DANCING WITH THE STARS - Drama on the dance floor

Week Seven has been brutal. 

Each couple had to perform two numbers - a ballroom dance and a Latin dance.  Scores were low for just about everyone.  The judges were yelling at each other.  Len was in a mood, and the crowd revolted against him.  Thankfully nobody in the audience thought to bring rotten tomatoes to the show or things would have gotten ugly.  Kristi and Mark were knocked out of first place after receiving their lowest score yet - I knew that prop umbrella was a bad idea!  And to top it all off, disaster struck Cristian and Cheryl's samba in the most dramatic mishap yet.

Here's what happened:  After a graceful Viennese waltz that netted them 25 points, Cristian de la Fuente and Cheryl Burke danced a Samba for their second dance of the night.  Things started off great, lots of hip motion, very high energy... and then Cristian pulled a muscle in his arm.  At first it looked like he just messed up and missed a connection with Cheryl, but it quickly became obvious that something was wrong.  They ended up on the floor at the end of the routine:

(If you look carefully at the picture you'll notice somebody in the crowd who appears to be laughing.  That's cold!)

They cut to a commercial and put some ice on his arm and then took him to the hospital to get checked out.  The judges said they'd only judge their routine up until the point of the injury, but Cristian and Cheryl still ended up with a low 21 score.  I can't really blame the judges - it's not like they can give them nines and still remain fair to the other contestants.

Jason Taylor pulled past The Guchi for the first time this week with a fantastic quick step and an unusual paso doble set to the Monday Night Football theme music.  It sounds corny, but they actually pulled it off.  Kristi Yamaguchi and Mark Ballas were shoved down to second place - unjustly I thought.  Their cha-cha-cha was incredible, but Len docked them points because he didn't like the hip hop moves they did.  Oh, Len.  Don't ever change.

Here are this week's standings:

1. Jason Taylor and Edyta Sliwinska - 55 points
2. Kristi Yamaguchi and Mark Ballas - 54 points
3. Marissa Jaret Winokur and Tony Dovoloni - 52 points
4. Mario and Karina Smirnoff - 51 points
5. Shannon Elizabeth and Derek Hough - 51 points
6. Cristian de la Fuente and Cheryl Burke - 46 points

Tomorrow at 9PM we'll see who gets kicked off the show during the Results Show.  And dude - Def Leppard is playing!  Come on over and keep me company at the Dancing with the Stars Live Blog, where I blog in real time with no bathroom breaks or anything!  The blogging begins at 9 PM Eastern Time.

-Dave Campbell

Comments

[nolavoice]

Its time for no hips Shannon to go!!!! Yeah she moved them when she was planted in front of the judges, but when she was dancing it was painful to watch. Those kids can move their hips, so whats wrong with her? She has worn out her dancing shoes. Move along and give the people who have some skills a chance.

[Rob]

Yes Shannon needs to go, but as a Nurse know that if you wait on surgery for a torn tendon, the pain and healing process only gets WORSE!!! Cristian should think like a real man and do what is best for him and his partner. He should bow out now and not try to gut it out and then look foolish later in the contest. Tendons are like a rubber band when it gets streatched and broken. Pop and back it goes. That is why his arm had a big lump in it as the tendon is been pulled back up into the bicep. Being a Latin Macho and waiting is just plain DUMB!!

[Ann]

It was sad to see Mario, leave. I think he really put forth his best feet and Len was very hard on him. I think it's because he does not feel that as a young R & B star he should not be able to dance, I guess he wanted him to look like Master P and Clyde. Marissa should have been voted off.

[Lori]

After Yamagochi wins because she is already a champion in a much too similar field..........I will never watch your show again. No one else had a chance!
I have done both skate and dance a lot,(unprofessionally) and one certainly enhances the other.