DwtS 3 In-Season Update: 10-30-06

The four couples left on Dancing with the Stars are pretty evenly matched. Who's got the edge?

4. Monique Coleman & Louis van Amstel
Initially, I thought that there was no way Monique could go home this week. As the only female celebrity left, she's bound to get votes from fans who don't want the final two weeks of competition to be a total sausage fest.

But then I looked at the number of views for each of the videos of last week's dances at YouTube. Monique & Louis trail the other remaining couples by a significant margin. That's a good indication that a) their dances weren't memorable enough for viewers to want to watch a second time or share with others, or b) they're not very popular.

The judges haven't helped them either. Of the remaining couples, Monique & Louis were the only pair not to earn a single 10 last week.

Monique & Louis spent last week in the Bottom Two. Heading into this week's competition, they're the most vulnerable team left.

3. Joey Lawrence & Edyta Sliwinska
Joey's been on an upswing since that body language interpreter told him to stop compulsively licking his lips. Last week, he & Edyta tied with Emmitt & Cheryl for the highest combined scores for their two dances. Also, videos of Joey & Edyta's dances have been viewed virtually the same number of times as Mario & Karina's.

Joey's closing in on Mario's role as the viewers' favorite child-star-turned-hunk. He's not there yet, but he should survive this week.

2. Mario Lopez & Karina Smirnoff
The king of the mountain has been supplanted, and this may just be the beginning of the fall. Last week, Mario & Karina's two dances scored a total of one point less than those of Joey & Edyta and Emmitt & Cheryl. That's not a statistically significant margin, but it is evidence that Mario is beatable, even on a good night.

During their last few routines, Mario has seemed to fade into the background, as Karina has assumed the spotlight. Their dancing is still great, and they won't go home this week. But they'd better put the focus back on Mario's dancing skills, if they want to secure a spot in the finale.

1. Emmitt Smith & Cheryl Burke
They're scoring 10s from the judges, and their videos are by far the most popular at YouTube. Unless the wheels fall off, Emmitt & Cheryl are a lock for the finale. It's too soon to say if they'll win, but that outcome is looking more likely with each performance.

Other DwtS News:
Information on the Dancing with the Stars Tour is available at ABC's website. Tickets for most tour dates go on sale Saturday, November 4.

As we get closer to the November 15 finale, the oddsmakers still have Mario Lopez as the favorite to win. He was the preseason favorite, as well.

Emmitt Smith has vowed to take over duties as the show's resident jester, now that Jerry Springer's gone. "It's been a blessing to be around the man and have the chance to get to know him on a personal basis," Emmitt said.