The judges are certainly causing a stir this year with their comments and their marks. Their marks do not always match the comments. I cannot believe 4 people who are obviously well thought of in the dancing world can feel comfortable about making it so obvious which contestants are their favourites even to the point they are ignoring faults. However Zoe and Ian were the judges' favourites last year so it doesn't always work to your advantage.

It's becoming like Fame Academy, where the judges thought Alex and Peter walked on water, and slated all the others!

I dont agree that Zoe and Ian were the judges favourites in the way you mean. They were the best dancers by a long way. Last time there was a mission to create a male winner as there had been two female winners before.

I think the judges marks last time were more consistent with what they were looking at. Not their comments though as they have always been controversial. This time they are out of order and seem to have lost the plot, getting too much focus on themselves and trying to take over the show. The BBC may well have a plan to try to keep certain dancers in if possible but maybe they learned from last time, and maybe not.

Sorry Elizabethjo - but Zoe and Ian weren't the best dancers last year - Colin was!

Zoe was the judges darling and could do no wrong - even when she made mistakes, they were ignored, and that what got up a lot of people's noses.

In fairness she interrupted them once when they were rhapsodising about one of her dances (quickstep) and told them that she had gone (noticeably)wrong with one of the steps but she was brushed aside - I think that was where Erin got pilloried for saying that a 10 wasn't merited.

Her Samba in the final against Colin's Cha cha and Darren's Paso was VERY weak and yet she was put at the top of the listings when she should have been third.

She wasn't bad - but we had her rammed down our throats as "The Best" in the show - which was an insult to the viewers who obviously saw mistakes more clearly than the judges did!

If the judges just shut up and gave the marks - they would do all the competitor's a bigger favour - especially the likes of Emma and Zoe and Jill/ Denise.

All true.

I felt bad for Zoe last year the same way I do for Emma this year. When the judges try to puff you up if you and everyone else knew you didn't deserve it, it practically guarantees a bad reaction from the public.

Zoe bashing again. I can't stand it.

ZZZzzz...

Who's bashing? I felt sorry for her. She was a good dancer and didn't deserve to end up being made a scapegoat for the judges' bias.

wasn't bashing her -

she was good and fully deserved to be in the final - but she wasn't "the best" as the judges kept telling us!

And she even deserved to be 2nd....