Gilles Marini and Cheryl Burke - Jive

Last week, Gilles performed an amazing, shirtless paso doble, but this week, he can't rely on his smoldering sex appeal for the jive.  Cheryl put so many steps into the choreography that he just really gets frustrated.  To blow off some steam, Gilles and Cheryl hit the soccer field where Gilles can show off a different kind of footwork.

Tonight, they are both wearing biker leather.  Cheryl really likes the biker-chic aesthetic, and I'm not complaining.  Gilles is so good.  He looks really confident, and his really light on his feet.  It might just be their music selection, though, but they look way more intense and less fun than Lil' Kim and Derek did.

Len likes the jive qualities like the bounce and the quick steps, but he points out some blunders.  He also says that this jive was a bit frantic.  Bruno also agrees that he looked a bit like a mad squirrel.  (I kind of agree with them that he was a bit frantic.)  Carrie Ann points out that something weird was going on with his arms because they were too small.

The scores:
Carrie Ann: 9
Len: 8
Bruno: 9
Total: 26 out of 30


Chuck Wicks and Julianne Hough - Rumba

Since Chuck and Julianne are a real-life couple, they'll be able to look like their in love on stage, right?  Well, we'll see.  Chuck has a hard time in rehearsal because he takes her criticism as being mean.  They take a trip to the Santa Monica pier, which is where they went on their first date to help get into the lovey-dovey spirit.  (By the way, Julianne looks soooo skinny with regular clothes on.  I'm concerned.)

But in ballroom clothes, she looks fantastic tonight.  I especially love the gilttery thigh-highs.  They do look like they have chemistry, but it also looks like Julianne is doing all the work, and Chuck is once again just a prop for her to dance around.

Bruno wants "some more of that please," and loves that he "switched on the raunch factor."  Technique-wise, Bruno has a lot of nit-picks, but he concedes that it was a step in the right direction.  Carrie Ann is very positive; she like the sexiness, but reminds Chuck to work on the technique.  Len disapprovingly says that parts of the dance was more suitable to the ballroom than the stage.  He also says that Chuck was uneven in his technique, hitting some lines and then missing the next ones.

The scores:
Carrie Ann: 8
Len: 7
Bruno: 8
Total: 23 out of 30


Next week, the seven remaining couples will dance a 1960s-themed group dance along with their individual performances.  Thank God it's not another group hip hop!  Last year's was unwatchable!



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