DWTS 5th Judge: Disney Villains Bring Double Elimination, Some of the Best Lifts of All Time

Part 2 of Disney Week on “Dancing with the Stars” invited the villains out to play, and it quickly became clear that these stars were having even more fun showing off their dark side.

The show itself also showed off its own dark side. After a non-elimination night on Monday, Tyra Banks announced they were playing catch-up with a double elimination for Tuesday’s show. The pressure was on as scores from the past two nights, and votes, would determine whose time was up.

Whether it was that added pressure or the sheer fun of letting loose as villains, but we got the strongest night of dancing to enjoy, alongside some incredible makeup and wardrobe looks. We saw the first 10 of the season, which came in a surprising moment, and a whole slew of 9’s.

But easily the most talked about dance of the night -- the buzz moment, if you will -- has to be the one that featured some of the most powerful and incredible lifts ever seen in this ballroom. We’re talking dead lifts, spins and twists. It was the first must-rewind dance of the season, and we’re going to probably be talking about it for the rest of the season. You’ve been warned.

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, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli. But I might be nicer, too. Maybe.

(Jazz) What a fun piece, having Captain Hook battle Tinkerbell, and Jimmie did a good job of embodying the character. We’d have liked the same sharpness in the partnering that we got in their side-by-side portion, but this was definitely proof that he continues to gain in confidence on the dance floor. He did a great job navigating lifts with a hook hand. If he can reach side-by-side level with everything, he’ll really find himself as a dancer.

Judges Scores: 9, 8, 9, 9

My Score: 7

(Viennese Waltz) This could have done with a little more over-the-top masculine posturing for Gaston, and Cody could have slowed down a bit so as to not be ahead of the music, or rushing toward the next step in the dance before completely following through on this one. He had a pleasant enough rise and fall at times, but at other times he was standing too tall with a wobbly arm in hold, not gliding into the ground to create a smoother motion.

Judges Scores: 8, 7, 8, 8

My Score: 6

(Viennese Waltz) A wonderful combination of sharp moves and elegant grace, Gleb put together a very interesting Viennese waltz, and Melanie C was almost right there with him every step of the way. She had a stumble toward the end on her feet, and she didn’t quite handle a staccato sequence prior to that perfectly in sync, but her lines were lovely and we could feel the drama of the character and the piece, which suited the song perfectly.

Judges Scores: 9, 8, 9, 9

My Score: 8

(Paso Doble) This was the most aggressive paso doble of the season, with both women coming out so strong and powerful. With a combination of the traditional male and female roles, Jenna really created something compelling and so perfectly in character for the piece and the theme. JoJo had perfect posture throughout, hitting those classic poses hard and with such attack. This was fierce.

Judges Scores: 8, 9, 9, 9

My Score: 9

(Viennese Waltz) There was one moment where Kenya lost herself a bit during a turn and it was a shame because she was on fire up until that point with what was easily her best dance of the night. She was sensual, powerful, graceful and commanding all at the same time. This was a woman confident in herself, her sexuality and the strength she has as a woman, and we felt every bit of it. The gliding motion was beautiful, though the waltz three-step cadence wasn’t quite perfect yet.

Judges Scores: 7, 7, 8, 8

My Score: 8

(Argentine Tango) Iman’s movements in the tango weren’t necessarily the sharpest, but he was there where he needed to be and we could see the improvement. But we have to talk about those lifts. Those were incredibly complex, but Daniella was brilliant in creating wow moments by incorporating their massive height disparity to create even more dynamic visuals. Each was an incredible moment that left us breathless. His dancing is coming along, though he’s not there yet, but we saw moments. Add in those breathtaking lifts, and this was something special.

Judges Scores: 9, 7, 9, 8

My Score: 8

(Jazz) This was a great piece with a lot of character work from Melora that brought a madcap energy to it. She was great in her acting, but not quite as polished in her extensions and looking light on her feet when needed. She continues to grow throughout this competition, reaching a peak with Monday’s incredible quickstep. But she still needs to follow through completely in dances that ask for graceful, full lines. We loved the additional detail that Melora recorded the vocal for this performance, and the overall presentation was one of the most entertaining of the night, bar none.

Judges Scores: 9, 10, 9, 9

My Score: 9

(Argentine Tango) There was an intriguing stalking quality to Witney’s choreography in this that suited the character of Scar from “The Lion King,” and put an intriguing halting lilt to this Argentine tango. It also upped the dramatics considerably. Both dancers were perfectly in sync and Mike delivered every moment he needed to with some great lifts and fancy footwork. It was an unorthodox Argentine tango, but danced extremely well. This was something very special and unique.

