Dancing With The Stars Week 8 Performances – And then there were Five

Editor: Please welcome back guest author Brittany who gamely stepped in last night when our normal reviewer went down with an illness.

And we are down to Five…..

It was a night of perfect scores for one celebrity….so who do you think had the flawless evening? Rob Kardashian, Hope Solo, Nancy Grace, Ricki Lake, or J.R. Martinez?

Rob Kardashian & Cheryl Burke kicked off the night with their Quickstep to “Take on Me” by Aha. Although Len didn’t have the best things to say about the routine in it’s entirety, he did applaud Rob and said it was his best dance so far—and he did even comment on his “booty shaking”…really Len? Carrie Ann enjoyed it…and Bruno said he gave his best dance..they received a 27 out of 30. They then drew “Maneater” for their Insta-Jive song. You could tell Rob was comfortable, which is sort of what you wouldn’t expect when you don’t have much time to prepare for a dance…..Len said they had a flawless performance, Bruno said it was a great job and Carrie Ann was impressed…..they received a 24 for the second dance, making it a combined total of 51 points out of 60.

Hope Solo & Maks started off their night with a little recap of their rehearsal week. Hope pretty much told Maks that she needed to feel more secure and that she wanted to see a less aggressive side of him…so what does he do? He took Hope to meet his family…in order for her to pretty much learn more about him. Everyone saw the improvement on the dance floor. Hope followed right in Rob’s footsteps, with Len saying it was her best dance yet. Carrie Ann wanted a hug, and Bruno….loved it! The newly synched pair scored a 27 from the judges for dance number one. For the Insta-Jive, Hope picked out “The Best Damn Thing”. Overall the pair did alright, they received a few criticisms from the judges…and overall received a 25 out of 30. Making it a 52 out of 60 for the night.

Next up were Ricki Lake and Derek Hough. If you remember last week, the judges critiqued Ricki for her shoulder movements….it really paid off! Her Waltz to “Natural Woman” was beautiful. You would have thought she was dancing forever! Carrie Ann though, being the critic she is…pointed out her shoulder issues. Len however said it was beautiful…but she would never get a 10 unless she worked on her footwork. The upset Ricki apologized for not doing the “best she could have.” Ricki and Derek received a 28 out of 30 for their first dance. *Bruno gave them a 10!* Then it came time for the Insta-Jive….Ricki picked out “Land of 1,000 Dances”. The dance didn’t go over with the judges so well…and they received a 24 out of 30..making it a 52 out of 60 for the evening.

Nancy Grace and Tristan were determined to make a comeback after last weeks performance. They started off the show with a Tango. Len said it was okay, better than last week…Bruno enjoyed it, and Carrie Anne called it clean and sharp. They ended up with a total for 24. Then it was time for their Insta-Jive to “Upside Down”. I felt so bad for Nancy, because I really wanted her to do well…she is a new mom, busy working woman…but she just couldn’t pull this off. I had to laugh at Len because he called her the Cinderella of the show….but it had hit midnight and it was time for her to go home…really Len? That’s a little harsh! Bruno said that it was too slow…and Carrie Ann didn’t like it. The pair only received 20 points out of 30…making their total, 44 out of 60 for the night.

And last but not least– J.R. Martinez & his partner Karina. Now I told you in the beginning that there was a perfect score…so here we go! J.R. waltzed his way to a perfect 30 for his first dance. Bruno said the War Vet/All My Children star, that he danced “like a musical Valentines Day Card”. As if one perfect score wasn’t enough, J.R. came back and did the Jive to Little Richard’s “Tutti Frutti”. You would have thought that Little Richard himself was out there playing, the crowd cheered so loud! Overall- J.R. and Karina had a fantastic evening on the dance floor. Both times the pair received perfect 30’s….making their total 60 out of 60!

So here’s how the leaderboard looks. First we have J.R. & Karina, then a tie for second between Hope & Maks, and Ricki & Derek. Coming in fourth we have Rob & Cheryl…and then bringing up the bottom of the leaderboard is Nancy & Tristan.

Stay tuned for tomorrow nights results show where one celebrity be sent packing and won’t have a chance to dance again!

I’ll be doing the recap tomorrow night too…my guess is going to be Nancy & Rob in the bottom two…with Nancy going home. Who gets your vote to go home?

When she’s not doing the Tennessee Waltz, you can follow Brittany at at @EnchantedEscape!