Dancing with the Stars Season 7

I've complained in the past that DWTS is too long - they take two hours to cover maybe 30 minutes of dancing. Well, last night I realized why they do that.

With thirteen competitors I must say that the ones in the middle (apart from Cloris) were hard to remember. Ted McGinley, Maurice Greene et al did just fine but I can only vaguely remember their performances and I think that might hurt them in the voting.

Judges' Scores:

Cody - 18
Rocco - 14
Toni - 22
Maurice - 18
Brooke - 23
Ted - 18
Lance - 22
Cloris - 16
Jeff - 12
Kim - 19
Susan - 15
Misty - 21
Warren - 22

My assessment:

Good: Lance Bass, Toni Braxton, Misty May-Treanor, Brooke Burke, Warren Sapp

Average: Cody Linley, Maurice Greene, Ted McGinley, Kim Kardashian

Bad: Cloris Leachman, Rocco DiSpirito, Jeff Ross, Susan Lucci

Quote of the night: "I've always wanted to be a toy boy" - Len Goodman as he eyed Cloris' cleavage.

Cloris Leachman steals the show on "Dancing"

The leaving celebrity had to wait until the end of the show before finding out they wouldn't be dancing again. In the case of Jeffrey Ross, he never really started to dance. Having said that he appeared to enjoy himself and will now be very busy writing lots of "eye" jokes, after Edyta poked him in the eye (accidently...alledgedly) and scratched his cornea.

Most of the celebrities danced better, getting over their opening night nerves. Unfortunately Cloris danced at the top of her game (she IS 82!) both nights so may be in line to leave. She obviously isn't the best dancer, but does bring some needed light relief.

Still good: Brooke Burke, Toni Braxton, Lance Bass, Warren Sapp, Misty May-Treanor

Improved: Rocco DiSpirito, Susan Lucci, Maurice Greene

Still average: Cody Linley, Ted McGinley, Kim Kardashian

Still 82: Cloris Leachman

The judges' scores:

Kim Kardashian - 18
Lance Bass - 21
Toni Braxton - 23
Brooke Burke - 26
Maurice Greene - 21
Cody Linley - 23
Susan Lucci - 22
Warren Sapp - 22
Misty May-Treanor - 21
Ted McGinley - 19
Cloris Leachman - 16
Rocco DiSpirito - 21

For Cloris not to be voted off she would need to get 13% more viewer votes than Kim Kardashian and 19% more than Ted. Go Clo!

Jeffrey Ross takes final bow after just one dance

Week, Cloris must have got at least 19% more view votes than Ted McGinley! It's a shame Ted went so early, I think he would have done well after he had settled his nerves.

It's going to be interesting to see how long Cloris lasts - she can't dance, so it's her humor that's going to keep her on the show. You can only flash Len so many times...

Ted McGinley mambos his way off "Dancing"

The second week, and the remaining celebrities are tired, emotional and just haven't had the time to practice properly...

Poor bunnies.

The judges did seen to score harder and Len particularly was a Mr Grumpy.

Warren Sapp's light is starting to shine and Brooke Burke is showing some amazing consistency.

Rocco and Kim can't dance, and Cloris isonly there because of her antics - take those away and you have someone who can dance very well for an 82 year-old.

To avoid getting voted off, Cloris needs to get 7% more viewer votes than Rocco and 13% more than Kim.

Doesn't look good for Rocco...although our poll overwhelmingly voted for Cloris to be voted off. We'll see!

Warren Sapp lands in 'Dancing' top two

After wasting 59 minutes of my life I discovered who had been voted off.

Kim Kardashian was sent packing with a low score, but more importantly, heavy criticism from the judges. Kim looked good on the dance floor...until she started to dance.

Joking aside she seems quite a nice person - I wish her well in her next reality show.

Our poll was way off - the majority had Cloris leaving. Will she go next week?

Kardashian couldn't keep up with "Dancing"

The quality of the dancing was much better than last week. Maurice markedly improved, Warren took to dancing romantically like a duck to water (a very large duck at that) and Brooke really started to show she is the one to beat.

At the other end Cloris was still Cloris and Rocco is looking rocky. I thought the judges were rather generous with Rocco, he still looks awkward and stiff.

The big news was, of course, Misty rupturing her Achilles. She is out of the competition and is getting surgery immediately. It wasn't clear whether someone would be voted off this week or they would carry the votes to next week. i suspect they are working out how they can drop Cloris - so look out for possible dirty tricks. (Is Dancing with the Stars Fixed?)

Cloris needs 25% more viewer votes than Rocco to be safe this week.

Misty heads home; Brooke shines on "Dancing"

I wasted 59 minutes of my life...and found out no one was going home!

I sorta expected it, but it did seem a bit of a waste of everybody's time and everybody's votes. What was the point of voting other than to show that Rocco got the least? He still stayed on the show! I think it would have been better if they had carried them over to next week But hey, that's TV! (I still think Dancing with the Stars is Fixed!)

