Dance Moms Miami Recap: Survival of the Fittest

Dance Moms: Miami, you never disappoint.  After a good showing in Michigan last week, Victor and Angel are focused on Nationals.  It’s time for the list!  Jessi has moved her way up from the bottom of the list to the top.  Kimmy scores second due to her technical skills.  However, they want to see more emotion in her dancing.  Lucas is safe in third, and Hannah places fourth.  Debi is beyond thrilled to see that Hannah has beaten Sammy.  Victor is quick to tell the young girl that he thinks she should have been last as she didn’t trust her partner.  Angel thinks that Hannah had a rough week and worked hard.  Sammy is confused as to why she’s at the bottom, and while Victor thought she should have garnered fourth, her mother’s lack of respect for questioning their choreography lands her in last place.

The group is heading to Orlando.  Jessi and Hannah will have solos, and Kimmy and Lucas dance a duet.  The week’s theme is “survival,” so this should be good.  Sammy is relegated to just performing in the group dance.  The children tell Victor and Angel which animals they would be if they lived in the wild.  Back in the mom room, Abby is appalled that they women were chastised in front of their children.  Debi agrees…Hannah’s behavior was picture perfect during rehearsals for the duet.  Furthermore, Debi never threatened to pull Hannah from the duet.  Abby continues that she was perfectly happy seeing the girls dance together.  Her main concern is that the girls didn’t have enough time to practice because Victor stormed out of rehearsal.  Brigette is beyond exhausted of listening to the women pretend they were happy with the duet.  They hated the fact their daughters were forced to dance together.  We all remember…it was just last week!

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Always the instigator, Brigette reminds the moms of how miserable they were with the duet, although it’s really not her place to call them liars.  Well, if that’s the way she wants to play, Abby will tell them nothing but the truth.  And the truth of the matter is that Angel texted her before the competition asking her to bring Sammy’s solo costume with her, and she assumes it was because he was worried about the duet.  She has the proof right on her phone.  Debi is flabbergasted, but she has a tiny morsel of her own.  Angel was also texting her, but she knows better than to throw him under the bus in front of the other mothers…she saves that kind of behavior for Victor.

Lucas and Kimmy are doing a love duet.  The always wise Kimmy says that it’s a bit weird as she’s not quite ready for a relationship yet.  Lucas isn’t ever going to be digging on Kimmy the way his instructors want, but he’s willing to do his assigned homework.  They must write a pseudo love letter to one another, at least one paragraph of nice comments about the other.  Hannah’s solo is “Be Happy for Me.”  Debi reveals that Hannah has gotten several comments on her weight.  That makes me so sad!  Of course, Debi also thinks that Abby is trying to cause a rift between her and Angel, as he’s always been Hannah’s champion at Stars.  She’s not falling for that old trick!  Clearly, she needs to divulge this information to Victor and Angel.  Angel reminds Debi that all the dancers must bring back up costumes, and he only texted Abby that reminder because she’s new to the studio.  He’s through Debi’s plan to make Abby look bad.  He may be Hannah’s champion, but he’s certainly not her mom’s.

Susan wonders why Abby felt the need to show the text message in the first place.  Is she trying to prove she’s got an “in” with Angel and Victor that the other mothers don’t have?  When she confronts Abby, Debi is quick to have her back.  Sweet Ani (of course she’s sweet, she’s Kimmy’s mom!) doesn’t think that Abby was purposely trying to throw Angel under the bus.  She believes that Debi was just so sick of being attacked by the other moms.  I tend to agree with her.  Abby thinks that Susan is jealous of the attention Sammy has been getting since Jessi was the queen bee dancer before Sammy started at Stars.  Susan thinks Abby is crazy (Debi agrees).  Susan wants to know who Abby thinks she is (Debi’s right there with her)!  Susan tells her that it’s beyond obvious that she never wanted Sammy to dance with Hannah (Debi couldn’t have said it better!).  In fact, Susan says that EVERYONE knows that Sammy never wanted to have to lower herself to dance with Hannah (welp, you lost ol’ Deb with that one…can’t win ’em all though!).  Abby storms out, prompting Brigette to remark how good she is at leaving.  Quite the little pot stirrer is Lucas’ mom…

Jessi’s contemporary solo is “Fallen Angel.”  Victor thinks the audience will either love it or hate it…that is how darn artistic it’s going to be.  Jessi must stay in the moment.  Susan is not digging the choreography.  Where are the turns?  Where are the extensions?  How do they expect her daughter win without showcasing her strong technique?  This is ridiculous!  She takes her daughter aside to express her concern.  Jessi is adamant that her dance teachers know what they are doing.  She needs her mom to show them some respect…even if she isn’t going to be respectful to her mom.  Jessi asks her mom if she’s stupid and needs to go to a mental hospital for doubting Victor and Angel.  Susan thinks Jessi needs an attitude adjustment.

