So here’s the thing, Dance Moms nation. Remember when this show used to be an entertaining end to a Tuesday? No? Not anymore? Well, try. I can wait. Because there was a time that, whether or not we agreed with Abby and her methods, or the mothers and their madness, the show still somehow managed to, well, at least do no harm. Or not much anyway.
Now Dance Moms can ruin a perfectly good day — and frequently seems to delight in doing so. As I’ve said before, I still have to blog this show as part of my job, but I do not have to support the shrewish, narcissistic woman at the heart of it. Or episodes like tonight’s which celebrated a fine variety of ridiculous, juvenile and unconscionable behavior, while downplaying the worst kind of loss a young boy and his mother could suffer.
I know some of you don’t like these recaps when they’re not funny, and I try. I honestly do. But there was virtually nothing to work with tonight. Christi’s 17-F-word salute and Abby’s description of it? A spectacle for sure. Funny? No. A judge at a dance competition happily accepting swag from a studio owner? Please. A half-dozen children in tears because of the actions of their mothers, their teammates’ mothers, their dance teachers — and possible cyber bullying glossed over because the dance must go on? Ugh, ugh and ugh.
But anyway, here’s what went down.
At Pyramid, we learn that Kira and Kalani are back and Abby has declared them permanent members of the competition team, taking the place of Kelly, Paige and Brooke. This sends Leslie outer limits in the usual Leslie-goes-outer-limits fashion, until Abby looks pityingly at her tells her there is no way Kalani can fill in for Paige and Brooke all by lonesome. Calm restored. At least for now.
Christi says Kalani is now Pet in Waiting to Maddie’s Queen Pet.
The Pyramid goes like this:
Kalani is last, because she’s new and hasn’t been around for a while.
Then Kendall. Abby says she was just going through the motions last week.
Then Nia. She was outstanding, but that’s because she’s had practice being a drag queen. So … she’s being punished for retaining and displaying those skills. Well, OK.
Then Chloe. Even though she had a new costume and a new solo, she still got beat by Mackenzie dancing a hand-me-down dance in hand-me-down clothes. An “iconic” hand-me-down dance. But still.
Mack begins row two. She did fine, but Abby didn’t get the same feeling watching her dance “Cry” that she did when Maddie did it. That’s because she created the dance on Maddie and Mackenzie is not Maddie, but we went through all of that last week, so I’ll drop it.
Then Maddie. She got the highest score of the entire competition. And yet she didn’t get her customary top spot. Payton didn’t get the top spot either, even though Abby points out that she was a wonder transforming herself into a boy who transformed herself into a girl.
The top spot goes to a ridiculous photo of Kelly. All the other mothers except Christi laugh and laugh at Abby’s, er, funny.
This week’s competition is World-Class Dance Experience in Canton, home of the Apples. The ALDC group routine will be lyrical and called Frost. Curiously, Abby says everyone already has the costumes at home and they better not have lost them. What is with all of this suddenly recycling, Abby? Are we pinching our pennies?
Because they were not here when the originals were issued, Payton and Kalani do not have group dance costumes. But Kelly just so happens to have two. And Abby tells Christi it is up to her to go get them. Christi says no siree, Ab. If Abby wants her property back she can tend to that business herself. Call Kelly’s lawyer. Keep Christi out of it. Official channels, Abby. You started the war. Now you have to live within the rules of the battle.
Payton and Kalani will be doing solos. I’m guessing this is so that if their costumes for the group dance don’t pan out, it won’t be a wasted trip to Canton. And also, it ensures that Maddie won’t get bested by any of Cathy’s kids.
Up in the Mom Loft, the mothers discuss how they can possibly retrieve the costumes. Holly says the costumes are a really symbol of a much larger issue. Leslie says the costumes are a way to shut Payton out of the group dance, when she’s already got Kalani and Abby’s preferential treatment of the newcomer to contend with.
And we’re off to Canton, home to a nice flock of ducks.
