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Dancing With The Stars S29 Power Rankings (Round 9)

Nov 16, 2020 by PowerRankings101

I’ll be honest, Round 9 was a slightly underwhelming night of dance. We did get some good dancing from the top scoring couples, but even the perfect scores had something missing for me personally. The couples that had missteps also bummed me out, and the elimination of AJ (one of my favorites) was warranted by the dancing tonight, but still heartbreaking. Johnny being in the bottom 2 though? Hmmmm. Let’s rank these couples before heading to the semi (?) finals.

To start, here’s who I would’ve picked in the dance-offs:
Cha-Cha (Justina vs. Kaitlyn)- KAITLYN AND ARTEM
Salsa (Nelly vs. Skai)- SKAI AND ALAN
Jive (AJ vs. Johnny)- AJ AND CHERYL

7. Nelly and Daniella Karagach- Nelly was really improving and hitting his stride for a while, but this was rough. I don’t know exactly what it was, but it felt like Nelly was lost throughout the routine, and didn’t fully commit to any of the moves he made on the dance floor. I have loved seeing Nelly and Daniella’s partnership blossom throughout the season, but with these past few weeks have certainly showed that they aren’t really on the same level as the rest of the pack.

6. AJ McLean and Cheryl Burke- If it weren’t for Nelly, this would’ve been the worst routine of the night. It started off really bad, where they had a misstep and took a while to bounce back. I do think they recovered, but the energy still seemed to be sucked out of the routine from that point on. It’s a shame, because I love AJ and Cheryl and I do think they could’ve made the finals. Their elimination was warranted by this performance, but not by the season overall, where I think he had some amazing improvement. I’ll miss watching him dance.

5. Justina Machado and Sasha Fraber- What I did like about Justina and Sasha’s routine this week was their emotional connection and their partnership with one another. I do think there was plenty of good hip action. The problem is, some of her arm extensions and the transitions between some different moments just seemed to lack a bit of energy and finesse. I don’t know why it seemed so underwhelming, maybe it’s the nature of the rumba itself, but while it was well danced, it was probably one of her most unmemorable routines.

4. Skai Jackson and Alan Bersten- Some moments seemed to lack a bit of attack, but I do think this is a much improved Skai than we saw weeks ago. She was really committed to the choreography and difficulty of the piece. I wish she had dug a tad deeper in the emotional heft of it. That moment where she spun on the floor was so cool, and totally had chills going down my spine. Well done Skai. In an overall underwhelming night of dance, this one had issues but still ended up standing out amongst others.

3. Johnny Weir and Britt Stewart- Johnny was full of life and joy, but I do think this was a tad messier than its perfect score would’ve suggested. It was a fast, quick routine, and they mostly nailed every step though, especially the more difficult ones. I was very impressed, even if I still don’t think it was his most memorable or impressive routine. Him landing in the bottom 2 though was a travesty.

2. Nev Schulman and Jenna Johnson- This was everything I needed to be convinced that Nev should be a performer. This was insanely fun. I’d argue that, while there were a few missteps here and there, Nev still did a tad better than Johnny, and wowed me more than Kaitlyn with his entertainment value. One of my favorites of the night, and I’m glad it was the final routine of the night as it put me in higher spirits.

1. Kaitlyn Bristowe and Artem Chigvinstev- Kaitlyn finally bounced back. This was pretty spot on, sharp and fierce and incredibly poised. I do think she still needs to work on emoting to the routine in a more convincing, passionate way. I understand that the technique comes first, and they totally nailed that aspect. It was the cleanest, best of the night. Was it perfect score worthy? Not sure. But it was great.

WHY WAS JOHNNY IN THE BOTTOM TWO? With a double elimination coming next week, I really don’t know how it’ll go. With the way the Bottom 2s have shaken out, Skai and Johnny are the only two to appear in the bottom. However, with a double elimination, I assume one of Nev, Nelly, Justina, and Kaitlyn will be in the bottom as well. I can’t imagine it being Nev or Kaitlyn. After this week, I truly think people are realizing that Nelly, while so much fun to watch, is the weakest of the group. So with that, I’ll say we lose either Johnny/Skai and then Nelly.

PREDICTIONS:

Going Home 1st- Skai Jackson and Alan Bersten

Going Home 2nd- Nelly and Daniella Karagach

#casting

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Stats:

1. Kaitlyn & Artem (+4)
2. Nev & Jenna —
3. Johnny & Britt —
4. Skai & Alan (+2)
5. Justina & Sasha (-4)
6. AJ & Cheryl (-2)
7. Nelly & Daniella (+1)

Biggest Rise: Kaitlyn & Artem (+4)
Biggest Drop: AJ & Cheryl (-2)

Sent by PowerRankings101,Nov 16, 2020

PowerRankings101's blogBlog

Dancing With The Stars S29 Power Rankings (Round 9)

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