'DTWS' Recap: Girls, Girls, Girls!
Model Joanna Krupa takes the lead on Ladies Night
By Kate Mulcrone
Special to MSN TV
Tonight the celebrities took to the floor to perform the salsa and the Viennese waltz on "Dancing With the Stars." The second night of this season's premiere did not lack for drama: Len and Bruno almost came to blows during the first hour of the broadcast, but by the end of the broadcast it was clear that the ladies are leaving the men in the dust in this horse race.
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Head judge Len was not his usual cheerful self tonight. He seemed a little grouchy. Okay, he seemed like he just walked out of the DMV after waiting in line for three hours only to find that someone had keyed his car. Luckily, he was cheered up by the last two contestants of the night, Joanna Krupa and Kelly Osbourne. Both of these lovely ladies turned in beautiful performances.
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Want to know who lifted up her arms and pretended she was a tree and who cried onstage? Here are all the dirty details:
She's probably best known for her work on "Entourage," but Debi was also in some Madonna videos back in the day. Four of them! She and Maksim Chmerkovskiy led off with a cheeky salsa. Debi's timing was off at the beginning, but she got better as the dance progressed. The judges quibbled with some of her footwork, but nothing they said seemed to justify the low scores they handed her. Ouch. She did better in the relay round, but she'll need to wow the judges next week if she wants to stick around.
Score: 16/30
Relay rank: 3
Total: 22/40
Oooh, Clarissa! Sabrina the Teenage Witch, for you young'ns. Melissa is all grown up now, and it turns out she has moves. She and Mark Ballas waltzed their way into the audience's hearts, but Bruno wanted more wow and Len wanted better footwork. Still, Melissa's poise and determination are strictly ballroom, and during the relay round, the judges called her the most improved. She's one to watch.
Score: 18/30
Relay rank: 3
Total: 24/40
Adorable pop star Mya and her partner Dmitry Chaplin turned in a fresh and fabulous waltz. The routine was graceful and elegant, as every waltz should be, but it was also genuinely exciting. Mya made it look effortless. She really and truly held her own throughout the dance. Bruno and Len almost came to blows over the theatricality of the dance. Bruno loved it, while Len got his grouch on. Not surprisingly, the audience sided with Bruno. Mya did manage to win Len over with her cha-cha-cha during the relay round. She'll definitely be out in front this season.
Score: 21/30
Relay rank: 1
Total: 31/40
Is life easier when you're a supermodel? Well, probably, but it doesn't mean dancing is easier. Kathy and Tony Dovolani performed a salsa. I say "performed," but Tony performed and Kathy watched him rather tentatively and tried to keep up. There was a particularly dicey hold at the end where I actually worried that she would fall out of Tony's arms. Kathy's going to have to pick up the pace if she wants to keep dancing.
Score: 16/30
Relay rank: 4
Total: 20/40
Two out of eight winners of "Dancing With the Stars" have been Olympic gold medalists, so that gives Natalie a lot to live up to coming into this competition. The swimming champion has 11 medals and several world records to her name, so I think she can handle the pressure. Alec Mazo and Natalie danced a fast and furious salsa that was full of tricks. Like her fellow Beijing Olympian Shawn Johnson, Natalie has a ton of energy and can hit positions that some of the other contestants can only dream about. Her timing is a little off, though, and she seems uncomfortable on the floor, though she perked up a bit during the relay. If she can relax and start having fun, Natalie will be one to beat this season.
Score: 19/30
Relay rank: 2
Total: 27/40
We all know that Macy Gray can sing, but can she dance? Sadly, no. Usually I try to limit my expectations during the first week and see where things go, but … no. Macy barely moved on the floor. It was kind of like she was doing tai chi. The judges were so flummoxed by Macy's utter lack of moves that they had no idea what to say. Even Tom Bergeron was at a loss for words. He called the dance "charming." I'd like to say her performance in the cha-cha relay was better, but it wasn't. It looks like Jonathan Roberts might be hanging up his dancing shoes in the first week of competition unless Macy can summon some Cloris Leachman-style clout with you guys.
Score: 15/30
Relay rank: 4
Total: 19/40
What do you do after posing naked for PETA? You put on a glittery costume, and you dance with Derek Hough, that's what. Joanna and her partner Derek Hough tore up the floor with a smoking salsa. It was electric and exciting, truly an instant classic. Len smiled! I didn't realize he could still do that. Derek and Joanna also turned in a stellar performance in the relay round. Joanna is a fantastic dancer, and I'm sure the "Are they dating?" buzz that will inevitably spring up won't hurt her chances at the trophy any.
