So, like I mentioned last night, it really wasn’t that amazing. I thought a lot of the people who should have been on didn’t get to make it to the So You Think You Can Dance Top 20. The people who filled their places got their on personality which I disagreed with because they suck. I’m just bitching about Kelli Baker and Brandon Bryant still. Oh, and the Gene Kelly guy, Evan Kasprzak. I guess everyone can’t be a contemporary dancer.

So who were in the bottom 3 for the first week of So You Think You Can Dance Results show?

Rayven Armijo and Jamie Bayard who started off the top 20 show with a comedy hip hop routine. Bad choice. It wasn’t spectacular enough for a show opening. And when you pick hip hop, I don’t care what style you are, it’s a crowd pleaser so you have to kill it. I blame it on the choreography. You dance what you were given.

Jessica King and William Wingfield who did a tango routine. I have absolutely no idea why they were in the bottom 3. They had style and panache. They danced a style that gets votes. And William Wingfield is a front runner. They should have gotten votes. They were actually one of the couples I could stand last night.

Kourtni Lind and Matt Dorame who did a jazz routine. Although I didn’t love it, I didn’t hate it either. I just thought for some reason, Matt Dorame was showcased more and it wasn’t even. I didn’t get Nigel Lythgoe’s criticism that they Matt Dorame needs to have more personality. I think while he’s not very vocal, he’s a hottie. He should get votes from fangirls. And because of the choreography or camera work, we really didn’t see Kourtni Lind do her stuff.

Anyways, onto the solos. I thought the guys all brought it. The girls, not so much. Rayven Armijo disappointed in her solo. Nothing spectacular and didn’t bring her ballet A game. Jessica King wasn’t memorable either. Kourtni Lind did well but I think it’s because she can choreograph her routines well. Rayven got the axe and I don’t know if that influenced her partner’s departure as well. All things considering if Matt Dorame and Jaime Bayard gave equal solos, then you don’t break up couples. Jamie Bayard got the boot too.

That’s all for this week of So You Think You Can Dance Season 4, first results show. Until next week!

Sorry to be a party pooper but I hated the first dance routine by Rayven Armijo and Jamie Bayard. I thought, oh boy, if this is what they have to start off So You Think You Can Dance Season 4 with, we’re in trouble. I hate cotton candy hip hop. I want cool, funky hip hop. But they were dancing to what they were given. On the other hand, I wonder if the choreographers gave them a light hip hop routine because of their personality. A ballet dancer and a West Coast Swing dancer aren’t exactly the funky type.

Marquis Cunningham and Susie Garcia did the waltz. All three judges had positive things to say about the dancers but to be honest, I was more mesmerized by Marquis. I was blown away by his lines and Susie was just a prop. Good but not a spectacular as a pair.

Kourtni Lind and Matt Dorame got jazz. I thought it was an uneven performance again showcasing the guy. Maybe it was the choreography or maybe it was the camera work. I don’t know, I really couldn’t get into it.

Chelsea Traille and Thayne Jasperson did a chacha routine. Not as hot as I wanted but I thought they matched eached other well. Thayne highlight Chelsea which was what he was supposed to do. I think this is the couple to watch. Good personality on them both. They have the sparkle.

Chelsie Hightower and Mark Kanemura did a contemperary dance choreographed by Mia Michaels. I thought it was a beautiful routine. They both did a wonderful job. Mark with the lifts and Chelsie dancing so light and beautifully.

Twitch (Stephen Boss) and Kherington Payne did a Broadway routine by Tyce DiOrio. I don’t know what’s wrong with me tonight. Good routine but maybe I just don’t appreciate Broadway. Nothing wrong with the program but I didn’t feel the love.

Comfort Fedoke and Christopher Jarosz did a jive routine. For someone who thought the girls were such top notch talent, I wasn’t feeling any “Comfort”. Good for being out of her element but technique wise, not there. I thought Chris was good though.

