Unpopular opinion... I don't think that people who have complained about Z/E as the "third Russian team" or some other static, not-event-specific descriptor are being fair to them. What matters is how they performed on this night. I won't comment on how they should have ranked against J/C, but I don't think they can be dismissed as unworthy of bronze simply because of who they are.
Just in terms of their personal competition with their own past performances, I thought they deserved to score much higher here than they did earlier in the season. I've never been able to figure out their free skate until I watched them skate it tonight. Something about it came together, at least for me, and they skated the whole thing with more speed and abandon than I can recall seeing from them. Also, after watching them back-to-back with some of the other teams, it became more obvious to me how exceptional some of their elements are, especially the twist.
It also helped that one of the Russian commentators in the video I was watching explained the concept of the free skate: two dancers begin the day at a barre class, have some kind of encounter in their free time, and then perform in a ballet together in the evening (hence the costume change). Not saying that's a groundbreaking concept, but it's an interesting one, and they've made it more playful as the season has progressed. The commentator also said something to the effect of, "that is the only one of Nina Mozer's teams tonight who has made her smile."
Regardless of the final placements, I give Z/E tons of credit for a much improved performance. And honestly, if I could only rewatch one performance from the event, I think it might be theirs, simply because they as a team made sense to me tonight in a way they haven't before.
Just in terms of their personal competition with their own past performances, I thought they deserved to score much higher here than they did earlier in the season. I've never been able to figure out their free skate until I watched them skate it tonight. Something about it came together, at least for me, and they skated the whole thing with more speed and abandon than I can recall seeing from them. Also, after watching them back-to-back with some of the other teams, it became more obvious to me how exceptional some of their elements are, especially the twist.
It also helped that one of the Russian commentators in the video I was watching explained the concept of the free skate: two dancers begin the day at a barre class, have some kind of encounter in their free time, and then perform in a ballet together in the evening (hence the costume change). Not saying that's a groundbreaking concept, but it's an interesting one, and they've made it more playful as the season has progressed. The commentator also said something to the effect of, "that is the only one of Nina Mozer's teams tonight who has made her smile."
Regardless of the final placements, I give Z/E tons of credit for a much improved performance. And honestly, if I could only rewatch one performance from the event, I think it might be theirs, simply because they as a team made sense to me tonight in a way they haven't before.