Adam Taylor/ABCDancing With the Stars is down to nine after tonight's double elimination.
All the postshow buzz, both backstage and beyond, seemed to revolve around the hitch in Bristol Palin's confidence, when she accused partner Mark Ballas of "not being there" for her because he'd rather be dancing with somebody else.
But did Bristol's mini-meltdown get her sympathy votes or turn people off?
Well, for starters, guess who was totally safe?!
That would be Melissa Rycroft and Kelly Monaco, who tied for the lead last night with the season's first 27s, as well as Shawn Johnson, who was penalized for letting Derek Hough hoist her into the air during their quickstep—but still scored tonight's encore because the judges loved the rule-flouting routine, regardless.
No surprises there.
But didn't Drew Lachey look so disappointed to be eliminated this early? Six years after topping Stacy Keibler (wonder what she's up to these days) for the mirror-ball trophy, the season-two champ just never quite found his stride among the all-stars.
"I can honestly say I would not change a thing," Lachey said. "Everybody questioned why I would come back—I came back 'cause this is fun. We had a great time, I had an amazing partner."
"We had a deal though!" Nick Lachey's little bro wagged a finger at host Tom Bergeron. "You were never supposed to say my name. You welched on the deal!"
Joining Drew on the outs, meanwhile, was...wait for it...season-five winner Hélio Castroneves! (Meaning, folks are voting for Bristol yet again, despite the drama.)
"I want to thank my family, Chelsie, and I want to thank America! I couldn't be happier!" the IndyCar champ said graciously.
Also surviving to dance another day are Kirstie Alley, both of whom were dragged into jeopardy tonight; Emmitt Smith, who hasn't quite lived up to his championship season yet; Gilles Marini, who's been strong but not dominant; fan fave Apolo Anton Ohno; and Sabrina Bryan, who needs to make it to at least week six to equal her personal best.
Meanwhile, Drew got ousted in the first half of the show, but Hélio got a little revenge when the couples were tasked with picking dance styles for each other for next week, and he came up with mambo for Shawn and Derek.
Here are the other pairings:
Gilles & Peta: Bollywood
Sabrina & Louis: disco
Emmitt & Cheryl: bolero
Apolo & Karina: hip-hop
Melissa & Tony: jitterbug
Kelly & Val: contemporary
Kirstie & Maks: Charleston
Bristol & Mark: rock & roll
Alas, Hélio would have been the one doing Broadway.
Paula Abdul serves as a guest judge next Monday, see you then!