The final six work separately and together on Dancing with the Stars, as couples split into two teams to compete in the Cha-Cha Challenge. Which team won? How did everyone handle the pressure of two full dances? Find out below!
OK, first things first, why is Brooke in sausage casing? Seriously, this is the most unflattering outfit ever, and it doesn’t help that it’s red. Secondly, it’s Cheryl’s birthday, and if you’ve been on Twitter, Chad has been spoiling her basically the whole day. Imagine what he’ll get her if they do well.
Erin Andrews and Maksim Chmerkovskiy: Quickstep
Lest we forget, Len was, like, the only person who despised Maks’ striptease last week. Maks wants to keep stripping and plans to do some in the quickstep, which Erin worries will upset Len even more. (Speaking of birthdays, Erin’s is Tuesday.) Maks promises it will be a proper quickstep with a “super-quickstep-y” section in the middle. “Maybe I’ll just take my pants off at the end. Just a little bit,” he says. He actually takes them off at the beginning, with an assist from Erin, but it’s not a proper striptease. They strip off their black covers to unveil some hot salmon costumes (whose flourescence are only rivaled by Len’s bright green shirt and yellow tie combo). Maks wasn’t kidding about the “super-quickstep-y-ness.” They’re going at lightning speed and are in perfect hold most of the time. Erin still tenses up a little bit up top, but her legs and feet are flying with a precision she hasn’t had before. Len has no issues with the clothes swap and says it’s her best dance. Bruno loves the difficult variations, but wants her to loosen up the shoulders. Carrie Ann says it’s gorgeous.
Score: 27
Chad Ochocinco and Cheryl Burke: Viennese Waltz
Chad wants 10s this week, but is having trouble with the hold. “C’mon, 85, what are you doing?” he yells at himself. Tony — or as Cheryl introduces him “ballroom champ” (um, we know who he is, Cheryl) — comes in to help 85 with his technique. Birthday girl Cheryl is nearly showing off her birthday suit in this see-through dress. Chad is still a little stiff with his legs and heavy with his steps, which you can see when he’s out of hold, but his upper body is smooth and fluid. Bruno calls him a gentle giant, but wants him to work on his extensions. Carrie Ann agrees with Bruno about the arms and says there’s nothing sexier than a man who figures out how to be tender. Len says his arms were full of fluidity and tells him to memorize the date — the night he became a contender. Brooke grills Chad about Cheryl’s birthday presents — more of which are coming — and he says that’s just him showing appreciation for her. “Now you know how hard I have to work with Chad. He feels sorry for me,” Cheryl says as she shows off her new blingy necklace.
Score: 25
Nicole Scherzinger and Derek Hough: Waltz
Derek is going for a pure waltz after getting chastised by Len for forgoing some samba moves last week. They’re dancing to “You Light Up My Life,” which is Nicole’s aunt’s favorite song. Her aunt has Down syndrome and is in the audience. The frame is giving her issues, which Derek says affects the footwork. She’s getting down on herself and Derek, being the nice guy that he is, says it’s partially his fault because he doesn’t compliment her as much as she should. Does she need more compliments because she’s an artist? Nicole’s frame is stellar and everything — the footwork, extensions — were clicking. It’s a very flashy and eye-popping routine, definitely choreographed to show off how much Nicole can do. But I think it’s kind of too much in this case. Nicole is always “on” in her performances; it’d be nice to see her take it down a notch and still dance as well. They close with a gorgeous and seemingly endless spin and get lei’d by Nicole’s aunt afterward. Carrie Ann says she is by far the best dancer they’ve ever had on the show (um, really?), but didn’t think the connection between them was there. Len loves it and says there were issues in hold. Bruno says she’s as close to dancing royalty as she can possibly be.
Score: 27
Pamela Anderson and Damian Whitewood: Waltz
Pam brings Damian to the Wildlife Center to help out with the animals so he can unwind. She can’t unwind her hips though, Damian ties them together so their hips can rise and fall together. No comment. Pam’s footwork is less wobbly, but she could still be sturdier throughout. Her frame is still a bit loose, which is apparent when they’re in hold. Still, it’s quite the lyrical and romantic waltz and is as stunning emotionally (Pam’s trademark, natch) as Nicole’s was choreographically. Len loves the understatedness of it and wants her to firm up her upper body. “By the way, if you’re just joining us, welcome to Double-Entendre Theater,” Tom says. Bruno compliments her on getting into character again, but agrees with Len. Carrie Ann sees improvement with the legs. Meanwhile, Brooke continues to unimpress as she must consult her notes to ask Pam how important it is to improve her technique. Is this job really that hard?
