Mens SP

Serious Business said:

Jeremy Abbott is the man. Such a wonderful, nimble and entertaining performance. I'm reading some comparisons between this SP and Ryan Bradley. LOL no. It's the difference between your charming uncle doing a dance at a bar mitzvah vs. Michael Jackson. Abbott can actually move. Those jazz moves of his may not be new, but he incorporates them so seamlessly into his skating and with such speed that it is a new experience. The best Sing, Sing, Sing program I have seen, and there have been a lot.

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I totally agree! What an insult to Jeremy's talent for anyone to compare him in any way to Ryan Bradley.

museksk8r said:

I totally agree! What an insult to Jeremy's talent for anyone to compare him in any way to Ryan Bradley.

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lol While I agree that Ryan isn't in the same league, or ballpark, or continent that Jeremy is in when it comes to skating ability, Ryan is a very gutsy and confident entertainer. One of the very few skaters who aren't afraid to clown it up on competition ice. I don't recall Jeremy incorporating anything remotely like that into his competitive programs until now.

Of course, the difference is still stark. Ryan's schtick was separate from his skating, because he really didn't move much on ice. Jeremy, on the other hand, turned out to be as much of a charming ham as Ryan is (total surprise to me), while being a much better skater. Seeing Jeremy do this at top speed, with intricate footwork all over the ice is a different experience completely.

In parts of the program Jeremy's expression just feels like a really nerdy kid trying to be cool. I don't feel he conveys as much charisma with this kind of material in comparison to Ryan, even if he is better at everything else.

snowflake said:

What do you want him to do with his suspenders then?

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He could use them during that part where he goes up on his heels and during the flying upright spin to make it less boring. I think tugging them out a couple times in a quick pulsing motion once during the program would be effective too. Right now he just grabs them at random times throughout the program and it doesn't really add anything to what he's doing or create a meaningful shape.

Lol I read something funny somewhere where the person thought Jeremy was wearing makeup, lol.

I don't know I can't really get into this Swing Music thingie he's doing, reminds me of a cartoon character for some reason, I think b/c he's got a face that looks similar to Denice the Menace or Richie Rich or better yet Howdy Doody. I agree with those that think his 2009/10 Beatles program was one-for-the-ages. It ranks as my all-time favorite program of an American male ever (right up there with John Curry).

Back to Artur, couldn't get enough of watching this on replay, love the balletic leap/jump he does right before the super fast easy 3R! His dance moves, speed, superior jumps (my gosh that spread eagle into 3A was otherworldly)!

Except for the hair, he honestly looks nothing like he did last year ~ his overall *skating* has improved leaps and bounds and it shows!

ps: on a superficial note, he reminds looks like the actor Heath Ledger, eery.

Look & compare, one can't tell the difference:

http://images.search.yahoo.com/sear...OHyMAOlpXNyoA?p="artur gachinski"&fr2=piv-web

http://images.search.yahoo.com/sear...6rROpXAA8MhXNyoA?p="heath ledger"&fr2=piv-web

arinessa said:

I kinda find Hanyu a bit sloppy, although artistic and talented and Johnny Weir-ish, maybe still young though. I like Gachinsky's ss, he is just not balletic really, its simply his style right now, I think he'll develop more personality. I think balletic men's skating is 'it' for now, never cared for it much. Awesome jumps, kinda just throws them in sometime, yum

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Not as exciting a competition for me as SC men's event. I don't think Hanyu is really "sloppy," just very loose-limbed (or limber), and he has a deceptively lazy-looking way of moving and throwing himself into jumps. Yet, there is a kind of smoothness about him and a latent precocious artistry. His face and his mien are kind of "doll-like." He has amazing jumping skills. Actually, most of the young guys here are fantastic jumpers (but do not have the whole package in terms of artistry and presentation). I think Dornbush PCS should have been higher than Kevin's and even higher than Song's and Wu's, and certainly higher than Oda's! To me Oda has actually lost whatever improvement in presentation he was trying to build. He often looks clueless out there, but yes, he can jump. Jumping is not everything.

While I have an affection for Gachinski, please! His coach knows this guy is very weak artistically. To me, both Gachinski and Hanyu still seem somewhat juniorish, but right now, I think Hanyu is the better overall skater than Gachinski. I would have scored it in this order: Hanyu, Abbott, Gachinski. And if Richard had just skated his program better by landing his jumps, he should have been in 4th, IMO ahead of Oda. What is interesting is as museks8r says, Jeremy could be in first with a quad and better GOE on some of his jump landings. No question that Jeremy is the better overall skater among this group. Hope he proves it in the free program.

What I fear though is this over-the-top bowing down to Mishin and whoever his current protege is -- I think Gachinski is way overscored here, especially on PCS. Gachinski is trying too hard, and his movements are a bit forced, plus his legs are so stiff, and his skating often seems awkward and off-center. I agree that Gachinski's free program suits his style and is a good one for him, but I detest how much he's held up in the marks, particularly on PCS. Gachinski, not unlike Oda and the two Chinese skaters, is primarily a jumper. Let them have a jumping contest then. I feel that even Brezina and Rogozine have better ss than Gachinski and are just as good jumpers. I hate this anointing of a skater like Gachinski when he still has a lot of work to do. To be honest, as I said, even Hanyu still seems a bit juniorish, but a better skater overall than Gachinski and other up-and-comers.

Very good sp for Jeremy -- and many seem to be copying/ inspired by the swing theme (Javier's sp in particular, but also Oda's here).

ETA: Gachinski's ending was way off his music! No points taken off for that?

IIRC, Jeremy worked with Swing Dance (and So You Think You Can Dance) champion Benji Schwimmer (sp) on his short program...

^^ Yes, I know. Benji's Dad, Buddy Schwimmer, is a famous Swing champion and developer of the West Coast swing style of dancing.

Interesting how skaters inspire each other. Jeremy debuted his short at an exhibition event over the summer, and there are at least 2 men with similar type programs: Javier Fernandez (sp), and Nobunari Oda (fp). I think Jere and Javy are the best, with Jere much better overall on spins, transitions and thematic whole, while Javy has got absolutely amazingly quick revolutions in the air. Oda has great lift and flow on his jumps, but not much else. Important to rotate quickly to land quads! How can skaters develop that ability?

Jeremy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0rvI_tBPAw

Javier: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJJEwJqY_2Y

Can't find a link to Oda's CoC free program, but just as well, cause he didn't skate very good.