frame does need a bit of work. Yeah.

39:22Speaker 1:Is his butt sticking out? Is that part of the problem?

39:25Speaker 2:Yeah. His weight is not quite right in the right spot. Um, and his frame, he really needs to, but Riley will fix that. She'll get onto that and sort him out. It's the first time he's done frame, you know, they did, was it cha-cha last week? Yeah. The cowboy cha-cha, which I think he felt very comfortable in that. I think he was, he definitely committed to it, but it didn't look as comfortable on the floor to me as he did last week.

39:53Speaker 1:It's always so interesting which celebs are better at, you know, where you can see they're more comfortable in frame versus which ones. Like if you had asked me, where do you think Connor Wood is going to, is going to, you know, do the best, I would have said he'll probably have a nice frame. I wouldn't have thought, you know what, his cha-cha, you're going to love his cha-cha.

40:14Speaker 2:I know, right? Like Dylan last year, remember? His frame was really good. Yes. He was great in those dances, which was, yeah, wild.

40:23Speaker 1:Exactly. And you're like, oh, wow, for such a big guy and so tall. And yeah, you never know what you're going to get. It's just so interesting. I... Absolutely fell in love with him when during the feedback from the judges, he mouthed, I'm going to throw up. I don't know if you noticed, but he literally just went, I'm going to throw up. And I was like, oh gosh, I know that feeling. I know the feeling and he First of all, I also thought, what was that super sexy, extra long beat at the end of the dance?

41:04Speaker 2:Yes, wasn't it? I was like, what is happening?

41:07Speaker 1:I know. I mean, great. Really, for me, for someone who's not a professional dancer, it made me kind of forget that there had been any mistakes. Because I was like, it's like when it ends that powerfully and you're like, whoa, what's going on?

41:22Speaker 2:It's the start and the end. If you start well, you end well.

41:26Speaker 1:I get fuzzy eyed in the middle. So it was, it was, I was like, wow, that's I'm. So then when the, to hear the judges talk about some of the missteps, I was like, oh, right. I, I guess he did kind of make some mistakes, but, but it still was so entertaining for me.

41:41Speaker 2:That ending he was committed to is like, we were great. Yes. He held that. It was, that was really good.

41:48Speaker 1:I thought that was wonderful. Well, Carrie Ann gave it a five and said, such a shame he was in it, but then there were stumbles, loves this partnership and the choreography. Bruno gave it a five and he said, I'm going to be brutally honest with you. He knows they can do it, but there were a lot of mistakes tonight. The good parts were excellent, but he saw stumbles. And Derek Hough also gave him a five and only for his one word mentioned his grandmother. Um, so they also went down last week. They had a 16 and this week they had a 15. Uh, what would you have given?

42:25Speaker 2:I would have done a five. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I would have done a five.

42:30Speaker 1:I would have done a five. And then if I could have done a half just because of that ending, I would have done a 5.5 ending alone. Got me. And, and him saying he was going to throw up. I, I just, I really fell in love with him in that moment. Cause it felt so anyone who's ever stood up there, especially after having a dance where, you know, you made mistakes.

42:50Speaker 2:I know.

42:51Speaker 1:You just would do anything to be able to do it one more, just one more time. Hey, let's take that back. Let's take that back one more time.

42:57Speaker 2:You've had that whole week of rehearsals every day. And then it's just that one moment, you know, you're like, Oh, I did it so great. Like even in dress rehearsal, it could have been great. So Yeah. And you really feel for them.

43:10Speaker 1:That's the other frustrating thing I remember feeling as a celeb on the show is on the camera blocking day, you do it three times.

43:21Speaker 2:Yeah.

43:21Speaker 1:And it's pretty much back to back and you have to give 100% every time. The first time you do it, you see it one way. You get to see camera angles a certain direction. Then director and production makes little tweaks where they go, oh, I see what you're doing and where that's going to land now. I'm going to try something different with the camera here. We're going to try the fog machine now. We're going to try this. You do it again. Then you watch that one. And then the third and final time is kind of like, this is now where we're going to put together what we did in one and two and see what this is going to hopefully be what we see for show.

43:55Speaker 2:Yeah.

43:56Speaker 1:As, and maybe it's just because I'm an actor, uh, actors don't usually like to do anything a hundred percent until the cameras are rolling. So there's always a part of us that feels like, well, I'm still going to do it better on the night, but, but you need to give a hundred percent for these camera blockings. But then sometimes you feel like I've given it, I've given it all. I connection to it that by the time you get to the show, it's now the fifth time you've given it a hundred percent. Cause you've also had your dress rehearsal earlier.

44:36Speaker 2:In the day.

44:37Speaker 1:And so sometimes you may have had, he may have had four great runs at it.

44:41Speaker 2:And then you have band rehearsal in the morning.

44:44Speaker 1:Yes.

44:45Speaker 2:You know, early in the morning with rollers still in your hair.

44:47Speaker 1:Exactly.

44:48Speaker 2:That's right. Yeah.

44:49Speaker 1:It's like the sixth or seventh time you've done it. So, you know, it's, if, if you've been doing well and then you don't nail it, It's just a terrible, terrible feeling there.

44:59Speaker 2:Okay.

45:00Speaker 1:So we would have given him fives. All right. Moving on to dance number eight, Ezra Freck and Daniela Karagach.

45:20Speaker 2:Wow.

45:21Speaker 1:In our package, we see that Daniela says that the cha-cha is going to be the most difficult for Ezra due to his prosthetic leg. Did you think his cha-cha looked like it would be the most difficult for him?

