'Dancing With the Stars' results: Shock and awe

Nooo!!! In what was the first truly shocking elimination of the season, Olympic swimmer and personal favorite Natalie Coughlin was revealed to have the lowest total judges’ and viewers’ votes and was eliminated from the competition. And while her paso doble with partner Alec Mazo this week was not her strongest, one so-so dance performance certainly did not warrant this million-dollar mermaid’s premature exit from the season. I mean, come on — as an Olympian, Natalie should have at least made it to the medal round! And I don’t know what’s worse: the fact that the much-decorated swimmer — who, as Carrie Ann said, showed great amounts of flexibility, strength and grace — was ousted so early in the program, or that she was ushered off with a blaringly tactless version of Fats Domino’s “Ain’t That a Shame.” Oh, it hurts, America. It really hurts.

Natalie’s exit definitely put a sour note on an otherwise upbeat week. Even the filler-heavy results show was somewhat entertaining (well, at least until that unbelievable wah-wah downer at the end). We got an encore performance of Donny Osmond and Kym Johnson's Argentine tango. Kelly Osbourne revealed that she suffered a sprained foot after Monday night's performance, but she should be fine to perform next week. We got two performances by Grammy-winner Norah Jones. The first was her grooving single “It’s Gonna Be,” accompanied by two hipster dancers in black and their corpse brides. Next, Jones sang a pared-down version of her favorite “Come Away With Me,” accompanied by real-life marrieds Anna Trebunskaya and Jonathan Roberts (who, incidentally, used the single as their wedding song — sweet!).

Then there was the highly touted, rousing tribute to Michael Jackson, performed by our pros and sanctioned by siblings La Toya and Jermaine and mother Katherine Jackson (who were in attendance). Loved how all the pro guys wore shortish black pants, white socks and black loafers in honor of the King of Pop, though I would have preferred to hear Michael’s original music rather than the Harold Wheeler band. And just when I thought this performance was going to be limited to largely ballroom interpretations, the group got together to enact the famous “Thriller” dance at the end – by far the best part of the night. Anyone else get chills during this part of the routine? It was so fun that I rewound and watched it again and again.

But with the high of the tribute performance came the inevitable letdown, and with only eight points separating first and last place, someone was bound to get the short end of the dancing stick. There was even a clip that showed the stars talking about the stress of not knowing who would be the next to go. Only Michael Irvin seemed confident that he would make it through to the next week, which in my mind made him a surefire candidate for elimination. But the ex-NFL player and his newly brunette partner Anna Demidova were quickly ushered into the safety zone (maybe he should hold onto that nickel after all) – as were fellow low-scorers Louie Vito and Chelsie Hightower — leaving Melissa Joan Hart and Mark Ballas, Joanna Krupa and Derek Hough (back after his flu bout), Aaron Carter and Karina Smirnoff, and Natalie Coughlin and Alec Mazo in jeopardy.

And then it was down to just Aaron and Natalie. And while neither couple deserved to be there — “I’m not only surprised, I’m heartbroken,” said Len of the remaining two — I was sure that the younger Carter was going to be served his walking papers, given Aaron’s spotty voting record and prior stints under those deathly red lights (Karina even brought out her poopy face in anticipation). But alas, the dimpled Chlorine Queen was unceremoniously dropped into the elimination pool, and she appeared as though she was fighting back tears of disappointment at the announcement. Which is really a shame, because you could tell that she really wanted to remain in the competition. But to honk out a Fats Domino song about it? Please.

What did you think, dear reader? Were you as shocked as I was with the ouster, or did you think it was a fitting exit? What did you think of the Michael Jackson tribute?

—Allyssa Lee

Related:

'Dancing With the Stars': Hustle and 'fro

'Dancing With the Stars' results: Fight to the finish

Complete 'Dancing With the Stars' coverage on Show Tracker

Photo: Kym Johnson and Donny Osmond; Credit: ABC / Adam Larkey; Photo Natalie Coughlin and Alec Mazo; Credit: ABC / Craig Sjodin

Comments

[Sara]

I thought it missed something by not using Michael's music with his voice. I'm not sure what I was expecting but I felt a little disappointed. I also liked it but found that other than the last bit and a few moves inbetween it didn't feel like a Michael dance. My heart hurt for Michael's mom as you could see the sadness in her face and eyes, even in the midst of her smile. I wonder - did Michael's children get to watch the show?

RIP Michael - your family is in my prayers.

[Miffed]

Booting Natalie was soooo wrong! Even if the paso doble wasn't her best dance, she was still a much better dancer than Michael or Louie. In his post-dance comments, it even seemed like Louie was content to go if that fate awaited him. But no, Natalie, who really wanted to be there and had so much more potential--and was so much easier on the eye--got voted off.

