The Dance Hall 10: The Saitama Samba 2022-2023

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MarieM

Grumpy Cynical Ice Dance Lover
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I love H/B's quality, but I'm not really a fan of the FD... But it's much better in terms of choreography than C/B's for me.
I loved H&B's FD. They got me into their bubble this time. I like their choice a lot. Maybe seeing them live in Montpellier helped that i do appreciate their skating more sur. But this FD is a little jewel.

C&Bates were a bit meh. Not ready yet, and it showed.

Biggest WOW moment was the baby french. That FD is EVERYTHING!
 

On My Own

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Biggest WOW moment was the baby french. That FD is EVERYTHING!
I liked the performance, it was very exciting, but definitely not sold on the choreography. The season so far has been bland for me, but still a long way to go.
 

BlueRidge

AYS's snark-sponge
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Love Demougeot and LeMercier!! My ice dance highlights at SA were all French (and French Canadian). Love their FD and L&L's FD and so thrilled L&L got bronze! I've been a fan of theirs from the get go and its been a long slog!

I have to say I was kind of annoyed with Chock & Bates coming so seemingly unprepared. I have hope for the FD but it just wasn't ready.

I don't like Hawayek & Baker's music for the FD. (Adore the RD!!) And while I appreciated that it was beautifully skated I had no emotional reaction whatsover. I felt like an alien in that arena...
 

Andora

Skating season ends as baseball season begins
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I like Jorane, and once I saw the practice clip of the SL lift, I decided I'd have to uber C&B this year. I really should know better than to get excited from practice clips! :lol: I have hope for the program, but... that's the best I can say.

LOVE their RD, though. Surprised it's not more popular.

I don't like Hawayek & Baker's music for the FD. (Adore the RD!!) And while I appreciated that it was beautifully skated I had no emotional reaction whatsover. I felt like an alien in that arena...

Hm - I figured H&B's program was much better live, so I appreciate this insight. I love them, love their skating, but the music really drags for me. I found it hard to stay invested in their program.
 

BlueRidge

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I like Jorane, and once I saw the practice clip of the SL lift, I decided I'd have to uber C&B this year. I really should know better than to get excited from practice clips! :lol: I have hope for the program, but... that's the best I can say.

LOVE their RD, though. Surprised it's not more popular.



Hm - I figured H&B's program was much better live, so I appreciate this insight. I love them, love their skating, but the music really drags for me. I found it hard to stay invested in their program.

well my seatmate was moved to tears so YMMV. But for me I didn't like their music when I first saw it streamed and so even live, as beautiful as the skating was, it didn't go anywhere for me. However, the standing ovation was pretty convincing, albeit they have a big fan base among those who would be in Norwood.

For C&B I think what will determine whether the program becomes something special is whether they are committed to skating competitively this year. They picked something challenging and they need to be all in. I hope they are because I think then it can be quite remarkable.

I generally bite my tongue rather than uber C&B but I've decided I've done that enough and I plan to be mean about it this year. Grrrr, grrrr. :lol: I have no issue with Guignard and Fabri beating them (though of course I hope they don't) but no one else better get in the way.
 

Lara111

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well my seatmate was moved to tears so YMMV. But for me I didn't like their music when I first saw it streamed and so even live, as beautiful as the skating was, it didn't go anywhere for me. However, the standing ovation was pretty convincing, albeit they have a big fan base among those who would be in Norwood.

For C&B I think what will determine whether the program becomes something special is whether they are committed to skating competitively this year. They picked something challenging and they need to be all in. I hope they are because I think then it can be quite remarkable.

I generally bite my tongue rather than uber C&B but I've decided I've done that enough and I plan to be mean about it this year. Grrrr, grrrr. :lol: I have no issue with Guignard and Fabri beating them (though of course I hope they don't) but no one else better get in the way.
There is no one else - ha ha How much this win will matter anyway
 

PRlady

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well my seatmate was moved to tears so YMMV. But for me I didn't like their music when I first saw it streamed and so even live, as beautiful as the skating was, it didn't go anywhere for me. However, the standing ovation was pretty convincing, albeit they have a big fan base among those who would be in Norwood.

For C&B I think what will determine whether the program becomes something special is whether they are committed to skating competitively this year. They picked something challenging and they need to be all in. I hope they are because I think then it can be quite remarkable.

