'So You Think You Can Dance' recap: Grill Interrupted

Of course, that doesn't mean Mark is still my favorite to win. I think whatever torch I was still carrying for his taking the SYTYCD crown was extinguished about the same time that Katee leapt into the air in a full split and somehow stopped on a dime in Joshua's arms. The music for their subsequent paso doble was certainly overwrought, but I don't think anyone in the audience cared a whit, especially after the number caused Mary's vocal chords to short circuit and burp out a series of noises that had me thinking she'd swallowed a malfunctioning police siren. (Or maybe, given Mary's penchant for mirror-ball dresses this season, she's just been in training to be Daft Punk's newest bleat machine.) Neither of Katee's and Joshua's solos was exactly their best work, and all the effusive praise from the judges means there's a slight risk that either of them could suffer the same fate as Will and have their fan bases lulled into complacency — but I don't think so.

Chelsie's popularity, on the other hand, kinda baffles me. I'm with the judges' assessment of her dancing abilities, sure, but I'm not all breathless about it, either — I couldn't help noticing that they praised her fire-engine-red dress as much as her mambo steps. I also wondered why we never once saw even one clip of Chelsie dogging on Twitch for busting a sag in the rehearsal room. Had the producers decided to cut her a break? Had Chels finally realized that acting like a bratty kid sister isn't exactly endearing? Or had she simply realized that five hours' worth of smart-alecky comments from her would never be able to match a single withering purse of Melanie LaPatin's lips, and so she wisely backed off? (Sidebar: Who else desperately wants to see Ms. LaPatin at the judges' table?) One thing's for certain: Chelsie's definitely made some good friends in the wardrobe department; her dresses for both the mambo and her solo seemed tailored to accentuate every last twitch of her gyroscopic hips.

Still, without question Courtney delivered the best, most completely realized solo of the night, male or female. I'm understanding now just how saddled she'd been with Gev; she's really come into her own these last few weeks, no more so than with Mark. (Shankman was right; together, they were a near-perfect match, boob grazing and all.) As Nigel so often points out, this is a reality show that's as much about the dancers' personality as it is their superlative dancing, and of the three women left, I think I'd enjoy a night on the town with Courtney the most. (My heartstrings still ache a bit thinking of her sitting all by her lonesome backstage during last week's results show.) I knew it was going to get crazy tough in these final weeks, but, jeebus, will I be sorry to see Court and Twitch go. (I'm not even contemplating the alternative right now.)

Who's your ideal final four, dear readers? Did Mark earn his way to the finale, or did Twitch? (The answer, by the way, is Mark. Just FYI.) Are Katee and Joshua officially locked in a battle for first place? Do you know why America seems more fond of Chelsie than Courtney? And after learning Adam Shankman danced with Tyce Diorio at the 1990 Oscars to a routine choreographed by Paula Abdul, do you get the feeling that the dancing world is about as big as your homeroom class in seventh grade?

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