DWTS Elimination: Ryan & Cheryl– Season 23, Week 08

Ryan Lochte and Cheryl Burke ELIMINATED

on Dancing with the Stars

Ryan & Cheryl
Eliminated
DWTS Season 23, Week 08

So, Olympic Gold Medal-winning Swimmer, Ryan Lochte, was officially flushed out for Week 08 of the Show, marking the 7^th  unfortunate Celeb to have finished last among his fellow Season 23 Competition.

And more’s the pity, too, since anyone with sense knows it was Actress, Marilu Henner’s, turn to go next!

That said, it simply cannot be denied that poor Ryan was going eventually … and soon!

(It’s still a major bummer, though!  We seemed to have arrived at that always dreaded point of the Competition where each and every future cut from the Show’s remaining Cast will hurt!  … REALLY hurt!! 

  … With the one exception of Marilu, of course!)

Upon leaving the Show’s Glitter Dome amid – Well deserved! – rousing cheers and a standing ovation for the man who has brought home gold and an honoring distinction for this Country from abroad, Ryan states,

“… this [DWTS] family, like, I love it!  I’m sad I’m going home – everyone here has touched me in a special place.  I’ll always remember that!”

Dance-off Challenge – Review of DWTS Season 23, Week 08

DWTS Season 23, Week 08 REVIEW:  Dance-off Challenge

Going Head-to-Head (and of course, Feet-to-Feet!) on Dancing with the Stars’ Ballroom Dance Floor on Monday Night, 6 Couples took center stage in three, separate, all-out and daring Dance-off Battles!

Laurie & Val vs. Calvin & Lindsay:

Alright, now, this is hardly fair, you guys!  I mean, How on earth do you choose?!  Both of these Couples were so BRILLIANT!!

So, you’ve got Calvin, whose hep-to-the-Jivin' skills are always sure to THRILL, and whose lightness of feet (despite his height) is quite literally mind-blowing to behold!!

Calvin & Lindsay

DWTS Season 23, Week 08

Dance-off Round

And then, of course, you have Laurie, who is … Well, LAURIE!!  (Seriously, in her case, I’m pretty sure at this point that that name is a synonym for Amazing Excellence and Precise Perfection!)

Laurie & Val

DWTS Season 23, Week 08

Dance-off Round

In the end, how do you choose?

Laurie & Val

DWTS Season 23, Week 08

Dance-off Round

Well, America at large and the Ballroom’s Judges chose Laurie & Val; but, I gotta be honest, I’m STILL on the fence about it!

<Ahhhhhh!!>So great!!

See video below to watch Calvin & Lindsay's and Laurie & Val's Jive Dance-off on Week 08 of DWTS, courtesy of Dancing With The Stars' great YouTube channel!

Jana & Gleb vs. Terra & Sasha:

Another close one!

Terra’s Dancing, although fun overall and crazy energetic, lacked some Content and Technical Execution.

Terra & Sasha

DWTS Season 23, Week 08

Dance-off Round

Still, it was a great ride while it lasted!

Meanwhile, on the half of the Ballroom’s Dance Floor, Jana’s Latin exhibition was notably cleaner and Technically more precise …

Jana & Gleb

DWTS Season 23, Week 08

Dance-off Round

Although for some reason, it lacked that initial excitement that Terra & Sasha’s brought right away.

Also, Jana & Gleb’s Salsa was much more passionate than Terra's; but, Team XL brought the party!

All in all, I loved BOTH, though I was content in the end to see that DWTS Judge, Carrie Ann Inaba, chose Terra & Sasha, while Judges, Julianne Hough and Bruno Tonioli, as well as a slightly greater percentage of America chose Jana & Gleb!

See video below to watch Terra & Sasha's and Jana & Gleb's Salsa Dance-off on Week 08 of DWTS, courtesy of Dancing With The Stars' great YouTube channel!

Marilu & Derek vs. Ryan & Cheryl:

No contest!

Ryan & Cheryl won this one … hands down!

Sloppy, erratic, and yet still somehow stiff, Marilu’s Cha-Cha left about a gazillion things to be desired!!

Marilu & Derek

DWTS Season 23, Week 08

Dance-off Round

… And how!

