After a mediocre first week of Dance Moms, Abby Lee Miller is trying to keep her crazy in check, but she’s really just in major denial.
After lectures on punctuality and dedication, Abby is running late. She needs her make-up artist to make sure her eyebrows look better. Jill recognizes this behavior as Abby being on the verge of a breakdown. When the ALDC convenes for the pyramid, Maddie and Kalani are on the bottom due to their absences. MacKenzie and Kendall round out the bottom row. Nia is in the third spot for managing JoJo’s hamster ball, and JoJo places second for actually dancing in the ball. Brynn is in the top spot for winning her solo. Abby grants her solos to Kendall, MacKenzie and Nia, snarking that their mothers think they are good replacements for Maddie. Melissa sticks up for MacKenzie at every turn (for the first time), and Abby doesn’t appreciate her new stance. In a twist, Abby makes the announcement that she’s going to start training a mini team of young girls who she hopes will redeem her name with her sub-par competition team. The mothers are less than thrilled with this news.
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The following day before rehearsal, the mothers are clucking over Abby’s legal drama going public, and they prepare for the worst. However, Abby pretends like nothing has happened, even when Jill halfway references Abby being in the news. Instead of being the crazy wreck the mothers had anticipated, Abby is ready to dive in to the solo routines. Nia is channeling the character Cookie from Empire. While Holly is happy that Nia will be dancing a solo, she doesn’t really see any choreography competitive enough for the teen competition. Abby wants sass and twerking and an embarrassed Nia is hesitant to become the next Miley. Without the twerk, Abby grows tired of working with Nia and summons MacKenzie.
After complaining about her technique, she quizzes MacKenzie on the name of her dance. MacKenzie proudly states it’s “I Just Want to Stay Home and Eat Chips.” WRONG! Abby rails her for forgetting that it’s “I Just Want to Sit On the Couch and Eat Chips.” Can’t she remember anything? When MacKenzie simply states she believed the name of her routine to be the actual quote she said, Abby bellows that she’s contradicting her teacher who clearly recalls MacKenzie’s quote about sofa-surfing at eating Lays. She calls the poor girl a smart ass before banishing her from rehearsal. Melissa is livid at Abby’s name-calling as JoJo and Kalani try to comfort a sobbing MacKenzine.
Kendall’s solo is called meltdown, and Abby kisses up to Jill in an effort to unnerve Melissa. As Abby praises Kendall while bashing MacKenzie, Melissa seethes about what a loyal friend and confidant she’s been to Abby. Holly is a bit too pleased that Melissa is finally getting a taste of the Abby their girls are forced to deal with on a regular basis. As Melissa sticks up for MacKenzie who is being constantly compared to Maddie, Abby realizes she doesn’t like when Melissa pretends to be Mother of the Year. Jessalyn is concerned that if Abby keeps acting like nothing is wrong, she’s going to blow up with the crazy when they least expect it.
At the competition, Holly recognizes that Nia probably doesn’t have a chance with her solo. Kendall has been given amazing choreography and professional make-up, and Abby has all but ignored Nia’s routine since she refused to twerk. Abby believes that Kendall has been relying too much on being just another pretty face, so she’s made sure that Kendall’s make-up does the exact opposite. She tries to keep her tears at bay as Jessalyn hypes up her ability, assuring her that the “ugly” make-up will make such an impact on stage. Abby then does the unexpected. She tells a tearful Kendall to wash off the make-up and dance without it. Holly is in shock. Abby is certainly going to great lengths to get under Melissa’s skin by favoring Kendall!
In the teen competition, Nia is the first of the ALDC to dance. Nia showcases her sass even in a dance that doesn’t have much substance. She does an amazing job, and the judges agree with her rocking her facial expressions. Abby sits stone-faced as Nia beams at the praise. Conversely, Kendall’s dance is filled with difficult technical aspects, and she preforms flawlessly. However, the judges cite that such a pretty girl doesn’t need to plaster on sweet smile. They want to see Kendall convey her dark side. Maybe washing off that make-up wasn’t the best idea. MacKenzie dances next, and I wonder why Abby complains that MacKenzie needs to grow up but then always has her dancing dressed like an eight-year-old. Abby cheers hard for MacKenzie, but when a judge notes MacKenzie’s soft ankles, Abby expresses her disappointment in Maddie’s kid sister. After the girls head out for the group number, Jill tries to broach the subject of Abby’s recent woes, but Abby assures her that just because she broke up with her boyfriend, everything is fine. Um, what? The mothers are as confused as I am.
The costumes for the group routine, and while the dance is great, Kendall slips early on in the number. The judges love the routine, but Jill is concerned with Kendall’s flub. At the awards ceremony, MacKenzie lands fourth place in the junior solo division with Kendall getting third. Nia places second in the teen solo division. Let’s see if she gets the promised solo next week. The group places second in the group number by mere fractions of a point. Kendall is granted the solo next week as her dance had the most points. Holly tries to remind Abby that the mothers are there for her, but she basically snarks at the mothers, warning them they could be joining her in jail. Jessalyn is convinced…Abby is off her rocker.
TELL US – WHAT DID YOU THINK OF LAST NIGHT’S EPISODE? WAS ABBY TOO HARD ON MACKENZIE?
[Photo Credit: Lifetime]
