#dwts29

OK so despite everything that happened with the show’s production, I’m watching this show, because dance still takes my mind off the various stresses in life. Obviously I hate how Tom and Erin were forced off the show, but I won’t begrudge Tyra of that. I think she’s a decent host. Next, I was pleasantly surprised to see Derek Hough back as a judge. I knew Len was stuck in England and couldn’t return to do the show, and there were rumours Derek would replace him but I didn’t think they were true. Scores are CAI-Derek-Bruno.

I honestly wasn’t expecting there to even be a DWTS season given the pandemic. I’m not entirely convinced it’s a good idea to have one. They have social distancing measures in place but ehhhhh idk. But again I’m glad to have something to distract me from other shit.

Opening was decent enough considering they were clearly avoiding group rehearsals and filming. Interesting that apparently Ray Leeper choreographed it because I only know him as a jazz choreographer.

AJ McLean and Cheryl Burke - Jive I didn’t recognise bald AJ at first. I thought he was a soccer player. Based on this one dance, he has a lot to work on technique-wise. But with Cheryl as a partner he could be a dark horse. Song was not good for jive though. 6-6-6 T18

Chrishell Stause and Gleb Shevchenko - Tango I find Selling Sunset cringe as a show but have nothing personal against Chrishell. She looked very wobbly on her feet. Like a baby deer taking its first steps. I think she has potential, but don’t know if Gleb is the pro do help her reach that. Height and looks wise I see why they were put together. I just don’t trust Gleb as a pro. Wow those scores were harsh. I wasn’t expecting that. 4-5-4 T13

Vernon Davis and Peta Murgatroyd - Foxtrot Man has footwork, I’ll give him that. I’m talking about his touchdown dance, that is. But his foxtrot was nothing to sniff at either. A lot of the issues I saw were pretty commonplace for athletic men getting foxtrot early on, like smoothing out his extensions and getting more glidey steps. Thought he deserved maybe 1 more point. 5-6-6 T17

Anne Heche and Keo Motsepe - Cha cha cha OMG I love her sass. Similar problem to Chrishell in that her steps didn’t always look secure, though cha cha is more forgiving a dance than tango. 6-6-6 T18

Jeannie Mai and Brandon Armstrong - Salsa She has potential if she can control her energy. I hope Brandon gets a good run with her because I think they could be another potent pair. 6-6-6 T18

Jesse Metcalfe and Sharna Burgess - Quickstep Props to him for tackling the quickstep right out the gate. If you wanna be sexy, that is not the pattern to wear. Also, quickstep isn’t a dance you smoulder in. He looked kinda intense and maybe not enjoying himself as much as he could have. He could be decent, though. And welcome back Sharna! 6-6-6 T18

Skai Jackson and Alan Bersten - Tango I’ve never seen any of her shows but she seems like such a nice girl. Carries herself really well. Looks like she and Alan get along well too. Tango could have used more travelling and she looked a bit tense at times. But she can become good. Weird music for the dance style. 7-7-7 T21

Kaitlyn Bristowe and Artem Chigvintsev - Cha cha cha One of the strongest dances at this point of the night. She looked the least Bambi-like and had good turn out but it was not consistent. Like Derek said, she felt a bit “safe”. Welcome back, Artem! 6-7-7 T20

Nev Schulman and Jenna Johnson - Foxtrot Haha he’s so adorkable. Also random, but I know Catfish as ‘the show that was on before Teen Wolf’. He has lots of potential and could also become a fan favourite with his affable personality. His dance felt oddly short compared to the others though? Oh and I dunno if it’s Jenna’s hair or how she did her makeup this week but she looks so pretty like this. 7-7-6 T20

Johnny Weir and Britt Stewart - Cha cha cha Bit like Skai, felt a bit tense at times in the dance. Some actions were a bit hard-hitting. Those eyes are crying out for some matching purple eyeshadow. Nice to see Britt being a pro. 6-6-6 T18

Justina Machado and Sasha Farber - Cha cha cha Best cha cha yet. She was nicely grounded but still energetic. Hit some good lines too. I can picture her being good at ballroom styles as well so she’s one to watch. 7-7-7 T21

Charles Oakley and Emma Slater - Salsa Emma said he has a natural rhythm in training so I wonder if he got into his head in the performance because I wasn’t seeing that. Other problems - flat footedness and lack of hip action we’ve seen before in tall athletes. 4-4-4 T12

Monica Aldama and Val Chmerkovskiy - Foxtrot She has a natural grace. I think she didn’t get into hold quite right initially so they looked a bit awkward for a while. Also I wonder when CAI will realise that no one cares about her lifting rules anymore. They all stopped caring over ten seasons ago. Thought her score would be a little higher. 6-7-6 T19

Nelly and Daniella Karagach - Salsa Nelly seems like such a fun, chill guy to hang out with. I feel like he was thinking quite hard about the dance and not fully immersing himself in it. He looked kinda reserved and trepid. He got all the steps though. Bruno was a little generous there though. Congrats to Daniella for her first dance as a pro partner! 5-5-6 T16

Carole Baskin and Pasha Pashkov - Paso Doble Throwing someone a paso on week 1? But the song works I guess. I feel like we’ve seen that cage like 5 times. Clearly this dance was just playing up to the whole tiger thing rather than actually trying to be a paso. 4-4-3 T11

Agreed. Definitely NOT a fan!!

I wish she wasn’t a producer.

What was ABC/DWTS thinking 🤦🏼‍♀️??????

Lord knows how long her contract is for. Probably at least two years. Not sure how long I can stomach her.

I love the pros, so I’ll stick it out this season.

I never realized how much a live audience and band added to the show. And Tom.

Everything felt flat last night.