DonnaK:  After such a tremendous season of So You Think You Can Dance all year, I have to say I felt very let down by the season’s last performance show. No, my problem wasn’t with the dancers, although I felt that some didn’t bring their A-Game to this finale. No, my problem wasn’t with the choreography, although I did feel it was slightly lacking in overall quality. My problem with the finale was the overt and blatant bias of the judges towards Brandon, Jeanine and Kayla and their almost dismissal of Evan as a real contender to win this competition. The judges spent the entire night praising Brandon to the fullest of their ability, going so far as to predict him as one of the top two, if not the winner. Now, mind you, I have loved Brandon all season, but he was off last night - missing spots and trying to out dance his partners. The praise given to him was unwarranted given his showing last night. Likewise with Kayla, who danced for herself and not her partners all night and was overshadowed by Jeanine at nearly every turn. She was again praised even when she faltered. Jeanine blossomed last night and turned in performance after performance worthy of high praise, and I begrudge her none of that. But when Nigel named her as one of the two her saw in the final two I felt it terribly unfair to Evan and Kayla and a blatant attempt to manipulate judging.

Contrast that with how Evan was and has been treated by the judges. Evan - who according to everyone has the hardest work ethic of all the dancers on the show - can never seem to do enough to satisfy anyone. No matter how hard he works, how out of his zone he is, or how magical he manages to make a number, the judges always find a way to knock him down. And yet, dear Evan, he always takes it with a smile and never shows any hurt at the near constant haranguing he gets. Last night should have been a time to celebrate what was best in everyone and not a time to knock anyone down, yet time and time again, no matter how well Evan did, he got taken down peg after peg by the judges. The final straw for me was after Evan’s solo, which was a reworking - NOT a recycling but a reworking mind you - of his audition piece. Adam Shankman called him out of it and seemed more than a little upset that Evan would dare do such a thing. HOWEVER… last week the judges gave Brandon a standing ovation for his solo… which was nearly a step for step recycle of his audition. Why is one dancer overtly and strongly praised for an action and another is looked down on for the same action? There’s only one word, and that’s bias, which stuns me as the judges for SYTYCD have never really shown this much bias in the past. I think that’s why it shocked me so - it was a very saddening and unexpected move from a panel I actually admire and look to for constructive criticism.

The judges never expected Evan to make it this far. But they’ve forgotten the most important thing about this show. So You Think You Can Dance isn’t a search for America’s BEST dancer. It’s a search for America’s FAVORITE dancer, and, despite his technical flaws, Evan is one of America’s favorites. To shun that is to essentially spit in the face of your viewing audience, and I for one was not only upset but angry at how the judges were attempting to manipulate votes. I felt vindicated in my anger when, during one of Evan’s tearing down sessions in front of the judges, the entire arena erupted into a huge “EVAN! EVAN!” chant that no other dancer got. The audience tried to give Evan what the judges simply refused to - the validation that he is in fact one of America’s favorite dancers.

Okay… enough ranting… on to a quick recap of the show.

We started the night with all of the Final Four in a Wade Robson group number that was, in my opinion, the most fun routine of the night. It was sassy and full of attitude and both Evan and Jeanine SHINED in it. By contrast, I couldn’t help but noticed that Kayla and Brandon were both dancing hard and slightly off time. This was the beginning of a trend that I saw all night with this two. Brandon and Kayla both see themselves winning this competition and I feel as if they were both dancing for themselves, trying to outshine the others in whatever piece they were in. By contrast, Evan and Jeanine, who didn’t come into the finals with the same expectations, danced with their partners with expression, feeling, and without a competitive spirit. This dichotomy was something I noticed all night long… and something the judges never once pointed out.

Jeanine and Evan were up next with a Sonya Tayek jazz number. We know already that Sonya’s work isn’t exactly in Evan’s playing field, but he did surprisingly well in this piece. Jeanine blossomed throughout the finals and delivered a flawless performance. I thought these two did a marvelous job and had chemistry for days… but the judges didn’t agree, saying it wasn’t enough for them. Curious.

Brandon’s solo was next, which was both athletic, technical… and frantic. It lacked the control that his other solos have had and I was slightly surprsed to hear lavish praise for a solo that even Adam admitted wasn’t as good as last week’s. Again… curious.