The Apples have been working in earnest on The Last Dance — the dance Cathy pulled from last week’s competition. Even though the choreographer is now long gone, Cathy’s been retooling it to have a better shot at beating Abby’s girls.
This includes the addition of Nick — who is back and even taller than Zack. Both are perfectionists and they bicker over how to best do the dance. Cathy lets the boys blow off a little steam, then tells them to play nice. Nice boys finish first, after all. Or so she hopes.
Back in Pittsburgh, Leslie is at the ALDC front desk telling Abby she will do everything in her power to get the costumes back from Kelly and save Payton’s place in the dance. She gets out her phone and rings up Mrs. Hyland yet again, this time trying out a “you wouldn’t want Payton to not get to dance, would you?” message. I cannot imagine why Kelly is not calling her back. Surely this stuff is foremost in her mind.
The other mothers arrive and Melissa wonders if they could possibly whip up a new costume for Payton and spare all this Storm the Hyland House for Costumes drama. Abby says Melissa couldn’t sew a costume if her life depended on it. And besides, it’s Christi’s job to get them back, because Abby says so. Christi says no it is not and if Abby has a problem with it, she can call Christi’s attorney, too. Then she has a strange and sudden flip-out, which I’m attributing to editing and entails her spouting multiple repetitions of something that a) must be bleeped out and b) is something she and her husband do in their house that cannot be done at the ALDC. You can @#$% at the ALDC because they have bathrooms, so there we have the first Dance Moms 17-F-word salute.
Back in Canton, Cathy lightens the mood with an impression of Jill’s phone-sex voice telling her she has nothing but a bunch of soloists. But with her choreographer gone, Cathy must do the job herself and she takes it seriously, telling her dancers that, no matter what they think of them, Abby’s kids have straight arms and clean lines, even if their mothers are a bunch of screeching biddies.
Speaking of screeching biddies, Abby is having at it in the studio, punishing all of the girls for Christi’s outburst. She tells a stricken Chloe that it has nothing to do with her, but still she bellows and bellows on.
Upstairs, the mothers say Abby should leave her differences with them out of the studio, but they do nothing to intervene. Abby screams and gesticulates at the children, concluding her tantrum with the decree that the next person whose mother says the f-word is gone. Period. I wonder if Abby watches the show. I wonder if she feels any regret. Worst of all, I wonder if she feels pride.
To get the most mileage out of her fit, Abby says that, because of her bad mood and the costume situation, the group number will now be a trio danced by Maddie, Kalani and, I guess, Kendall. Melissa and Leslie get into it about Payton getting screwed over by this announcement, and Holly interjects to say that her own daughter has no solo and now no group dance, either, so Leslie must forgive her if she just doesn’t want to hear Leslie’s boo-hoo-hooing.
Kalani’s solo will be called Unless You Say You’re Sorry, because there is no dance like a message dance. And since Maddie isn’t going to deliver the Kelly Is Bad message, it might as well fall to the pet in waiting, ain’t that right, Christi? That’s right.
The Mom Loft battle rages on. Holly says Leslie has tunnel vision, only thinking of her daughter. Leslie says Holly is mad at the wrong mom and should be upset with Kira the interloper.
Back in Canton, we learn that Nick and his mother Donna lost Nick’s father just a week before. Nick’s solo will be called Beautiful You to honor him.
Back at the ALDC, Beautiful Holly decides the mothers will bring in bits and pieces of costumes — or as Abby calls it “dishwater gray crap” — and come up with something that will allow all of the girls to do the group dance. The Leslie-Kira drama flares up again over who is a guest and who isn’t and Payton gets yanked from the group dance whether they do it in dishwater gray crap or not. Abby says Leslie should be grateful for this because Payton now has more time to work on her solo.
Then Abby tells the girls that she is so tough on them because that is what makes them winners. I beg to differ. I think she is tough on them because she has virtually zero ability to control her emotions, and zero interest in developing that ability, even when the emotional well-being of the children in her care is at stake. But that’s just me.
Come competition day at the Palace in Canton, Abby says Cathy has padded the audience with all of her former students and everyone she knows. Victory ain’t about what happens in the audience, Ab. It’s about what happens on the stage.
