So You Think You Can Dance – Season 10’s Top 20

There were a number of bold choices in episode 7 of SYTYCD. For the first time in the season we are thrown back into the studio and welcomed by the gorgeous Cat Deeley in a…….is it a very short dress……no, I don’t think that’s it……it is very shimmery…..yes, it must be a dress……oh……it’s shorts! Or to precise, thanks to Google, I now know that is a romper. A romper!! I kept watching, unable to tear my eyes away and I really wanted to hate it. Hate it with a passion! But the more I looked at it the more impressed I was with Cat for making it work for her. She looked stunning and I am now of the total belief that Cat could make a hessian sack look stylish.

Image credit: FOX

So that was episode 7. What were your thoughts?

……Only joking! Of course, I’m sure the top 20 was also announced.

In addition to being talented, professional and dedicated here are my thoughts on the dancers chosen:

 Fik-Shun Stegall (Hip Hop)

Image credit: FOX

What a smile! Fik-Shun has such an open and friendly face and demeanour that he is sure to be popular with the audience.

Mariah Spears (Hip Hop)

Image credit: FOX

Lots of spunk. Twitch is right when he says that there have not been many successful female hip hop artists on the show. Can Mariah change that pattern?

MaKenzie Dustman (Contemporary)

Image credit: FOX

Elegance and poise. MaKenzie has described herself as being unemotional at times. I only hope that that won’t stop her connecting with the audience.

Jasmine Harper (Contemporary)

Image credit: FOX

Full of personality and heart. We love Jasmine already, in part because of her connection to Cyrus.

Tucker Knox (Contemporary)

Image credit: FOX

Tucker has fought against the odds to return to his passion. How far will his determination take him?

Nico Greetham (Contemporary)

Image credit: FOX

Will the audience be as enthusiastic about Nico as his mum is?

Alexis Juliano (Tap)

Image credit: FOX

Brilliant personality and spunk. Love her!

Curtis Holland (Tap)

Image credit: FOX

Boyish enthusiasm and charm plus a heart full of emotion.

Aaron Turner (Tap)

Image credit: FOX

The fact that Aaron nearly missed out again is likely to make him even more determined. I believe he will bring maturity to the show.

Dorian BluPrint (Animation)

Image credit: FOX

A humble artist.

Jade Zuberi (Animation)

Image credit: FOX

Outstanding musicality.

Carlos Garland (Contemporary)

Image credit: FOX

Full of style, charisma and personality.

Hayley Erbert (Contemporary)

Image credit: FOX

Very humble and here’s hoping that a lack of self confidence doesn’t hold Hayley back.

Malece Miller (Contemporary)

Image credit: FOX

Malece so wants to make her mum proud of her and make all her sacrifices worth it. Will that help to keep her focused?

Brittany Cherry (Ballroom)

Image credit: FOX

A dark horse. We have not seen enough of Brittany yet.

Jenna Johnson (Ballroom)

Image credit: FOX

Jenna broke her family curse and is more than ready to prove herself.

Paul Karmiryan (Ballroom)

Image credit: FOX

Paul has already won SYTYCD Armenia. Can he do the same in America?

Alan Bersten (Ballroom)

Image credit: FOX

Will Alan be able to soar without his brother? I think he will.

Amy Yakima (Jazz)

Image credit: FOX

Amy has a beautiful smile and a light that shines out of her.

Jasmine Mason (Jazz)

Image credit: FOX

This is indeed Jasmine’s year and she is ready to embrace the experience wholeheartedly.

Time will tell how all the dancers will fare and who is able to connect with the audience. At this point in time my top 4 favourite guys are Fik_Shun, BluPrint, Carlos and Curtis and my favourite girls are MaKenzie, Alexis, Jenna and Amy.

Are you happy with the top 20? Who are your favourites so far?