45:37Speaker 2:Okay. I, my jaw was on the floor. I could not believe what I was watching. Like, I want to go back and watch that a hundred times.

45:47Speaker 1:Same.

45:48Speaker 2:I could not believe what I was seeing. It's unbelievable.

45:53Speaker 1:Unbelievable.

45:55Speaker 2:Every, like, it was just incredible. Forget, you know, his leg. Yeah. Just, I forgot about it completely. Like, it was just so incredible. He had, his hip action was amazing. Uh-huh. I mean, Daniela's choreography, it was perfection. She is a genius.

46:15Speaker 1:Yes, she is.

46:17Speaker 2:She needs an Emmy for that. Like, it was so unbelievable. I could not believe it.

46:22Speaker 1:It was phenomenal. And I had a friend who was in the ballroom who texted me immediately after and said, I have never heard this ballroom so loud.

46:31Speaker 2:Really?

46:32Speaker 1:As after that dance.

46:34Speaker 2:Yeah. I mean, I would have given it a 10. I know that's crazy, but it was so... It was unbelievable. If that had have been done later in the season, it would have been all tens. I understand why, you know, they probably didn't want to do that, throw them out so soon. Yeah. But that was ridiculous.

46:53Speaker 1:It was ridiculous. It was unbelievable.

46:56Speaker 2:It was.

46:58Speaker 1:Far and away the best male dance of the night. Just incredible. So much fun to watch. I mean, he's beautiful.

47:10Speaker 2:His commitment to it, his facial expressions, like the way he went into that New Yorker, how he hits that.

47:17Speaker 1:His New Yorkers.

47:18Speaker 2:I was like, what is happening? It was so good.

47:23Speaker 1:I mean, it was beautiful. So they did a cha-cha to Low by Flo Rida. I can't believe what we were able to see.

47:32Speaker 2:It was so rhythmical, musical. Like, it flowed. It was effortless.

47:38Speaker 1:It was sharp.

47:39Speaker 2:It was sexy and hot and sharp. Yeah. It was such a great cha-cha. And the hip action. He was having, like, he was actually doing cha-cha walks with the ball of his foot. And I'm like, how is he doing this? I know.

47:56Speaker 1:And to see them also in the package, I love that. that we are getting to see little bits of him, them collaborating together so that they can figure out how he can do the moves that are needed for the dance style with his prosthetic legs. So for him to say, can I try to do it on an angle? And for her to say, let's try that. And then to see it and be like, great, let's go with that. I mean, it's, it is, it's what a fantastic partnership. I really, they are going to be really tough to beat this season. I just think, Can't believe this is only week two.

48:32Speaker 2:I know. They've had two last week. They came out with that great dance as well. And last week was another level.

48:39Speaker 1:They had a 20. And this week, they only got a 21. 7-7-7. Carrie Ann said he can move and has that deep soul. She said he got down and dirty and demands them to watch him. She loved it. Derek Huff also gave a 7, said he was absolutely blown away. Great awareness of weight transfer. He was in awe. And Bruno said, fabulous. And then we got 7-7-7. I know.

49:05Speaker 2:I was. Like, what is happening? But I get it.

49:11Speaker 1:Yeah, I know you can't... Like you said, I would have... I was so swept up by it. I would have been like, 10! But I understand that then you're... actually doing them a disservice truthfully, because now what do we do for the next week when he does get better and he does do something even crazier? Like, where do we have to go from here?

49:30Speaker 2:I don't even know how you would top that cha-cha. I have no idea how she's going to top that. I mean, I at least would have given it an eight.

49:38Speaker 1:That's how I feel.

49:39Speaker 2:Yeah, I feel like they could have gone an eight.

49:42Speaker 1:Yeah, that should have been an eight. They should have had a 24.

49:48Speaker 2:It was really like it blew my mind.

49:51Speaker 1:Yes, yes.

49:52Speaker 2:Yeah.

49:53Speaker 1:Couldn't agree more. Absolutely wonderful. If you have not seen it, go back and watch it. I'm going to watch it again and again and again.

50:00Speaker 2:Me too. Me too.

50:02Speaker 1:And then for our dance number nine, we had Tatiana Ali and Jan Ravnik. We saw in their package that last week she messed up early on and it threw off her confidence. This week, her dance is inspired by her childhood in front of the camera and issues with self-esteem, which I also know a little something about. And so it was Very sweet to see her open up and be so vulnerable and to share that. And for her Foxtrot, which they did to the song, What Was I Made For by Billie Eilish, which is such an emotional song.

50:36Speaker 2:Isn't it? Yes.

50:37Speaker 1:So beautiful. And to see her dance and with her looking in the mirror.

50:43Speaker 2:That was beautiful. It was such a great concept. And I love a theme and I love a storyline throughout the dance. It is entertainment. It's what we want to see. And I loved that from start to finish. I thought it was a nice flow between open work, a few theatrics into Foxtrot. I thought she's very graceful and elegant. It started and she was like beautiful and graceful. Then she went into a Foxtrot. It was a lovely dance.

51:12Speaker 1:Yeah.

51:13Speaker 2:You could see she was loving it. Yeah.

51:15Speaker 1:I love a Foxtrot. Love a Foxtrot.

51:18Speaker 2:Yeah.

51:18Speaker 1:It feels like it gives you the ability for like a little bit of whimsy and fun, but also just grace and elegance. And yeah, it's.

51:30Speaker 2:Yeah.

51:31Speaker 1:I love a Foxtrot.

