There’s a surprise for those of you who haven’t been reading all the news stories about SYTYCD this week. One dancer was injured and one of the cast-offs will return to take that dancer’s place. But more importantly, there are all new pairings this week. It’s sure to be a shocker!

Cat’s hair looks normal and her dress is pretty. Finally. Only 9 dancers took the stage for the intros and Jessica came out to talk to Cat after they left. Jessica has broken ribs and the doctors won’t clear her to dance, so she must rest for 4 weeks. Comfort is going to take her place. In other news, the judges are no longer going to be making the cuts - from now on the votes are for individual dancers and the lowest vote getters are the ones who leave. And all the dancers will be dancing solos. By the way, the guest judge tonight is Lil’C. I’ll be interested to hear his comments.

On to the new pairings and some dancing!

Courtney and Joshua
Hip-hop choreographed by Dave Scott
Skippin’: Mario

So Courtney goes from one b-boy to another. An interesting routine. I’m not quite sure what to make of it, but it was fun. I think Joshua did well and Courtney did well. They definitely had chemistry, but I still miss her being with Gev. Lil’C said Joshua killed it and Courtney did good. Mary thought Joshua stole the show, but Courtney did a respectable job. Nigel said there was a lot of good dancing from Joshua and good character from Courtney, but her dancing wasn’t as good.

Chelsie dances to Pon de Replay by Rihanna.
Ballroom dancers don’t always do the best solos, but I think she had a nice routine and her dress was cute and added to the fun.

Kherington and Mark
Country Two-Step choreographed by Ronnie Debenedetta and Brandi Tobias
Kick Back: Ty England

I’m actually excited to see them together. I think they’ll be a great couple, but we shall see. And I’m also excited to see this style of dance as well. A lot of fun choreography and neat tricks. And lots of turns and spins. Some of the spins were not perfectly in unison, and I think their chemistry is not as good as it could be, but they look great together and I loved Kherington’s outfit. An enjoyable dance that had some great moments, but wasn’t as crisp as it could have been. Lil’C said it was a fun routine but they didn’t nail it for him. Mary said it was a tough routine and that Kherington’s arms were loose, but Mark was there for her. Nigel said it requires the partners to have complete faith in each other and that Kherington needed to let him lead her, but they didn’t give up and didn’t let the routine defeat them.

Gev dances to Hello Goodbye (Uncool) by Lupe Fiaso featuring Unkie.
Gev really has some amazing tricks and I enjoy watching him dance, although this felt just a bit frenetic.

Comfort and Twitch
Smooth Waltz choreographed by Hunter Johnson
Open Arms: Journey

I thought there were some really lovely lines in this dance and who would have thought that would come from two hip-hoppers? The standing lift was amazing, but there was really no chemistry beween them. I thought considering that they probably didn’t have as much time to work on this as the other couples, this was a pretty dance, but it was very tentative. Lil’C said they weren’t floating for him, but it was respectable. Mary said it was lacking power and the quality of movement was not there. Nigel didn’t believe the relationship between them.

Courtney dances to I Want You to Need Me by Celine Dion.
She danced well, but I didn’t particularly like how her routine fit with the music.

Katee and Will
Broadway choreographed by Tyce DiOrio
Sit Down You’re Rockin’ the Boat (Guys and Dolls): Sam Harris

I really did not care for the choreography at all. They danced what they were given very very well and I like them both, but I just didn’t like the dance. Lil’C said they were explosive in character and even more in the choreography and that it was buck. Mary said they pulled it off. Nigel said it was terrific.

Mark dances to Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen.
On the other hand, I think Mark’s choreography was great with the song choice. He is just so interesting to watch - you never know what he’s going to do and he dances with so much passion and joy.

Chelsie and Gev
Contemporary choreographed by Sonya Tayeh
These Arms of Mine: Otis Redding

She’s an interesting choreographer. At times it seemed like they were dancing two different routines and the choreography seemed a little too frenetic for the song, but I think they both attacked the routine and danced it well and they did have chemistry. I still am not a fan of this choreographer, though. Lil’C thought they really committed to the routine. Mary said she believed the chemistry. Nigel didn’t think Gev was completely behind the passionate side of it but he did think Chelsie was.

Comfort dances to Need a Boss by Shareefa featuring Ludacris.
I feel like Comfort’s solos are all pretty much the same and she does the same tricks over and over again, just to different music, so it was a bit boring for me.

