DWTS - Week 9

Highlights from this week:

- Loved the Aladdin inspired quickstep by Shawn and Mark
- Got a kick out of hearing Cheryl tell Gilles he looked like a monster when he was practicing his sexy facial and body expressions for the rumba. I think less is more for him. He's already really hot, so he doesn't need to put so much effort into being sexy
- Also thought Cheryl was smart to take Gilles to a professional ballroom championship. Actors are really good at mimicking a look even if they can't actually do it. I've mentioned Ginger Roger's dance skills being enhanced by her acting. Here's another quote about her from wikipedia:

According to Astaire, "Ginger had never danced with a partner before. She faked it an awful lot. She couldn't tap and she couldn't do this and that ... but Ginger had style and talent and improved as she went along. She got so that after a while everyone else who danced with me looked wrong."

- Melissa and Tony's Samba: excellent
- When Ty heard that both he and Gilles were doing the rumba, he said: Well, we're right in his wheelhouse. Which, after The Serene One explained what a wheelhouse was, I thought was funny and true. Nevertheless, I loved his rumba. He just put it all out there. Radiating complete sincerity and earnestness. So different from the first week when he said that all he could think of was his buddies making fun of him. Sucker that I am, I voted for him.

Which leads us to the results...

SPOILERS

I was really surprised that Ty survived another week. Lil Kim is definitely head and shoulders above him in dance skill. And yet, as I was writing this recap--I couldn't remember anything really notable about either of her dances. So, although he's not bringing the highest dance skills, Ty is really engaging the audience. He's just so likeable.

Tom Bergeron was his usual excellent self in the last few minutes of the show when he told Lil Kim that everyone was truly, truly shocked about the results. He tells it like it is and I find value in his ability to express what everyone is feeling. He's good in a crisis (a la Marie Osmond's fainting spell) and has the best one-liner comebacks. I just found out he has written a book called "I'm Hosting As Fast As I Can!: Zen and the Art of Staying Sane in Hollywood." Tempting.

SPOILERS