SYTYCD Top 12!

Here's a recap and my review of So You Think You Can Dance Season 5's Top 12!

The top 12 dances are:
Kupono (Contemporary)

Jeanine (Contemporary)

Evan (Broadway)

Melissa (Ballet)

Phillip (Popping)

Janette (Salsa)

Ade (Contemporary)

Caitin (Contemporary)

Randi (Jazz)

Brandon (Contemporary)

Kayla (Jazz/Contemporary)

Jason (Contemporary)


Starting this week, each couple performs TWO difference dances in two different styles!

Sidenote: I do believe Cat Deeley, the wonderful host of SYTYCD USA, got a haircut! It looks really nice! :)

The first routine of the night was a disco choreographed by Doriana Sanchez and danced by Melissa and Ade!

This disco was actually really good! There was so much energy, and a bunch of really amazing lifts! Ade is so strong, my goodness! I think Ade did better than Melissa though, he was hitting harder and just seemed more confident in his movement then his partner. At first I wasn't a big fan of Melissa and Ade, but they're really growing on me! They keep doing well every week, always impressing the judges and the country! The judges loved this dance, as they always do with Melissa/Ade, haha.

The second dance of the night was a contemporary piece choreographed by Mia Michaels and danced by Kayla and Kupono. This dance is about addiction; Kayla is an addict and Kupono is her addiction. The clip beforehand showed Kupono speaking to the camera and saying that his family and a good friend of his have suffered from addiction, and he's having a hard time playing the character of addiction. The poor guy starts to cry, and I just felt like crying myself!

I FREAKING LOVED THIS DANCE! Oh wow. This was so powerful, so beautiful, so painful...
Kupono was AMAZING in this dance. Even though it was very tough for him to do this, he was brilliant and he kept his villainous attitude throughout every step of the dance. He's my new favourite dancer. From the first moment, when Kayla runs to him and he gets this smirk on his face, I fell in love. I got shivers when he was holding her and he rubbed his face along her side and her leg. His moves are murderous in a way; he continues to put his hands on her mouth, basically suffocating her which remains true to the feeling of suffocation that comes with such a strong addiction. I also loved when he threw her behind him, that was amazing! I honestly felt like I was going to start crying during this dance! It's my favourite dance this season. I wasn't happy with Kayla/Kupono being paired together but it's turning out to be REALLY wonderful!

The third dance of the night was a foxtrot danced by Caitlin and Jason!

Firstly, Caitlin's dress is beautiful! I loved her whole look tonight! This foxtrot was danced beautifully! The song was perfect for this type of dance; I really love all the trumpets and that old world class. The lifts were lovely, and they did a good job keeping their form. It was lovely to finally see Caitlin and Jason in a more formal, ballroom type of dance because they’ve been doing everything but since they began the show.

The fourth dance of the night was a Russian folk routine danced by Phillip and Jeanine! This is the first Russian folk dance done on the show, although last season Top 2 guys did a Russian dance.

This dance was very folk-like and not really something that I think will win over a lot of viewers. Phillip and Jeanine did very well in this dance, but the choreography itself wasn't the best and it wasn't really difficult enough. Nigel stated that he thought maybe they shouldn't have done that type of dance on the show because it resembled little kids dancing.

The fifth dance of the night was a hip-hop routine choreographed by Napoleon and Tabitha and danced by Randi and Evan!

I was really worried when I heard that this couple was doing a hip-hop dance because I just couldn't see Evan being gangsta, haha. But thankfully the story was about a happy couple who's in love and going to have a baby. The story was cute, and it really worked in favour of this couple. This dance was set to Halo by Beyonce, a really good song and it worked well with the idea of the dance: a couple who loves each other.
I actually liked this routine! Evan wasn’t as amazing as other guys could have been, simply because of his background, but I think he pulled it off! And Randi surprised me too, she did really well here. She was hitting hard and she was in character. They had a lot of chemistry here, and I think this was a really sweet story! When Evan proposed, and Randi sat on his knee, nodded and smiled, it melted my heart! Oh, how I wish she wasn’t married cause they would be such a cute couple! Evan’s a total cutiepie! The open-legged lift was really cool, as well as the sort of arm-tube thing! Good choreography Napoleon and Tabitha!

The sixth dance of the night was an Argentine Tango choreographed by [add names] and danced by Brandon and Janette!

Oh wow, that was great! The legwork, the lifts, the passion! So great! The judges gave them a STANDING OVATION for this piece! Nigel said that this was the best ballroom dance he's seen on this show! Mary put them on the Hot Tamale Train, of course! And then Tyce made some sort of analogy with orange juice...haha, I was a bit confused!


Now for the couples’ second routines of the night! Two routines, two different styles in one night, these dancers don’t have it easy! Tonight is the last night that the dancers will stay in their respective couples (Melissa/Ade; Caitlin/Jason; Kupono/Kayla; Brandon/Janette; Randi/Evan and Phillip/Jeanine) because next week they’ll begin to move around to work with different partners. So tonight each dancer was asked what they would miss most about their partners.

