Eleven-time boxing champion Oscar De La Hoya is obviously no stranger to competition or fine footwork. But one can assume that he still would not intend to do a jazz-handy tailor dance on ‘Mack the Knife’ … in a two-legged zebra costume. But De La Hoya – also known as the Zebra, as evidenced by Wednesday’s top four semi-finals of The masked dancer – was clearly up to the challenge.
Although De La Hoya was eliminated this week, and therefore briefly missed his chance to pick up the gold at next week’s season finale, he told host Craig Robinson that it was the Zebra on The masked dancer was “probably the best experience I’ve ever had.” And at least he had to do one last dance for his mother (a big Bobby Darin fan), who died of breast cancer before De La Hoya won the gold at the 1992 Summer Olympics. The Zebra really showed its stripes tonight.
While De La Hoya did not enter the competition, one of the other three remaining finalists, the Cotton Candy, is also likely to be a famous Olympic gold medalist. Will she have to finish with silver or bronze The masked dancer, or can she beat the Tulip and Sloth? Let’s guess and judge.
The Cotton Candy
This jock-jam cheer dance, on a medley of Toni Basil’s pom-pom pushing “Mickey” and 2 Unlimited’s stadium stacking “Get Ready”, was like a mini-Super Bowl rest time show. (OK, it was not as brilliant as the Weeknd’s performance in Super Bowl LV or last year’s J.Lo / Shakira spectacle, but it was certainly more entertaining than the recent halftime of Justin Timberlake and Maroon 5.) Girl serves high kicks, throws, standing somersaults and drop-splits. Oh, that was it broken.
The clues: She ‘started on this path at the age of 6’, but constantly traveling, her relationships ‘ignited’. Verbal clues included the words ‘super-girl’, ‘cover-girl’ and ‘boss’, and she has some connection with this week’s guest judge, Blades of Glory star Will Arnett, who once ‘showed her love on The Masked Singer. In the previous clue packages, lips, ice, gold, sports and ‘prayer’ were mentioned.
Judges’ guesses: Tara Lipinski, Simone Biles, Gabby Douglas.
My guess: It’s absolutely the American gold medalist, woman with a big task, Super Bowl commentator and the devout Catholic Tara Lipinski.
The sloth
The sloth did his usual sexy-funny shtick during a samba for Sam Smith’s “Dancing With a Stranger,” and it was ever stranger than usual. He even worked! But as usual, it was great fun, with Judge Ashley Tisdale praising a certain “magic” that made the routine ‘come alive’.
The clues: He described himself as ‘slightly overweight’ and a former ‘ladies’ man who played with ‘incredible leading ladies’ before finding the love of his life through dance. He also mentioned that there are ‘competitive runs in his family’. Other clues refer to Miami, cruise ships, doctors, amber and rose.
Judges’ guesses: Hugh Jackman, Ashton Kutcher, Patrick Dempsey, Matthew Morrison, Max Chmerkovskiy, Val Chmerkovskiy.
My guess: It took me a while to shrink, but I’m finally sure the sloth is Dancing With The Stars for Max Chmerkovskiy. The judging panel’s local expert vibeologist, Paula Abdul, put it bluntly, and Paula’s history in this show was impressive, so it’s almost enough to go on. But the clues (such as the fact that Max’s brother, Val, is also a dancer, that Max is married to a man) DWTS regular Peta Murgatroyd, or that Max collaborated with Amber Rose DWTS) pick up.
The Tulip
The flowers’ perky polka (yes, polka) once again demonstrated her versatility and ability to record any form of choreography. It was a risky choice that could only be made by the Tulip; judge Ken Jeong calls her the “technically most skilled” in the competition, while Arnett praises her “natural ability”. I just wish this routine was set on a Weird Al medley, as the Tulip also featured some comedy chops tonight. (Side note: Tulips are Dutch, so can I suggest a bunch dance for the final next week?)
The clues: She’s the youngest left in the program, but she’s used to it. She competed all her life, but her ‘best friend still took home trophies’. She’s a big fan of K-pop, High School Musical, iced coffee, and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Other clues this season include butterflies, the letter Z, ‘lifelong achievements’, TikTok, Instagram, a ‘Second annual mother-and-daughter dance’, the acronym ‘ALDC’ and the words ‘frozen’ and ‘princess’ .
Judges’ guesses: Mackenzie Ziegler, Noah Cyrus, Dove Cameron, Liza Koshy.
My guesses: OK, this is social media maven Mackenzie Ziegler – star of the Lifetime series In mammas (Abby Lee Dance Company = “ALDC”) and the movie Ice Princess Lily, younger sister and BFF of Maddie Ziegler, and well-known iced coffee and PB&J enthusiast. The Cotton Candy will give Mackenzie a sugary but stiff competition in the grand final, but the Tulip may need to win this season’s Diamond Mask and contribute to the trophy collection.
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