I think I'll have more to share once I watch more of hte competition, but I have one thought for now and I want to answer Specs' question.
First of all, I only really watched the men's event. I had to work and do other things this weekend and the men's event was scheduled early enough so I could watch it in its entirety. I did watch the free dance entirely (and seeing Beatrice, aka NoNameFace, give Piper that beautiful bouquet and card was definitely a highlight knowing how much work and thought she put into the gift) and the pair's free skate just now.
But my sole thought for now: Jason Brown put the men's skating world on notice with that short program. Honestly, we've seen him score well with quadless programs, but this short program truly melded together the best of what he had prior to coming to TCC (Rohene's choreography, his flexibility, great spins and his connection with the audience) and what he has gained over the last few months (a mature look and feel in his overall packaging, new jump technique and newly developed skating skills from Mama Tracy). I think we're used to seeing Jason as this sunshine and happy-go-lucky guy and here, he was confident and ready to attack. It's honestly the best I've seen him skate ever.
A lot of folks speculated that Jason would benefit from the new +5/-5 GOE and the reduced base values on quads. But he also benefits from what has been a clear shift in the technical calling for steps and spins. Getting a level 4 is much harder and judges expect much more to get the +GOE. He skated clean and there you go, a 96.41. Only three skaters have beat that score. I think it was hard to deny that quality skating should matter more (not just hitting the HARDEST jumps or base value) after seeing a program like that.
The free skate isn't there yet with melding what Jason already has and what he's gained in his new coaching environment and in a new skater/choreographer relationship. But I found it encouraging that David Wilson and the rest of the TCC gang were open to making changes that made Jason connect it more. The new choreographic sequence is a nice mesh of old -- the beautiful Kerrigan spiral -- and new -- the Ina Bauer and the leaps throughout. The judges thought so too, giving it a whopping +2.31 GOE (compared to 1.50 GOE at Skate Canada). There were a bunch of silly mistakes, which seem to be a bit of a lapse in competition -- but his emotional connection to that program is leaps and bounds from when he first performed it at Autumn Classic International two months ago.
The quad of course is still a big work in progress, but Jason clearly knows that, but he turned in one out-of-this-world performance and one solid, if not amazing one. I think a lot more people took note of Jason's silver because it was honestly so unexpected after so-so performances in his two former competitions. Anyway, I'm proud of him. He gave a lot for his fans, including me, to be excited about.
For me what makes Samarin so endearing is that he loves what he's doing. He shows great investment in his programs, even if the execution isn't quite there, and I can't help but appreciate that.
I think Sasha looks better in person, IMO, then on television. He has massive jumps, but like many others, he has a hard time controlling them. I think he has fairly good speed and he does have some power to him. From an overall skating/performance/choreography standpoint, I prefer Dmitri Aliev, but I think Sasha's good qualities deserved to be highlighted.
I do agree with DSQ's post from earlier and I hope he's keeping track of skaters like Jason and how important it is to maintain overall quality not just getting the big money jumps.
I have no idea what I've said about Alexander Samarin though.
(It was a completely different person. LOL)
. I didn't know it was possible to be so affected by skaters who aren't anywhere close to my favourites. They both are under a lot of pressure given the depth of their respective federations, but I hope (and believe) they'll come out stronger.
What a charming moment.
