Looks like Superstars of Dance had some pretty good ratings for it’s premiere of the show. TV Guide said that NBC’s Superstars of Dance premiere had 10.4 mil viewers for the 9 PM hour. The 10 PM hour of NBC’s Superstars of Dance was the top show for that hour at 10.07 million viewers. Those are pretty good numbers for the premiere of the show. The biggest concern I have is that the number of viewers went down in the second hour. The show could have been produced a lot better and hopefully the trend of less traffic won’t continue, because I love dance shows.

All in all, I don’t think that Nigel and Simon will have a problem with 10 million viewers. Pretty decent for the first season of a show I’d say.

Superstar of Dance Dancers
Irish Step Dancers (Ireland Group) – Incredible to watch. Having a bunch of beautiful girls didn’t hurt either. The guy in the front that was kind of running around wasn’t very good, but it was fun to watch.

Robert Muraine (US Solo) – Robert had performed a couple times on So You Think You Can Dance. I still love Robert and he does some incredibly things. I think he had a really poor song choice and the camera angles didn’t do what he did justice. However, I could watch him dance over and over again. Check out some of his better stuff from So You Think You Can Dance.

Carolina Cerisola (Argentina Solo) – I’m sure that Argentina has a better solo dancer than this person. She wasn’t horrible and she got better once the music picked up. However, she definitely wasn’t a superstar. Carolina could have also left the hat out of the routine completely.

Anya Garnis and Pasha Kovalev (Russian Ballroom Duet) – Another set of dancers from So You Think You Can Dance. They should have stuck to their audition for So You Think You Can Dance. This one had way too much foreplay and not enough action. The song was horrible and it wasn’t nearly as good as I’ve seen them do. Whoever choreographed this number was horrible. Pasha and Anya are so much better than this. Russia should be disappointed and should ask Karina Smirnoff to come on the show, but I’m pretty sure Dancing with the Stars won’t be giving her up anytime soon.

Nishi Munshi & Sangita Sanyal (Indian Bollywood Duet) – An interesting Bollywood Duet with 2 very beautiful girls. Something seemed just off. I think maybe the song was too fast and so they didn’t have a chance to complete all the various moves. Of course, maybe I’m just not as familiar with Bollywood and so I needed more time to enjoy the moves.

Sean Robinson (Australian Tap Dancer) – What the heck was he wearing? The problem with tap dancing is that we’ve all seen tap dancing. In fact, most of us have even seen some great tap dancers. Unfortunately, he’s probably not even as good as those other tap dancers we’ve seen.

Bei Zheng (China Ribbon Dance) – Much better than I thought it would be. I guess I was just a little disappointed, because ribbon dancing is much cooler when there’s a whole crowd of people doing a ribbon dance in well synchronized patterns. Bei did represent China well.

Gumboot (South Africa Group Dance) – Definitely not the most impressive dancing I’ve ever seen, but I enjoyed watching it thoroughly and couldn’t stop watching. I think the fact that it was pretty unique made it fun to watch and very entertaining.

Contemporary Dancers (Australia Group Dance) – Some interesting material. I don’t know why, but I just couldn’t get over the knee pads. Why have those annoying looking black knee pads. Just looked odd and annoying. A bunch of really great dancers on the floor. Would have just liked to see a little better choreography.

Damien O’Kane (Ireland Solo) – Pretty good. I much prefer Irish step dance in a large group. Also, I would have preferred seeing a girl do the solo, but that might just be because I’m male. I’m surprised the judges scored him so high. Didn’t deserve that high of a score.

Sduduzo Ka-Mbili (South Africa Solo) – A zulu dance? I like the name of the dance. The guy was very flexible. However, it just felt like an odd mix of cheerleading, contemporary and the lawnmower move some high school students might do. A lot of energy coming out of that man.

Georgia Ambarian & Eric Luna (US Duet) – Some absolutely jaw dropping lifts. I once saw the US Amateur Cabaret Championships and it was one of the most thrilling performances I’d ever seen. This wasn’t quite up to that level, but still should have been scored higher than they were scored. 7, really?

Miriam Larici & Leonardo Barrionuevo (Argentina Duet) – Honestly, is this the best Argentinean Tango they could find? Maybe I’m just used to the US version (if that exists), but I was rather disappointed with what can really be an incredibly sexy and wonderful dance to watch. I will admit that the section at the end where they were doing all sorts of quick kicks was pretty nice, but otherwise it felt really flat.

