From where I sat watching in the arena, I did not agree with the placements of the SP that had Suzuki in fourth place--she was underscored. I would have had her in 2nd or very close 3rd with Kostner. Definitely ahead of Murakami. Makes me wonder what's in those protocols.
--Alyssa was just marvelous--a gorgeous program, done well. Everyone in the arena was holding their collective breath to see if she'd get through all those jumps unscathed (her headcase reputation precedes her, lol). I was sitting near a small group of Russian fans during the Sr Dance, Men, and Ladies competitions, and Alyssa was the ONLY skater for which they gave a rousing ovation and lusty cheers after the performance. Dare we all hope for a clean program tomorrow....
--Suzuki was On, and my feeling is that she can and should out-PCS Ando every day of the week and twice on Sundays. Not sure why judges seem to feel opposite. Thought her score when it came out was low--I was expecting at least a 60.00.
--Kostner skated well to a very pretty program. She did a good job but the tech content isn't there. Kudos for doing a triple-triple, which keeps her competitive through the SP at least. She looked relaxed for a change. I am glad she stayed upright, but thought her 62.13 mark was a tad generous.
--Murakami. I just don't see what the hype is about this girl. The program is too cutesy for me, though it works for her at this stage in her career. The second half of it starts to grate on my nerves. Even with the 3-3, thought she was a bit overscored. She's got some ugly jumping techniques, also. Her other elements aren't as good as Suzuki's, but she's the new Judge's Pet.
The saccharine-and-bubbles routines will hopefully be retired by Team Murakami after this season, otherwise she's going to start to look a little silly. I would agree that she skated better than Ando and Flatt at this competition.
--Ando--Looked "off" even at warm-up. Tech elements aren't gelling for her tonight. Trying to be musical but it seems forced. Is this new music? I don't remember it from CoC. Somehow I don't see her roaring back in the LP tomorrow.
--Flatt: A mess and very slow, she also looked "off" but I assume it was due to injury. I like her new look but I don't like this program. Crowd not into it at all, it's like she's the warm-up act to the main competition. Ouch! Injury aside, I can't help but think that she would have benefited incredibly by moving to another coach about 3-4 years ago.