51:31Speaker 2:It's my favorite. For sure. Yeah. I thought it was great. I thought, yeah, her transitions from. closed foxtrot into her little open work was really nice yeah her arms are beautiful she was like extending and yeah she's she's beautiful so um yeah there's still obviously technical things I'd like to see yeah um but I thought as far as this dance as a as a whole um With concept and everything, it was really pretty and beautiful. Yeah.

52:05Speaker 1:I thought this was a wonderful redemption dance for her. You know, if last week the premiere really kind of knocked her off her, any sort of confidence, if it rocked her at all, this week, she should have felt like, okay, I can do this. I got this. Like it was a really great redemption dance for her. And she took a huge, jump in scores. Last week she had a 12, and this week she got an 18 out of 30. Bruno gave it a 6 and said it was soft, beautiful storytelling, worked to great effect. Derek also gave it a 6, called it breathtaking, stunning, and a magnificent dance.

52:46Speaker 1:Carrie-Anne Anaba gave it a 6 and said it was touching. Do you think, and fun thought for all of us at home, do you think maybe this was Jan's best dance thus far on Dancing with the Stars?

53:03Speaker 2:Um, I don't know if it was his best dance. I've seen him do some beautiful dances.

53:08Speaker 1:Okay.

53:09Speaker 2:The favorite dance I've ever seen Jan do is this salsa he did with Selena on The Next Pro, to be honest. I know that's not Dance with Stars. It was so good. Really?

53:18Speaker 1:Oh, I'm gonna, oh wait, I loved that dance. I know exactly. The two of them were so great.

53:26Speaker 2:I was a guest judge on that episode and that was, Jan was loving that dance and he looked, that was amazing.

53:35Speaker 1:So that's probably my favorite. That dance was incredible. But what Jan is able to do with another professional dancer.

53:42Speaker 2:I know that's another level. Yes. Yeah.

53:44Speaker 1:Cause that's like, oh my gosh.

53:46Speaker 2:Yeah. This was really beautiful. Um, I love Jan. I think he's great.

53:50Speaker 1:I do too.

53:51Speaker 2:He's beautiful. He really is. Um, Yeah, I think he's had some great dances. I love his Latin dances too. Yeah. But, yeah, this was– I thought he choreographed a really beautiful dance, Tatiana.

54:04Speaker 1:I thought so too. I thought it was really great. Would you have given it a six? What were you thinking?

54:11Speaker 2:Yeah, I was sort of like, oh, five or a six. But, yeah, I did like her transitions between open to closed, closed. I would go a six.

54:20Speaker 1:Okay. Six.

54:21Speaker 2:Yeah.

54:21Speaker 1:Yeah. I would have also, I was thinking six. I thought that, I thought if last week was a four, this was definitely.

54:29Speaker 2:I don't think I would have given her a four last.

54:32Speaker 1:No. Did she get four?

54:33Speaker 2:Did she get three fours last week?

54:35Speaker 1:Three fours last week.

54:36Speaker 2:Yeah. Wow. Well, that's a good, she should be feeling so confident.

54:39Speaker 1:I know. That's what I'm saying. So that's, if last week rocked her confidence, this week should really have helped make her feel like she, belongs and she's capable. Absolutely. This was great. Dance number 10, Amber Glenn and Pasha Pashkov. In their package, we saw that heated rivalry meant a lot to her. It connects with her as a gay athlete, which is a story she looks to tell. She was scared of being in frame, but was looking forward to the personal story of it. Um, and last week she was given a score of 18. She performed, uh, let's see, what song was, what dance did they do? Did they do?

55:22Speaker 1:This was a tango. She did a tango to all the things she said originally by tattoo and remixed by Harrison who performed the song live on stage.

55:34Speaker 2:Uh, I love when they do that. I do too. I love that they're featuring the singer because they're so amazing. It's very nice. Yeah.

55:41Speaker 1:It's so nice. And I thought that that was really great too. So that's actually the, you know, musician that did that remix. And so they got to do some social content together and that was really fun.

55:51Speaker 2:That's fun.

55:52Speaker 1:What did you think of this dance?

55:54Speaker 2:Well, I love them together. Me too. And I think she owned it. Nice seeing her in a ballroom dance. Frame, great. Like- I'm so happy for Pasha and Daniela. I think they have, I mean, we're definitely going to be seeing them in the semifinals, if not finals, both of them. It could be a battle.

56:15Speaker 1:I know.

56:15Speaker 2:Yeah, exactly. I thought they were great together. It was dynamic, powerful. Everything was there. It was really, really good.

56:29Speaker 1:I think it was so obvious how much this song and story and dance meant to her. I felt like she commanded every second and every square inch of this dance and that floor. It was easily my female dance of the night. Just blew everyone else away for me. I thought it was captivating. I thought she looked so strong, so powerful. Their connection is great. They totally dominated the floor back and forth so fast.

57:11Speaker 2:Flying across the floor. Yeah, it was, it was perfection. The line she was hitting in a throwaway and like the frame was so solid together. They, they were amazing. They just attacked that and it was very powerful and, I loved it.

57:29Speaker 1:I loved it. I was so I was just so excited for them. So her total score for the night was a 21. Carrie Ann gave it a seven, said it was phenomenal. The partnership is working and she got chills from the technique. Bruno gave it a seven and said it was the best tango of the night, period, and that he loved Pasha's choreo, which. Makes me so happy to see Pasha's choreography get praised because he, he works so hard and he is so good. And I feel like sometimes he is underappreciated for, for that. Derek Hough also gave it a seven and gave her a choreographed high five. I was like, Oh, where have they, where have they practiced this secret high five?

