So You Think You Can Dance – Episode 5-14 Review

Shows

It is the extra special 100th episode of So You Think You Can Dance, with all of our favorites from past seasons back for some fun. This is gonna be great!

…Except that it’s not. In my immediate thoughts after the episode, I feel a bit let down. We know about all the guest performances before, Cat had talked them up in previous episodes. There were no surprises. Aside from the Emmy routines, all of our past season favorites were just sitting in the audience. Everything was crammed into this one teeny hour – couldn’t they have made yesterday’s show one hour and tonight’s 100th episode two hours? The only reflection we got was in a little montage in the beginning of the show. Color me disappointed.

Anyhoodle, tonight’s episode includes the Emmy-winning performances from past seasons. The first up is Season 3’s “The Hummingbird and The Flower” by Jaimie and Hok, choreographed by Wade Robson. This is without a doubt, my favorite routine from the show’s history. No matter how many times I’ve seen it, it’s remains mesmerizing, unique, inspiring. It is as beautiful performance as ever.

Time hasn’t been similarly kind to Season 2’s “The Bench” by Travis and Heidi, choreographed by Mia Michaels. Maybe we’re spoiled now with “Addiction” and “Vampire Death” routines being thrown at us every week, but this just doesn’t hold up in comparison. Heidi has precious little to do in this routine, and overall, it comes of a bit… amateur-ish. I spend more time noting the changes in the performer’s hair (Travis went darker, while Heidi took the peroxide route) than reliving the routine. “The Bench” may not be the greatest, but it will be remembered as the routine that elevated SYTYCD from summertime reality show into something capable of real art. It was the bridge from where the show was to where it now is.

Then there’s Ramalama, Wade Robson’s Season 2 Top 10 group routine. With a zombie theme, great music, great choreography, and Wade joining in on the dancing fun this time, you can’t help but get caught up in this routine again. The more experimental among the choreographers, there’s no denying this guy’s style. Wade is able to give even the more outlandish routines just enough surreality and whimsy to make them work. Love this routine, always will.

And of course, there’s the much talked about star of the silver screen, Katie Holmes in an homage to Judy Garland. She’s getting skewered on message boards for this pretaped performance, but I don’t think it’s so bad. If it hadn’t been talked up so much by Nigel and Tyce we wouldn’t be let down so. She has a nice singing voice, but she does lip sync. Can’t blame her for that, there are very few people who can sing well and dance at the same time. The issue is, she doesn’t dance much. A few leg flicks, a walk across the stage, and a shoulder shimmy thrown in for good measure. Her performance is rather like this night, very nice, but a huge let down.

Now to the Season 5 stuff. They had started off the night with a group routine set to “One” from A Chorus Line. And it sucks. Seriously, it’s bad, there’s no dancing and just a lot of over the top facial expressions. Note to choreographers: when there’s an iconic Broadway song, the choreography must match. Not look like something out of Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. Moving on.

The Bottom 4 are announced and they are BRANDON, Jason, Janette, and Kayla. I don’t know what is up with Evan fans. I like him, I really do, but there’s no denying he is the weakest remaining male. Evan rightly looked flabbergasted at being safe. I guess Nigel’s eye comments brought out his fans in droves. When will the judges realize how much influence their negative comments (not critiques, comments) have on the audience? Jason seems resigned to his fate, he knows he is going home, and makes a teary peace with it. At least he had a brilliant moment to shine with Tavis’ Contemporary piece last week.

As for the women, this is interesting. The Bottoom 4 should have included Melissa… except she performed the Breast Cancer routine. That kind of heart wrenching story likely made many vote for her that would never have even picked up a phone for the show. So any of the more versatile female dancers were up for grabs to go home. Kayla’s been in the Bottom before and has never really been a hit with the audience. I thought she was going home for sure. But instead it’s Janette – the lively, can-perform-anything, never-been-in-the-bottom Janette. She was my favorite, and apparently, the Judges’ favorite too. I can’t believe she is going home, regardless of that craptastic solo, and this is a real shocker. Even Cat can’t get her head around this one. Color me NOT HAPPY.

Note to Melissa and Evan fans: stop voting for them. Please. It’s completely unfair that lesser dancers get to stay when far stronger ones are sent home.

What did you think about the show’s 100th extravaganza? Why do they perform the same solos twice in one week? And what was Cat wearing??