Season 33 of “Dancing with the Stars,” which concluded last Tuesday, was undoubtedly a major success, consistently breaking fan voting records each week and gaining immense traction on social media. This season had arguably one of the most talented casts in the show’s history, and my friends and I enjoyed tuning in weekly. While several of my predictions in my previous “Dancing with the Stars” article were on the mark, there were quite a few surprises and twists this season. In this article, I will be revisiting some of the notable moments from the competition and offering my thoughts on how the season unfolded.
“Personal Anthem” Night: In typical “Dancing with the Stars” fashion, the season premiere was a thrilling and stress-free watch, with absolutely no eliminations. Chandler Kinney took the top of the leaderboard—as I had anticipated—but with a surprisingly high score for night one (8,7,8). As it turns out, these unusually high scores would continue and eventually create quite a skewed scoring system that the majority of fans quickly grew frustrated with.
“Oscars” Night: Oscars Night made for an entertaining second episode, showcasing the contestants’ talents with several new dance styles and character personas. Chandler Kinney found her way to first place yet again, while Tori Spelling and Anna Delvey were both eliminated, the latter giving a memorable elimination interview in which she claims she learned “nothing” from her time on the show.
“Soul Train” Night: During this elimination-free night, the competition began to heat up. Chandler Kinney unsurprisingly received the highest scores with her Cha Cha to Run-DMC’s “It’s Tricky” with her partner Brandon Armstrong. However, former Bachelor Joey Graziadei’s jive caught my attention as well and was arguably one of the night’s best.
“Hair Metal” Night: Guest Judge Gene Simmons made quite an impression this night, making several contestants incredibly uncomfortable and giving completely absurd scores. Ilona Maher upsettingly ended near the bottom after a jive that left her disappointed, and Eric Roberts and Reggie VelJohnson’s elimination, despite leaving me in tears, was fairly expected considering how the competition was progressing.
“Dedication” Night: This episode was a breakout night for several of the contestants remaining. Danny Amendola had a memorable contemporary performance, earning a significant amount of attention on social media. Brooks Nader and Gleb were eliminated following their salsa, and many viewers, including my friends and I, were quite relieved by their exit.
“Disney” Night (feat. Team Dances): This episode featured some of the season’s most popular dances and was also the first two-dance night. Danny’s action-packed, fight-sequence jazz dance was one of my favorites of the night, as well as Joey’s Tarzan-themed Samba. The second half of the show consisted of the team dance portion, which “Team Goofs” unsurprisingly won, having consisted of some of the highest-scoring dancers.
“Halloween Nightmares” Night (feat. Dance-Offs): Nearly every couple had an outstanding night. Most notably, Chandler Kinney’s incredible Viennese Waltz and Joey Graziadei’s Argentine Tango earned nearly perfect scores and were incredible to watch. However, much to my surprise, Jenn Tran and Sasha Farber were eliminated, despite receiving fantastic scores and winning the dance-off. I was convinced that Dwight Howard would be exiting as he had seemingly plateaued and had lost his dance-off, but his contemporary was enough to save him for one more week.
“500th Episode” Night (feat. Instant Dances): Each couple was tasked to reinterpret their favorite dances from prior seasons. I was particularly impressed with Chandler Kinney’s Argentine Tango, which ultimately earned her the first perfect score of the season. Stephen Nedoroscik also proved himself through a re-imagination of Charli D’Amelio’s Viennese Waltz to “Glimpse of Us.” The Instant Dance portion of the night highlighted some of the strongest dancers through their ability to think on their feet and showcase their musicality. Many struggled to execute their dances fully; however, Chandler Kinney and Brandon’s Cha Cha earned them yet another perfect score.
“Semi-Finals” Night: Each couple was assigned a Latin dance and a ballroom dance to perform, aiming to secure a spot in the finale. Chandler Kinney and Joey Graziadei found themselves at the top of the leaderboard again; however, ultimately no one was eliminated, and Chandler and Joey would be joined by Ilona Maher, Danny Amendola and Stephen Nedoroscik in the finale.
“Finals” Night: This final episode certainly solidified claims that this was one of the most talented groups of celebrities in the series’ history. Each couple performed a redemption dance and their much-anticipated freestyle dances. My favorite freestyles were undoubtedly Chandler Kinney’s incredible celebration of black artists in dance, as well as Stephen Nedoroscik’s dance to “Viva La Vida” featuring some of his gymnastics teammates. Ultimately, Joey Graziadei won the competition, followed by Ilona Maher, Chandler Kinney, Stephen Nedoroscik and Danny Amendola.
While the final scores did not align with my hopes, I undoubtedly appreciate the efforts of each couple and the entertainment this season brought. One of the most notable aspects was definitely the influence of fan votes and their ability to propel couples that did not receive the highest scores further into the competition. The show did an excellent job connecting with its audience, and that engagement played a big part in the season’s overall monumental success.