'Dancing With the Stars' recap: A 'Most Memorable' Evening

Tonight it's week three of "Dancing With the Stars," and it's the week when the dancers pick a song and dance that represents the most memorable time in their life. This is always the week when I'm super cynical going in, and then I end up crying like eight times throughout the night at the touching stories the stars tell. I am such a sap.

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First, a few housekeeping notes: Robin Roberts is a guest judge this week, which is kind of awesome. She looks fabulous, and I like her! 

Another note: Billy Dee Williams isn't dancing tonight! Very sad! He has a chronic back problem, and his doctor said that he can't dance. They had hoped to do a dance dedicated to his grandchildren, and though he couldn't dance, his grandkids did come out to see him! It was all very cute, but I'm sad that he wasn't able to dance and so has to withdraw from the competition.

Let's have a moment of silence for Lando. 

And now, away we go!

'Dancing With the Stars' - March Madness

First things first - surprise! Double elimination! Evil, "Dancing With the Stars." EVIL. Also, the double elimination could happen AT ANY TIME - they're sharing results throughout the show! Also, they are going to switch up the partners at some point.

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They're really trying to change the format this season, which is not a bad thing. It kind of keeps us on our toes, even though it's a little weird. It worked tonight, but I hope they don't do anything too crazy later in the season.

Anyway ... on to the recaps!

Dancing With the Stars: Back Again!

I almost didn't want to watch "Dancing With the Stars" this season. As much as I enjoy the craziness of watching D-List celebrities ballroom dance, I just wasn't sure I had time this year.

But, in the end, I couldn’t resist the siren song of glitter, sequins and pseudo-celebs. And so, Monday night, there I was, in front of the TV, watching “Dancing With the Stars.”

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This season we have a new cohost with Tom Bergeron, and a new band and musical director. And there are going to be guest judges later in the season. Who cares, though! But what draws me to DWTS is what draws everyone: the spectacle.

'Dancing With the Stars' recap: Journey's End

It seems like "Dancing With the Stars" just started, but now, the D-List Dance Competition O' Glitter is almost over. 

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But first, the couples have to perform three dances, including the fan-favorite freestyle dance!

Let's get down to it ... we have a lot of ground to cover and celebrities to watch dance!

Dancing With the Stars Recap: This Is It! Well, Almost.

The craziness of "Dancing With the Stars" is almost over, and tonight the dancers were competing for a spot in the finals. And they had to do it in front of Maksim Chmerkovskiy as a guest judge! 

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Tonight's trick was that they had to perform a different dance to a stripped-down version of the song they performed their first dance to. Interesting concept! Let's get right down to the dancing, though.

'Agents of SHIELD' - Keep The Faith!

I do not AT ALL envy the crew of "Agents of SHIELD."

The show had incredibly crazy, unrealistic expectations placed on it. Not only is it part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, one of the biggest phenomena currently making the pop culture rounds, but it also bears the name of Joss Whedon, the deserving king of a cult of slavishly devoted fans.

Between the awesomeness of the Marvel movies (especially last summer's "The Avengers") and the name of the man behind cult favorites "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and the short-lived "Firefly" attached to it, "Agents of SHIELD" premiered under a microscope, and it seems like every week there are more blog entries and articles about whether the show can make it, or if it's disappointing fans too much.

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But don't fear, fellow nerds - keep the faith, and I think "Agents of SHIELD" will pay off for us.

'Dancing With the Stars' Recap: Duos and Trios

There are only a couple more episodes of "Dancing With the Stars" which, let's face it, is kind of tragic. This has been a fun season with several very good dancers and several more that are just plain fun to watch. 

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Tonight's gimmick was that, in addition to a normal partner dance, the couples also got to perform a trio dance with an additional pro/troupe dancer. Fun times! Shall we get down to the recapping?

"Dancing With the Stars" recap: Sequins, Cher and a tango-dancing pimp

As if "Dancing With the Stars" needed more fabulous tackiness ... tonight, Cher was a guest-judge, as well as a performer. AND the stars danced to Cher songs! WHAT COULD BE BETTER THAN THAT?

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Anyway, it was a night of glitter and craziness, which is every night for Cher.

"Dancing With the Stars" recap: Drama, drama and more drama!

At this point in the "Dancing With the Stars" competition, things get dramatic, and that showed this week. Everybody's pre-dance package was full of controversy, injuries and, of course, tons of drama! That's what happens, I guess, when D-listers have been dancing for this many weeks in a row.

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So let's not wait another minute! Onto the DRAMA:

"Marvel's Agents of SHIELD" recap: "Girl in the Flower Dress"

After last week's great episode of "Marvel's Agents of SHIELD," which showed what the show could really be, I was looking forward to this week's episode more than I have since the pilot aired.

And, you know what? It didn't disappoint.

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This week, we were introduced to a new baddie, an annoying boyfriend and several overarching plot elements. Oh, and the Bracelets of Shame, but I'll get to that later.

'Dancing With the Stars' Week Six: Flailing D-Lister Crazy Dance Night O' Fun!

