Thoughts on the Test Skates:
1. Usacheva: Not bad for dealing with an injury, hopefully that 3axel and 4sal will show up before RusNats. I love her skating, and I was kind of hoping she'd skate to Swan Lake this year. She skated to it when she was 11 and I was really impressed with her then, and figured she could really bring it justice 4 years later. But alas, Never Enough and Turandot....
2. Sinitsina: I just love her skating. Love her SP. I like the LP, and I'm happy to see her go for 4toe. But she has noticeably marked muscle wasting and looks really sickly to my eyes (I was concerned last year at this time but I figured it was *********). I wish her health and the season of her dreams. She can't continue after this year starving herself IMO. I know it isn't "nice" to talk about something like that, but someone has to express concern.
3. Khromykh: I'm glad she kept her SP, it fits her and she looks confident and strong with it. The LP is "a'ight". It appears this will be a good year for her, with her 3axel almost ready and she's already doing 4toe-3toe, so if she has 3axel in the SP and LP and 4toe-3toe, 4toe, 4sal in the LP, she could be a dark horse.
4. Nugumanova: Beautiful skater. To me she looks like a very polished, professional skater. But can't jump. So that's how it is with her, but I love to watch skate because she looks to be enjoying herself. As for Ariel for her LP, I'm stunned. WTF? Really?!?!? If she's auditioning for Disney on Ice, I get it. But she's talented enough to do a Russian Nutcracker on Ice and sell it. Oh well, I was at least hoping to enjoy her programs this year, I don't see me watching Ariel again.
5. Samodurova: Never was a fan of her skating. At all. I can't believe she got a GP this season. She shouldn't even place top ten in Russia Juniors! I'm not understanding the very ugly bent-arm Tano in her jumps. It doesn't give her any extra points, and it slows down the rotation on all of her borderline UR/DG jumps. And Mulan? I didn't realize a remake came out last year, and Xtina sang for this soundtrack too. I'm more interested in listening to Xtina than watching that mess again.
6. Kostornaia: Promising. She is the "overall package" for me, with Valieva a close second. I happen to not hate her SP. But I can watch America's Got Talent or whatever and like most types of music/singers if they are good. Beth Hart is really good at doing her type of singing, and Alyona is just as good interpreting it, IMO. I think it's a winner, though not what I had in mind for the Olympics. As for the LP, glad she has her 3axel back, and the program isn't BAD, but she's capable of giving me goosebumps and her skating just looks "lesser" than last year when she won Euros. But I love her skating, and am happy to see her skate this strongly to be honest.
7. Shcherbakova: Coming off an injury, she skated well. I like both of her programs. She's a great dancer, and she has that extra special something that elevates her programs. She looks great, as always. I'm just concerned that if her quads desert her the week of Russian Nationals like they did at Worlds this year, she won't be on the Olympic Team.
8. Tuktamysheva: Well, she's improving a little and I like her programs. Her skating is what it is. Has been that way for six years. I don't see or want her on the Olympic team, but I'm glad she's out there looking and being fierce and enjoying herself. I don't mind her performances now, when before I'd groan and barely get through them.
9. Valieva: I like her SP, it's like Storm, but it's another chance for her to skate something different with maturity. I'm not a fan of Bolero, but I still think she has the X factor, with her jumps, spins, everything. I picked her out four years ago for OGM, and I'm still standing by it.
10. Trusova: What I like about her programs this year is that these programs are ALL SASHA. She's not artistic, and doesn't try to be (It was nice last season with Plush while it lasted), and she just needs to skate HARD and CLEAN. Her idol Nathan doesn't do much choreographically either, she just needs better, stronger, deeper edging and crossovers, and just skate "like a man", like Nathan. All power, no frills. Because if she skates like this at RusNats and Olympics she should win. I'd just like to see her improve her stroking at least, it's improved Alysa Liu's skating drastically. Practice an extra hour at night when you're tired just on stroking everyday until the Olympics. ETA: I was happy that Sasha was made to skate last in her flight. I'm not sure if it was intentional to test her, to see if she can warm up all her Ultra jumps and then wait to the end of the flight to perform. If RusFed did it deliberately for that purpose, well, I'm glad, and it obviously was a success for Sasha.
My early predictions for the Olympic Team: Valieva, Trusova, Shcherbakova. Kostornaia though is neck and neck with Shcherbakova to me and if Anna doesn't have her quads at RusNats, it will take a heck of a lot of Russia/Eteri backroom wheeling and dealing to put her on the team.
for 3 skaters. If someone has a melt down, for the three left behind. It sucks that there will be far lesser skaters who go, but that's the way it is. Now, as for who medals? Who knows. It could be a Russian sweep. It could be 2/3. It could be 1/3 (I don't think so, but ice is slippery). So, of the three who go, at least one will be very happy and two won't. I'll be 
They have plenty of women. Jumps aside, she wasn't even breathing hard when she came off the ice. She's in better physical shape then every Russian man they have.
If you read through the play-by-play thread from the Test Skates, you’ll see my thoughts on Nugu and Sofia S’s use of Disney cartoon music...Disney must have offered a discount on using their rights!!! Then we got to a third cartoon-music program of the afternoon - Cruella - and the laughs stopped. 