In the get-ready, Holly says she feels a tremendous sense of accomplishment for resolving the costume issue and facilitating the ability for everyone to dance. Except that’s not the case. Payton’s costume doesn’t fit, but Leslie says that Abby was too busy coddling Kalani to notice or deal with that. Abby wants to know why she didn’t bring that up before now. Leslie says Kira is just going to use Abby’s name and then leave, while poor, faithful, costumeless Payton gets abused and neglected. Fight. Fight fight fight. The wide-eyed and amused Apples can hear it through the wall.
The argument reaches a fever pitch and Leslie says Abby thinks she’s f—king perfect. Oopsie. Abby said. One more f-word and the offending mother is out, along with her kid. Sayonara, Ackermans. Good thing Canton is a short drive home.
Out in the auditorium, Cathy presents a befuddled, grinning judge with a Candy Apples jacket, which he says he’d be delighted to wear. Oh, abso-effing-lutely (it is the word of the day, after all). A judge is most certainly going to wear a jacket supporting one of the competing studios. I believe it 100%. Happens all the time. Or never.
Speaking of judges, on the way to Canton, Abby had an exciting announcement to which we were not privy.
There is no need for bribery, because Nick’s tribute solo to his father is absolutely stunning — mature, complex and moving — and he dances it with grace beyond his years. Plus, we actually get to see the whole thing.
Kalani’s solo is pretty and sophisticated, too. Basically a Maddie dance. Abby seems worried that Nick has her beat, but gives her props for not caving to the pressure of having to follow Nick’s dance.
Now there’s some sort of #socialmedia-related drama in the #Apples get-ready room, which entails Lucas possibly using the word of the day to disparage Gavin, child of a woman named Joanne that I’m not sure I’ve ever seen before. Or maybe I have. It’s been a while since we’ve spent quality time with the Apples. Lucas gets teary protesting his innocence. Joanne and Brigette get into it, making the other children cry, too. Cathy does her best to smooth things over, saying that all of the dancers are necessary to the group dance and she has no intention of pulling it again.
The dance is very good — dramatic in the way that Candy Apples group dances usually are, especially with four boys in the dance. Abby seems worried, but she reminds her own dancers that they are technically superior.
When it’s time for the ALDC to perform Frost, the crowd is so loud that the girls initially can’t hear their music. It only throws them off momentarily, and the dance is as pretty as the Apples dance was powerful.
Backstage, the girls fret about Abby killing them, even though the trouble was not their fault. Even though Queen Pet is most worried of all, a confident Pet in Waiting says they’ll be just fine. Abby does indeed get up and head to the bribe-accepting judge to complain that it feels as though the ALDC has been set up from the get go. He looks even more befuddled. Not what you were expecting when you signed up for the gig, was it, mister?
Come awards time, Nick gets third to Kalani’s first. I think that’s a crock — Nick’s third place finish especially—but between this week’s competition and last, World-Class Dance Experience has some world-class odd outcomes, so I guess it is what it is.
The ALDC group dance beats the Apples, too, and the victories are enough to foster some ALDC unity, once again. Jill says The Last Dance was truly Cathy’s last dance and earns some weak laughter. Abby and the girls do the ALDC chant again, adding an 11 and a 12 to mark their twelfth victory. On the other side of the wall, the Apples are incredulous.
Next week on Dance Moms, Nia gets pulled from the team and a sea of prospective dancers washes over the studio.
So what say you, Dance Moms nation? Was this episode a giant step backward from the little bit of hope we got last week? Are you over Leslie’s hissy fits or was this one, OK, two, OK, nine justifiable? Was the costume issue so obviously a power trip on Abby’s behalf? Do you agree with the evening’s results? Sounds off in the comments section below.
New episodes of Dance Moms air Tuesday nights at 9/8CT on Lifetime.
Lori, I love your recaps — is there a place where I can find them all, in chronological order?
