DWTS Season 21 Finals: Of course, it's Bindi and Derek!

There's a lot of hooha that goes on in the Finals of Dancing with the Stars. (The two-night DWTS extravaganza, that is!) By now, you know that this is the end. But let's walk back through it a bit, shall we? Leaving out all the frou frou and hoke, there were some incredible moments.

(So, kick back, and let's just have a moment from last week to savor...)

Have I mentioned how much I love this dance? And Jenna? Wow...

OK, moving back to the Finals... Night One (Monday)

Meghan Trainor kicks it off with a big splashy number, choreographed by Mandy Moore (of course).

The first dancers are Carlos and Witney. There is some sloppy editing, where he talks about a dance being "so hard," when he's actually talking about a dance he does later in the Finals. *sigh*

This first foxtrot they do I just hated. Just hated everything about it.

Then, we had Alek and Lindsay doing a rumba.

Compared to the sublime sexiness that we had earlier in the season (with Alek and Emma), this just felt half-baked.

So just when you're thinking that this has got to be the most boring #DWTS Finals ever, this happened.

And after this blistering jive, you're left wondering, Gosh, WHY hasn't Sharna won a Mirror Ball yet? Nick Carter still can't really keep up, but damn is she wonderful to watch!

And then, this.

An incredible quickstep by Bindi and Derek.

Then, we had a truly groundbreaking number. Groundbreaking not only because of this...

Shirtless Val backstage as Meghan Trainor sings about "Boys Like You," but also because Who Is Fancy? (whom I actually don't know who he is) did this...

The line is about blowing you... Ahem... a kiss... (hence the glitter). It actually felt quite shocking to me in the moment. (And wonderful!) (See, boys don't dance with boys on this show... on purpose...) Like I said, it felt wonderful to finally see this. I mean, if Wheel of Fortune can have guys talking about their husbands, I think DWTS needs to broaden its horizons a bit too.

And finally, we are at the most exciting moment all season (usually): the Freestyle round.

My own personal bias/belief about the Freestyle round is that, unless you're Derek Hough or Mark Ballas, if you do a Freestyle with lots of people and lots of stuff going on, and lots of noise, it's gonna fail. Carlos even says that to Witney in the package: "Are you sure having all these people is going to be OK?" Side answer: Nope. No, it's not. (Even though she says, Oh yes, it's fine.)

This was the effort by Carlos and Witney. One can only dream of what Mark Ballas and Carlos' wife, Alexa, could have come up with instead. *sobs*

Also, I really dislike hip hop music. So any dance that relies mostly on hip hop is lost on me. I pretty much hated this one. Ugh.

Well, Lindsay is dancing with a military man, so the obstacle course thing kinda seemed ok, except that it's supposed to be dance, not a workout routine. Yeah, I didn't much like this one as Freestyles go, either.

A successful Freestyle hopefully ties in both a bit of who the person was before #DWTS, and chronicles their journey on the show. As Derek explained in the package, Bindi Irwin is "one of the most authentic people" he's ever met, so doing a Freestyle with a lot of bells and whistles didn't feel right.

Also, what we really know Bindi Irwin for is her father, and her father's death. They danced to a song called "Footprints in the Sand" and unbeknownst to Bindi, Derek added a picture of her dad and her at the very end, which made her, and us, cry.

It was a beautiful, moving dance, chock full of fabulous choreography. Bindi and Derek are truly amazing.

Lastly, we had Nick and Sharna.

Another type of great Freestyle is when the artist shows you not only who he walked in as, but also how far he's come. It was natural, I suppose, to choose "Larger Than Life" as this Backstreet Boy's Finals Freestyle. And boy, was it! WOW. All sorts of troupe members (Val, Jenna, Emma, Keo, a couple others) joined in. The stagecraft was over the top and amazing. Fun stuff.

Miche FAVORITE FREESTYLES
1. Bindi and Derek
2. Nick and Sharna
3. Alek and Lindsay
4. Carlos and Witney

Carlos and Witney ended up being eliminated on this night.

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Night Two of the #DWTS Finals extravaganza started like this, as one does around Christmastime in LA (although actually it aired around Thanksgiving), at the Grove. It was going to be hard to top the opening of this season, when damn near everyone in LA came out to dance on Hollywood Boulevard with the DWTS cast. So this craziness was a stage at the Grove, and a stage at their regular studio, and in some cases shuttling cast members back and forth between stages during the live show. But it was wonderful.

Erin Andrews, thank you for being on DWTS. You brighten up every show.

They also brought back, as DWTS does, cast members from the whole season.

God bless the producers who decided NOT to have Chakka Khan dance, but only what she does best: sing, as her partner Keo danced with the lovely troupe members.

In fact, previous finales were tedious affairs, where all twenty contestants were trotted out to do a dance. Thank God, this was not that. (Although they do make a marginal effort to remind you of the season that was with all the dances.)