Katee Shean and Joshua Allen did a hip hop routine. Not hard enough for me from Katee. Yeah, yeah, they were smooth when they needed to be and they were in sync but I just didn’t believe it. Paint by numbers dancing.

Jessica King and William Wingfield performed a tango. Thank goodness. I thought I was being a grouch. Yes, a few wobbles with the heels but it was forgivable for me. I thought just a great pairing of talent, personalities and it made me believe!

Courtney Galiano and Gev Manoukian did a disco routine. I actually liked it! I thought they were a good looking pair. Maybe I’m shallow. I thought Courtney was great. Gev was capable. Overall, it was better than most of what I saw tonight.

So there you have it for the So You Think You Can Dance Season 4 first episode with the top 20. There were only a handful of good routines but none would qualify as memorable. Maybe they just need to grow on me.

Some early favorites made and some fell by the wayside. Here are the SYTYCD favorites who got face time from previous So You Think You Can Dance episodes.

Courtney Galiano, Chelsea Hightower, Susie Garcia, Kourtney Lind, Joshua Allen, Twitch, Kherington Payne, Katee Shean, Gev Manoukian, Matt Dorame, William Wingfield, Thayne Jesperson.

Others we’ve never seen are (couldn’t quite get their last names): Chelsea Trail, Rayven Armino, Jamie Bayard, Chris Jeroze, Jessica King, Mark Kanamoura, Marquis Cunningham, Comfort Ferdoque.

The biggest shocker was the cutting of Brandon Bryant. The guys better be good dancers for him to be cut! And I knew it was stiff competition for the girls but ugh, some really, really talented dancers got cut. I know they can’t have all contemporary dancers but Susie Garcia? She better dance her booty off.

Oh well, let’s hope all dancers have personality and talent!

Michael Kim is a great popper who can hit hard. He had actually made it through to Vegas in Season 2 so I’m pretty sure you can find him in old So You Think You Can Dance episodes. He said he got ballroom lessons so let’s hope it works out for him.

I enjoyed both Katee Shean and Natalie Reid’s performances. It was very different to see the different styles because I thought oh boy, here are the sorority girls but it was good to see they actually had talent.

Janette Manrarra and Romulo Villaverde are a pair of salsa dancers. OMG, the soccer trick was fabulous!!! It wasn’t as sexy as the ballroom dancers in the first So You Think You Can Dance episode so it was only Janette Manrarra going through as she was the stronger partner.

Bianca Revels is a great tapper but I’m not sure how appropriate she is for the show. I only remember a tapper in the first Season of So You Think You Can Dance. She deserved it on her pure tapping talent alone.

Evan Kasprzak had a lot of style. I liked him as he was memorable with his hat, not over the top with his tricks but clearly talented and very understated. I’ve got my eye on this one!

Kourtni Lind had some very unique choreography but the competition is really tough as there are some really strong girls that have already gone through in previous So You Think You Can Dance episodes. But she certainly is an interesting dancer.

I wonder what subject high school teacher Susie Garcia teaches because she certainly working the school girl look with her sneaker boots. She squeaked by in choreography and impressed enough to get to Vegas.

Wow, what a difference a costume makes. Rebecca Hart had previously auditioned in the LA audition for So You Think You Can Dance this season, but just by toning it down so much, she showed her true self. Just to show you to take the criticism in stride and don’t give up!

Appearances can be deceiving and I wasn’t expecting much for Phillip Courter but he turned out to be a good hip hopper. What impressed me was not only his dancing but he was an even better friend who got injured.

Lizz Plott is s another great tapper from Milwaukee. But I really fear that with the girls, the competition is insane. Can a tapper who can do other thngs be showcased properly on So You Think You Can Dance?