I stopped watching at the beginning of season 4. From the reading of your recaps, it’s some old same old, only worse.
I too hope the judge throws Abby everything that can be tossed her way.
Thanks — please let me know about a chronological list; I’d love to read them in order.
I watched the choreographer’s cut of this tonight. I think the reason nick got third, despite a powerful performance was that his shoulders appear rounded and he had kinda awkward arms right now in comparison to the elegance of Kalani. He’s about 15/16, so he’s in that odd space where his arms and legs are growing faster than he can keep up. Otherwise, his technique was nice, although I really think his excessive extension is in attractive.
LEAVE HER BE
When we find ourselves with costume trouble
“Mother Christi: call Kelly”
Lawyer’s words of wisdom, leave her be
And in our hour of loudness
She is starting fights with all she sees
Lawyer’s words of wisdom, leave her be
Abby Lee, leave her be
Abby Lee, leave her be
Lawyer’s words of wisdom
Leave her be
I’ve been waiting all week for your song stylings 🙂
I desperately want that Bronx judge to humiliate this monster and issue enough penalties that both she and the network suffer. However–and who ever thought there could be a “however”? However, this would probably result in the cancellation of the show, and I would really miss seeing the girls continue to dance so beautifully and grow into adolescence. In the best of all possible worlds, Abby would lose big time and would end right up in financial insolvency as one blogger reported that she was in prior to 2010, while the show would be re-focused on “our” girls competing under the leadership of someone else. I used to think it might be perfect if Gianna were to bribed to jump ship and seamlessly take over the company sans Abby and with a new name; however, she was so nasty two episodes ago when teaching the routine that I was shocked. I had never dreamed that she too could be so cruel, but then again, this is probably exactly what Abby likes about her. Surely there is some other expert dance teacher in the Pittsburgh vicinity who could continue to showcase these girls’ talents. If Dance Moms Miami was any indication, there ARE dance teachers out there who are both excellent and kind and nurturing–but oh, yes, that show didn’t get enough viewership to survive…. Sigh…
I’m so glad I don’t watch this show more — I’ve just read Lori’s recaps since the “big fight” episode — but even the recaps are getting painful (NOT Lori’s fault — there’s only so much she can do with what she is given).
While reading about the “need” to get the costumes from Kelly, the only thing I kept thinking was, “and which one is supposed to fit Payton?” Paige’s might fit Kalani if it was after Paige’s growth spurt, but there is no way any of the girls’ costumes were going to fit Payton. Ridiculous!
And now Abby’s and the moms’ bad behavior isn’t enough? They have to get the kids from Candy Apples to act up as well? No thanks!
Per the Dance Moms Spoilers Wiki, Nia doesn’t really get pulled from the team. It looks like she just doesn’t do the group number next week, focusing on a solo instead.
I was thinking the same thing about the costumes, there is no possible way that a costume that fits short, little Brooke would ever fit tall, long limbed Payton. Paige has been tall for her age for a couple seasons now, so the costume would have been fine for Kalani, although she’s not as thin as Paige is.
The editing on this show is infuriating…so manipulative! Statements taken out of context, reactions to one thing shown for something completely different, and even dubbing Maddie’s name over Kalani’s when Melissa said nobody could beat her!! That one is really beyond the pale. Who knows what we have seen that never really happened, or what kinder, gentler stuff ended up on the cutting room floor because it didn’t fit the Producer’s plan for an outrageous, sensational show? I am particularly skeptical of “previews” for the next week’s show. “Oh my, I simply MUST watch next week’s show! Vicious Abby’s going to cut poor Nia from the Team!!”
That is yet another misleading lifetime preview. Nia is removed from the group dance, not the team. typical Lifetime misleading crap to get people to keep coming back.
I’m glad I wasn’t the only one who thought they REALLY glossed over the loss of Nick’s father. It was such an afterthought, and Cathy phrased it oddly too, that I did a double take and actually rewound it to see if I heard it correctly. I cannot believe they did not mention it again at all. That is a catastrophic event in anyone’s life to lose a parent, especially a young child, and just the fact that he was even there showed incredible strength and resilience. We could have celebrated this child for strength and lifted him up. Instead, we got to hear nonsensical fights and mom screaming and put-downs.