58:12Speaker 2:Right. Yeah.

58:14Speaker 1:What would you have scored this dance?

58:17Speaker 2:I mean, I would have given Ezra and Daniela a 10, so I would have given them an 8. But if I gave the others an 8, probably a 7, I guess.

58:26Speaker 1:Okay.

58:27Speaker 2:Yeah, just because the other ones sort of blew me away. Like, I mean, this was still great in a different way. Yeah. But, yeah, I'd say a 7.

58:35Speaker 1:Okay. I would give this one an 8. Again, it's easier for me– like I– I gave Ezra an eight as well, but that's also knowing it could have been a 10 had we been willing to go there. But I also have a tendency to, I don't know, I see men and women's dances a little differently. Like they're hard to compare a tango and a cha-cha. And I felt I was equally as captivated. I'll say this. I was equally as captivated by watching Amber. And I felt like she was equally as in it as Ezra was and they were just a little different so but I see your point okay so you would have gone with a seven I yeah I feel like I would have been an eight. For dance number 11, Guillermo Rodriguez and Whitney Carson in their package. We hear that he has appreciated all of the love from his fans, that he is looking to bring an intense and passionate Guillermo, which is difficult for someone who is a jokester. Last week, he had a total score of 10, which seems impossible and feels painful to even say out loud. This week, they did a Paso Doble to Where Have You Been by his favorite artist, Rihanna.

59:55Speaker 2:Rihanna. It's so funny.

59:57Speaker 1:What is your take on Guillermo and Whitney and her soon-to-be, she just announced... Third son.

1:00:05Speaker 2:I know.

1:00:07Speaker 1:Boy, mom. Boy, mom.

1:00:08Speaker 2:So sweet.

1:00:09Speaker 1:Yeah.

1:00:10Speaker 2:Well, I love them together. I am having so much fun watching. I look forward to seeing what they're going to do. Yep. And I think Paso was a great dance for him.

1:00:19Speaker 1:Yeah.

1:00:21Speaker 2:It's great because in Paso you can walk. Like it's stomping and walking, hitting shapes. So it's actually quite a good dance. Yeah. You know, to do at this age. point in the competition. It doesn't require, you know, hip action, so to speak. So I think he actually, I could see Paso Doble in there. Yeah. I was impressed, you know, with his shaping. The knee walks got me. They were the assisted knee walks that he had with the guys holding him. I thought that was hysterical. I did too.

1:00:54Speaker 2:I loved it. I was like, he's doing assisted knee walks. This is genius.

1:00:58Speaker 1:Yep.

1:00:59Speaker 2:So that really... made me laugh in a good way. But he was doing knee walks. He was like in the character, you know, as the matador commanding the floor. So I could see a Paso Doble and I was pleasantly, you know, surprised with it. I was.

1:01:19Speaker 1:completely blown away. I truly, I was, I was riveted and totally unironically. I was just like, wow. And I know, you know, he, when he hit that move right in the center of the floor where he had to be right on beat and, and, I don't know. I was, I was, I was thrilled. And by the way, I watched it with my kids and my kids, they said, that was great. Let's watch it again. Like they loved it. So I was absolutely thrilled. I think, I don't think he's going anywhere and not just because people love him as a personality. No, I think there's, he's, you know, for what they had, And we'll see how this continues week after week, but he was quick tonight.

1:02:10Speaker 2:Yeah, he's taking it seriously. There was Paso Doble in there. I think Whitney did a great job of choreographing a proper Paso Doble routine. It was entertaining. It was clever. It still was his personality, you know, which we love to see. And I enjoyed it. I thought it was so good.

1:02:29Speaker 1:I thought the same thing.

1:02:30Speaker 2:And he improved from last week.

1:02:33Speaker 1:Yes.

1:02:33Speaker 2:Just what you want to say? Exactly.

1:02:35Speaker 1:He had a total score of 12. Carrie Ann Inaba gave him a four and said that she loved that he didn't rely only on schtick and said that there was possibly a viral moment. Derek Hough called him the matador, saw intention and commitment. I was blown away, he said, and to keep it up. And Bruno said, senor, ole. And then they all gave him fours, which may be a little bit of a hot take, but I feel like there could have been one or two fives in there.

1:03:04Speaker 2:I probably, I would have maybe gone a five.

1:03:07Speaker 1:I think so. I think it was worth a five.

1:03:11Speaker 2:I think so too. I think so too. I was thoroughly entertained by it. I saw a Paso Doble. I saw some shaping.

1:03:19Speaker 1:Yeah.

1:03:19Speaker 2:Yeah. I saw, I may have even seen some good heel leads.

1:03:23Speaker 1:Yeah. I mean, that, that's a lot. And so I, I think he's underscored personally, but no, I liked it. I liked it too. I would have done a five. Then we got dance number 12, Taylor Hansen and Britt Stewart. And we saw in their package that they had a good first week. And now he feels like he has a sense of the ballroom and he knows what he needs to do. He had a demanding week, but he definitely does not want to go home. Last week, he had a total score of 16. And this week, they did a cha-cha to Cake by the Ocean by DNCE.

1:03:58Speaker 1:What are your feelings on this one?

1:04:01Speaker 2:I really like them together. Nice lines, great intention. The transfer of weight I thought was really good. Again, I liked his hierography.

1:04:15Speaker 1:Yes, hierography, you called it.

