‘So You Think You Can Dance’: The favorites pull ahead

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Mary Murphy unwittingly jinxed half the dancers last night when she said how there were no particular favorites this season, that all the best dancers were grouped together. By the end of the night, however, the ‘couples to beat’ were clearly defined. They are:

--Twitch Boss and Kherington Payne: Kherington perhaps benefits some from being paired with Twitch, who has been a fan and judge favorite since the beginning of the season. He seems like the cool guy everyone wants to be friends with: smart and charming without trying too hard, plus, of course, he’s got incredible moves and versatility. Kherington, also a good dancer, has actually been taken to task by Mia Michaels for her adorableness and megawatt smile, so being paired with the more droll Twitch seems to have worked in her favor. The two have received great comments from the judges each week -- they loved the hip hop jail-break routine the duo performed last night (although, at least at home, it seemed more antic and comic than hard-hitting).

--Mark Kanemura and Chelsie Hightower: Lyrical hip hop seems to be an excellent card for dancers to draw: the first week of performances, Joshua and Katee impressed the judges with their story about a soldier leaving for Iraq, and last night the judges and crowd went wild for Mark and Chelsie’s dance about a man married to his job. Not only are Mark and Chelsie a fun, great-looking duo with great dance skills, from week to week they seem adept at putting on different personas, as individuals and as a couple.

--Katee Shean and Joshua Allen: This duo is in danger of wandering into ‘the David Archuleta modesty zone’, because it’s obvious that there is very little this contemporary and hip hop dancer can’t take on despite their claims of trepidation. Broadway? Samba? Hip Hop? No problem. And there’s something about the pair of them that seems very approachable and real, like they’re kids you knew once in high school. It’s dancers such as these two that make ‘SYTYCD’ a terrible show for multitaskers because viewers are forced to put down whatever it is they’re working on and pay complete attention.

A couple that is pulling up though is Gev Manoukian and Courtney Galiano, who have been receiving increasingly favorable remarks from the judges week to week, with last night’s rumba being no exception. They’re an adorable duo, and Gev’s admiration for Courtney is obvious (his ‘secret’ about her is that she worked at a special-needs school), so they’re fun to watch not only as dancers, but also as a pairing. And though Kortni Lind and Matt Dorame still receive a little critique from week to week (mostly to Matt on his stiffness), they’re a team that seems ready to blossom, especially after last night’s spritely, strange and irresistible comic book contemporary routine by new choreographer Sonya Tayeh.

Unfortunately, some couples can’t seem to catch a break. Chris Jarosz and Comfort Fedoke have yet to impress the judges, even though their Tyce D’orio jazz routine seemed like an improvement (especially for Chris) upon last week’s krumping routine, but they still get no love. The judges seem, for some reason, to pity Will Wingfield for being paired with Jessica King (which only makes Will more likable as he valiantly stands up for his partner). This leaves Chelsea Traille and Thayne Jasperson, who appear to be slipping week to week (Nigel Lythgoe was right in saying that their smiles during their quickstep seemed plastered on) but may be safe as long as Chris and Jessica still draw the judges’ ire.

It must be mentioned that an example of what makes this series great was the episode’s tribute to Cyd Charisse It’s quite possible that the majority of the show’s viewers weren’t familiar with the dancer/actress, but thanks to Nigel & Co.’s dedication to the art of dance, now more people will be.

-- Claire Zulkey