Having a far better time of it, although still falling short of anything excellent, Ryan’s Cha-Cha was much more erotic and generally fluid … Not to mention, it included that all important characteristic of NOT making its audiences a great deal uncomfortable while viewing it!

Ryan & Cheryl

DWTS Season 23, Week 08

Dance-off Round

(An amazing TWO rounds of Dancing tonight, Lochte, your persistence has FINALLY paid off!!)

I must say I was a little surprised to see that Bruno Tonioli had chosen Marilu & Derek to win this one (but equally glad for poor Derek’s sake!).

I much more agreed with Judges Julianne Hough and Carrie Ann Inaba’s decisions to go with Ryan, as well as that of America’s!

See video below to watch Marilu & Derek's and Ryan & Cheryl's Cha-cha Dance-off on Week 08 of DWTS, courtesy of Dancing With The Stars' great YouTube channel!

Ryan & Cheryl – Review of DWTS Season 23, Week 08

DWTS Season 23, Week 08 REVIEW:  Ryan & Cheryl

Presenting their Week 08 Routine, Ryan Lochte and his Pro Partner, Cheryl Burke, danced a Tango to “Howlin’ For You” by The Black Keys.

Ryan & Cheryl 

DWTS Season 23, Week 08

World, meet Ryan, 6-time Olympic Gold Medal-winning Swimmer and Dancing Extraordinaire!

Seriously, now, what happened to Lochte, ‘cuz that Tango was BRILLIANT!!

Ryan & Cheryl 

DWTS Season 23, Week 08

Tenacious, Strong, and (get ready, here of comes!) PASSIONATELY executed, this Dance served as Ryan’s unequivocal, all-time BEST Performance; and, was furthermore, so very worth the waiting!

Well done, Lochte, you did it!  And the result was fine indeed!!


See videos below to watch Ryan & Cheryl's Tango on Week 08 of DWTS, courtesy of Dancing With The Stars' great YouTube channel!

Team Dances – Review of DWTS Season 23, Week 07

DWTS Season 23, Week 07 REVIEW:  Team Dances

Well!  I do believe it’s clear who won this particular Seasonal bout!

Team Past (James & Sharna, Ryan & Cheryl, Calvin & Lindsay, and Maureen & Artem):

Team Past

DWTS Season 23, Week 07

Beautiful, Graceful, Sweeping, Emoting, Sweet, Elegant, Lush, Enchanting, Engrossing, Exquisite, Haunting, and Romantic, I really don’t think there’s enough pleasing pronouns within the English Language to wholly capture just how Marvelous this Performance actually was!!  (Oh, snap!  You see?  There was another one!)

Team Past

DWTS Season 23, Week 07

A Team Dance Perfection personified – complete with a TERRIFIC Song Choice and every Couple so wonderfully in sync! - I’ve really only one complaint concerning the whole of what was truly a most delighting affair:

Team Past

DWTS Season 23, Week 07

Where were those two other “10”s, and what on earth do you even have them for, DWTS Judges, if not to whip them out on such a deserving time as this?!!

Team Future (Laurie & Val, Marilu & Derek, Jana & Gleb, and Terra & Sasha):

Team Future
DWTS Season 23, Week 07

Mmmm, not quite as epic, I’m afraid!

(Although the Choreography was brilliant!!  I especially enjoyed that ingenious opener that involved Terra!  TERRIFIC!!)

Team Future
DWTS Season 23, Week 07

… Not quite as in sync either!

(It greatly pains me to say it, but it is true!)

And, oh, yes, there was one disastrous screw-up, er, fall by Marilu (Why am I not surprised?)!

... … <Exhaling thoughtfully> Hm.  How’d they get “9”s again??

See videos below to watch both Team Dances on Week 07 of DWTS, courtesy of Dancing With The Stars' great YouTube channel!

Ryan & Cheryl – Review of DWTS Season 23, Week 07

DWTS Season 23,

Week 07 REVIEW:

Ryan & Cheryl

Dancing a Rumba to “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” by Aerosmith, Ryan Lochte and his Professional Partner,  Cheryl Burke, performed their Week 07 Routine.

