Tonight is the boys' chance to shake their groove things. After a recap of last night's Dancing With The Stars (including reactions from the couples) and Len calling the first night "amazing," we get to the good stuff. These guys better bring it. (P.S. That same singer is wearing the same Star Trek vixen outfit, only this time in green. Is Scott Bakula in the house?)

Spoilers ahead, my friends.

1. Cameron Mathison & Edyta Sliwinska
The Dance: Fox Trot
The Song: "Moondance"
Cameron gets Edyta, the only female pro to dance on all 5 seasons. She wants to win so bad, I can taste it. Cameron reveals that he suffers from a degenerative bone disease in his legs which messes with his flexibility. He's also filming while practicing - flying between NY and LA - leaving them to practice from midnight to 4am. Wow. I hope he doesn't suck. He has some moments of grace and some great lines but his center of gravity is way high, he seems a bit clumsy at times. Carrie Ann will eventually tell him to take ballet. Fortunately, the judges all agree with me and compliment him on his strong points while advising him on what to improve.
Judge Highlight Line: After complimenting his arm lines, Bruno says that he's "not quite a Rolls Royce yet, but [he's] not a Buick either."
Score: 21 (all 7's)

2. Floyd Mayweather, Jr. & Karina Smirnoff
The Dance: Cha Cha
The Song: "I Like The Way You Move" - Outkast (Ladies and Gentleman, behold the first true butchering of a cover.)
Not to be thought of as a slouch next to Cameron's schedule, Floyd is training for a fight whilst learning to dance. They paired him with the right partner because after Floyd experienced some frustration over not being able to get the steps (complaining that she shouldn't teach him such hard steps), Karina basically calls him a quitter and walks out. Don't mess with Eastern European girls. Karina leaving snapped him back to reality and he apologized, attacking the moves with a much better attitude and losing the petulance. He hits the dance with a lot of energy but is still a bit too Hip Hop in the movements. He also needs to work on his carriage - he's a little stiff - but he could develop very well. All in all, I'm impressed.
Judge Highlight Line: Bruno says he's going to change his name from "Mayweather to SeptemberStorm." He also tells him to "channel the Force" because he could be incredible. Also worth mentioning is Carrie Ann who tells him to be a little more delicate with Karina.
Score: 18 (all 6's and a smattering of boos)

3. Helio Castroneves & Julianne Hough
The Dance: Fox Trot
The Song: The Theme from Bewitched. I kid you not.
He's an Indy Car racer and she's last year's champ. Okay, so I didn't know he was Brazilian when I said he'd suck. My bad. In his last race while training, he crashed into a wall. Fortunately he was okay, though he did have a knee brace on. And his dancing was more than okay. He had great presence/personality, good lines and looked like a natural out there (Carrie Ann agrees with me). I dub Helio the guy to beat - especially with Julianne who's a choreographing genius.
Judge Highlight Line: Bruno says he went from "the King of Speed to the King of Charm."
Score: 25 (8's from Carrie Ann and Bruno, 9 from Len)

4. Albert Reed & Anna Trebunskaya
The Dance: Cha Cha
The Song: "A Little Less Conversation" - Elvis Presley
After a two year hiatus, Anna's back and she wants the trophy. He's the youngest celebrity to ever participate in the competition, and the self-proclaimed "least famous person [here]," but he doesn't look like it. He is, however, a huge goofball. Their dance starts with a tongue-in-cheek "model walk" followed by Anna ripping of his jacket to reveal a shirt opened nearly to his navel. A little something for the ladies. He makes great faces, has a good center of gravity and energy. He looked like he was having a lot of fun even though he needed some more follow through with the body rolls. To excel, he'll need to work on the consistency of his frame. He might excel at the Ballroom dances over the Latin (except the Rumba, I think he'll be good at that).
Judge Highlight Line: "You gyrated, rotated and pulsated. It was like watching a stripper - don't worry what they're doing, just sit back and enjoy it." Surprisingly, that's what Len said.
Score: 21 (all 7's - Karina and Floyd must be pissed)

