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Falling ratings, baffling ejections: What is wrong with Dancing with the Stars?

posted 6 years ago by TMC-4 (20185)
6 replies | jump to latest

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment/tv/tv-guy/os-et-s4-dancing-with-stars-droops-nfl-glides-20181016-story.html

Monday episode drew 7.1 million, down from 10.2 million at this point last year. The ratings fall comes amid the dilution of the Dancing brand with Dancing with the Stars: Juniors airing Sunday nights. Also of concern is Dancing ejecting standouts like Tinashe while terrible dancers like Grocer Store Joe from The Bachelorette are still on the show.

[–] linnet (121) 6 years ago

I agree. Last week's elimination was ridiculous. Tinashe was one of the best dancers. Joe, Mary Lou, Bobby and John are all likeable, but not in her class as dancers.

[–] Jes' Sayin' (6400) 6 years ago

The voters have always eliminated attractive, young women early, generally in favor of good looking guys.

The show's real problem is that they've run out of stars willing to do the show. For example, this season I had only heard of two of the contestants prior to the announcement.

[–] HarlemEagle42 (17865) 6 years ago

This was the worst season I can remember in years. So many better more talented dancers being booted off for clowns like Bobby Bones or lunkheads like that stupid Trader Joe or whatever the hell his name is.

[–] TMC-4 (20185) 6 years ago

Was Bobby Bones' victory the biggest upset in Dancing with the Stars history?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2018/11/20/biggest-upset-dancing-with-stars-history-bobby-bones-wins-shocking-finale/

Dancing fans took to Twitter to express outrage over Bones' victory, especially since he came into the competition with no dancing experience. "While there have certainly been shocking results before (remember Donny Osmond over Mýa or Donald Driver over Katherine Jenkins?), the judges’ score discrepancy — and the skill level — between Bones and the other finalists loomed large. Bones’s victory caused a stir online, as ecstatic messages from country music stars and his fans rolled in . . . while others were less than pleased with the results," says Emily Yahr.

[–] strntz (12474) 6 years ago

I have an opinion, but I'm not a hardcore watcher, so take it for what it's worth.

I watch because my wife watches it and Lord knows she's endured endless watchings of Shawshank, Apollo 13, Simpsons, etc. so it's the least I can do.

But from an outsider's standpoint, I think a big problem is that the fan voting carries far too much weight. My wife wasn't happy about last night's finale winner. I don't know a lot about dancing or really care for it, but if this is a dancing competition, why was one of the very worst dancers not only on the last show but actually won? Even I could tell the winner was clumsy and not well coordinated.

Now, I don't have a clue whether advancing the "stars" on actual merit would improve their ratings, but it would at least give some sort of a competition feel to it, rather than reducing it to a popularity contest.

OTOH, maybe the show has just run it's course as all shows do eventually and it has nothing to do with who wins.

Edit: I wonder also if it's the quality of "stars" that "compete". The only people I knew going in were Mary Lou Retton and John Schneider.

[–] Costumer (1825) 6 years ago

Not quality. New stars arrive all the time. Every season there are stars I know and stars I don't. Sometimes what I see leads me to seek out the oeuvre of the stars I don't.

This season just had a lot of great dancers eliminated and poor ones advanced. I like Bobby Bones as a personality/star (I had never heard of him before as I am not a country music fan.) But he was not a great dancer. I had seen Milo once and was rooting for him. I would have been disappointed if Evanna or Alexis (or Juan Pablo who should have been in the finale) had won over Milo, but all of these dancers were in the same ball park. (Objectively, Juan Pablo was likely better than Milo; but not so much that there couldn't be competition in the finale. The same applies to the others I have named. )

I won't stop watching. But I do hope the producers re-evaluate the algorithm they are using to determine the final scores.