James Jordan's Strictly Blog: The Show Is Trying To Appease The Younger Generation
Welcome to week five of my column for WhichBingo. Another elimination done, and plenty to get into on the scoring, the presenters, and why I think the show needs to get back to basics.
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My Scores from Week Four
John Nellis and Katya Jones, Paso Doble. My score: 7. Judges: 6, 7, 8, 8.
A perfect track for a paso doble, and the costumes and production value, with all the flames, were absolutely amazing. I wasn’t a big fan of their dance last week, but this week Katya pulled a great routine out of the bag.
For a non-dancer, John did a great job getting the shape in, and what he lacked technically he made up for with personality. A shame about the wobble at the end, but I think they’ll be the people’s favourite, they just have that likeability as a couple.
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Dani Dyer and Nikita Kuzmin, Rumba. My score: 4. Judges: 6, 6, 6, 7.
Way over-marked. Again, a beautiful song to dance a rumba to, and the production and lighting were stunning, but unfortunately the dance didn’t match up to the production value.
Dani started with off-balance rumba walks and danced with an arched back throughout, with no opposition in her body, so it looked stiff and unnatural. I expected much more, but with their following there was never any chance of them being in the bottom two.
Lawrence Robb and Jowita Przystał, [dance to confirm]. My score: 7. Judges: 7, 8, 7, 8.
As far as performances go, this was the best so far of the ones I’ve told you about. So much fun, great energy and lots of personality, with a great routine from Jowita and some really fantastic tricks that require a lot of trust from her in allowing Lawrence to do them.
I loved the dance overall, but the steps themselves were very ploddy at times and occasionally looked a little bit awkward. It’s my favourite performance so far, although I do say that a lot as I go through these, because there were better ones still to come.
Tabby Stoecker and Mark Karmalita, Samba. My score: 6. Judges: 8, 7, 7, 7.
I really like them as a couple and enjoyed the performance, and Mark is a very strong dancer. However, without the music you’d struggle to know it was a samba, it could easily have been confused with a cha-cha apart from a couple of steps like the promenade runs.
The samba timing had no bounce action, no isolation of body movement and no opposition, so at times Tabby looked blocky and stiff. Samba is the most difficult of all dances so they did a good job, but I thought they were way over-marked this week.
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Dame Sarah Storey and Julian Caillon, Tango. My score: 3. Judges: 5, 5, 5, 6.
No wonder they were in the bottom two and eliminated, not only because the dance wasn’t great but because the VT was a bit cringe. Possibly one of the worst choreographed tangos in Strictly history, and that’s saying a lot after 21 years. I didn’t like the costumes or the shimmies.
The Shania Twain track wasn’t the greatest, but it was the choreography that let it down most for me. I didn’t think Julian did a good job with it. I’m not saying Sarah would have been that much better if he had, but I didn’t enjoy the dance at all. It’s a shame, because she had the potential to be quite good.
Cach Mercer and Maddie Ingoldsby, Foxtrot. My score: 7. Judges: 8, 9, 8, 9.
As a performance this was fantastic, great music, beautifully elegant, with brilliant choreography from Maddie, who is doing a great job. Cach had a great feel for it, but I didn’t see one heel lead, and there were massive gaps between his legs when they should be tracking.
The judges said he had beautiful footwork, when actually he didn’t. Nearly everything was danced on his toes, so he couldn’t drive through the dance, and I totally disagree with them, it was factually incorrect. At most it was a seven, not eights and nines.
I’m really happy he ditched the street dance. We know he can do that as a professional street dancer, but Strictly is about ballroom and Latin, so show us that. I much preferred this traditional route, but he was still over-marked by the judges.
Bethany Antonia and Nancy Xu, Cha-cha-cha. My score: 6. Judges: 6, 7, 7, 7.
I liked the opening and the end, where Bethany was in character and sold it brilliantly. The cha-cha itself was okay but not overly entertaining, and she needs a better understanding of when to have straight and bent legs. Probably their best dance so far, though.
Nothing against Nancy, because I think she’s great, but I honestly believe that with that masculinity and femininity in the dance partnership she’d be good enough to get to the final. I don’t think we’ll see that, and that’s a shame.
Delta Goodrem and Kai Widdrington had a bye this week because of injury, so there are no scores from me for them. Looking back over the week, I had Sarah and Julian in my bottom two last week and that’s exactly where they ended up, so I can’t argue with the result.
