Dancing with the Stars - Season 31

[taf2002]

If Tyra is still going to host I'm not sorry to miss this season. There's no one I'm excited about.

 

[MacMadame]

If Tyra is still going to host I'm not sorry to miss this season. There's no one I'm excited about.

In the promo, she and Alfonso are both wearing suits and she looks like a normal person. I am going to keep an open mind.

 

[Aaron MB Fan]

Tonight was the season premiere on Disney+! Anyone else watch? I enjoyed it. I’ll be voting super hard all season long for Gabby!!! Adore her.

 

[nickp]

Alfonso makes everything better

 

[Firedancer]

I don’t have Disney+ so I can’t watch. This will be the first season I haven’t watched. I might catch some on you tube if I find them.

 

[Aaron MB Fan]

I don’t have Disney+ so I can’t watch. This will be the first season I haven’t watched. I might catch some on you tube if I find them.

I didn’t have Disney+ either. Luckily my provider offered me a Disney+ trial for 6 months free which is perfect and will cover the entire DWTS season!

 

[screech]

Some of my thoughts:

Tyra had an actual sort of normal outfit (and no costume change)! Alfonso was alright, but he speaks as though he forgets he has a microphone and is trying to be heard all the way to the back of the room. I rolled my eyes at Len saying he can't remember ever giving 8s in the season premiere. Dude, you used to give 9s! Alfonso himself got straight 9s in week 1!
I'm not sure what to think about no commercials. It keeps things going, but we need a bit of a break from Tyra sometimes. I also miss having the chance to go for a pee/refrigerator break.

Thoughts on some of the dances:

• Jordin & Brandon have some promise. I thought she had good rhythm, though she seemed a bit timid in her movements at times. I'll always love that song, though.
• Daniel & Britt - I was impressed. Not just because of his deafness, but because his rhythm was naturally good. Though it seems like there's a bit of Nyle erasure - how can they not mention a deaf person winning a few years ago!
• Wayne & Witney - I thought they were a bit underscored. But by god does he just ooze charisma. I definitely would have given him one or two more 8s. I also liked him acknowledging that it's his ego that has kept him from participating in the past.
• Shangela & Gleb - Loved them. Shangela can move and of course has the personality on the floor. I like how she explained her pronouns, and also explained why she won't be in drag for rehearsals. I want them to go far. I was also annoyed on their behalf when Alfonso said there was no time to talk to them before their scores.
• Trevor & Emma - better than I expected, given their package. Though with his hair overly bleached, it was almost as if he was in costume as Billy Idol.
• Gabby & Val - I didn't love them as much as the judges. Her dancing was good, however for someone who claimed to be a performer, I found her lacking in the performance side of things.
• Joseph & Daniella - he was a bit chaotic, but he has potential. I'm surprised they didn't give the bodybuilder and the lift queen a dance with lifts in week one. I also hope they don't just focus on his muscles all the time. And I also agreed with the judges that he had some surprisingly graceful arm movements, so it will be interesting to see him in a ballroom dance
• Selma & Sasha - how often have we seen not just Carrie-Ann, but half of the contestants in tears? Very inspirational. A bit lacking in content, but she moves nicely.
• Charli & Mark - clearly she can dance, but I hope she works on tucking her bum under. I think she is deservedly in first, but Wayne should have been closer in scores

Elvis night next week. Will hopefully be as interesting as I'm wanting it to be.

 

[Tesla]

I also miss having the chance to go for a pee/refrigerator break.

That's what pause is for!

 

[screech]

That's what pause is for!

But I live text snarky comments with my parents! (with my mom about the dancing, with my dad to complain about Tyra, Carrie-Ann, the music, etc). I can't pause!

Also speaking of the music, did anyone else notice that the band seemed to really speed up Sweet Home Alabama and Dancing With Myself? I don't know why they felt the need to. They were already a good speed for their dances!

 

[skatfan]

This YouTube channel found videos of the dances from Monday evening:

https://youtube.com/c/WitsayFan

 

[Sylvia]

Dancing With The Stars' [Season 31] Premiere Opening number (5 mins.) is posted on the DWTS YT channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UDnLVBOR_A

 

[Desperado]

I didn’t have Disney+ either. Luckily my provider offered me a Disney+ trial for 6 months free which is perfect and will cover the entire DWTS season!

I'm jealous, I could only rustle up one month at $1.99 + tax.

I didn't think Alfonso really helped us forget Tyra but at least she's no longer interviewing the contestants. I thought the mounted police shtick to let us know Canadians can now vote online was in poor taste, but I did appreciate Tyra saying she has family here. Her French is also quite good from an interview I saw in the past.

