That's the thrill of living in the Hellmouth! There's a veritable cornucopia of fiends and devils and ghouls to engage ... Pardon me for finding the glass half-full.

Giles ,'Same Time, Same Place'


Non-Fiction TV: I Reject Your Reality and Substitute My Own

This thread is for non-fiction TV, including but not limited to reality television (So You Think You Can Dance, Top Chef: Masters, Project Runway), documentaries (The History Channel, The Discovery Channel), and sundry (Expedition Africa, Mythbusters), et al. [NAFDA]


megan walker - Jun 12, 2009 8:24:18 am PDT #9459 of 23273
"What kind of magical sunshine and lollipop world do you live in? Because you need to be medicated."-SFist

And I'm really worried about hip hop on the show this season if that's all the girls can bring. None of them were good. A few of them were passable.

Plus, I think the camera work for the group numbers has gotten even worse, and I didn't think that was possible.


le nubian - Jun 12, 2009 8:33:04 am PDT #9460 of 23273
"And to be clear, I am the hell. And the high water."

And I'm really worried about hip hop on the show this season if that's all the girls can bring.

yes. this. THIS.

Did you happen to catch SYTYCD Australia? I caught it on the Internet and the hip hop is so BAD down under. It made my teef itch.


Liese S. - Jun 12, 2009 9:25:03 am PDT #9461 of 23273
"Faded like the lilac, he thought."

TC:M

I want to see Colicchio competing in TC:M.

I know! The SO & I were talking about this. We miss his presence on the show, but it would be made up for if we could see him cook. I'm still so smitten by the image of him in his tiny NY kitchen.

SYTYCD:

I agree about the opening dance. It really didn't feel like a Shane number, I was surprised when they said it was him. I sparkly heart Shane, so I was disappointed.

Yeah, run run leap stuff is my least favorite. I always feel like, really, there wasn't anything else you could do besides run across the stage? Again, too much like something I could do in my college days.

The camera work was really bad in a few places, I felt, not just the group numbers. It was frustrating, like the cameras had no idea what to expect and were all over the place. It's choreography people, attend a rehearsal.


Liese S. - Jun 12, 2009 9:27:59 am PDT #9462 of 23273
"Faded like the lilac, he thought."

Oh, and this is a pet peeve, but I don't love the dancers who were clearly gymnasts first. I know it's a prejudice from me, (maybe I'm bitter because I had to choose between the two and doing dance didn't give me a free pass to be a cheerleader, ha) but I don't like unintegrated gymnastics. If you can translate those moves and more importantly that ability into your dance, then fine. But I don't like routines where I feel like the dance is just the dancer moving across the mat to get ready for his floor routine.


msbelle - Jun 12, 2009 9:29:42 am PDT #9463 of 23273
I remember the crazy days. 500 posts an hour. Nubmer! Natgbsb

and may I say ESPECIALLY if your dance is ballroom. gymnastics, a bit, can blend with contemporary.


Vortex - Jun 12, 2009 9:44:16 am PDT #9464 of 23273
"Cry havoc and let slip the boobs of war!" -- Miracleman

I know! The SO & I were talking about this.

and the judges should be the runner ups from three seasons. They'll have a grudge :)


kat perez - Jun 12, 2009 10:45:10 am PDT #9465 of 23273
"We have trust issues." Mylar

and may I say ESPECIALLY if your dance is ballroom. gymnastics, a bit, can blend with contemporary.

This was ridiculous. I wanted Tony and Louis to get up out of the audience and smack him. You do not throw a tumbling pass into your ballroom routine. It's just wrong. Honestly, I'm glad that Tony went home last night, but I'm more than ready to lose Jonathan and his partner next week unless they turn it up 1000%.

I didn't mind Sabra and I don't really mind Caitlin, but most of the guys who switch from gymnastics into dance, I find, do not make the transition successfully. Look at Neil from S3. He never mastered the grace to temper all the power tricks and his carriage was a nightmare. Hunchback! I mean he got a little bit better, more musical, better at connections and steps between the big flips and spins, but he never really got good. And I fear the same thing with Jonathan. For a ballroom specialist, his carriage is not that good. (And I don't know whether he's a latin dancer or smooth ballroom, but I sincerely hope it's smooth because his hip action is atrocious if he's supposed to be a latin ballroom dancer) And he just lacks grace.

As far as the production values on this show, since last season, the camera work on SYTYCD has been crappy (and sadly it infected AI this year as well). And the wardrobe folks on this show are seriously on that monkey crack. It's not even cute.

That sounds cranky. I criticize because I love.


askye - Jun 12, 2009 1:42:26 pm PDT #9466 of 23273
Thrive to spite them

Jonathan's the one who started dancing because of Season 1 right?

So that would mean he's only been dancing for around 4 years, he must have been a gymnast first.


Jesse - Jun 12, 2009 1:52:22 pm PDT #9467 of 23273
Sometimes I trip on how happy we could be.

Yeah, I was going to say about Jonathan -- he's only been dancing for a minute.

(And once again Nigel can bite me. This is not a Miss Congeniality contest, it's a dance show and that fool can dance)

Actually, this is a thing I like about the show's honesty -- it is never set up as the best dancer, but America's Favorite. To win, you need both.


Nora Deirdre - Jun 12, 2009 3:01:52 pm PDT #9468 of 23273
I’m responsible for my own happiness? I can’t even be responsible for my own breakfast! (Bojack Horseman)

TC:M

And those Girl Scouts were hilarious, especially the picky redhead. She really is an incipient NYT food critic!

I loved how the chef from NYC was all, "she's like a critic from TWENTY YEARS AGO!" That kitten's got claws! It was all very good natured yet competitive.

Gael Greene, eh?

I was so happy that they flashed to Keller's first appearance for the first quickfire of the first season. I *loved* that challenge. Made me want to watch the episode again.

I am looking forward to this show, and that surprised me.