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It sounds like *gasp* KATHRYN is now the favorite? Two fodder contemp girls winning a row? <3. Really she got the ideal order: 1st, 7th, and then last. Two standing O's and also no solos which is good for her because solos always give the judges a chance to individually pimp certain contestants out.

I bet they'll saying something along the lines of "Russell we expected you to be great, but Kathryn you weren't expected to be and you were amazing!"

I would probably say that Kathryn would lose to the guy she had the great routine with but the fact that was was with two great routines she may have the edge to win it.

More detailed recap from TWOP:

I guess I can't be 100% sure there aren't solos/videos, but I'm going to assume if there were supposed to be, they would have either done them or at least mentioned them. Each segment that was taped had Cat introing the dance and going directly to the routine. I'm going to assume that means no video. As for solos, I can't see why they wouldn't have filmed them last night in front of the audience...I think they may be taping some bits for the results show without an audience for camera angles, but something like a solo wouldn't be secretly taped, right? Anyway, I just can't imagine how they'd fit it into the show if they did it separate. The night is incredibly full as is!

As for Ellenore, I agree she got a bad draw (ending her dances before the last trio of routines) -- I think she actually made a great impression with her dancing and the judges were all loving her...unfortunately her work doesn't really stick around given the high caliber/emotion/power of the last 3 pieces.

Anyway, here are some extended thoughts on each dance (broken into 2 posts for length):

Dance #1 - Kathryn/Ryan - Samba
Choreographed by Jason Gilkison. Ryan was incredibly strong and in his element and Kathryn was keeping up nicely. Probably helped that they had a fabulous cha cha together last week and were able to keep the chemistry going into this week. Ended with Kathryn doing a crazy split over Ryan's head and onto his back (Jason Gilkison really knows how to end a dance!). Judges all loved it to bits. It wasn't the best of the night but it showed off both dancers quite well. Good first impression!

Dance #2 - Ellenore/Jakob - Broadway
Choreographed by Tyce Diorio. Ellenore played the sexy vixen type and between her and Jakob their legs were going crazyyy :p. Not sure if I would personally consider it amazing (I don't usually like his choreo and have much preferred the stuff done by Spencer Liff this season) but I guess I give Tyce credit for creating something not boring? It felt much more dynamic than his stuff usually is. That may have been helped greatly by Ellenore and Jakob's mad skills. BTW, music came from Fosse, I think something by Liza. Judges gave Tyce a tongue bathing and generally positive feedback to Jakob and Ellenore both. Praised Ellenore for breaking out of her quirky box (by embodying a sexy character I guess?) and they loved that it generally kept both dancers true to their style.

Dance #3 - Ashleigh/Russell - Lyrical Jazz
Choreographed by Sonya. The song was a very pretty number w/ lots of syncopated beats, with allowed for lyrical flow and Sonya's jerky signature movements. This was pretty much a showcase for Russell. Granted the choreo didn't give much for Ashleigh to do but man, Russell was flying, leaping, and spinning all across the stage. And very convincingly. Ash was mainly floating around prettily and helping Russell transition between moves...there were some lovely moments where she assisted him into a leap or spin. According to the judges she was supposed to be an angel or something watching over Russell so that kind of makes sense. The judges LOVED Russell and couldn't stop praising his versatility and talent, lots of comments on how much of an inspiration he is. Nigel said he couldn't critique Ashleigh because he was so drawn to Russell instead. Mary and Adam still gave her credit for blending in so seamlessly with the dance and playing her part well.

Dance #4 - Ellenore/Ryan - Jazz
Choreographed by Garry Stewart. Had a very techno, robotic feel, though I guess that's the choreographer's style. Had similar elements to Legacy/Ash contemp though it felt L/A had to jump and move around much more. Transitions looked much easier here though there were still some nice dynamic moments. Probably the only dance that has less than effusive comments from the judges but overall it was danced well. Nigel said he had a hard time watching b/c without the emotion, it became a very technical dance and he was very picky about the movement choices. Mary liked it b/c it was different and Adam gave a very middle of the road, good job! type of evaluation. But for me, knowing the style of the choreographer, I didn't expect it to be anything different from what I saw and the dancers did well with what they were given. Unfortunately since every other dance either emotional or powerpacked, so this one did stick out as a weak point in the night.

Dance #5 - Ashleigh/Jakob - Foxtrot
Choreographed by Jean Marc Generaux. Very beautiful, flowy (and according to Adam, jazzy) foxtrot and lovely seeing Jakob and Ashleigh paired together again! Ash was beautiful in this and you could tell she enjoyed both dancing with her old partner and having something in her wheelhouse. Jakob looked great as usual and was a strong partner, particularly in the lift sequences. Overall it looked effortless! And of course the choreography managed to sneak in a tour jete for Jakob, which Nigel nitpicked on during judging :p. Generally the judges really enjoyed it and gave Ashleigh the props they didn't really give her for her first dance. They also acknowledged that Jakob has been an exceptionally strong and unselfish partner this season.

