If Matthew Wolfenden was in it..
Drifter
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How do you think he would have fit into this series?
While he probably couldn't come back or didn't want to, I definitely find him to be a glaring omission in terms of quality skaters. He won his series and was I'd say in the top half of all winners in terms of ability.
Ray being in a skate off has made things uncertain for him, but I'd say he's still likely to triumph on Sunday, as he should, unless the Beth vote prevails to the end. Ray has eaten up most of Kyran and Sam's votes. In Kyran's case, he just wasn't as good as you'd expect given his continued training. He was cumbersome and top heavy and this did him in compared to the others. Sam was good, he improved, but I don't think he had the likeability factor and you could generally take or leave his performances. Ray has been the only male worth voting for.
Matthew would have been the bigger challenge to Ray I think. He was unlucky to be in a series where no one was given good routines but what he did do was impressive and he could have given Ray more of a run for his money. Would he be AS good? Perhaps not, but he wouldn't be far off and, crucially, he was distinctly likeable and would have the Emmerdale vote. This could have changed things a lot, and I think we could have seen the back of Kyran and Sam sooner than we did had he appeared.
Had it been a Hayley/Ray/Matthew/Beth final 4 I don't think anyone could know the outcome, whereas we all knew Sam was going home in reality. There's a very very good chance Matthew could have won it.
While he probably couldn't come back or didn't want to, I definitely find him to be a glaring omission in terms of quality skaters. He won his series and was I'd say in the top half of all winners in terms of ability.
Ray being in a skate off has made things uncertain for him, but I'd say he's still likely to triumph on Sunday, as he should, unless the Beth vote prevails to the end. Ray has eaten up most of Kyran and Sam's votes. In Kyran's case, he just wasn't as good as you'd expect given his continued training. He was cumbersome and top heavy and this did him in compared to the others. Sam was good, he improved, but I don't think he had the likeability factor and you could generally take or leave his performances. Ray has been the only male worth voting for.
Matthew would have been the bigger challenge to Ray I think. He was unlucky to be in a series where no one was given good routines but what he did do was impressive and he could have given Ray more of a run for his money. Would he be AS good? Perhaps not, but he wouldn't be far off and, crucially, he was distinctly likeable and would have the Emmerdale vote. This could have changed things a lot, and I think we could have seen the back of Kyran and Sam sooner than we did had he appeared.
Had it been a Hayley/Ray/Matthew/Beth final 4 I don't think anyone could know the outcome, whereas we all knew Sam was going home in reality. There's a very very good chance Matthew could have won it.
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Doubt it. He was overhyped in his own series. His acting wasn't great and his skating wasn't really any better than Jorgie's. Robin made some pretty incedible claims about him being the best skater yet - which needed to be tested this series. That was the series though when Robin started pushing male skaters who could do some of what he used to do, and ignoring everyone else.
Mathew W would, however, have tested the Emmerdale vote - which may be very decisive in DOI - given the numbers of successes from that show and its similar time slots. Its entirely possible a lot of an ITV audience just vote for someone they know every year. If there had been two Emmerdale characters in this series splitting that vote the results and finalists might have been different.
Ray's biggest potential competition on merit was almost certainly someone who could do most of what he could do in the dancing and acting stakes - while doing bigger tricks and lifts than he could. That was probably Chris, and whichever of the females did it best. Mathew didn't match Ray on dance or acting, or memorable numbers or tricks, Chris could do bigger tricks and lifts but didn't turn up, and the females who posed the biggest threat didn't make the semi final.
Sam was bottom of the leaderboard and had faced a vote problem all series, but I don't think Matthew would have had that meaning, assuming he was also bottom, he could have beaten some of the others in votes. There's also a good chance he wouldn't have been bottom at all and would have put Beth there. I could definitely see him getting more votes than Hayley.
It's a shame we never got to see because he would have been much better to have than Sam.
Of course the judges need to be taken with a pinch of salt, because Chris was the best, then Ray, then Matthew, then the dreadful Matt. But I don't think he was overhyped and could do tricks Ray couldn't, but it will always be an opinion thing.
People are just more likely to support someone they know, especially if they're good. That's why he would have done well. High votes and high on the leaderboard I imagine and would have pushed Sam and Kyran into 3rd and 4th of the males for the judges and the public.
Matthew could do tricks though, and tricks Ray doesn't really do. Ray is the best, for sure, overall, but in terms of doing most of what he could do, even if a bit behind, Matthew absolutely could which Sam and Kyran couldn't.
I was going to mention Chris - but Chris couldn't win his series and the person who beat him went out weeks ago this year. So that doesn't give me the impression his chances would have been good. Of course I also didn't mention him because he was never a realistic returnee this year, whereas Matthew could have been.
Matthew was fantastic, for me he really is not far behind Ray & Chris in terms of talent.
I think he would definitely have taken a chunk of Hayley's ITV soap vote & I actually think he would have stood a good chance of winning. If he was competing as well as Chris we might even have seen an all male final.
I for one am gutted he couldn't get the time off Emmerdale to do the show again this year - he & his leather trousers are missed.
Chris had the "previous experience" problem in his series which, along with improvement and decent routines (including the best flying ever imo) at just the right time for Suzanne carried her past the finish line.
Ironically, I think not winning his series might have worked for Chris. There are a lot of people who still think he "wuz robbed" that year and I think they'd have been out in force. Suzanne never had the momentum (first week apart) this year that she garnered last time whereas I think Chris may well have done. Last time I saw Chris skate, he'd left the rest of the celebs trailing in his wake as regard skills/tricks and had vastly improved his performance. In fact, I think he could have had the competition won week one
You're right about him never being a realistic returnee though of course.
It's such a shame how things turned out with Chris Fountain as it would have been so good to have him return this series. I preferred him to Suzanne and that's a perfect example of how the flying interfered with things as Suzanne was so good with her "Time to Say Goodbye" routine. Seeing Chris against Ray would have been great in terms of emotions and tricks, whilst I loved Chris at the time I always watched him feeling nervous as there was that potential for things to go pear shaped as he didn't quite always have the control and poise of Ray.
Matthew is both a fantastic skater and very popular - he topped the vote comfortably nearly every week in his series.