Virtue/Moir - Davis/White

russell30 · May 27, 2014

Any news - updates on these 2 teams, are they competing in the 2014-2015 season?

I just assume they are taking the next season off?

Anyone know?

I know D/W been busy with off ice interviews/shows being Olympic Champions and of course DWTS.

V/M have been doing shows?

Anyone have any feelers what these 2 teams are likely to do?

Miss them already!

caitie · May 27, 2014

V/M have say they will not compete this calendar year, so they have left it open for them to come back early next year for Nats, 4CC, Worlds if they want to.

D/W have said they need to talk about it with each other. Their only stated plan was to be in school full time in the Fall but now they say they will only have time for online classes because they will be busier with "engagements and opportunities" than they expected.

So I don't expect to see either team compete again this year, and honestly I'll be surprised if they ever compete again. Do people really want them to? I love both teams especially D/W, but they have really accomplished everything they can competitively, and they are older teams who have dominated for half a decade and likely already peaked.

tulosai · May 27, 2014

caitie said:
V/M have say they will not compete this calendar year, so they have left it open for them to come back early next year for Nats, 4CC, Worlds if they want to.

D/W have said they need to talk about it with each other. Their only stated plan was to be in school full time in the Fall but now they say they will only have time for online classes because they will be busier with "engagements and opportunities" than they expected.

So I don't expect to see either team compete again this year, and honestly I'll be surprised if they ever compete again. Do people really want them to? I love both teams especially D/W, but they have really accomplished everything they can competitively, and they are older teams who have dominated for half a decade and likely already peaked.

I honestly don't think D/W ever actually peaked. I think they are capable of more even if they never placed so well again.

With that said, I would FALL OVER if either team ever competes again at this point.

TMC · May 27, 2014

tulosai said:
I honestly don't think D/W ever actually peaked. I think they are capable of more even if they never placed so well again.

With that said, I would FALL OVER if either team ever competes again at this point.

YES! D/W can take a season's break so that V/M can get a GPF gold & another World gold, then they retire and D/W come back to gold in Boston 2016!!!

FS.Addict · May 27, 2014

I agree with you.

I watched some numbers of Meryl and her partner at DWTS and i found her so much more expressive. WHY didn't she SKATE with such emotions ?

Technically, i prefered D/W, but artistically, i prefered V/M, but i feel like DWTS allowed her to express herself and i really liked that.

caitie · May 27, 2014

tulosai said:
I honestly don't think D/W ever actually peaked. I think they are capable of more even if they never placed so well again.

With that said, I would FALL OVER if either team ever competes again at this point.

I could see them being capable of more artistically, but I don't know if they could match the near technical perfection they achieved the past two seasons, and that's a standard they created for themselves and probably would've be able to meet again, especially if their focus and priority shifts. I feel like the things people want to see from them artistically and performance-wise could be achieved in show programs.

caitie · May 27, 2014

FS.Addict said:
I watched some numbers of Meryl and her partner at DWTS and i found her so much more expressive. WHY didn't she SKATE with such emotions ?

Meryl said that in skating you're always looking ahead towards the next element, you have to worry about every edge placement, etc. There are so many technical details competing for your attention, whereas on DWTS she had so much more freedom to focus on expression an artistry. Also she said that by the end of the season you perform a program so many times it's a struggle for it not to be robotic. (Which is funny because I find D/W to be more expressive as the season goes on an they get more comfortable with the tech.)

anyanka · May 27, 2014

TMC said:
YES! D/W can take a season's break so that V/M can get a GPF gold & another World gold, then they retire and D/W come back to gold in Boston 2016!!!

I'm a huge fan of both teams (don't make choose!) so I am all over this idea.

(Unlikely to happen though, both seem happy to move on with their lives.)

TMC · May 27, 2014

anyanka said:
I'm a huge fan of both teams (don't make choose!) so I am all over this idea.
(Unlikely to happen though, both seem happy to move on with their lives.)