The four to watch/beat are Brooke Burke, Warren Sapp (can you believe it??), Toni Braxton and Lance Bass. I think Lance and Lacey will settle down and show what they are made of.

We'll see next week! Go Clo!

Non-elimination night keeps Rocco "Dancing"

With last week's scores being added to this weeks, it gave Rocco DiSpirito the chance to avoid elimination. Unfortunately, for him, he still had to dance. With Cloris Leachman getting a 22 (!) it doesn't look good for Rocco who is tied with Cloris in total points. Cloris seems to score high with the viewers so Rocco will be heading back to the kitchen.

There were mixed performances overall with Lance and Lacey coming back strongly, Brooke losing points for too much "eroticism", Warren dancing disappointingly, Cody performing well through the whole dance and Susan Lucci starting to dance strongly.

Cloris' score of 22 came from good choreography that really showed what she can do. If she can repeat that week after week she could actually stick around even longer.

Here are the scores from week 4 (week 3 in parentheses):

Lance Bass & Lacey Schwimmer - 26 (22)
Toni Braxton & Alec Mazo - 22 (22)
Brooke Burke & Derek Hough - 26 (28)
Maurice Greene & Cheryl Burke - 20 (24)
Cody Linley & Julianne Hough - 23 (21)
Susan Lucci & Tony Dovolani - 24 (21)
Warren Sapp & Kym Johnson - 22 (25)
Cloris Leachman & Corky Ballas - 22! (16)
Rocco DiSpirito & Karina Smirnoff - 18 (20) Not looking good for Rocco!
Misty May-Treanor & Maksim Chmerkovskiy - retired with injury in week 3
Kim Kardashian & Mark Ballas - voted off in week 2
Ted McGinley & Inna Brayer - voted off in week 1
Jeffrey Ross & Edyta Sliwinska - voted off in week 1

Who knew? Cloris Leachman can dance!

As expected Rocco DiSpirito was voted off Dancing with the Stars in week 4.

He was living on borrowed time anyway, and the more dances he did, the more his sense of rhythm seemed to drain away. Nice chap, and he seemed to enjoy it which is the main point (oh, and to kick-start any career you may have).

Brooke and Warren still seem to be the leaders, and Lance has shown he can get on the judges right side.

Week 5? Clo to go?

Chef DiSpirito sambas off Dancing with the Stars

A series of dances that haven't been included before confused both the celebrities and the professionals. Although, being professionals, they all seemed to get over that hurdle.

There were some stand out performances - notably Maurice and Cody, who markedly improved their game. But then Brooke and Derek just stepped up their game and received the highest marks again!

I think it will be very interesting this week. The bottom four are Clo, Lance, Susan and Toni. I think it comes down to the size of their fan base and if they turn out. Clo is the obvious one to go (and 75% of you think she will) but don't be surprised if Lance or Toni get the heave-ho!

Cody hot on Brooke's 'Dancing' heels

With four celebrities very close at the bottom of the pack, it came down to who can get the voters out. And Toni Braxton lost.

I think she is probably better than Susan and Cloris, but she doesn't have the fan base. She obviously enjoyed the experience and is a lovely woman.

Our poll was totally wrong again. Is it only Cloris haters that visit this page? She is obviously the worst dancer, but it's not about the best dancer, it's about who the judges think is best and who the public vote for - not always the same!

Next week - time for Clo to go?

Toni Braxton takes her final 'Dancing' bow

Len had important globe trotting to do this week, so Michael Flatley took his place.

It was a mixed bag of performances tonight, with Cloris showing us her true ability (which isn't much), Lance Bass finally starting to come into his own and the first sign of cracks in Brooke Burke's armor.

Michael thought Brooke was fantastic and gave her a ten but Bruno and Carrie-Ann only gave an 8. Lance and Lacey got straight 9s with Lance showing his moves much more than previous weeks.

Cloris is significantly behind this week and the sympathy vote (or anarchist vote) really needs to come out for her. Having said that she needs to get about 10 percentage points more than Maurice Greene in the viewers vote to stay safe - not out of the question!

(Julianne Hough danced knowing she was to go into surgery on the Tuesday to have her appendix removed. If everything goes to plan, she will actually dance in week 7!)

Cloris Leachman gets a scolding on 'Dancing'

Well, Cloris' time was up. At least on DWTS - I think she's going to live forever.

I think she brought a much needed burst of energy to the show, and probably outstayed her welcome by a week or two.

My favorite parts were when she flashed Len, and whenever she talked to (or ignored) Samantha.

At the end she staged a sit-in on the dance floor - but she's bound to be back.

(By the way, what's with Michael Flatley's clenched fist? Is he threatening us? Is it a nervous tic?)

Our poll got it right this week! Who is next to go? Susan or Maurice?

Cloris Leachman's Time Runs Out

Brooke Burke got a ten from each judge this week - and her dress designer also got a ten for making sure she never fell out of it during this move!

It was (relatively) quiet and peaceful without Cloris this week as we got back to some hard-core ballroom dancing. As well as the individual dances there were two team dances - Brooke, Warren and Maurice in one, and Cody, Lance and Susan in the other.

