Hope you didn’t miss us too much, but we are back and ready to talk more about the latest celebrity gossip! We are taking Hot Takes in a new direction this week and will be talking about the most exciting part of our Tuesday nights, Dancing With The Stars!! This year is the 33rd season of DWTS and we are already halfway through!! Now that it’s back this week after a week off, Sofia and I thought it would be the perfect time to talk about the couples recently advancing and leave some predictions for the upcoming weeks.
Jenn Tran & Sasha Farber
Even though Jenn and Sasha just got eliminated, we had to include them in this week’s Hot Takes. I think we can all agree that DWTS was the perfect opportunity for Jenn to feel good about herself and find someone like Sasha to put a smile on her face. We all know she was done DIRTY when starring in The Bachelorette. If you haven’t seen Jenn on The Bachelorette, here’s a quick recap: Jenn chose to propose to Devin Sanders, which was all rainbows and butterflies until he called off the engagement, doubting his feelings for her. Somehow it gets even worse, he ended it OVER THE PHONE. C’mon Devin, that’s just cruel and the whole world knows it too. We were absolutely devastated when the news aired and felt even worse for Jenn when the producers made her watch back the proposal on live television (absolutely crushed our hearts). It’s safe to say that when it was announced that Jenn was going to be participating in this season’s DWTS, everyone was elated. Jenn and Sasha’s time on DWTS brought out a whole new side of Jenn and their dynamic was unmatched. We are truly sad to see these two go, but we know their friendship will last outside of the DWTS realm, unlike her last reality TV relationship.
Danny Amendola & Witney Carson
Former NFL football player Danny Amendola has been the DWTS underdog this season. His improvement from week one has not gone unnoticed and his dancing truly came to life on Disney Night. Amendola and Carson danced to “Bye Bye Bye” from Marvel’s Deadpool and Wolverine. They absolutely killed this dance, not to mention how many jumps and technical moves they incorporated to make sure it looked like they were actually fighting. This dance was a real turn around from Amendola and they scored nines all around!! We saw a whole new person come out of Amendola and we are here for it!! Even though they started off a little rocky in the earlier weeks, we think the pair can easily make it to the top 5 (and we really hope they do).
Dwight Howard & Daniella Karagach
Former NBA star Dwight Howard, dances with confidence with his 6’10 frame. His transfer from Lakers center to season 33 contestant was challenging yet he is a constant joy to watch and lights up the ballroom. Howard’s partner is 5’2” American choreographer Daniella Karagach. Being 5’2” seems like an issue on paper, but is actually the perfect difference. In the beginning the scores were low, since he was constantly stiff due to height difference, but they soon learned how to balance this issue. Since Gracie and I are both below 5’3” this is A DREAM. Karagach had a head start in experience by joining in season 28, therefore making her the best choreographer for her and Dwight’s latest dances. Their Halloween Nightmares Contemporary dance “Ring Around The Rosie” was TO DIE FOR, literally. The vision of a little girl being attacked by a monster is so clear, given by the height difference. He executed dangerous lifts with ease, holding her by only the ankle in one shocking moment of her dance. This gave us the chills. With a score of one 10 and two 9s, Judge Derek said, “down right creepy in the best possible way.” This was the only way to explain the contemporary and hard work behind this dance. They started week one with a total of 22, and now are at a 28, and we knowww they will make it to 30.
Ilona Maher & Alan Bersten
Olympic bronze medalist Ilona Maher is the new inspiration for young women. This woman uses her own strength and mobility to prove that anything is possible. In my opinion I think she is the definition of a “superwoman,” her unique self is one to die for. Her partner Alan Bersten, as a member of the troupe since Season 20 and as a pro since Season 25, is the perfect partner to Maher. They give off the complete opposite vibe that Dwight and Daniella bring to the table. Week 7’s Tango dance gave Maher the ability to shine bright and prove that women can do what men do. The ending scene where she drags Bersten is definitely a depiction of this! Yet, this isn’t what struck me the most. It’s the tension that they brought to the floor!! Fun Fact: She lifts him almost as much as he lifts her as they challenge ballroom traditional roles for men and women on the floor! We all knew the exact vibe they were bringing to the floor, with their “almost” kiss. So who knows if these two lovebirds are really acting? All in all, this routine earned them 3 8’s, not too bad.
Stephen Nedoroscik & Rylee Arnold
Stephan Nedoroscik–OMG he is so cool. He is an AWESOME pommel horse specialist, he is a two-time Olympic medalist, the 2021 world champion and many more. Starting DWTS this year was not a shock, due to his talent. He always takes his glasses off at the start of each week because it went viral during the Olympics. His talent from being an artistic gymnast definitely was a great addition to his partner, Rylee Arnold, a 19 year-old who took the title of the youngest pro dancer on DWTS. They recently performed a contemporary dance that contained effects that left our mouths wide open. The fire, the smoke, the constant leaps!! Normally we see the women performing the dance, but Nedoroscik’s inner gymnast came out in this one. They both danced phenomenally. This week 7 dance got them a 10 from Carrie Ann followed by two 9s from the other judges. I can see the fans going crazy for these two, seeing how hard BOTH of them put in the work.
Chandler Kinney & Brandon Armstrong
Chandler Kinney, American actress and singer, and her partner, Brandon Armstrong, have been a strong duo since week one, with scores of 8, 8, and 7. This is practically unheard of in the DWTS world. No one ever and we mean it when we say this, gets scored with 8’s week one. This is part of the reason why we aren’t big fans of the two. They set the bar at a ridiculous standard for the rest of the dancers. The whole point of bringing in celebrities to dance is the fact that they have no dancing skills prior. We personally enjoy watching the celebs improve each week and see how far they’ve come from week 1, so Chandler having so much talent on her first dance is underwhelming (and we’re NOT here for it). Chandler reminds us of Charli D’Amelio from season 31. D’Amelio already had prior dancing experience–it’s literally how she went viral on TikTok. Let’s not forget to mention D’Amelio won her season. It just doesn’t seem fair in our eyes. We know Chandler and Brandon will make it far along in this competition (something I’m definitely not happy with -Gracie) because of their consistency and Chandler’s natural talent, but we don’t think they have the audience’s vote. There are definitely other couples that are well liked and have a bigger fan base that we’d much rather see win the Mirror Ball Trophy… Maybe next year’s the year Brandon, sorry not sorry xo.
Joey Graziadei & Jenna Johnson
Saving the best for last, Joey Graziadei and Jenna Johnson!!! From first watching him on The Bachelor, to seeing him boogie down on the dance floor, Graziadei is number one in our hearts (and hopefully the audience’s too). Seeing him in the DWTS environment makes us love him even more!! Before Graziadei even agreed to be on the show, he asked if his partner could be someone in a healthy relationship. OUR HEARTS ARE MELTING, JOEY. He did this to ensure his fiancé would be at ease with this whole experience. What a sweetheart. Not to mention that Johnson and Joey’s relationship is like a mother to son relationship. Each week we get to see the two get better and better. Let’s not forget Disney night. The Tarzan Samba dance??! With scores of 8, 8, and a 9 they were robbed. They deserved 10s all around, that’s for sure. Graziadei and Johnson’s fluidity is unmatched and we are hoping and praying they will win the Mirror Ball for DWTS’s 33rd season!
Sad to say that’s all we have to say about this year’s couples on Dancing With the Stars!! We hope you enjoyed our most unfiltered takes on this year’s celebrities and pairings, we’ll be back soon xoxo,
Gracie and Sofia