Elite 8!!! But wait...

I am ashamed to say I looked at Twitter before I started watching Wednesday's show and was devastated to learn that Alex was injured and wouldn't be dancing! This also eliminates an Anya dance. Double loss! Top 8 is the cursed week, I swear! So we watched 7 dancers do their thing this week, and since the show has decided to keep switching formats, I'm going to do the same. Here are my reviews in the order that I liked them (best to worst):

1. Kent and Lauren, Contemporary - Travis Wall
Hands down my favorite of the night! Finally a dance where Kent didn't have to try and be sexy. Granted, he does need to work on playing characters, but I loved seeing him just dance! This dance was beautiful and just exuded joy! Their chemistry was amazing, and the choreography suited their styles perfectly. Plus, by the end I was shrieking like a 13 year old at how cute Kent and Lauren were! Anyone else think that kiss at the end was Kent's first? :)

2. Jose and Lauren, Contemporary - Mandy Moore
I really just love Mandy's ability to make dancers look good in contemporary dance, regardless of style or background. She seems like a really good teacher in the video packages, and here the teaching really paid off, as I was very impressed with Jose! Plus, we got another unique Mandy lift where Jose held Lauren horizontally by one leg and she like spun and twisted down somehow...definitely had to watch that one a couple times! Plus, the connection between the two was great and I loved that Jose was able to tone it down a notch and bring out the emotion of the routine.

3. Robert and Kathryn, Jazz - Sean Cheeseman
I really loved the concept of this routine! And the music, love me some Roison Murphy! Kathryn looked like the perfect little "Tennis Barbie" and Robert looked adorable in his sweater vest. I loved the parts where they were dancing in the box and their darky and scheming little grins. There was some great partnering outside the box which I loved as well. Basically it just left me with a huge smile on my face!

4. Lauren and Pasha, Cha Cha - Jean Marc and France
There were parts of this dance when I really thought Pasha was dancing with Anya! Not that I'm surprised since Lauren is awesome, but she really looked like a ballroom dancer to me! I was especially pleased with her hands because I feel like that's the first place you start to notice when a ballroom routine is off. She definitely kept up with Pasha and danced like a woman. Nice job, Lauren! Any bets as to who is going to use "Alejandro" in their routine this season? I'm guessing Jean Marc and France, but maybe Sonya or Travis?

5. Kent and Comfort, Hip Hop - Dave Scott
I really liked the smooth hip hop style of this routine. It really worked for Kent and was very reminiscent of Mr. Schuster/ Justin Timberlake. He definitely toned down his "deer in headlights" look and it paid off. Comfort also looked awesome since she was not in baggy clothes for once. Damn girl!

6. Ashley and Dominic, Hip Hop - Nappy Tabs
Cool Ninja inspired routine from NappyTabs! I loved the use of the whole stage (and then some) and definitely appreciate how Ashley could really shake her booty. I still am not a fan of hers, but this routine definitely helped. She had good chemistry with Dom (who wouldn't) and I definitely enjoyed watching this one.

7. Billy and Katee, Broadway - Spencer Liff
I really think it must have been the horrible camera work that ruined this routine for everyone on TV because the judges LOVED this. I feel like the camera was shaky the entire time and the angles were horrible. Half the time, I felt like the focus was in between Katee and Billy so you could only see half of what each of them was doing. And it gave me a headache. However, there is no denying that Billy is still a freak of nature with his flexibility. I am going to say he has no spine. How could he with all that crazy bending?!?! Also, Spencer Liff is adorable...just saying.

8. Ashley and Robert, Quickstep - Jena Marc and France
Why do they feel the need to incorporate this dance into the show? Even when it's good, it is still a little bit dated and boring. Loved the song choice for this, but that's about it. They were awkward, slow at times, and their carriage was definitely not held as it should be. Plus Ashley's costume was pretty awful. Sorry, it was!

9. Jose and Billy, Afro Jazz - Sean Cheeseman
Weird. When they danced together I felt like they were fake wrestling, and when they danced apart it was too disjointed. I just didn't get it.

10. Adechike w/out Alex, Bollywood - Nukul
One of the more boring Bollywood routines Nukul has done. It did start to get exciting in the middle when it got super fast, but overall, it just didn't sit well with me. Plus, Adechike had a weird smirky thing on his face the whole time that didn't match the routine. I'm also not sure why they made him do the same thing move that Alex injured himself with. I think a little bit of tweaking should have been done to avoid that potentially happening again. Best part of this routine? Cat CALLING OUT the judges for being hypocritical of their criticisms. Go Cat!

11. Adechike and Courtney, Jazz - Mandy Moore
This is the first time Mandy has really disappointed me. I didn't like the look of this routine - the costumes, music, and props didn't go together. Plus, the choreo all felt like setups to something bigger, but that something never came. Courtney and Adechike had horrible chemistry and barely even danced together. Adechike really didn't do it for me, and for the first time this season, I really agreed with Mia's critique. Adam couldn't even finish a damn sentence in his critique which led to some annoying blabbering amongst the judges.

I'm curious to see what goes down with Alex Wong tonight. Hopefully he hasn't ruptured his achilles and Adechike will be sent packing. Predictions of the other B2 - Adechike and Robert.