Great interview with Gauthier, Claire! And thanks. He knows whereof he speaks, and he made some excellent observations regarding the state of pairs in light of the recent rules changes. It's too bad that the ISU does not listen to coaches and skaters. As always, a wonderful interview with exellent questions.
In regard to James/Cipres, indeed they have risen to the top the hard way, and definitely deserve every good thing. They are exciting to watch, and many teams have been inspired by their example and some have been copying their moves and costumes. Champions lead the way. It reminds me of when Savchenko/ Szolkowy broke the mold and inspired so many teams to work on expressing themselves in new ways. And when Meagan & Eric were winning, teams were inspired by their example to work on upping their tech arsenal, which was M&E's strength. The thing about J/C that's impossible to copy, is their chemistry. Charlie White did wonderful work for both J/C and Denney/Frazier this season.
I think Guillaume Cizeron did an interesting job with J/C's
Uninvited sp too, especially for GC being new to choreographing pairs. The sp is a different layout than J/C have been accustomed to, so it has taken awhile for them to get used to it, but I think they've gotten the knack. J/C discuss their sp:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfU3qorP__w I like their sp, and I think it goes by quickly too, just like their fp. When the programs end, the audience wants more. I suppose some people don't like the music of
Uninvited. But, I've enjoyed all of J/C's programs since their 2016-2017 breakthrough. J/C's 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons' sps were probably more exciting than this season's sp in terms of music, moves and themes. Even their 2016 sp at Worlds (before Zimmerman & crew) was a lot of fun to watch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlktjmVSz9o Wow, the way Morgan just picks V up into that lift is

Of course, J/C are even better now than then in many ways
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aZX5flxLRk
Regarding coming back in the fp, I doubt any team would want to use that approach as a strategy. It's always good to be ahead. Of course, it adds to the excitement when an amazing comeback does happen, a la Savchenko/Massot at the 2018 Olympics. Still, that's never a planned strategy. It's just about taking each moment as it comes.
I agree Sui/Han have time to get better by Worlds. It was good for them to compete at 4CC just to see where they're at competitively, so they know what they need to do. They are a unique team as well, with their own brand of magic. I know Sui wills herself to persevere, even through pain. So we'll see what happens. As some fans have commented, S/H's sp is not quite as interesting as their fp. It does look like Sui gained some inspiration from Vanessa's sparkly gold & raspberry sp costume with the bling she's bringing to her fab blue and silver sparkly outfit.
T/M of course have nice lines and are the epitome of traditional Russian aesthetic pairs teams, but to date they have not found the right material. Their fp is okay since it is in their aesthetic wheelhouse, but they still do not bring any intensity and connection to the ice. Finally, they did listen and get a sp more suited to their aesthetic, but it's not spectacular. Boikova/Koslovskii seem primed to pass T/M at some point, since B/K are way more exciting. Despite Koslovskii's chest-beating, which he could stand to calm down a bit, they have huge talent and Moskvina too!
