Ricky and Ashlee Eliminated From So You Think You Can Dance

The first casualties of Season 3 of So You Think You Can Dance have been revealed -- Ashlee and Ricky.

I'm not surprised, nor particularly sad, to see Ashlee go -- her performance in the Argentine Tango was pretty bad, and her "dance-for-her-life" solo was less than impressive. Couple that with strong showings from Sabra and Faina, and the fact that I don't know a single thing about Ashlee, and I don't expect to miss her much.

Ricky, on the other hand, was a bit of a shocker, especially because his contemporary performance during Las Vegas week was so spectacular Mia deemed him her "favorite male dancer thus far." I also kinda dug his solo -- certainly more than one-trick pony D-Trix and lanky-lankster Cedric. I wonder if Mia had been on this week's judging panel, would she have fought to save Ricky? My hunch is that the judges (particularly Nigel) just don't like him all that much -- he's odd, he's strange, and he doesn't make for great TV. It's a shame, because the boy clearly has talent, but, with 18 dancers remaining, there's no time for crying over spilled high-kicks. Or something like that.

The rest of the show was entertaining enough, featuring a group number that screamed Wade Robson from the moment it started, and a surprisingly deft dancing/singing live combo from R&B singer Lloyd.

It must be noted, however:

While it was nice to see Benji, and be reminded of how truly awesome his footwork and performance style is, was the "reveal" of the American flag-inspired granny pants really necessary? Between the removal of his pants and the multiple mentions of beautiful women touching his butt, methinks Benji believes he is a bit more of a sex symbol than he actually is.

Now, if last year's runner-up Travis Wall wanted to remove his pants, you wouldn't hear me complaining...

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