Premierewatch: 'Randy Jackson Presents: America's Best Dance Crew'

Oh glorious January premieres, thank you for the gift you've bestowed upon us tonight. The premiere of Randy Jackson Presents: America's Best Dance Crew. Oh rapturous joy!

This year the casting folks went to twice the number of cities and found steppers, b-girls, b-boys, ex-NBA dancers, contortionists, and...cloggers. Wha? Anyway, Mario Lopez is our host yet again and Shane Sparks and Lil' Mama are on hand to judge. JC Chasez is filming a movie overseas so the Jabbawokeez' Kid Rainen is sitting in until next week.

Our first challenge is called "Sudden Death" - all nine crews will dance to their own chosen master mixes and the judges will pick two out of every three to automatically advance to the next round. The bottom three will have a dance off to determine who'll stay and which team will be eliminated.

Strikers All-Stars - Tallahasee, FL
Song: "Swing Your Rag" by TI
They met at Florida A&M and mix stepping with hip hop dancing. They have good energy from the start and have good sync, very clean. I'm impressed overall and hope they can keep up the high quality from week to week.
Judges: Shane slo-mos their intro to showcase how in sync they are and advises to drop the music out at times so they can hear what they're doing. Lil Mama agrees and Kid adds that they started the show off well.

Beat Freaks - Hollywood, CA
Song: The anthem "Din-da-da"
As an all-girl breaking crew, they're used to dealing with big time competition and really want to represent since most of the other female crews on the show were spotty. Great energy, dynamic intro, lots of variety to their movements - finally!! A great female group! They get a standing ovation, even from the judges.
Judges: Lil' Mama was awed and slo-moed the scissor-kick handstands, Rainen called them "the truth" and said the other crews need to step their game up, and Shane said he thinks they could win.

G.O.P. Dance - San Juan, Puerto Rico
Song: "Rompe" by Daddy Yankee 
G.O.P. (which stands for "Group of Peace") grew up in the streets of San Juan's ghetto. One says if it wasn't for dance, they'd probably be in jail. They start out in Gregorian monk robes and quickly discard them. They throw a lot tricks in the beginning and go into some Latin dancing in the middle. Everyone did a synchronized suicide flip, which was cool. I like them overall but they didn't have quite as much energy as the previous two.
Judges: Kid loves that they mixed the Salsa and breaking together. He also gave a tip to clean up their b-boy footwork. Shane feels the same, saying that they started out a little slow but ended strong. Lil' Mama wasn't impressed because they didn't bring it hard enough.

The first group saved of the three are Beat Freaks. Damn skippy. Strikers All-Stars are also safe, which is no surprise, but I'm fairly certain they'll make it to next week. That's my gut feeling.

Quest Crew - Los Angeles, CA
Song: "Hero" by NAS
Some of you may recognize some faces from Quest as many tried out for So You Think You Can Dance - Ryan, Hok and Dominic actually made it on to the show. They get their name from the Quest Learning Center which let them practice there as well as pursue other interests (music, arts, dj-ing, etc.). I have high expectations for them. They start out really strong, throwing in a three-level flip trick. They have great choreography and a lot of personality. I'm totally not disappointed.
Judges: Lil Mama called it "amazing" and loves that they used the whole stage. She slo-moes the over/under flip trick and Ryan's backflip onto his head. Rainen called it "one of the most illest shows [he's] ever seen." Shane really dug it but didn't address anything specific.

Fly Khicks - Miami, FL
Song: "Milkshake" by Kelis
This all-female crew met as dancers for the Miami Heat. Seeing them win the NBA Championship inspired the crew to win something of their own. Their name comes from a shared obsession with sneakers of all kinds. The Khicks are also well aware of how many of the past chick-crews didn't get a lot of respect and made a point to emphasize that they are trained dancers but are versatile. While going for the sexy angle, they are definitely clean and hit their moves hard. And I appreciate that the threw a lot of styles in there. They have some syncing issues but show definite promise.
Judges: Shane says he never gets tired of the booty pop and really appreciates that they danced hard and didn't rely on the pretty. Lil' Mama liked them, which is a big stamp of approval. Kid Rainen echoed both sentiments.