Score: 24/30
Relay rank: 1
Total: 34/40
Rock royalty wild child Kelly is no stranger to the spotlight, but it was hard to say whether she'd take this competition seriously. Well, we have our answer: She's in it to win it! Kelly's partner Louis Van Amstel said he could turn her from a tomboy into a princess, and it was no idle boast. Kelly was poised, elegant and had tremendous presence onstage during her Viennese waltz. She was so overcome, in fact, that she cried a little after the applause died down. Her cha-cha-cha was equally impressive. The judges were as proud of Kelly as Papa Ozzy was tonight, so the sky's the limit.
Score: 23/30
Relay rank: 2
Total: 31/40
The Scorecard
Who won the judges: Joanna Krupa, Mya and Kelly Osbourne
Who didn't cut it: Macy Gray and Kathy Ireland
Who won the audience: Melissa Joan Hart and Kelly Osbourne
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The three-part season premiere of "Dancing With the Stars" continues Wednesday, Sept. 23, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.
Last night - Why was Macy even on the show? She didn't act as though she really wanted to be there with her lame attitude and poor effort.
About Len - he is a straight shooter most of the time. Last night he missed the mark (and he has done this on other occasions) by criticizing the choreography rather than the contestant. I think it is totally unfair to hold the choreography against the contestant and reflect it in their score. Yes, but, how did the dancer do even though the choreography was bad? Wrong emphasis Len.
Nice surprises - Joanna Krupa, Natalie Coghlin, Kelly Osbourne
Disappointment - Kathy Ireland, I was hoping for more.
I hope Kathy Irland goes before Macy.Debi-I thought she was a tad underscored (the curse of going first), but I see potential. I'm a Maks fan, so I hope she'll be around and improve.
Natalie--I expected her to be really broad-shouldered and such, but she actually looked very petite. I really liked both her dances. I think she and Mya will be around a long time.
Joanna--Derek's commentary during rehearsal practice was getting a little nauseating ("do that, it's hot, no not during the dance, but it's hot"). We get it Derek, but she's just another stupor model. Thought her foxtrot was overrated...seemed pretty stiff to me and posture was too upright. But, she did have the best salsa of the night...it was the only one to have ANY heat.
Melissa/Clarissa--Gotta admit, I like her. Actually thought her legs looked better in the cha-cha than Mya.
Mya--Come on, Len, that wasn't a viennese waltz? Really? With all that rotation and such? I thought it was the best waltz of the night. But, sorry, I thought her legs looked rubbery during the cha-cha. She had the moves, but something didn't jive with me (no pun intended)...
Kelly--OMG, she was unexpectedly adorable. If Debi doesn't pick it up pretty quick, she may have to get my vote!
Kathy--She's a stupor model, but she seems more genuine than a Joanna. She's gotta get over the Susan Lucci-syndrome of dancing too carefully.
Macy--Please walk away...don't stumble.
I love Macy Gray. You can tell by the way that she walks that she is not, nor ever will be, graceful. She gave it her all and I'm sure that she came a long way since her first practice.
Don't compare her to Chloris Leachman...she was a bad joke. Macy Gray is no joke.
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I could not disagree with you more strongly! Cloris Leachman deserved to go home a couple of weeks earlier than she did and much of the choreography she was given was appalling, but she is an 80+ woman with great flexibility, energy and determination and should be applauded for that. And when Ballas gave her something straight-forward to dance to, quite graceful considering that she was fifty years older than most of the other contestants. I don't know anyone in their 80's who can even stand on one foot, let alone hoist their leg over their head! Amazing and in no way a joke.
Macy Gray was a joke last night and in the training clip: she stumbled around like she is in some sort of chemically induced state and her feet barely even left the ground. I noticed she was having trouble walking down the steps the first night during the intro and she didn't even have to dance that night. I hope she goes soon. Nothing against her personally and she seems to be trying but there also seems to be a total disconnect between her brain and her feet and it is a dancing contest.
not sure about the whole group ..... not as good as in the past years .... but hey they will get there, at least some of them and Bruno and Len are just not funny w/their actions, did they ever think they could and DO hurt others feelings .... NO, we are not all dancers, but hey trying is or should get E for effort and not some snotty words about what one does or doesn't do. They "judges" need to TONE down a bit.
primetime tonight
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Deanna Barnert | Los Angeles, Calif.
Entertainment journalist Deanna "TVDeeva" Barnert visits sets, interviews industry players and critiques the final product. Buzz's daytime TV queen covers it all for MSN TV, but loves her sitcoms, soaps and any juicy drama that doesn't call itself Reality TV.
