"The Situation" Should be Unplugged on Dancing With the Stars

ABC tried something new last night on Dancing With the Stars.  Gone was the usual studio set up and in was a brand new stage in the round.

The stage was very close to the audience and much smaller than the previous stage.  Throw in acoustic music and this night had a lot of potential.

It really didn't live up to the billing. The couples seemed to struggle on the smaller, round stage.  It didn't give them enough room to get moving and that hurt their routines.  Derek and Maks did well with their choreography and were rewarded.

Another thing we learned is that The Situation still can't dance.  Karina is doing all she can to get The Sitch to look his best, but that is a tough job.  He received some of the lowest scores from the judges in the history of the show.  That performance should earn The Situation a one-way ticket home.

The frontrunners at this point continue to be Jennifer and Audrina.  Next week the pairs dance to television themes.  Anyone else think Florence will be dancing to The Brady Bunch theme?

What Could be Better than Bristol Palin and Three Dog Night?

As if the hit ABC television show Dancing With the Stars needed any more publicity, it will get its share this season with teen mom Bristol Palin joining the cast. It looks to me like Bristol could be ready to pick up where Kate Gosselin left off last season.

While Kate was a complete train wreck on the show with her complete inability to dance and her sour attitude, the general public appears to be giving Bristol a chance. How long that will last is the question.

Bristol is paired with the mild mannered Mark Ballas, and Mark is the perfect partner for her. While reports say Bristol was a little apprehensive at first on how she should be portrayed on the show, the best advice I could give her is to follow Mark Ballas' lead. Mark is a show vet, and former champion, he will know what's best.

Word has already leaked out that on Monday night's opener, Bristol and Mark will dance to of all things, Three Dog Night's, "Mama Told Me Not to Come."  Maybe Bristol and her camp is embracing the lightheartedness and fun aspects of the show.

Some questions still remain. Will Bristol be this season's diva? Can she actually dance? How conservative will the outfits she wears be, and will Mark tone down the dance moves? One question that will be answered on Monday night is will her mom, the former Governor of Alaska be present? The answer is yes, Sarah Palin will be in the audience.

The show producers will make a spectacle out of this. I personally think that Sarah Palin would've been the better choice to compete this season, but with her schedule and goings on it would've been tough.  The show really doesn't need any help for ratings.  it will be the #1 show and probably draw bigger audiences tha never.

While I don't think Bristol and Mark will take the trophy, I'm sure show executives hope she stays on for a few weeks like Kate did.  Let's hope Bristol is a better dancer than Kate, or the late-night talk shows will have a field day.

Notice how I didn't even mention Levi Johnston in the article.

Dancing With the Stars Cast Revealed

I had to sit through another episode of ABC's Bachelor Pad to see who will be dancing this Fall on Dancing With the Stars.

Some names already were leaked out on various shows and in various online blogs. But tonight we received the official word. Tom Bergeron and Brooke Burke were on hand for the announcements.

The Ladies:

Brandy

Jennifer Grey

Margaret Cho

Audrina Patridge

Florence Henderson

Bristol Palin

The Men:

Michael Bolton

"The Situation"

David Hasselhoff

Kurt Warner

Kyle Massey

Rick Fox

Early favorites for me are Jennifer Grey since she was in Dirty Dancing, and Rick Fox since athletes have gone far before.

Sentimental pick - David Hasselhoff