Melissa and Ade’s second dance of the night was a waltz to the song ‘Natural Woman’.
Melissa said that she would miss everything about Ade. She said that he’s been great and she loves him (platonically, she is married).
Ade said that he loved getting to know her, and he's going to really miss dancing with her.

This dance was beautiful, and they had really beautiful lifts but this couple has been doing almost too many ballroom dances that this has become forgettable. I don’t think this will be a favourite for anyone, really. I think that had they gotten something more edgy, it would have been better. However, it’s not their fault. But personally I’m getting tired of this couple always doing such classical dances.

Kayla and Kupono’s second dance of the night was a Broadway routine choreographed by Joey Dowling.
Kayla said that she would miss Kupono's energy and his positivity
Kupono said that he would miss Kayla’s sweaty hands and feet; stating that her clammy hands were comforting to him. (A little odd, but isn’t that Kupono for you? Haha)
The idea of this dance is that Kayla and Kupono were kids on a rooftop who bump into each other and its love at first sight.

I thought they danced this routine very well. They were cute though, and they looked genuine when they looked into each other's eyes. I wasn’t very fond of the song choice; at some points it felt almost too...dark (or something) for this sort of idea. Although I enjoyed it, the judges weren’t all that fond of it. Nigel said it wasn’t really good enough, and Mary said she could see where Nigel was coming from but thought they danced it well, even calling them “a force to be reckoned with.”

Caitlin and Jason’s second dance was a lyrical jazz choreographed by Mandy Moore.
Caitlin said that she would miss Jason’s hugs and that he was always good at calming her down Jason said he would miss her quirkyness, her personality and her stupid jokes; she’s so full of life.

candj2 12 @ Yahoo! Video

I was not all that fond of it. It was good, but nothing really special, nothing memorable. I thought there was too much going on on the floor at the beginning, and it was a slow start. The judges were so-so about it. They seemed to agree with me: they liked the dance, but it was nothing spectacular; good but not memorable.

Phillip and Jeanine’s second dance was a jive choreographed by Tony Meredith and Melanie. The idea is a sailor who’s been off for a while and his wife teasing him.
Phillip said he would miss her uplifting spirit and her kooky personality; he stated that she stayed positive throughout the whole show.
Jeanine said she would miss his big heart. She stated that she’s been blessed to work with him, and they have lots of memories together.

Oh wow, this was a lot better than I was expecting! Jeanine was really fiery out there, and Phillip was doing really well! I loved Jeanine’s attitude, and she’s beginning to really shine! I liked the song to this routine too, it worked well with that 40’s style of dance. The judges were really impressed with their routine, saying that they didn’t think either of them would be leaving next week. Nigel said that he thought this was the best Phillip’s been out of his own style, and I have to agree with him. He’s really picking it up (finally). Mary put them on the Hot Tamale train for this routine, and I think I would have too!

Randi and Evan’s second dance was a samba choreographed by SYTYCD’s old contestants Pasha and Anya!
Randi said that she would miss this look that Evan gives her when he’s acting like he’s trying to get her.
Evan said he would miss getting to laugh in rehearsal, and he stated that they had a lot of fun together.

This danced started off so well even though I wasn’t fond of the song. The lifts were AMAZING and it really began with a bang! Unfortunately it was a bit downhill after that for me. Randi’s got this sexy attitude, but Evan’s more a sweetie, not really rough or aggressive enough to pull off a sultry samba. His dancing was well executed but his attitude just wasn’t right. Nigel said that it just wasn’t hot enough, and Mary agreed saying that it was a great routine but it wasn’t really dynamic enough and they needed to go that extra mile and find the fire.

Brandon and Janette’s second dance was a pop jazz piece about two thieves, one calculating and one crazy, choreographed by Wade Robson.
Brandon said that Janette really brought him outta his shell by just being around her positivity, her spicyness.
Janette said she was nervous about losing him, stating that she doesn’t know if anyone can live up to him.

When this dance first started, all I could think was: Willy Wonka. The outfits were just weird, and I wasn’t really feeling it. But then once the dance really began, it was really great! They had really amazing technique, and they were in character the whole way through. The judges were in love with this routine. Nigel said that he would be shocked if they don’t get the most votes while Mary screamed that they kept the best of last! Although I wouldn’t go that far, I did enjoy this dance even though I thought it could have ended a bit stronger.

Well that’s a wrap! I hope you enjoyed the dances as much as I did!
Tomorrow night is the elimination night, which means one guy and one girl will be going home. I predict that the bottom 3 couples will be Randi and Evan, Caitlin and Jason and lastly Phillip and Jeanine. I’m really unsure about who will leave tomorrow, but I don’t think things are looking too good for Evan. Any way it goes tomorrow, I’m certain a little piece of my heart will break! If you have any comments about the dances, feel free to leave a comment on this post. I would love to hear other people’s opinions!