Hey there, DanceFans! How have you been? Yes, It's been many months since the Season 14 finale. Almost a year! I didn't write my recap of the finale episode right when it happened for several reasons; 1) life that week was busy, and - more importantly 2) I was afraid to commit my final Season 14 thoughts to the blog without a Season 15 renewal for the show being a done deal. I just wasn't ready to not have any more SYTYCD to write about. Over the course of several prior seasons, the show had endured some questionable tweaks and adjustments to its formula. We had The Beebs taking up screen time looking for America's Next Best Dance Crew, we lost Mary Murphy, The Hot Tamale Train, and ballroom altogether during Stage v. Street, we lost celebrity guest judges, we had regular judge changes with Cerullo and Abdul, we had a juniors/all-stars season - the show certainly hasn't been afraid to mess with its formula. At best, I can say some of these changes proved to be interesting if not wholly satisfying.
But forget all that. Season 14's "Back To Basics" focus brought us a season filled with so much talent, so much energy and still managed to throw in a twist with the All-Stars picking their contestant partners. Season 14 wound up being one of the best season's the show has ever produced. Had the show been cancelled, it would've been ending things on a positive note and a creative high, but it was clear this show still had seasons left in the tank to showcase talented emerging artists and tell many more compelling stories through dance. Now that the live shows for Season 15 are upon us, it's time to take one last look at how Season 14 wrapped up so beautifully.
We're kicking things off with a New Routine! Nick Wells' Dancing on the Ceiling - choreo by Mandy Moore for Macy's! Lots of glowing hand held star props! It's high energy and everyone seems to be glad to be back together again. The stage looks so full with 20 dancers on it! If group numbers need to be sponsored by corporate entities in order to get us a 15th season, I say so be it!
Cat introduces the full top 10 to kick things off, because SYTCYD is classy like that. She is looking gorgeous as always in a dress by balmain and jewelry by xivkarats. It's another full season where Cat doesn't look like she's aged a day from her first show in season 2. (Note: With Cat being pregnant with her second child for the early episodes of season 15, I thought we'd get Pregnant Cat in the live shows and then if we saw photos from the lives shows we'd be able to distinguish those photos from other seasons. Also I was fascinated to see if we'd get a Host Sub should it work out that Cat had the baby mid-season. It turns out, however, that Cat had her baby just a few weeks ago - Congrats! - so I'm sure when we hit the live shows in a week or two she'll be back to looking exactly the same as always and we'll all once again be saying, how is this possible that she hasn't aged in a decade?)
Cat introduces our judges. Vanessa Hudgens - dancing later this evening! Mary Murphy - back where she belongs this season punching tickets for the Hot Tamale train! Nigel Lythgoe OBE - evening, Suh! These three seemed to really enjoy their time together this season. Not mad about them all returning for Season 15!
It's encores, y'all! LIVE encores! Well, some are live and some are taped! Um, okay! I'm not sure why we can't pick routines that can be recreated on stage tonight, but we'll see how this goes. The first encore makes sense to revisit on tape. It's the fantastic "Welcome to the Academy" number! It's so fun to be able to go back and see where our Top 10 were situated among so many dancers. There were plenty of great dancers highlighted here that never made the live shows. Although Impavito with her blue hair grabs my eye every time she's on. And of course there is Lex. Not hard for him to stand out either!
Our favorite choreographers are in the house! Before we get to the dancing and the results, first we learn what winning would mean to the contestants through video package: Spoiler Alert: It would mean the world! The win just isn't for them! Their families have sacrificed! They have proven new things to themselves. It would be a game changer! Yes, Show! Make me feel the stakes!
Mary's 1st encore choice! Paraphrasing Plato, Mary wants to see some rhythm. So we will be getting some Koine and Kiki Salsa. What I said then: "The dancing is great, yada yada yada... let's take a moment to focus on the rehearsal footage and how in it they discuss how the Twitterverse has created the hashtag #daddykiki. This is hilarious." So I was more focused on things outside the dancing on this one. And tonight? It's fun. Is it a routine I was dying to see again? Not really. But I do love these two and Mary wants to get this party started with a reminder that her return in Season 14 meant ballroom is BACK. (Update: Koine and Kiki became a COUPLE! Squeeeee!!!!)
