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Dancing With The Stars S31 Power Rankings (Round 4)

Oct 11, 2022 by PowerRankings101

DISNEY+ NIGHT! My favorite night of the DWTS year with a bit of a twist on it (seeing as how these are all Disney+ properties and not just Disney properties, which explains some Greatest Showman and Hamilton editions). Sam didn’t make the cut, as predicted, continuing the trend of the previous bottom 2 person going home next. Maybe the trend will continue next week, we shall see. Let’s rank these routines!

13. Joseph Baena and Daniella Karagach- I’ll admit, I didn’t like this dance. In fact, I’d go as far as saying it’s his worst dance yet. Daniella’s choreography is so good, but I do think Joseph struggled to keep up with it. I do agree with Len in the fact that there were too many lifts and tricks, especially because it starts to make Joseph seem like a one trick pony. He seemed way off from the timing and all over the place with some of his arms and stumbley posturing. His energy was there, as was the chemistry between partners, but it was all in all a bit of a mess. My Score: 4

12. Sam Champion and Cheryl Burke- There was a lot of great paso content in this dance, even if a few moves were still a tad clunky and needed a bit more follow through with the arms. I do still love his smile and connection to Cheryl, as his energy is so infectious. This was a challenging dance and he did pretty well for the most part, despite being a bit distant from most of the rest of the pack. My Score: 6

11. Trevor Donovan and Emma Slater- Definitely an improvement on last week. My only qualm here is that it was very obvious that Trevor was thinking about every single step through his face, and it detracted from the actual quality of the dancing itself, to where I was much more drawn to Emma’s expressiveness and not Trevor’s. Also, there could’ve been a tad more fluidity between steps and a lot more moments together rather than separated. I’m nitpicking, but as the competition heats up, Trevor is still playing catch up to the rest of the group. My Score: 7

10. Vinny Guadagnino and Koko Iwasaki- I’m proud of Vinny. He’s still not quite at everyone’s level yet, but I do think he’s improving for sure. He has a clear energy and joy on his face that would never let on the anxiety that he has inside. This was a tough routine and he hit the mark a bunch, even if some of the connective tissue between sections was messy. This was a breakthrough for him, and I hope he continues along this path. My Score: 7

9. Jessie James Decker and Alan Bersten- I’ll say, between Goldfinger and this, Jessie is really committing to the theme weeks and the costumes! I love that aspect. This was Jessie’s best dance. She continues to improve and impress gradually week by week. I do think Alan upstaged her a tad (how can you not with that makeup and character work?) but the two did nail a lot of the classic jive steps and technique. It had an infectious jolt of energy throughout, and shows lots of great potential for her to come. My Score: 7

8. Heidi D’Amelio and Artem Chigvinstev- This was clean, smooth, and pretty spot on technically. Where it lost me at times was the actual entertainment value. Because it was so clear cut and simple, it honestly came across a tad underwhelming in such a jam packed Disney night. But the actual dancing, which I’m here to rank and judge, was effortless and confident, and most of all: precise. My Score: 8

7. Selma Blair and Sasha Farber- Aw this was cute. I’m so impressed that Selma continues to push herself and take risks. It clearly shows, as this was my favorite routine of hers yet. On such a stacked Disney night, she still manages to land in the middle of the pack, but I still really enjoyed the dance. It had so much great character and some amazing technique and timing. Their partnership is one of the highlights of the season thus far. My Score: 8

6. Daniel Durant and Britt Stewart- The judges scored this a bit lower than his last dance, and honestly…I thought this was his best dance yet?? There were a few moments where the frame could’ve been a tad stronger and the footwork had a few missteps at times, but considering how much more difficult this dance was than anything that came before it, Daniel powered through it really well and didn’t let a second of his mistakes show on his face. I enjoyed it. Like Selma & Sasha, their partnership has been a huge highlight of the season as well. My Score: 8

5. Shangela and Gleb Savchenko- This dance was a hoot! I loved this, the enthusiasm, the pizazz, the flare. And the content! The actual charleston beats were really hit upon really well. I do think the dance only got better as it went along with a lift that was absolutely exceptional. Best lift since Iman’s lifts last season. My Score: 8

4. Charli D’Amelio and Mark Ballas- I’ll be honest, while I did enjoy this dance and the technique throughout was spot on, I honestly felt like the theming got in the way of this one. It just felt like Mark was throwing every single move under the sun out there with little coherency between each step. Maybe the Simpsons is zany and kooky enough where the jarring nature of the steps is welcome, but it was a tad all over the place for me. I also spent the whole time worrying her wig would fly off, it was a bit distracting. ALL THAT BEING SAID, don’t get me wrong, the technique was all spot on. She has been consistently at the top, so this week will just be an opportunity to throw someone else up there. My Score: 8

3. Gabby Windey and Val Chmerkovskiy- This was so cute, so fun. I loved the theming here, as it really allowed for Gabby’s personality to shine even brighter than it had before, and well, I’m a mega Marvel nerd so I loved the Guardians of the Galaxy inspiration. The whole thing was just a masterclass in technique and I cannot applaud them more for it. My Score: 9

2. Jordin Sparks and Brandon Armstrong- WOW! Having Jordin start by singing a verse brought tears to my eyes. And maybe it was the emotional connection to the song that clicked for her, because this was amazing! Jordin has previously been in the middle of the pack for me, teetering toward the bottom, but this week she showed a full realized potential that I knew was there from the pre-season press. I was astounded, especially in the turns which were her and Brandon’s biggest focus. My Score: 9

1. Wayne Brady and Witney Carson- I first have to say, I love Witney’s choreography and all of the sharpness to all the internalized movements she brought to this routine. It was such a cool jazz routine and hit on so many great aspects of the jazz style. Very few notes with this one. Bravo! My Score: 9

This week gave us some great routines, but Wayne really rose to the occasion for me with some of my favorite choreography of the season from Witney. Jordin super surprised me, and Gabby and Charli continue impressing toward the top of the leaderboard. I’m also cementing Daniel and Shangela as the next biggest contenders. As for who goes home, it would be predictable to say Trevor and Emma since they were in the bottom 2, but if Trevor gives us a dance like he did in week 2, America may be unable to put them lower. I think there’s potential for someone like Jessie to land in the bottom (despite the country vote seeming strong) or even Joseph if he underperforms again. Regardless, I think Trevor will go home if he’s in the bottom again.

MY PREDICTIONS:

Going Home- Trevor Donovan and Emma Slater

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Dancing With The Stars S31 Power Rankings (Round 4)

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