Men's Free Program, Sat. Nov. 12 at 10:55 pm EST

[evangeline]

So I see Takahashi has a 4 fall advantage over Kozuka.

And a 20 fall advantage over Miner

[treeloving]

Oh, the LOLsiness of the poster upthread who thought Dai's marks are being inflated to that he could compete with Chan. I think Dai deserves his IN and P&E 9s far more than Patrick, whose strengths lie more in the technical part of the PCS (SS/TR). I'm really enjoying toned-down Dai this season; there have been times in the past when I felt he was overdoing it with the expression, but this year it's just perfect. Kudos to David Wilson and Pasquale Camerlengo for giving him two excellent vehicles that showcase what he can do. I think the judging here sends a clear message to the guys: bring your A-game if you want to compete with Takahashi.

While many skate through the music, Dai truely capture the soul of blue in his performance! If this doesn't deserve good IN, what should?

[Bluebonnet]

Congratulations, Daisuke! He went all out to express it. I still hate his wrists but he was truly musical. Well done!

[herios]

So I see Takahashi has a 4 fall advantage over Kozuka.

Kozu also popped his loop and turned his second 3z combo into a 3/2, usually he does a 3/3 there.

[genki]

While many skate through the music, Dai truely capture the soul of blue in his performance! If this doesn't deserve good IN, what should?

Now Quebec is waiting for me.

[SkateFiguring]

Poor Kozuka. While judges have been quite generous with PCS this season, Kozuka is not one of the beneficiaries. Now he has a PCS spread of 10 points with Takahashi.

[Blades of Passion]

No one has in this thread said about Buttle's transitions into jumps. Movements in the entrances and exits of jumps are just part of transitions.

I know. I was just pointing out how it's unfair to say Miner is "lacking transitions big time". He puts more transitions directly before and after jumps than Buttle did, which means there is less time in the program for other movements. He has 3 transitions directly into jumping passes in comparison to Buttle's 2 (for that World Championship winning program) and he has 4 transitions directly out of jumping passes in comparison to Buttle's 1. The CoP rules on paper say that transitions which come directly before and after jumps are worth the most points, so people sadly tend to focus mostly on those and less on the choreography as a whole. If the judges scored the components correctly then skaters wouldn't be structuring their programs like that, but this is another discussion.

Miner does have other transitional movements between elements too, though. Notice the steps partway between the Triple Axel and the first Lutz pass, the crossroll and hop that come before a mini-step sequence that precedes his final jumping pass, the steps with his arms behind his back in the second half of the program at some point after the Salchow, and the turns leading up to his 3Loop entrance.

There are plenty of transitions in Miner's program, they just don't have much choreographic/interpretative impact and aren't performed with enthusiasm. So, again, the brilliance in Buttle's skating was not necessarily in the number of transitions but rather in how effective his transitions were.

[A.H.Black]

I had forgotten where I heard Fantasia for Nausicaa by Joe Hisaishi (Kozuka's FS) before. Chen Lu (as she was known then) used the orchestral version in 1993 for her free skate.

[herios]

Oh, the LOLsiness of the poster upthread who thought Dai's marks are being inflated to that he could compete with Chan. I think Dai deserves his IN and P&E 9s far more than Patrick, whose strengths lie more in the technical part of the PCS (SS/TR). .

That is exactly it!

[koheikun90]

If some of you are hardcore gymnastics fans, blues for klook was the floor exercise music used by Silivia Mitova of Bulgaria in the early 90's. It was so revolutionary and groundbreaking at the time and remains one of the most iconic routines of all time. There is really no other performer whether a gymnast, skater or dancer that can interpret this music other than daisuke. he really oozes the attitude and vibe that this piece resonants. It shows that the scoring system is no excuse to not put out program that is innovative and edgy and above all a performance. I can't wait to see him skate it cleanly.This could be on my list of one greatest programs in history.

[fscric]

Wahoooo! Daisukeuuuuw! Oooooooh Yeaaaah!

Right now, I say give Dai Worlds gold! Abbott, silver; Let Chan and the others (Brezina, Kozuka, etc.) battle it out for bronze and 4th.

That's mighty generous of you to let Chan compete for bronze or 4th, shouldn't he be behind even Adam Rippon?

[Bluebonnet]

Poor Kozuka. While judges have been quite generous with PCS this season, Kozuka is not one of the beneficiaries. Now he has a PCS spread of 10 points with Takahashi.

Kozuka's ambition in quad doesn't work out well so far. He URed all three of his quad attempts this season. One fell and one two-footed. Then he took it out in SP this time. It hurt his PCS.

[Medusa]

Kozuka's ambition in quad doesn't work out well so far. He URed all three of his quad attempts this season. One fell and one two-footed. Then he took it out in SP this time. It hurt his PCS.

When Kozuka approaches his Quad he looks like he always does: soft, fluent, gentle over the ice - he never gets the height (in contrast to his 3A which can be pretty high) necessary to actually make the rotations. And I think he knows that, hence his admiration of Plushenko in 2009 when he witnessed how Plushenko went into his jumps.

Congrats to the medallist, Dai's program is a masterpiece.

[skatinginbc]

What do you mean Chan has no competition? They just inflated Dai's marks to make it a competition!

I hate to admit that I enjoy your sense of humor, provocative yet witty. Always fun to read your stuff.

[auser]

If some of you are hardcore gymnastics fans, blues for klook was the floor exercise music used by Silivia Mitova of Bulgaria in the early 90's. It was so revolutionary and groundbreaking at the time and remains one of the most iconic routines of all time. There is really no other performer whether a gymnast, skater or dancer that can interpret this music other than daisuke. he really oozes the attitude and vibe that this piece resonants. It shows that the scoring system is no excuse to not put out program that is innovative and edgy and above all a performance. I can't wait to see him skate it cleanly.This could be on my list of one greatest programs in history.

Thank you for the info about Blues for Klook. I wasn't familiar with this music until recently, but have been interested in other posters strong reactions to it.