'At this moment in time Emmaought to be better than she is'

Darren really went up in my estimation tonight when he said this. It shows that they aren't being complacent and smug just because they are getting high scores.

They certainly aren't my favourite couple but I think they are getting a lot of unwaranted critism recently.

If you want to blame anyone for the favourtism BLAME THE JUDGES! it certainly isn't Emma and Darren's fault...

Thank you for that. I personally do like them as a couple, but it is nice to see that people who do not like them especially are being fair minded about the criticism they are getting.

I too thought Darren was very honest about their standard. I have never found him to be complacent, and it is a shame if this is how he has been portrayed. I just hope people give them a fair chance to do well, regardless of whether or not they are their own favourites.

I wasn't sure whether he meant her dancing in general or just their preparation for Saturday - any ideas

Yes thanks Jocko Homo! Thanks for your honesty, its good that even though they are not your favorite couple you are able to see positive things and not just want to bring them down!

Darren Bennett is one of the most genuine people out there. He is not smug or arrogant in the least, which is very unusual for a male pro on SCD with a good partner!

Darren was being slightlysmug on their vt's!! saying he had the best partner!! and shes favorite!
and todays on itt that she should be better than she is at this stage, as we have been top in all of the dances!!

I think he meant generally, he did say at this stage of the competition. I am really pleased that some people are prepared to give them a fair chance, even if they are not their favourite couple. It does seem on some threads as if noone will be fair to them except their own supporters, and this is obviously not the case. I do like them and their dance routines, but I hope I would be fair to any couple who were trying their best to produce a good routine and good entertainment. I think it was very honest of Darren to say they should be better, rather than saying everything was going brilliantly.

But sorry musicangel, I don't understand the point you were making.
Last edited by Dancingles : 01-11-2006 at 19:38

Thank you so very much, I love them as a couple I think they are fantastic, I think they have received a lot of unnecessary criticism I don’t think its been fair how Darren or Emma has been portrayed on here as I know Darren is a genuine down to earth person from my experience of meeting him. Darren was honest tonight and I have never found him to be complacent at all. They are working just as hard as everyone else and proved tonight that they can improve.

My point is he started scd! as he thought it was in the bag to win with the spice girl as the partner!! and allthough he has craigs attention with emma! she really isnt that good! and he nowknows it!

By the VTs, do you mean the clips that were shown on the first live show? Because that came across as quite tongue-in-cheek to me... all the male pros said similar things, all basically saying they were going to win. I'm fairly sure they were directed to.

They're not my favourite couple, although I do like them. But I don't think Darren is smug at all.

Sorry, what do you mean he started SCD?

When they all started scd on oct 7th

I do really like Darren and think he's a great teacher and choreographer. I adored the Jill and Darren Partnership.

But Emma and Darren just doesn't excite me and I just think there are better people in the competition.

I do think he was chuffed when he realised who he had, after having a very short run with Gloria last year, but now he's realised how high the standard is I'm sure he isn't being complacent in the slightest.

It's sad that just because the judges have completly lost there heads it could mean that a very good dancer could well be going next week.

I don't think a single one of the pors didn't say something alone the lines of "I want to win", and most of them also had something very positive to say about the potential of their partner. I think accusing Darren of being smug or complacent is a little ridiculous. ALL these guys (the pros) want to do well, and all of them are working hard.

edit:


Well said.

I like Darren too, though he and Emma are not my favourite coupling this year.

I think most would suffer when compared with Jill Halfpenny!
Last edited by sarah-flute : 01-11-2006 at 19:51

I really don't believe for a second that was entirely his own choice of words, besides even if they where, what did you want him to say?? "We have no hope at all, actually I don't even want to win!" ??

Thank you! At last!