5. Mark Cuban & Kym Johnson
The Dance: Fox Trot
The Song: "King of The Road" (This is a sort of depressing song to dance to, isn't it?)
I noticed that Mark Cuban walks down the stairs kinda funny at the beginning of the episodes. Now I know why - he had his hip replaced not too long ago. What is it with these dudes and their messed up legs? Mark ain't no joke as he pushes through his pain during rehearsals and takes extensive notes on his steps. Costumed like a hobo, Mark is surprisingly gracefully as he sings along as he dances. He's got a lot of personality but he needs some technique work. He's got a lot of potential, too. 
Judge Highlight Line: Bruno calls him a "bouncing bionic Billionaire."
Score: 21 (all 7's - at this point, Karina must be livid)

6. Wayne Newton & Cheryl Burke
The Dance: Cha Cha
The Song: "My First, My Last, My Everything" - Barry White (Um, singer dude? How about you not mess up the lyrics? Thanks.)
Ah, Wayne Newton. He's a class act - he presents Cheryl with a giant bouquet of roses. While he is still fit, Wayne acknowledges that this requires way more energy then he thought it would. He also admits that this is the first time he's ever felt nervous. Wayne, while performing with lots of personality, he's a bit stiff. But he's also up there in years so no one can blame him for that. He did quite well and I know he'll be great during Ballroom because he's got great carriage.
Judge Highlight Line: Bruno, after calling him the "Sizzler from Sin City," agrees with Carrie Ann by advising him to loosen up a bit more aka more hip action.
Score: 19 (6's from Carrie Ann and Bruno, 7 from Len)

Overall, the guys did okay. They show a lot of potential but were less polished than the ladies on the whole. Honestly, this is a tough season because the worst of these dancers would be at the very least in the middle of the pack in any other season.

My front-runners as of today: Sabrina, Helio, and Jane.
Most Potential: This is a hard call but I'm going with Jennie, Mel and Floyd right now. I might throw Cameron in there too if he can get his center of gravity in the right place.
Bold Prediction: Mark Cuban will be way better than anyone thought he'd be and make it much farther in the competition than expected.
Bottom 3: I can't quite tell...Josie, even though she's no Master P, will definitely be there. Possibly Mark, Floyd, or Albert?
Who's Out?: I not-so-boldly predict that Josie Maran is going home.

Comments

with paulina going home first last year and perhaps josie this year, it seems that models look great but cannot dance!

kati | Sep 26, 2007 9:27:13 AM | #

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I also think too that people don't really know a lot about these models and that's why they go home. It isn't all about the dancing, it about who people like coming into it too, however, really, really good dancing can take someone from a nobody to a somebody.

stephanie | Sep 26, 2007 9:48:23 AM | #

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I think this is going to be a good year!! I only started watching it like a year, or mid year last year--can't remember!! I really liked the guys!! I think floyd was alot better than anyone gave him credit for!! The guys were all very charming!! The only ones I knew were Cameron & Wayne!! Wayne, to me wasn't that great!! I think Josie, hopefully will be going home!! I really liked "cheetah" girl!! Missed Jane, would of liked to seen her!! Marie wasn't that great either!! Hey, what happened to Lou forigno, Tori spelling, Aaron carter, & Mel B was only supposed to be like a guest star I thought-- guess the list was wrong huh!!

Michele | Sep 26, 2007 1:03:48 PM | #

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Oh my God! When I saw Flloyd dance, all I could think of was a chimp! His posture doesn't help. It makes him look like he belongs on a tree sucking on a banana. Seriously!

I thought Wayne would be good in a grandpa way but he was as stiff as a corpse. And is his smile permanent or is that just a look of surprise etched across his face?

Albert Reed (never heard of him before) was stripper-rific and I hope he stays a lot longer.

Francine Fishpaw | Sep 26, 2007 2:55:56 PM | #

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I had never heard of any of the men, but I think most of them did a great job on their routines. I don't know who to vote for yet. The most exciting premiere yet!

Penny | Sep 26, 2007 6:47:11 PM | #

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