‘Dancing with the Stars 16’ review: Kellie Pickler, Zendaya, and Aly Raisman all shine

“Dancing with the Stars” Monday night paid tribute to the living legend known as Stevie Wonder, but at the same time, we almost wonder if it just paid tribute to the ladies just as much. Kellie, Zendaya, and Aly may be the only three remaining females in the competition, but all three of them are so good that we would not be stunned to see them all chip away at the guys until they remain at the end.

In addition to the solo performances, there were also some group numbers at the very end here that were a little all over the place.

Zendaya & Van Chermkovskiy – Last week, we totally bought the fact that the Disney darling ended up getting the first 10s of the competition. On the flip side, we didn’t really think that this cha-cha really brought anything new to the table, and while entertaining, it didn’t have that “pop.” Nonetheless, it was the same score we saw from last week. Score: 29

Andy Dick & Sharna Burgess – There is the letter of the law, and the letter of the spirit. If we were judging the actor based on the first when it comes to the samba, it was pretty awful. Andy just can’t dance for the life of him, and with D.L. Hughley gone, this really feels like his week to go. However, he is at least very entertaining when he is out there, and we’d actually prefer this over another dull performance from Ingo or Sean. Score. 18

Sean Lowe & Peta Murgatroyd – Seemingly the “Bachelor” star’s goal was to simply samba better than Andy, which is like a football player saying that they want to throw the ball further than a lobster. It’s not that hard. The truth is, though, that Andy was much more entertaining. Save for Sean getting shirtless, what was really that entertaining about this … even if it was a little bit better technically? Score: 21

Aly Raisman & Mark Ballas – Does anyone else potentially see a final three made up of all women on the show? It certainly felt like a possibility after watching this foxtrot. Aly has grown tremendously as a dancer this season, and has turned something that was for her athletic into art. Score: 27

Ingo Rademacher & Kym Johnson – Maybe it is thanks to Ingo’s soap-opera roots, but the man seemed perfectly suited for the intensity of the tango. This was the best dance of the season from him by far. The hold was solid, and he felt like a genuine leading man … which is not something that all of the men can boast right now. Score: 24

Kellie Pickler & Derek Hough – Remember what we said about those three female contenders? Let this be more evidence of the ladies’ dominance this season so far. Kellie completely nailed this routine, and she also managed to earn herself something that is very rare in this competition: a 10 from Len Goodman. Score: 29

Victor Ortiz & Lindsay Arnold – Let’s try to say this in the nicest way we can: Why isn’t Victor a better dancer than this? Is he just uncoordinated, not rehearsing as much, or are he and Lindsay not clicking? It’s strange that so many boxers have struggled at times in the ballroom, but this rumba may end up being the reprieve that gives Andy the chance to survive another week. Score: 18

Jacoby Jones & Karina Smirnoff – This dance was an example of both the potential Jacoby has, and the flaws in his technique. We still think that he could sneak into the top 3 based on popularity and athleticism, but there is no comparison right now to what some of the ladies are doing. Score: 23

The group numbers

Team paso (Ingo, Jacoby, Victor, Zendaya) – This was a mess. Basically, it was Zendaya playing tug-of-war with three shirtless dudes going in different directions. Score: 22

Team samba (Andy, Kellie, Sean, Aly) – We don’t know if this was even remotely a samba, but it was at least very entertaining. Sometimes, you just have to take whatever you can get on this show. Score: 25

Who was your favorite on Monday night’s “Dancing with the Stars” episode? If you want to read some of the latest rumors pertaining to Maksim Chmerkovskiy, be sure to check out the story over a the link here.

Photo: ABC