The Geek Girl's Recap of 'DWTS' Season 27: Week 1

Dancing with the Stars graced fall’s primetime television again last Monday, September 24th as its 13 celebrities graced America’s ballroom for the first time this season. With the cumulation of viewer votes on Tuesday night, five dancing couples were chosen to dance a redemptive routine that improved upon their initial performances and possibly save one of them from elimination as online voting was reopened for a short time before the end of the show. Here is your Geek Girl’s commentary on performances and results from this week’s Dancing:

Monday Night-Dances

Cha-Cha: Mary and Sasha, Milo and Witney, Demarcus and Lindsay

Jive: Bobby and Sharna, Alexis and Alan, Tinashe and Brandon

Salsa: Pablo and Cheryl, Nikki and Gleb

Quickstep: Joe and Jenna, Nancy and Val

Foxtrot: Evanna and Keo, Danielle and Artem, John and Emma

Monday Night - Scores and Standings

• First place: Demarcus and Linsey, Tinashe and Brandon (23/30)
• Second place: Pablo and Cheryl (22/30)
• Third place: Alexis and Alan (21/30)

• Milo and Witney (20/30)
• Bobby and Sharna (20/30)
• Mary and Sasha (20/30)

• Evanna and Keo (18/30)
• Danielle and Artem (18/30)
• John and Emma (18/30)
• Nancy and Val (18/30)
• Nikki and Gleb (17/30)

• Joe and Jenna (14/30)

Geeking Out

The fact that an athlete and “pretty people” land in the top three likely makes general expectations easy to satisfy, if not for shallow reasons. The judges gave more praise than technical criticism to DeMarcus, Tinashe, Pablo, and Alexis, which could imply that they have more a natural or developed affinity for the details of dancing and performing. They set the bar for the leaderboard as well as themselves in the coming weeks they survive.

The viewers’ votes from Tuesday night on will challenge the typical assets of high school popularity, and even the notions that professional dancing/performing backgrounds are more likely to win or be safe from elimination.

If the leaderboard seems a little crowded right now, the reason is that a slim, one or two point difference in scores narrow the standings, and three solid contenders are that much shy of the top three. Which only adds to the surprise of unlikely dancer, Bobby Bones, landing within the fourth place mix. While his first dance, the jive, was critiqued as “surreal,” “exquisitely demented,” and rough around the edges,” the combination of the energetic dance style and a supposed rockstar persona gave the routine enough charm for the score. In addition, Bobby was praised for such a high-level of attack towards the dance, which likely sets the bar (or breaks the bar) to that aspect for shows to come.

Tuesday Night-Results

Called safe:

• Demarcus and Lindsay
• Tinashe and Brandon
• Joe and Jenna
• John and Emma
• Milo and Witney
• Evanna and Keo
• Bobby and Sharna

Called to dance again:

• Mary Lou and Sasha
• Danielle and Artem
• Nikki and Gleb
• Alexis and Alan
• Nancy and Val

Eliminated: Nikki and Gleb

Geeking Out

Third place scorers, Alexis and Alan, were among the jeopardized on Tuesday night while the lowest scorers, Joe and Jenna, were voted into safety; the show is no stranger to surprises, but the curveballs are flying in this first week! While I hate to think that the equation of hard work and talent equating to success might be a romanticized ideal, these results show who has the fanbases: Joe seems to have the “Bachelor/Bachelorette nation” of devotees despite needing the most work in dancing skills, and Alexis is likely recognized by a narrower demographic that lives on social media. But whoever is in her corner came through for her and Alan as she sees another week. Nikki was likely in the same narrow fanbase boat, even for her improvements.

What's Next?

Homages to New York City and Las Vegas will be the feature theme for next week’s shows. October 1st and 2nd: Same time, same channel, and story of full competition on Monday nights, followed by all voting methods opened until early the next day. Then I imagine Tuesday nights will be the same feature of redemptive dances for the jeopardized, with exclusive online voting for a limited time. This week’s shake-ups show just how much voting can make a difference to anyone’s progress. So, “Don’t moan if you don’t phone,” as head judge Len Goodman once said. Whoever you’re voting or watching for, my who’s who guide can help you brush up on the celebrity cast, then let me know your thoughts on Writer’s Block social media!