1:04:18Speaker 2:I liked it in this dance, in the cha-cha. Yeah. His base was a little bit wide in times. Like he did have some good shaping parts and his transferring of weight was really good. But then when he had to get into the quick cha-cha, you can't have such a wide base. It's got to be a little more narrow to get that hip action and hit your lines quickly like you have to do in that dance. So those little technical things I think I would have liked to have seen. Well, he can work on those.

1:04:48Speaker 1:Yeah.

1:04:50Speaker 2:But I like his intention. He's in the dance. He's committed to it. So it's just those technical things that... he's got to work on, which he will, but he's a performer. He's a showman. I find him entertaining to watch. So yeah, I liked it. I thought it was a good solid dance. Yeah.

1:05:09Speaker 1:I thought it was a great dance too. And I definitely thought of you when he did the hierography again, I was like, Oh, Kim called it. He knows that's his thing, you know?

1:05:17Speaker 2:Oh yeah.

1:05:18Speaker 1:He's got it. And Brit's no dummy. She's going to tell him to, to use that. It, Him running his hands through his hair is Tyler taking off his shirt.

1:05:27Speaker 2:You know? It is. It is. It's the equivalent. Yeah. And we're here for it. So you've got to give us what we want.

1:05:32Speaker 1:Exactly. Give the people what they want.

1:05:34Speaker 2:Yeah.

1:05:35Speaker 1:This week, he now scores a 15 out of 30. So he went down by one. Bruno gave it a five, said he appreciates that everyone is pushing it. And he told him to make sure you finish your steps. But he likes the way he's working. What does that mean to finish his steps?

1:05:49Speaker 2:Yeah. So he's not exactly, I think his base is too wide. Okay. So he needs to narrow his base and then he can hit, he's not completely getting, oh, his weight over the balls of his feet. So it's not completely finished off his line. It's like he'll hit it and then go to the next thing. Right.

1:06:08Speaker 1:Okay.

1:06:08Speaker 2:It's tricky to do because Cha-Cha's a very fast dance, you know, and if your weight's a little bit wide and your base is too big, you're not going to be able to transfer your weight. Like when he did, when he did his shapes in the beginning, that was really good. And that can be wide. He was going, shifting his weight from foot to foot. And that was really good. But then when he had to get into the proper cha-cha, the rhythmical part of it with the hip action, it wasn't, he wasn't finishing off his steps.

1:06:37Speaker 1:Okay. Okay. That makes sense. Okay. Derek says he wants him to focus on the arms and he gave him a five. And Carrie Ann also gave him a five and said her one word was frenetic. Oh.

1:06:50Speaker 2:Yeah.

1:06:50Speaker 1:Which I don't.

1:06:51Speaker 2:I didn't find it frantic or anything.

1:06:53Speaker 1:Yeah. I didn't, I didn't understand that. I didn't understand that one. Cause I, I didn't feel that way about it.

1:06:59Speaker 2:No, I didn't think so either. Um, maybe, maybe it's again, she wanted to see him finishing off his steps more. Um, Maybe that's what it was. It's a shame we didn't really get to hear more from the judges tonight, but I get it. They're cramming everything into the, it was jam-packed, that's for sure.

1:07:19Speaker 1:Yes, it was.

1:07:20Speaker 2:But I guess, yeah, I probably would have done a five too, I think.

1:07:25Speaker 1:I felt like I would have given it a six. Yeah, I probably would have given it a six myself.

1:07:30Speaker 2:Probably a six if I gave Guillermo a five. Yeah. Yeah.

1:07:35Speaker 1:Right there with you, a six for sure.

1:07:37Speaker 2:Mm-hmm.

1:07:51Speaker 1:Dance number 13, we had Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson. We see in their package that last week was a dream come true, but there is more pressure being on top of the leaderboard and that this dance is going to double as a message to his younger self that everything will be okay. But Jenna wanted him to keep the emotions in check. Last week, they had the high score of 21. And this week, they did the Viennese Waltz to the song Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls.

1:08:21Speaker 1:And it was sung by Travis Garland back from his time on America's Got Talent.

1:08:26Speaker 2:Yeah, that was nice to see.

1:08:27Speaker 1:It was so nice to see. Travis is so talented. What a voice on that guy.

1:08:34Speaker 2:He seemed, I.

1:08:35Speaker 1:Mean, Harry seems like everyone's favorite male to win based on last week. How did you feel after watching him this week?

1:08:44Speaker 2:Well, he's naturally so great. He really is. And it was good to see him in a ballroom dance. And I thought he had a great frame. He's definitely got potential. I would have liked to have seen a little bit more drive action. yeah in the Viennese waltz it's very much like when the man's going forward he drives then the lady does it's your turn my turn kind of thing yeah so I would have liked to have seen a little bit more of that of him like driving through across the floor and it's more across the floor with the natural turns and reverses Again, I think one of the judges said there's not much rise and fall in the Viennese waltz. There's not because you're going across the floor and around. So I understand what they were doing.

1:09:30Speaker 2:They were really trying to emote this story for him. So it was a bit broken up for me in his moments. He had that moment where he screamed, stuff like that. Yeah, and I guess that was like a creative choice that they both made because But yeah, it took me out of the Viennese waltz a little bit.

1:09:49Speaker 1:Same. Yeah. I'm glad you said it too, because I was going to say I didn't understand the yell.

1:09:55Speaker 2:I didn't... Yeah.

