2017 Four Continents Pairs SP

[Chemistry66]

Peng's dress makes me think of the TARDIS from Doctor Who, lol.

 

[Layback11]

I'm watching some of the pairs right now because this happened at, like, 3 A.M. where I live, and I have thoughts.

Sui/Han: spectacular. I don't understand what they're feeding Sui to get her skating so well after an injury like that! The program was mature and sophisticated and they skated it flawlessly. I'm so happy they're back!
Yu/Jin: not super engaging, but I appreciated their elegance and flow, as well as the cleanliness of their elements.
Duhamel/Radford: I'm really not a classic rock person, so I wasn't a huge fan of this program, but they seem to enjoy skating it, so I like that.
Ilyushechkina/Moskovitch: I loved this performance! The program is impeccably choreographed and no musical accent is left unacknowledged.

I was going to watch more, but now I have to do work.

 

[NoNameFace]

in the middle of re-watching...and so far 3 performances have moved me very deeply

Lubov and Dylan - I am glad she put up a fight for that sbs jump, because the program and the performance were worth it. For me they lived up the spirit and atmosphere of that music created - there was certain 'edge' in their expression, their movement and expression which matched music so well. They are both very musical and have promising artistry/athleticism balance for a pair, they certainly can perform and interpret well music and choreography in my opinion and this year's material is very fitting for them. The choreography is very good - higlighting Lubov's insane extension and flexibility with Dylan's strenght and partnering skills. But most importantly - they really put a story there for me, an exciting performance with great chemistry between them which was a pleasure to watch.

Wenjing and Cong - , slayage and royality, to come back after such severe surgery with this kind of shape is really startling for me...There was everything I would dream of from them and then some - gorgeous elements, executed so seamlessly within music and choreography, exquisite carriage and interpretation, full of maturity, sophistication and control, palpable chemistry between them, sparkling so brightly with every move and gesture...For me, the have an optimal artistry/athleticism balance in all pairs - with them, one is a seamless, fluid continuation of one another, complimenting each other, not battling between technical and performance sides. All element executed perfectly with the music, those liquid dance-like transitions done with attitude (before twist, death spiral were my favourite ones) and insane musicality of their movement. Last year's 'Spanish Romance' was amazing, 'Blues for Klook' is definitely a continuation of that, but even more mature, elevated and elegant in some sort. For me they lived up that music, this sultry, edgy feel of Blues and transformed it into mesmerizing picture. A masterpiece performed by true masters!

And Alexa and Chris - a skate during which I teared, suprisingly for myself. Yes - this was not the best program of the day, yes - there was lots of caution in execution and yes - it was 'Moulin Rouge'. But for me they truly lived the emotion and the message carried by that song, it was very authentic and true in perception. There was delicacy, but also strenght to carry on the performance despite those caution and wobbles. There was a positivity and a joy in their skating, the way they looked at each other, smiled, communicated - it all made me smile and cry a bit too, because of them being not afraid to show their love and affection for each other on ice while performing. Those little gestures, like Chris touching Alexa' s face after the lift are building the program for me, even if this sund stupid. Love their connection, simplicity, but a the same time easiness in reception of the program. I'm sure it will grow. And welcome back!

 

[cathlen]

Peng's dress makes me think of the TARDIS from Doctor Who, lol.

YES! THAT'S IT! I knew I liked it for a good reason

 

[LadyB]

Alexa & Chris: Seeing Alexa coming back to the k&c and how emotional she was, wow This first performance under her belt, the happy sensation of "we did it" written on her face in the final position, when Chris held her in her arms and their long embrace after... priceless! :luv17:
Wenjin/Cong: I must admire, I was very impressed. The music was great, so was the interpretation.
Meagan/Eric: Fingers crossed for a flawless FS
Cheng/Yang: I love these two, although they could be a wee bit more energetic in the second half of their programme.

 

[TontoK]

Sui and Han program is so gorgeous and glorious

It was stunning. I also watched a couple of the other higher-ranked pairs. Not worth the bother, really.

Sui and Han are, by far, the class of the field. I think the 5 point lead is actually insufficient. Every aspect of that program was magnificent.

When I noted the music, I thought it was a poor choice because of all the blues in the Short Dance this season. I was wrong.

That was like a dance performance with pairs elements snuck in.

I posted on another thread that I haven't cared about pairs for a decade. Now I do, but only this pair tbh. If Cain and LeDuc progress like I think they might, they'd be anther I'm interested in.

 

[tureis]

Long live the King and Queen a.k.a. Sui and Han! Wow, just wow! These two are so exquisite, it's unbelieveable! The most exciting skaters not just in the pairs field, pretty much all of figure skating right now. And to think this was their first skate of the season after a long way back from surgery... If her knee problems don't resurface, the foreseeable future really will be all theirs.

 

[SnowWhite]

I'm watching some of the pairs right now because this happened at, like, 3 A.M. where I live, and I have thoughts.

