'Dance' Shocker!
Nigel Lythgoe kicked off his 2012 with some very disappointing news.
"FOX have cancelled the results show so I will have to change the format of SYTYCD," he Tweeted on January 1.
The news annoyed some fans ("SYTYCD is the best reality show on tv. My kids are getting an appreciation for dance as an art form," Tweeted @tsubi), elated some others ("SYTYCD should be cancelled more time and resources can be devoted to X-Factor," said @tcmitssr) and left a couple indifferent (@Bellavino40 wrote "some of us never watch results").
Personally, I find the move surprising and very problematic for the show itself.
Surprising because SYTYCD traditionally airs during the summer (season six aired, and floundered in Fall 2009) where there is far less timeslot competition and original programming. So why did Fox suddenly decide that two hours a week of dance was too much, while both American Idol and The X Factor get over-inflated result shows?
Although that's the side of the argument that gives me hope -- the idea of a results show that take up two hours while the actual reveal consumes all of 60 seconds is plain and simple filler. Granted, it's fluff that America readily watches, but I'm hoping this is a move the network plans to adopt across the board so we aren't forced to watch Ryan Seacrest pull countless "the results ................... after the break" per season.
The only hiccup is that axing a companion results show for a series that bases eliminations on your votes creates a massive problem. One Nigel just acknowledged on Twitter: "In order to continue America's vote, results would have to be given the following week."
Putting aside the issue that Dance is a partner-based show, and this move creates a logistical nightmare (how do you plan next week's routine if your partner might be the one sent packing?), it is starting to sound like 5 things might happen.
One: America's votes will only account for a percentage of what saves or sends a dancing packing (a la Dancing with the Stars).
Two: The partners will be done away with, as was the case with 2010's All Star season, thereby making it a simple case of performance shuffling behind the scenes after an elimination.
Three: So You Think You Can Dance will no longer house the search for America's Favorite Dancer, but instead, America's Best Dancer, leaving the decision entirely up to the judges.
Four: Eliminations happen 24 hours later, live on Fox dot com slash Dance (said in my best Cat Deely voice).
Five: Nothing changes. America's votes are still the only deciding factor and the results show is awkwardly condensed into a 5 minute rush job that airs at the start of every subsequent episode.
What do you think is the best solution -- and are you a fan of reality competition result shows?
