So You Think You Can Dance: This Is It!

This week is the finale of So You Think You Can Dance, and from what I can uncover it’s also the first time that the finale contains six couples instead of four. I’m guessing Fox couldn’t get the timing quite right between Summer, the holidays, and the all important launching of American Idol next month. Tuesday night the final six danced their little hearts out, but my mind changed very little. The following is my ranking, from the ideal winner on down.

Kathryn – I’ve made no secret about her being my favorite for several weeks, and Tuesday night Nigel admitted to her being his favorite girl as well. Adam stated tonight that the show’s title should be changed to “The Rise of Kathryn.” She danced a Samba with Ryan and looked great doing it. To be honest, I’m not sure it would have gone down quite so well with a different partner. Her second dance had the audience and judges on their feet and both Mary and Adam in tears. The stars aligned in the partner arena again, and she drew both Jakob and a Contemporary piece. It was nothing short of mind-blowing and soul-ripping in all the best interpretations of those terms. Her third dance was a Hip Hop with Russell, and she was great. Really hit the whole thing hard, kept pace with Russell, and threw herself into the genre. That said, I don’t think this will ever be her best performance.

Jakob – I honestly don’t know what Jakob could do any better than he does, except figure out how to channel charisma. He began the night with an outstanding Broadway routine, hitting every move with perfection. The amount of performance in this piece, from both he and Ellenore, was impressive and right on. His second number was a Foxtrot with Ashleigh, which was pleasing but nothing to stand up and scream about. His last dance was the contemporary piece with Kathryn, the “game changer” according to Adam, and the performance of the night (maybe the season) for both of them.

Russell – Russell cannot take a wrong step as far as the judges are concerned. Even though I (as a person with no technical dance knowledge) had issues with at least one of his numbers tonight, the judges had nothing but accolades to heap upon him. And that’s okay. I would venture to say he’s probably the favorite male of all the judges. He is a good dancer and is blessed with all the charm and star quality that eludes poor Jakob. His first number was a Paso Doble with Ellenore in which he faded into the background while she toned down all her quirkiness and became downright sexy. Next, he and Ashleigh took on a contemporary piece that was lovely, sweet and well done. It was just…nowhere near the caliber of Jakob and Kathryn’s. His last number was the Hip Hop alongside Kathryn, and he shone in his element, bringing her along for the ride.

Ellenore – Ellenore really grew on me tonight, and showed me that she’s more than a slightly odd girl with crazy flexibility. I almost put her above Russell in my rankings. In fact, they are a dead tie for third best, in my opinion. Her Broadway routine was hot, she was sexy, and she and Jakob just nailed every move, every facial expression, every emotion that was asked of them. Like I said, in her Paso Doble with Russell, she sure stole the show. She danced with more maturity than I’ve seen out of her previously, she was smoldering hot, and she did much better than I expected her to do with this type of ballroom number. Her third dance, unfortunately, was an extremely disconnected Lyrical Jazz routine with Ryan. It left me feeling devoid of emotion instead of infused with it, which may have been the point but I didn’t like it.

Ashleigh – I can’t say I’m disappointed to see Ashleigh back, and she didn’t do anything wrong Tuesday night either. As with Jakob, though, she doesn’t have the fire or the ‘look at me!’ attitude of some of the others. She’s gorgeous, and her movement is beautiful, but I don’t watch her dance and go, WOW. Ashleigh began the night with the Foxtrot alongside Jakob, and this is essentially her specialty. She did a wonderful job and looked like she was gliding across the floor. Next was the Contemporary piece with Russell, and though the judges talked little about her, I actually spent most of the dance watching her and not him. Her body and movement is so pleasing to watch during those types of pieces. Last, we finally get to see her and Ryan dance together, and I admit I was disappointed that they drew a Contemporary piece instead of something in the Latin Ballroom genre. I would have liked to have seen them together in their element. Oh well. It was still sweet and tender, done as well as could be expected, and made them and probably a large portion of the audience break down.

Ryan – I’ve been trying to decide why Ryan is still on this show. Yes, he’s a good partner. Yes, he has a nice body. Yes, he and his wife have a cute little story and actually seem fond of one another. But…is he one of the best six dancers out of everyone they auditioned? It’s a moot point, I know, just wanted to throw it out there. Ryan landed one Ballroom routine tonight, the Samba with Kathyrn, and he looked comfortable in the routine. He is a great partner, always there, strong, ready to show off his woman. Without his help Kathryn might have been in trouble with this dance. His Lyrical Jazz routine, like I said, was emotionless and a bit awkward. He is very tall for a dancer, and in these types of routines (lots of jumping, up and down on the floor, etc) his body sometimes doesn’t behave quite right. The last dance though, was of course the one we’ve all been waiting for as he and Ashleigh took the stage together. The Contemporary routine held the same pitfalls for the tall guy as the Lyrical Jazz, but our eyes are riveted on the interaction between him and his wife so it’s harder to notice. It made me smile and tear up right along with them and the judges.

Finally it’s time to find out who America’s Best Dancer is. Well, not quite. First we sit through a two hour show of performances and chatter. The judges and choreographers who assisted with auditions all pick their favorite performances of the season to be recreated. I was actually looking forward to this, because there were some routines I absolutely loved from earlier on. I was disappointed. Instead of using it to pull the best performances of the season, they used it as an excuse to get everyone from the top 20 back on stage at least once. Oh well. Leona Lewis performed the theme song from Avatar, but after the episode of Bones two weeks ago nothing surprises me in the shameless plug category. Next was a performance by a dance crew called the Groovaloos, a hip hop crew that showed off some great moves. They were followed by Adam Lambert, which I enjoyed, and Jennifer Lopez. She was a bit ‘whatever’ for me. And I have no idea why she was on the show. Lewis (by attaching herself to Avatar) and Lambert (by participating in American Idol) have sold their souls to Fox Broadcasting and have no choice.

Results. I was right about the bottom three as Ryan, Ashleigh, and Ellenore went out in that order. Much to my chagrin, Kathryn went out in third, leaving Jakob and Russell competing for the title. And the winner of season six is…Russell Ferguson! He couldn’t believe it, and though I don’t necessarily think he was the best dancer he was a constant favorite on the show. It was a feel good moment as he thanked God, his family, his girlfriend, and the judges for believing in him. I enjoyed the season, all the dancers, and the general uplifting they gave me on a weekly basis. At this point I guess I’ll be suffering through months of American Idol before we can see more dancing.

For more information on the dances, music, and choreographers, click here.

For another opinion on this episode, check out A Winner is Crowned! by Inisia Lewis .

Season 6, Episodes 23 & 24:  The Top 6 Perform & Finale: Winner Announced (originally aired December 15 & 16, 2009)

For more on So You Think You Can Dance, click here.

Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 8/7c on Fox

Photographs courtesy of Fox and IMDbPro