Score: 24
Niecy Nash and Louis van Amstel: Quickstep
The honeymoon period — cue eating montage — for these two is over, and Niecy says they’re like a divorced couple now, especially with Louis texting Kelly Osbourne during their rehearsals. “Kelly, he don’t dance with you no more, boo,” she yells. “These feet gotta learn how to dance, Van Amstel!” I was worried for Niecy about this one since she’s been the least technically sound out of everyone left, but she’s definitely stepped up her game. She’s incredibly light on her feet, and her footwork is much more refined. She’s better than Pam here, if I do say so myself. The only thing out of sync is her hold, which is not as close to Louis as it needs to be. And compared to Erin, she’s nowhere near that blistering speed. Bruno calls it her best dance. Carrie Ann, ditto. Len agrees, but wants her to lift her ribcage up. “I’ve got a lot to lift,” she says before freaking out over their personal best score. “I can dance!” she screams.
Score: 25
Evan Lysacek and Anna Trebunksaya: Argentine Tango
Evan feels like he really let Anna down last week, so he wants her to push him. Anna says there are no balletic moves in their A.T. to prove that he can do something different. And he can. This whole routine is hot. I can’t really describe it any other way. Evan’s sharp, powerful and totally hitting his marks with zilch balleticism. The staccato movements are precise, and the push-and-pull between him and Anna has the perfect amount of controlled aggression and drama. On top of that, it’s fast and chock-full of difficult choreography, including this crazy move with one of Anna’s legs on his shoulders. They get a standing O. Carrie Ann says he has the eye of the tiger. Len says he knew Evan was nice on ice, but had doubts of him being good on wood. Now, though, he has a paddle he hasn’t used yet and will dust it off. I feel a 10 coming on! Bruno says he was a total alpha male and conquered his territory as everything a girl would want. They get a 30 — first perfect score of the season. Eat it, Nicole!
Score: 30
Cha-Cha Challenge
Each team will get a score, which will be added to each couple’s individual score.
Team Gaga (Nicole and Derek, Pam and Damian, Chad and Cheryl ), “Telephone”
Pam is going to start because she’s sexy, Chad will follow and Nicole will close because she’s the strongest of the three. Nicole is the only one who hasn’t done the cha-cha, so she feels “like an idiot.” All three couples start in formation, where Chad seems to be a bit off, before Pam takes over. She seems hesitant of some of the steps, but manages to get through it unscathed. Chad is next and is the least stiff I’ve ever seen him. He’s light and bouncy on his feet and actually looks confident dancing next to Cheryl for once. Nicole then takes the floor with her “O” face as she basically gropes herself and is not really looking like an idiot. They regroup for some more scintillating, not to mention difficult moves, and manage to stay in sync. It was a solid routine overall, the only real issue being Pam’s uncertainty. Len loves the formation and can’t wait for Nicole to do a cha-cha. Bruno loves the end sequence and says Chad turned up the heat. Carrie Ann says Pam struggled a little bit, but loves the sexual energy. “You’re so into your bodies … and you’re just so cool,” she says. Oh, Carrie Ann, jealous of the cool kids? In the celebriquarium, Chad dubs the three stars Pow, Wow and Damn (guess which one he is), while Brooke struggles to fill the time with questions. How many awkward pauses did you count? I got three.
Score: 27
Team Madonna (Evan and Anna, Erin and Maks, Niecy and Louis), “Holiday”
Louis wants the routine to start sharp and end sharper, so he thinks he and Niecy should be in the middle. Maks tells Niecy she’ll be the centerpiece. Evan’s never done the cha-cha, so Niecy’s giving him some tips, telling him to pop his hips. “There’s nothing to pop,” he says. These guys have less rehearsal time together because Evan’s away on Stars on Ice and Erin was in New York. But that doesn’t stop the three celebs from kicking off the routine by themselves. Ballsy. If this was judged on costumes alone, these guys will win for their ’80s Madge look. Evan has the first solo and is working those hips. Still no balletic movements to be seen, though he does do a skating-like kick over Anna. Niecy the Centerpiece is next and sasses it up with an equally impressive solo. Erin closes it out and does a respectable job, though I would’ve put Evan there since he has been and was stronger of the three here. Their final formation, unfortunately, gets a bit muddled as Niecy falls out of sync. But for the pi
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