Instead, some brilliant producer decided to do this instead.

Oh yes, oh yes, oh yes! Thank you, DWTS.

Then, Sharna and Nick recreated their #DowntonAbbey dance. Karina and the jockey dude danced to La Bamba again. Then, back to the Grove for #AndyGrammar, who mostly just sang, while the luscious male dancers danced behind him.

OMG, the Outtakes. LOL I had completely forgotten this exchange between Paula Deen and formerly-lived-in-England Mark Ballas.

DEEN: "We shag in Savannah. Have you ever shagged?"
BALLAS: "I have shagged, but it means a completely different thing."

LOL I'm thinking she means pecans or something. I know what he means... Ahem. :-X

Next, they trot out Gary Busey again (God help us), and all I can think is, MAN! I hope they paid Anna Trebunskaya a LOT to put up with this Busey debacle. A LOT, America, A LOT. *shakes head*

Then, Elle King sang her wonderful hit, Exes and Ohs.

Jenna Johnson dancing. Elle King is behind her. Great number. (Tom Bergeron loves it, too!)

Emma danced with her "Internet-sensation" (that's how they introduced him) Hayes. Can't find any pics of it. It was short. They danced to his friend's song, Stitches. I hope his friend remembers this for a long time.

Then, there's a tedious bit with Santa and Erin Andrews, where the mic isn't working. Ugh.

THEN! Mark and Alexa recreate their amazing Breaking Bad routine (also incredibly hard to find pics of this). Really amazing.

Then a tedious thing that Tom Bergeron called "my favorite thing in a finale ever." Best to not talk about it. Gary Busey, Twas the Night Before the Finale... is all I'm gonna say. *shakes head*

Bindi and Derek recreated their incredible song, "Roses and Violets," danced to a stirring Mark Ballas' composition (as part of Alexander Jean). But this time, both Mark Ballas and BC Jean (his fiancee) were there to perform it. That was pretty awesome.

Season 20 winner, Valentin Chmerkovskiy danced wonderfully with Emma Slater at the Grove again. Chaka Khan and Andy Grammer sang, thankfully didn't dance to Baby, It's Cold Outside, salvaged only by the fact that Anna, Karina, Tony and Sasha were dancing.

Finally! Back to something that matters! The fusion dances of the three finalists. I love this whole segment usually. Part of the excitement (for me, as an audience member) is that they go back to the studio in which they expended so much blood, sweat and tears over the season, and the production staff has hung photos of them from the season. You will note that Mr. Backstreet Boy (who's probably darn sick of photos of himself) is the only one who didn't comment on the photos at all.

Their tango-salsa fusion ended like that. Sharna's choreography, as always, stunning.

Alek and Lindsay did a rumba-tango fusion.

Derek and Bindi did a cha cha-Argentine Tango fusion.

As always, Derek's choreography is stunning. He and Bindi make a great team, and it is sad to think that this is their final dance on DWTS.

Then, they trucked everyone over to the Grove again, and basically had the three finalists stand around, while Nick Carter sang his new song. Album on sale now. Yawn.

Ok, they did flash back to segments of the three over the season, to show their dances together. But still.

This was dumb.

So then, everyone rushes back to their studios (not far away) to crown this Season's champions.

I must say this. Sharna has been so close so many times. I would so love to see her win a Mirror Ball soon. But that was not to be. Instead:

Of course it was Bindi. Always Bindi. Congrats to Bindi and Derek. Thanks for such a great season.

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DWTS Season 21 Semis: Tamar Leaves, Jenna Becomes a Star

Season 21 of Dancing with the Stars was pretty amazing. Lots of amazing things happened. But to my eyes, none more amazing than this.

Let's just cut to the chase. Saddled with a somewhat uncooperative and very overworked partner all season, who by this episode (the Semi-finals) was too sick to even compete, this episode, and this dance, to me felt like a reward for Valentin. (58 minutes into the show).

It certainly was a reward for the audience.

Miss Jenna Johnson, if you don't know her, has long been (seasons long) a sexy little background dancer. One of the troupe you could always count on to add some sparkle and always hit her marks.

Oh, but holy crap, THIS DANCE! As anyone who reads this blog knows, I've been covering DWTS for many seasons now. I love their dancers and the dances they create. In the 10 years I've been watching, there is NO single dance which I have personally replayed and rewatched more than this tango between Jenna and Val.

And it's just everything about this. The fact that reigning champion Valentin Chmerkovskiy deserved a better partner than Tamar Braxton this season. The fact that Jenna has been dancing on the sidelines too long. The dance itself, so exquisitely choreographed. The dress she's wearing. The suit he's wearing. The camera angles, the way they swoon over her body. The swoops and dips of the camera matching what Val and Jenna are doing. The song... so many words in this song... Jenna has a habit of mouthing the words. In this song, that totally worked. (Cause it's the heroine of the song singing it.)

