'Dancing with the Stars': Bristol's underwhelming last shot
For her final performance, the show's most controversial contestant, Bristol Palin, attempted to prove that she actually deserves to win
The video: On Monday night, Bristol Palin undertook new footwork for the "Dancing With the Stars" finale, taking on rivals Jennifer Grey and Kyle Massey. The 20-year-old Palin has made it this far despite mediocre reviews from the judges, particularly for her "disastrous jive in a monkey suit" earlier this season, and protests that her steady advancement proves the show is more about popularity than prowess. On Monday, Palin (and partner Mark Ballas) tried to appease her detractors with a pair of routines: Another attempt at a jive, and then a freestyle performance in which Bristol "gyrated in a cage" to a song from the musical Chicago. Although the pair received the lowest scores of the evening, that may be irrelevant when the winners are announced Tuesday night.
The reaction: Dancing to a standard from a well-known musical was a "risky" move, says Allyssa Lee at The Los Angeles Times, and indeed, "it turned out that Bristol had never even heard of Chicago, much less seen a Broadway show." The bigger problem, of course, says Edward Schumacher-Matos at The Washington Post, is that "Bristol can't dance." While she did show "a flash of fun and movement" in her jive number, she "reverted to her largely flat, heavy-legged form" during the freestyle section. "Will America come to its senses" and give the more deserving Jennifer Grey the crown? Watch Bristol Palin's freestyle performance:
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
6 homes near national parks
Feature Featuring a lodge surrounded by red-rock mountains in Utah and a cottage within walking distance of Acadia National Park
By The Week Staff Published
-
News overload
Opinion Too much breaking news is breaking us
By Theunis Bates Published
-
Greenland is hoping to boost tourism with the Arctic's first international airport
In the Spotlight The enhanced facility is the first international airport in Greenland's capital
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published