Not sure how many Canadians will bother to watch live to vote, however.

I hate that they sent a couple home in the first episode - poor Peta. I think it was mentioned before that she had facial plastic surgery. I thought she looked much more attractive before, so I'm doubly sad.

It was lovely to watch the Selma/Sasha neighbours dance, so beautiful. Jordin crying after watching it only made me like her more. I really enjoyed her dance and energy too.

I would never have picked Gleb as a trailblazer so good for him to embrace dancing with Shangela. Their routine was too overdone for my taste, including the costumes, but the pairing has tons of potential. I was trying to figure out what the 4-hour drag prep involved - what dedication.

Yuck to the Ballas man bun. Jason Lewis wore it much better 20 years ago.

 

[screech]

I hate that they sent a couple home in the first episode - poor Peta. I think it was mentioned before that she had facial plastic surgery. I thought she looked much more attractive before, so I'm doubly sad.

I'm not sure if she's confirmed anything, but she definitely looks different in a way that can't just be contributed to her skincare line, or makeup.
I was hoping Peta would have gotten a good partner, since she's had such a shit year, between Maks stuck in Ukraine, the miscarriages, and the IVF issues. I'm actually surprised she wasn't paired with Daniel, since she's had proven success with a deaf contestant.

 

[mattiecat13]

Jason Lewis

 

[screech]

According to Gold Derby, which is a site that provides odds for entertainment based things, Wayne Brady is the frontrunner, with 7:2 odds. Charli D'Amelio is second with 4:1, and Shangela third wtih 5:1.

For Elvis night, the dances are:

• Joseph and Daniella: Viennese Waltz to “If I Can Dream”
• Heidi and Artem: Foxtrot to “Suspicious Minds”
• Trevor and Emma: Rumba to “Aways on My Mind”
• Cheryl and Louis: Tango to “A Little Less Conversation”
• Sam and Cheryl: Viennese Waltz to “Heartbreak Hotel”
• Jessie and Alan: Foxtrot to “Trouble”
• Vinny and Koko: Quickstep to “Viva Las Vegas”
• Teresa and Pasha: Jive to “All Shook Up”
• Charli and Mark: Quickstep to “Bossa Nova Baby”
• Wayne and Witney: Jive to “Burning Love”
• Gabby and Val: Viennese Waltz to “Can’t Help Falling in Love”
• Shangela and Gleb: Quickstep to “Shake, Rattle, and Roll”
• Selma and Sasha: Jive to “Jailhouse Rock”
• Daniel and Britt: Jive to “King Creole”
• Jordin and Brandon: Quickstep to “Hound Dog”

First off, I'd have thought Teresa would get Jailhouse Rock, but I'm a bit nervous for Selma to be doing a jive so early on. I'm a bit surprised to see Burning Love as a jive song. While it's upbeat, to me the tempo isn't quite jive. And I'm interested to see how Joseph does with the Viennese Waltz, as he showed surprisingly graceful arms at times last week in the jive. Seeing "Bossa Nova Baby" I remember how good Carlos and his 'switch up' partner Lindsay were to that song back in season 21. And of course Meryl and Maks' jive to Hound Dog. I still remember one of the judges saying something like how normally the cut of the skirt on the lady helps to create movement in the jive, but they were amazed with how much movement Meryl had in a pencil skirt.

 

[Susan1]

I'm not watching this or reading this thread since it is not on regular t.v., but this just popped up on my newsfeed -

COVID Strikes 'Dancing with the Stars'

All close contacts have been notified.

www.yahoo.com

 

[BaileyCatts]

wrong thread. NM.

 

[screech]

The moment Carrie Ann chose Cheryl I knew she was safe because Len would pick her too. Also, if Len's vote is the decision maker, why the heck do any of the other judges get a vote?

The moments of 'showmance' with Emma and Trevor were so cringe for me. Especially since Emma's not yet ex-husband is there too. I'm very glad the camera people didn't decide to cut to Sasha.

I liked that they had clip packages about Elvis' career, however it bugged me that they put his military service in his 'early years', before his 'movie years'. While yes, most of his movies (not all big successes) were after his military years, he had already had huge success with Love Me Tender, Loving You, Jailhouse Rock (with Elvis' self-choreographed iconic performance of the title song, in what is often considered the first music video), and King Creole (Elvis' favourite of his own roles, in a film with 100% on Rotten Tomatoes).