Other than Abby possibly bribing/knowing judges, I do see where the ALDC does deserve to win these group dances against them and I think its their choreography. I am a longtime dancer myself who dabbled in competitions for a few years, and its really about the uniformity of the dances. Cathy keeps bringing in these awesome choreographers and they do amazing work, and her dancers are excellent too. I believe it was Blake McGrath who made the comment that if it was him, Travis Wall and Nick Lazzarini on the panel that the Candy Apples would have won that week, which is true. But what is valued in the general dance world is not what is usually rewarded at the competitions. So, the CADC dances are more visually appealing, yes. But Abby/Gianna know how to choreograph winning COMPETITION numbers. If you notice, the girls dance together as a full, cohesive group more than the Candy Apples. They do more tricks together (rather than the more impressive, but individual tricks that the Candy Apples do) and are in unison for longer. In my opinion, they are also better performers and do have cleaner lines, feet and arms than the CADC. Yes, the Candy Apples all have extensions for days, but they are less polished. If Cathy could choreograph a more “competition-friendly” dance, she would have a better shot.
I also see where Kalani beat Nick, though I was obviously pulling for him (and would have loved to see the second place solo). She is just technically better, though Nick has more impressive tricks up his sleeve and is incredibly flexible and entertaining. She was also more emotive (in terms of what they want to see at competitions). Had I not known the circumstances behind Nick’s solo, I wouldn’t have really known it was a tribute from his facial expressions/performance quality.
I didn’t think Nia got pulled permanently from the team, I just thought maybe she got pulled from the group dance that week and they’re editing it to seem more serious than it was. I hope she doesn’t get pulled. I know she is not as impressive as the other girls, but she works so hard and is a very mature and excellent performer and Holly is a breath of fresh air.
I really wish I never started watching this show. I stay for the dancing and the girls, but I wish I didn’t support this nonsense by still watching it. And yet I can’t avert my eyes from the trainwreck.
I think Nia would absolutely excel if she were given more musical theatre numbers, she’s fabulous when she plays characters. That kid performs the crap out of every single “themed” dance she’s given, be it a drag queen, Rosa Parks or that tribal routine she had with the song that didn’t have any real melody to it (can’t remember which episode that was, but the solo was amazing). She busts her butt no matter what kind of crap Abby throws at her, she’s come a long way.
Also with Nick/his mom’s tragic loss, I didn’t really expect them to discuss specifics. I mean, it had just happened the week prior, and it’s not like they’re “regulars” on the show. I don’t know that I would want to talk about something so terrible so soon after it happened. I give the kid a lot of credit though for coming back and doing such a beautiful job on that solo, his dad would be very proud.
Is Abby in the closet?
Nah, I think she’s too nasty and vicious to other women to be a closet-ed lesbian. Wasn’t she rumored to be engaged awhile back? Not that I believe it lol.
So Abby pulls a classic bully move. She clearly got shut down in the fight with Christi — look at her stunned face as the moms leave the front desk area. Kristi has been gaining the upper hand with Abby for a while — she’s not afraid of Abby like Melissa — and Abby can’t handle that.
So like any bully, Abby takes it out on the kids. Wow — she is one huge piece of excrement.
The conflicts on the CADC seem to be from competition repressed. Cathy’s been trying to make everyone play nice, but Zack getting antsy with Nick might be because Zack used to be king of the CADC and now Nick is getting all the attention. Same with Lucas — he was the Prince — but now Gavin is getting the solos and attention, and Lucas has nothing to do, so of course he’s gonna lash out at Gavin. The funny part was how stupid can the kid be to try to lie and say he didn’t say anything when cameras are all over him.
Am I the only one who wished one of the boys had thrown a punch instead of blubbering?
Honestly, it’s like Collins Street Productions wants to reinforce every negative stereotype of male dancers they can.
