Helio and Mel B are all tied up on ‘Dancing’

Still holding on
Jennie Garth’s crisis of confidence continued, as she said she questioned why she was even going on in the competition “after getting annihilated by the judges last week.” But, if clip spots are to be believed, a quick stop to Disneyland and a twirl with Mickey Mouse took care of all of that.

Promising to “go out there and show the judges what I’m made of,” Jennie took the floor with smoky eyes and a low-cut red gown for the tango. Back in week three, this was the dance she and Derek Hough performed for the encore. It was easily their best dance of the season, even if the score of 26 didn’t reflect that.

This time, they danced what Len might typically call a “by the numbers” tango. All the moves were there, minus the passion and sensuality. Oddly enough, even though Carrie Ann spotted that, Len claimed to see some chemistry. And, with all the big scores floating around anyway, the managed two points higher than their last tango effort.

With a twist for the Latin portion, Jennie and Derek went with the cha-cha, the first dance from them (or anyone) this season. Good move. Nine weeks later, the progress Jennie’s made, at least where the cha-cha is concerned, is astounding. It earned the couple their first perfect score — a full nine points more than they got for it last time.

The star of the show
Cameron Mathison’s elimination last week left Helio Castroneves as the last hope for the men. Honestly, that comes as no surprise to anyone who saw the men strut their stuff during the first week. The two-time Indy champ was the only guy with anything close to natural talent, and he’s only improved since then.

First taking the floor with foxtrot, Helio and Julianne Hough went for classic lines and simplicity, sans any flashy moves. It could have come off as boring, but instead, with skill and finesse, they gave a perfect example of how the foxtrot is done.

Bruno dubbed Helio a wizard, “because it’s impossible to believe you’ve never danced before this competition.” He even went so far as to promise to eat his judging book should Helio and Julianne fail to make the finals. But with all 10s for the flawless foxtrot, it’s unlikely Bruno will have to resort to that.

The last dance of the night, Helio and Julianne’s cha-cha, started out goofy. With a looming locomotive skit to match the “Love Rollercoaster” song, it only worked because Helio does goofy so well. But it wasn’t long before the dance evolved into a fast, precision number.

“Tonight the standard has been fantastic,” Len boasted. “And you are the standout couple for me for the night.” From the round of raves and the matching set of 10s, the other officials felt much the same, leaving Helio and Julianne with 60 overall.

From a purely dance standpoint, it’s clear who should be in the finals. But if the last nine weeks have taught us anything, it’s that the fans have the final say. And lately, Marie’s fans have said a lot. But will they vote to keep her around in the final dance off? And if so, who goes home in her place? Perfect scores are all well and good, but with a thin point spread between all the contestants, even the frontrunners could be eliminated Tuesday night.

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Ree Hines is a regular contributor to msnbc.com.

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