Vanessa's Group Dance Pick! Group Disco. What I said then: "I am really loving the new stage and studio set-up. It looks great on TV. The routine is a lot of fun. There are some big wigs on that stage. Marko is wearing this brown... mop, is really the only way to describe it. It looks like it was just pulled out of the plastic box that it came in from Ricky's." What I say tonight: They just played a tape! At least that means the wigs are no less out of control. All previous comments still apply!
Nigel's 1st Encore Choice! Lex and Taylor Spencer Liff's Broadway Routine, American Birds in Paris. What I said then: I love these two dancers and I love the music. But they're supposed to be birds and the movement doesn't read bird-like to me at all. If you took away the birdcage and the feather costumes, would I think they were portraying birds? No. And yet... it's still undeniably beautiful and amazing? What I say tonight: They still don't seem birdlike, but WHATEVS. With their love story out in the open, these two definitely soar. You can tell they feel free and joyous and it's a delight. (Romance Update: Almost a year later, they are still publicly declaring their love for each other via Instagram on the daily.)
Mary's Group Dance Pick! Luther Brown's Top 9-All Star Group Number. What I said then: "It's got great energy! I have an easier time identifying the All-Stars here than the contestants here. The contestants blend together for me, with the exception of Lex who gets featured front-and-center for an extended period of time." What I say tonight: Another taped piece! But for real, there was nary a disappointing group number this season.
Vanessa's 1st Encore Pick! Fikshun and Dassy - Shake Your Pants. What I said then: This routine is a lot of fun. They both have personality and moves for days in their favor. What's agains them is that Dassy and Fik-Shun are just a smidge out of sync at times, they spend a lot of time seated in those chairs and Dassy's hat cast a weird shadow over her face at times. What I say tonight. This was not my favorite number for these two, but I appreciate that Dassy gets a featured moment here in the finale. Her hat seems not to cover her eyes as much tonight. It's the minor adjustments that go a long way, folks.
Nigel's Group Routine Pick! Mark Kanemura's RU PAUL EXTRAVAGANZA! What I said then: This dance is totally Mark. He's serving us Mama Ru, amazing composition, drama, power, costumes, props and emotional dynamics. It's FIERCE. What I said tonight: Even taped, it still gets me going. (Mark Awesomeness Update: if you are not following him on Instagram, you are not LIVING YOUR BEST LIFE!)
Audition montage! Remember how there were only 2 audition cities this year and somehow the audition episodes still seemed to stretch on for months? Remember when Jenna drove me up the wall with her breaking all the rules for Koncrete just to pick Kiki? How could we ever forget? Then we get to see basically ALL the routines from the live shows and this really was a phenomenal season. Such a delight to watch.
Mary's 2nd Encore Pick! Lex and Koine Pizza Delivery! What I said then: While I try to avoid hyperbole, I do believe this is the best Broadway number the show has ever produced. What I say tonight: Still delightful fun. These two are just brimming with character and energy. There's also some rehearsal gag footage at the end of Koine being surprised by a crew member standing in for Lex when she opens the door. Oh, you pranksters!
Mia Michaels Group Routine! In the rehearsal montage, Mia interviews the final four and everyone cries. She's like, "celebrate what you've accomplished!" The group routine is awesome and powerful and someone gets flung high in the air. Is it Koine? I really can't tell and I've watched it many times. Was this dance performed live? Maybe it was taped earlier in the day? I'm always suspicious of what was pre-taped on the show. My rule is that if you can't see Cat and the stage in the same frame before or after the dance, it's not happening live.
Vanessa's 2nd Encore Pick! Robert and Jasmine. "Perm." Oh yes, bitch. This is why, for me, Vanessa can come play in the SYTYCD sandbox for as many seasons as she wants. What I said then: ...together they dive into a fantastically fun hip hop routine that's big on energy, precision and sass. This routine was FIERCE, is still FIERCE and Robert was gone TOO SOON from this season. Steal that extra bow, good sir.
