Though the Russian pair (S/K) won the Grand Prix final, I was not crazy about some of the choreography in their program - in particular the lifts. One of the poses is quite ugly. It kind of looks like her legs are "scissor like" or an X. It's hard to describe. Anyway, I did not find I liked their program that much. Anyone else feel this way or any other program you find ugly?
I love their skating, their movement as a pair, their forcefulness and I get an impression of fearlessness. So I think their choreographer has a good grasp on how to create great programs for them.
However, I completely agree with you about some of Ksenia's air positions during the lifts. Some leg positions look awkward, and I hate that: pairs should always look elegant and make beautiful shapes IMO.
This is actually a pet peeve of mine, and it's something I feel has happened since we use IJS system. Pairs get more points for adding difficulty. The weird air positions often do add difficulty; therefore pairs are likely to incorporate them in their programs.
I also don't like Castelli/Tran's lift to show off Marissa's flexibility with her body a straight line, one leg to her head. (She did the same lift with former partner Simon Shnapir, and I didn't like it then either.) Mervin rotates her above his head like that and I think it looks stupid as well as unattractive. I noticed that Yu/Jin do the same lift; I still dislike it but because Yu is so slender it seems marginally less bad to me.