If only she can master staying in character a bit more, she's as good as any pro currently competing.

Cause, man, does Jenna SPARKLE. And her and Val, at the top of his dancing form? Wow.

Just a moment, I have to go rewatch that dance again.

Hot? Did I mention how HOT it is?

Oh, so good. Do yourself a favor and seek it out. For my money, it is the best dance of Season 21, one of the best dances I've ever seen on this show. And producers: PLEASE make Jenna a pro next season. Enough with the lame Lindsay already. This woman (Jenna) has star quality.

This was from the dress rehearsal where Jenna played Val's GF/Wife/Whatever, and they danced to Wicked Game. Amazing stuff, such great choreography.

 But ok, fine. Let's get to this week's real show.

In the main competition, there was some of this:

(A really stupid contemporary dance, that I didn't like even a little bit.) This was Carlos and Witney, who consistently choose the worst music to dance to. And considering how moving and mind-blowing last week's contemporary by Carlos' wife was... this was just an insult to even watch.

Oh, and the "rope is God. Cause he gets me through Life." Um, ok.

This tango. Ugh. (First, kudos to the costume department, who are just firing on all cylinders this season. Such a beautiful dress on Sharna here, and on Jenna later.)

But considering the tango we are about to see, this one just lacked all steam. Nick Carter is really in his head too much to be a decent dancer. Although I do give props to Sharna's amazing choreography. It's really stunning how she works part of each person's background and personality into her choreography. That artistry is really beautiful to watch.

Also, there was a little meltdown early on, missing steps, that she just powered through (and got Nick through). Big props to Sharna for that. But Nick, hey, we aren't supposed to have stuff like that by this point in the competition.

Nor is he (to my eyes) consistently a good dancer. Some people just can't figure out the whole character thing, and that just because you're being steamy with someone onstage doesn't mean you're really being steamy with them. (Nick) Well, in any case, this tango wasn't steamy, so I'm glad we had Val and Jenna in a short bit after this, to remind us of what tangos are supposed to be.

We had Bindi and Derek doing this:

(An underwhelming salsa, which Julianne correctly noted that there wasn't really much steaminess to...)

And we had our hero, Alek, dancing a waltz to America the Beautiful. (I am so not kidding.)

If you're a flag-waver, this was the dance of the night for you!

SEMI-FINALS Single Dances Miche Favs

1. Valentin and Jenna (oh, oops, didn't count, oh well)

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2. Bindi and Derek (salsa)

3. Lindsay and Alek (waltz)

4. Sharna and Nick (tango)

5. Witney and Carlos (contemporary)

Ugh.

THIS is the point where the Valentin-Jenna dance happens. 58 minutes in. Go watch it. Seriously.

Then we have the stupid "Dance Off" that I'm just going to skip... oh wait... watching it again, I forgot about the amazing samba roll that Derek threw in. Incredible. The judges were bowing to him for that....

And now, we have a whole 'nother show: the Trio round!

Man, oh man! One of the best things about this show is when the creativity of the dancers gets unleashed. In this Trio round, Bindi and Derek worked with Mark Ballas (one of my DWTS favorites) to create this stunning "jazz" piece, with a box and a light. They are just in a class by themselves, and really have been all season long.

Then, we had this.

The hotness between Emma and Alek was an amazing part of Season 21. So glad they brought it back for a moment with this Trio of an Argentine Tango. Quite wonderful to watch.

Witney, Carlos and Karina Smirnoff (love her!) do a Charleston for their Trio.

Peta Murgatroyd, Nick Carter and Sharna do a Salsa. Peta admitted that she used to have Nick Carter... well, Backstreet Boys... posters up on her wall...

And then, we have the manufactured drama fake out of an elimination round in which SURPRISE no one gets eliminated because Taymar's illness eliminated her. So all of these couples go to the Finals next week. Woo hoo.

SEMIFINALS TRIO ROUND MICHE FAVS
1. Bindi, Derek, Mark (jazz)
2. Emma, Alek, Lindsay (Argentine Tango)
3. Peta, Nick, Sharna (salsa)
4. Carlos, Witney, Karina (Charleston)

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DWTS Season 21 Week 9: Showstopper Week Show's Stopped

Normally, Dancing with the Stars starts with a splashy wonderful opening number. This one did not. This one started with each dance team coming out (note: Val and Tamar had been last all season, this had been the same lineup all season long). You will note that there is just Val there, at the end, shuffling uncomfortably.

That's because this episode could be subtitled: Tamar's Hospital Drama. At the beginning of the show, she wasn't there because she was actually at the hospital, having fallen ill. Her doctors warn her that she should just stay there, but since she would automatically lose/be eliminated if she misses both dances, she rallies back to get there for the last one (against her doctor's orders).

