‘So You Think You Can Dance’: No Uglies

After listening yet again to producer Nigel Lythgoe’s incessant talk of personal growth and the journey, we’ve begun to suspect that Oprah is a silent backer of this series. Little does Lythgoe (or Ms. Winfrey) know that viewers are actually just watching So You Think You Can Dance for the same reason cited by contestants as their partners’ best attribute: They’re attractive. Sadly, tonight, two contenders are going to be looking good and feeling terrible.

As the field is narrowed to the final ten, the larger group secures a career via a year-long national tour while the last two also-rans are left with a third-season DVD. So what of the journey so far? Sabra and Dominic solidified their rep as the kick-ass couple with a snappy jive number, Neil reasserted he does have a soul in Mia Michael’s kinesthetic take on dystopia, Jaimie revealed a personality so strong it survived a hokey dance set to “Mr. Bojangles,� and Danny’s newfound sense of humor gave his Astaire-like moves a sense of levity. Compliments aside, quality took second place to giggles: Our favorite routine was the laugh-out-loud jazz duet set to the ultra-eighties-hit “Body Language.� Geared up in tight fuchsia and turquoise with white belts and suspenders, Sara and Pasha queened it up to Queen without the slightest hint of mockery. They left that to us. —Drew Pisarra