SYTYCD Judges--Why so nasty?

[naturallove]

I read in another thread that folks thought these judges were a pain in the butt..and now I get it! I don't ever remember being this annoyed from previous seasons. I think Tyce was just snarky for no reason (and not even witty) and Mia was just really nasty to Brandon. Nasty to the point where you can tell that she doesn't know how to talk to people. I personally think she's talented, but some of her choreography is overrated (prime example: the one she dedicated to her dad last season) and she's just a pain. That said, I'm still plenty annoyed by the judges on Dancing with the Stars.

[Angel HI]

Seems to be the unfortunate current trend. Remember this past season of DTWS? Unabashed nastiness to the point of cruelty and insulting. Yea, Hollywood!

[RickRS]

Tyce did get a warning from Nigel to tone it down. Of course, that was at the end of the first day's audition, not during his numerous rants.

Interesting that Lil' C seem to agree with Mia on Brandon. Last season, Lil' C first appeared as a judge in the top twenty rounds and he came across as one of the nicest, calmest judges they had. Hope he's not getting inflected by the others.

And on a positive note, no Samantha! Cat, in comparation, is such a wonderful host/interviewer.

[wonderwoman]

I love Mia Michaels but she was MEAN! They do it for the ratings though...

[naturallove]

And on a positive note, no Samantha! Cat, in comparation, is such a wonderful host/interviewer.

ITA! Cat took a little while to grow on me, but she really comes across as very kind and interested in all of the contestants.

[chica latina]

I think Mia is being tough, but I wonder if she's trying to break him down to get some emotion out of him (no matter what: sadness, fury, but something)... How normal is to be treated like that and just smile...

A dancer needs to be in touch of his feelings to bring them acroos it's dance and I think she knows how physically/ technically talented he is but want more emotial connection from him. Just a thought.

[wonderwoman]

The one she kept kinda hazing... I think his response of "Oh It's on" really impressed her. I thought that was so cool! Great attitude!

[chica latina]

The one she kept kinda hazing... I think his response of "Oh It's on" really impressed her. I thought that was so cool! Great attitude!

I hope they get to work together soon, maybe she will be able to make him go to another level....

[wonderwoman]

It's going to be awesome. Mia's routines always blow me away. I really love the one to Hometown Glory last year.

[RickRS]

I think Mia is being tough, but I wonder if she's trying to break him down to get some emotion out of him (no matter what: sadness, fury, but something)... How normal is to be treated like that and just smile...


The "judges' review" is a minefield. The "wrong" response from a dancer can bring down the judges's wrath. Smiling and taking the abuse when the other person has the power to take away your hopes and dreams isn't an abnormality.

Recall last season's top female dance (was her name Katee?). At this same point last year, when the judges were handing out the last slot of the top twenty, she was asked if she didn't get it, what would happen? She answered, and I think honestly at that moment, that it would be the end of the road for her, she couldn't see going thru the process once again for the third or fourth time (she had been trying to break into the top twenty in past seasons). Nigel turned to stone and told her she had the votes for the last slot, but he didn't want her if that was her attitude. He then did a revote to try and drop her from the competition. May have all been a manufactured drama for tv, but remember the judges hold the power and make the rules.

[soshedances]

I like Mia's routines (for the most part), but don't like her attitude toward the dancers...there's a difference between tough and mean.

[jerseydancer]

Seems to be a human nature. Many people once they are given a power over the others, they go ahead and abuse it. It takes a very special Human to use the power wisely; unfortunately many judges on this show are not that special human beings after all. No matter how talented you are and what are your achievements, it is not an excuse to be that cruel and try to break people and whatever it is they think they are doing, that is the part of the show I do not like. Very often I DVR the show and watch only the performances and just rewind through the judges comments, especially Mia. What a nasty person she is. I remember last year comment about a smile…You are correct about Hollywood so as well. Some shows..like Survivor show the skankiest humans on earth, would you actually want to have the winner of this show as your friend/ ever?

[TAK]

Recall last season's top female dance (was her name Katee?). At this same point last year, when the judges were handing out the last slot of the top twenty, she was asked if she didn't get it, what would happen? She answered, and I think honestly at that moment, that it would be the end of the road for her, she couldn't see going thru the process once again for the third or fourth time (she had been trying to break into the top twenty in past seasons). Nigel turned to stone and told her she had the votes for the last slot, but he didn't want her if that was her attitude. He then did a revote to try and drop her from the competition. May have all been a manufactured drama for tv, but remember the judges hold the power and make the rules.

Yeah, that was Katee. I think she learned her lesson at Vegas.

The DWTS judges can be a little outrageous sometimes, but I rarely find them hard to watch. The SYTYCD judges, on the other hand, make me wince and change the channel several times per hour.

[Steve Pastor]

In general (yes, there were some very notable exceptions) I thought the judges were super nice during the audition phase, even to people who really should have done something else that day. (ie They were no where near the caliber of dancer this show gets.)
Now, though, the cutting starts.
Why be so hard on people?
I can relate on this level...
I get women asking me to "teach them how to ......" (pick a dance that I know) at the country western place I go.
It's pretty easy to find places where they would improve significantly if they did X.
Knowing the 2 major "rhythms" of Weste Coast Swing is one example.
So I'll ask them to practice over the next week.
One or two weeks of no practice on their own, and I decide that they aren't serious, and that's the end of that.

Now, think of all the time these judges have put into their careers. Think of all the time that goes into creating one of the numbers that is danced on this show, which has shown us some really good dancing over the seasons. Think of the probably thousands of people that have auditioned for these judges, and the smaller subset that have made it into shows, movies, videos, etc.
I'd think that you wouldn't want someone who is going to let you down somewhere along the way after having invested so much of yourself into them.
I only have one friend (that I know of) who danced professionally, and she has said the the choreographers were very demanding, and loved her because she would always do her best for them. Why would you pick someone who didn't if there was someone who did, that was available? (Her body got to the point where it couldn't take it anymore.)
(Remember Nygel putting his hands on his head and saying we don't have a show with what we are seeing here when they were in Seattle?)

Still, yeah, some of the comments are hard to listen to.

[salsera_alemana]

I felt that Mia's nasty comment to Brandon was totally uncalled for. She did not criticize his dancing ability but his personality that she did not like or something that rubbed her wrong about him (which she clearly said). What is that? She does not know him and she is supposed to judge his dancing. And she went on and on ... I felt really bad for him and I liked Mary's comment that she had enough. So glad that Debbie and Nigel and Mary praised him and told him not to listen to her.

And I felt bad for the Miami ballet dancer who did not get out of his contract. Yes, he has a career already but he wanted it so bad.

[naturallove]

I felt that Mia's nasty comment to Brandon was totally uncalled for. She did not criticize his dancing ability but his personality that she did not like or something that rubbed her wrong about him (which she clearly said). What is that? She does not know him and she is supposed to judge his dancing. And she went on and on ... I felt really bad for him and I liked Mary's comment that she had enough. So glad that Debbie and Nigel and Mary praised him and told him not to listen to her.

And I felt bad for the Miami ballet dancer who did not get out of his contract. Yes, he has a career already but he wanted it so bad.

That's what got me--Mia got really personal with Brandon. Her critique went far beyond his dancing, and I felt like she went too far.