As I said, I was left a bit cold in-person at the arena. And but that's just me and others who shared my opinion. However, others I talked to, really loved it and thought her score was well deserved.
Actually the best reflection of this is that she was about 50/50 as far as a standing ovation. It was interesting, people either really responded to it or didn't.
Mirai, on the other hand, had pretty much the whole audience behind her. From where I sit (Sec. 14, ha!) she had pretty good ice coverage as well. I would say she isn't as fast as Gracie's but I wouldn't say she's a total slowpoke either.
Obviously thinking about it further. I can understand logically how they got that score, but as my husband said, it was because it was a much more utilitarian, point-getting program. But that's the point (no pun intended), I suppose. You can't judge by the audience reaction, obviously. Again, I can logically understand why she's in first now, but I guess the heart doesn't quite agree. And of course, the judges shouldn't judge on heart.
IN any case, I'm a bit surprised by my reaction as someone that likes Gracie's skating in general and someone that wasn't particularly that enamored with Mirai. But that is where I'm at right now. Talk to me a few days, perhaps when I watch the videos again and the initial emotion/reaction disappears I might have a different opinion.
