SPOILER ALERT! This article contains details from Tuesday’s episode of Dancing with the stars.
Another week, another night Dancing with the stars.
It’s the first-ever Super Bowl party in the ballroom, so the remaining couples dance to songs from past Super Bowl halftime performers, including Shakira, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, Bad Bunny and more. We know that Disney loves synergies, and this is no exception since ABC and ESPN are organizing the big match this season.
The judges are joined tonight by Joe Buck, the lead play-by-play announcer for ESPN’s Monday Night Football. Don’t expect any fancy remarks from him, given that he tells the audience early on that he has no idea about the technical aspects of the dances, but he’s happy to offer his opinion.
Let’s dive into Super Bowl night.
Reality TV star Maura Higgins with Mark Ballas. These two are still on cloud 9, literally, after receiving the season premiere 9 last week from Carrie Ann. This week, they dance a tango to “Only Girl (In the World)” by Rihanna. In her introductory brief before the performance, she appears to be suffering from neck pain, so staying in frame may be difficult. She definitely seems a little stiff, but otherwise she gets by. “Maura, another great performance,” Carrie Ann tells her but reminds her that her movement needs to be more “punctuated” on the Latin dances. SCORE: 33 of 40
Savannah Bananas midfielder Jackson Olson with Emma Slater. The duo has been in the bottom two for the past two weeks, and Olson also has to prepare for the Banana Bowl (which took place this weekend), so who’s to say what he’ll do with a salsa to “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars. I’m not sure how much salsa was in the final product, but they certainly brought energy. “I think that was your best dance,” Derek said. “It just felt like you really committed and owned that floor.” SCORE: 31 of 40
Olympian Amber Glenn with Pasha Pashkov. They received great feedback on their rumba last week, but they weren’t too happy about dropping down the rankings. Their topsy-turvy split is also making the rounds on social media, so they’re excited to get back on the dance floor and raise the bar. This week, they launch into a samba to “Mi Gente” by J Balvin & Willy William. “She knows how to get the party started!” » said Bruno, pointing out that she is finally performing more in the dance style, as the judges have been asking her to do for the past few weeks. SCORE: 34 of 40
Reality TV star Tyler Cameron with Sharna Burgess. These two gave the judges their “breakthrough dance” of the season last week, and now it’s Cameron’s time to shine as a former football player. He performs a jazzy take on “The Time (Dirty Bit)” by the Black Eyed Peas, and Burgess really focuses on his balance (which is pretty non-existent). The song was perfect for him, since the judges had already compared him to Patrick Swayze, and yes, they hit it…obviously. “Tyler, I like it when you go dirty dancing!” » said Bruno, also complimenting his improvement in his timing and form. SCORE: 30 out of 40
Comedian and podcaster Connor Wood with Rylee Arnold. Their scores were down slightly last week, so this is another chance for Wood to prove he’s got some hip action in him with a samba to Shakira ft.’s “Hips Don’t Lie.” Wyclef Jean. And you know what? Those hips were doing something! “You really didn’t have the right hip-to-foot action for samba,” Bruno told him. It’s hard to say how his sins were worse than those of other men before him, whose footwork may also have required some finesse, but hey! SCORE: 25 out of 30
Actress Julia Stiles with Ezra Sosa. This movie star also had a breakthrough last week, and she really seems to be enjoying the experience now that she’s let loose a little. Nowhere to go but from here! Stiles says she channels the queen herself with some jazz on “Jenny From the Block” (Track Masters Remix) by Jennifer Lopez ft. Jadakiss & Styles P, who also presented a tribute to his film Save the Last Dance just ahead of his co-star Sean Patrick Thomas. “I know it’s not the right movie, but I think we’ve just been served!” Carrie Ann screams. SCORE: 33 of 40
Actress Tatiana Ali with Jan Ravnik. THE Fresh Prince The star was a little hurt by Carrie Ann’s 6 last week, so she really wants to improve this week. She and Ravnik dance a salsa to Kendrick Lamar’s “Squabble Up,” which is an interesting combination, and the judges unfairly hold it against them in the scoring. Derek and Carrie Ann say it was perhaps too casual for a salsa (maybe we should have given them a song above 100 bpm), but Joe Buck says it was his favorite of the night! “You got it,” Bruno assures her, but he wants her to go even further. SCORE: 29 of 40
Late Night Companion Guillermo Rodriguez with Whitney Carson. After once again getting the lowest scores of the week, Jimmy Kimmel’s right-hand man thinks maybe the judges were just having a bad day. Witney doesn’t think so, and she’s really perfecting her technique. She has her work cut out for her teaching him a salsa to Bad Bunny’s “Tití Me Preguntó,” but Guillermo is aiming for a 6, especially from Carrie Ann. “You took the note and you made it work!” » she told him. SCORE: 22 of 40
Actress Jenna Dewan with Val Chmerkovskiy. This week’s show will be all about passion, as these two dance a paso doble to Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance.” Dewan also turns The rookieso things get difficult as Val teaches him technique, even on set between takes. “Incandescent! Exciting from start to finish!” shouts Bruno. SCORE: 36 out of 40 (9 in a row!)
Actor Harry Shum Jr. with Jenna Johnson. THE Grey’s Anatomy The actor finally begins to feel like a leading man, and as he hits his flow, he performs a samba to “Yeah!” by Usher featuring Lil Jon and Ludacris. Shum Jr. got to see Usher’s halftime show live, so hopefully he can bring some of that same energy to the ballroom, but he’ll have to remember that this is a Latin dance and not a hip-hop routine. “If it was a halftime show, amazing. I loved every minute of it. But it’s a samba,” Carrie Ann said. “You need to put more content into your dances.” SCORE: 33 of 40
Paralympic athlete Ezra Frech with Daniella Karagach. Bringing up the rear this week, these two just received praise from the judges for their week 4 rumba. For Super Bowl night, they perform a salsa to Nelly’s “Hot in Herre.” Frech wants to bring a decade of missed parties back to the ballroom tonight. (he was training to get to the Paralympics, to be honest). “I really get lost in your performances,” says Derek, “A fantastic way to close the show.” SCORE: 36 out of 40 (another consecutive streak of 9!)
Who’s coming home?
In a move that distraught the public but should have been expected at some point, Guillermo and Witney were sent home Tuesday night. Next week is Dedication Night, where the remaining stars will pay tribute to someone or something special in their lives.
Gn entert