Twitch dances to I Question Mark by Wade Robson.
I always love to watch Twitch dance and tonight was no exception!

Courtney and Joshua
Rumba choreographed by Jean-Marc Genereux
Hero: Enrique Iglesias

Joshua really has the hip action going on these Latin dances. And there was some smoking hot chemistry going on between them as well. My favorite dance of the night so far. Lil’C said it took his breath away. Mary said there were nuances in the hip rolls and they went beyond what most people do - subtle sexiness and that it was fantastic. Nigel said the routine fit their bodies so comfortably and that Joshua was butch. (Can I just tell you how much I love Joshua?)

Katee dances to This Woman’s Work (MTV Unplugged) by Maxwell.
She is really such a beautiful dancer - she just seems to float across the floor so effortlessly. Lovely to watch.

Kherington and Mark
Jazz choreographed by Tyce DiOrio
Canned Heat: Jamiroquai

They really look beautiful together, but unfortunately there’s not very much chemistry going on. I thought this was danced well and was a nice showcase for them, but I just didn’t get the feeling of connection between them. Lil’C said they maintained a nice balance and that Kherington had a great center nailing the turns. Mary said things were synchronized, moved across the floor, but it didn’t make her feel anything. (Exactly.) Nigel said it was like a driving test - he checked everything off and they passed the test but that was it - no heart and no passion and nothing outstanding.

Will dances to Dance with My Father by Luther Vandross.
He dances beautifully, but the solo didn’t really seem to go anywhere.

Comfort and Twitch
Hip-hop choreographed by Dave Scott
Forever: Chris Brown

This may be the first time we’ve had a hip-hop number with two hip-hop dancers. Unfortunately, the camera work on this was crap, so it was hard to tell how well they really danced it. I thought Twitch killed it, but I still don’t feel Comfort is really connecting with her partner. BUT, this was the best I’ve seen her dance. Lil’C thought it was “kinda buck” and that buck is when internal artistry meets physical expression. He said Twitch was the spitting image of Dave Scott and that was the best he’s seen Comfort do a hip-hop routine. Mary thought it was buck, too, and that Comfort is a fighter. Nigel said it didn’t look choreographed.

Kherington dances to Breakin’ Dishes by Rihanna.
A good, well-danced solo by a lovely dancer.

Katee and Will
Pas de Deux choreographed by Desmond Richardson and Dwight Rhoden
Imagine: David Archuleta

Wow. Just wow. I don’t think any other dancers could have pulled this choreography off. It was so demanding and brilliant and beautiful and they were just poetry in motion. It was simply stunning. Lil’C said they danced with so much commitment and passion and no one could not get that piece. Mary said it was exquisite and artistry in motion. Nigel said they were absolutely brilliant. (And yes there was a little mistake in one of the turns, but WHO CARES?)

Joshua dances to Jam by Michael Jackson.
I love Joshua SO much. And I loved his solo and the little chest pop at the end.

Chelsie and Gev
Jive choreographed by Jean-Marc Genereux
The House Is Rockin’: Brian Setzer

This may be my favorite Jive ever on this show. It was fast and furious and fun. Gev was actually reminding me a bit of Benji Schwimmer out there tonight. No, Gev wasn’t perfect in his technique, but he performed well, he was committed and Chelsie, of course, nailed it and compensated for any problems he had. I loved this routine! Lil’C said Chelsie outstepped Gev and that she led. Mary thought they did a terrific job, but agreed that Chelsie stole the show. Nigel said the energy levels were there and that Chelsie was outstanding, but they did a great job.

My couple ranking
Katee and Will (Pas de Deux)
Courtney and Joshua (Rumba)
Chelsie and Gev (Jive)
Comfort and Twitch (Hip-hop)
Chelsie and Gev (Contemporary)
Katee and Will (Broadway)
Kherington and Mark (Jazz)
Kherington and Mark (Country Two-Step)
Courtney and Joshua (Hip-hop)
Comfort and Twitch (Smooth Waltz)

My solo ranking
Katee
Twitch
Joshua
Gev
Will
Kherington
Mark
Chelsie
Courtney
Comfort

No matter who goes home tomorrow night, I’m going to cry. Well, maybe other than Comfort. But I really like all the rest of them a lot. So predictions for the bottom 2? I still think Comfort will be in the bottom 2 and I think Kherington will be there with her. As for the guys? Wow. That’s a toughie. Maybe Mark and Gev? I’m going to hate to see any of the guys go.