Shaun Wright-Phillips and Alexis Warr, Couple’s Choice. My score: 7. Judges: 7, 7, 7, 7.
As people know, I’m not a massive fan of Couple’s Choice, but I have to mark it accordingly. A great fun routine that proved how clever Alexis is, she’s the best pro on the show for tricks, though Shaun had a few timing issues for me.
As good as it was, it’s not what Strictly is about, and apart from perhaps the Charleston I think it’ll be his best dance. Once he’s back to ballroom and Latin he’ll be one of the weaker ones, but after a couple of dodgy weeks it was a really good job from him.
Lacey Turner and Vito Coppola, American Smooth. My score: 8. Judges: 7, 7, 7, 8.
Under-marked for me. This was much better than Cach, and personally I thought it was clearly the best dance of the night. The choreography Vito put together was absolutely stunning and of a very high level, and I feel Lacey coped with the difficulty extremely well. It was a brilliant performance overall.
It’s such a shame that somebody didn’t tell her about her terribly placed, disjointed left hand, because for me it stuck out like a sore thumb. Overall, I think these two are a power couple in the competition and we’re going to see some great things from them. Well done.
Graeme Hall and Lauren Oakley, Salsa. My score: 6. Judges: 7, 7, 7, 7.
His timing is always great, and he seems to remember the routine well, which I’d expect from someone with a ballroom and Latin background. He has one, because he’s competed in it before, so he’s learned it, studied it and competed in it.
This one wasn’t performed very well for me, though. I wasn’t a fan of the choreography, costumes or wigs, and the whole thing was a bit meh. He needs to start letting go and selling it, and I think the judges are marking him very generously.
Jaime Winstone and Carlos Gu, Paso Doble. My score: 8. Judges: 8, 9, 8, 9.
As performances go, this was brilliant and right up my street, full of drama, passion, intensity, and light and shade in the choreography. Well done to Carlos on creating such a brilliantly choreographed routine.
My main critique is that Jaime lacks breath, so it gets stiff in places, and she lifted her shoulders too much and was slightly out of balance a couple of times. The ending was a little lacklustre too, but I’m being ultra critical, because it was a great dance.
Will Best and Dianne Buswell, Jive. My score: 7. Judges: 7, 8, 8, 8.
I have mixed views on this one. On the one hand, Dianne did a fantastic job teaching him the correct technique in his chassés, his leg action and his kicks. It was very clean, his timing was very good and I loved the content.
However, Will has an awkwardness about him that I can’t put my finger on. As much as I love them, there’s something in his dance that I don’t like and I don’t know what it is. Technically though, in my opinion, it was a very good standard.
Three hosts still isn’t working
I’m still not a big fan of having three hosts. I don’t see that it really adds anything, and I’d prefer two, like we always had previously. I think people are just going to get used to it rather than necessarily like it. I have no idea why the BBC picked that trio, because on paper I think most of the public would say it doesn’t look like a great mix. And it isn’t just me saying it, it’s the consensus from what I’m seeing online, where people are talking about the hosts and how badly they feel it’s working.
That’s part of the problem, because it detracts from the dancing. People are more interested in talking about the presenters than what’s happening on the floor. That’s not me saying dancers can’t do other things, I don’t pigeonhole myself as just a dancer either. Johannes is a professional dancer and it does make a change having a dancer talk to them after their dance, but Claudia is a genius. She’s spontaneous, quick-witted and super intelligent, and she knows how to react to things as they happen. That’s the sign of a good natural host, and it’s either innate in you or it isn’t. I don’t believe the person in that role will ever be able to do that, and I don’t like seeing Emma standing next to a co-host trying to crack jokes either. We’ve never had that before.
I think the BBC will keep all three for another year, because they won’t want to admit they got it wrong. If they do, I’d put Emma downstairs on the floor and Josh in Claudia’s area, the Claudatorium. Then I’d get Johannes doing something new, a live chat with the couples just before they go on to dance, and a reaction straight after. That would be quite cool for the public to see. I’d also cut the chat with the judges by half, because it goes on far too long. They need to rethink it a little bit. They need to get me and Brendan on there to sort it out. It would be a whole different show, and a better one.
The new pros are doing a fantastic job
I don’t think the new dancers have been sidelined at all. I actually think they’re doing a fantastic job, Maddie and Mark in particular, who I think are sensational. It looks like they’ve been there for years. I’m a firm believer that you get to a point as a pro where you have to step down and let someone else come in and bring fresh content, and I feel the same about the judges. I’d like to see some of them change too.