1:09:59Speaker 1:It totally took me out of it. And I was like, oh, oh, okay. So yeah, that was. I also, it kind of confused the story then for me. It was like, I, from the package, I really gathered that this was a message to his younger self that he does belong and that everything's going to work out, which has a little bit more of a softer feel, more like I want to give my younger self a hug. And then the yell in the middle of the dance was almost like, yeah, I, it just, it took me out of it and it confused me a little bit.

1:10:31Speaker 2:Um, But, I mean, it's a form of art, isn't it? Totally. It made us all feel something. Yes. So, you know, I enjoyed the day. It was interesting to watch and I was like, whoa, what's happening here? And then I got back into the Viennese Walls and then there were moments of like, oh, great, okay, I like his frame, but then it stopped and I was like, oh, I wanted to see more continuous movement and flow, you know, as someone that's wanting to see a Viennese Walls. But I understand their creative interpretation of what they were trying to do.

1:11:04Speaker 1:Mm-hmm.

1:11:07Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm sure Len would have been like, yeah, no. Yeah.

1:11:11Speaker 1:Yeah, you're probably right.

1:11:12Speaker 2:Had Len been there, he.

1:11:13Speaker 1:Would have been like, what was that?

1:11:14Speaker 2:Yeah, what was that? Yeah. But, I mean, there's no denying that he is definitely, you know, one to watch.

1:11:24Speaker 1:Uh-huh.

1:11:25Speaker 2:And he's great. He's got everything. Like he's got the frame. I would have liked to see more drive action, but definitely one to watch, but a little broken up for me.

1:11:35Speaker 1:Yeah. Well, as I mentioned last week, he had a total score of 21 and this week he has a total score of 18. There were some boos in the ballroom. Bruno gave it a six, said it was a difficult dance. Overall, it wasn't bad and he's a great performer. Carrie Ann said it was out of balance. He lets it go too far and yet doesn't seem confident enough. And the crowd boos. Derek gave it a six and said, beautiful. I, what would you have given this?

1:12:08Speaker 2:I would have done a six.

1:12:09Speaker 1:Yeah, me too. I think a six is, for this dance, I thought that was, I thought they were right on. And I mean, Carrie Ann especially said, I feel like gave the note I would, I was thinking like, you know, yeah, I don't know. I, this was not, this was not my favorite dance of his. Um, and yet it's not because of lack of talent. He's obviously incredible dancer.

1:12:37Speaker 2:He's incredible. I think it was their creative choices that they went for in this.

1:12:43Speaker 1:Yes. And by the way, I appreciate big swings, even if they don't land. Even if they don't land and you don't end up walking away from it with the feeling that you hoped someone would have.

1:12:55Speaker 2:Yep.

1:12:55Speaker 1:I appreciate that you did it. Yes.

1:12:57Speaker 2:And I was intrigued by it and I was, you know, it got me feeling something. So I was like, okay, I, yeah, I do appreciate that. And I think that they're working collaboratively together, which I really love to see because he does have so much to offer.

1:13:13Speaker 1:Totally.

1:13:14Speaker 2:And you know, Jenna's doing a good, he, this is, the celebrity's journey. And I, I love it when the pro really hones in on their celebrity and brings out what they want out of this whole experience. So I think that's what they wanted to do something with this dance and they certainly did it. Yeah.

1:13:34Speaker 1:Yeah. Dance number 14, Maura Higgins and Mark Ballas in the package. We see she was tied for first place last week and that getting the high score makes her nervous to perform again. Maura is getting frustrated with herself and she tears up.

1:13:51Speaker 2:I know.

1:13:52Speaker 1:Last week, I know, it was so hard.

1:13:55Speaker 2:You feel, because she did do so well and I think she wasn't expecting that.

1:13:59Speaker 1:Yeah.

1:13:59Speaker 2:And then she's got this, she's put this pressure on herself.

1:14:02Speaker 1:Yep.

1:14:03Speaker 2:Which I understand you do because you're like, oh my gosh, how did I end up being tied as the top score last week? Yep.

1:14:10Speaker 1:Well, and also, I know for me, I don't know how much time... they spent, you know, you, before the show starts, you have two to three weeks. If in Maura's case, as I mentioned, she was the first person announced. So who knows how long she had, but you have way more time for your first dance than you're ever going to have for any other dance. And sometimes that means that once your pro feels like you've got the first dance down, you start working on your second dance a little bit, but they also don't want you to get you know, like you mentioned, it's sometimes you start with a ballroom and then you go to a Latin or you start with a Latin and then you go to a ballroom and they don't want you getting confused.

1:14:51Speaker 1:So you may not like learn it all the way, but you touch on it a little bit. I remember feeling so confident in that first dance and then going into the week two and being like, I absolutely need at least another week. Like, how am I possibly so It is overwhelming. It's a lot. And so depending on how much time they spent on that first week's dance, if this week now she's like, oh my gosh, how do I do this in six days?

1:15:18Speaker 2:You know? Yes. Yeah.

1:15:20Speaker 1:So they did a cha-cha to the song September by Earth, Wind & Fire. Maura was the odds-on favorite to win going into week two. So how do you think this all played out tonight?

1:15:33Speaker 2:You know what?

1:15:34Speaker 1:I love.

1:15:35Speaker 2:the two of them together. I thought this was a great cha-cha. Not obviously as comfortable. She didn't look as comfortable in this dance as she did last week. Last week was exceptional for me. Like it was one of my favorite dances of the whole night. Yeah. And obviously this is a different style for her. It seems like she's a bit more exposed in this cha-cha. We get to see more of her leg action, her feet, uh, which you don't so much in the ballroom dances.

1:16:02Speaker 1:Yeah.

