by David McAlpine

Last night on So You Think You Can Dance, the top 10 performers took the stage with new partners, a group dance and solo dances as the power shifted from the judges to America. The dancers showed that they all have the technical chops to be here, so it seems to be anybody’s competition.

The choreography is kicked up a notch this week since each dancer has to learn four dances: the group dance, the dance with the other guys/girls, their partner dance and their solo—twice the amount they’re used to. Everyone, however, nailed the group dance, a twisted, wacky number by the talented Wade Robson. Starting the show on a good note, Cat Deeley mentions that So You Think You Can Dance was nominated for five Emmys this morning (though she left out the fact that they didn’t get nominated for Oustanding Reality-Competition Program).

The women are first on stage, where Cat says she’ll reveal the bottom two. Janette is first, my personal favorite and dancer powerhouse extraordinaire of the season. Last night, she brought the funk, then had a standout solo, proving time and time again that she’s been the one to beat since week one. So of course when Cat said she was safe, it was no surprise. Randi is next, who was one half of a forgettable paso doble…and also one half of this week’s bottom two girls. Jeanine also had a great solo last night and danced a brilliant contemporary routine by Dance alumni Travis Wall. Her being in the bottom two would have shocked me, but she was safe. It’s down to Melissa, who was less than stunning in her Broadway routine, and Kayla, who was a knockout during her waltz with Evan. Not surprisingly, Melissa was placed in the bottom two with Randi, leaving them vulnerable for the end of the show.

Now it’s the guys turn! Jason, who had his best performance of this season last night, was deemed safe (complete with surprised scream), followed by Evan, who was clearly a standout last night, as well. When they get to Kupono, you can tell in his face that he knows he’s in the bottom two, so he’s not shocked at all when Cat says so. All that’s left is Brandon, who flopped with Melissa, and Ade, who was overshadowed by Janette and totally botched his solo. Rounding out the bottom two is Ade, giving Brandon another week in the competition.

For the solos, the four just repeat their solos from last night, and Ade’s doesn’t get any better. If I had to guess, it’d be Melissa and Ade, just because people probably still associate them as a pair and neither of them were good enough to stay. To stretch the show to fill an hour, the Black Eyed Peas came out to perform, which was probably the most entertaining part of the show.

Finally, it’s results time and Cat reveals that Randi and Kupono are headed home this week. I mean, I ended up being wrong on both counts, but neither of them were particularly good last night, either (except Kupono’s solo, which was technically strong), so it’s not a total surprise.
Tune in next week to watch the top eight performers compete for your votes on So You Think You Can Dance, Wednesday at 8/7c on FOX.

(Image courtesy of FOX)

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