Remember the elimination episode last week where Melinda was finally sent away? If you don’t, there’s another less deserved change they introduced for Season 7. This week each contestant will perform two dances – one with an Allstar, one with another contestant.

Sadly, there were no Alex performances tonight.  He wasn’t dancing due to an injury. Oh sweet Jesus, when Nigel said “ruptured Achilles tendon” it hurt my Achilles. This means he may have a season ending injury if not career ending (if not taken care of properly). He’ll be in the bottom three this week and if he cannot dance next week they’re booting him. Rules are excellent, aren’t they?

Onto the routines!

Lauren + Pasha = Cha cha

She looked like she was holding her own and not Melinda-ing the dance. It was a bit slow and her performance could have been stronger. The naked costume will get her votes as she is the remaining tease on the show, but I wanted her to stop staring at Pasha throughout the whole dance – and not try to stop herself from falling by reaching back for Pasha on a drop – which she wasn’t falling on anyway. A few awkward partner moves stood out (chucking her up in a pike? Whipping her around into the ending pose when she didn’t know what she was doing?) but I doubt her safety on the show just from this performance.

Lauren + Kent = Contemporary

Lauren put it best saying that her joy of being partnered with Kent was because she wanted to get “just one tween fan.” Ouch. These two do look the part of tween king and queen. The acoustic Howie Day ‘Collide’ background made their dance seem more innocent than passionate. Which was a good thing. Kent for once kept his mouth shut and Lauren wasn’t channeling Lolita. They had a lovely series on the floor that began with double axels and made my hip flexors hurt just watching them maintain a lift in their right legs. The scrim, back lighting, camera angles and use of music were all executed quite well. Lauren’s hot pink dress made me nauseous – but otherwise a simple routine that delivered a statement – both of these dancers deserve to be here next week. Adam Shankman hit it on the head calling the dance “too honest” in their performance. Oh, and did I mention that the dance ends with no music and them MAKING OUT!?!? This is my favorite contemporary dance of the season, and up there with the rest of the great contemporary pieces from SYTYCD. No surprise Travis Wall choreographed it.

Kent + Comfort = Hip hop

First Billy, then Alex, now Kent. It’s always a looser style of dance combined with one of the more refined dancers. Though I wasn’t confident Kent could do anything with hip-hop to compete with Billy and Alex, I became even less so within the first few seconds. His performance seemed feminine and they were not always synched. The judges didn’t recognize his lack of attitude, performance, and commitment to the dance. The song was subtle and the Kent smile crept out only a few times, but you did not see any transcending from Kent with this performance.

Robert + Katherine = Jazz

They were dressed like Barbie and Ken, completed with the packaging. It was all a bit creepy until they busted out of their boxes. They had rock solid side by side pirouettes leading into a nice throw. Creepiness ebbed, but sadly for Robert it then became the Katherine show. A few terrible camera angles later (what the hell producers?!) they turn on the creepy and re-enter their boxes. Conceptually this was cool, but I didn’t feel it. Thankfully, Robert’s hot which can carry dancers quite far in the competition. Oh, and he’s amazing in his element.

Robert + Ashley = Quick step

I must say these choreographers are choosing some songs I hate and songs that I love. The Atomic Fireballs being showcased in a quick strep seemed appropriate somehow (although Mia hated it). That piece of Ashley’s dress that attached itself to Robert early on was distracting, but their bigger problem was Robert looking controlled. His face seemed to be locked in a visage of fear for the majority of the dance. Ashley held her own but in this dance it’s difficult to impress the judges. They looked childish going from no movement to bopping around the stage at times, but other times their lifts and spins were fine. The judges liked Ashley way more than Robert.

Ashley + Dominic = Hip hop

They danced to the horrible Ludacris song ‘How Low’ but thankfully it was a remix.  Massively entertainingly ending by jumping off the stage and getting in the judges’ faces, but the hip hop choreography was not done any justice by Ashley’s performance. She seemed to be thinking one step ahead of every move. Did anybody else see the look on her face when Dominic faux-spanked her? Not that appropriate. She looked like a child….being spanked…in ninja bondage garb. With the hip hop and krump routines offered up in the past few weeks, this felt like regular old hip hop from SYTYCD. Watered down, not that effective, and with sporadic moments of synchronization. She’s excellent but this wasn’t her night. The judges disagreed, so place your bets on Ashley with caution.

Billy + Alison = Broadway

Alison injured her ribs during rehearsals and Season’s 4 Katie stepped in to partner with Billy. Aside from one weak throw from Billy, he was spot frickin’ on. The choreography allowed him to show more than just leaps. We did get our fair share of that, but also incredible isolation work – notably some direction changing from the hips down with the trunk solidly locked facing forward. It reminded me of a slide done in college marching bands where you cannot afford to twist your diaphragm. He also performed fantastically and luckily the song and performance should encourage viewers to vote. He danced to ‘Cats,’ not ‘Spring Awakening.’ The familiarity and darkness of the dance should help him out.

Jose + Lauren = Contemporary

I can’t recall anything fantastic about Jose in this dance. He was not the contemporary dancer to watch on the show. He did not transcend like Legacy and Russell used to – but he held his own. The dance featured Lauren’s ability and Jose’s strength…lucky for him the audience enjoys urban styles of dance and those that excel at them.

Jose + Billy = African Jazz

I could’ve done without Cat’s cackling laughter as she introduced the dance. I’m sure that’s the sound you hear before you die. Anyway, onto the routine! It was weird watching two men throw each other around the stage, considering how feminine Billy sometimes looks. The choreography wasn’t nearly as impressive as past African Jazz numbers. It fell flat for me. Nigel was whelmed, Mia appreciated it, Adam air humped Mia Cyrus once. Don’t think I’ve forgotten that TMZ moment – it cannot be unseen…

Adechike + Courtney = Jazz

This dance began slowly and built up nicely. There were few things to point out during the beginning. It was sultry and understated – the real control was shown as he rose up into what I thought was going to be a break-dance move, but instead dismounted from the bar prop. There were a few nice partner moments. I didn’t hate it, which is a good thing this far into the competition. Nigel liked it, Mia hated it, and Adam wanted more performance and connection with his partner. Cat actually cut off Adam and Nigel arguing over the routine – so if he’s in the bottom three, I highly doubt he’ll be going home.

Adechike + Alex? = Bollywood

Replacing the injured Alex was Marla, sister of the choreographer. Somehow Adechike looks like he belongs in Bollywood. The exuberance he brings to the performance is perfect for this style of dance (says the white girl with Eastern European blood). I’m not sure if his barrel turns were supposed to suck, but all those split leaps sure as hell made up for it. Nigel slams him for technique, Mia thought it wasn’t Indian enough and thought it was African, and Adam

Alex? + Anya = Fox trot

Nope. Alex is injured, this is not happening. I’m not sure I care because it was a fox trot.

I’m unsure who is going home tomorrow. It may be deserved by Jose, but that is unlikely.  Robert seems to lack viewer support, so my guess is that he may be leaving. Although if another girl goes home, I won’t be happy. See you tomorrow!