Dancing with the Stars: Week 8 Results!

Once upon a time,

There were five dancing doubles

Four pairs would dance on

And one was in trouble.

 Would it be Niecy and Louis,

Or maybe Maks and Erin,

But the real question on our minds:

What on earth is Brooke wearin’?

 Come along, faithful readers,

Tom, make us wait no more,

For it will take the entire hour

Before we know our top four.

You know what else says Final Four (besides bad poetry, of course)? College! Apparently, later in the show Purdue University will face off against UC San Diego in a ballroom showdown, making this probably the only college sport you will never see on ESPN2. (Is ballroom dancing a sport? Does the very nature of competition turn it into one? If we are to think of it as an art form, then how can one truly judge it? Save me from myself in the comments below.)

After Len recapped the highs and lows of last night, Derek and Nicole performed an encore performance of their 1950s-inspired paso doble. Len called it “the dance of all 10 seasons,” which is an exaggeration. It’s a fantastic routine, but it’s not better than the Julianne/Apolo samba or the Julianne/Helio quickstep or the Mel/Maks paso doble.

Well, here’s something fancy. The Gypsy Kings performed “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” from must-see summer movie Toy Story 3. This was accompanied by some fierce paso doble action from Tony, Cheryl, Dmitry, and Kym. Call me an easy target, but I love a little Disney with my Dancing with the Stars. And fun fact – Buzz and Jessie do a paso doble in TS3, and our friends Tony and Cheryl choreographed the routine and served as models for the animators.

YES! DANCECENTER TIME! I know this is a love-or-hate thing, but for my money, DanceCenter is the best thing about the DWTS results shows. Aside from the part where they announce my pick as the winner (I’m looking at you this season, Evan. Don’t let me down). Oh, Kenny Mayne, I adore you.

Finally, some results. Nicole and Derek were safe, to no one’s surprise. Chad and Cheryl were in the bottom two, to no one’s surprise.

Then it was time for the college ballroom dance competition. UC San Diego went first. From what I can tell, their entire team is made up of nerdy types who definitely take their craft much more seriously than my NYU ballroom dance team did. Yes, I was once a collegiate ballroom dancer for about three weeks, before I realized the team was made up of single girls who were just trying to find boyfriends. Once it became clear that NYU was not going to help me realize my dream of one day dancing with “stars” on national television, I quit.  But UC San Diego has its act together. The judges gave the team all 8’s, and apparently we can vote from home too. Team Purdue University went next – their team has officers, which makes them nerdier than the UC team of engineers. Meh. Does anyone really care about this college showdown? Bring back the little kids!

The Gypsy Kings came back to perform another ditty. This one was not from Toy Story 3, and so I zoned out. Sorry.

Then – yay – more DanceCenter! The highlight of this segment was Kenny pointing out that Erin is constantly calling Maks Russian, when he’s actually Ukrainian. I never noticed that before! Hilarious.

More results: Evan and Anna are safe, as were Erin and Maks. This meant Niecy and Louis joined Chad and Cheryl in the bottom two. Well done, America, for getting this right. Then, moment of truth: Niecy and Louis were sent home. Ah, well. She had a great run.

Chad. Evan. Nicole. Erin. Next week, it’s the semifinals. Hold onto your sparkly shoes, because things are about to get messy.

The Disney Chick writes DWTS-related poetry (for reals) and other silliness at www.thedisneychick.com.