It’s time for Lucas and Kimmy to exchange love letters.  The always frank Lucas wonders how he’s supposed to know what love is, given that he’s only nine.  Ani helped Kimmy write her letter to Lucas, and it’s the stuff of Harlequin romance novels.  Lucas is floored…he didn’t realize the letters were supposed to be long!  Typical male.  Lucas promises in his letter to always be there to catch Kimmy if she falls.  It’s quite adorbs.  Jessi is working on her solo, and Susan is still concerned about the artistry.  Jessi tells Victor and Angel that her mom pulled her aside because she thinks the choreography is lacking technique, but what does she know?  She’s not a dance teacher!  Jessi laughs at her joke, while Victor gets pissy.  He hates when amateurs criticize something they know nothing about.  Oh no he didn’t!  Susan’s mom was a professional dancer as is her sister.  She approaches Victor, but he shuts her down.

Mayra is called in for the students’ monthly weigh-in.  Angel believes it prepares them for what it would be like to be in a professional ballet company.  Abby is disgusted.  She wonders if the other moms are in agreement, and Debi hates the weigh-ins.  Susan doesn’t see it as a big deal–heck, Jessi’s lost thirty-five pounds!  WHAT?  Abby is having none of it.  If Mayra wants to know how much Sammy weighs, Abby will tell her.  She can’t believe they make these young girls get on a scale to be judged in front of the entire class.  Haven’t these people ever heard of eating disorders?  Victor tries to explain that no one thinks Sammy has a weight problem, it’s just what they do.  Abby pulls a crying Sammy out of class and apologizes if she embarrassed her daughter.  Sammy wasn’t embarrassed…she’s tearful because she didn’t want to get on the scale.  I have to applaud Abby for that one.

It’s the day of the competition, and Jessi is giving her mother major attitude in front of all the teammates and parents.  Susan wants her daughter to be more respectful.  She believes that the way Victor and Angel speak to the mothers gives the kids the impression that they can speak to their parents in such a manner.  Regardless of the lack of technique, Susan is still moved to tears by Jessi’s performance.  Jessi thinks that it’s the best she’s ever danced.  Susan feels badly for not trusting Angel and Victor.

Kimmy is ready to pretend to be in love with Lucas for the duet.  Lucas thinks the judges will eat them up because they are both so flipping cute.  He’s right.  While the content of the dance may have been a little mature for nine-year-olds, they pull it off flawlessly.  Back stage, Victor and Angel have nothing but praise for the little love birds.  Susan doesn’t have equal praise for her daughter’s sour ways, so she starts reprimanding her in Spanish.  When she speaks Spanish, Jessi knows her mom means business.

Victor and Angel are giving Hannah a pep talk.  As she’s practicing her routine, she’s becoming frustrated because she’s worried she is going to forget part of it.  Angel is getting upset because her attitude (and her mother’s) are part of the reason she stays at the bottom of the list.  He’s never had a dancer cry, and Hannah better not be the first one.  If she forgets some choreography, Hannah knows she is supposed to improvise.  While he’s equally as frustrated that she may blow another opportunity to show her dancing abilities, he’s able to calm Hannah enough so she can pull it together.  It works!  Victor and Angel think it’s the best she’s ever danced, but Angel wants her to remember that it’s improv, not tears the next time she forgets her choreography.

Susan approaches Angel and cites his disrespect for the mothers as the reason behind Jessi’s behavior.  Angel thinks Susan need not involve him in her disputes with her daughter, but he hopes she can get to the bottom of Jessi’s attitude.  She doesn’t get it from him though.  Um…Victor can’t believe she blamed Angel.  I just love them…they are hilarious.  Susan once again gets on Jessi about her attitude, and Brigette reminds all the dancers that the only reason any of them are here is because of the support and sacrifice of their parents.  That causes Jessi to give her mother a tearful hug.

I am about to applaud the group number costumes, until Lucas’ peacock feather head piece falls right in his face.  Always the trooper, he keeps dancing his little heart out, regardless of the fact that he can’t see a thing.  Brigette boasts that she taught him early to never stop dancing in the event of a slip-up.  The group finishes on a high note, and Victor is proud of their ability to survive the dance.  Full circle, that one!  It’s time for awards, and Hannah scores first place.  Jessi is nominated for best senior dancer, and she receives the honor.  It’s a good day for Stars.  She thanks Victor, Angel, and her mom.  A deserving Lucas and Kimmy win best duet, and the group number placed first as well.  Looks like Stars swept Orlando!  Victor and Angel want the moms to know that they have their kids’ best interest at heart, and the moms need to stop all the sabotage mumbo jumbo.  Susan even allows a joking Angel to put tape over her mouth.

Next week, Susan storms out when it’s announced Jessi will be dancing a trio with Hannah and SammyBrigette does her best to bully Abby and Sammy out of Stars.

THOUGHTS ON LAST NIGHT’S EPISODE?  WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU ON–ANGEL OR SUSAN?  WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE PERFORMANCE?

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