Hi Lori: (Sorry…this is another long post since I’ve missed a couple of weeks)
I know I said I said I was through with the show a few weeks ago, but sadly, my love for watching Chloe dance was too much, so I watched last week and subsequently this week, too because I wanted to see if Christi’s eff-word attack that Abby mentioned when she replied to my post here that one time (I actually feel quite proud to have ticked Abby off enough for her to reply just because I defended Chloe and said she didn’t get the same opportunities as Maddie) was actually a scream fest, of what I suspected…which was Abby telling her not to say that word and then Christi leaning forward and saying it over and over again in Abby’s face (which is exactly what happened). Hardly the screaming rant that Abby described in her post. Still, once again I felt so sorry for Chloe. Every time things seem to be looking up for her (if you call them never mentioning that Chloe got first in her division for her dance last week whether or not she got 3rd overall…which I still suspect was rigged by Abby…especially after watching the full dances on the ‘extended dance version’…no way Mackenzie outdanced Chloe and in my opinion, Maddie’s tap number didn’t deserve 1st either) her mother messes things up for her again. For all of Christi’s complaining, she always steps all over Chloe herself by her antics, although I don’t blame her at all for not wanting to get the costumes from Kelly.
Now…onto the major matter at hand. I really think that Abby has gone off the deep end. Possibly, if I want to give her any credit at all as a human being, it is because of the stress of the situation with her mother. BUT! What she really should be doing is what she did last season (or whatever season it was) where she took time off and let her assistants handle things for her while she spends what is the last quality time she could have with her mother. I know that as of this time, her mother is already gone, and I do feel bad for her for that, but there really is no excuse for her behavior. Poor Payton. Poor Chloe. Poor Mackie. Poor Nia (next week). I am not surprised by her ousting Nia, but will certainly miss Holly. Of course, Abby will probably never thank her (just as she never thanked the Hyland girl’s) for her contribution to those 12 wins. Perhaps she will ask Nia to have guest appearances now that Payton is gone for good.
Poor Nick. His really was a beautiful dance. I am one of the few that thought Kalani’s dance was better, but still think he should have come in second and I agree with whoever posted that I wish I could have seen #2. I agree with you, Lori, that this show has become such a downer. This episode was even worse than the one that made me say I would quit watching, but I will continue to watch until Chloe is gone (which should be any time now, as I can’t imagine Christi refraining from using the eff word). I felt sick for her as they showed her face after her mother’s tirade and then Abby’s response to it. I think that there is no doubt that the producers are trying to show us Abby’s good side by showing her remark to Chloe, but Abby just doesn’t have one. Besides, there is plenty of footage showing how cruel she was to the Hyland girls. I think at this point, they are trying to get Abby to tone it down to save the show. This time, I actually felt bad for Cathy’s team. If they can’t win on their own turf. Of course, there can remain no doubt at this point that our girls keep winning not because of their great technique, but because they are on TV and it is set up that way. It just isn’t possible for them to win that many times without there being something fishy. Do you notice how whenever they show dancers from other studio’s, it’s always the worst dancers? Either that, or the rest of the teams are just from your basic local dance studio’s where there are a couple of chubby girl’s on the team and there might be 1 or 2 standout dancers, but nothing like Abbby’s girls or Cathy’s hand picked team.
As much as I love watching the dancing (I fast forward through the dance enhanced show just to watch the full dances). I hope this is the last season. I hope that Chloe and Kalani and Kendall can get into good studios where they can continue to grow as dancer’s without all of this horror. I hope that there will be no Abby’s Ultimate Dance competition this year, either. She needs to quit being rewarded (also no more View co-hostings) for her behavior. I truly hope that the judge at the trial of Kelly, throws the book at Abby. I so hope and even pray that someone who has the power to do so, stops Abby from her abuse of children…and that stupid mother’s who just want to prostitute their children to the highest bidder, will get a clue…but alas…I fear it will never happen.
Hi Kathryn. No worries — I completely enjoy your thoughtful posts, because you and other posters here know so much more about dance and, for lack of a better word, the “dance industry” than I. It’s good insight and a good education.
