Do we have the four best dancers in the semi-final? No. Was the semi-final exciting? Not really. But I think we have a clear winner based on last night's dances. In my opinion, anyway.
I'm not really sure what to make of Emma & Anton's cha cha. It was quite messy. It wasn't together. Her leg action wasn't great. The choreography was odd. It didn't move me at all. Which kind of sums up their partnership. I buy Emma as a performer, and she was certainly giving the performance in the cha cha, but I don't see any chemistry with Anton whatsoever. I'm baffled that they got this far. I suspect they spent more of their training time on the waltz.
The waltz was better, but again it wasn't quite there. Her footwork lacked heel leads in a few places. Her posture flagged in a few places so her bottom started to stick out. The standing spin looked as though he was dragging her around him and she was struggling to keep up. And of course, there were two big pivot sections, because that seems to be all Anton does these days. It was a nice dance, but it should have been so much sharper for a semi-final.
Kelvin & Oti's quickstep was an absolute joy. It was light and bright. They covered the floor, and never lost body contact. His timing was excellent. Everything was clean. The perfect quickstep. I loved it.
What I love about Kelvin, is how safe you feel watching him. He leads Oti in a way that the other remaining men do not. You always feel that he is in control of the routine. The paso was exactly like that. He lead Oti throughout. He was in control. His shaping and posture were great. He understands the music. Shame about the loss of balance at the end, but he was smart enough to lower his heels. A great job.
Chris & Karen's Viennese waltz didn't have a lot of waltz in it. Chris' steps are still too small, and you totally get the sense that Karen is leading the whole thing from the back. He looked like he was chasing her around on the standing spin (yes, we see that there's no flekerl!). His arms were bent into his waist and not extended from the shoulder. Chris has been fun to watch on other occasions, but this dance really exposed his weaknesses.
What Chris lacked in rumba technique, he made up for with storytelling. I loved the chemistry and the sadness of their routine. It was really believable. The dancing wasn't there, sadly. It lacked hip action. Again, he wasn't leading the dance. But it was still more enjoyable to watch than Emma's cha cha.
I loved the chemistry between Karim & Amy. Their Argentine tango was intense. It was the first time that their slight height difference stood out, though, which made it look as though Karim was slightly uncomfortable with her weight on him. Amy is tiny, but so is he. It just wasn't quite secure enough for me. It was a lovely routine, though, and made me crave more Argentine tangos. It's a shame this will be the last one.
Their American smooth reminded me so much of Stacey & Kevin's foxtrot, and it wasn't even to the same music. Weird. I thought it was sweet, it was clean. But I prefer a more Hollywood American smooth with a bit more pizzazz. This didn't really excite me in the same way as the Argentine tango did. And, as the judges noted, that last lift was a bit unsettling.
The best for me this week was easily Kelvin. His quickstep especially was outstanding.
Logic would say that Chris and Emma were the weakest and should be in the dance-off, but when did logic ever come in to it?
Worst case scenario would be a Kelvin vs Karim dance-off, but I can't see Kelvin not going though on the public vote. The public aren't that daft, are they?
There is only one winner for me now. This competition is Kelvin's to lose.