Sui/Han: spectacular. I don't understand what they're feeding Sui to get her skating so well after an injury like that! The program was mature and sophisticated and they skated it flawlessly. I'm so happy they're back!
Yu/Jin: not super engaging, but I appreciated their elegance and flow, as well as the cleanliness of their elements.
Duhamel/Radford: I'm really not a classic rock person, so I wasn't a huge fan of this program, but they seem to enjoy skating it, so I like that.
Ilyushechkina/Moskovitch: I loved this performance! The program is impeccably choreographed and no musical accent is left unacknowledged.

I was going to watch more, but now I have to do work.

Yu/Jin ? Do you mean Yu/Zhang or Peng/Jin?

 

[KMK0902]

Re: D/R's 3rd place/scores:
It's been almost 15 years since the introduction of the IJS, I think by now most figure skating fans (regardless of whom we're rooting for) understand that a well constructed program will score well even with a fall (on a fully rotated jump), specially from the reigning 2-time world champions. And I point out that D/R are indeed world champions not to say they were held up, but to point out the obvious: they know how to create programs that can win competitions. This isn't 2003, or 2004, 2005, when it took fans some time to get used to the reality that a fall would NOT automatically knock their favorite (or least favorite) team out of contention. To suggest that D/R aren't deserving of their placement/scores is, in my opinion, a personal bias against them. Now, for the record, D/R are not my favorite team (by any stretch of the imagination), but Pairs skating is in fact my favorite discipline, and I'm able to appreciate and applaud what they can do on the ice...just my 2 cents. Namaste. :2thumbs:

Couldn't have said it better myself I admire D/R for what they have accomplished and I would never count them out; Meagan has way too much drive to throw in the towel and Eric is happily along for the ride

I also have to say that I couldn't be happier for I/M I'm keeping all my thumbs crossed that they will be able to pull off a (relatively) clean FS and stay in the Top 5

 

[KMK0902]

Both are dreadful. You are missing nothing.

Oh, I LOVE both the book and the movie....Last time I was in Atlanta I spent almost 3 hours at the Margaret Mitchell Museum.....

 

[el henry]

No way I was staying up for pairs, so only saw the videos ...

And I am even more in with Alexa and Chris. I don't care about the hand down, or "only" a 3Tw, or the rest. She looked so happy and alive. This, ladies and gents, dancers and pairs, is how you show emotion in a program :agree:Not bedroom eyes, not touchy pawsy, but just happiness to be with each other and on the ice.

(And I love the colors in that dress)

Bravo

 

[hippomoomin]

I found it a norm that when skaters have an hiatus of skating, when they come back, they "automatically" improve artistically, Siu, Alexa... Even when Miki Ando decided to run for Sochi, she was more expressive than ever. I think artistry has a lot to do with life experiences.

 

[invisiblespiral]

Just popping in to say that S/H's SP is amazing.

 

[eta]

Couldn't watch live sadly due to work, catching up now (thank you youtube and kind uploaders), just want to say that Sui/Han were so breathtaking :luv17:

 

[BlackAxel]

Well dare I say it ... ish just got real! Seems like the Mens and Pairs event is going to be an absolute bloodbath at Worlds. I didn't think Sui/Han would be able to top their masterpiece of a SP last year, but I am glad they (and Lori) proved me wrong. Just absolutely spellbinding!!

 

[Mista Ekko]

Can we take a second to digest that Sui\Han and Trasova\Morozov are now scoring the same for clean SPs ?

That was fast... :think:

 

[Skater Boy]

I think it is pretty clear that Sui and Han and Savchenko and Massot are the top two pairs teams if clean. Tarasova and Morozov and Duhamel and Radford will only win ifthese two chosen teams skate badly. In fact it is possible one of the other chinese teams could do well too. S and K from Russia are the wild cards. And it looks like it is perfect storm for SK/K to overtake the injured S and B from Canada and I/M who can't do singles jumps.

 

[SarahSynchro]

Ashley is a unisex name???? :shocked: I always thought it was female only

It was a male name only up until the 1980s. :yes:

 

[LadyB]

When I noted the music, I thought it was a poor choice because of all the blues in the Short Dance this season. I was wrong.

That was like a dance performance with pairs elements snuck in.

Exactly how I felt! I'm still thinking about it

 

[solar]

Can we take a second to digest that Sui\Han and Trasova\Morozov are now scoring the same for clean SPs ?

That was fast... :think:

To be fair, pairs scoring IMO has been inflating a lot this season. Last season, only one team ever scored 80+ in the short program (S/H at Worlds), but now multiple pairs have already done so in the first half of the season.
To give another example of this, James/Cipres now have a higher PB than Sui/Han for their (amazing) FS at Europeans. I'm not sure if I like this trend, but it'll be interesting to see how these pairs stack up against each other at the same event. 4CC scoring seems a lot more conservative at the moment compared to the recent Euros