Dark Books
It's so true, too. Darkness, for better and worse, has more depth than light, mainly because we want to understand evil, whereas we just flat-out accept good. I'm waiting to see a writer flip that upside-down and begin an investigation of the mental illness known as "philanthropy."

Is it just me, or has Neil gotten noticeably *better* since his season? I'll bet Sonya was chomping at the bit for the chance to work with him, too. That dude is lighter than air.

I bet you D-Trix would love that, too. That's right up there with his fantasy of *actually* getting her in a tub of Neapolitan. I can't wait to see how creepy it gets this season!

Fun Show!
Tonight, it was a little hard to know who to watch, but once it's down to one all-star and one contestant, it'll be much better. Also, I loved seeing choreographers work with threes: that ballroom and contemporary routine were outstanding.

I can forgive it because they're just trying to sell the narrative of "Look at how out-of-the-wild-blue-yonder this kid is!" For a show that's largely about growth, it's a real asset to have a kid who isn't used to city life and show business.

By the way, are there any legal ways for me to watch the Canadian or British versions of the show and/or are there any other versions worth watching?

Perhaps that's why Mary Murphy is no longer a permanent fixture on the panel? Well, if this is a season of change, all the more reason for them to slash down to two ballroom numbers a night, and to focus on the fast, sexy ones rather than the slower, more elegant ones. I would not be opposed to this change—especially…

1) We tend to forget most of the ballroom numbers.
2) Given how many styles fall under "Ballroom" you may not realize just how much is grouped under that category each week.
3) Even without adding Disco (I compromised by just including Jive), you'll see that 30-40% of each episode is ballroom—and Pasha and Anya make…

Yeah, that solo was filled with musicality, to the point that I actually forgot that she was the flirty one. If she can make us pay attention to her moves more than her obvious sex appeal, then she's got a lot going for her.

Fair enough; it's been a while since I've seen Pasha or Anya dance. But even if they're masters of any type of Ballroom style, if they're the only experts, then are they each going to dance three times every night? Or are they just going to cut back and do a maximum of two ballroom numbers a night?

Wojo, throw in Lil C saying "Dat's buuuuuuuuuck" and then scrunching up and leaning in to give people his awkward hugs, and you've got an Emmy.

If memory serves, Pasha and Anya weren't all that good at Quick Step or Foxtrot, though I suppose they've probably learned a great deal since they were on the show — and have probably been trained even further by the producers/choreographers prior to signing a contract to become an "all-star."

It occurs to me, though, that the more long-time fans of SYTYCD like us despite the new changes but keep on watching anyway, the better the odds are of SYTYCD getting new audiences and viewers on board. After all, these changes have to be doing something for their ratings, otherwise they'd stop. I honestly don't think…

That's no different from pairing Alex with a new dancer who people just don't like. I think they're hoping that this allows individuals to shine from the beginning, instead of having charismatic people drag less lively partners through the mix. I think they're also hoping it allows the choreographers to push the…

Three: ballroom, hip-hop, and tap. I can understand skewing toward contemporary, especially *young* contemporary dancers, since they tend to grow the most, but it's surprising that they didn't try to use that 11th slot to balance the field a little more. I'm also surprised to see Robert and not Anthony, though it…

Lucky Eleven!
I'm glad they cheated, but surprised they cheated to squeeze in more contemporary dancers. I hope this gives them an extra week of competitions, and that they don't have to do a double elimination first.

Hell, Starz likes to kill things off, too. Just look at the way plot is developed on Spartacus and how the cast keeps dwindling on Party Down (admittedly, that's not their fault). I haven't seen Crash or Gravity, but considering what they're about, I assume similar things happen. In that perspective, Torchwood may be…

Don't Cover This Show
Remember what Noel Murray said when choosing to discontinue his coverage of "Lie to Me"? (http://www.avclub.com/artic… Unless you really think that you're going to find something worth digging into each week—and perhaps Nix's personally fetishized nostalgia is enough for you and some of the more…

I'm sorry. It would just kill me to see "The Good Guys" make it as a series, especially after far superior shows like "The Unusuals" were so hastily shuffled off this television coil.

I can't watch DWTS. I tried, because I love Chelsea Hightower and Lacey Schwimmer, but I can only look at a train-wreck for so long. Instead, I rely on friends to tell me when there's been a professional number that I can just YouTube.