Why Reginald VelJohnson should have been eliminated instead of Tori Spelling: ‘DWTS’ double elimination stirs debate
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: This week, Tori Spelling and Anna Delvey went home during the double elimination on 'Dancing With the Stars', but it felt that Reginald VelJohnson should have gone instead of Spelling. The issue has spawned one hot debate that some judges are unfair regarding their evaluation of the performance.
Tori Spelling and her partner, Pasha Pashkov, danced the rumba to the song 'This Is Me' from 'The Greatest Showman'. They scored 19 out of 30 for their dance, which felt off to many viewers who watched Spelling dance through an emotional story. Despite being rough, Spelling's dance routine was an act of commitment and personal growth, which many found endearing and substantial in the emotional effort she placed into the dance.
By comparison, Reginald VelJohnson did a paso doble to 'Ode to Joy' for a score of 15 out of 30. He's just such a favorite actor and didn't bring that 'DWTS' energy or technique, unfortunately. Of course, VelJohnson labored somewhat over the complicated choreography, and accordingly his overall routine wasn't as sharp as others in the competition. A common critique was that his dance seemed disconnected and did not express the fire usually required in paso doble.
Since then, questions have been raised over the judges' scores. Carrie Ann Inaba, among other judges, usually focuses on the contestants' journey and emotional feel, leading to uneven scoring at times. It is arguable that since VelJohnson got a lower score, he should have remained in a weaker position and thus been closer to getting eliminated. On the contrary, Spelling's emotional performance did deserve some more points and could have justified her stay in the show.
It felt as if the hard work and improvement should have provided Spelling with another chance, whereas VelJohnson's performances didn't stand up to that measure. The double elimination besides taking away two contestants from the competition opened a discussion on the fairness of the judging process on 'Dancing With the Stars.'
Reginald VelJohnson struggles to dance on 'DWTS'
Reginald VelJohnson, the renowned actor of the hit sitcom 'Family Matters', has recently made headlines as he appeared in Season 33 of the dance competition show 'Dancing With the Stars' (DWTS). While his fans were delighted to see him on the show, his dancing raised a question that he would not be able to pull it off with the dancing stardom in this competitive setting.
He is paired up with professional dancer Emma Slater for his first episode and danced a Salsa to Boyz II Men's hit song 'Motownphilly'. However, his performance fell right into the category of memorably bad, failing to deliver the high-energy, lively movements associated with a Salsa; Reginald often did not move at all and seemed incapable of performing the required dance moves. While enthusiastic, showing energy, and not moving much made him less dynamic. The judges, including Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, and Derek Hough, told him to put more energy into the routine and involvement in it. They asked him to let the rhythm and flow take over in the dance, which is eminent in the show for its dynamic performances.
With scores of 6, 5, and 5, the tallies were a sum of 16 out of 30, notwithstanding. While those scores are not the worst in the world, they ranked him only above Eric Roberts and his partner Britt Stewart on the leaderboard. In post-performance remarks, the judges told that he would have to do better if he was going to stick around. They said if he wanted to continue, he would have to work on his footwork and energy levels.
Anna Delvey says she'll take 'nothing' from her experience from 'DWTS'
After her elimination on 'Dancing With the Stars', Anna Delvey seemed utterly unsentimental about her entire experience on the show. Co-host Julianne Hough had inquired from her what she would take away from her time in the show. To this, Anna had candidly replied, "Nothing." Many people were surprised at this response, considering that her fellow contestant Tori Spelling had just spoken about her experience during her journey in the competition as "unbelievable."
Anna's apparent dislike of her experience was at odds with many other contestants' glowing comments, which included happy reminiscences and gratitude. Earlier in the episode, Anna shared that she's still hurt about the negative comments online following the season premiere. Her appearance on the show was already quite controversial, as she was a convicted con artist, further putting stress on her DWTS experience.
