'Dancing with the Stars': One show to go...

It's finally here! The last dances of Dancing with the Stars! With only three couples left standing, there's no room for mistakes...but there's plenty of room for show filler.

Spoilers!

Before we get to the final numbers, each celeb and pro partner will tell us what they consider their best Ballroom and Latin dances of the season were to help win over your vote. Also, that singer in the band looks like her forehead chandelier has mutated and become alive, beginning a slow, maddening descent down her face one shiny bauble at a time.

Brooke Burke & Derek are featured first. They picked the Quickstep to "How High The Moon" from the first week and the Paso Doble to the music they use in the Zales commercials. The reasoning for the Paso Doble pick is, as Derek says, it's the first time that we got to see intensity from Brooke. I guess. I'd have picked one of the party dances but,  you know, that's just me. Derek proceeds to make other arguments as to why Brooke should win but honestly it just sounded like Charlie Brown's teacher to me - wah-wah-wah wah-wahwah wah. Perhaps it's because I only get a few hours of sleep last night. But I do recall Derek saying something about her being consistent.

Lance Bass & Lacey make their case next. They picked the Tango to "Disturbia" as it was the first dance that really clicked on all levels for them. The best Latin pick was the Mambo number from last week. Great choices on both counts. Lacey says Lance deserves to win because he's the most improved.

Warren Sapp & Kym round out pick segments. The Viennese Waltz they did (I believe the first week) is their best Ballroom selections and for best Latin dance was the Matrix flavored Paso Doble. Kym thinks Warren should win because he lights up the dance floor and really connects to the audience. He started out knowing nothing and learned so much and makes people watching happy, which is what the show is all about. 

Afterward, we learn who won the Junior Championship. It's none other than brother/sister team Craig & Samantha. Yay! For those who missed it the first time around, they do an encore of the "Rockin' Robin" Jive that won them the trophy. And Craig kissed her on the head when they finished. How cute. Congrats to all the Junior finalists, they were all truly great. And they all got to go to Disneyland.

As they've been doing all season, there's another new wrinkle in the final round. All three couples will do a Samba together with solos. Derek's strategy is to load the Samba with as much content as possible. Lacey & Lance put in a brand new trick to try and dazzle. Kym just wants to shore up Warren's technique since they got the worst scores the last time around. During group rehearsal, Lance & Lacey held some of their solo back so no one knows exactly what they're doing while Warren & Kym only had half of theirs choreographed. This should be interesting.

1. Group Samba
Song: "Blame It On The Boogie" by The Jackson 5   
Brooke & Derek start out (the celebs picked the order at random using those mini-disco balls). Is it just me or did her feet/legs seem a little heavy during the beginning? The Samba Rolls were solid. She has more personality than usual but there's something a little...off about it. There were many moments where she seemed a little ahead or behind the choreography, like she was waiting for the next specific 8-count instead of connecting them (if that makes sense). Lance & Lacey come out next. Good foot action and crisp movements all around. Lance seems to have at least mostly corrected his pigeon toe problem and Lacey did a great job with the choreography (great ending). Warren & Kym close it out, with Warren starting with a round-off (instead of cartwheel). The technique was better this time around, but still not up to par with Brooke and Lance. It was fun but Warren was concentrating a little too much to fully connect with the audience as he usually does. The other couples come out for the unison ending, our finalist celebs in the front line. I liked the circle lift they did - very cool. Overall, I'd say Lance & Lacey take the round. He seemed very in the moment of the dance and looked like he was having a great time.
Judges: Len thought they all performed better than the first time around. He liked Warren's increased content but still has concerns about his feet. He loved Lance's energy and dug the content, he needles the content once again. He liked Brooke and thinks she's the one to beat, but she wasn't straighten her legs. Bruno slobbered over Brooke, appreciated Lance cleanliness, and complimented Warren's "watchability." Carrie Ann points out that Lance has momentum and that there's something magical happening with him, she says Warren improvement is amazing, and that she appreciated them reaching for technical glory but thought they should dial it back a bit because Brooke's lines with a bit awkward at times.
Score: Brooke & Derek - 28 (9-9-10 - really Bruno?); Lance & Lacey - 26 (9-8-9); Warren & Kym - 25 (9-7-9) - all these scores are jacked up, I call B.S. No way Warren should've gotten only one point less than Lance and no way Brooke should have two more than him.

2. Brooke Burke & Derek
Dance/Song: Freestyle/"You're The One That I Want" from Grease    
Derek tells Brooke that, to avoid choking like last week, just look in his eyes and commit fully regardless of whether it's a mistake or not. Unfortunately, Derek's messed up his back (again) so they go practice in the pool at her house. No one puts Baby in a corner. It's a cute little number, complete with little touches from the movie and some crazy lifts. As impressive as they were, I'm still just not feeling it 100% from her. I think some of her movements lacked that extra punch, mainly because they didn't exactly match Derek's.
Judges: Bruno called it one of the best freestyles he'd ever seen, Carrie Ann thought they brought it, and Len said it was the best freestyle he'd ever seen.
Score: 30 (all 10's)

3. Lance Bass & Lacey 
Dance/Song: Freestyle/"Tricky" by Run DMC (Mmm...butchered classic)     
Coming off a super-breakthrough semi-finals, they're choosing Hip Hop for their Freestyle base. To add to everything, Lacey has Lance teach her some moves to put in so it's a truly collaborative number. They decide not to do any lifts to keep it pure Hip Hop. They start out behind the judges. As a shout-out, there's a little choreography from "Pop" and a shout-out to "Bye Bye Bye" in there. Overall, I liked the vibe but I would've thrown one sort of lift in. It was good but it wasn't fantastic. I may have to watch it again to really see how I feel about it.
Judges: Carrie Ann liked the beginning and the end but didn't quite like the Cha Cha portion they threw in, Len surprisingly really liked, and Bruno thought it was youthful, vibrant, exciting and creative.
Score: 27 (all 9's)

4. Warren Sapp & Kym
Dance/Song: Freestyle/"Proud Mary" by Ike & Tina Turner   
Since it's make or break, they're putting all kinds of crazy lifts in since Warren could essentially juggle four Kyms. They're wearing tear-away outfits, starting out in a suit and fancy-like dress then ripping them away to reveal shiny silver duds. Crazy, crazy lifts, high energy, lots of Tina moves - super fun. I wish the number was longer in fact.
Judges: Len calls Warren a star, Bruno says with him "all resistance is futile," and it was Carrie Ann's favorite number, though she saw a mistake that he gave away with his face. 
Score: 28 (9-10-9) - Len gave a 10 for the entertainment factor

General Thoughts: Warren will probably be the man out tomorrow, or at least he should be. Lance and Warren ended tied at the end which is crap. I think Lance got screwed that first round and was underscored while Brooke was over-scored. I don't know. I still just don't get her. It just doesn't carry through the TV for me and her technique seemed to backslide a bit the last two weeks. I'm not surprised at all that Warren's was basically the best (read: most enjoyable) Freestyle. Yes, Brooke & Derek's were technically superior but they didn't make me laugh or feel joy. Also, I really really wish Misty May-Treanor hadn't gotten hurt.

What did you think of the dances tonight? Which Freestyle was your favorite? Will the scored dance tomorrow make much of a difference? Your prediction for a winner? Any other thoughts?

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