Julia Bantner (Russia Solo) – Seemed like a very russian style, a russian song and a russian look. I enjoyed her dancing a lot and wish that all of the dances would have been as good as hers. Too bad the judges didn’t like it at all. I’d love to hear why the judges scored what they did.

Amrapali Ambegaokar (India Solo) – Incredibly impressive. Could be my favorite dance of the night. A great display of dance from India and an even better example of the types of dances that should have been brought to the show. The bells around her ankles made the spins even more interesting and fun to watch.

Shaolin Monks (China Group) – A stunning performance and a great way to end the show. Some people might say Kung Fu wasn’t dancing, but it was indeed great dancing. All of it except for the little spear stunt at the end. I enjoyed it thoroughly and they certainly deserved the high score they got. The kids were really fun to watch too.

Check out the final Master Scoreboard for each country (not that they really mean anything):
Argentina 123
Ireland 123
China 117
Australia 114
Russia 114
United States 114
India 113
South Africa 112

Hosts
Michael Flately should stick to dancing and stop the judging. He just added nothing to the show. Susie Castillo was surprisingly good. The biggest problem for her is that there wasn’t any rhyme or reason to when we’d see her and when we wouldn’t. I hated that they didn’t have continuity in that regard.

Judges
Honestly, what’s the point in showing the judges. They pretty much say nothing. If they aren’t saying anything, then showing them revealing the scores is incredibly boring TV.

Also, Did China know how to speak English? maybe that’s why he only ever gave a score of 8. It’s the only score he knew how to say. Sad, because there are so many Chinese that speak English better than most Americans. Ok, so he scored a few other things, but it was just embarrassing.

See you tomorrow night. Let’s hope it’s a little better than tonight. It wasn’t horrible tonight, but I expected more from Nigel.

ARGENTINA
Sandar serves as coach for team Argentina.
The judge for team Argentina is Maria Pogee.
cabaret artiste soloist
Carolina Sarasola – contemporary Tango dancer soloist
Miriam Larici & Leonardo Barrionuevo – Argentinian Tango duo
group performing Gaucho style dance in which the Gaucho’s use their bolas’ to produce intricate rhythms

AUSTRALIA
Jason Gilkison serves as coach for team Australia.
The judge for team Australia is Kelley Abbey.
Sean Robinson – tap dance soloist
contemporary dancer soloist
Latin ballroom duo
group performing contemporary dance

CHINA
Matthew Ahmet of Britain serves as Coach for team China.
The Judge for team China is Master Haiyang Wang.
traditional Chinese ribbon dancer soloist
double whip soloist
acrobatic ballet duo
The Shaolin Monks Kung Fu group “Shaolin: Wheel of Life”

IRELAND
Marie Duffy Pask serves as Coach for team Ireland.
The judge for team Ireland is Daire Nolan.
Damien O’Kane – Solo Step Dance
Irish Step Dancers. This team is assembled from different groups currently performing all over the globe.

INDIA
Nakul Dev Mahajan serves as coach for team India.
The judge for team India is Shirish Dayal.
Amrapali Ambegaokar – Bharantanyam dancer soloist
Kathak soloist
Nishi Munshi & Sangita Sanyal – Bollywood duo
group performing Bhangra

RUSSIA
Stanislav Issaev serves as coach for team Russia.
The judge for team Russia is Mikhail Smirnov.
ballet dancer soloist from the world famous Bolshoi Ballet
Julia Bantner – contemporary dancer soloist from the world famous Bolshoi Ballet
Anya Garnis and Pasha Kovalev – ballroom duo
group performing Cossak

SOUTH AFRICA
Tandi Bhengu serves as coach for team South Africa.
The judge for team South Africa is Harold Van Buuren.
hip/hop dance soloist
Sduduzo Ka-Mbili – Afrofusion dance soloist
World Champion jive-inspired dance duo
Group performing Gumboot, a style of dance that was born in the gold mines of South Africa

UNITED STATES
Marguerite Derricks serves as coach for team USA.
The judge for team USA is Tony Selznick.
Robert Muraine – popping dancer soloist
tap dancer soloist
Eric Luna and Georgia Ambarian – World Champion cabaret style ballroom duo
group performing hip hop

In about an hour I’ll be sitting down to enjoy the premier of Superstars of Dance. I really can’t wait to see what Nigel Lythgoe has planned since leaving American Idol. The previews have looked amazing and I love the work that Nigel Lythgoe has done on So You Think You Can Dance, so I’m excited to see what he’s going to do with the broadening of what we consider dance.

