Dancing With the Stars Week 6 Recap: Did the Right Couple Go Home?
Dancing With the Stars might not be a scripted series, but it knows how to bring the drama — and just in time for May Sweeps!
Even though the Season 24 eliminations have been predictable thus far (Chris Kattan, we hardly knew you!), the ABC series closed out its sixth week with a doozy: After reuniting with her once-injured partner and landing the first perfect score of the season, Glee grad Heather Morris was sent home in a twist that earned massive boos from the crowd.
Sadly, our May Sweeps Scorecard doesn’t include unscripted shows — but if it did, we’d be carving out a special category for Reality TV Injustices.
RELATEDMay Sweeps/Finale Preview: Get 130+ Spoilers, Plus Exclusive Photos!
In addition to Heather’s near-flawless rumba, let’s recap other highlights of the evening, which found the contestants performing to songs made famous by boy bands and girl groups. (Hi, guest judge Nick Carter!)
BEST OF THE NIGHT
Heather Morris and pro Maks Chmerkovskiy (Rumba) — After forging a delightful dynamic with Maks’ understudy, Alan Bersten, Heather finally had her original partner returned to her on Monday — and their chemistry has never been more electric. From start to finish, Heather and Maks executed a rumba that was sultry (that slow split!), captivating (that red dress!) and, above all, fun to watch. (Who knew TLC’s “Waterfalls” was a fabulous soundtrack for ballroom dancing?) Though several couples have circled the elusive perfect score this season, the judges were right to save their first 40 for a routine as dazzling as this one. Judges’ Score: 40/40
MOST UNDERPRAISED
Nick Viall and pro Peta Murgatroyd (Jive) — When pitted against frontrunners like Heather Morris and Normani Kordei, it’s clear that Nick isn’t destined to be hoisting the Mirrorball a few weeks from now, and he may very well have plateaued when it comes to technical prowess. But DWTS has showcased jives in the past that were much, much worse than what Nick and Peta did on Monday. Though Nick does have a tendency to flail his arms around like spaghetti noodles, his footwork matched Peta’s in speed and accuracy every step of the way — and Bruno’s critique that it was a “jive with sunstroke” seemed too harsh for an above-average performance. Judges’ Score: 28/40
WORST OF THE NIGHT
David Ross and pro Lindsay Arnold (Argentine Tango) — From a purely technical standpoint, David’s performance was certainly the weakest, after one of the number’s most dramatic lifts almost ended with Lindsay face-planting on the ballroom floor. But the duo was also lacking a certain sensual chemistry that typically comes with every Argentine tango. David and Lindsay’s goofball dynamic is a joy to watch in rehearsal, but when the time came for them to bring passion and sexuality to a routine, they fell flat. Judges’ Score: 29/40
The eight remaining couples also split into teams for the season’s first group dance-off: Team Boy Band (Bonner, Rashad, David and Nick) earned 33 out of 40, while Team Girl Group (Simone, Heather, Normani and Nancy) scored 34 out of 40.
And now, the (baffling) results:
FOUR COUPLES IN JEOPARDY
Simone Biles and pro Sasha Farber
Nancy Kerrigan and pro Artem Chigvintsev
Heather Morris and pro Maks Chmerkovskiy
Normani Kordei and pro Val Chmerkovskiy
ELIMINATED
Heather Morris and pro Maks Chmerkovskiy
Your turn, Dancing fans! Did Heather and Maks deserve to be sent home? Hit the comments with your reactions to Monday’s shocking elimination.
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