"Dancing With The Stars: All-Stars": The winner is ...
Melissa Rycroft and Tony Dovolani, center, hoist the mirrorball trophy after winning on "Dancing With The Stars: All-Stars" Tuesday, Nov. 27. 2012. / ABC
She was one of the few contestants this season who hadn't been a former champion or finalist. Her star power was not the brightest compared to actresses and Olympians this season. And her dance partner was a genial also-ran, always a bridesmaid, never a bride in 15 seasons.
"Dancing with the Stars: All-Stars" finale
None of that mattered Tuesday night as reality star and former Dallas Cowboys cheerleader Melissa Rycroft sealed a strong late-season push by winning the first-ever all-star season of "Dancing With The Stars."
To grab the champions' mirrorball trophy, Melissa had to out-muscle season-long frontrunner Shawn Johnson, who had dominated Season 15 with gymnastic tricks and clever choreography.
"I didn't give myself enough credit coming into this. I've surprised myself and I think I've surprised a lot of people," said Rycroft before the results were announced.
It was a feel-good win as much for her popular partner, veteran pro Tony Dovolani, who finally won the trophy in the show's 15th season. Season after season, Dovolani found himself paired with ladies of a certain age (Susan Lucci, Jane Seymour, Wendy Williams), inept ingenues (Audrina Patridge) and obnoxious divas (Kate Gosselin). Always the gentleman, he persevered but never won.
In Rycroft, Dovolani had a filly who could run; and he challenged her week after week to turn in crisp performances with technique and artistry.
"You have been my greatest pleasure to watch," said head judge Len Goodman after Rycroft performed her last dance of the competition, a samba routine given to her an hour before.
"You have shown us nothing but artistry,'' said judge Carrie Ann Inaba.
Rycroft was in the lead coming into Tuesday's final performances, after the inexplicable decision by Shawn and her partner Derek Hough to perform a dance Monday with the same elements that had gotten them in hot water with the judges previously.
On Monday, Shawn and Derek performed a quick step that violated some of the rules of that particular dance: there were lifts and long separations of the partners, who are supposed to stay in handhold for most of the dance.
That knocked Shawn into third place. And even a perfect dance Tuesday couldn't close the gap. That's the way it's been this season, where the competition has been so tight and the performance quality high. The margin between the teams has been slim.
But Shawn didn't seem to hold it against Derek. As the announcers discussed that controversial -- and costly -- decision, Shawn patted Derek's hand.
"Dancing with the Stars: All-Stars"
In the final dance of the night, the three ladies were given an "instant routine" and one hour to practice before performing it live. It's like a master's thesis for the season, to see if they can handle the demands of professional dancers who have little rehearsal time.
"These dances are a nightmare to pull off in such a short time," said judge Bruno Tonioli.
The ladies all did well, with Shawn getting perfect scores -- but not quite enough to make up for Monday's miscalculation.
In third place, no surprise, was Kelly Monaco, the former "DWTS" champion from all the way back to Season 1. Monaco escaped a possible early elimination in the beginning of the season and slowly captured the interest of the audience, which rescued her several times from the judges' low scores.
Speaking of capturing the audience's interest, Kelly and her partner Val Chmerkovskiy have been playing up a backstage romance on the show. On Tuesday, host Brooke Burke-Charvet tried to pin them down on the burning question: Romance or showmance?
"I hope everybody could have a friendship like this ... it's a foundation of an amazing friendship. It starts from scratch,'' said Kelly.
Said Val: "It's unconditional love for one another. Whatever that label is ... it doesn't have to be a boyfriend or a girlfriend."
Don't worry, I don't know what all that means, either.
