"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.

(Photo Credit)

• Elizabeth Berkley & Val Chmerkovskiy started the show out with a sexy samba. Elizabeth looks very Jennifer Lopez tonight in a red dress with her hair pulled back. I loved her look! She and Val can really move, and have a lot of great moves going on tonight. I felt like her dance was very technically nice, but I didn't feel super in love with it. I felt like there was a little bit of lack of connection between Elizabeth and Val, unfortunately. The judges, however, loved it. They were very impressed with the way she moved and her dance steps, although the judges said she had a few technical problems. Scores: CA: 8; L: 9; B: 8. Total: 25.
• Christina Milian & Mark Ballas were next with a paso doble. It was a super pop version of a paso, though - not a traditional paso song at all. However, they actually had a lot of great paso action and it was really a total paso doble. I really love the edginess of the dance, and I think they performed very well! Christina had oodles of confidence and intensity this week, unlike last week when she was a little underpowered. All of the judges were very impressed, even Len, who doesn't always love contemporary versions of dances. It had enough paso in it to impress even grumpy Len. Scores: CA: 9; L: 8; B: 8. Total: 25.
• Bill Engvall & Emma Slater danced a jive next. Bill really isn't loose enough to dance a jive, and so he kind of looks like a dorky uncle at a wedding again. However, there were moments of really great dancing there. A few times, he really relaxed a bit, though, and he actually seemed like he could really dance. Other times, though, his feet were a big ol' mess. Better than all of that, though, it was an incredibly fun dance, and Bill looked like he was having a wonderful time. The judges said they really enjoyed the dance, and were impressed that he was out there "giving it a go," as Len said. They said they really appreciated the performance aspect of the dance. Scores: CA: 7; L: 7; B: 7. Total: 21. 
• Jack Osbourne & Cheryl Burke were up next with a rhumba. Jack showed a lot of passion, musicality and grace in the dance. He seemed pretty nervous in the package showing his rehearsals, but once he got out on the floor, he reall looked comfortable and did a really wonderful job. I was also very happy to see that he was really connecting with Cheryl this week, and he also did a better job with getting his full extensions on his arms and legs. Jack is, again, very charming, and I think he's one of my favorite dancers this year. The judges were very happy. They were very taken with his wonderful presence on the dance floor. Scores: CA: 8; L: 8; B: 8. Total: 24. 
• Keyshawn Johnson & Sharna Burgess danced a samba. Keyshawn just seems very flaiy with his arms and he's surprisingly stiff when he dances, although occasionally he does loosen up his hips and do a good job. He doesn't have the wonderful moves like some other athletes on "Dancing With the Stars" have had. Instead, he's a little ploddy and spends a lot of time letting his partner dance around him. I think he improved a little bit from last week, though, and he did seem like he was really trying. The judges were glad he went for it this week, but they thought he seemed like he was a little overwhelmed. However, I will say that Keyshawn is super charming in his interviews and interaction with the judges! He grew on me a bit this week! Scores: CA: 6; L: 6; B: 6. Total: 18.
• Snooki & Sasha Farber were up next with a rhumba. Snooki really did a great job! She and Sasha had a great connection, and she really knows how to move. I felt like she really got into the dance, and she had a lot of really nice moves. It was a little choppy a few times, and I felt like sometimes she was going through poses instead of really letting the dance flow, but I think she did a really wonderful job overall! She looked very pretty and I did enjoy her dance. The judges didn't feel like there was a lot of fluidity and emotion, but the did think it was very neat and clear with some very nice moves. Also, Carrie Ann dinged them for having a lift in their dance, which is not allowed in a rhumba. Scores: CA: 6; L: 7; B: 7. Total: 20.