New Routine! We get treated to a special Shaping Sound routine with Travis and Lex! Lex comes out of a mirror and tries to eat Travis' soul or something. I don't know. They're amazing. I guess this is the way of letting us know that Lex has already won? That's cool.
All-Star Mark's Encore Pick - Closet Dance! What I said then: "this all looks effortless. But it has to take incredible strength." What I say tonight: Still solid. Koine can swing around up there for days!
Clip Package! Say My Name: Koine. The best part of the whole night so far is the montage of everyone on the show (except for Vanessa who actually pays attention when someone tells her their name) mispronouncing Koine's name all season long.
All-Star Gaby's Pick. Crazy Wig Hip Hop! What I said then. "Despite wearing one of the strangest wigs I've ever seen on this show, Gaby cannot draw focus away from Lex. He gets low. He hits all the choreo hard. He looks like he's having the time of his life." What I say tonight: You think he'd be having LESS fun, this time around? You would think wrong.
All-Star Jenna's Pick: That hot one on the bar. Cha-Cha from Week 1. What I said then: "I love a contestant on this show who can really lead in a ballroom routine and not just get dragged around by his partner and keep up." What I say tonight: Hot Hot Hot. To think she almost didn't pick him! Boggles my mind.
All-Star Robert's Pick: To Make You Feel My love. What I said then: "Every time Robert picks her up (75% of the routine is her spinning in the air) it looks totally effortless. As a dancer she has such beautiful softness and strength on display at the same time." What I say tonight: She's still flying through the air. Lex is going to win, but will she make it to Final 2?
RESULTS!
Wait, hold up. There are 10 Finalists who made the live shows. We've seen 9 live encore duets, 1 new duet, 4 pre-taped encore ensemble numbers and 1 (pre-taped?) new ensemble number. There was no time to highlight the great work done Logan, Mark, Impavido, and Sydney? That's bogus. Here's an encore I'd liked to have seen from all of them.
Mark and Comfort - "Ending" Contemporary (Or "Hater" or "RedMercedes" for that matter.)
Logan and Allison - "The Other Side" Contemporary
Kaylee and Cyrus - The Chbeeb Ladder Dance
Sydney and Mark - "All-Stars" Ballroom
BACK TO RESULTS!
4th Place: Kiki! He's cool with it. I'm happy for his journey!
We interrupt the results for a special performance! Vanessa Hudgens: Singing with Shawn Cook and Dancing with All-Star Robert. In the grand tradition of judges taking the stage in season finales, Vanessa shows she's game to get down by both singing and dancing. It's a very sweet routine. She's not trying to out do the contestants on the choreo, but she's got nothing to prove either. We all know she's talented. I appreciate her enthusiasm for the show and for all the contestants. Bravo, VH!
Nigel's 2nd Encore Pick! Nigel says it's the most sensational season they've had so far and I have to agree. I mentioned it earlier, but 14 seasons in the show has had an artistic revival that has been such a joy to watch. Here we get the quartet of Mark, Kiki, Koine and Taylor. What Is said then: This routine looks very tricky. It is not easy to dance just to someone's speaking voice. These four kids nail it. There are amazing moves for all of them. What I say now: It's still awesome. They can't quite the final lift to work, but they improvise and it's fine.
3rd Place: Taylor! SURPRISE! That means my Koine has made it to the top 2! My personal fave made it as far as one can go. Let's face it. She's not going to win. It's a foregone conclusion that it's Lex but that doesn't make the outcome boring. It will be totally satisfying when he takes the crown.
Final results of the season! Both have been incredible. 2nd Place: Koine! LEX IS AMERICA'S FAVORITE DANCER! Cue the streamers and the lasers! Everyone is thrilled. Richly deserved! Lex will remember every second of it. It was an honor for him to be on the stage. Congrats to All-Star Gabby for sharing the win since she picked him to be her partner. Nothing left but to let the confetti fly while Cat tells us she'll see us again next summer - and now we know that's true! I look forward to seeing you again for recaps of the Season 15 Live shows. Until next time, Dance Fans!
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