It is crazy that we are already down to the top 10 here. Last week, we lost Dareian, Matthew, Janelle, and Amelia. This week starts out with a tribute to Gene Kelly, who would have been 100 years old when this aired. In the audience is Gene's widow, Patricia Kelly who looks like she is not a day over 60. WTF? Yikes, the internet tells me that she was 47 years his junior, and that there was bad blood between her and at least one of his other wives. Interested. Tell me more, world. 

This week we have the All-stars coming in, thank goodness. Judges are Nigel, Mary and guest judge Benjamin Millepied (responsible for choreography in Black Swan), which is hcore. 

Smell ya later, Janelle. 

Major apologies for how behind we are here. I have been away. We pick back up after a two week hiatus for the Olympics (and my absence on top of that). I miss the Olympics, y'all. Four weeks ago, I thought that Janelle deserved to be in the bottom, and I still do, of course. Tiffany and George also had to deal with a crappy NappyTabs routine. We will find out who gets ousted from those performances at the end of this show, which is ENDLESSLY CONFUSING. Cat introduces some nonsense that I don't care to talk about, and then shows us a pretty cute picture of NappyTabs' new little baby. She also shares that this entire episode is a tribute to Mia Michaels, who has choreographed some of this show's most beautiful routines. Mama Mia is in the audience (with her crazy hair), and we learn that tonight's show will feature 7 recreations of Mia's most famous routines. This should be fun. 

So You Think You Can Dance: Top 16

Last week (okay, four weeks ago, so sorry about the delay here), four dancers we didn't really care about were eliminated. Who will go home this week (based on last week's dances, it is still a bit strange)? We start the week off with another pre-taped performance, where all of the dancers are dressed like Charlie Chaplin, and the whole thing is in black and white, save for one bright red umbrella. The style of the dance isn't super interesting..it is sort of slow and rhythmic. I really just stared at the red umbrella the whole time, wondering how it was filmed and processed. The look of the routine was fun, but I really didn't take in much of the dance. 

Cat Deeley looks particularly gorgeous tonight. She has really fun old Hollywood glam hair, a deep burgundy lip colour, and a sleek black dress. Judges tonight are Nigel and Mary, as usual, along with guest judge Christina Applegate. This is exciting, Applegate was a strong judge last season, and she used to be a dancer (she co-founded the Pussycat Dolls, strangely enough). 

So You Think You Can Dance: Meet the Couples!

The first show of the (real) season is here, and it promises to hold some very exciting dances, as well as the very real threat that a great dancer will go home this week because America doesn't know who he or she is. Let's dive in together and find out all the details about how this re-formatted season is going to work. We start off we a really cool opening number for the top 20 (choreographed by Christopher Scott), which is sort of Mad Men-themed, and I think Kenny Cosgrove is actually one of the dancers. The dance has dudes at desks interacting with their secretaries. Cyrus stands out because the camera keeps stopping on him, and Alexa (who I just very nearly called Ryan, ouch!) stands out for her ridiculous pouffy hair. Eliana and Amelia are also featured players. So many vowelly ladies this year! Our top 20 dancers are introduced right after this, and it is clear that the top 20 routine we just saw was pre-taped because everyone is changed and they all have vastly different hair. I don't recall the opening numbers being pre-taped before, but perhaps I was just oblivious. Having Cat do the individual introductions really brings a smile to my heart. We are really back! 

Judges

So You Think You Can Dance: The Top 20
Excitement abounds! We will finally find out who the top 20 dancers are for Season 9 of So You Think Can Dance! We start out in Hollywood, where the dancers will perform at the end of the show, and Cat is a knockout in this really fun champagne, gold, and pale pink dress. There is a panel of judges (not quite sure why they are here, but we will see), including Mary "The Screamer" Murphy, Nigel "The Pervy Uncle" Lythgoe, and Zooey "The Adorkable" Deschanel. Nigel explains the changes to this season, the biggest of which is that they will be choosing not one, but two favourite dancers (one guy and one girl). In addition, there is only one show per week (no results show), so it will be fun to see how this works out. The results show of SYTYCD wasn't the very worst, but there was certainly a bunch of reality TV filler nonsense that won't be missed.

The 35 finalists are all penned up in a room, and they call them in one by one to face the judges. Alexa (the overexposed) is called up first. Given how much time we spent with her last year, I feel pretty sure she will be in. Tyce tries to fake her out (poorly), and she is our first person in the coveted 20. George Lawrence II is next, and I don't remember much about him, except that he had a great audition. I think he has a ballet/contemporary background. Debbie Allen tells him he is in the top 20. Will Thomas (who we don't know much about) is also in. Megan Branch (who I don't know if we ever met) is a contemporary person who Mary loved, but she doesn't make it, nor does Collin Fuller (another unknown). Amber something is a contemporary dancer who has tried out three years in a row, and this year she makes it in (she had a really stanky attitude after she didn't make it the previous year, more on that later). The first four selected are dancing a Tyce Diorio routine, to "We Found Love" performed by Jesse J. The number is fairly boring, but it doesn't openly suck, which I have sometimes found in Tyce's routines. It looks a bit like a scene from Rent, which probably was the big thing in Tyce's heyday. The judges gives them each feedback, but I won't bother talking about it, because it isn't too interesting.