1:16:03Speaker 2:Um, But I was pleasantly surprised. I can see she's really put the work in, and I know Mark has probably been grilling her like crazy, but she had her hips going. She was really trying to use her feet, but I could see she was thinking about her feet. Right. Do you know what I mean? Yeah. So I think when she can start to really become second nature to her, I think we're going to see a huge improvement in the Latin dances with her. But I thought... It was, her articulation was great. There was a lot of cha-cha in there. So there was so much content. I enjoyed watching it. I just think now she's got this Latin dance under her belt, I think she won't be as intimidated by it. And, yeah, I still think she's going to be sort of the one to watch as an underdog, so to speak, because I don't think people are considering her, you know, much dance experience, but I think she's going to really improve. And she's just got this beautiful grace and elegance about her. Yeah. That's so effortless, um, which I love to see on the dance floor. So, um, I really enjoyed this dance.

1:17:17Speaker 1:Yeah. I, uh, I thought for both Harry and Maura who were at the top of the leaderboard, I did think both of them after such high opening numbers, um, week two, I felt a little like, huh, okay.

1:17:32Speaker 2:Yeah.

1:17:33Speaker 1:I guess, I guess the only way to describe it is I felt a little let down from what I had seen the first week. But I also think that again, is one of the reasons that makes people come back week after week and want to see what's going to happen next, because now they have a wonderful opportunity to go back and do something totally different. and have a redemption from maybe a little, you know, so it's, it is that journey of the up and the down and the, sometimes you have a breakout week and then maybe the next week you aren't as comfortable or in Harry's case, I think he focused so much on storytelling. Yes. Um, and, and getting that across that maybe some of the more fun dance elements were missing and, And in this case, I think you're right that it was maybe some of the things that were a little more camouflaged in the ballroom style dance for Maura are on display here. And it's only week two. So she's not in a place where she's going to be where she is at week eight.

1:18:33Speaker 2:Yeah. And some styles can just come more naturally to you than others. Yep. And I think last week's was something that was felt. She's very elegant and graceful. And I think that really suited her personality. So I think that came quite easy. Probably she worked hard for it.

1:18:49Speaker 1:Yeah.

1:18:50Speaker 2:Cha-Cha is a really tricky dance, especially for the female celebrity. You're in high heels, there's a lot of hip action, you're exposed, you know, it's quick, it's really fast, your weight's got to be in the right spot. There's all these technical elements you have to hit and I know Mark would have been absolutely... grilling her on the technique. And I could see that it's there, but I could also see that she was thinking about her feet. You know, she didn't want to let Mark down. So I think she's best when she's.

1:19:22Speaker 1:Out of her head.

1:19:23Speaker 2:Yep. Yep. Absolutely.

1:19:25Speaker 1:Uh, we learned that Maura chipped Mark's tooth in rehearsal during the week. How do you chip someone's tooth? Have you ever chipped anyone's tooth?

1:19:33Speaker 2:I've not chipped a tattoo. She chipped the tooth.

1:19:36Speaker 1:I know. I'm like, I was thinking, is it a jewelry thing? Did something?

1:19:39Speaker 2:Yeah, I don't know. Maybe. Yeah. Did she hit him with a ring or how would she have chipped a tooth? I don't know.

1:19:46Speaker 1:And then, and then Julianne said she has also chipped one of Mark's teeth.

1:19:50Speaker 2:And I was like, Julianne used to wear these crazy nails.

1:19:53Speaker 1:Oh really?

1:19:54Speaker 2:Yeah. When she was like in the junior champion, when they were dancing together as juniors, she used to have those crazy, like fake nails.

1:20:01Speaker 1:Oh, that's funny.

1:20:03Speaker 2:Maybe it was a nail or I don't know how that chips a tooth, but.

1:20:06Speaker 1:I don't either. Yeah, I need more information on that.

1:20:10Speaker 2:I know, we need to know.

1:20:11Speaker 1:That's the kind of BTS stuff I want to see. So last week, she was at the top of the leaderboard with 21. This week, she has a total score of 19 out of 30. Carrie Ann gave it a six and said, don't put too much pressure on yourself. She called it a little safer than last week, but still likes that she's pushing it. Derek also gave it a six, said elegant, good neckline, and her arms are chef's kiss. However, the cha-cha was very back-weighted and stiff, but she is a natural performer. And Bruno gave it a seven and said bravo to everyone tonight. And so quite a few people had scores that went down.

1:20:52Speaker 2:I know.

1:20:53Speaker 1:From last week.

1:20:54Speaker 2:Yeah. That's what I love about this show. There's different styles.

1:20:58Speaker 1:Yeah.

1:20:59Speaker 2:You can be up here in this, you know, in the Latin ones, not so much the ballroom. And I think That's why I love second week because you get to see everyone do both of the styles.

1:21:08Speaker 1:Yeah.

1:21:09Speaker 2:And it's quite telling, you know, it's like, oh, okay.

1:21:12Speaker 1:Yes.

1:21:12Speaker 2:It makes it a bit more of an even playing field, which we love.

1:21:16Speaker 1:Exactly. And I loved seeing them as we normally do, men and women mixed up. Just, you know, it wasn't, it's, it's so, it's comforting to be back to the. Yeah.

1:21:27Speaker 2:I love the variety of it, you know? Exactly.

1:21:30Speaker 1:And then.

1:21:31Speaker 2:It was great to see everyone.

