Dancing with the Stars is an increasingly popular show on Disney+, Hulu, and ABC. I fell in love with this show last year, and I can’t get enough of it! The premise of Dancing with the Stars is that a celebrity learns how to do different styles of ballroom dance alongside their professional partner. They learn a new dance each week and are judged each Tuesday by Carrie Anne, Bruno, and Derek (plus a guest judge on occasion). Each week, a new couple gets eliminated (some nights there are no eliminations and some there are double eliminations) until a sole winner is revealed. The elimination process is determined by the judges’ scores and viewer votes. Naturally, I have my favorite couples that I vote for each week, and other couples I don’t vote for. Here is a list of my opinions on each couple this season in no particular order.
Jordan Chiles and Ezra Sosa
Starting off strong with Olympic gymnastics gold medalist Jordan Chiles along with her professional partner Ezra Sosa. Jordan started off rocky and stiff in the first week, but she progressively became better and more fluid as the weeks went on. My favorite part of their partnership is the comfortability that is shown. Partnerships can make or break the performance since they spend so much time together prepping and performing the dances. But these two are going far, hopefully to the finale!
Dylan Efron and Daniella Karagach
I never would have thought that Dylan was such a good dancer! He had such a challenge having Daniella as a partner because she is such a powerful and strong dancer, but he stepped up to the challenge and really became that ballroom, in-frame man he needed to be. He consistently gets better and better and I think he will make it to the finale, but only time will tell.
Elaine Hendrix and Alan Bersten
Elaine looks like the sweetest person ever! She is climbing that leaderboard and she puts so much energy and life into her dances. She had a bit of a setback with her injury to her ribs, but she still survived an elimination without her even being there!
Whitney Leavitt and Mark Ballas
Whitney leaves me speechless each and every time she dances. She has been at the top of the leaderboard consistently almost every week and she performs very complicated and intricate dances that leave everyone breathless. She does have prior dance experience though, so it’s a bit less of learning the dance but instead rekindling her love for dance.
Baron Davis and Britt Stewart (Eliminated Week 2)
I wasn’t able to see much of Baron Davis since he went home in the first round of eliminations, but from what I did see, I loved him! He may not have been the best dancer, but he had the biggest smile on his face. He looked so joyed to be on the stage and was taking it all in.
Alix Earle and Val Chmerkovskiy
I LOVE ALIX!! She is a quiet storm, but she is so powerful and her technique has been on point! I love watching her dance and I have found myself voting for her time and time again. She puts her all into each move of every dance and she just seems like a wonderful person to be around. If you get anything from this: I love her!!
Scott Hoying and Rylee Arnold (Eliminated Week 6)
This was the most surprising elimination thus far! I absolutely loved this partnership and I loved their vibes on the dance floor. My favorite dance of theirs was their Disney Night Salsa to “Bop to the Top” from High School Musical. Overall, I feel like they could have gone further, again, it really came down to the viewers’ votes.
Danielle Fishel and Pasha Pashkov
Danielle Fishel is such a sweet person! I love watching her dance and being so excited each week. She isn’t the best dancer, but she seems like an awesome person to be around and brings back so much nostalgia. You can bet she has my votes!
Jen Affleck and Jan Ravnik (Eliminated Week 7)
I really loved her competitive spirit on this show. I feel like her and Whitney Leavitt had a competition of sorts since they both came from the same show: Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. I wish that she could have gotten choreography that was a bit harder each week, but she performed each dance gracefully and expressively.
Corey Feldman and Jenna Johnson (Eliminated Week 2)
I also wasn’t able to see much of Corey Feldman since he also went home in the first round of eliminations, but he was very passionate about the dances and I loved the movies he starred in.
Lauren Jauregui and Brandon Armstrong (Eliminated Week 3)
Lauren Jauregui had great dancing abilities and I was very shocked by her elimination. I feel that she tried her best, but at the end of the day, it came up to the viewer votes, and she just didn’t get enough.
Andy Richter and Emma Slater
Every week everyone is surprised by Andy making it through to the next round, even Andy and Emma themselves. I find Andy absolutely adorable and hilarious on the dance floor. He puts his all into the dances; I think that we as viewers should keep him in the competition until the finale–maybe he will even win the mirrorball.
Hilaria Baldwin and Gleb Savchenko (Eliminated Week 4)
I wasn’t particularly shocked by this elimination because I feel like we didn’t get a huge breakthrough moment with her. I loved her choice for a Star Wars dance and how involved she was with her kids.
Robert Irwin and Witney Carson
Last but most definitely not least is Robert. He is my favorite celebrity on this show and I vote for him before he even dances. His best dance has to be his dedication dance to his mom. Robert left every single person sobbing, including myself. He is so excited and just purely happy to be on the dance floor, and it shows through his expressions. He was the best in the beginning, but he began to even out on the leaderboard, leaving room for a few couples to overcome him. He is still my favorite and I am hoping for a mirrorball trophy on his shelf!
