‘Dancing with the Stars 22’ review: Nyle DiMarco, Doug Flutie, Paige VanSant hit the floor

Dancing with the Stars March 21, 2016

Tonight, “Dancing with the Stars” returned with its season 22 premiere, and of course the show wanted to kick things off with as electric a premiere as possible. We’re meeting the stars, we’re seeing the scores, and to go along with all of this we have the return of Len Goodman for the first time since season 20. What’s not to like?

We’re going to be checking in on this review and updating it with scores, videos, and much more over the course of the night, so be sure to refresh and do so often!

Kim Fields & Sasha Farber – cha cha – “Sax” by Fleur East. Was this a nice change for Kim following the “Real Housewives of Atlanta” reunion show? We have to think that it is. The first performance of the season is never terrible, and this one had its fun little moments.

Kim’s a natural performer, and she and Sasha have nice chemistry. A solid start. Score: 20.

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Paige VanZant & Mark Ballas – fox trot – “Ain’t Got Far To Go” by Jess Glynne. Did this cement Paige as an early favorite? Definitely. As a matter of fact, we’d be willing to wager that Paige would have gotten a higher score from this elegant dance if she was at the end of the show, or she didn’t have the family history of dancers that she does. Score: 21.

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Doug Flutie & Karina Smirnoff – fox trot – “Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond. Did Doug bring some of his charm to the ballroom? We do think he’s charming, but unfortunately he may not have the musicality for this show. He struggled hard in here with the timing, and after this we’re not altogether certain that he will make it through the first few weeks. Score: 15.

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Jodie Sweetin & Keo Motsepe – tango – “Confident” by Demi Lovato. Are we feeling confident now that Jodie is a favorite? She’s got plenty of potential! Keo has to be loving having a partner who has the potential to go far. While there was not necessarily anything in here to blew us away, it was a competent week 1 tango. That plus “Fuller House” should carry the day. Score: 20.

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Geraldo Rivera & Edyta Sliwinska – cha cha – “Treasure” by Bruno Mars. Are we going to treasure this performance for a long time? Yeah, we knew that this was probably going to be a disaster. Geraldo can be fun, but he’s also the oldest guy on the season and this is FAR from what he’s used to doing. A mess and then some. Score: 13.

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Marla Maples & Tony Dovolani – quickstep – “Sparkling Diamonds” from “Moulin Rouge” soundtrack. Did Marla stand out on her own? While of course Donald Trump was mentioned, she shined on her own and actually delivered the most surprising dance of the night so far. Great elegance and performance quality. Score: 21.

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Wanya Morris & Lindsay Arnold – cha cha – “Motownphilly” by Boyz II Men. Was dancing to one of his group’s own songs an asset for Wanya? It seemed to be! We weren’t totally shocked that he could dance, but this was much better than we imagined right out of the gate. Score: 23.

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Ginger Zee & Valentin Chmerkovskiy – jive – “Move” from the musical “Dreamgirls.” Are there sunny skies ahead for Ginger and Val? Okay, this may be our real surprise of the night, since we didn’t expect Ginger to be anywhere close to this good in her first performance given she comes from a different walk of life. Score: 23.

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Mischa Barton & Artem Chigvintsev – tango – “In the Night” by The Weeknd. Did the former “OC” star do California proud with her first routine, and are you surprised that she’s not dancing to the theme song? We really feel for Mischa after this. She’s taking this extremely seriously, and that’s probably her biggest problem since she really just needs to let loose and relax. Score: 16.

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Nyle DiMarco & Peta Murgatroyd – cha cha – “Cake by the Ocean” by DNCE. Did Nyle prove himself to be more than just a great story? As it turns out, the answer here is yes! This was a surprisingly sensational dance, and an inspirational one to boot that makes us think he could go far. Score: 23.

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Antonio Brown & Sharna Burgess – quickstep – “Bad Man” by Pitbull. Did Antonio bring some of his flair to the ballroom? This was interesting since it was probably the biggest disagreement of the night for the judges. Antonio was a little all-over-the-place here, so we do get it. Score: 21.

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Von Miller & Witney Carson – fox trot – “My House” by Flo Rida. Was this a performance worthy of MVP status? It was a nice start for him this season, and a fitting end to what is probably going to be a good competition between the two football stars. Score: 21.

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