Kayla and Brandon were up next with a Tyce Diorio Broadway routine that was fun, catchy… and flat. Again, both dancers were doing their damndest to shine all the light on themselves and put very little into their partnering. And again… not a word from the judges. Nigel went so far as to say that the night had finally begun for him - effectively dismissing both Evan and Jeanine’s number but the wonderful Robson opener as well. I really could not and still cannot understand why the judges showed such bias on this night of all nights.

Jeanine blazed her way across the stage with the solo of the night, lighting the enitre audience on fire. Jeanine was truly unstoppable last night and she put both the audience and the judges on notice - she came here to win. Bravo and kudos to you, Jeanine - you earned the praise you got.

Brandon and Evan were up next with a Laurieann Gibson pop jazz number that worked to all of Brandon’s strengths and against Evan’s weaknesses. Unlike Sonya, who worked with her dancer’s strengths and showcased them, Gibson simply left Evan out to dry in a pumped up, athletic routine that he just couldn’t compete in. Again, he was torn down, and I blame this one on the choreographer, who I believe has a duty to their dancers to help bring out their best, not leave them helpless as Gibson did with this number.

Evan’s solo was next, which was suave, graceful and flawless. And yet… more tearing down from the entire panel. By this point I think it was obvious to everyone watching what was going on, and I was more than a little mad at it. But I’ve ranted enough… let’s move on.

Kayla and Jeanine took on a stunning Mia Michaels contemporary number that had them shedding layers of costuming as they crossed the huge stage. It was an intriguing number but plagues with difficulties in stripping off the many layers of costuming. Again, Jeanine outshined Kayla, surprising me as Kayla has been one of my favorites since the start. The judges seemed turned after Jeanine’s solo and gave her high praise, but without pointing out where Kayla had gone wrong.

Kayla and Evan were up next with a Tony Meredith country western jive that lit the stage up. I really loved this number and thought it shined, both in the dancing and in the choreography. Imagine my lack of surprise when both the choreography and the dancing of it were called inferior by the judges. This was when the crowd finally burst into it’s “EVAN!” chant, which I think should have been a clear message to the judges to let up already. Alas, it did not have the desired effect and the routine and the dancing was deemed inferior, particularly Evan.

Kayla’s solo was the last solo of the night, and sadly I felt it the weakest. She did a lot of flailing and desperate flinging about, but I didn’t see the control, poise, and deliberate movements that Jeanine displayed. Kayla really seemed to crumble under the pressure of the night whilst Jeanine sparkled.

In the night’s last number Brandon and Jeanine ignited the stage with a simply awesome Louis Van Amstel paso double set to techno music of all things. WOW! This was easily the highlight of the night and the ovbious winner of the Awesome Dance of the Week Award. Those two really got everything right - the movements, the chemistry, the timing, the whole feel of it - it was perfect. It got a standing ovation from both the judges and the audience, and rightly so. Finally… praise that went to the right people for the right reasons.

The night ended with Cat asking the judges to predict a winner. Adam and Mary gracefully bowed away from the question, but Nigel went straight at it asn said he thought it was between Brandon and Jeanine, leaving Kayla and Evan awkwardly twisting on the stage. This was my real last straw, and for the first time all season I picked up my phone and started dialing ov er and over again for Evan, who I felt was unfairly slapped around all night and deserved the support. I wonder if the judges realize that their blatant pounding on Evan may just give him the victory, or at least make it a much closer race.

Someone on Twitter posted these odds for the winner, and I agree with them completely - 2:1 for Jeanine, 5:1 for both Brandon and Evan and 7:1 for Kayla. I think that’s about right. I think Jeanine might well win this with her performance last night and her strong fan base. I think Kayla lost her chances with her poorer showing last night and there seems to be a strong backlash against her for her seemingly arrogant demeanor. Brandon certainly has the technical skills to be the winner, and if this was about America’s BEST dancer it would have to go to Brandon without question. However, as I said at the start, it’s about America’s FAVORITE, not the best, and so I have a virtual fiver on Evan to win. I think a lot of people did what I did and called for Evan out of anger at the judge’s treatment of him. Evan has been a strong favorite of mine since the beginning and I hope he walks away with this one, I really do.

Okay… I’ve ranted FAR more than enough. Floor’s open everyone - what do you think? Bias or no? Agree with me or not? I want to hear it!