Nobody’s running away with it
Unless you get someone super brilliant, like last year’s dancer with Katya, Lewis Cope, who came out and knocked it out of the park every week, the improvement this year has been very hit and miss. A lot depends on whether the dance they’re given suits them, and I actually like that. I don’t want to see someone run away with it, I like the jeopardy of whether a dance is going to suit them. The most consistent for me so far is Lacey and Vito, who are doing a fantastic job.
I like seeing the ones who struggle come out and do a brilliant performance, like Shaun with his Couple’s Choice after a couple of really dodgy weeks. For me, Strictly is about watching the progression. I don’t want to see someone come on as a fully trained dancer, that isn’t the idea of the show.
The judges need to be judges again
I think the judges are very inconsistent in how they mark. Cach’s foxtrot is a perfect example, eights and nines when it was never that, and I think they’re marking Graeme very generously too.
They’re too predictable, too panto and too scripted. Get the judges judging properly, not worried about upsetting people and trying to be too kind. At the end of the day you need Craig being the tough one, and when he finishes on a positive every time now, I think it dilutes the feel of the whole panel. They all talk for too long as well. I want to watch the dancing and see how they’re getting on, I don’t want to listen to the judges for that long.
Too many themed weeks
Another themed week, Icons, and I have to ask whether there’s any need for it. We’ve only just had movie week. For me, it detracts from the dance. Some of the costumes and everything didn’t really work, and I don’t want to have to work out who’s dancing. I understand that if you’re watching the full run of the show it makes sense, but there are too many theme weeks now. They need to go back to proper ballroom and Latin, proper music and proper costumes. It’s all too much for me, and the judges all sat there dressed like the Gallagher brothers is too much panto. Ludicrous.
The VTs are getting better
I do think the VTs were better this week. I think they’re reading my column, because I keep saying I want to see actuality, the training room footage, how they’re getting on and the jeopardy. Seeing them off doing things that have nothing to do with dancing winds me up so much. It’s a dance show.
Is the show running out of steam?
I don’t think it needs a break at all. I just think they’ve got it wrong this year. They’re trying to appease a younger demographic with YouTubers, social media people and hairdressers who’ve cut famous people’s hair. Get celebrities on there who are household names and go back to the basics of what people fell in love with. There’s nothing wrong with the dancing, everyone’s doing a fantastic job. There’s too much talking, too much faff and too much about the presenters. Let’s make it about the dance again.
People often say, when I give my opinion on it, that I’m bitter because I’m not on it. I’m not. I’m nearly 50 years old and I physically couldn’t be on it anymore, but I still love the show, it was a massive part of my life, and I want it to be amazing. I just think they’re going down the wrong roads. People tell me I should be a judge. I reckon they’ll end up getting me on there to run the whole show. Fingers crossed.
A word on nerves
I’ve seen a few people online say Lacey looks nervous. Some of us on this tour suffer with nerves massively, some don’t suffer at all, and some of us just crack on. If you’re a nervous person, you have to accept that you’re going to get nervous. That’s really hard, because when you get nervous you try not to be, and that’s the wrong thing to do. Nerves mean you care. Don’t try to fight them, learn to enjoy them and put that energy into the dancing. Otherwise it can be a massive detriment, it can make you go blank or go too fast with the music. I do suffer with nerves, as does Vincent on this tour, and we’ve learned how to use them in a good way rather than a negative way. It just means you care a lot.
Who I’m Backing From Here
If I had to pick right now, I’d say Lacey and Vito to win, with Delta in the final too. I do think people will naturally, or subconsciously, think of her as having had a bye this week because of injury, but I think she’ll go far. Then maybe Cach, or Tabby and Mark, who are doing great. I reckon those four should be in the final.
As for a first 40 on the leaderboard, it could be Lacey and Vito. Jaime and Carlos did a fantastic job this week too. Tabby and Mark could get there, though I thought they were way over-marked this week, and Cach could possibly do it if he gets the right dance, although I thought he was way over-marked as well.
My bottom two for next week would be Shaun and Alexis and Bethany and Nancy again, with Shaun going home. When someone goes into the bottom two, people generally vote for them the week after, so I think it’s between those two. I looked at Graeme and at Dani and Nikita as well, but I’m going to go with the obvious. I do think there could be a shock this week though, so I could well get it wrong.
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