Kayode: Well, America’s Best Dance Crew is back, and we’re not gonna lie. We may not be following the whole season unless we see some really impressive stuff. While we were happy to see We Are Heroes win last season, both Jon and I will admit, Season 4 in general was especially lackluster. Can the show bounce back this season? And what to make of Omarion replacing Shane Sparks as a judge?

Jon: They didn’t even mention Shane’s absence on the show, let alone explain why he’s not there — which as we know, was because Sparks was arrested and charged with child molestation(!).

Jungle Boogie
Kayode: They’re a fun, energetic little crew, that’s for sure. They’re very synchronized with their choreography, but the one trick they tried to pull off with the one guy spinning one of his crewmates around him got real sloppy. Beyond that, I’m not overly impressed just yet. One of the things we always like to see a certain level of difficulty right off the bat. Nothing they did necessarily “wowed” me.

Jon: Maybe I just have low expectations for crews from the South, but I thought they were pretty good. Not counting the aforementioned trick which all the judges called them on.

Ghost
Kayode: I want to like Ghost. I liked their theatricality, and the fluidity of their movements, but it would have been nice to see more choreography. I think at the very least, they’ve got potential. I think they can do more than what they showed, but the low energy of the routine is what hurt them. And um yeah, Omarion is not a very good judge . . . . at all!

Jon: I wanted to like Ghost too, but they weren’t bringing it like they needed to. As for Omarion… he’s so bad he makes L’il Mama seem smart!

X-Treme Motion
Kayode: Getting the obvious out of the way . . . COTDAMN!!! Seriously, all of these ladies are lookin’ pretty nice, all cute and whatnot! But yeah, it’s about the dancing, isn’t it? As to the dancing, there’s something there. It’s very high energy, and while they definitely needed to be more in synch, I could see them tightening up their moves a bit more. And again, Omarion = crappy judge, and corny as hell, trying to be clever when commenting on the crew’s sex appeal.

Jon: I kind of think this crew could be called Butterface in Motion. Just messin with you, KK. They probably had more energy than anybody tonight, but I could see their repertoire of moves become predictable. Omarion’s so bad the team of judges would be better if he was replaced with a pedophile!

Swagger Crew
Kayode: I liked that there was variety to their routine. You had the tutting moves, you had some more fluid grooving to the music, solid choreography, the whole nine. I liked that there was a build-up to a higher energy portion of the routine, and you could tell they were having a lot of fun with it.

Jon: Best crew of the night and the first team I wouldn’t mind seeing make it past Regionals.

Royal Flush
Kayode: For a crew that’s been trying to get on the show since the first season, they certainly didn’t disappoint. This was easily the best routine for me, ‘cause there were a lot of moves that trumped the other crews on difficulty, the energy level was there, the theatricality, etc. And unlike Swagger Crew, I liked that the sole female in Royal Flush wasn’t confined to just doing whatever the other guys were doing. They allowed her to be feminine, and it actually made for a good contrast from a theatrical standpoint. And I actually loved the whole card bit at the end.

Jon: Good points. Omarion’s so bad, PCS has somebody who’d be a better judge!

Sudden Death Round
Kayode: With Swagger Crew and (surprisingly) Jungle Boogie securing the first two spots in the national competition, the three remaining crews battled it out in Sudden Death, with Royal Flush winning the final spot to rep the South. Clearly, they had the whole backstory going for them, but they were also the most dynamic crew of the evening. They showed the most personality, and exhibited more skill than other crews. But dammit if the ladies of X-Treme Movement won’t be missed!

Jon: I wasn’t surprised by the first two picks to go to Nationals — Swagger Crew was definitely the best. Ghost was surprisingly lackluster in Sudden Death, especially compared to Royal Flush who seemed to be pulling out all the stops to ensure they moved on. Personally I’m not going to miss X-Treme Butterface. Just messin with you, ladies — honestly, your chances with me were not helped by previous cheearleading crews.

Conclusion
Kayode: It’s hard to tell from right now, just how the whole season’s gonna go. We still have two more regional competitions to get through before we get a real idea of how the main competition is going to go. Swagger Crew and Royal Flush definitely deserved to advance, but their competition wasn’t all that tough. I think we’ve all seen better crews from the South in the past, so this season’s advancing crews definitely need to step their game up. Hopefully we’ll see better with the other two regionals. And at the very least, the inclusion of Omarion this season makes Lil’ Mama appear that much more competent than usual!

Jon: It’s kind of a bad sign for the future of ABDC if these 5 were really the best they could find in the South, even if they did find at least two potentially worthy crews. Still, I’m sure we’ll see way more talent come out of the East and definitely the West, which seems to have plenty of killer squads. I look forward to those next couple Regionals as much as I DO NOT look forward to more Omarion.