Amen! you hit too many nails on the head to even count. I don’t know if you “tweet”, but Christi posted on twitter that the reason Chloe was crying in class was because Abby got right in Chloe’s face and screamed at her…ugh! It’s all so dreadful. Although I don’t agree that these parents “prostituted” their daughters. When they signed those 6 year contracts, they did not have crystal balls and had NO way to know how things would unravel.
As for Nia, I think the commercial was edited for shock. I think that Nia only gets cut from the group dance, not the studio.
These competitions HAVE to be rigged. I’ve been saying that for a while. There is simply NO way Mackenzie (cute and talented as she is) would’ve beat Chloe. And Maddie was super cute and very entertaining, but, again, NO way she would’ve won with a tap routine at a competition against Chloe’s lines, form, and technique. Kalani is the only other dancer of Chloe’s caliber that has been on this show. A duet with those two would be so gorgeous.
When the lights go out and Lifetime moves on from this show (whenever that is), Melissa’s girls, IMO, will suffer the most. Maddie’s “faces” will be a very difficult thing for her to unlearn and will greatly hinder her chances of professional work. Competition judges love “emoting” BUT real casting directors are looking for emotion. BIG difference and real world casting directors can spot it from a mile away. Maddie is being trained for dinner theater, not Broadway. And, unfortunately, she just doesn’t have the body-type to make it as a professional dancer. She’s just too compact. And Mack….I just hope Melissa gets her head back on her shoulders and starts showering that little girl with love, taking her out of anyone’s shadow, before the mother/daughter relationship is too damaged. It’s all just so sad.
Always a good recap Lori. Loved Nick’s dance, he is graceful and should be in a better dance academy but I know his Mom is trying to get him exposure so, whatever works. Sad for him and his Mom for losing their beloved father and husband. He should have won first place, I like Kalani but Nick was definately better.
Good for Christi for refusing to bow to Abby and call Kelly. Get the lawyer involved if you have to. Seems to be the only thing Abby will understand. You do need to clean up the potty mouth though, it only hurts your kid.
So tired of Leslie, that is all on that subject.
So sick of Melissa.
Love Holly and her common sense and positive can do attitude.
I like Kalani and her Mom, glad she is staying. Hopefully there will be less drama and more dancing.
Kendall is becoming a nice dancer. Caught a rerun the other day when she first joined ALDC and she has come along nicely since those early days.
Huge Chloe fan, GO CHLOE!
Thanks, Kerry. And I agree — Kalani and Kendall are both lovely dancers, unique in their own right. Everyone on this team should be allowed to shine — because they are more than capable of it.
LOVE your recaps-I never miss a week. I am not a CADC fan, but their group dance was amazing. I honestly think they should have won first. I have read in other places that Abby knew one of the judges at the competition, which may have helped the ALDC getting first. Do you know if the viewership is going down because Abby has become so much worse over the years?
Thanks, Julie. I’ll ask about the ratings. The press folks have been pretty tight-lipped since the lawsuits.
Straight from Lifetime: “Season 4 is the #1 unscripted cable series in its Tuesday 9-10pm time period among Total Females and Women 25-54. It’s averaging 2.2 million total viewers.”
1.943 million people watched last week’s episode however, and 1.986 million tuned in last night. The Season 3 premiere scored 2.8 million viewers. So I guess we can draw our own conclusions.
This might sound like a stupid question, but how many “unscripted cable series” are there in the Tuesday 9-10pm time period?
And what the heck does “among Total Females an Women 25-54” mean? Wouldn’t “Total Females” include “Women 25-54?”
In other words, does being the “#1 unscripted cable series in its Tuesday 9-10pm time period among Total Females and Women 25-54” really mean anything?
http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2014/03/26/tuesday-cable-ratings-the-game-wins-night-teen-mom-ii-the-little-couple-tosh-0-are-you-the-one-more/248172/
Hannah, your post made me curious, so I counted them up from the guide entries in the 9pm time slot on my basic Direct TV access.
