Dear Santa,

This year, I’ve been very, very good. I got all A’s in Math and English. I did all my chores every week, including the dusting. And I didn’t complain about my grandma’s meatloaf (even though it was really gross). This year, for Christmas, I would like:

– A 10-speed bike

– Malibu Barbie

– Pasha and Cristina to dance together every week on SYTYCD

Yours truly,

Me

Seriously, I think this is all it would take to make me deliriously happy for the rest of the season.

Pasha and Cristina’s Paso Doble was spell-binding. The show’s producers made a good decision to start this week’s show with this dance number. This is the standard all of the other dancers should be trying to meet.

I must acknowledge that Cristina and Pasha had a somewhat unfair advantage, both hailing from ballroom, and given the opportunity to perform a ballroom number. But it was such a relief to see a ballroom number danced well. Enough of a relief that I’m prepared to forgive this week’s Argentine Tango number.

Argentine tango is a powerful, sexy dance. It’s also a very internal and private dance. At its best, Argentine tango is quiet and smoldering–like a flirty dance dress, standing out as much for what is kept under wraps as what is put on display.

By these standards, this dance was not an Argentine tango. The “tango” Anya and Robert danced was explosive. They courted the audience at least as much as they courted each other. That’s fine for a cha cha, but it doesn’t fly for Argentine Tango.

And these aren’t the only standards by which this wasn’t an Argentine Tango… I saw little or no AT technique. No A-frame. Little counter-weighting. Just lots of pretty jumping, kicks, tricks, and lifts. Pretty. But. Not. Tango.