Aaron Carter leaves Dancing with the Stars -- why doesn't anyone care?

 For a show consistently ranked at the top of TV ratings lists, ABC's Dancing with the Stars isn't making a lot of noise this season.

Former teen idol Aaron Carter left the show Tuesday, clipped out of the competition just before the semi-finals more for his intensely self-absorbed attitude than any lack of dance skill (his crying after ejection was another unfortunate turn for a guy who seemed way too intense from the start).

If dancing were the only hurdle here, moppet celebrity offspring Kelly Osbourne would have taken the long walk. But her transformation into a constantly surprising competitor -- the ultimate chubby duckling-turned-leggy dancing machine -- has won over the show's audience.

And that's where we are now -- Dancing is playing to its base like never before, with a predictable list of four semi-finalists split between the best dancers (singer Mya and model Joanna Krupa) and the audience's sentimental favorites (Osbourne, Donny Osmond).

But unlike the heady early days of this season, when newspapers across the country were debating the merits of letting an indicted former political leader sashay next to a once-indicted football player, the buzz around Dancing is at its lowest ebb, leached away just as the competition has reached its height.

Blame the geniuses who packed the show's biggest cast with its most mediocre lineup of competitors, ensuring the show would be at its most boring just when the biggest audience was paying attention. Those whose corneas survived watching Tom DeLay limp through dances like your drunk uncle also had to endure non-entities such as skateboarder Louis Vito, ultimate fighter Chuck Liddell, celebrity offspring Ashley Hamilton, super-stiff model Kathy Ireland and out-of-it R&B star Macy Gray in an endless parade of awkward movement.

Now that the contest has gotten down to DWTS' central conflict -- ace dancers vs better liked celebs with slightly less ability -- many viewers have moved on. Can a showdown between an Osmond, an Osbourne a Playboy model and a singer really recapture the show's past magic?

Comments

[Levinson-Axelrod]

I'm for Team Mya. Donnie is great as well. It's an entertaining show to say the least. I get sucked up into it... you see the stars progress and notice talent other than what they are known for.

[Ron Mella]

For a show consistently ranked at the top of TV ratings lists, ABC's Dancing with the Stars isn't making a lot of noise this season.

Former teen idol Aaron Carter left the show Tuesday, clipped out of the competition just before the semi-finals more for his intensely self-absorbed attitude than any lack of dance skill (his crying after ejection was another unfortunate turn for a guy who seemed way too intense from the start).

If dancing were the only hurdle here, moppet celebrity offspring Kelly Osbourne would have taken the long walk. But her transformation into a constantly surprising competitor -- the ultimate chubby duckling-turned-leggy dancing machine -- has won over the show's audience.

And that's where we are now -- Dancing is playing to its base like never before, with a predictable list of four semi-finalists split between the best dancers (singer Mya and model Joanna Krupa) and the audience's sentimental favorites (Osbourne, Donny Osmond).

But unlike the heady early days of this season, when newspapers across the country were debating the merits of letting an indicted former political leader sashay next to a once-indicted football player, the buzz around Dancing is at its lowest ebb, leached away just as the competition has reached its height.

Blame the geniuses who packed the show's biggest cast with its most mediocre lineup of competitors, ensuring the show would be at its most boring just when the biggest audience was paying attention. Those whose corneas survived watching Tom DeLay limp through dances like your drunk uncle also had to endure non-entities such as skateboarder Louis Vito, ultimate fighter Chuck Liddell, celebrity offspring Ashley Hamilton, super-stiff model Kathy Ireland and out-of-it R&B star Macy Gray in an endless parade of awkward movement.

Now that the contest has gotten down to DWTS' central conflict -- ace dancers vs better liked celebs with slightly less ability -- many viewers have moved on. Can a showdown between an Osmond, an Osbourne a Playboy model and a singer really recapture the show's past magic?

[John (not my real name, changed to protect the innocent)]

I'll tell you why:

BECAUSE NO ONE CARES ABOUT THIS CRAP. THIS "TV SHOW" IS NOTHING MORE THAN MORE PRIME-TIME DRIVEL THAT NETWORK EXECUTIVES HAVE GREEN-LIGHTED BECAUSE IT'S CHEAP. PERIOD.

Anyone who watches this or any of the other "reality shows" is a moron. Welcome to America.

[Conservative Tom]

never watch this crap. caught some last nite. that host guy w the toupee/no dancing just scary moments/ a carter lame and a puss. this passes for entertainment in the usa. blah puke...

[Super Scribbler]

DWTS viewers don't care about Aaron Carter, because they don't care about any of sweet Lou Pearlman's used boy toys... unless somebody writes another scandalous expose' with more salacious details.

[Steve]

Mya is a doll and sweet too!

[Robin]

They need to get more mainstream celebrities on this show. When the show starts, I usually have never heard of 1/2 of these so-called celebrities. And as it has gone on, I still have never heard of half of who is left. Mya? Joanna? Get some more well-known people on there - Hollywood is full of them.

[Stacey]

There hasn't beeen an exciting cast this year. Helio Castroneves, Giles Marini are hard acts to follow. Ladies
loved them. Tom Daley give me a break.
DWS has been totally boring!

[Robin 'Roblimo' Miller]

I see DWTS this year as "Mya and others." She is simply head and shoulders above the other contestants. And no, I don't say this because she looks a lot like my tres-cute stepdaughter Tina, even though she does. :)