After the judges’ rude and very unfair comments to Cloris Leachman on Monday night’s episode, I was cheering for her more than ever.
Guest judge Michael Flatley, who was very polite to her and her partner Corky Ballas, repeated Bruno Tonioli and said he couldn’t lie; she was glad Corky was helping her along.
What Year Was Cloris Leachman on Dancing With The Stars
(In reality, all the experts are doing an excellent job of assisting their inexperienced counterparts.) In my opinion, Carrie Ann Inaba overstepped her bounds when she told Cloris that it was wrong that a talented dancer like Toni Braxton had to be eliminated from the competition last week “for this,” indicating a flick of her arms towards Cloris.
Although I agree that Toni was a fantastic dancer and at first believed she would win the trophy, I found Carrie Ann’s criticism and apparent blaming of Cloris for staying in the competition to be terribly harsh. I don’t see how Cloris could be responsible for that.
The season would not have been as entertaining without Cloris’s comedic contributions. This week, she danced a Cha Cha that was both endearing and timeless. She performed really well with the death spiral at the end, and her New Yorker cha chas in the middle were pretty quick.
However, it goes without saying that she is not the show’s top dancer. It’s impossible for her to be 82 years old. I think by this time in the show everyone understands that that is not the point. People succeed because they are liked by most people.
Cloris, in my opinion, gave it her best shot. Even though she used humour as a mask, her intention was not to make a fool of herself. What she did a couple of weeks ago with her leg lifts was impressive because it is not an easy move to master.
They call for a level of mobility and dexterity that is unusual in someone of that age. If they knew she would bring nothing but trouble, why did they even let her on the show? Did they really think that the teenage Cody could beat out the other dancers?
It’s possible to read Carrie Ann’s remarks as an attack on the viewers, who, unless the show is fixed, must have voted for Cloris. I’ve always ignored the claims of those who say they think the show’s outcomes are skewed. To be honest, I’m curious now. Cloris wasn’t even in the bottom two last week, so you’d think her supporters would be there in force to cheer her on now, of all times.