I counted fourteen (14) reality shows.
Another great recap! You give voice to the rest of us who feel the same about this show “which celebrated a fine variety of ridiculous, juvenile and unconsconsiable behavior…”
On a lighter note, missed your recap last week and my Tuesday morning “Lori fix” because my company issued computer blocked the link for Adult Content apparently because of the words “kinky boots.” Gotta love those security blocks!
Thanks, Trace. I’m glad I didn’t spell out the word of the day, keeping you from yet another recap. 🙂
I read your recap every week but havent watched the show since the episode when Abby cried and held Maddie. I enjoy your recaps and the victories the girls have but Abby Lee Miller really disgusts me. I am glad you’ve decided to speak out against the abuse and manipulation. #teamlori
Thanks, Esther. What irks me most is that they had so much good to work with that got cast aside in favor of tired drama and crying kids. All of the dances were lovely — and Nick’s was a triumph. Is it really a crime to give equal the positive stuff that comes out of these studios, however dwindling it may be?
Hi, Lori,
I enjoyed reading your recap, as usual. “..also home to a nice flock of ducks” made me LOL. I am going to watch the Choreographer’s Cut next week to see if I missed something about Kalani’s dance that would have placed her 1st and Nick 3rd. Don’t get me wrong, I love Kalani and her beautiful dancing, but Nick’s solo was awesome and stunning! My condolences to Nick and his Mom, also. I wish I could see the solo that got 2nd place, too.
Christi’s 17-!@#$ salute was outrageous, even for her foul mouth. Abby’s reaction was typically unrestrained and over the top. I was pleased to see her tell Chloe that it had nothing to do with her, and that Chloe is a nice girl whom everybody likes. I think Chloe’s heartbroken look touched Abby, as it did us. I believe the Producers would have edited out Abby’s attempt at “soothing” before “The Lawsuit.”
I hope so, GK. I hope so. I do wonder what the camera operators are thinking when they’re aiming their lenses at these stricken kids.
According to Christi’s twitter, Chloe was crying because Abby got in her face and screamed that she would destroy her.
Nick was absolutely robbed this week, his solo was absolutely gorgeous, no way should he have only placed third. I actually enjoyed the Apple’s group routine as well, those kids perform very well together as a group. I think waiting a week to perform that number was a smart move by Cathy, I would have picked that piece of ALDC’s group this week. I never thought I’d ever be a Leslie fan, but this week I was, especially how she stood up to Abby and called her out. Too bad she can’t keep her potty mouth shut, I think she may be one of the few moms left who actually might be able to talk some sense into Abby if cooler heads were to prevail.
Sadly, all too often I have seen coaches/teachers punish kids for their children’s behavior.
In most cases, of course, you don’t have TV shows and TV contracts involved. You can either move on immediately, or at the end of a term (in a lot of travel sports, one-year contracts are common).
None of that excuses Abby’s behavior, of course, and she is certainly one of the worst examples of I’ve seen. (Two kids, four sports and two fine arts, I’ve forgotten how many teachers and coaches only one coach as bad as Abby).
“You think my reality show is fake now?! Do you think it’s funny now?!”
No, Mr Collins, I do not. The potent dose of reality shock with the plot twist of an adolescent cast member’s father dying in previous days, but still must go on with show, instantly sobered me right up.
I liked the ducks. The ducks made me laugh.
Ditto…if Nick and Mom read this, I am so sorry for your loss.
Me, too, John. Clearly.
I won’t comment on the recap but I will ask how u are Lori? Are you hanging in there?
I second that Krystal. Hope you are doing well Lori.
You guys can always feel free to comment on the recap, even if you don’t agree with what I write. I’m always interested in an opposing perspective and especially one that might open my eyes to redeeming qualities I might not see in this show.
Lori, your recap was spot on. I was not able to find one good thing to say about last night’s show. I was supporting you in not being able to find snark from that mess. I was disgusted with the entire show. Last night hit an all time low, and I didn’t think it was possible to get any worse.