• Leah Remini & Tony Dovolani danced a samba next. She has a lot of personality, which is wonderful. She isn't the best dancer ever, and I felt like a lot of her moves were a little sluggish. In fact, sluggish is the way I would describe her dancing - she just didn't feel like she had a ton of energy and pep to her dance. However, I thought she had a good attitude and she looked like she was having fun dancing around in her frilly, sparkly pink dress. The judges really thought she had a lot of fire, but I just didn't quite see the same exciting dance as they did. Scores: CA: 8; L: 8; B: 8. Total: 24.
• Bill Nye the Science Guy & Tyne Stecklein were up next with a paso doble. Bill Nye is just a lot of fun to watch! He doesn't have a ton of moves, but he is one of those people who really goes out there on the dance floor and gives it his all, even though he looks kind of crazy. He really worked hard this week, and it was obvious. Bill is really one of my favorites. The judges were glad that he worked with what he had, although his feet were a mess again this week. The judges were glad for his commitment and his fun, and Len said he was glad that Bill is on the show. Scores: CA: 6; L: 5; B: 6. Total: 17. 
• Corbin Bleu & Karina Smirnoff then danced a jive, which paid homage to "High School Musical." Corbin is a great dancer, and their jive was peppy, cute and hilarious. I really enjoyed the energy, the performance and, yes, the wonderful "High School Musical"-esque vibe to it (I love "High School Musical" - I can't help myself!). The judges really enjoyed the dance, and although Len had a couple of tiny complaints, they just loved watching him dance! Scores: CA: 9; L: 8; B: 9. Total: 26.
• Valerie Harper & Tristan MacManus were up next with a paso doble. She is just so full of life and light, it doesn't even freaking matter how she dances. She does a great job, yes, but she's just super wonderful to watch! Her moves weren't perfect, and she was a little bit slow on her feet - not only is she in her 70s with terminal cancer, but she also has a strained knee! And yet, she was just a lot of fun to watch. The judges really liked her commitment and bravery, although they did think she was a little bit underconfident and nervous with a few mistakes. Overall, though, they liked her. Scores: CA: 6; L: 6; B: 7. Total: 19.
• Brant Daugherty & Peta Murgatroyd danced a rhumba next. I liked Brant better this week . I felt like he actually had some emotion this week, although he is still a little dull. His dancing was OK, although I think his dance was a little bit light on the dance moves overall. It was a decent dance, though, and I didn't find Brant as boring as I did the first week. The judges thought it was a sexy dance, and that he did a good job, although he still needs to work on his footwork. Len wasn't as impressed. (Ah, Cranky Len is back. I've missed him!) Scores: CA: 8; L: 7; B: 8. Total: 23.
• Amber Riley & Derek Hough finished up the night's dances with the jive. I felt for Amber, because she was worried about jive because of her big boobs, but she semmed to have some good support garments on because she wasn't too bouncy at all! Her dance was great. It wasn't quite as impressive as her first week dance, which was extremelyl impressive, but that girl just knows how to dance. I think she was back on her heels too much, though - jive is supposed to be on your toes! Still, her wonderful personality came through and overall it was a really fun dance! The judges noted the technical difficulties, like her flat-footed dancing, but they loved her bubbliness and irresistable personality. Scores: CA: 8; L: 8; B; 8. Total: 24.

And then it was time for the first elimination, which combined the judges scores from two weeks and votes from last week. First of all, I have to say, I love this format, because the elimination goes much faster than when it was on an hour-long show full of fluff. It's much less irritating to watch!! (Though it is a bit annoying still!)

After declaring most of the couples safe, the bottom three couples were Elizabeth & Val, Keyshawn & Sharna and Bill & Emma. After a quick commercial break, we found out that Keyshawn & Sharna were going home. I'm not surprised. While Keyshawn was pretty charming on Monday night's show, he just didn't quite have the pizazz that was needed to really succeed on the show. 

As for next week, I am hoping that Mr. Cannon Fodder Brant goes home, because after that it's going to start getting harder very, very fast to decide who to eliminate. I like a lot of the contestants, and while I hope that good dancers get to stay on for a while, I hope that the more fun, worse dancers (like Bill Nye the Science Guy!) get several more weeks of fun dances before going home.