Thanks to the first debate between Hill and the Donald, Dancing with the Stars was forced to cram 12 dances into an hour on Monday night, leaving no room for judges' commentary, typical tearful packages, or Tom's brilliant zingers. See, America, this is what happens when you don't let Bergeron be Bergeron! Instead, we got the DWTS dance-off, which was a rather confusing gimmick designed to give the winner of each dance-off immunity before tomorrow's elimination. To be honest, I would have rather we skipped tonight's show altogether, and done a regular two-hour show tomorrow night. But looking ahead, maybe a mindless hour of entertainment was what we didn't know we needed before tonight's presidential showdown. So who won each dance-off? And who stands most likely to leave the show tomorrow night? Here's what happened:
Babyface & Allison Holker: Two weeks into DWTS, Babyface seemed destined to be a bit of a dark horse in the competition, but after tonight's jive...well, not so much. Wobbly in places, off-beat in others, Babyface has his work cut out for him if he avoids elimination. Score: 25/40
Jana Kramer & Gleb Savchenko: I suppose we can assume that Jana's back is fine this week? DWTS just dropped thatstoryline like a hot potato. Whether she powered through the pain or not, Jana scored a point higher than Babyface, which means she gets immunity going into tomorrow night's elimination. Score: 26/40
Rick Perry & Emma Slater: The former Texas governor would have probably rather been on the debate stage than the dance floor tonight, but given the reality of the situation, he still gave it his all. Is his all enough to avoid elimination tomorrow night? My guess is no, but with this show, you never know, do you? Score: 23/40
Vanilla Ice & Witney Carson: Vanilla and Wit put on a superior paso doble to Rick and Emma, but somehow managed to get the same scores. Makes no sense, but then again, neither did Vanilla's sparkly backwards baseball cap. No matter, as Len broke the tie-breaker and gave immunity to Team Ice 'N Spice. Score: 23/40
James Hinchcliffe & Sharna Burgess: Anyone else feel like they were in a '70s roller rink with that disco-themed cha cha? Not quite James' best dance of the season yet, but good enough for immunity. Score: 29/40
Ryan Lochte & Cheryl Burke: After last week's G-rated spectacle, I don't know how the Muppets would feel about Ryan's risqué routine. Wait, who am I kidding? Miss Piggy would have loved it. Ryan, feel free to take that shirt off more often. Score: 25/40
Terra Jole & Sasha Farber: This is why I hate this dance-off thing: Terra did a beautiful Viennese waltz, but so did Calvin and Lindsay (more on that in a second). Why did these two have to go up against each other, especially when Terra danced better than any other couple up until this point? Score: 30/40
Calvin Johnson & Lindsay Arnold: It was a fine dance, but was it better than Terra and Sasha's? TBH, not really. Score: 32/40
Amber Rose & Maksim Chmerkovskiy: Team SpicySalsa didn't do much of a salsa; instead, their dance seemed more like a paint-by-numbers routine. For someone that has built her career on being uninhibited, Amber still seems buttoned up every time she gets in front of the audience. Come on girl, do your thing! Score: 25/40
Maureen McCormick & Artem Chigvintsev: If there was only one good thing to come from tonight's dance-off, it was that Maureen and Artem were granted immunity for their salsa. After last week's in jeopardy situation, these two need all the help they can get. Score: 28/40
Laurie Hernandez & Val Chmerkovskiy: This is exactly why the dance-off was ridiculous. As good as Marilu and Derek are, they were never going to beat Laurie and Val, who were ready to walk off with the mirrorball yesterday. Score: 31/40
Marilu Henner & Derek Hough: Against anyone else, Marilu and Derek's gorgeous tango would have awarded them immunity. Against, Laurie and Val...well, sorry guys. Score: 28/40
We'll be posting all the backstage interviews soon!
Dancing with the Stars will air again tomorrow night from 8-10 P.M. ET/PT and a second couple will be sent home.