I know it won't...but I want V/M to get their GPFG! *stomps foot*

My heart beats more for D/W but I would still love for V/M to have that

TMC · May 27, 2014

FS.Addict said:
I watched some numbers of Meryl and her partner at DWTS and i found her so much more expressive. WHY didn't she SKATE with such emotions ?

Eye of the beholder. I never saw her lacking there - even the Samson & Delilah FD as early as 2008 showed that.

FS.Addict · May 27, 2014

Maybe it's just me, but when i look at their Scheherazade program, i feel like her face is always the same ; nothing happens there. At Olympics, i was so disappointed they had the same marks as V/M for interpretation, although i really liked this program

PlaysInTheDirt · May 27, 2014

I thought Meryl did a great job expressing the various stages of the program, but interpretation goes beyond facial expression, so the marks shouldn't have surprised anyone, I don't think.

I believe there's a disadvantage for D/W because some people tend to compare them to V/M with regard to the way they connect on ice. For whatever reason, whether it was a decision Marina made or just the way it worked out, V/M's programs involve things that make the public believe they could be a couple off ice. Kisses on the hand, romantic looks, brushing of the hair, etc. And there is a contingent that look at that and wonder why D/W can't do the same. They expect them to do the same and want them to do the same. That's not what their partnership is about, however - they haven't been "packaged" that way. Compared to all that V/M do, sometimes it may seem like D/W aren't connecting, but they are.

The one time they got close to doing anything remotely close to doing what V/M do was (I THINK) the first time they skated to Notre Dame and Charlie picked up Meryl and held her in his arms as he spun around - and - just as I react when I see V/M do this kind of thing - I cringed because it felt so false to me. I hated it. It's something I don't like in V/M either, but I understand this is their schtick, and I ignore it as much as possible because I really do enjoy them as ice dancers.

Sometimes less really is more.

UnsaneLily87 · May 27, 2014

PlaysInTheDirt said:
I thought Meryl did a great job expressing the various stages of the program, but interpretation goes beyond facial expression, so the marks shouldn't have surprised anyone, I don't think.

I believe there's a disadvantage for D/W because some people tend to compare them to V/M with regard to the way they connect on ice. For whatever reason, whether it was a decision Marina made or just the way it worked out, V/M's programs involve things that make the public believe they could be a couple off ice. Kisses on the hand, romantic looks, brushing of the hair, etc. And there is a contingent that look at that and wonder why D/W can't do the same. They expect them to do the same and want them to do the same. That's not what their partnership is about, however - they haven't been "packaged" that way. Compared to all that V/M do, sometimes it may seem like D/W aren't connecting, but they are.

The one time they got close to doing anything remotely close to doing what V/M do was (I THINK) the first time they skated to Notre Dame and Charlie picked up Meryl and held her in his arms as he spun around - and - just as I react when I see V/M do this kind of thing - I cringed because it felt so false to me. I hated it. It's something I don't like in V/M either, but I understand this is their schtick, and I ignore it as much as possible because I really do enjoy them as ice dancers.

Sometimes less really is more.

Agreed. V/M aren't necessarily better just because they look like they're...well, I'm looking for a euphemism...I'll say "madly in love." Not that they aren't good in their own right but I feel like sometimes people prefer them simply because of the romance they bring. It's skating, not acting.

Anyway, I'll be shocked if either team competes again. What is there left to win? Why bother? It takes a lot of effort to train for elite level competition.

Olympia · May 27, 2014

UnsaneLily87 said:
Agreed. V/M aren't necessarily better just because they look like they're...well, I'm looking for a euphemism...I'll say "madly in love." Not that they aren't good in their own right but I feel like sometimes people prefer them simply because of the romance they bring. It's skating, not acting.

Anyway, I'll be shocked if either team competes again. What is there left to win? Why bother? It takes a lot of effort to train for elite level competition.