Judges Scores: 9, 8, 9, 8

My Score: 9

(Paso Doble) A cute battle concept that was fun to watch; if only Brian’s dancing had risen to the level of costuming and staging -- but definitely not that shot where we saw the cameraman scrambling to get out of the way! He was more walking than dancing, though in rhythm, at least. Brain has struggled so far this season in the sharper dance styles, and we found ourselves lacking that tall paso doble posture, that commanding presence, that intimidating stalk around the dance floor and the judges were right in that he’s never sure what to do with his passive arm.

Judges Scores: 7, 6, 7, 7

My Score: 5

(Paso Doble) Matt had some really strong paso moments throughout this piece, but lacked total consistency. Still, you can see how much he’s already grown in this competition just from what he delivered here. We saw the posture we were looking for, that commanding and even intimidating presence. He wasn’t quite as sharp or full-bodied in his presentation as Lindsay at times, but there were steps where he was fully present. We can see him growing, gaining confidence and learning.  It’s coming along.

Judges Scores: 8, 7, 8, 8

My Score: 7

(Jazz) What a terrible edit when Val said, “It’s Disney Villains night.” They couldn’t have had him just re-record the line? This was another great piece of choreography with so much personality, and Olivia did a great job of bringing that to life. We’d have liked a little more musicality from her throughout; even during the acting sequences she could keep that sense of timing. Also, her earlier moves could have hit a little harder. But as a character piece, this was a huge success and a lot of fun to watch.

Judges Scores: 8, 9, 9, 9

My Score: 8

(Viennese Waltz) Another awkward “Disney Villains Night” audio edit -- what is happening? Luckily, that was the only weak moment as this was a transformative performance for Suni. Easily her strongest routine of the entire season, this was the weak that she looked and felt like a dancer. She brought character, attitude and such elegant grace. Gone was that gymnastics precision to be replaced by fluid lines, graceful rise-and-fall, a lovely frame. This was her moment.

Judges Scores: 9, 8, 9, 9

My Score: 9

(Paso Doble) Amanda really took control of the stage from her first moment. She brought all of the passion to bear we were looking for and then some. What a beautifully performed paso, perfectly in sync when dancing side by side and they even managed to catch their props in unison without a mishap. The sheer danger of that -- danger of it going wrong -- makes us give them props. This was so powerful and so strong, Amanda continues to impress week after week.

Judges Scores: 9, 9, 9, 9

My Score: 9

With a wicked double elimination looming, we were looking at a Bottom 3 couples and two of them getting the boot. After another so-so week, even though she wasn’t in the Bottom 3 per the judges’ scores, we couldn’t help but suspect that this might be the final hurrah for Kenya.

We suspected she’d be joined by Brian and Cody, with Matt getting some “Bachelor” support to keep his dream alive. Iman, too, probably got some support tonight because of those incredible lifts, even though he remains toward the bottom of the leader board.

For us, we’d probably pull the plug on Brian and Cody, but if Kenya winds up in the bottom, we had a feeling the judges would probably send her packing as she’d been in the Bottom 2 last week, and they rarely save twice in a row. Maybe they’d want to give Cody a real chance out of sympathy for his shortened rehearsal week due to quarantine. Or maybe America did that for him and he’s not even in danger.

Well, right away, our Bottom 3 theory was at least partially thrown out the window as Cody was the first celebrity marked safe. It turns out, Bachelor Nation wasn’t quite there enough for Matt, dropping him into the Bottom 3 alongside Brian and Kenya.

At this point, it was a matter of which of the three the judges would save. If it were up to us, we’d save Matt as he’s actually started showing progressive growth and glimpses of a real dancer inside that long body, while we’ve not seen that from the other two. But what did the judges do?

The first elimination didn't even come from the judges. Instead, it came down to the numbers -- viewer votes and combined judges scores, which had us immediately thinking of Kenya, based on last week’s result. But it was Brian Austin Green who was eliminated first, which we have to agree with. He was the weakest dancer in the competition.

That left Kenya and Matt, and we stand by our own belief that Matt is the one showing some real growth right now. Bruno threw his support behind Matt, but Derek was torn between the two, voting instead to save Kenya.

Carrie Ann then selected Matt, but it didn’t really matter. The judges were technically divided, giving Len the final say. At this point, everyone was probably thinking Matt would be his choice, as last week he revealed he’d have booted Kenya over Christine Chiu.

Instead, he saved Kenya, sending Matt James out of the competition, and she dropped to the floor in shock and appreciation. It was such a moment of genuine happiness, though we can’t say we agree with him. It is close between them, but Kenya needs to really do something different if she wants to avoid being here each week. They won’t save her forever.

“Dancing with the Stars” expanded to two nights next week for Disney Heroes night on Monday and Villains on Tuesday, both at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.