Papadakis/Cizeron vs. Davis/White

[IceVampire]

This is a battle I would have loved to have seen. The two greatest ice dance teams since Grishuk and Platov. P/C have unmatched artistry, unlike anything ever seen in ice dance. They are so far ahead of everyone competing currently that its not as interesting watching ice dance as compared to pair skating, where you really do not know who will place where.

D/W have unmatched speed and athleticism. Unlike anything ever seen in ice dance, even to this present day. And I really loved the way Meryl was developing artistically on DWTS. They had a two year unbeaten streak going. I believe the longest since G/P was dominating dance. These two teams in a head to head battle would have everyone glued to their seats.

 

[ice coverage]

... These two teams in a head to head battle would have everyone glued to their seats.

Agree with the one sentence that I have quoted.
I certainly respect both couples. Each alone would attract a high level of interest (deservedly so), and together they would attract an even higher level of interest.

But do not agree with some of the OTT subjective opinions in the premise in the OP.

 

[Skater Boy]

I think they are most similar in that they are both overmarked, overhyped and for some reason the judges loved them and they both will win over Virtue and Moir though I an no sure deservedly. They are also admittedly great ice dancers and onwonderfl at the schmaultzy, lyrical skating (which I love) but I am not so sure worthy of such praise.

 

[Mathman]

The two greatest ice dance teams since Grishuk and Platov.

Grishuk and Platov weren't so great.

 

[Mathman]

Oh, yes they were, you bad Mathman. Stop trolling G&P fans!

 

[Mango]

I think they are most similar in that they are both overmarked, overhyped and for some reason the judges loved them and they both will win over Virtue and Moir though I an no sure deservedly. They are also admittedly great ice dancers and onwonderfl at the schmaultzy, lyrical skating (which I love) but I am not so sure worthy of such praise.

Sometimes I wonder Skater Boy if you're really a Canadian in disguise.

 

[IceVampire]

Grishuk and Platov weren't so great.

Honestly I did not appreciate them until later. I always liked Krylova better at the time they were competing. But man... Oksana was fierce! And absolutely refused to lose. They went like 4 or 5 years without losing a single competition plus two Olympic Gold medals. They were an awesome team and now I really appreciate them.

 

[Anyasnake]

I think if D/W stayed after Sochi or returned last year, they would have pushed the artistic side of their skating. Although, I found them to be always very connected to their pieces whatever they were (and that's a sign of great musicality). Whatever people thought about Scheherazade, this was a perfect fit for them on every aspect (this is one of the main reason for me they got gold, not just the consistency thing).

Now, Charlie said he would have loved to skate to a Philip Glass piece. I would have loved to see that !
Meryl showed an awesome side of herself in DWTS. They have also become incredible show skaters and dancers, that would have been a great advantage in today's Ice Dance field, and especially with the Latin SD.
The only thing I would have loved them to show is that actually : more "dancing" on the ice. They had such incredible athleticism. But I felt they were there with Sheherazade.

Anyway I miss them on the ice

 

[Mrs. P]

I do miss the presence of Davis/White or at least a pair with their style. I always thought Chock/Bates could have potentially filled that void, but they never seem to express the same confidence in their material that Davis and White did (for better or worse).

Davis and White's Giselle Polka remains one of my fave SDs.

 

[shine]

:scard7::eeking:

 

[IceVampire]

I do miss the presence of Davis/White or at least a pair with their style. I always thought Chock/Bates could have potentially filled that void, but they never seem to express the same confidence in their material that Davis and White did (for better or voice).

Davis and White's Giselle Polka remains one of my fave SDs.

Oh yes.. that dance is my all-time favorite dance number... And the way they went on enemy territory and TOOK that gold medal was something to behold.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBjRshTZv9Y

Too bad the U.S. has no dance team right now that have the competitive nerve of D/W. Our current top teams are lovely people... but they have no balls and no consistency. Bad music and always messing up the twizzles. The way things are looking Bobrova & Co. will probably sneak right in for that bronze medal at the Olympics.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

Oh yes.. that dance is my all-time favorite dance number... And the way they went on enemy territory and TOOK that gold medal was something to behold.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBjRshTZv9Y

Too bad the U.S. has no dance team right now that have the competitive nerve of D/W. Our current top teams are lovely people... but they have no balls and no consistency. Bad music and always messing up the twizzles. The way things are looking Bobrova & Co. will probably sneak right in for that bronze medal at the Olympics.

