Okay, time for a good rant ! I've had to store up a lot , because I was without a modem for a few days, then when I got a new one, I had other crises with things breaking down to sort out. ( Makes me feel like I've been gagged for a week. )
I'm really looking forward to a first glimpse of W/P's programs this week ; may they be fabulous ( But if she comes out in blue for the SD , I'll strongly suspect SC of a really silly strategy !) . And of course , I'm eager to see how V/M's programs are progressing.
Of the 2 couples we've seen in the race for Canada 3 , I can't say I'm totally pleased with either , so far, and will be watching to see how they look at their next events. They each have different challenges to deal with. Both have made some really poor choices IMO.. though different from each other.
Ralph / Hill
These two have obviously worked hard and made considerable progress. They have a good FD with pretty good FD costumes this year.( But I wouldn't put Asher in a tight shirt, it only accentuates the sway in his back ) They still have quite a way to go to really improve their posture and other issues, but the improvement is noticeable.. I think their placement at SA was deserved, and don't think they were undermarked .This is the best program I've seen from them to date , in both concept and execution.
Their SD is just “off” if you ask me. As I've said before , I don't like the Harlem Nocturne use ( for all the well documented reasons). Her costume is pretty much a disaster ( it's a bit more covered than at the beginning of the season, but that's the only positive thing you can say for it )..and I'm sorry, but I really can't buy Kharis as sexy. She's just too sweetly girl-next-door – which is not a bad thing to be. They should just go with that , it would seem so much more believable. Thank goodness they no longer have her biting her lower lip , but the jaw thing they've replaced it with isn't much better. A playful, touristy kind of SD along the lines of P/B's could have worked really , really well for them. ( Something with a skirt ?)
So , whatever their progress in skating related areas , progress in judgement is a bit more elusive . When I read that their exhibition is to “Nature Boy”.. with Asher shirtless
again , my stomach sank. Please, please, stop.:disapp:
Paul / Islam
I'm sure everyone knows I love this team's potential , but that doesn't mean I think they can do no wrong. Still, I can't quite agree with
doris' assessment . They've only really had 3 international events at the senior level. At SC last year, they didn't have a long delay after their slight misstep and with injury being a factor in the other 2 competitions , it might be a bit premature to tar them with that brush. It remains to be seen if they can pull it together by NHK, and I suppose that will depend on how hard she's able to train now , post injury. If she really is well now, they'd certainly have time to fix a lot before Canadians. What we've seen so far may just be the result of not being able to skate for weeks.
Now here come the “ Buts”...Firstly, I think the concept or “story” behind their program is
extremely ill advised in this “uplifting” era. For the second time, I read /heard the words “abusive relationship” used to describe the program...this time from
Lori Nichol commentating for CBC. Dreadful mistake. Either offer no explanation , which would be fine with me ( and according to ISU guidelines, explanations are supposed to be unnecessary ), or say something like “ a couple forgives and makes up after a quarrel “ or “ a couple overcomes jealousy through love “ There could be lots of alternatives.
In
pj's original report , she explained that the “uplift “ was to be found in the woman's capacity to forgive.. Any adult knows that's a crock, and the proper response in an abusive siuation would be to get out, the sooner the better . Anyone who heard that description can only feel depressed by their final pose , knowing real abuse never ends. If this story ( or unfortunate wording ) was P/I's idea..could no older and wiser person have dissuaded them ? David I ? David W ? SC ?
If the idea was suggested to them by someone else , that person's advice should be ignored in future. In either case, if I was David Islam , I'd be contacting CBC and TSN immediately and making sure that term was expunged from any future scripts. This is a very serious topic and if drug addiction isn't a suitable topic for ice dance, I don't see how “ an abusive relationship “ can be. Fortunately, there's no overt violence in the choreography and a rewritten , more benign synopsis would demand no choreographic changes , except perhaps for the final pose.
Secondly, I don't want to make anyone faint , but I think they've gone off in a wrong direction with their costumes..
...Oh, theyre tasteful, as usual..beautifully cut, impeccably sewn , but still a miss for me. I've got just a small quibble with Mitch's look , as I did last year. I don't like to see his pant leg break quite so much at the boot..makes the pants seem too baggy ... and I don't think you actually need pockets on the ice , so why have them gaping at the side ? If you can't go to Scott's tailor , at least stitch those babies down.
As for Alex, she has beautiful dresses for both programs, both in minight blue (or with a midnight blue effect, for the FD ).It seems like an identifying strategy, which in this case may have backfired , since they had a disasterous SD ( not what you want everyone to be remembering ). But even if both programs were clean , the statement across the 2 programs is too staid, too somber. Her SD dress needs to be fitted at the hip, to accentuate any hip action . Like the program , it's elegant and sophisticated , but needs a bit of heat. As soon as I saw it , I could see a vermillion lining for the skirt, say in a very lightweight silk, so as not to interfere with the drape of the skirt. I think something like that would provide a little needed extra oomph.
The FD dress is a bit too severe , in spite of the floaty overdress , which may have been designed to evoke a nightie and negligee , I don't know.. but if she was dressed in a warm colour , the program would seem more passionate , less despairing. Or, if the overdress was at least a lighter colour like a different blue, or deep turquoise, it would seem a little more serene and less gloomy. Also , especially with the slightly high waist and slightly full skirt, they manage to obscure Alex's beautiful lines some of the time. I think it needs to be more A-line .. a little closer fitting around the torso..more than an actual dress in that style would be. Same effect ,but better for dance. Alex's physique is about as perfectly proportioned for a dancer as you could hope to get ,and she can wear things others could not. But why create extra challenges?
If nothing else, I think a colour change would help the audience ( and that includes judges ) feel more involved in the program. Of course they would still need to polish their performance , or whatever they need to do technically , but they'd have everything else working in their favour.
doris...can't say fairer than that..