So when people are on these awards show, it usually means they are pimping something. This is no different with the Pussycat Dolls on the MTV Movie awards. Their new single is called When I Grow Up. If you listen to the lyrics of When I Grow Up, it’s pretty funny. The song lyrics are fun, and fluffy which are what you’d expect from these fun loving girls. One great line is When I grow up / I wanna see the world / Drive nice cars / I wanna have groupies. LOL!

The Pussycat Dolls performance on the MTV Movie Awards was pretty sex and as always I love their dance moves. I don’t know how Nicole Scherzinger does it. I think she was singing live but I’m not sure. Regardless, she was popping her booty. And I love Kimberly Wyatt’s new hair! She went blonde and got that Victoria Beckham pixie cut. Kimberly Wyatt is always experimenting with her hair and she keeps it fresh so that’s cool. Melody Thornton improved her dancing too, which is cool. And Ashley Roberts along with Jessica Sutta were their normal capable self. I miss Carmit Bachar though but she left the group.

Overall, I think the Pussycat Dolls new album is called To Those Who Wait. I don’t know when it will come out but it certainly was a good preview with the new Pussycat Doll song. I loved the new single When I Grow Up and the lyrics. It was nice seeing the Pussycat Dolls on the MTV Movie Awards.

What a difference 2 years make. Natascha Kampusch is a talk show host! Unbelievable the resilience of this girl. Now, I’m not Austrian but I’ve always followed this story with interest. If you recall the story from a couple of years ago, this girl was kidnapped at the age of 10 and in a cell in her captor’s basement for 8 years. She escaped and he threw himself onto a moving train.

Reading newspaper articles, I’ve always been astounded by her eloquence and poise. I would think that the emotional scars of such an ordeal and the media scrutiny would send her into hiding. But Natascha Kampusch seems to be a battler. And she proves her courage by having a chat show of all things! How public can you get than that? Her talk show is called “Natascha Kampusch meets…”

On the first show of “Natascha Kampusch meets…” on Sunday, she interviews Austrian motor race driver Niki Lauda. I’m sure it will get lots of coverage given Natascha Kampusch background and the similarities of the newest Austrian dungeon case of incest father Josef Fritzl who held his daughter captive for 24 years.

But if this proves anything, it shows that the human spirit rise above these unspeakable crimes. Natascha Kampusch talk show host is living proof of this.

I don’t know about you, but it seems to me that Dr. Phil might be the next celebrity with egg on his face if the Dr. Phil divorce rumors are true. I bet the divorce lawyers are happy since the celebrity gossip mill has the Dr. Phil divorce to cost him $200 million dollars to protect his secrets.

Talk about illusion shattered. Now, don’t get me wrong, lots of people have divorces. However, most of us don’t have a talk show and give this picture perfect scenario of married life. I applaud the fact that he promotes a healthy family life and a healthy marriage but perhaps it isn’t easy as all that?

When I’m not away from work, I will catch the Dr. Phil show on the odd occasion. The marriage counseling shows have never been that informative for me. And I’m sorry, but if the Dr. Phil divorce rumor is true then he’s a big fraud. Dr. Phil always teases you about how he’s going to come back with some solutions after the commercial but the the recommendations is just fluff. And then he offers to do follow-up marriage counselings. I wonder how much of a string is attached to come back on the show and rehash for ratings. I also wonder how many update shows they’ve had to cancel due to the fact that there’s no way to salvage the marriage and the couple is now heading to divorce court and instead of calling Dr. Phil production, they now need to call a divorce laywer.

And speaking of ratings, what about that Britney Spears fiasco when he offered family counseling for her too and promoted that he was going to do a special with Britney on his show. Talk about jumping on the gravy train. That took a tremendous hit on his credibility when I found it waning in the first place. If the Dr. Phil divorce is true and skeletons come out of the closet as most of these celebrity marries often disclose, Dr. Phil will have a lot of explaining to do. Maybe he should have a marriage counseling special on himself - either that how to find a good divorce lawyer.

There were a few memorable dancers but let’s list the gold ticket holders first before my commentary.

