RECAP: And DANCING's Mirrorball Goes to...

Ten weeks. Twelve couples. One hundred and twelve dances. Thirteen perfect scores all earned in the last three rounds of the competition. One mirrorball trophy. No matter which star you took as your champion, this finale was bound to be a heartbreaker.

If that wasn't abundantly clear going into last night's two-hour (ugh) finale, then it was by the time the first cut was made. With the spotlight beating down on the four finalists - Kellie, all clean and gorgeous lines; Aly, full of strength and fire; Zendaya, the showstopper; Jacoby, the wild man - I couldn't help but feel cheated that four such talented and diverse dancers were about to be ranked with a harsh finality that would erase their individual climbs and falls from the chopping block to the top of the leader board. After all those weeks of results shows and pegging which star should be the one to go, when it came down to the heart of this season's artistry it wasn't about the mirrorball anymore.

I mean, tell me you didn't feel that sense of dread over one of those stars walking away with nothing but fourth place. No matter whose chance at the instant dance round was snatched away, it was going to feel like total injustice. The fact that it was Aly Raisman, who had accomplished so much in ten weeks and climbed out of her shell, quietly wowing us all while Zendaya and Kellie were showered with praise, left a bittersweet taste in my mouth that never went away.

When everyone's walking away with perfect scores and it's down to viewer voting, it just starts to feel like a popularity contest. It's like the inevitably depressing race for student body president - you know the kid with the most friends and gimmicky speech will win out over the one who really deserves it. That's not to say that any of the stars don't deserve it, of course. It just leaves you wondering what places they might have landed in based on talent alone and whether it would've felt better if there weren't places at all.

Yeah, I know. That defeats the purpose. This is why I don't like reality TV.

After an excruciating hour of useless recaps and encores from stars long-axed, the top three took the floor one last time for the instant dance round. And, shocking absolutely no one, they all earned perfect scores. Jacoby was back to the smooth, rhythmic movement that was absent from his performances last night. Kellie was precise, if not wholly underwhelming energy-wise. Zendaya was a shining star, performing a vibrant and delightful jive.

It seemed from the start of the season that we would always end up here. Kellie, Zendaya, Jacoby. Fan favorites. Fantastic dancers. When Jacoby was situated into an expected third place, the feeling that I'd rather not have just one champion was totally overwhelming. On the one hand, Kellie is a wonder. The way she moves her body is so spectacularly breathtaking, and considering that she had no training prior to the competition it's incredible to see how far she's come. On the other hand, Zendaya has it all. Where Kellie has precision, she has energy and style. Sure, she had some experience coming it, but keeping in mind that she's only 16 years old, it's so hard to write her off for that. They were both so good that watching one of them be handed the trophy inevitably meant being let down that the other one wasn't.

In the end it was Kellie who came out on top, a well-deserved win if not a bit tarnished by knowing that her runner-up deserved it just as much. She more than proved herself worthy of the title throughout the course of the season, her efforts all culminating in the stunning supersize freestyle I watched four times (my parents are big fans) and still couldn't stop raving about. She's got heart, she's got talent and she certainly worked her ass off.

So, congrats to Kellie Pickler, the sixteenth winner of dancing with the stars. Here's hoping next year's crop has half as much talent as she and her competitors.

For highlights from this week's elimination, check out the breakdown below:

The Encore
Well, it had to Kellie and Derek, didn't it? Her repeat performance of the contemporary Masterpiece Derek choreographed was very nearly the first encore that held some of the same magic of its original run. Unfortunately, she slipped up near the end and broke character, and the whole thing was just a bit less moving when it ended in smiles instead of tears.

The Performances
For some reason, DANCING thought it would be a good idea to bring Wynonna back to sing instead of dance. Whatever the reason, they thought wrong. She sang just about as bad as she danced, and didn't even perform one of her own songs. Like, really, is there any demographic interested in hearing her do a mediocre cover of "I Wanna Know What Love Is?"

Pitbull performed his new single, "Echa Pa'lla," which sounds an awful lot like every other song he's ever released and is tailor-made for club-goers who just want to put their hands in the air. I spent more time ogling the background dancers' shoes than I did paying attention to what was actually going, but let's just assume it was a solid but unspectacular performance.

There was a smattering of acts in between, including a cameo from Kristi Yamaguchi, but the first half of the show finished strong with what might have been the best musical performance of the season. Psy took the floor to break it down with his new single "Gentleman," which was awesome enough in itself and totally taken to the next level by guest dancers Andy Dick, Sean Lowe and Victor Ortiz. I mean, come on. What more could you possibly want than to see three super awkward dancers doing Psy's iconically absurd moves?

The Most Valuable Pro
Derek may have taken it home this year, but it would be remiss not to give Val the round of applause he deserves for doing everything he could this season to help Zendaya shine. Week after week, he choreographed routines that kept her in the spotlight despite the fact that he's got his own killer style and moves. He knew what kind of content to include to meet the judges' criteria while still putting together a piece that was interesting and entertaining to watch. No matter what happened, he kept it cool and classy, and tried to keep everyone focused on the positive. He may be going home with fourteen stitches instead of a win, but he certainly did his job this season.

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