A few comments on the dances:

• Vinny! Holy heck is this the same person as last week? This is why nobody should be eliminated on week one.
• Daniel and Britt - I didn't understand the scores he got. IMO there wasn't much jive content, and most of the dance consisted of her dancing around him. Nice to see his oscar-winning CODA costars (Marlee Matlin and Troy Kotsur) there to support him.
• Charli is undeniably good. However, my eyes kept going to Mark during their dance. Also, this is a dance that in week 2 of earlier seasons would have received 9s.
• I also thought Selma was a bit overscored. It's still amazing what she can do, but that was a VERY slow jive, and she had a lot of (understandable) errors
• Huge kudos to Joseph for learning to lead a brand new partner the same day as the show. IMO it was not great (his feet looked messy and his posture wasn't good) but props to him.
• Trevor and Emma were really good. For a guy who was 'scared' of dancing...?
• Wayne is fantastic, of course. And though it was a good dance, I found it was lacking a bit on the showmanship energy (if that makes sense...)

Bond week next week. Cue the Dame Shirley Bassey! Though I know it's an anniversary of Bond, it seems kind of odd that they're having a night dedicated to the films, since IIRC they are not owned by Disney.

 

[MacMadame]

The moment Carrie Ann chose Cheryl I knew she was safe because Len would pick her too. Also, if Len's vote is the decision maker, why the heck do any of the other judges get a vote?

It's only the deciding vote if there is a tie. So if the other three pick Couple A and he wants Couple B, too bad for him.

 

[MacMadame]

I'm liking it being on Disney+ because I can watch it live with all you East Coasters. And having 2 hosts works better than 1 host. I am not thrilled with the 2 we have but having 2 people is better than 1.

I have to say that all these people really jumble together. There are more pros I am not familiar with so sometimes I think the pro is the celebrity! Also, I can't believe they kept Cheryl Ladd. Her dancing is horrible. I'm not even sure you can call it dancing. Ruined my favorite Elvis song.

 

[skatfan]

I'm liking it being on Disney+ because I can watch it live with all you East Coasters. And having 2 hosts works better than 1 host. I am not thrilled with the 2 we have but having 2 people is better than 1.

Agree with all of this. But I just gave up Disney+ so I’ll have to find replays now.

I have to say that all these people really jumble together. There are more pros I am not familiar with so sometimes I think the pro is the celebrity! Also, I can't believe they kept Cheryl Ladd. Her dancing is horrible. I'm not even sure you can call it dancing. Ruined my favorite Elvis song.

Why the judges (Carrie Ann and Seeek) insisted last week that Louis wasn’t giving her enough to do was strange. He’s a very experienced pro and this week proved he was right!

You could see the Housewife figure out pretty quickly she’d get tossed for lovely Cheryl Ladd and be very sour about it.

 

[screech]

I saw just a couple minutes of Tyra on Kelly & Ryan on Friday and she brought up something I hadn't thought of. With no commercials, there's no chance for a pee break for the hosts, so she said she has to dehydrate before the show starts. Also, I didn't know that she and Alfonso went to elementary school together (I thought they had just met on Fresh Prince).

Anyway, tonight is Bond night. It appears that Daniella is still not cleared to dance, as Joseph is listed with Alexis again. The dances:

• Joseph and Alexis - Argentine Tango to "Writing's on the Wall" by Sam Smith
• Selma and Sasha - Rumba to "For Your Eyes Only" by Sheena Easton
• Wayne and Witney - Tango to “The Name’s Bond… James Bond” by David Arnold and Nicholas Dodd
• Sam and Cheryl - Samba to “Los Muertos Vivos Estan” by Thomas Newman feat. Tambuco
• Charli and Mark - Rumba to "No Time To Die" by Billie Eilish
• Heidi and Artem - Argentine Tango to "Another Way to Die" by Jack White and Alicia Keys
• Jessie and Alan - Rumba to "Goldfinger" by Shirley Bassey
• Trevor and Emma - Tango to "You Know My Name" by Chris Cornell
• Daniel and Britt - Rumba to "The World Is Not Enough" by Garbage
• Vinny and Koko - Rumba to "Thunderball" by Tom Jones
• Cheryl and Louis - Rumba to "Diamonds are Forever" by Shirley Bassey
• Shangela - Rumba to "Goldeneye" by Tina Turner
• Jordin and Brandon - Rumba to "Licence to Kill" By Gadys Knight
• Gabby and Val - Cha Cha to "Die Another Day" by Madonna

A few notable songs missing, such as Adele's "Skyfall" and Wings' "Live and Let Die"

And ugh. WAY too many rumbas. More than half of the dances are rumbas, which are among my least favourite dance styles to watch. Also, I'm disappointed Daniella is missing the first night where she and Joseph can do lifts!