- "Dancing With The Stars: All-Stars": All-ladies showdown
- "Dancing With the Stars: All-Stars": Guys go home in semifinal shakedown
- "Dancing With The Stars: All-Stars": Adieu, times two
- "Dancing With The Stars: All-Stars": Fusion fun
- "Dancing With the Stars: All Stars": Elimination shocker
- "DWTS": Carrie Ann Inaba "falls" for Gilles Marini
- Tony Dovolani "really concerned" about Melissa Rycroft after "DWTS" injury
- "Dancing With The Stars: All-Stars" elimination: Bristol gone, order restored
- "DWTS: All-Stars" Round 3: The stars take control
- "DWTS: All-Stars"elimination: Bristol survives, Fatone dives
- "Dancing With The Stars: All-Stars" Week 2 - No 2nd week slump
- Pamela Anderson first celebrity dancer booted off "DWTS: All-Stars"
- "DWTS: All-Stars" wins Monday audience, but loses key demographic
- Foxtrots and cha-cha-chas as "DTWS" kicks off all-star season
- Timeline: "Dancing With The Stars" through the years
Tuesday's win was a vindication for Rycroft, who came in third place to Johnson in Season 8. In the backstage footage of the show, Rycroft talked about that loss.
"I want to know what it feels like to win. I know what it felt like like to lose, and I certainly don't want to feel that again. I want to feel like a champion."
On Tuesday, Melissa Rycroft did know what that felt like. And based on her huge smile as she grabbed the trophy, it felt good.
Popular in Entertainment
- Cannes Film Festival 2013 46 Photos
- Justin Bieber booed at 2013 Billboard Music Awards
- Taylor Swift dominates Billboard Music Awards
- "Star Trek Into Darkness" wins weekend box office
- Billboard Music Awards 2013 39 Photos
- "American Idol" winner announced
- Inside Mariah Carey's "American Idol" performance
- "Inside Llewyn Davis" premieres at Cannes
1. Tony's is not that Great?
2006 nominated for an Emmy for outstanding choreography for Dancing
with the Stars for episode #208 (Dance: Jive).
2006 PBS America's Ballroom Challenge Rhythm Champion
2006 Emerald Ball Open Professional American Rhythm Champion[6]
2006 United States Open Rhythm Champion with Elena Grinenko
2006 World Rhythm Champion with Elena Grinenko
2005 Ohio Star Ball American Rhythm Champion[7]
2005 United States Open Rhythm Champion with Inna Ivanenko
2005 World Rhythm Champion with Inna Ivanenko
GEE, I guess the guy does know what he is doing, wouldn't you?
2. The win was fixed???
We have seen Derek break the rules all the time but he has managed to
get away with some of it. He got caught this time and screwed his
partner. Does he learn? No not our Derek. The Star Boy of this show
does it again and sewers his partner of whom he has so under his
bedazzling thumb that she will agree to anything. He lost her chance
of winning the competition for her. Oh you believers of CONSPIRACY,
shame on you and get your heads out of the sand
3. Melissa didn't deserve to win?
That young woman worked her tail off every week with a world champion
for a partner. Tony was tough on her because he knew she could do it,
just the same as any coach knows what strengths any athlete will have
and how to get it out of them.
She has a beautiful dancers body and has worked hard and long to
learn how to work with that body. Her extensions are fabulous. She
has a very limber body and learned how to use that in her journey.
She also has the personality to get her through that hard journey with
beautiful results.
4. Shawn was better than Melissa?
That is like comparing apples and oranges. Shawn has a shorter fuller
body that is heavily muscled and that type of body is hard to make
look good outside of her chosen sport. She knows how to use her body
to her best benefit and she has learned to dance beautifully. What
knocked her was too much use of gymnastic moves instead of dance
moves and broken rules. It got tiring and made one wonder if we were
watching a dance competition or a gymnastics competition. She also
lacked the sparkle and some stage presence
Put together with Melissa, a short stocky gymnast can not compare to a
tall ballerina type body that has all the grace and talent to go with
it. Shawn is technically good but doesn't have "IT". Whereas Melissa
is also technically good and has "IT".
Remember those of you who would like to see other dances like the pony and such, they are not BALLROOM dances and this show is a competition of
BALLROOM dancing.
That said, there is always the possibility the producers control it and set up, once again, the "you-never-know" facet just to keep people guessing, voting, and watching. If they never present the true numbers through an audit, people will always be suspicious.
Derek is all about himself and making himself look good. He is well known for breaking the rules.
He deliberately bucked the rules because he thought the fans would be impressed and vote for him anyways. It backfired. That's what happens when you think you are better than everyone else, and you don't have to follow the rules.