January Musings: Week 11

Here are my thoughts on the semi-final of Strictly Come Dancing.

At the time of writing this, I have not yet watched the final. I wanted to post my thoughts about the semi- first, so the final doesn't cloud my view when I write. I know that it's been a couple of weeks, and the debate must have died down now, but here's what I thought.

It was tough for Matt and Lilia to go first, especially with a foxtrot, which is a difficult dance. Matt coped well, and gave a strong performance. I liked it. It was simple, and Matt performed it well.

Their Argentine tango was also good. It was simplier than the other two couples' in my opinion. I thought the judges undermarked Matt and Llila. The dance was well-presented. Perhaps it was a bit "formal", as Len suggested, but I thought they did a good job.

It was tough for Emma and Darren to be the first to perform the Argentine tango first, but they nailed it. I think it was one of Emma's best dances. She looked totally in control. The routine was complex and intricate and they pulled it off. The couple were very in sync with each other.

Their salsa didn't live up to their Argentine tango. It was well performed routine, but Emma still lacks hip action, aside from in the places where it is obviously choregraphed. I don't expect her to have the hip action of the female pros, but I would expect more at this stage in the competition.

Mark and Karen put in a competent quickstep. It wasn't as electric as some quicksteps we've seen over the year, but it was solid and well-performed.

But they made up for everything with their Argentine tango. The only thing I didn't like about it was the music. Where the others had traditional tango music, Mark and Karen opted for Tina Turner's Goldeneye, which didn't work for me. That aside, their routine was excellent. The dance suited Mark perfectly, and Karen was wonderful to watch. It had all the passion and attitude that you need. It was great. And bless Karen for becoming emotional after the scores. It just shows the comittment the professionals make to the competition.

I think it was clear that Emma was not going to make it to the final, due to several weeks in the bottom two. In my opinion, Emma should have gone through, and Matt should have left.

Matt has had an incredible journey (yes, I used the 'j-word') and has improved leaps and bounds. But Emma is the stronger dancer and should have been the one to take on Mark in the final.

I can't wait to watch the final, but I can't help thinking that I already know who won. And that is the flaw with a two-couple final. There is the potential of it being a one-horse race. But then, as we saw last year, it's not over until the showdance.

Speaking of showdances, it was great to see Hanna Kartunnen back on the show. Her showdance with Victor Da Silva was showstopping.