catching up with CBC archives.
first group
m/p not my cup of tea. they will need to do something really special to break out among the many good american teams
e/m : i like them. very elegant. good flamenco.
finns : so powerful, i think they have improved. they are a bit rough though
m/b : sigh... that program is just as cringe as their gala program from worlds where she played the role of .. a stripper.... i think the elements are great but not as great as the panel seems to believe they are, especially on the 3flip throw where she almost two footed yet got very high GOE.. didn't like the last two elements at all, the back outside death spiral, though creative, looked very awkward and the spins were coming dangerously closer to one another at one point... in any case, I understand why they would lead the first group and I don't disagree with that lead either but for some reason, I cannot get behind them at all.
second group
Brits : love them. gosh, i remember them being so much weaker... but this was good. easier elements but so well done. loved her position on her death spiral, even the lift with the leonova-kwalko position which i hate, looked good. great spins, great steps....
. FABULOUS costume. great music (i do like Patrick Watson, kill me)
K/O... any team skating to rain in your black eyes is meh for me. especially after sui/han. Very nice salchows... that was the highlight for me. They were so good on that element which is not their forte. The throw, they surely will take it : a hand down is so much better than the throws attempts they had last year. the spin was a big issue for me : they traveled so far apart that the camera had a hard time keeping them both in the screen... yet, they scored a positive goe : MEH.
high quality elements, but in general, i find him too exuberant and rough while she is delicate and elegant.. so to me, it's clashing... sometimes, i feel like he is dragging her instead of skating with her. great lift. happy they beat the georgians though at this point in the competition.
Hungarians : well. for them, i guess cringe is okay because it's better than the usual bland they have given us.. so i was happy seeing them trying something new. some good elements but not as clean as they have given us in the past. the death spiral was not good at all, her position, not low enough. Their spins got wonky. but still, a strong team . i liked how their throw landed right with the "kiss" of the music.
R/R were definitely the best tonight. I like their paint in black program but then, it gave me vibe of oxygen from DSD last year. very strong and dynamic, lots of energy, which is not something they usually give us. In any case, my favourite element of the night was their throw.
I say it here : they will be hard to beat in the SP this year... from the other SPs I have seen so far, I don't think DSD and Miniki can reach them. The elements are too strong and well placed in this SP to be challenged if they skate it clean.