Are you kidding me with we have no current teams with competitive nerve and consistency of D/W?!? H/D and S/S are both doing quite well in that category.

 

[IceVampire]

Are you kidding me with we have no current teams with competitive nerve and consistency of D/W?!? H/D and S/S are both doing quite well in that category.

I like them but no.... If H/D get within a sniff of a medal at a major competition they screw up. Could have had bronze at the world championships.. but messed up. Could have had bronze at the GPF but messed it up. Put a little bit of pressure on them and they melt like popsicles. They skate much better under the radar. Like at Skate Canada, they knew they would be stiffed, so they skated like they had nothing to lose.

S/S are the more consistent ones (usually)... but they have very limited range and although I love their short dance this year, that long program is atrocious.

C/B not sure what happened to them... they were well on their way but a combination of inconsistency and extremely bad music choices took them out of contention. I hope if they continue they hire someone to pick their music like Sandra Bezic or someone with extremely high taste. Just don't let them anywhere near the jukebox because they have been shopping for music at the same place as that Russian pair team with the yellow polka dots costume.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

I like them but no.... If H/D get within a sniff of a medal at a major competition they screw up. Could have had bronze at the world championships.. but messed up. Could have had bronze at the GPF but messed it up. Put a little bit of pressure on them and they melt like popsicles. They skate much better under the radar. Like at Skate Canada, they knew they would be stiffed, so they skated like they had nothing to lose.

S/S are the more consistent ones (usually)... but they have very limited range and although I love their short dance this year, that long program is atrocious.

C/B not sure what happened to them... they were well on their way but a combination of inconsistency and extremely bad music choices took them out of contention. I hope if they continue they hire someone to pick their music like Sandra Bezic or someone with extremely high taste. Just don't let them anywhere near the jukebox because they have been shopping for music at the same place as that Russian pair team with the yellow polka dots costume.

I'll just agree to disagree.

C/B work with Chris Dean on choreo and that's someone you don't laugh at.

 

[GGFan]

Hypothetical matchups are always fun to consider. I'll be honest though: the first thing I thought about was the hypothetical fan wars. From that point of view I am extremely grateful that D/W retired. I can imagine the threads!

It's fun imagining D/W with other choreographers, and it could be epic to have a legitimate 3-way race to gold, but emotionally I feel great about them leaving on top. I think the aesthetic these days is to try to make it look effortless and that was never their strength.

 

[IceVampire]

Hypothetical matchups are always fun to consider. I'll be honest though: the first thing I thought about was the hypothetical fan wars. From that point of view I am extremely grateful that D/W retired. I can imagine the threads!

It's fun imagining D/W with other choreographers, and it could be epic to have a legitimate 3-way race to gold, but emotionally I feel great about them leaving on top. I think the aesthetic these days is to try to make it look effortless and that was never their strength.

Hmm I don't think the fan wars would be as bad actually... Of course there would be a few things but I don't think those fan bases are as toxic as some others. For the most part P/C fans are quite cordial and fair. Lovely people.

 

[IceVampire]

I'll just agree to disagree.

C/B work with Chris Dean on choreo and that's someone you don't laugh at.

I doubt if Chris Dean picked that god-awful music though.....

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

I doubt if Chris Dean picked that god-awful music though.....

 

[Anyasnake]

It's fun imagining D/W with other choreographers

Hum, yes. Yes to this a thousand times ! Choreographers outside of the skating world, bringing them a fresh perspective, because when they left competitive skating they found another layer of performance to add to what they could do.

But like you said, they left on the highest note possible. Emotionnally, the preparation for Sochi, physical and psychological must have been horrible in a way. Especially mentally speaking, I can't imagine.

 

[NoNameFace]

I doubt if Chris Dean picked that god-awful music though.....

okay, but...Ic3Rabbit referred to Chock/Bates working on choreography with Mr. Dean, not to musical choice for the program. Even if Dean picked the music or helped with advice on that matter and you don't like it - it does not diminish or downgrade his work put with both skaters on how choreography looks and how the program's outlook is presenting overall, especially if one considers the music as 'god-awful'. Music is a matter of personal preference/reception, but I think that Chock/Bates really make their pick work in action - it is not an universal 'crowd pleaser', but sure finds its audience and creates an impact/pull because of how it is performed/interpreted mostly.

I, for a change, would love to see Pechalat/Bourzat still going competitively - their creativity and original take on so many styles and aesthetics was always great and refreshing to see for me.