Ryan & Cheryl

DWTS Season 23, Week 07

Okay, okay, so I’ll give it to Ryan, that Rumba wasn’t half as bad as one might have suspected of this particular Season 23 Competitor; still, it cannot be said that it was at all “great”, either!

First off, HOW ABOUT A LITTLE  MORE PASSION OUT THERE NEXT TIME; OKAY, RYAN??

Ryan & Cheryl

DWTS Season 23, Week 07

The Steps are there, the proper Technical Execution is there – more or less! – the likability is most definitely there;  now all we are missing is that ATTACK, those serious Ballroom and Latin “feels”, if you will!

Lastly, I didn’t care for the speed of this Dance (which flaw, I know, lies with Cheryl.).

Call me picky if you will; but, I've always preferred a good ol' slow and emoting Rumba!  (Save all those fast and hurried Steps for a nice Cha-Cha or something, you know??)

Ryan & Cheryl

DWTS Season 23, Week 07

Everybody knows that proper Romance should never be rushed!

See video below to watch Ryan & Cheryl's Rumba on Week 07 of DWTS, courtesy of Dancing With The Stars' great YouTube channel!

DWTS S-23 Week 07: By The Numbers

DWTS – Season 23, Week 07

SCORES:

The DWTS Judges give their scores

Marilu & Derek

Charleston

"Never Forget You" by 
Postmodern Jukebox feat. Addie Hamilton

29 (7,7,8,7)

James & Sharna

Jitterbug

"In The Mood" by Glenn Miller

36 (9,9,9,9)

Laurie & Val

Quickstep

"One Fine Day" by The Chiffons

34 (8,8,9,9)

Calvin & Lindsay

Jive

"Good Golly, Miss Molly"
by Little Richard

36 (9,9,9,9)

Jana & Gleb

Samba

"Get Down Tonight"
by KC and the Sunshine Band

34 (8,8,9,9)

Ryan & Cheryl

Rumba

"I Don't Want to Miss a Thing"

by Aerosmith

28 (7,7,7,7)

Terra & Sasha

Foxtrot

"Cheek to Cheek" by 
Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong

34 (9,8,9,8)

Maureen & Artem

Tango 

"You Give Love a Bad Name" 
by Bon Jovi

28 (7,7,7,7)

TEAM DANCES:

Team Past : 

Team members -

James & Sharna

Calvin & Lindsay

Maureen & Artem

Ryan & Cheryl

Freestyle

"The Skye Boat Song" 

by Raya Yarbrough

38 (10,9,9,10)

Team Future

Team members -

Marilu & Derek

Terra & Sasha

Laurie & Val

Jana & Gleb

Freestyle
"Embrace" by Armin van Buuren
feat. Eric Vloeimans

35 (8,9,9,9)

Ryan & Cheryl – Review of DWTS Season 23, Week 06

DWTS Season 23,

Week 06 REVIEW:

Ryan & Cheryl

Ryan & Cheryl

DWTS Season 23, Week 06

Dancing a Salsa (of sorts!) to “La Negra Teine Tumbao” by Celia Cruz, Ryan Lochte and his Professional Dancing Partner, Cheryl Burke, opened up Latin Night for Week 06 of Dancing with the Stars.

Ugh! <Banging head on keyboard> Lousy, lousy, lousy!

Why, Ryan, why??

Why do you persist with the Week-to-Week Lazy Executions???

Ryan & Cheryl

DWTS Season 23, Week 06

Dance-wise (And all-around Nice and Enjoyable Guy on the Show-wise!) you’re still holding your own within this Competition; but, you’ll never make it all the way if you don’t just start throwing yourself full-force into these Routines!

And why, Cheryl??

Why all the less-than-memorable Choreography Steps and Freaking silly-looking, costumed knee-pads??!!

Ryan & Cheryl

DWTS Season 23, Week 06

(Although your outfit was kicking it; and, the overall Black Light Effect was cool!)

Surely you can see, along with the rest of us, that Ryan is capable of so much more than that!  … And it nearly goes without saying that you are as well!!

These minor complaints having been made, there is always next Week, so get in there, you two, and start fulfilling that fabulous dancing potential!

See video below to watch Ryan & Cheryl's Salsa on Week 06 of DWTS, courtesy of Dancing With The Stars' great YouTube channel!