Check out this video of the Superstars of Dance hosts, Michael Flatley and Susie Castillo, and Executive Producer Nigel Lythgoe explains a little bit more about what I’ll see on Superstars of Dance.

I love the idea that there’s really 4 competitions going on at once. Basically Superstars of Dance brings together dancers from 8 countries each doing a solo, duet, and group dance. Each category of dance competes against each other and then each country competes against each other in the overall score.

Let’s hope that Nigel does a good job covering the scores of the various dancers. Otherwise, following 4 competitions will just be confusing and not very good television.

Here’s a nice set of video interviews with the various Superstars of Dance contestants:

As always, I’ll be doing my best to compile a list of the various music used on Superstars of Dance. I have a feeling that it will be difficult to compile, but I’ll do the best I can. If you’re from one of the 8 countries and know the music from your country that was used on Superstars of Dance, then let me know and I’ll add it to my Superstars of Dance music.

It’s finally official that “Celebrity Apprentice 2″ will hold it’s premiere on March 1st. They’ve also announced that they’ll be having 2 hour episodes of the show similar to what NBC was doing with Biggest Loser. Seems like a good strategy to get the most bang for their buck.

The official cast list of Celebrity Apprentice 2 hasn’t been released by NBC, but here’s what’s been leaked:
Country singer Clint Black
Comedian Tom Green
Monster Garage star Jesse James
Professional poker player Annie Duke
Deal or No Deal briefcase model Claudia Jordan
Comedian Andrew Dice Clay
TLC member “T-Boz” Watkins
Retired NFL player Herschel Walker
R&B singer Brian McKnight
LPGA golfer Natalie Gulbis
Figure skater Scott Hamilton
Reality TV star Khloe Kardashian
Comedian Joan Rivers
Joan River’s daughter Melissa Rivers
Playmate and “Surreal Life” star Brande Roderick
Former NBA player Dennis Rodman

Of all the people on the list, I’m most looking forward to Dennis Rodman on the show. If he doesn’t hook up with the model, the playmate or Khloe Kardashian I’ll be really surprised. However, regardless he’ll offer some interesting television.

The following is the Tuesday fall lineup for the major networks: ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox and NBC.

ABC
America’s Funniest Home Videos 7 pm – 8 pm
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition 8 pm – 9 pm
Desperate Housewives 9 pm – 10 pm
Brothers & Sisters 10pm – 11pm

CBS
60 Minutes 7 pm – 8 pm
Amazing Race 8 pm – 9 pm
Cold Case 9 pm – 10 pm
The Unit 10pm – 11pm

The CW
In Harm’s Way New 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm
Surviving Suburbia 7:30 pm – 8 pm
Valentine 8 pm – 9 pm
Easy Money 9 pm – 10 pm
Local 10pm – 11pm

FOX
The OT 7 pm – 8 pm
The Simpsons 8 pm – 8:30 pm
King of the Hill 8:30 pm – 9 pm
Family Guy 9 pm – 9:30 pm
American Dad 9:30 pm – 10 pm
Local 10pm – 11pm

NBC
Football Night in America 7 pm – 8:30 pm
NBC Sunday Night Football 8:30pm – 11pm

Check out the entire Fall 2008 lineup on ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox and NBC. Also, you might want to check out the Fall 2008 Season Premier dates and times.

The following is the Tuesday fall lineup for the major networks: ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox and NBC.

