Dancing with the Stars: The Finale

The final three dancers have prevailed: Marie Osmond, Mel B and Helio Castroneves furiously hunt for the trophy. Between Marie’s ridiculous dance tribute to her silly doll collection, Mel B bringing in her hip-hop dancers to throw off her precision, and Helio shaking with the moves of a rockstar, it is clear who will be the winner.

Isn’t it clear to everyone? It has to be Helio. He has had the quality of a winner beaming from his spirit since the beginning. Somewhere in the middle of the competition, I thought Mel B. might take the prize. But before long, her charm and talent paled to that of Helio. My prediction for the results show is simple. It will be sunshine. And the sun is Helio.

“Little darling, the smiles returning to the faces. Little darling, it seems like years since its been here. Here comes the sun, here comes the sun, and I say, it’s all right.”

For now, this is how the finals played out:

The Finalists…

Marie Osmond (singer) coupled with Jonathan Roberts – The Samba was the dance chosen for Marie. Remember she fainted after her last (Samba) performance. So she needed to come back strong during her final routine. Unfortunately, it was one of her weakest dances. She was off time and not all that precise. Bruno gave her props for her skills as an entertainer but spoke truthfully about her technical shortcomings. Marie fought back about needing more time to master the technique. Yikes! But there isn’t enough time in a calendar year to fix the wrongs of their free style dance. I do not know what Jonathon was thinking when he pulled this little dance number together. Marie looked like a scary, pink baby Huey and danced like a limp doll. In no way did the performance showcase Marie’s development as a dancer. She dropped like a bag of rocks at the end. It was a failed attempt at the crown. Bruno said it was so terrible that it was beyond critique. I agree. She should be tossed off the floor. (SCORE = 24/22 = 46)

Mel B (Spice Girl) coupled with Maksim Chmerkovskiy – The judges picked a repeat of their first dance, the Cha-Cha-Cha. The dance was crisp, precise, and filled with funny little antics. Too many funny little antics, if you ask me. I like these two dancing in a fast and furious way, not so much the goofball display. Bruno commented on Mel’s amazing evolution as a dancer. Carrie Ann wanted more excitement. Perhaps more heat is a better request. Their freestyle dance was sexy but lacked the typical thrill that they bring to the floor. The lifts were spectacular and their attempts at trying something unique earned them applause. But truth be told, it was not a dance of champions. (SCORE =28/27 = 55)

Helio Castroneves (race car driver) coupled with Julianne Hough – The judges gave Helio the opportunity to redeem himself with a second shot at the Jive. As usual, these two lit up the dance floor. Bruno described it best: Helio has a gleaming personality, boundless energy, but the footwork was simply not good enough. Suddenly, in walked their freestyle performance and they took down the house. They started and ended the dance by paying tribute to a race car driver transformed into a natural performer. They are a lightning storm together. Helio has the entertainment skill of Marie and the technical skill of Mel B. This dance proved that this is no longer a competition but rather a countdown to certain victory. (SCORE = 25/ 29= 54)

The gods shined down upon me with the recaps of the fallen stars. Having never watched a full season of the show, I had no idea that the failed dancers would reemerge. But they all came back for one more stroll around the floor. As one would expect, my eyes were drawn to the one and only Albert Reed. He came back strong with his hip-gyrating Elvis Presley number and made me weak in the knees all over again. The others: Sabrina and Mark brought the house down, Jane was still a dud, Cameron remained a sexy Clark Kent, Jennie was a bouncing ball of confidence, and the rest were just as we remembered them.

As for the final dances: Mel B and Maksim burst onto the floor like a fiery blaze, moved with perfection and proved that Mel B was born to be a dancer. (SCORE = 30.) Helio and Julianne danced the number that ended in a kiss. It was the perfect ending in having watched these two travel this journey. They were spectacular. (SCORE = 30.)

AND THE WINNER IS…

The sunshine. The ray of light. The sparkling and glimmering Helio and Julianne took the prize. Anything other than this outcome would have been a travesty. “Little darling, I feel the ice is slowly melting. Little darling, it seems like years since it’s been clear. Here comes the sun, here comes the sun, it’s alright. Sun, sun, sun, here it comes….”

Song by – The Beatles – Here Comes the Sun.