Game of Thrones Season 3 – Life lessons learnt

[Please note there are spoilers for those who have not finished watching the third season of Game of Thrones]

1.   A woman scorned is a woman to be feared

The first woman who springs to mind is Ygritte (Rose Leslie). Many scorned women give empty threats, so isn’t it refreshing to witness one actually going through with it? After Jon Snow (Kit Harington) left her without a backwards glance she shot him with an arrow not once, but three times! I’m sure there were a few of us thinking…she won’t…I’m sure she won’t…and then looked on in awe as she showed the man she loved just how much his betrayal had hurt her.

Yet another scorned woman is Shae (Sibel Kekilli). Her capability for retribution is yet untested but she is keeping a more than passing interest on Sansa (Sophie Turner) and Tyrion’s (Peter Dinklage) bed linen. Watch this space…

Finally I must make mention of Daenerys (Emilia Clarke). Athough not scorned in the same way as Ygritte and Shae she is demeaned, insulted and degraded by the Slave Master, Kraznys Mo Nakloz (Dan Hildebrand) and then Mero (Mark Killeen), the Commander of the Second Sons. Each time she came out on top, first, with the help of her dragons and second, with the help of her beauty. Which sets up a smooth jump to my next life lesson..

Image credit: HBO

2.   Men will do anything for a beautiful woman

Daenerys is indeed a stunning woman and in season three we witness Daario Naharis (Ed Skrein) killing his two commanders and pledging his allegiance to Daenerys, pretty much because he has the hots for her. So far he seems sincere and if that is what does it for him, well Daenerys is one fortunate woman.

Another man who followed beauty was Robb Stark (Richard Madden). He inconveniently fell in love with the beautiful healer Talisa Maegyr (Oona Chaplin). It was one thing to fall in love, but when he married her he broke his promise to marry one of Walder Frey’s (David Bradley) daughters…and we all know how that ended.

3.   Weddings are not always happy occasions

The third season brought us two weddings and neither were particularly joyous affairs.

Watching Sansa marry Tyrion and at the same time continue to be tormented by Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) was one of the saddest and most uncomfortable scenes in the season. The only saving grace was when Tyrion choose not to force himself onto Sansa after the festivities.

While Sansa and Tyrion’s wedding was truly an awkward affair there was no body count. In comparison, the union of Edmure Tully (Tobias Menzies) and Roslin Frey (Alexandra Dowling), was merely background noise for the violent slaughter of Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley), Robb and the pregnant Talisa, not to mention the majority of the Stark party. If this is indeed the new trend in Westeros, I await in anticipation to see how Joffrey and Margaery Tyrell’s (Natalie Dormer) wedding will play out.

4.   Dragons cannot be bought

No, they really can’t. You can sell your secrets, you can sell your body, you can even sell your loyalties but you cannot sell your dragons. Dracaerys!

5.   Never assume that a foreigner doesn’t understand your language

That horrible feeling in the pit of your stomach when you realise that the woman you have been sexually insulting and humiliating for the last few days in your mother tongue has the same mother tongue. Once again – Dracaerys!

Image credit: HBO

6.   Beware of presents arriving in wooden boxes

A lesson to always read the card first…

7.   Just because things are really bad doesn’t mean they can’t get worse

If being tortured by an unknown assailant seems bad, it is, but don’t imagine that they can’t push it up a few notches. Loss of body parts seems to be a running theme…

8.   Don’t ever take on a bear with a wooden stick

This one is pretty unambiguous. Bears – huge, wooden sticks – limited. Try to avoid at all costs.

9.   Playing both sides can get you into a spiky situation

Sometimes it is just not worth trying to be everyone’s friend. Ros (Esmé Bianco), you had a sweet heart and I will miss you.

10.   Two hands are better than one

 Yes, Jaime, sadly they are.

11.   It’s never to late to learn how to read

Yeah, good on you, Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham), for having the humility to let Shireen (Kerry Ingram), the nine year old daughter of Stannis Baratheon (Stephen Dillane), teach you how to read. The best thing is that you were able to show off your new skill to Stannis. Oh, and that that was in the message helped to save your life.

12.   Never trust a religious fanatic

They might talk the talk and even have some seductive moves but before you know it you will be naked, tied up in bed and having leeches attached to various parts of your body.  It’s never worth it.