I generally bite my tongue rather than uber C&B but I've decided I've done that enough and I plan to be mean about it this year. Grrrr, grrrr. :lol: I have no issue with Guignard and Fabri beating them (though of course I hope they don't) but no one else better get in the way.
Given that they will certainly fix the mistakes that cost them TES, you don’t have to worry. H/B will get better scores than they used to as US#2 but G/F are the only real competition. Neither F/G nor G/P have the technical chops to beat them.
 

Ena Grins

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Well...I think C/B will probably rebound well at their next GP but H/B also also look like they're starting an upward trajectory. i'd put money (not all my money, just some ;)) on H/B pulling a 2016 Shibs at Nationals. I like C/B's FD, dislike their RD, and think H/B have the better set of programs overall. And H/B just look trained, focused, and strong.
 

dancing_on_ice

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I don't think it'll be this close between C/B and H/B again in the season. For this margin to happen, H/B were near perfect (level 4s on the one-foot-step-sequence this early in the season!) while C/B were extremely messy. Missed choreo step, lost lift levels, level 1 one-foot-step, messy twizzles, I could go on. I doubt C/B will be this messy ever again. If they are though, their stock will plummet fast. They only won at Skate America off of their reputation, and they need to prove they deserve that reputation at NHK Trophy.
 

Karen-W

Checking Senior Bs for TES mins...
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I agree that the ChoBat we see in 4 weeks at NHK is going to be far better trained and prepared than they were this weekend. I do, though, sort of have a feeling they might very well call it a competitive career after this season if they win Worlds. HawBak are setting up for a nice surge through the rest of the quad, though, presuming they do continue.
 

DORISPULASKI

Watching submarine races
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I think I am going to like the RD from ChoBat. It is just that we haven't seen it yet in anything near complete form.

They botched their end section, including the lift, in the competition, but it can be seen in the practice vid. I really liked that bit.

The middle section, the Rhumba, showed promise in the competitive version. They did not show it in the practice vid.

It is the beginning that really, really needs work.

I wonder whether Evan has been injured? Gadbois never admits to injury unless someone actually went to hospital.
 

Bigbird

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The French have something in the water. They are my favorites this year as well.

EDIT: And I mean all of them. They don't copy anyone for a win. They are audacious. Please we need something bold, not the second coming of.............. Rant over. But me like them a lot :)
 
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clairecloutier

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I think Chock/Bates will be a lot stronger at their next event. I was actually really favorably impressed with them in practice, despite the few mistakes in the competition. They just need more time with the programs, I think. So far, I really like both their programs, which hasn’t always been the case in the past. Love Kaitlin and Jean-Luc as well, but I think their RD still needs more work to be crisper and cleaner and bring out the comedy aspect more. Their free dance is beautiful.

Overall, I thought the judging reflected what I felt like I was seeing. Harris/Chan, L/LG, and Demougeot/Le Mercier all placed higher than I had maybe expected before the event, but deservedly so, IMO. Whereas with Muramoto/Takahashi, while the crowd loved them, I felt like what I actually saw from them in the RD and practice was not quite what I was hoping for. Or just that it could be better and cleaner.
 

PRlady

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I think Chock/Bates will be a lot stronger at their next event. I was actually really favorably impressed with them in practice, despite the few mistakes in the competition. They just need more time with the programs, I think. So far, I really like both their programs, which hasn’t always been the case in the past. Love Kaitlin and Jean-Luc as well, but I think their RD still needs more work to be crisper and cleaner and bring out the comedy aspect more. Their free dance is beautiful.

Overall, I thought the judging reflected what I felt like I was seeing. Harris/Chan, L/LG, and Demougeot/Le Mercier all placed higher than I had maybe expected before the event, but deservedly so, IMO. Whereas with Muramoto/Takahashi, while the crowd loved them, I felt like what I actually saw from them in the RD and practice was not quite what I was hoping for. Or just that it could be better and cleaner.
At practice I watched KanaDai do twizzles right after Chock/Bates practiced theirs. As much as I love Dai the difference was stark. I booed the marks :rofl: for KanaDai but see much room for improvement technically. Charisma off the charts, though.

Soucisse/Firus are really in trouble, they’ve slipped to Canada #5 now.
 