Ringmasters - Brooklyn, NY
Song: "Welcome Back" by Young Jeezy
They call their style "flexing" because it's based on...well, being flexible and contortions. They have a very positive attitude, which I like. They are...insane. Shizz is crazy. They start out with two guys coming out of zipped up suitcases and end with one flipping off the top of a 10-foot ladder and landing clean. I really can't accurately explain it. The tricks-to-steps ratio wasn't exactly even but it was crazy.
Judges: Rainen dug that they brought a new style to the show, likening it to a raw, street "Cirque du Solieil". Shane has heard a lot about the style and, after seeing it, loves it. Lil' Mama showed a lot of love and got emotional since they're from her home town.

This was a hard bracket. Quest makes it through as does...Ringmasters. Sorry Khicks.

Boxcuttuhz - San Diego, CA
Song: "Bonafide Lovin'" by Chromeo
Lando, the leader of the group, selected all these folks by himself. His goal is to help dancers elevate their skills. I like them. This is the first group to have a chick with guys. I like the story they're telling and they have great isolations and ticks. Lots of personality but the energy was a little low.
Judges: Shane likes their intricate choreography and theatrics. Lil' Mama liked them and gave a little special attention to Lydia telling her to bring it more. Rainen dug it and gave them the tip to make sure they secure their props when they use them.

Dynamic Edition - Winfield, AL
Song: "My Humps" by Black Eyed Peas
This is the clogging group, the second mixed gendered crew of the night (four girls, one guy). They add hip hop dance to it for some special flavor. I've seen these folks before, definitely the lead guy who also auditioned for SYTYCD. They've won a lot of trophies, which they keep around as a reminder to work hard. They were very together, brought a lot of personality to the floor and had great formation changes. Though I'm not sure if they'll be able to be different enough every week.
Judges: Lil Mama congratulated them on breaking the stereotype of clogging and complimented their synchronicity and form changes. Kid Rainen liked their cleanliness and their performance but advised to bring more rawness to their hip hop, to study it more. Shane echoed Kid's sentiments but loved it.

Team Millennia - Fullerton, CA
Song: "Beating Heart Baby" by Head Automatica
If they look familiar it's because they made it to the Top 12 in Season 2 but didn't make it through (in favor of eventual faves Fanny Pak). They went back and tightened up their game, bringing a rock vibe to this time around. I think it was just the camera work but it seemed a little disjointed at times. I like what they're trying to do and they had some good moments. They were very much in the character of the song and combined the styles well.
Judges: Kid Rainen likes their reboot and thinks they came up a level, Shane agrees. Lil' Mama adds that she loves their energy and the way they play off each other, but advises not to lock themselves into one style.

Team Millennia makes it in as does Dynamic Edition. Like Brake Skate and Fanny Pak, being so different worked in their favor.

With the Boxcuttuhz already on stage, Fly Khicks and G.O.P. Dance come out to join them for the dance off. All the crews were given "Live Your Life" by TI and Rihanna and told to prep a 30 second routine for the battle. They go in the order they performed in.

G.O.P. is first and do an impressive set, starting with breaking moves done in a traveling circle formation and ending with three flipping off the standing bodies of the other three. The Khicks come out hard and throw a lot of impressive tricks of their own. It's really good choreography. Boxcuttuhz come out with a lot of energy and really shine with their personality. It's hard because they're all so good but the Khicks win it for me, especially with the stunt of ripping a layer away from one of the girl's short to reveal "WHAT" in bold letters at the end of their set.

Now, it's elimination time. After much deliberation, Fly Khicks are the first saved and deservedly so. Boxcuttuhz also are safe. Unfortunately G.O.P. Dance are the first to go home. They are certainly talented, hopefully they'll pop back up somewhere.

Assorted Bits & Pieces:

• I am so glad both all-female crews are strong. It's about time. For reals.
• This is going to be a very interesting season. Based on tonight's episodes, my entirely too early favorites are Team Millennia, Quest Crew, Boxcuttuhz, and Beat Freaks. I'm waiting to reserve judgment on Fly Khicks to see what they do next week but I do dig them as they seem like they can create strong choreography on their own.
• How long will Dynamic Edition be interesting? Because of a comparatively rudimentary grasp on hip hop dancing, I'm not sure if they'll be able to be exciting week after week. But Middle America will most likely vote for them in droves and maybe they'll surprise me.
• I'd have preferred they waited a week to eliminate a group. I think it's messed up to get everybody there and cut a crew so quickly.
• Backstage correspondent Layla Kayleigh only made one appearance this episode, which is a shame because she's absolutely lovely.

Your thoughts on tonight's ep? Did they send the right crew home? Have any early favorites?

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