Dance #6 - Ellenore/Russell - Paso Doble
Choreographed by Jason Gilkison. Very dramatic opening with Ellenore dancing in the dark against a red, backlit background. She looked super fabulous in a Spanish inspired costume and performed with all the sexiness required for her role. Russell was equally impressive and exuded the manliness and strength needed for paso. While all three ballroom pieces were excellent (no duds tonight!), the paso was probably the most exciting and impressive given that the other two had the benefit of a ballroom expert. Judging was mostly positive again -- Mary acknowledged that while Russell was still lacking somewhat in proper technique, he more than made up for it in performance. I think this was also the dance where they say Ellenore had never looked better in her dancing. Nigel pointed out that it didn't quite surpass Brandon/Jeanine's paso from last season's finale (as the camera pans over to Brandon in the audience) but he pretty much says this competition is down to either Russell or Jakob.

Dance #7 - Kathryn/Jakob - Contemporary
Choreographed by Desmond and Dwight. Okay, this is my opinion and I've stated it before, but I truly believe this was HANDS DOWN the BEST dance of the night, if not the best of the season (okay, that may be a bit hyperbolic :p). The song was very familiar but I have no idea what the name is or who sings it...it was a very smooth, soulful song, somewhat in the vein of Al Green's "How Do You Mend A Broken Heart" (NOT that song, just had a similar vibe!). The dance itself looked very powerful and seemed to require a lot of strength/athleticism from J/K but still was oh SO sensual...the chemistry was on fire. There were some crazy moves like Jakob going from a handstand and straight into a split and a lovely moment in the song where there's a brief pause and both J/K freeze in the middle of their movement...just showed how connected they were in this dance. Judges AND audience gave them a standing O. Mary and Adam were both reduced to tears and Nigel had to do most of the talking. Adam said this dance was pretty much a show stopper and how honored he was to watch them. The dance is kind of a blur in my head now, so I totally need to review it again on Tuesday but all I can say was it gave me chills and took my breath away live. Really hoping it comes off the same on screen!

Dance #8 - Ashleigh/Ryan - Contemporary
Choreographed by Travis Wall. J/K's contemp was seriously a tough act to follow but A/R were just so absolutely sweet in this. It was a very pretty piece, definitely the opposite from last week and not even emo like his other pieces :p. Really drew a lot from A/R's relationship -- very tender and showed a lot of strength and trust, particularly evidenced by a move where Ashleigh throws her body back blind towards Ryan across the stage and he catches her in mid air. Compared to the other pieces tonight was it a memorable finale piece? When judging only the dancing, probably not. But the emotion A/R brought to this was very moving and thus helped it hold its own somewhat after J/K's routine. R and A were both in tears when they finished the dance and you could see how much it meant for them to be there together, sharing that moment. Adam asked them how they felt doing this and while it was difficult for them to get words out, they summed it up as pretty much a perfect ending to their journey together. I know some people are very suspicious by shows of emotion by contestants but this was very genuine...and speaking as someone who's married, I can definitely understand why they would be emotional and how important and wonderful this was for them. The judging pretty much focused on how nice it was for them to do this together rather than the actual dancing, and of course a mini-tongue bath from Nigel about Travis, but I think at this point everyone could tell they were not threats to Jakob, Russell or Kathryn.

Dance #9 - Kathryn/Russell - Hip Hop
Choreographed by Nappytabs, who looked a little nervous for the judging but this was probably NT at their best :). And like I said before, it wasn't even lyrical! I'm pretty convinced Kathryn is the only girl in the competition who could have pulled this off and kept up with Russell. She was hitting it hard and looking FIERCE. Russell, as expected, was dancing the hell out of this -- down and dirty and super strong. There were some great partnered moments like when Kathryn flips onto Russell's shoulders and they dance in sync while she sits on top. They bought so much energy to the table and it was probably the best one to end the night! Judges were madly in love with this and couldn't get over how well they did together. They were also impressed with how R and K managed to end on such a high note, given the dances they had to do earlier in the night.

Side note: I have a soft spot for the SYTYCD downtrodden (I admit I was one of those people actually moved by Nigel's venom last season to vote for Evan) but I don't think Ryan or Ashleigh were unfairly judged tonight. Their dancing, while still strong, was just not at the same level as the rest of the group. Because of this, I believe they will be gracefully voted out at 5 and 6 like they deserve. Nigel acknowledged that they both proved their place in the top 6 and I thought the last contemp was a good way for them to end a competition. I think Jakob, Russell, and Kathryn just had SUCH strong showings that it's truly impossible to ignore. Some people might argue Mollee got kicked off when she was dancing at her strongest but she also had the disadvantage of a lot of people not believing she was ready for the show/finale. I think most people agree J/K/R deserve to be here.


My own opinion (swims):

So it sounds like Ellenore/Ryan/Ashleigh btm 3 and out (Ashleigh will probably finish the highest out of them) and then it's anyone's game with the edge going to Kathryn? because she danced in the two highest hyped routines of the night.

We'll see how moving the Jakob/Kathryn routine is because the cancer dance saved Melissa/Ade from the btm 2.

Yay for no same sex dances and yay for no solos.