Happiest SYTYCD Elimination Show Yet

Although two dancers - Caitlin Kinney and Phillip Chbeeb - were eliminated from the competition on So You Think You Can Dance, the frowns turned upside down in a hurry when executive producer and judge Nigel Lythgoe announced that the two of them would be going on the tour.

This isn't really a big surprise here for a variety of reasons. First of all, they've been adding extra dancers the last two seasons in case of injury and/or to include some memorable dances, such as Hok's hummingbird dance. Secondly, they NEED Phillip for the hip hop group dances. Plus, he's one of the few to have any signature dances this season.

The show started with a hip-hop group dance choreographed by Tabitha & Napoleon to "Seven Nation Army" by The White Stripes, choreographed by Tabitha & Napoleon. That dance was DOPE! They're forgiven for that dumb engagement ring prop in their "Halo" dance.

Before they got to the results, Nigel announced that there was not going to be a Michael Jackson tribute anymore because Sony or the Jackson family would not clear the music. WTF?! That is quite unfortunate. And a shame. Because that would have been the shit.

The bottom three consisted of Caitlin/Jason for the third time, Jeanine/Phillip for the second time and Melissa/Ade for the first time. Wow, Evan has a shitload of fans, doesn't he? After announcing Jeanine & Phillip in the bottom, Nigel made a comment about taking "swing" dancers (and not the Benji Schwimmer type!) on tour, which pretty much clued me in on Phillip's demise tonight.

After some Season 6 audition footage (music was Kevin Rudolf's "Let It Rock" and Jason Mraz's "If It Kills Me" if anyone was wondering), the bottom 3 couples danced for their life.

Caitlin - "Stand By Me" by Playing For Change
I'm not sure what that was. I guess she was trying to show personality. I did not really like that.

Jason - "Calm Touching" by Evaline
I guess Jason's trying to show skin. That spin jump was a little sloppy, and he looked to be flailing a bit too much.

Jeanine - "Baby's Romance" by Chris Garneau
Fun fact - Jason danced to that song in Vegas week last season. Jeanine's solo was very controlled (except maybe for the end of the attitude turn?). She has nothing to worry about (except for that ugly cutout in the middle of her dress)

Phillip - "The Diva Dance" from The Fifth Element
He uses his musicality very well. And wow those contortions are nuts.

Melissa - "Kashira" by Kodo
That was unexpected! I was expecting something more classical.

Ade - "Windowdipper' by Jib Kidder
Holy SHIT. Now THAT is how you dance for your life. He is such a better tumbler than Jonathan and even Neil.

After the dances, there was a "live" performance of "When Love Takes Over" from Kelly Rowland and DJ Guetta. This was taped last Tuesday. And it sounded way better in person than it does on TV.

On to eliminations. With the girls, Nigel said the decision was more about keeping two girls than dropping one, and that person was Caitlin. That was no surprise. With the guys, it was a unanimous decision to let go of Phillip, who has only been strong in his own style. Phillip looked really sad, but Nigel cheered him right away by announcing he and Caitlin would be on the tour.

After the elimination video, Phillip gave an awesome speech about hopefully inspiring others who may not have the money to train in a studio. All you need is passion and creativity to do whatever you want, he said. I may or may not have cried a little bit. Ahem.

So next week - new partners! Can't wait to see who gets who!