DWTS Weeks 1 & 2, Part I: Fly Me To The Moon

I had a week to recap last Monday's season premiere of "Dancing With The Stars," and what did I do? Fail to get it done. So I'm splitting this week's (hopefully concise, like my last "Idol" recap) entry into two, and talking about both performances, in advance of tonight's results show. Let the dancing begin! (Couples recapped in the order they performed last night, not last week.)

• Shannen Doherty & Mark Ballas (18/30 for Viennese waltz; 20/30 for jive): Shannen, she of "90210" diva fame, still has traces of brattiness slightly evident in her rehearsal footage, but she's still a pretty good dancer. I loved her waltz (OK, mostly because of the captivating song choice, Nouvelle Vague's version of "The Killing Moon", but also because of her full-of-potential technique and gracefulness), and her jive was pretty good last night. She's a contender...but I fear unless she steps up her game she'll become like Mark's last partner...promising, but a victim of an early exit.
• Aiden Turner & Edyta Sliwinska (15 for cha cha; 19 for foxtrot): Well, here's someone I don't mind leaving. First, he's paired with Edyta, who wore probably her worst outfit yet (and that's saying something) last week (followed by, ironically, what must be one of her most modest outfits ever this week), and is a general skank, to be frank. (Yes, that rhymed. :) ) Second, his cha cha last week was wooden and uninteresting, and this week's foxtrot still left a lot to be desired. If Aiden ends up going home tonight...which he very well might (gosh, what is with the rhymes?), I won't be unhappy in the slightest.
• Evan Lysacek & Anna Trebunskaya (23 for Viennese; 24 for jive): I loved that Evan won the gold medal in men's figure skating for the U.S., but call me crazy, I'm not exactly a fan of him on "DWTS." His personality slightly rubs me the wrong way for some reason, and on the comparison scale, his style is a bit more Aaron Carter/Lance Bass than Drew Lachey/Gilles Marini. I might warm to him as a contestant, and I'm not calling for his elimination yet, but for now, it's just not my thing.
• Niecy Nash & Louis Van Amstel (18 for cha cha; 21 for foxtrot): Oh, how I love Niecy. She's lively, hilarious, energetic, and just a joy to watch. Her cha cha last week was charming--the steps were a bit off, but it was still fun, and the falling on Louis at the end (that looked almost impromptu at first glance) was a nice touch. Her foxtrot this week was even better...smooth, sultry, graceful, and full of musicality and personality. (Yet again with the rhyming...) I'd love for Niecy to go all the way, and I hope she won't be another David Alan Grier (off-kilter comedian with some fine dancing skills that ends up getting an unfortunate axing way too early). Viva la Niecy!
• Jake Pavelka & Chelsie Hightower (20 for both the Viennese & jive): If I was lazy enough, I would simply put "snooze" for this couple. Because I'm sorry, but Jake (the latest "Bachelor") is just not interesting at all. His Viennese waltz last week was stilted and dull, and his jive this week was 1-800-WAY Too Cheesy (why didn't Len call him out on it? Or did he...I wasn't able to watch the judges' critiques in his case). The word around is that he could be one of the couples in danger. As much as I (used to?? :/ ) love Chelsie, her partner is dead weight. America, feel free to send Jake home.
• Buzz Aldrin & Ashly Costa (14 for cha cha; 12 for foxtrot): Full disclosure...you are reading a recap by a man who loved all the following 'older' contestants: George Hamilton, John Ratzenberger, Tom DeLay (well, mostly...and not as a person) and Cloris Leachman. Really. I did. A lot. So my opinion on Buzz probably won't surprise you...he's a horrible dancer so far, but I love him, and I definitely want him to stay. He's charming as all get out (he called Ashly...YAY, ASHLY'S BACK!...a "babe" last week, which prompted a quite hearty chuckle from yours truly), he's dedicated to the competition, and hello, he's EIGHTY and going through with a nationally televised dance competition! I'm not calling for him to win the Season 10 crown (with two highly dismal weeks so far, he's probably already burned that bridge), but I'd love for him to stay as long as possible. And with other dancers being less beloved and just as bad as Buzz was, I think he may have the chance to do just that. Yay for Buzz!

The last 5 dancers to come toot-sweet (a little old-fashioned phrase in honor of Buzz's coolness :) ). Viva la DWTS!