The winners of DANCING WITH THE STARS Season 14: Donald Driver and Peta Murgatroyd!
Katherine Jenkins and Mark Ballas came in 2nd. William Levy and Cheryl Burke in 3rd.
Though it didn’t turn out the way I’d hoped, (Len and I may need to get together for a cup of tea to sort out our feelings), I can’t say it wasn’t a happy ending. Donald and Peta delivered exciting routines from day one. They put all their eggs in the entertainment basket and it sure paid off! They also delivered my favorite dance of possibly the whole season, their jive from 2 weeks ago. In addition to his talent, Donald was just a (mirror)ball of personality. I couldn’t find a thing dislike about him. Plus he has been a super fan of DWTS since it began, just like me. He’s living the dream!
Katherine being the most versatile, technically proficient, and consistent dancer, was just the right person to join Donald in the final 2. As Carrie Ann pointed out, she set the bar for everyone this season. I enjoyed her so much, she was just the sweetest all the way through. And she achieved the impossible, she made me like Mark! I’ll miss watching their beautiful routines.
William was the king of the Latin ballroom dances, no one could touch him on those. He was gracious and proud to be a part of the competition. He certainly wasn’t hard on the eyes either. He perfectly rounded out the most talented group of finalists ever.
My Favorite Moments of the Finale:
Gladys Knight serenading everyone with “The Way We Were” while a lovely montage of the finalists played. It was perfection. Everyone was crying, including myself because Kat’s tears are contagious (and unfortunately for me, they happened a lot throughout the night).
The adorable children of Donald and William. William’s little boy cried after his dad was eliminated and my heart broke! It was so sweet. Donald’s kids couldn’t not have been more excited to be there, really they were like that all season long. Also Donald’s baby girl wailing into the camera was precious. Poor thing must have been so overwhelmed!
The cameo by Benedict Cumberbatch just sent me over the edge. I LOVE HIM. If you guys aren’t watching him on SHERLOCK, then what are you doing with your life?! He was there in support of Katherine, apparently they are “friends”. Cut to me formulating a romance in my head…
Now Let’s Talk DANCING WITH THE STARS: ALL-STARS
It has been a great season, and once again I have loved blogging our way through it. I look forward to the upcoming ALL STAR season with more excitement than I’d like to admit. Im counting down until the cast announcement and I hope they get to stick with their original partners. For fun, here is my contestant wish list:
Stacy Keibler w/ Tony Dovolani (Season 2, 3rd place)- Because Tony deserves a good partner again. AND WE COULD GET CLOONEY IN THE AUDIENCE!
Mel B. w/ Maksim Chmerkovskiy (Season 5, 2nd place)- She’s a tough cookie that won’t take Maks’ crap. And they remain friends. And she was great!
Evan Lysacek w/ Anna Trebunskaya (Season 10, 2nd place)- We have a while until the next winter Olympics and he was just lovely.
Gilles Marini w/ Cheryl Burke (Season 8, 2nd place)- Popular amongst all ladies. Probably the poster child for “should have won”…people are still up in arms.
Mario Lopez w/ Karina Smirnoff (Season 3, 2nd place)- Sure he is hammy and annoying, but the boy can dance! Slater had moves, ya’ll.
Brooke Burke (Charvet) w/ Derek Hough (Season7, 1st place)- I’M KIDDING!
Sabrina Bryan w/ Mark Ballas (Season 5, 7th place)- Eliminated WAY too early, she was one of my favorite pairings with Mark (besides Ms. Jenkins). They also used to date which could provide good drama.
David Arquette w/ Kym Johnson (Season 13, 6th place)- He was just starting to get good when he got the boot. No contestant has ever seemed to enjoy DWTS like this guy. He still declares his love for dance and his partner Kym any chance he gets. Also, Coco!
Kyle Massey w/ Lacey Schwimmer (Season 11, 2nd place)- This duo was so fun! And I really feel for anyone who lost to Jennifer Grey. She made Maria Menounos seem low key.
Ty Murray w/ Chelsie Hightower (Season 8, 4th place)- Mr. Jewel was an adorable charmer whose dancing went from laughable to making him an actual contender. Isn’t that what this show is all about?
Kelly Monaco w/ Alec Mazo (Season 1, 1st place)- Wouldn’t it be fun to see how the very first DWTS winner holds up?
Bonus Impossible Dream: Get Julianne Hough to return with Apolo Anton Ohno (Season 4, 1st place). They were my favorite DWTS couple of all time and they are still close buds. A girl can hope, right?
Thoughts? Who would you love to see return?