13.   It is unwise to marry your lover’s boss

Sounds pretty obvious doesn’t it? Let’s see how it works out for Tyrion shall we…?

Image credit: HBO

14.   Keep a track of where your weapons are at all times

In the worst-case scenario they can be used against you and in the best case they are used on someone else. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice…

15.   All knives are not created equal

A knife is a knife and then there is a knife made of dragon glass. It slices, it dices, it kills white walkers!

Did season 3 leave its mark on you? What lessons have you gained by watching Game of Thrones?

So You Think You Can Dance – 8 years on and I’m still watching

SYTYCD is on to its 10^th season which is a wonderful achievement. I have been watching from season 1 and although every time a new season starts it might take me a little while to tune in, once I do I inevitably become hooked. It’s not that I am a dancer or even inspire to be a dancer. What I am drawn into is watching talented and dedicated people doing what they love. Dance is a beautiful, creative art form and SYTYCD will always have thousands of young hopefuls wanting to audition. Of course there are the few who are a little deluded as to the extent of their ability but there are hundreds of breathtakingly excellent dancers who not only make you gasp in amazement but who can also bring you to tears. This season the performance which reduces me to sobs every time I watch is Hampton ‘Xcercist’ Williams, his partner Darlesha Goggans and their delightful 4 year old daughter Kira performing the ‘Xcercist’ dance. The only thing better than their audition is what the judges do afterwards.

The judges play a significant part in SYTYCD’s appeal. Nigel Lythgoe’s good humoured and mostly kind feedback sets the tone of the judging. It has taken me a while to warm to Mary Murphy and although her screaming still gets me at times I have come to accept that it is just her unique way of showing her appreciation for the dancers. Unlike other reality shows where the judges seem to derive some perverted satisfaction from humiliating the contestants, generally speaking SYTYCD’s judges are all hoping that the dancers will be able to rise to the challenge and live up to or even surpass the potential that they see in them. I must also make mention of the stunning, funny and compassionate host Cat Deeley who has been a constant since the first season. The show would not be the same and would lack warmth without Cat at the forefront, engaging with the audience, judges and always have a comforting and reassuring hug for the dancers.

Image credit: FOX

One of the joys of watching SYTYCD, which I believe the viewers share with the judges, is the new dance forms that are discovered during the audition process. While there will always be contemporary, jazz and ballroom, in the last few years we have seen the emergence of krump, locking and this year in particular, animation. The animation dancers in season 10 have blown me away with the amazing control they demonstrate over their bodies. The standout for me for pure animation is Dorian ‘BluPrint’ Hector. I was also blown away by Toshihiko Nakazawa who did a combination of hip hop, pop n’ lock, animation and breaking and Larry Booze whose amazing style is hard to define but which looks like pop n’ lock and animation.  The double edged sword is that while many of these dancers are astounding at what they do, they struggle with choreography and  therefore the chance that they reach the top 20 is unlikely. The obvious exception to that of course is season 9’s runner up, popper  Cyrus ‘Glitch’ Spencer whose popularity and hard work kept him in the competition until the very end.

Has every season been strong? I have to be honest and say no. Although the dancers have always been exceptional the format has sometimes lacked. The strength of the team behind SYTYCD is that they are not afraid to try these format changes but if they are not a success they are willing to take what is good, leave what didn’t work and move ahead. While I now appreciate and look forward to seeing the All-Stars as part of the course it took a couple of seasons of experimentation to work out the best way to utilise them.

Image credit: FOX

Vegas is coming up next and as in other years, it would not be a normal week without at least one dancer injuring themselves, fainting, vomiting or collapsing under the mental pressure. It is true that only the mentally and physically strong will survive and that even then there is no guarantee that the dancer will reach the top 20. While the judges and chorographers are rarely cruel they are tough but fair and have incredibly high standards they want met. It is a brutal process and it makes the actual show all that more impressive as the audience knows that the dancers that are left are truly the best of the pack. If the dancers we have seen so far are any indication to go on we are set for another ripper season!

Who have been your favourite dancers from the audition process so far?

