Well tonight was the Semi-Finals on Dancing with the Stars and I’m happy to say that I actually got to watch the performances live this week (not later in the week on the DVR) so this week I am back to tell you my 2 cents on each of the dances.

Jason & Edyta

I thought their fox trot was elegant and poised. Jason has become so fun to watch. It is true entertainment and when I watch him, I wish I could learn to ballroom dance and be on a dance floor – he makes it look so fun. The judges gave him a 9, 10, and 9 on this dance.

Their second dance was the paso doble. This was a true joy to watch in my opinion. It seemed so much more formal that their last attempt at the paso doble, and I liked that. Last time it seemed as though they just wanted to make the dance look like Jason. This time I thought it looked like Jason learned the dance! He was still dominant and the tough football player though. Go Jason! This dance scored Jason and Edyta 3 nines for a total of 55 for the night.

Marissa & Tony

Marissa & Tony’s first dance was the quick step which I thought was the perfect dance for her as it’s light and upbeat which fits Marissa’s personality. She was every bit the part too. She has come such a long way from the first couple shows that you really want to pull for her, but when it comes down to it, she’s just not as strong a dancer as the remaining three celebrities (in my opinion). For this dance the judges gave her a 9, 9, and 8.

This couple’s second dance was the rhomba, and while I thought the first dance fit them so perfectly, I thought this second dance was the exact opposite. I thought it was almost totally against Marissa’s personality. I thought the music and steps seemed like a hot, sexy, steamy dance, but then the steam just wasn’t there for me. The couple seemed more “friend-like” than “lover like.” Again, Marissa has come so far and overcome so many of her initial emotional dilemmas that I love to watch her, but I think she is now outmatched. Their scores on this dance were an 8, 9, and 9 (she was the only dancer all night to score an 8, and she received 2 of them). Marissa and Tony’s final score for the night was a 52.

Cristian & Cheryl

Cristian and Cheryl started the night with the viennese waltz, and boy was it impressive. I was really concerned about Cristian after watching the warm up video. He seemed so stressed that I was worried he would totally blow it, but Cheryl came up with a great way to relax him while they went out and met the fans on the street, and it must have worked. This waltz was super. I have to admit to not really caring for Cristian at the beginning. I didn’t necessarily dislike him, but I was sort of indifferent I guess, but he now has so much charisma, and he’s so fun to watch (oh! and did I mention, that he’s hot, hot, hot!), that I think him worthy of being in the finals next week.  I think one of the judges (sorry! I can’t remember who) really nailed it on the head when the commented that Cristian’s arm injury really seemed to put a fire and motivation in him on the dance floor, and it has paid off.  Cristian and Cheryl received 3 nines for the viennese waltz.

For their second dance, Cristian and Cheryl had to redo the Samba. This was the dance that had Cristian so worried, but when he came out on that dance floor, there were no signs of the worry.  He seems so focused, so sexy and really amazing.  I really think we’ve seen one of Cheryl’s best jobs so far in the improvements Cristian has made this season.  And I loved the quote by Len after this dance that Cristian was “hotter than a chili pepper.” For this dance, the couple scored 10, 9, 10 bringing their grand total to a 56.

Kristi & Mark

And finally, our season leaders Kristi and Mark. For their first dance, they danced the tango. I’ve been a big Kristi fan from the beginning, I honestly think she’s the best ballroom dancer of all the celebrities. She’s been able to master the technicalities of every dance they’ve thrown at her. The weakness in her I’ve seen from time to time though is that while she has the technicalities down, she lacks in the feelings and emotions. Tonight though in her tango, everything seemed to fall into place. She truly seemed to take on the persona of the dance, and it paid off for her as she scored a 10, 9, 10.

For their second dance of the night, Kristi and Mark had to perform the Jive. They admitted to being slightly nervous about this dance because they had scored 3 ten’s with it previously. In an attempt to still awe the judges, Mark choreographed a very difficult jive, and in my opinion, Kristi nailed it.  The judges saw a few flaws, but overall I think she managed to tackle the most difficult dance of the night. For this dance, their scores were 9, 9, 10 giving our leaders a total of 57.

So the final standings of the night are:

Kristi and Mark – 57
Cristian and Cheryl – 56
Jason and Edyta – 55
Marissa and Tony – 52

I’m still not sure of who I want to win this one, but I do think that the bottom standing is correct and that it’s time for Marissa to bow out of this competition. I think Kristi and Mark are definitly the best couple as far as technical dancing goes, but I think Cristian and Jason both put on such great performances – they are good solid dancers and their personalities are amazing. If either of these three couples win, I will not be disappointed.