Not only all the grueling training, with no free time and the risk of injury. It must also be hard, after getting Olympic glory twice and being one of the world's top two couples for half a decade, to have to gain the approval of a row of judges, as they did when they were nine years old. They're almost as old as some of the judges now, and it must make them feel a bit impatient from time to time. Why go through that kind of "So? Do you think I'm good enough?" process again and again if there are other ways to skate for an audience? I know that this isn't exactly the golden age of the professional circuit in North America, but there's Europe and Asia, where I think both D/W and V/M are popular (I know for sure that D/W are huge in Japan). And with the increased visibility of these two couples after the Olympics, the Canadian reality show, and DWTS, maybe this is the moment for a TV special or two featuring skating.

LauraV · May 27, 2014

I love both D/W and V/M. These two teams really are in a class of their own, and they made the discipline of ice dancing this past quad more exciting than it has ever been, due to their technical brilliance and their closeness in ability. I am going to miss them terribly and, as fond as I am of many other teams, I don't think Ice Dance is going to be quite as interesting without them.

Having said all that - I have a hard time believing either team will come back to competitive skating, much as I might like it if they did. It's a grueling regimen, they have each accomplished a great deal including an OGM and as others have said above, they must be pining to get on with their lives.

Next season will nevertheless be interesting - I'm looking forward to the jostling for position at the top among the rest of the field. It's unusually wide open. I wonder - when was the last time all three Olympic Dance medalists were gone from competition in the following season?

TontoK · May 27, 2014

Like you, I'm afraid we've seen the last of these teams on the world competitive stage.

When Marina snapped up the Russians after the dramatic split, that told me more than D/W and V/M statements (or nonstatements) about their competitive futures.

She knows the story. It's time to move on.

FS.Addict · May 27, 2014

When i mentionned V/M expression, i was not talking about that "romance" thing. In fact, i thought their free dance this year was a little boring. But i really liked their Carmen free dance. It was so intense.

And i agree sometimes less is more, but i think facial expression is soooo important. Smiling all dance long, for me, is just a lack of expression. Look at all top dance teams, they express something through their faces and its part of the story they tell, but Meryl's face looked like the one of a porcelain doll.

slider11 · May 27, 2014

It takes two to tango, so to speak, and it would have looked silly for Meryl to show her passion if Charlie looked at her with those "i'm your friend but don't push it" look. I thought Meryl did a good job expressing Sheherazade. I prefer that look than the over the top grimaces and extreme facial expressions. The dance, including their faces, did a phenomenal job.

I think it speaks volumes that Charlie told Meryl he loved her at the end of Sheherazade -and admitted it! That was more than a brotherly affection -that was a war buddy thanking his partner for fighting through the good and bad. It transcends family or even love on a sexual level. They have a true life bond. But now after DWTS, I think they can both take it another level and add a little frosting to that cake! Without obsessing about levels and technical details they can freely and passionately express all kind of emotions on the ice. Can't wait! But I would find it hard to believe that it will ever be on the competitive level.

Mathman · May 27, 2014

slider11 said:
i think it speaks volumes that charlie told meryl he loved her at the end of sheherazade -and admitted it! That was more than a brotherly affection -that was a war buddy thanking his partner for fighting through the good and bad. it transcends family or even love on a sexual level. They have a true life bond.

This!

Olympia · May 27, 2014

slider11 said:
I think it speaks volumes that Charlie told Meryl he loved her at the end of Sheherazade -and admitted it! That was more than a brotherly affection -that was a war buddy thanking his partner for fighting through the good and bad. It transcends family or even love on a sexual level. They have a true life bond. But now after DWTS, I think they can both take it another level and add a little frosting to that cake! Without obsessing about levels and technical details they can freely and passionately express all kind of emotions on the ice. Can't wait! But I would find it hard to believe that it will ever be on the competitive level.

I don't think I've ever seen it said better than this.

Virtue/Moir - Davis/White

russell30

caitie

tulosai

TMC

FS.Addict

caitie

caitie

anyanka

TMC

TMC

FS.Addict

PlaysInTheDirt

UnsaneLily87

Olympia

LauraV

TontoK

Hot Tonto

FS.Addict

slider11

Mathman

Olympia

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