Jake Wood is one of the most natural actors I've seen. He makes it looks so effortless that it's not even like he's acting.

I don't think the characterisation is the problem. I think he's now thinking very clinically about the dances since he realised he had a chance at winning. Due to this, he just doesn't look natural when he's doing them. He's talking about the technicality of the dances and how he learnt them and he is now looking like someone who has read a book about the various dances and is trying to remember it rather than feeling this.

As he is such a good actor, this isn't really affecting the performance but it is affecting the way he moves as his last two dances have just looked clinical and stiff. Janette has slacked off with the choreography too, she seems to be riding off the crest of their first couple of dances and is not challenging him, thinking that simply knowing the basic steps will be enough to get him through.

He could be in trouble soon as Judy is the only no-hoper left. Providing none of them face each other in the dance-off, I think we can be pretty sure that Caroline, Pixie and Frankie will make the final. If that's the case, we will be down to one male out of Jake, Steve, Mark and Simon. They are all overtaking Jake and I would put Mark ahead as favourite at the moment unless Jake ups his game soon.

The only hope for more than one man in the final is if Caroline, Pixie or Frankie end up head to head in the dance off so it will be interesting to see what happens.

I was disappointed in their dance, it looked to me that there could have been a lot more choreography, It was mainly all Janette swirling about him. It looks like Jake is very keen to learn more and he is very fit so hopeful Janette ups her game this week. Eastenders bosses said a few weeks ago that they have cut his workload back to help him on Strictly, that along with being close to the studio surely means he has plenty of time for training.

Just an aside, I thought that the band and singer seemed rather subdued in their rendition of Strangers in the Night. I know trying to emulate the original is a big ask, but it seemed a bit insipid. Maybe it's because I love the original so much though!
It is disappointing though about Jake. He is still my favourite male celeb and I had high hopes for him not only reaching the final but even winning. He needs another showstopper.

Exactly this ^^^^^^^^. He doesn't seem to have any passion in him. I don't expect great gushings of false emotion but he does come over as drab and flat.
I feels exactly the same way about his acting.... It's all the same theme, mean, moody, angry with no light and shade.

He can only play the role he is given.In his Salsa he was given a fun exuberant character,and pulled it off fantastically.His body of work prior to Eastenders also proves this point.

His Salsa and Quickstep were not mean and moody and neither was his rock and roll jive. So that's 3 out of 7 dances. Unfortunately, he hasn't had an upbeat dance since then but hopefully this week he will get something lighter.

I personally think he must have an amazing fan base backing to have survived such a poor score and not be in the dance off. I think in the world outside this forum, he is very much the favourite celeb male.

Non-Scottish Nationalist Eastenders fans?

Probably keeping a low profile after that dreadful version of Defying Gravity last week. But it is difficult to follow Frank.

I like Janette, but I think the rumba routine was dull. With clever choreography and a gorgeous song, a little can be made to go a long way, as Ben and Kristina showed in their rumba last year:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4HA34kYRnc

I love Jake, but if I'd never seen that salsa (and to a lesser extent that jive) I doubt I'd be such a big fan. Without those two dances, he's more of a Simon Webbe- good but sometimes dull,

Colin Jackson
Matt Di Angelo
Chris Hollins did a surprisingly good rumba seeing as he did his in week 2 I believe

cant think of any more

I think that Steve rivals him in terms of fanbase . Dodgy scores, middle of the table for weeks, death slots.....and he still survived weeks after weeks ...

Anyways, going back to this thread it will be interesting to see if Jake can make a comeback this week

Yes he appears to be going backwards rapidly................he is now very strictly average and with little personality to show he seems to be becoming rather dull.

Given that Jake has the AS and has said he's looking forward to loads of lifts, I think he's gonna be the Comeback Kid and do an amazing show for us. He struggled these last two weeks, particularly dances where shaping is a prominence, shaping in the Paso and the Rumba are slow and deliberate or held for a time. I'm looking forward to seeing him doing some amazing dancing and having him back towards the top of the leaderboard again.

I used to think Jake was really grumpy, he just didn't seem to want to be there, but he's grown on me, I think he's just a bit awkward being interviewed. He's sort of the opposite of Mark, who is the quintessential bags of chat bags of charm presenter.

I actually like Jake for that. I find Mark a bit too full on. Jake is my favourite male celeb which is based purely on what I've seen of him on Strictly as I don't watch EE. I hope he wows us with a great AS this week.

Jake can make a comeback this week - he seems to be looking forward to the A/S - he had two weeks of difficult dances for the males and suddenly people began to write him off. His dances are the most exciting as his acting skills really shine - ok they are not 'dance school' perfect (but then he isn't a pro) but I find his are the dances/performances I really want to see on Saturday night.

He is a laid back type of person with a strong focus on his craft - he does not come across as gushing or false but real which makes a refreshing change.

Would love to see him lift the glitter ball.

Yes I have high hopes that Jake will be climbing back up the leaderboard this weekend, he,s had two difficult dances that have not suited him but he does seem to be looking forward to the AS, and getting tips from Aljaz has got to be a good thing.

Yes without this sounding harsh he is tbh. To how he was in the first couple of weeks he has a lot. He could be out in couple of weeks

I'm hoping it will be a case of Jake (and Karen) resurgent this Saturday.

(Fingers crossed )

I always liked that Jake was quite a quiet, laid back and modest sort of guy but when he was on ITT last night I couldn't help but feel that he was coming across as more miserable and exhausted.

I admire him for not turning his busy schedule into a running story-line as usually happens with soap actors trying to balance a the demands of their day job with their Strictly training, in fact he's barely mentioned it but his demeanor when he's interviewing and the decreasing quality of his dancing suggest that he's headed for a burn out.

He's performed a couple of average dances of late , as have all the other pros too, but overall he is still a relatively ok dancer (in relation to the offering this year). Simon and Mark seem to have started to bring their performing and technical sides together more often than they used to, so the gap that seemed there between those three I don't think is really there anymore (at least that's our conclusion in my house).

Simon started off seemingly promising, suddenly dipped, but is now perhaps going back up to some point of consistent good dancing.
Mark started off poor to average (is still average in some of my friends eyes), but does seem, imo, to be improving (which granted is easier to see if you started off so averagely originally). In comparison to the better male celebs over the years (like Colin, Ricky and Lewis) we think he still has much to improve before he can be compared on their level, so while he's better, we don't rate him high in strictly overall history standings.
Jake, surprised everyone because we couldn't imagine Max dancing well, but now he's just Jake and the novelty, as we liken it to being at ours, is starting to wear off. As said, still ok, but lost something of late for us atm.

For those of you out there who like to judge a celeb by his/her standard of dancing, from someone who knows: Jake's rumba was terrible.

Hip action just about missing, he kept leaning into his partner, and his footwork - that was diabolical. Nearly every step he took he did so heel first - not toe flat. I was surprised none of the judges picked up on that. But then again, with all that dry ice being blown over the dance floor, it did a lot to hide that bad footwork.

It could be

Based on the clips shown on ITT this week I wouldn't hold my breath. Jake doesn't seem to be able to master graceful and elegant and consequently his travel across the dance floor can seem jagged and a bit like a clockwork toy that hops about.

His blokeish persona and thumbs-up gesture are starting to grate on me whereas once I found them endearing.

Still love him (just) and hope he can pull it off and get back to salsa form because for me this series of Strictly needs energising to wake me up from a Disney-princess / smarmy-Essex-boy stupor

I guess we shall have to wait and see.

He peeked to soon. The others are overtaking him. Also Janet seems to want to show case herself rather than help him IMO