3 Reasons Why I'm Shutting Down DWTS Ringer Talk

We are less than a week away from the Season 18 premiere of Dancing With the Stars and the ringer talk has begun. My Twitter feed exploded with questions after PureDWTS wrote an insightful article about Danica McKellar's past ballroom experience. They took the time to dig up extensive evidence of her training where she looks good out on that dance floor. Danica is also seen in her latest ABC video acting a little naive when it comes to being led around the ballroom.

Remember, we are in Season 18 of the show and even Conrad Green, producer of DWTS, has admitted it's harder to cast the show at this point. So fair or not regarding Danica's very specific ballroom training, I go back to these three reasons why I'm just shutting down the ringer talk.

1. It's Exhausting: We've discussed it ad nauseum some seasons on AfterBuzz TV.  I think we wind up talking circles around the topic and we get nowhere. If you look back at Season 16 and the whole Zendaya debate, the argument reached a fever pitch with everyone taking sides. In the end, Zendaya didn't win.

2. It's a TV show: ABC is trying to deliver an entertaining show each week. They bring on celebrities with many different levels of dance training to draw an audience. Last season, we had a mix of trained dancers like Corbin Bleu, natural movers like Jack Osbourne and Amber Riley and lovable personalities like Bill Engvall in the Final Four. Again, the best-trained dancer did not win.

3. It Comes Down to that Freestyle Dance: When it comes to final votes for the average audience member, they vote on the Freestyle Dance. The best dancer may have worked hard all season and been at the top of the leaderboard most weeks, but if that Freestyle Dance doesn't deliver…they don't go home with the Mirror Ball Trophy.

I know you won't all agree with me on this, so help me see the flip side of the coin. Feel free to comment below. I will respond to all comments here, but I won't be able to respond to comments on Twitter. There are so many of you on Twitter and it's impossible to do without annoying my other followers who aren't DWTS fans. As always, please be respectful of others and their opinions. Thanks!

AfterBuzz TV DWTS: Julz Tocker

Hello, Everyone! It was so great to be back in studio with the entire DWTS AfterBuzz TV team. I missed them and I missed you.

I see your comments coming in, so I want to clarify a few things so they make sense to you.

--Sean Cheesman/Derek Hough choreography: I was in NO way implying Derek copied Sean. There are a ton of differences to the routine. The beginning table work reminded me of Sean's choreography, but you can clearly see the the direction each choreographer took. Watch Sean's routine here.

--Debbie Allen: Were you just as shocked as I was to learn about Corbin's dance experience with Debbie Allen? Ms. Allen's school is legendary for producing quality dancers, so I know it shouldn't surprise me…but…wow! It explains a lot about this season.

--Predictions:  We made predictions for next week's possible winner, but as I like to say, "it ain't over until that freestyle hits the floor." I'm expecting top level choreography from Karina and Derek, so it should be a great night of dance. If fans are voting for the best dancer, Corbin or Amber will be the winners. If fans rally around their favorite dancer based on story, Jack or Bill could have a serious shot. (Although I think the judges' scores will not allow this scenario to happen, but we know stranger things have happened.)

--Victor Ortiz: If you missed his appearance last season, you can watch how he mauled the pillows on the AfterBuzz couch during the interview. The chat room fans call it the "Victor Ortiz couch."

We loved having Julz Tocker back in studio. His energy and insight always bring so much to the table. It was really appreciated!

If you missed the show, you can listen here or watch below: