Join me here tonight as we crown a winner.
Will it be Virgil Gadson? Jaja Vankova? Hailee Payne? Gaby Diaz?
Only one will survive…. THE HUNGER GAMES.
The Top 10 + All Stars – Choreo by Nick and RJ- Archangel by Two Steps From Hell
They’re wearing a bunch of masks so it’s hard to see who the all stars are. I think I see Melanie. Jasmine. Brandon. Robert. Marko. But… I’m missing five other All-Stars I think. Who knows. Masks make it hard to tell who is on stage sometimes, especially in large group numbers where no one is featured.
Click to Watch The Top 10 & All Stars Group Number VIDEO
Then we see the top 20, all of them.
And our finalists. Gaby, Virgil, Hailee, and Jaja. They got out of those costumes fast, lol. Obviously the first number was prerecorded. Unlike finales past, our judges are still just Nigel, Paula, and Jason. No one joining the panel. Honestly, it might have been cool to see J.Lo on the panel since they’re joining her show.
I wonder when they’re gonna bring up that Travis won an Emmy a few days ago.
Emmy’s for Lighting Design and Costume Design. And Travis. Travis has his moment on stage. Emmy Award Winning Travis Wall. Travis thanks the show.
1) Jason’s Pick- Virgil and Joshua- Hip Hop by Pharside and Phoenix- Lets Go by Trick Daddy
I’m not always a huge fan of reprising numbers from the previous week, but this was worth it. Killer routine that maybe put Virgil back in the race a bit. The tricks are still impressive even though we’ve already seen them. Standing O from the judges.
Ladia Yates’s audition is reshown. She’s labeled an “audition hero”. Wow. She taught kids how to dance, and they danced with Jason. I remember her struggling in Vegas.
2) Paula’s Pick- Edson and Megz- Contemporary by Talia- You There by Aquilo
The T-Shirt dance. Good use of a prop. Also, nice to see Edson and Megz back. I was worried that every dance would feature a finalist. Standing O from the judges.
3) Paula’s Second Pick- Jaja and Ricky- Broadway by Al Blackstone- Let’s Face The music And Dance by Nat King Cole
Really Paula? Really? I mean, this was a good routine… but it didn’t need a reprise. Jaja had better dances. Good to see Ricky back though. He’s an incredible talent. So incredibly light on his feet. Another standing O.
4) Cat’s Pick- Team Street- Hip Hop by Nappy Tabs- Ready or Not Here I Come by District 78
Looks like Asaf and Burum finally learned the choreo. Nice to see the bottom 5 team street back.
Click to Watch Team Street Routine by NappyTabs VIDEO
The top 4 reflect… in a montage. Gaby broke though in hip hop. Hailee’s favorite comment was from Paula. Virgil was inspired when he was compared to Sammy Davis Jr. Jaja is surprised that Nigel is a fan. DEGREE!
5) Twitch’s Pick- Gaby and Neptune- Choreo by Stacey Tookey- Take My Hand Precious Lord
I remember this dance. It was really cool. Good pick by Twitch. Nice to see Neptune get a little more time on stage. Standing O.
6) Nigel’s Pick- Little Phoenix and Cyrus- Emergency by District 78
It was originally featured at the dizzy feet gala. She’s a 10 year old animator. Her hair is crazy awesome. She’s pretty incredible for a 10 year old. Hardcore. Loved it.
Click to Watch Little Phoenix and Cyrus Routine VIDEO
Asaf does a montage on sexy moments. LOL. He literally does the montage while sitting by the pool in a thong. Lots of girls flirting with Jason. Asaf said he had a few crushes. Asaf said he also had a crush on Paula. Lots of Asaf being shirtless. At the end, Kate pushes him in the pool. Hailee says her sexyist routine was with Robert. It’s her pick for her favorite routine.
7) Hailee’s Pick- Hailee and Robert- Haunted by Beyonce
I mean… Hailee… you’ve had a lot better routines this season. This was aight. Sorry. It’s an odd choice for a reprise considering your body of work. Another standing O.
Judging by how tonight is going, we have a lot of routines coming up. Nigel has at least 1 more pick, alongside Travis, Virgil, Jaja, and Gaby’s picks. Plus, I can’t imagine Jason not getting a 2nd pick if the other judges each got two.
First results after the break. Jenna Dewan Tatum is dancing with Travis also coming up.
I also wonder if Jasmine and Cyrus ever have weird moments in the weeks where they’re both All-Stars. Are they friends still?
Audition Hero- Cody Carlson
I’m honestly surprised they didn’t just invite him back to dance on the show. Cody competed in the special olympics in dance.
8) Travis’s Pick- Gaby and Joshua- Choreo by Pharside and Phoenix- I’m Really Hot by Missy Elliot
It’s the Geisha routine. Not surprised they reprised this. Joshua looks like he’s part of the foot clan. It’s a good routine, and I think Gaby’s actually better the second time around. She actually matches Joshua this time. I’m glad they reprised this, actually. It changed my opinion of the routine. Good job. Another standing O.
Guest Solo: Herman Korneo- Le Corsaire: Act 2; 4. Grand Pas: Var. Ali
A little ballet to balance out the evening. Those pants though. Good job.
Click to Watch Herman Korneo Ballet Solo
9) Jason’s Second Pick- Team Stage- Beautiful Friends by Helen Money
The Ghost Routine with the lamps. This was a cool routine. They use it a lot in the promo for the tour. Glad they reprised this.
We were kinda lied to. No results yet. Maybe after the next break.
Audition Hero- Mr Hollywood
Really? We’re just using the word hero for everyone now, aren’t we?
10) Virgil’s Pick- Virgil and Hailee- Choreo by Pharside and Phoenix- Runnin’ by Noahplause
The Robot Routine. I actually thought Hailee would have picked this, but I guess Virgil already had. I expected this to be in the finale. I was waiting for it. Probably the routine that first launched these two into frontrunner status (which they eventually lost, but at least made the finale).
11) Nigel’s Second Pick- Jim and Alex- Choreo by Travis- November by Max Richter
The audience wrote in to have these two dancers together, and it’s a new routine. Father/Son dance. People really wrote in demanding Alex and Jim? I wanted a Virgil/Fik-Shun routine, and I haven’t gotten that either. I didn’t know we could demand all-star pairings. A good dance.
Click to Watch Jim and Alex’s NEW Routine VIDEO
RESULTS!
Only Hailee and Gaby come out on stage. One of them is leaving the competition. Before the results, we get a montage of Team Stage’s journey from auditions to now. Lots of dancers I thought would go further than they did. Standing O from everyone before the results. RESULTS! Hailee Payne is 2nd place for Team Stage. Gaby Diaz is the top finisher for Team Stage. Another standing O for Hailee, and a montage of Hailee’s journey. I’m glad she made Top 4. She earned her spot. The Top 20 reflect on Hailee. Cat promises another kiss from Robert, and Hailee gets really excited. LOL.
Audition Hero- Elizar
He was the kid who lived in a homeless shelter, and represented for the Bronx.
12) Nigel’s Third Pick- Jaja and Alex-Choreo by Tessandra Chavez- Youth by Daughter
The Alzheimer’s routine. An incredible routine. I probably would have picked this. This was actually the routine that shifted me personally to wanting Jaja to win the whole thing. Standing O.
Guest Routine: Academy Of Villains- Choreo by Pharside and Phoenix- Crunk by Noahplause
I don’t know why IAmMe or Dragon House don’t get this slot, since they have alumni. I know they’re Pharside and Phoenix’s group, but… to my knowledge, there are no alumni here.
Click to Watch the Academy of Villains VIDEO
Tour Hype.
Guest Routine: Jenna Dewan Tatum and Travis Wall- Gimme All Your Love by Alabama Shakes
Jenna’s a much better dancer than I thought. She would have slayed Dancing With The Stars. LOL. She’s a pro. Where is Channing? That might have brought in a few more viewers. Not that I don’t love Travis, but Channing and Twitch could have done a hip hop duet.
Click to Watch Jenna Dewan Tatum & Travis Wall routine VIDEO
More results. Team Street. Jaja and Virgil come out. We celebrate them first through a montage of the journey of Team Street. Exciting. Diverse. Strong. Team Street. RESULTS! The dancer in 2nd place is Virgil Gadson. Jaja Vankova is the 1st place member of Team Street. Montage of Virgil’s best moments on the show. The Top 20 reflect on their buddy. Virgil is crying.
Either way, in this finale, we’re breaking new ground. Either our first tap winner, or our first female hip hop winner. Jaja vs Gaby. In 30 minutes, one will win.
13) Jaja’s Pick- Jim and Jaja- Hip Hop by Christopher Scott- No Woman, No Cry by Bob Marley
I forgot about this routine, honestly. But it’s a good routine. Jaja is killing it. That’s the important thing. And it’s another time we get to see Jim. Jim came so close. He really is a terrific dancer. We got caught up a lot in him not always connecting to the character, but his technique is unmatched.
14) Top 20- The first routine by Christopher Scott- Revolt by Nathan Lanier
Is it bad that there are dancers in the top 20 whose names I’ve already forgotten? Yeah. Cause I have.
Click to Watch Revolt routine by Christopher Scott VIDEO
The dancers read off tweets in a weird montage, which leads into a Stage Vs Street montage. Jaja vs Gaby.
15) Gaby’s Pick- Gaby and Robert- Choreo by Mandy Moore- Angel by Sarah McLachlan
Gaby’s breakthrough, I think. She had this and then the Geisha dance. Those two dances are why she’s still standing. Phenomenal dances. So glad we got to see this again.
Gaby and Jaja are now on stage. 10 minutes left. These are not the results. It’s a fake out. I just know. Yup, after the break.
Now we get some real results. But first, a MONTAGE! Street or Stage? Who won the whole shebang? The WINNER IS GABY DIAZ! Team Stage wins! Jaja Vankova comes in 2nd. Our first Tap winner. To think, they actually said No to her in her first audition city. That’s crazy. Had she not tried again, we’d have a completely different winner right now.
Gaby won a cash prize of $250,000, the cover of Dance Spirit magazine and the chance to dance with Jennifer Lopez at her upcoming Las Vegas residency at The Axis at Planet Hollywood Resort. Gaby will also join the rest of the Top 10 for the So You Think You Can Dance Season 12 Live Tour, which kicks off Tuesday, Oct. 13 at the Verizon Theatre in Grand Prairie, TX.
I just want to thank everyone who has followed my live blogs all season. It’s really been a blast. I’ve been liveblogging SYTYCD for a few seasons for MJ now, and it always feels weird leaving this show not knowing the future of the show. I would hope FOX would have given SYTYCD advance notice so they could have a proper series finale like American Idol. Hopefully that means FOX is considering another season. Maybe, a last season like Idol, but at least one more go around.
I hope to see you guys again next summer for more Dance! As far as when you’ll see me again on MJ’s, I’m going to be live blogging the Emmy’s. After that, well, that’s entirely up to MJ. :)
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