'Dancing With the Stars' 5th Judge: Performance Finale Brings Surprise Elimination

Broadway star Jordan Fisher has been the favorite for weeks, earning multiple perfect scores on his way to this position, but don't count his competition out just yet. Lindsey Stirling has impressed week in and week out with her artistry and perseverance, while Frankie Muniz and Drew Scott have grown into solid dancers and performers in their own right. Perhaps even more importantly, they're beloved by the public who get 50% of the decision.

Monday was the first of a two-night finale for this 25th season of “DWTS,” and it's been a stellar season. We've seen some amazing dances along the way, watched inspirational stories of perseverance, and laughed along with these celebrities.

Fair warning, since I'm safe at home, I'm probably going to be a little harsher than my colleagues Carrie-Ann Inaba, Len Goodman, Julianne Hough and Bruno Tolioni. But I might be nicer, too. Maybe.

Bruno showed up to help them work on a paso doble they struggled with earlier in the season. Bruno's help definiteily showed in a stronger and improved performance from Drew throughout the dance.He was commanding, had great posture and strength as he moved Emma across the floor, almost tossing her about like … well, like a cape. There was a bit of a wobbly bit toward the end, but Drew proved with this one dance that he's deserving of at least this spot in the finals.

Judges Scores: 9, 9, 9, 9

My Score: 9

Carrie-Ann challenged Frankie to do a solo in a recreation of their Week 1 foxtrot, and he opened with one but it was only so-so. The whole dance was a bit of a letdown for me, becuase I've seen Frankie dance so much more confidently than this. Part of me wants to say it's because he didn't have a character to hide behind, but he was trying to channel Fred Astaire. I wanted a little more control in his frame and confidence in his feet, but I still give him always being a delight to watch. As a dancer, he's very watchable, he just needs to tighten the technical side of his performances.

Judges Scores: 10, 9, 10, 9

My Score: 8

Len challenged Jordan and Lindsay to put more Charleston in their earlier Charleston dance, and so they did … but just about as little as they could have. It would have been nice to see a solid Charleston segment in there. Beyond that, though, there were some problems. The pair were unable to match their energy levels through the first half of the dance, leaving them visually out of synch as one went bigger and the other smaller. The lift move at the end was bungled as well, with Jordan appearing to be too tired to execute it in one small move. He's still a wonderful dancer, but I felt like the frenetic pace and nonstop energy of this one got to both of them just a bit.

Judges Scores: 10, 10, 10, 10

My Score: 8

About halfway through, I forgot I was watching a competition performance and just started enjoying the dance. Lindsey's confidence has grown so much since she first did this quickstep, and Julianne's advice really helped her sharpen her moves. Quickstep is tough, and having to do it in the finals had to be daunting, but this one was handled with finesse and grace. It remaining high energy throughout, but with tremendous control. As the last non-professional dancer woman standing, Lindsey represented her gender very well in this piece.

Judges Scores: 10, 10, 10, 10

My Score: 10

That piece was a lot of fun, and Drew really came alive after the “halt” in the proceedings, but there were definitely some misfires along the way as well. Credit where it's due, though, they worked in some difficult lifts and flips and Drew nailed almost every single one of them effortlessly. This dance played to his strengths as well, with a cheeky sense of humor and fun throughout. There were bits in the early parts, though, where he was out of sync with the other dancers and struggled to keep up with the temp like he really was tired.

Judges Scores: 9, 10, 10, 10

My Score: 8

His journey has been confidence, and this dance had that in spades. There were a few elements of this piece that felt a little out of alignment, but Frankie has really grown into a strong man who can command the stage, his partner and apparently an entire troupe of dancers. The song choice was a bit jarring at first, but as it progressed I realized that this was a testament to his journey, his growth and his strength as a dancer. We saw elements of classic ballroom commandeered by Frankie in ways he may have struggled with in earlier weeks. In the end, it was a very memorable and very cool performance piece.

Judges Scores: 9, 9, 10, 10

My Score: 9

If there's a competition to be had for the best freestyle performance in the history of “Dancing With the Stars,” this piece absolutely has to be a part of that conversation. After earning high marks and perfect score after perfect score throughout the season, the bar was set very high for this couple and this dance. Lindsay put everything in here to allow Jordan to shine both as a solo dancer and a partner dancer, and he did so well I'm nearly blind with what I just witnessed. Words really can't describe how much greatness was packed into that piece, how well everything was executed. The only quibble I have was I wish he'd gotten her into that lift swoosh hold a little smoother.

Judges Scores: 10, 10, 10, 10

My Score: 10

The strongest part of this piece, somehow, was the most challenging portion. But what an ingenious stroke of madness on the part of Mark to partner dance with Lindsey while she was playing the violin. Somehow, these segments had beautiful partnering AND playing, and yet Lindsey was less sure in some of the steps before and after that segment. I loved the concept behind this piece, and some of the side-by-side work was fantastic, there were just a few steps along the way where she wasn't as sharp, or extended, or in command of her body as she needed to be. But wow, what a concept!

Judges Scores: 10, 10, 10, 10

My Score: 9

This season, the show is doing something a little different. Rather than just call it a wrap on the competition tonight and start tallying votes, they decided to add a live “Last Chance” round to Tuesday's show. That meant an elimination on Monday, leaving only three couples to dance in that final round where viewer votes will be tallied during the live production Tuesday.

Jordan Fisher and Lindsay Arnold were the first sent into the finale, followed by Lindsey Stirling and Mark Ballas. These were the strongest couples remaining in the competition, meaning that America has been pretty on the money this season.

It came down to the weaker dancers on the technical side -- who'd connected more with the audience at home for their personalities -- in Franke Muniz and Witney Carson, alongside Drew Scott and Emma Slater.

After coming so very close to the final night of the competition, the journey ended for Drew Scott. A consummate gentleman and so fun to watch throughout the season, he was the weakest dancer remaining. I can't believe America is rewarding talent over everything else so far.

If that continues, Jordan will win, followed by Lindsey and Frankie. But we have some ideas about that.

“Dancing With the Stars” Season 25 comes to a close Tuesday night at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.