So You Think You Can Dance: One Day You're In, and the Next Day You're Out

Who went home after the reality dance show's first competition episode?

This reality-contestant merry-go-round is dizzying. Can we get off?

Thanks to baseball playoffs wreaking havoc on Fox's schedule, So You Think You Can Dance is all mixed up this season. Usually the two-hour competition episode would air on Tuesday, fans would vote overnight and an elimination episode would air Wednesday, but until the World Series is done, competition and elimination happens on the same night, and there's no fan voting to save couples from elimination. The judges decide among themselves who's going home.

Here's what happened during tonight's Top 20 competition, complete with pairings, dances and the identities of the two eliminees who got the full Cat Deeley precious-darling treatment on the way out:

Philip & Channing performed a Jason Gilkison-choreographed jive that was capable and full of cuteness, but a little stiff on the flips. Judge Adam Shankman said it was a "classy pairing," but judge Nigel Lythgoe wanted to see more chemistry between the two going forward.

Ashley & Jakob performed a Tyce Diorio-choreographed Broadway number. (The song, "Hit Me With a Hot Note," was the same one that Katie Holmes danced to on Eli Stone a while back.) It looked like Jakob was doing his own dance, showing off and totally disconnected from Ashley. The judges drooled all over Jakob, whom they consider brilliant, while Adam Shankman (who actually has something constructive to say most of the time) suggested that Ashley work on how she uses her hands.

Ariana & Peter performed a NappyTabs-choreographed hip-hop that seemed cute and well-danced, but not brilliant. (Ariana was so bootylicious in those gold pants!) Adam Shankman told them to "work on the similarity of [their] musicality," and then launched into a silly Lil' C riff, saying they should also work on the "veracity of [their] tenacity." (Ha!)

Noelle & Russell were going to perform a Tony Meredith & Melanie LaPatin fox-trot, but then Noelle did something drastically terrible to her knee, so Russell danced the number with choreographer Melanie LaPatin instead. Poor, pretty, partnerless Russell! He looked soooo good in that suit, and was so courtly with his partner. Who else just found a new SYTYCD boyfriend?

Bianca & Victor performed a Travis Wall-choreographed contemporary that seemed sophisticated and well-danced. We are in awe of the abdominal strength needed for Bianca to sustain that one hold-and-drop move. Damn. Adam Shankman said Bianca needs to "finish" her toes and keep her shoulders down, and Nigel Lythgoe said they were the "most connected between partners" of any couple so far.

Karen & Kevin performed a Tony Meredith & Melanie Lapatin-choreographed cha-cha to the Glee cast's verison of "Push It." Sadly, the music, the outfits and the dance seemed mismatched. Adam Shankman was very admiring of Karen's body and sexy Latin-dance hips, and then joked, "And for those of you that know me, that's not really my thing, so..." Judge Mary Murphy put Karen on the hot-tamale train. 

Ryan & Eleanor performed a Sonya Tayeh-choreographed jazz. The dance was fine, but the intro clip where Ryan told us how masculine he was didn't make him very likable. Nigel said he had no idea what Sonya wanted them to do, since Sonya's style is so variable, but that the two dancers seemed to do a good job.

Brandon & Pauline performed a Jason Gilkison-choregraphed smooth waltz. Brandon was really classy about coming in at the last minute, and they seemed to be a great pairing with great chemistry. However, Nigel thought they were "not strong enough" and seemed like a "prom couple."

Legacy & Kathryn performed a Dave Scott-choreographed "prehistoric" hip-hop. Adam praised the silly, jumpy dance for its "sense of humor," and Mary said "Yabba-Dabba-Doo!" because she is a shameless grandstander like that. 

Nathan & Mollee performed a Doriana Sanchez-choreographed disco. As per usual with Doriana's dances, it seemed sloppy and rushed, but how about that nifty move where Mollee was swinging from Nathan's neck? Adam said that despite the "very sexy" lifts, "none of it seemed that dirty, somehow." 

Who Went Home

There is no voting or elimination show tonight because of baseball playoffs, so the judges alone decided who to send packing. Nigel said eliminations were determined by "everything that we know of [the dancers]" from the beginning of the competition, not just tonight's dancing.

The four dancers in danger were Ariana, Brandon, Paulina and Russell. Ariana went home for the girls, and Brandon (who just arrived a day ago) went home for the guys. Nigel said that usually he would be out of So You Think You Can Dance for the rest of time, but that he was going to ask Fox to make a special exception for Brandon so he could come back next season and get a real shot. Brandon said, "If I can come back, I'll definitely come back."