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Grace period is over on 'Dancing With the Stars'

Bravo, fans of “Dancing With the Stars”!Viewers voted to advance to this season’s semifinals round the four hopefuls -- J.R. Martinez, Ricki Lake, Hope Solo and Rob Kardashian -- who have shown the most improvement and best moves in the ballroom bash. (Let us not discuss singer Chynna Phillips, who should still be in the competition were it not for the fact that she had one – ONE– subpar
Nancy Grace forgot part of her choregraphy during her instant jive with pro partner Tristan MacManus on Monday.
Nancy Grace forgot part of her choregraphy during her instant jive with pro partner Tristan MacManus on Monday.Adam Taylor / ABC / Today

Bravo, fans of “Dancing With the Stars”!

Viewers voted to advance to this season’s semifinals round the four hopefuls -- J.R. Martinez, Ricki Lake, Hope Solo and Rob Kardashian -- who have shown the most improvement and best moves in the ballroom bash. (Let us not discuss singer Chynna Phillips, who should still be in the competition were it not for the fact that she had one – ONE– subpar dance, while others have had several.)

That, of course, means head judge Len Goodman called it Monday night when he said it was time for HLN host Nancy Grace “to go home.” Not only did she deliver two dances that lacked the sharpness and technique required at this point in the competition, she has landed at or near the bottom of the judges’ leaderboard quite a bit.

Despite having a big fan base, the former prosecutor couldn’t conquer the 7-point gap between her well-deserved last-place finish on Monday and fourth-place contestant Kardashian. Both hopefuls were left standing under the spotlights of shame on Tuesday, but as co-host Brooke Burke Charvet pointed out, Kardashian wasn’t necessarily in the bottom two. (Hmmm. Could soccer star Solo have had the second lowest set of combined judges/viewer scores?)

Prior to her elimination, Grace was shown in backstage clips saying that she loved her tango with pro partner Tristan MacManus, but wished for better scores for both that first effort and her flawed instant jive. (A 20 for the latter was already pretty generous for Week 8, considering she got lost on the choreography numerous times.) “We’ve been down before and not out!” she noted.

Alas, she couldn’t stick around this time, and was gracious in her exit speech. “I am so proud, but I really cannot take the credit,” Grace said of her time on the competition. “It’s been all Tristan from the get-go.”

MacManus, who is a new pro this season, was equally sweet in his farewell, thanking fans for giving the new guy such a great shot. (“Dancing” powers that be, please bring him back next season!)

What do you think of the final four? Should “DWTS” bring Tristan back in the spring? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page!

Also, don't forget to join me and your fellow "Dancing" fans for a live chat during the Monday night performance shows at 8 p.m. ET! And on Tuesdays at 3:30 p.m. ET, join me and my fellow "Dancing" expert Ree Hines to debate who might get the boot that evening.

 

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