A Place to Call Home – Australia’s Downton Abbey?

Based on 100% of responses from my last post (thanks Sharon!) I have stepped into the world of the new Australian drama A Place to Call Home. Although I don’t think stepped is the right word. Maybe leapt is a better description, as I have devoured all six episodes in less than 48 hours.

It has a strong Australian flavour and the country and landscape is almost its own character. On reflection, there is also something that feels very familiar. It took me a little while to put my finger on it and then I realised that it reminds me of another one of my favourite series, Downton Abbey. It is hardly a copy but there are parallels: a dominant matriarch, the formality of upper class society, family politics and questionable relationships.

Image credit: Channel 7

Marta Dusseldorp plays our heroine Sarah Adams and does so with dignity, control, professionalism and compassion. Sarah is not only defined by those characteristics though; she also comes with a mysterious past. Although we are still learning about her we almost immediately feel for her and are willingly drawn into her new world. I am sure I am not alone in developing a very soft spot for Frankie J. Holden’s beautifully caring and ocker Roy Briggs. Props go to the writers for creating a ‘true blue’ Aussie man without having to exaggerate him into a caricature.

Image credit: Channel 7

I believe this kind of mature character development will help A Place to Call Home weave itself into viewer’s hearts. As much as we may dislike the fabulous Noni Hazlehurst’s Elizabeth Bligh for her snobbiness and bias we cannot deny her loyalty to her family and a select group of friends. In fact, with the exception of Michael Sheasby’s abusive, insecure and violent Bert Ford, nearly all of the characters have a couple of redeeming qualities.

We are nearly half way through the first season and there has been measured plot and character reveals. Although I guessed what was tormenting James Bligh (played by David Berry) early on, I don’t believe it was meant to come as a great surprise to the viewer. I think it was more about watching how James’ wife Olivia Bligh (played by Arianwen Parkes-Lockwood) would react when she put the pieces together. It is powerful and heartbreaking to watch how Olivia’s usual dignity and restraint is tested to the limits as the full extent of James’ dishonesty comes to light.

The real love story of the series between Anna Bligh (Abby Earl) and her Italian sweetheart Gino Poletti (Aldo Mignone) is touching. As you cheer for the young lovers it doesn’t take much to imagine the challenges they are going to face once their relationship becomes public. Although there has only been hints so far, there is a love triangle just begging to happen between the handsome doctor Jack Duncan (Craig Hall), the equally attractive and wealthy George Bligh (Brett Climo) and our reserved leading lady, Sarah.

Image credit: Channel 7

A Place to Call Home’s creator is Bevan Lee, who has a host of successful Australian TV series under his belt. (Packed to the Rafters, City Homicide, Home and Away, Winners and Losers to name a few). Impressive story telling combined with a solid cast of talented newcomers and experienced performers could see A Place to Call Home becoming one of Australia’s most outstanding dramas to date. I for one will continue to tune in to find out more of Sarah’s past and her desires for the future, follow how the young lovers are faring and see if Elizabeth Bligh can hold on to her power stronghold or whether failing health and her nemesis will change Inverness forever…

Who is your favourite character in A Place to Call Home so far? 

Thanks for reading tvweakness so far…

16 posts and over 600 views! Thank you so much for taking the time to read tvweakness. I hope you have enjoyed reading it as much as I do writing it. I feel like I have only just started and have many more ideas in my head that I want to share with you.

In saying that I would like to know what you would like to read from me next. I have been tossing around posts for: Lost Girl, Switched at Birth, Homeland, Revenge and Suits. If you have a preference please leave me a comment and if there is an overriding preference that is what my next post will be on.

Also, in this period where many series have had their season finale I have been keeping my eyes out for shows that I am yet to discover. On my radar are: Arrow, Orphan Black, Boss and a local Aussie drama, A Place to Call Home. Do you have any recommendations for me? I promise to watch the first episode and let you know what I think. Maybe you can introduce me to a new show!

Thanks again for reading and please spread the word about tvweakness to anyone who shares our weakness for quality TV….