[JBriggs]

It's ridiculous that Natalie Coughlin was eliminated while others are still in the competition. She was definitely one of the three best dancers of the group.

[sheryl]

I only watched the show to see the tribute. It made me tear up. I wonder if MJ knew how much he ment to the world. I still think he died from a broken heart.

[jasmak]

I think it was a great tribute. I would have loved to have heard Michael's music instead, but it was still good. And Thriller was AMAZING!

Vote for MICHAEL JACKSON for the American Music Awards. Michael is nominated for FIVE awards, but we must ALL VOTE for him to win. International can vote too! Vote NOW.

[Melissa]

LOVED the MJ tribute, although I was also a little disappointed at the live versions of his songs. But those dancers are fantastic. I feel bad for Natalie- she was a great contender and dancer; however, I think she lacked a little bit of personality that might have made her more popular wtih the viewers.

[Nina]

NOOOA!!! Natalie was my FAVORITE! : _ ( She did not deserve to go home! She is one of the best dancers, has a cute and modest personality and I think she was even prettier than the so-called sexy model, that I can't even remember her name. Speaking of that model, she is so skinny and frail, she doesn't have the strength to dance!

I almost don't want to watch now that she is gone! I still like Mya, but I liked Natalie better.

[Ed Shaw]

Michael Irvin over Natalie Coughlin?! DWTS will continue to have the problem of good dancers being booted off before inept or incompetent ones until the show changes the audience scoring system.

At least for the first half of the season, the viewers should vote for dancers they want OFF the show . Then, when the incompetent/inept dancers are presumably weeded out, the audience scoring can revert back to the current system for the season's second half.

However, ABC needs specific fan demographics, such as the NFL, even though dancers like Irvin are marginal at best, because it boosts network ratings. Consequently, ABC would be reluctant to institute an audience scoring system like the one I've suggested because they would not want the NFL dancer (or dancer from any other demographic category) exiting too soon, since it would likely cause viewers to cease watching the show.

Meanwhile, I'll not be viewing the show any further this season. I don't think Natalie could have beaten Mya in the end, but she should have gone a lot further - - possibly to the finals.

[Tez]

It was a great show of them paying tribute to Michael Jackson, the greatest entertainer in the world. You can get a great free collector item ebook of Michael when signing up to this MJ newsletter plus much more MJ goodies.

Check it out here:
http://michaeljackson-kingofpop.blinkweb.com

[Dan]

Natalie was definitely not one of the worst dancers; it's pretty lame. She did have trouble bringing much sexuality to the dances, despite being jaw-droppingly beautiful, but even so she was doing very well. I agree with the poster who said she was more attractive than the model, Joanna Krupa. Super hot. Which may have been her downfall; all those jealous female voters are usually extra hard on the prettiest contestants.

[Jacket66]

Favoritism is a part of life. The judges are wasting their time giving honest opinions of performances. The public vote should be encouraged to give a more considered opinion with regard to talent and improvement. Perhaps the judges opinion should carry more weight in the process like 60-40 or 70-30. Watching the really talented be eliminated takes from the competition and will eventually cause the ratings to drop. This show is fun to watch. Losing it to poor ratings will be a shame.

[Kathode]

I thought this week's results show was one of the best ever. I LOVED Jonathan and Anna's dance to "Come Away With Me". So gorgeous! I could watch that over and over again. I liked the pros' MJ tribute, too -- particularly the "Thriller" bit.

As for Natalie getting the boot... to be honest, I'm not surprised. I know she's much better than Michael and Louie, but she's also a little stiff, personality-wise. Michael and Louie at least seem to be enjoying themselves, whereas I always felt that Natalie was a little uptight. She seems to have little emotional range. This show (and dance in general) is not just about mastering the steps; it's about putting character and emotion into the performance and connecting with your partner. She and Alec, in my opinion, never really connected in any of their dances.

That said, I'd be willing to bet that Michael goes next. He and Anna are another pair that don't connect well. I have a feeling his over-confidence in the camera confessional will be his undoing. No one likes hubris.

And I predict that next week the judges (Len, especially) will return to their habit of awarding artificially low scores to the dancers they think should go. That's how Michael will leave. Now that a "shocker" elimination has happened, they'll tweak the circumstances to prevent another decent dancer from going home prematurely.

[Courtney]

I think the fact that either were in the bottom two is a total disgrace to the show itself. We all know that Louie (Chelsie Hightowers pro) should have went home weeks ago, as well as Michael Irvin. I honestly though that Mark DaCascos would have went home 2 weeks ago, but he REALLY stepped it up this week, so kudos to him, plus, Lacey Schwimmer is my IDOL. But anyways, with the double elimination coming up, i'm confident that Louie should go home as well as Michael Irvin.

On a personal note, i'm a Aaron Carter supporter all the way! Go Aaron and Karina!