Some would call that Showbiz! But I think it was just willful and stupid. Oh, but we'll get back to all that. Let's start instead with the competitors who actually, you know, competed.

We had this from Alek and Lindsay, which was notable mostly for this:

Not just that the troupe women danced with them, but that they also waxed his chest for this number.

Carlos and Witney did an Argentine tango, that I quite liked, but the judges didn't so much. I think both Lindsay (Lindsay even moreso) and Witney this season suffer from making themselves look good, and their partner, not so much (Lindsay all season, Witney more at the end of the season).

But nonetheless, I liked this dance.

Sharna, on the other hand, does well by her partner, pushing him to new boundaries, and making both herself and him look great.

Great dance. I mean, it's the 9th week, most people are going to look pretty good by this point.

I should add that Val and Tamar had what would have been a stunning number to Wicked Game. The judges had to judge the dress rehearsal footage, so I will post no picture of it.

But let's talk about the top two individual dances of Week 9.

My second favorite was danced to music created by "Alexander Jean," which is Mark Alexander Ballas and his girlfriend, BC Jean. It's just a stunningly beautiful song, and Derek and Bindi danced an amazing Viennese waltz to it.

The costuming, as all throughout the season, was stunningly beautiful. On camera, it looked like this classic dusty rose gown, just gorgeous.

I swoon when I even think of them performing that song, it was so beautiful.

But still, my favorite individual dance from this evening was the contemporary from Alexa and Mark. Mostly because it was so brave to perform. She talked in the package about her struggle with bulemia, and this dance was essentially Mark playing bulemia and chasing her.

Don't know if you caught the vomiting parts in there, but they are in there.

Mark Ballas' artistry and stunning choreography are, to me, one of the main reasons I regularly tune in to this show. This bulemia dance was no exception. Solid 10s from all the judges. So well-deserved.

MICHE'S FAVORITES OF WEEK 9
1. Mark and Alexa (contemporary)
2. Derek and Bindi (Viennese waltz)
3. Sharna and Nick (quickstep)
4. Witney and Carlos (Argentine tango)

Now, what should've happened at this point in the competition, is that Tamar stays in the hospital, and thus gets eliminated. Instead, she races back, against her doctors' orders, and decides to dance anyway.

This is where the Showstopper Week comes in. All of the remaining six couples are whisked off to see actual live shows (great idea, btw!). They will then incorporate the dance moves into their dances (three sets of two couples each).

They have the first two teams perform first, since Tamar is rushing from the hospital to make it for her (now last) set.

I was just talking with someone over Thanksgiving about how DWTS is odd, in that it never has males dancing with males or females dancing with females (other than in trios, or in a troupe thing). This, I suppose, is the closest we'll get.

And it was alright, but no great shakes.

Carlos Witney Lindsay Alek and black lights

Witney and Carlos and Alek and Lindsay choose to go on a cruise to watch "We Will Rock You," the Queen saga. Fun fact: Bruno used to work with Freddie Mercury.

Mark and Bindi and Alexa do Fosse

Bindi and Derek and Mark and Alexa go to NYC to see a version of "Chicago," to recreate some Fosse steps.

Bruno's comments on the Fosse recreation: "The Maestro himself and the divine Ann (Reinking, of course) would be pleased at this." (High praise.) They all received perfect scores. They had received perfect scores for their individual dances, so they all walked away with 60 for the night.

Now, let's recap. Here we have someone (Alexa), who shows up, who works hard, tries hard, and on this night, got perfect scores for both of her (amazing) dances. I cannot begin to even explain how angry I am about the outcome of this evening... but let's proceed.

Nick and Sharna and Val and Tamar went to Las Vegas to see the Beatles Love extravaganza.

Tamar, amazingly, is here, is performing this dance. (She goes, right from this dance back to the hospital, btw.)

Here's Tom, explaining that since she made it through that final dance (and what about the first one, which she missed?), she is still in the competition. Oh, and guess what? Though she's sick and reeling, and really should be in a hospital, SHE and VAL are safe.

Instead, we have this.

This should NOT have happened this way. Alexa goes home. Tamar is safe, but then, I'll clue you, at the beginning of next week's episode, we learn that she's too sick to compete anymore and has to quit the competition ANYWAY. Meanwhile, Alexa is robbed of her chance in the finals.

And that was just wrong, all wrong.

Here's hoping that next season the casting directors have the foresight to cast a person without ten million commitments, so Val can actually do what he does best and create great dances with someone who can actually show up. This Tamar situation this season was a travesty and they should be ashamed of themselves for letting her do this.

Meanwhile, we sadly (seriously, I was crying at the end of this) say Goodbye to a competitor who left too soon. I love everything you did this season, Alexa.

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