ABC’s Saturday Fall Lineup
Saturday Night College Football 8 pm – 11 pm

CBS’s Saturday Fall Lineup
Crimetime Saturday 8 pm – 9 pm
Crimetime Saturday 9 pm – 10 pm
48 Hours Mystery 10pm – 11pm

The CW’s Saturday Fall Lineup
Local 8 pm – 11 pm 10pm – 11pm

FOX’s Saturday Fall Lineup
Cops 8 pm – 9 pm
America’s Most Wanted 9 pm – 10 pm
Local 10pm – 11pm

NBC’s Saturday Fall Lineup
Dateline NBC 8 pm – 9 pm
Knight Rider (repeats) 9 pm – 10 pm
Law & Order: SVU (repeats) 10pm – 11pm

Check out the entire Fall 2008 lineup on ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox and NBC. Also, you might want to check out the Fall 2008 Season Premier dates and times.

The following is the Tuesday fall lineup for the major networks: ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox and NBC.

ABC’s Friday Fall Lineup
Wife Swap 8 pm – 9 pm
Supernanny 9 pm – 10 pm
20/20 10pm – 11pm

CBS’s Friday Fall Lineup
Ghost Whisperer 8 pm – 9 pm
The Ex List 9 pm – 10 pm
Numbers 10pm – 11pm

The CW’s Friday Fall Lineup
Everybody Hates Chris 8 pm – 8:30 pm
The Game 8:30 pm – 9 pm
Top Model (repeats) 9 pm – 10 pm
Local 10pm – 11pm

FOX’s Friday Fall Lineup
Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? 8 pm – 9 pm
Don’t Forget the Lyrics! 9 pm – 10 pm
Local 10pm – 11pm

NBC’s Friday Fall Lineup
Crusoe 8 pm – 9 pm
Deal or No Deal 9 pm – 10 pm
Life 10pm – 11pm

NOTE: NBC’s Crusoe has two-hour premiere Oct. 17

Check out the entire Fall 2008 lineup on ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox and NBC. Also, you might want to check out the Fall 2008 Season Premier dates and times.

The following is the Tuesday fall lineup for the major networks: ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox and NBC.

ABC’s Thursday Fall Lineup
Ugly Betty 8 pm – 9 pm
Grey’s Anatomy 9 pm – 10 pm
Life on Mars 10pm – 11pm

CBS’s Thursday Fall Lineup
Survivor: Gabon 8 pm – 9 pm
CSI 9 pm – 10 pm
Eleventh Hour 10pm – 11pm

The CW’s Thursday Fall Lineup
Smallville 8 pm – 9 pm
Supernatural 9 pm – 10 pm
Local 10pm – 11pm

FOX’s Thursday Fall Lineup
The Moment of Truth 8 pm – 9 pm
Kitchen Nightmares 9 pm – 10 pm
Local 10pm – 11pm

NBC’s Thursday Fall Lineup
My Name Is Earl 8 pm – 8:30 pm
Kath & Kim 8:30 pm – 9 pm
The Office 9 pm – 9:30 pm
SNL Weekend Update Thur. / 30 Rock 9:30 pm – 10 pm
ER 10pm – 11pm

NOTES: NBC’s Earl and The Office have hour premieres Sept. 25; 30 Rock returns Oct. 30

Check out the entire Fall 2008 lineup on ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox and NBC. Also, you might want to check out the Fall 2008 Season Premier dates and times.

The following is the Wednesday fall lineup for the major networks: ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox and NBC.

ABC’s Wednesday Fall lineup
Pushing Daisies 8 pm – 9 pm
Private Practice 9 pm – 10 pm
Dirty Sexy Money 10pm – 11pm

CBS’s Wednesday Fall lineup
Old Christine 8 pm – 8:30 pm
Gary Unmarried 8:30 pm – 9 pm
Criminal Minds 9 pm – 10 pm
CSI: NY 10pm – 11pm

The CW’s Wednesday Fall lineup
America’s Next Top Model 8 pm – 9 pm
Stylista 9 pm – 10 pm
Local 10pm – 11pm

FOX’s Wednesday Fall lineup
Bones 8 pm – 9 pm
‘Til Death 9 pm – 9:30 pm
Do Not Disturb 9:30 pm – 10 pm
Local 10pm – 11pm

NBC’s Wednesday Fall lineup
Knight Rider 8 pm – 9 pm
Deal or No Deal 9 pm – 10 pm
Lipstick Jungle 10pm – 11pm

NOTE: Fox’s Bones has two-hour premiere Sept. 3

Check out the entire Fall 2008 lineup on ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox and NBC. Also, you might want to check out the Fall 2008 Season Premier dates and times.