April 24, 2007: London Calling
Apparently
Samantha Harris wasn't the only one who could accurately predict the future this week.
Heather Mills said she knew that she was going home, and she came prepared with notes for her parting words. She didn't appear upset so much as determined - determined to express her thanks to various people and to get her message out about animal rights. She seemed to achieve both of the goals she set for herself in this competition: She raised money for her charities and served as a role model for people with prosthetic limbs. Honestly, Heather lasted much longer on
Dancing with the Stars than I initially thought she would. I remember reading message boards when this season's slate of contestants was first revealed, and there was a lot of anti-Heather sentiment out there.
A lot. I thought she might be the first one out - not because of her leg, but because of her extreme unpopularity. Yet she made it halfway through the competition and showed herself to be both hardworking and slightly goofy. Ultimately, I think she won over quite a few folks. (I know, there are still a few of you out there who don't like her....)
Overall, this results show was better than last week's. How great was it that they picked the group swing as the encore dance? I don't remember them ever picking the group dance for that esteemed distinction before. The cast of
Dreamgirls gave a nice performance.
Joss Stone sounded good. And then there was Julianne's brother Derek - obviously, some dancing gene runs in their family. Like Julianne's done all season, he demonstrated some really impressive moves: a flip in the air, then a sort of one-handed handstand at the end. Everyone shined in that performance, but Derek was truly a standout.
The comedy was also good tonight. Based on the behind-the-scenes segment I'm calling "silly stars," I don't know which celebrity is the craziest.
Joey seems the obvious choice, but then there's
Billy Ray wearing a skirt and
Ian spinning around on the floor or telling lame jokes. It's hard to believe they get any practicing done. The funniest audience comment of the night came from
George Wendt, who admitted that he always enjoyed dancing with
John. And then there was
Jimmy Kimmel's comic segment, with his and his partner's much-improved dancing skills. They almost looked like different people when dancing (almost like Jonathan and a real woman!). Hopefully the celebs took notes during his segment, because they're going to need all the help they can get in order to each perform two individual dances next week.