Finally

Darren is a highly experienced teacher so he would not assume anything until they had had a trial run through! I don't think he thought it was in the bag at all. He has done enough series to know that the best dancer initially does not always win! last year was a case in point, and as it was his wife that won, I am sure he is well aware that other factors come into play. I don't know whether or not you dance, but as a dance teacher Emma is actually quite good, she has natural rhythm and feeling for music and is a great performer. Those factors alone would give her every chance to do well. Her arms and posture are also very good. I would be very happy to have someone to teach with those abilities. I would think that Darren is more than happy with Emmas ability and is probably a bit frustrated about their lack of rehearsal time of late, and that is why he feels they should be better. Like most professional dancers he is probably a perfectionist too.

Just as an aside it really isn't necessary to refer to Emmas as "the spice girl", she hasn't been that for years!!

Yes! I'm sooo pleased a non Emma fan has posted this. I especially agre with the last part fo that. Emma can and will improve! Just wait and see!

could not have put it better myself and i totally agree yes the judges have their favourites and it certainly isnt the pros or celebs fault darren and emma are just doing what they are supposed to be doing emma learning the dances to the best of her ability and darren teaching them

they are getting an increasing amount of critisim from all angles and it is not justifend and totally unnecessary

I agree with the OP. Unfortunately there are some people who are always going to dislike Emma merely because she was a Spice Girl. I doubt that any of them actually know her personally and yet they make statements about how she must feel and how she must be reacting without any evidence to back it up. The preconceptions some people have of her are clouding their ability to be on judgemental and they are therefore seeing and hearing eveything as evidence that she (and/or Darren) are smug/complacent/etc etc etc etc ... It's a sad indictment of a society where we prejudge people we do not know and have never met without giving them any chance to redeem themselves (because even that would be seen as some kind of 'desperate measure' or something). As an attitude it stinks and I won't be any part of it. I don't join in threads about people I have no interest in (as some others have done, merely to needlessly criticise) because I was taught that unless you have something nice to say about someone, say nothing at all.

That might sound slightly naieve but I prefer being naieve and polite and well-mannered to criticising needlessly (yes some criticism is deserved - I do believe Emma and Darren have been overmarked by the judges and I think it will ultimately hurt their chances for survival in this series; plus they're only *one* of my favourite couples. Actually, I love Mark and Karen, Carol and Matthew and Ray and Camilla and I have a very soft spot for Jan and Anton - but to carp on and on about them or about Emma and her motivations for doing SCD and the fact that she used to be a Spice Girl to me smacks more of envy or, on occasion, sheer nastiness. And I know that my comments are going to be controversial and probably engender a response from people but hey - if the cap fits, then wear it!).

I'm off to more mellow climes - I hate all this arguing and the direction that the SCD forum has taken of late.

When Darren said she should be better than she is I think he was refering specifically to the v waltz.

That's interesting. I would have said, because he said "at this stage in the competition" we should be better, I thought it fairly obvious he meant overall. Why did you think he specifically meant for the viennese waltz??

For what it's worth I think there's a strong element of that. There are certain people who seem to think that part of supporting their favourites is putting down, belittling and general being a pig about anyone who is doing better than their chosen couple. Sad at it is, that seems to be natural for some - they see the others as 'the enemy', basically don't like them because they might win and so have to make up other reasons in order to justify their 'hate'. They are seeing what they want to see rather than what is actually there.

(Hope you don't disappear for good Cally's Mum. It'd be a right shame)

I agree. I've criticised Emma and Darren pretty strongly over the past 2 weeks and for that people probably think I "hate" them both and don't like the Spice Girls, neither of which were true. Darren is one of my favourite professionals (after Ian and Matthew), I think his choreography is amazing and he works hard. It was great to see that he isn't being complacent and is challenging her. I still think that they have been overmarked so far (with the exception of their quickstep, which I really liked) and I still am not a fan of hers, as I feel she has tried to make excuses for bad performances. But fair play to Darren for dedication and great choreography.

THANKYOU

TBH alot of it came from the judges and the press, at no point did Emma or darren believe that they could 'walk' it if you know what I mean, yet every week they get slated. I think the same of Louisa too, except I think that maybe sometimes, they are slightly arrogant, but I don't use it against her