J. R. Martinez poses with his Mirrorball trophy as partner Karina Smirnoff beams a smile after their Season 13 win on Dancing with the Stars last night. Following ten weeks of drama, Ham on Wry applauds the choice of Martinez and Smirnoff, but confesses that the blog has issues with DWTS previously revealed in a past blog. I watched the first three seasons of the show intermittently and then found the whole process flawed. This season offered no exception. Contestant Nancy Grace did not live up to her name, as her performances lacked grace and style. The only reason she remained so long was her over-the-top, incessant demand for votes. Therein, lies the show's biggest failing. It has morphed into just a popularity contest.
Rob Kardashian and his partner Cheryl Burke won second place, which illustrates another weakness in the process by which contestants remain on the show. The Kardashian family, Kim especially, took shameful advantage of the hype that surrounded her wedding to solicit votes for her brother. To his credit, he improved during the season, but his hand and arm movements still appear somewhat mechanical. Ham on Wry has grown weary of all things Kardashian. Please, no more!
By far, the best performance from the three finalists came from Ricki Lake and her partner Derek Hough when they reprised their Psycho tango from week four. Lake and Hough had accumulated the most points of any of the finalists, yet they wound up in third place. It defies logic that Kardashian should have topped Lake. "How do you know all this since you don't watch the show?", a reader might wonder. I can cut all the ads and blather by viewing performances on YouTube, much preferable to watching a show that runs for two hours but could be cut to one. Lake stole the show last night, which makers her a winner, even though she didn't take home the trophy. Don't send slings and arrows my way, Martinez fans. Martinez displayed dazzling footwork and style, so his win was well deserved.
Ham on Wry's final comment on Dancing with the Stars is really a plea. Clean up the process, DWTS. Change the title of the show, if you're not going to distinguish between stardom and fame. The terms are not synonymous. Judges need to be more than window dressing. They have the expertise, and their opinion should count for more. Judges, tone down the histrionics and stick to professional assessments. Choose stars who show some glimmer of talent as contestants. And please, .reduce the number of drawn-out pauses when announcing who stays and who goes!
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