Whew! Competition is getting fierce on "Dancing With the Stars." Last week, a couple that received a 10 - from the very picky Len Goodman, no less - went home. We're not screwing around anymore. 

See? Not screwing around. No siree.

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OK, that's not true. "Dancing With the Stars" is always a little screwy. But it's halfway through the competition, and in addition to the first round of regular old dances there is a second round of IMPROVISED DANCES. They called it the Switchup Challenge. Four couples have to dance on the floor at one time, and the music keeps changing. They have to keep time and interpret the music, but they don't have to actually dance a certain dance. They get tapped out, and the longer they stay in, the more points they get.

Alrighty ... it's time for DANCING!!!!!!!!!!!!

Recap: "Agents of SHIELD" - Eye Spy

About halfway through Tuesday night's episode of "Agents of SHIELD," I turned to my husband and said, "This is easily the best episode of this show so far."

"Eye Spy" represents the episode that really showed the true potential of this show, and I am more excited than I've been since the pilot.

"This is my excited face."

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In "Eye Spy," Coulson and his crew faced off against a former SHIELD agent who disappeared after a supernatural-seeming diamond heist. It turned out there was more than meets the eye (HAR!) to her, and it was up to our team to trace the threat back to its source. 

And, fellow nerds? The episode worked, from beginning to end. 

Dancing With the Stars Week 5: Celebrity Sob-Fest

It's another week of "Dancing With the Stars!" And this week is the week when we got to hear all of the celebrity sob stories, because everybody danced a dance relating to their most memorable year. There will be lots of sweet, sweet celebrity tears.

Sorry, that's my cynical side again. I have actually historically liked this week of dances, because it humanizes the celebrities and they tend to put a lot into these dances. I'm just sad that several of my favorites from this season are already gone, because I would have loved to have seen what they would have done.

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Alas. Here are what the surviving D-listers did tonight:

"Marvel Agents of SHIELD" Recap: "The Asset"

After a slightly underwhelming second episode of "Agents of SHIELD," Coulson & Friends were back in fine form for episode 3, "The Asset."

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This episode was another "Problem of the Week" episode, as I assume most of them will be, but, like the first episode, there was an actual person involved along with a weird & wacky piece of technology. I think that is what is really going to work for this show - not just hunting down weapons and weird objects, but facing off against real people.

TV Snap Judgment: Super Fun Night

I really wanted to love "Super Fun Night," ABC's new sitcom created, written by and starring Rebel Wilson.

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Ugh, but I really didn't love it. In fact, I kind of hated the whole experience of watching it.

Dancing With the Stars Week 4: The Prodigal Daughter Returns (As A Judge)

It seems like only a week ago we were saying goodbye to Bill Nye the Science Guy, but despite my deep disappointment that my favorite goofy-uncle contestant was gone too soon, I'm a professional and must soldier on in my recapping of The Glitteriest Show on Network Television. (There are much glitterier shows on basic cable, of course.) 

Tonight, Len Goodman was gone (probably off shaking a cane at whippersnappers on his lawn - if they told us why he was actually gone, I missed it, because I don't listen to all of the blather before the dancing) and in his place to judge was Julianne Hough, a former DWTS pro. 

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At first I was a little upset by this (as upset as I get over "Dancing With the Stars," anyway), since Julianne's brother, Derek Hough, is a pro (paired with Amber Riley), and she and Derek lived and trained with another DWTS pro, Mark Ballas (who is paired with Christina Milian this season) when they were kids. Then I remembered that the scores mean jack crap on this show and figured it was probably OK that she was judging. Plus, as Kel pointed out, the world of ballroom dance is small and full of people who know each other and trained together. Also, it turned out that she was a pretty good judge, with lots of constructive criticism and no apparent favoritism except for Brant when he took his shirt off. Thumbs up, Julianne!

So, here's what happened:

"Marvel's Agents of SHIELD" review: "0-8-4"

I wasn't going to recap "Marvel's Agents of SHIELD," but, darn it, I have opinions after watching the second episode!

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"0-8-4" didn't quite live up to last week's premiere, but despite several issues that I hope they get under control soon, I was overall pleased with the second episode.

Dancing With the Stars Week 3: Hollywood Glamour & Goofiness

Once again, it's Monday, which means, once again, it's time for "Dancing With the D-List," where everything's made up and the points don't matter! 

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Oh, I'm just being sarcastic. I love our weekly foray into the world of sparkly insanity on the dance floor. And this week, it's Hollywood night, where movie stars are honored (since none of the titular stars are "movie stars," strictly speaking). Let's get down to business!

TV Snap Judgment: Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Tuesday night was the premiere of the show I was most excited about among all the great-looking new shows premiering this fall.

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Yep, I, and millions of other nerdlings around America, finally got to see the first episode of "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.," and you know the best thing about it? It lived up to the hype!

"Dancing With the Stars" Week 2: Jump, Jive and Rhumba

It's time for another week of "Dancing With the Stars," that wacky, sparkly celebration of D-list celebrities on the dance floor! This week, it had the added bonus that someone was eliminated! Let's get to it.

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