Going to Las Vegas are: Sheila Kaiser, Jeremiah Hughes, Anthony Hart, Antwane Hart, Courtney Galiano, Claire Callaway, Megan Campbell, Markus Shields and Brandon Bryant.

From the girls, I liked Sheila Kaiser and Courtney Galiano. I think I’ve mentioned there quite a few girls I was impressed with in my previous recaps. It looks like a very strong crop of girls for So You Think You Can Dance Season 4. So much so that I think they are starting all to blend. Someone is going to have to do something spectacular to pull away from the pack to get noticed.

Oh, and Claire Callaway is back from season 2. She was the girl who injured her ankle and Neil Lythgoe gave her an open invitation to sail straight through to Vegas in season 3. But she got pregnant instead. I just have to say she was a mess in her SYTYCD Season 4 audition. It’s a good thing that she had an “in” from her previous experience on So You Think You Can Dance because without it, I don’t think her “dancing” would have gotten through to the choreography round. It was just sad to see. You could tell that she is thinking “what if” she hadn’t injured her ankle in the first place… she probably would have started her dancing career, wouldn’t have gotten pregnant, etc. But it is what it is and I hope she doesn’t blurt out that she regrets having her kid as that’s the vibe she was giving. She’s still young at 20. I just wished she would have given it another year to get her dancing back on track because I don’t think she’s going to get far in Vegas. She’s just not ready yet.

For the boys, I really liked Markus Shields. Nothing that we hadn’t seen before but I thought it was a very beautiful tribute to his late mother. I was touched.

And then we have Brandon Bryant. I can easily see him in the final 2 if he has any semblance of personality. A front runner for the guys by far.

And a special mention to Anthony Bryant. He had auditioned before for So You Think You Can Dance Season 1 but was cut because he was too effeminate. Well, he was dancing to a ribbon… This year, he came back in a camouflage outfit to be more masculine. His outfit was distracting but no denying the guy is a trained dancer and his technique is superb. I can’t believe he didn’t go straight through to Vegas. To add insult to injury, he got cut in the choreography round! Given the spate of losers they let through to Vegas, this is criminal. Yeah, he threw a diva fit at the end and he lacks a lot of maturity but you can’t deny his talent. He deserved a ticket to Vegas.

That’s it for this week’s recap of So You Think You Can Dance Season 4. Onto next week!

The Lange Foundation runs on donations and the goodwill of volunteers. Like most animal rescue shelters, the staff and volunteers evaluate the health of the dogs and cats as well as their temperaments prior to finding them loving forever homes. In the case of dogs, after adoption training is provided to ease the adjustment period.

For cats, a surprising statistic came out at me. Only 1% of adult cats are adopted in shelters. That is a grim statistic indeed and it’s fortunate indeed that the Lange Foundation exists. As pet owners, we must do our part to help the cause. This includes spaying or neutering your pet. Also, please visit the animal shelters to adopt. There are so many loving animal companions that need a loving home.

I’m glad that the Lange Foundation was featured in Oprah as once again, it spotlighted that the voiceless needs to be heard.

After a very strong So You Think You Can Dance Season 4 premiere last week, things really slowed down this week. What’s frustrating was the fact that the clips of dancers who didn’t get any face time but passed through to Las Vegas was more interesting than what they showed with full pimp coverage!

But for those who want to know confirmed Las Vegas bound So You Think You Can Dance Season 4 candidates, here’s the list for those auditioned in Salt Lake City and Dallas:

Chelsie Hightower, Gev Manoukian, Lindsey Judkins, Kelli Baker, Ryann Race, Matt Dorame, Matt Dorame, Kortney Pearson, Michelle Stringham, Paige Jones, Joshua Allen, Arielle Coker.

The only people I see who have a hope of winning So You Think You Can Dance 2008 are Chelsie Hightower and Kelli Baker - with the possibility of Arielle Coker. The rest of the dancers are just for filler to knock off in the coming weeks.