 

[nickp]

Alexis Warr my QUEEN

 

[screech]

I found the night kind of boring, and barely remember most of the dances. Best part was Derek's dramatic monologue about the rumba.

I was only half paying attention, but I think next week is Disney+ night. They didn't say Disney, it was Disney+. Looking at what's on Disney Plus, though I doubt it, this means we could potentially see utilization of musical moments from non-Disney movies like:

• Dolly Parton's "9 to 5"
• "Babysitting Blues" from "Adventures in Babysitting"
• "Wind Beneath my Wings" from "Beaches"
• Anything from "Black Swan"
• "Gangsta's Paradise" from "Dangerous Minds" (RIP Coolio)
• Anything from "Hamilton"
• Anything from "Into the Woods"
• Rick James' "Super Freak" as used in "Little Miss Sunshine
• Anything from "Moulin Rouge" (except, hopefully, El Tango de Roxanne)
• The tights song from "Robin Hood Men in Tights"
• "Time After Time" as used in "Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion"
• Any of the classic big band music used in "Swing Kids"
• The freaking amazing title song from "That Thing You Do!" (RIP Adam Schlessinger)
• The soundtrack to the Leo version of "Romeo + Juliet"

And that's just the movies!

I expect, though, that the furthest outside the norm they'll go is using something from Star Wars, or MAYBE something Daft Punk from Tron, or perhaps a classic hit from the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtracks.

But if they stick with Disney, I really want them to break outside the usual classic animated films, Pirates, and a song from the newest upcoming flick. Why not dig into Bette Midler's version of "I Put a Spell On You" from Hocus Pocus. Fantasia. Tangled. High School Musical or Hannah Montana. I don't even recall anyone ever doing the Sleeping Beauty waltz. Heck, bust out the theme from George of the Jungle!

 

[screech]

The dances for Disney+ week have been announced and there's actually a little bit of variety for a change!

• Joseph Baena and pro Daniella Karagach will perform a Charleston to “A Star Is Born” from Hercules
• Selma Blair and pro Sasha Farber will perform a Quickstep to “The Muppet Show Theme” from The Muppet Show
• Wayne Brady and pro Witney Carson will perform a Jazz routine to “Wait for It” from Hamilton
• Sam Champion and pro Cheryl Burke will perform a Paso Doble to “The Greatest Show” from The Greatest Showman
• Charli D’Amelio and pro Mark Ballas will perform a Jazz routine to “‘The Simpsons’ Theme” from The Simpsons
• Heidi D’Amelio and pro Artem Chigvintsev will perform a Viennese Waltz to “Chim Chim Cher-ee” from Mary Poppins
• Jessie James Decker and pro Alan Bersten will perform a Jive to “One Way or Another” from Hocus Pocus
• Trevor Donovan and pro Emma Slater will perform a Samba to “Life Is a Highway” from Cars
• Daniel Durant and pro Britt Stewart will perform a Quickstep to “Finally Free” from High School Musical: The Musical: The Series
• Vinny Guadagnino and pro Koko Iwasaki will perform a Samba to “Il Gatto E La Volpe” from Luca
• Shangela and pro Gleb Savchenko will perform a Charleston to “Dig a Little Deeper” from The Princess and the Frog
• Jordin Sparks and pro Brandon Armstrong will perform a Jazz routine to “Remember Me” from Coco
• Gabby Windey and pro Val Chmerkovskiy will perform a Quickstep to “Mr. Blue Sky” from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Wayne Brady was actually in Hamilton for a bit, playing Aaron Burr, who sings "Wait For It". Nice to have that connection. The Simpsons theme seems kind of random. Surprised there's nothing from an upcoming Disney movie. And I'll never say no to a song by ELO (Mr. Blue Sky). Happy to see some Charlestons there.

 

[MacMadame]

The Simpsons theme seems kind of random.

They are showing The Simpsons on Disney+ (and plugging it quite a bit there)

 

[overedge]

I don't have Disney+ so I'm relying on YouTube, but after I found out that Jessie James Decker was a contestant, there was no way I was going to get a Disney+ subscription. What a publicity hound she is. If I see one more "story" about her along the lines of "Jessie opens up about her failed marriage", I may break something.

 

[screech]

They are showing The Simpsons on Disney+ (and plugging it quite a bit there)

I see that it's on there, it just seems a random choice. Of all the songs to dance to. Heck, for a Simpsons song, I'd choose "See My Vest" or "Monorail" over the theme song.

 

[maureenfarone]

Just curious but is the show only streamed live on Disney or are you able to watch replays?

 

[Tesla]

Just curious but is the show only streamed live on Disney or are you able to watch replays?

You can watch the replays on Disney+.