1:21:32Speaker 1:It's everyone's least favorite time, the time where someone has to go home. They very quickly rifle off those who are safe, and then we are left with the bottom three. The bottom three, Guillermo and Whitney, Tyler and Sharna, Giada and Alan. I know. And again, it is always prefaced that this is not guaranteed to actually be the bottom three, but Looking at the dances tonight, did these three being the bottom three make sense to you?

1:22:08Speaker 2:I mean, I guess so. I don't know. I mean, maybe. Were they scored the lowest? No.

1:22:19Speaker 1:I mean, let's go back through here.

1:22:22Speaker 2:Yeah, it's like.

1:22:24Speaker 1:I mean, I think for me, the only one I feel like, there's no way was even close to the bottom three is Guillermo. I think even if you didn't vote for Guillermo last week because you'd love him as a personality, even if you were just watching tonight and voting strictly on entertainment value and even danceability, Guillermo got a lot of votes this week.

1:22:53Speaker 2:I think so too. And you can see that, like, I think people... especially after tonight's performance with the Paso Dope. Like he really did quite a bit of Paso in there.

1:23:02Speaker 1:Yeah.

1:23:03Speaker 2:And his shaping and stuff. So, yeah, but I mean, gosh, it's just going to get so hard every week, isn't it?

1:23:10Speaker 1:It really is.

1:23:11Speaker 2:Yeah.

1:23:11Speaker 1:I mean, I'm not– Giada and Guillermo both got 12 tonight. So, yeah. Okay. They were two of the lowest and I know Tyler had 16. So he was down there too. He was down there too.

1:23:24Speaker 2:I mean, we don't know if that was necessarily– Right. Exactly.

1:23:29Speaker 1:Doesn't, doesn't mean for sure.

1:23:30Speaker 2:I don't know. Maybe now people will vote for Tyler more now seeing him in that position. And then next week in the package, you know, he'll be like, oh, that was so scary being in the bottom three.

1:23:42Speaker 1:I got to kill it this week.

1:23:43Speaker 2:I got to kill it. Yeah. Psychologically, it does something to you. You're like, oh my gosh.

1:23:48Speaker 1:It does. Not only does it do something to you, but it does something to the audience. Well, and then we find out that Giada De Laurentiis and Alan Burstyn have been eliminated. And I did think this was the right call. And I'm sad that we will not get to see her journey continue because I was absolutely, like you said, I was rooting for her and excited to see her doing something new and going so far outside her comfort zone. But with that said, she may have been so far outside her comfort zone that it was making, it wasn't adding to her life. It may have been more stress. I felt when I watched the package, I was like, oh, and even seeing the way she responded to feedback. Yeah.

1:24:34Speaker 2:I know I was really I resonated with her last week in her package and I was so looking forward to seeing this journey she was going to be on and the fact that her daughter's gone off to college doing something new she was doing something new I thought that was really sweet but I think yeah just on tonight's dance it was probably the right call sadly you know feel bad for Alan it's It's a shame it's cut so early in the competition, but that's the way it goes. There's so many of them this year. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, but I think looking at the performance from tonight, it was probably the right call, I'd say.

1:25:19Speaker 1:Yeah, I agree. Well, I'm going to ask you every week, even though it's wildly unfair, who is your current favorite to win?

1:25:29Speaker 2:Well, it's got to be... I mean, from tonight's performance and last week, Ezra and Daniela.

1:25:35Speaker 1:Yeah, I think they're the ones to beat.

1:25:38Speaker 2:They're the ones to beat. Yeah, I mean, tonight was great because you see everybody's switching like we saw last week's leaders and now not the leaders. So I love that, that it's anyone's game. But for me, Ezra just and Daniela were so unbelievable tonight. that I think that they're definitely the ones to watch. And I think he's so comfortable on that floor.

1:26:06Speaker 1:I know. Something I should have mentioned when we were talking about their dance that I loved is that one of the things you hear occasionally about Dani when someone wants to criticize Dani is they'll say, oh, well, she's so spectacular. She can just dance around her partners and you don't realize that they're not doing anything. That is not the case.

1:26:30Speaker 2:Absolutely not.

1:26:31Speaker 1:In this partnership.

1:26:32Speaker 2:With full hip action, proper cha-cha technique, his arms, his body movement, the timing, it was so rhythmical and the way they were so in sync together, like they're dancing together as a couple and it was so incredible from start to finish. I loved it. the little bit with the troop and like, it was just so great. The whole thing was spectacular. So yeah, I think there, I said it last week that they're the ones to beat and I think that they still are. And Amber as well, I think she had a really great night.

1:27:08Speaker 1:I think so too. I agree. I can't, I mean, I, I feel like, uh, we are going to see a Pasha and Danny, Amber, Ezra finale situation, a husband and wife, you know, one and two. I don't know.

1:27:24Speaker 2:It's Val and Jenna too. I know.

1:27:26Speaker 1:What if it's, what if it's the Smirkovskis and the Pashkovs? Who knows?

1:27:33Speaker 2:But yeah, then you could have, I don't, I don't know what's going to happen. Like we've, Yeah. So it's really great. I love it. It's like we're really in it now.

1:27:42Speaker 1:I know.

1:27:43Speaker 2:It feels like, okay, this is good.

1:27:45Speaker 1:This is it. We're in. We're in it. And it's so exciting.

1:27:49Speaker 2:We're off to the races.

1:27:50Speaker 1:We're off to the races. And to see Amber and Ezra, if they make it to the finals together, two Olympians in the finals in the year of heated rivalry, it would be spectacular. Well, I can't wait for next week. Looking forward to talking with you about it as always. And thank you everyone for joining us yet again. We will see you next week. Bye.