The team score was added to the individual score.

As it turned out the first team scored 29 each, the second 21. This effectively means that one of Lance, Cody and Susan will go home. Susan has the lowest score but, of course, it all depends on the viewers - and I suspect she has a bit of a following.

Brooke really is dominating this season and it's hard to see who can beat her - unless she isn't popular with the viewers.

Brooke foxtrots to perfection on 'Dancing'

Susan Lucci was voted off this week.

Whilst the least able of the remaining dancers, I think it has been overlooked that she is 61. Priscilla Presley did marvelously last season, and Clo was a big hit this season (just dancing and prancing), and both of those fine individuals have made people forget how old Susan is. It's probably her diminutive size, and stupendous after-market body work that make her look ageless.

Over 80% of you picked her to leave - well done!

It's getting harder to choose who will go next!

It's back to daytime for 'Dancing's' Susan Lucci

Each of the couples had to do two dances this week and, to make it even more interesting, each celebrity had to do a solo of at least 15 seconds the in second dance.

Those 15 seconds were very long sometimes.

It's not that they were bad, it's that you could feel the self-consciousness coming off in waves from all the dancers - together with a whiff of embarrassment.

Having said that, no one messed it up and it brought a moment of distraction (well, Clo isn't here anymore, they needed to distract somehow).

Brooke continued her exceptional dominance and Warren had a nice comeback from last week.

The bottom three are Cody, Maurice and Lance. Given the scores are so close, it looks like Maurice is at risk, assuming he has the smallest fan base (but you never know!).

Warren Sapp dances his way to a comeback

Well we got it right - about half of you thought Maurice would be the one to go home this week.

I think he suffered a little from inconsistency - it was almost as though he had to start from scratch every week. Plus, I did think Cheryl was off a little this season. Is she getting bored? Was the criticism of her weight weighing on her mind? Hopefully she'll be back at full steam next time. And good luck to Maurice!

There are four left with Brooke looking the favorite - but who knows?

By the way - how dumb was Samantha's question to Cody? "Did you ever think about a year ago that you'd be dancing in front of millions of people with a half-naked - well, practically naked - woman on TV?" I thought Cody handled it well ("Well, I may have imagined it, but I didn't expect it.") but it was so cringe worthy!

Maurice runs out of gas on 'Dancing'

Well, the biggest shock of the night is that Brooke Burke only got a 21 in her first dance!

There were some errors, particularly near the end, that were uncharacteristic and showed she isn't a lock.

Indeed, Lance took the opportunity and produced two outstanding performances that put him well ahead on the night.

Cody looks to be the most at risk, although it does come down to fan bases, and Cody does have the most fanatic.

I actually think Brooke might be at risk. Warren is enjoying the support all football players seem to get and Lance is just too far ahead.

There could be a surprise this week!

Lance leads the ballroom on 'Dancing'

America went to sleep on Tuesday with the sound of millions of teenage (and younger) girls crying into their pillows.

Cody Linley was voted off Dancing with the Stars. W4ell, he may not have had the most fans, but they certainly were the most fanatical! It was great to see him grow over the weeks and really improve as a dancer and as a man (bit cheesy - sorry).

We're now left with three - Warren Sapp, Lance Bass and Brooke Burke. Who will win?

'Dancing' sends Cody back to 'Montana'

Three celebrities, six dances, 90 minutes to fill.

There have been so many off-stage interviews, recaps and amusing vignettes, I feel I have lived this season at least three times over. Nevertheless, we are at the final!

After 30 minutes of fluff (I won't bother recounting) the celebrities each did a samba in a sort of group dance. It was a group dance because they were all on the floor at the same time, but only one couple danced at a time apart from the last part.

The stars were actually pretty even in terms of dancing and the scores, with Brooke as (almost) always getting the biggest score.

Then there were the freestyle dances where the couples chose what they liked the best.

Brooke just blew the other two away. She and Derek did a jive to "You're the one that I want" which was universally admired by the judges.

The two guys did OK, but were suffering from the after-glow of Brooke's dance.

Brokke has a pretty significant lead for a score in the final. She has always been so far ahead, we've never really worried about her fan base in the past. The obvious fan base (men who have admired her prior work) are probably watching Monday Night Football so it's hard to characterize who will vote for her, but with a significant lead from the judges, can she be caught?

'Dancing' finale proves it: Judges want Brooke

Brooke Burke and Derek Hough have won Dancing with the Stars Season 7.

Brooke has dominated throughout, defying the conventional wisdom that models can't dance. She looks fabulous, dances wonderfully and has a really positive approach to life. Congratulations Brooke!

Warren Sapp was second - pretty good for someone who I didn't think should even be competing - just shows I don't know what I'm talking about!

And congratulations to Lance and Lacey for getting to the finals despite trying to do things differently.

It's been an interesting season - octogenarians flashing judges, Olympic champions snapping Achilles tendons, dancers being rushed to hospital and much more. Bring on season 8!!

"And the Dancing winner is..."