Nmsis

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;Biggest WOW moment was the baby french. That FD is EVERYTHING!
Yes ! And my love for it has nothing to do with a post I made 5 years ago on french figure skating board gushing about obscure pianist Laake and Swell after hearing him on my favorite radio (and someone else's, because come on, on which radio can you listen La Lupe, Pentatonix, Laake, Kidjo's Bolero and plenty more eclectic stuff ?). He gained prestige and some fame in 2020 during the ..... working with big institutions like Arte and Radio France and that's certainly when he got picked up. But I can say this choice had my early stamp of approval. :D

What I wasn't yet convinced about was how Loïcia and Théo would sell the transition between Swell / Gnossiennes and Estrella Morente.

It took them a perfectly tuned interpretation.
And interpretation used to be a weakness for them because :
1° their natural abilities weren't in sync (his face has always been an open window to the music, her face is far less mobile and she tends to overfocus, interprete less to concentrate on the moves when she doesn't have a full grip of her programs)
2° Villard's naturalistic interpretation. NOT russian. Villard skaters' faces don't speak louder than their music. That's their trademark, even in ballroom dances, even in latin dances.
So the challenge was for her to remain naturalistic while force-emoting and to project to the public but in a natural way.
To an equal level to her partner. Which is certainly another challenge.
It must have taken specific training.
In 2018-2019, their rock FD was clearly showing the trouble
Each year, the FDs were designed to make her progress in that regard : Carmen in 2019-2020, Papa Can you Hear Me in 2020-2021, Bolero in 2021-2022. Strong choices, feminine choices to challenge and empower her.

For me, the changing factor is not that this program is out of this world but that Loïcia inhabits it the same way as Théo. She owns it and makes it work to its full potential.

The RD needs a bit more mileage but they are not far. I would just make a slight choreographic change to go along with the transition to Pentatonix. Something like a cradle / lullaby move (hey I'm not a choreographer). Right now it seems unannouced and blurry.
 
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On My Own

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I don't think KanaDai are ever going to be an amazing technical team together, he just started too late. I do think they have my favorite RD yet again, unless I've forgotten someone.
 

dancing_on_ice

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I agree that the ChoBat we see in 4 weeks at NHK is going to be far better trained and prepared than they were this weekend. I do, though, sort of have a feeling they might very well call it a competitive career after this season if they win Worlds. HawBak are setting up for a nice surge through the rest of the quad, though, presuming they do continue.
I've always gotten the feeling that this is their last season as they try to win a world title. In their interview right before Skate America, they said they're taking it one season at a time. Although who knows, they may want to continue to 2024 because it's in their home city, Montreal. I kind of feel as though F-B/S may be in a similar boat of retiring after Montreal Worlds. They're the same age as C/B.
 

PRlady

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Honestly, since I can’t take the Latin theme too seriously, H/B and F/G are the only ones I really enjoyed, although the Danadians were nice.
 

Theatregirl1122

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I find C/B’s SD to be a huge miss. They are a team who should be able to do Latin pretty well and this is not remotely Latin, and it lacks and kind of perspective or choreographic vision. I don’t think the lack of training time is the problem. It’s just not a program.

The FD seems like the underbaked crap H/D would have gotten if they stayed. I know the program was Evan’s idea, but it feels like Montreal saves interesting programs for teams they don’t think are at the top. Now that C/B are clear US #1, they get lame programs.
 

Peepsquick

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I find C/B’s SD to be a huge miss. They are a team who should be able to do Latin pretty well and this is not remotely Latin, and it lacks and kind of perspective or choreographic vision. I don’t think the lack of training time is the problem. It’s just not a program.

The FD seems like the underbaked crap H/D would have gotten if they stayed. I know the program was Evan’s idea, but it feels like Montreal saves interesting programs for teams they don’t think are at the top. Now that C/B are clear US #1, they get lame programs.
:confused:
 

Bouffantrex

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Chock/Bates RD is offensive. I had high hopes based on the practice video and costuming, but the program is a cheesy cop-out, and something I easily could see that Vicky/Nicky Russian team skating.

And no, that's not a compliment.
 

Bigbird

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Chock/Bates RD is offensive. I had high hopes based on the practice video and costuming, but the program is a cheesy cop-out, and something I easily could see that Vicky/Nicky Russian team skating.

And no, that's not a compliment.
Vicky and Nicky don't dance but do synchronized skating well, so no, they couldn't handle this choreo. The fact is the execution looks sloppy because Evan in particular is in poor shape. Poor and his costume needs a little altering, it doesn't match Maddy's. But the programme has great bones, something V/M would smash.
 
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