NBC Gets Greased Live: Week 3

This week marked a change of pace for NBC's "Grease:  You're the One that I Want," as producers seemed to have jumbled up the run of things, fixing a few glaring mistakes made last week but dropping the ball overall.  Billed as a duet special in hopes of seeing chemistry between the Danny and Sandy hopefuls, this week's episode played more like a high school chemistry lesson, becoming confusing and horribly forgettable by the time the bell rang.

Continuing the guest judge shtick, it was out with Andrew Lloyd Webber and in with… Jon Secada.  Wow, someone was asleep at the wheel thinking that Secada would add a spark to the evening.  Citing his turn as Danny in the last Broadway revival of Grease, producers might as well have plucked Rosie O'Donnell, who played Rizzo, seeing how she at least has something controversial to say every now and then.  Secada really looked and sounded dead on arrival to the show.  Had he thrown out a Donald Trump comb over jab before throwing to "The Apprentice," he might have earned his keep.

A step in the right direction came as the order of things were mixed up a bit this week, with the vote off coming in at the start of the show.  Juliana Hansen and Jason Celaya brought in the least amount of votes last week, with Kevin Greene and Kathleen Monteleone rounding out the bottom four.  After a bleak run through of "Those Magic Changes," neither Hansen nor Celaya could cast a spell on the judges, getting nixed with little surprise. 

None of the bottom four showed any "leader of the pack" qualities, though Monteleone appears to have the most potential out of the group.  Hansen did hold her head high as she bid goodbye to the competition, avoiding the waterworks of previous rejects.  Though, Celaya turned into a bit of a "stalker Danny," threatening to pop over to David Ian's house to give a bit of a private performance.

Ian did have a slightly sleazy moment of his own though, coining the phrase "Theatrical Viagra" when describing Chad Doreck and Allie Schulz's duet.  As the first performance of the night, these two lovebirds did spark up the stage a bit with "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," with Schulz nabbing the top prize this week as the Sandy to beat.  Doreck gave a worthy performance, but this "Ambitious Danny" does not seem bold enough to swoon playgoers nightly on Broadway.  Though to his credit, three out of four judges recommend him, but that statistic sounds too much like what my toothpaste ranks among dentists, and yet cavities still seem to pop up.

It will be interesting to see if America is able to separate the paired up singers as votes are cast, because no couple together screamed winner tonight, rather the stronger contenders slightly overshadowed their partners. 

Last week's darling, Laura Osnes, was suffocated by "McSteamy Danny" Austin Miller, who was sporting his ruby slippers after his take on the Wiz in the previous round.  Appearances aside, Miller does have the chops for eight nights a week on stage, and continues to prove he can handle at least dancing and singing.  He and Schulz should prove tough competition next week for the remaining teens.

Putting together the two power players from last week, Derek Keeling and Kate Rockwell, might have sounded slightly unfair on paper to the other kiddies, but these two might just be fighting for survival, as there was a slight fall from grace tonight.  Doing "From This Moment On," Osnes sang with a sweet smell of success, but her blank emotional stare throughout the performance did not win over the judges.  And Mr. "Picture-perfect Danny," Keeling, threw out one screechy note after another, proving that looks don't always trump talent.
 
With Max Crumm looking like a goofy kid ogling over the school cheerleader and Kevin Greene pouncing around the stage like an over eager puppy looking for approval, the remaining contestants really need to find a bit of a spark next week.  Afterall, the Big Kahuna, Frankie Avalon, is going to be in the house as the next guest judge.  "Grease" cannot afford another wipeout week, so these Broadway hopefuls need to bring their game faces.

Photos Courtesy of NBC.