TSL/This and That 2016-17

TSLDave · Oct 10, 2016

Last season, we had fun chatting about different episodes of 'That and That.'

Here is the latest episode covering the 2016 Finlandia Trophy and French Masters.

Questions of the week:

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?

2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?

3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?

4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?

5. How many quads is too many?

6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?

7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?

8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?

9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?

10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?

el henry · Oct 10, 2016

Questions of the week:

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?

There may be too many options, but not enough are used. All that Queen, uggh and Sam Smith

and then when it's new that God Awful Music of Adam's LP :noshake:

2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?

Bennet Toman and Andrei Krasnozhon

3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
Don't watch the ladies

4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?

Patrick, although I think Nathan validly won

5. How many quads is too many?
Any that take away from choreo, spins and interpretation are too many

6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?

The best thing that Nathan could do is leave Raf. Don't really care about Marina's ambitions

7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
Get a new SD

8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?

It's better than dyed gray hair

9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?

Mais oui

10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?[/QUOTE]
Kori, although Drew and La are cute

Sugarpova · Oct 11, 2016

what Kori said about Liza

palmf:

) & what the hosts said about Rostelekom in the GP announcement episode made me question if I ever want to watch any of this show ever :laugh:

I'll answer anyway without watching :biggrin:

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?
Lyrics are good if they sound good in the arena (no wailing)

2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?

Parsons & Mishina/Mirzoev, Polina Tsurskaya

3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
Anna Srssly tho - Mao obviously

4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?
Chen

5. How many quads is too many?
that risk a person's health

6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?

Im at a loss why they chose to train there (I do like her)

7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
Get a new SD & FD

8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?
depends on the person's look

9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?
They know what is best for them. Sper wxcited to see both/ considering lots of boring P/C type dances this year

10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?
dont watch so cant say

Marin · Oct 11, 2016

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?

Depends how music sounds in the venue , some can be very pleasant some can totally kill the program, also version of the lyrics is very important, For example when I hear my fav song's M. Buble version I forever rest my case there.

2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?
Jun Hwan Cha, Mishina/Mirzoev, Rika Kihira

3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
WUT?

)) I hope it is just a fun question, everyone knows the right answer

)

4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?
This must be the joke as well

5. How many quads is too many?
I think 2 quads in SP and 3 quads in LP is a perfect layout, 4 is a bit much, 5 is already ruining the rest.

6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?
I don't think Marina can be successful with singles, Patrick is already established skater while Nathan has a looooong way, idk if Marina can help him , they seem to put quantity over quality and somehow it is like playing gambling for me.

7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
stop bringing monotonous choreos.

8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?
Depends on skaters appearance.

9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?
I don't know really.

10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?
uhm...

karne · Oct 11, 2016

Dave, I have a question for you in turn.

Would you have ever given credit to the creator of the image you stole for your This and That thumbnail if you hadn't been called out for it?

DiamondDust · Oct 11, 2016

This is fun.

Questions of the week:

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?
>>> To me it depends if the choreo/stsq and of course the jumping passes fit, otherwise it's only distracting

.

2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?
>>> To be honest, this will be the first season I'm following (had to do a lot of watching and research to know many names here :biggrin:

).
***So : Men: Yuzuru Hanyu // Ladies: Elizabet Tursynbaeva & Mao Asada // Dance: Virtue&Moir // Pairs: err... don't watch :palmf:

3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
>>> Mao!

4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?
>>> Chan of course but I guess I'll also be cheering for Nathan.

5. How many quads is too many?
>>> SP: 3Q // LP: 4Q (maybe a bit

), but 5Q and up is... not good for the health imo :dev2:

6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?
>>> hmm... I think she's better off in the ID discipline. But let's see how she deals with Chan, specially Chen.

7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
>>> ooops! I need to watch some of their performances first...

8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?
>>> Depends if it flatters the skater.

9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?
>>> not sure about what this "shifting of ice dance politics" is but I loved the ShibSibs FD last season and so excited to see them again.

10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?
>>>

4everchan · Oct 11, 2016

note : i only watched half of it... if you think the menu at cheesecake factory is too long to read, well, a 1:08 minute show is too long to watch... so when they brought up Jason's hair, I knew it was time to stop.

Questions of the week:

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?
having been to my first LIVE event : as long as the lyrics are clearly heard, I am okay with them. Who cares that there are so many choices? Voiceovers though, not so much...
2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?
Like el henry above, I fell for Toman at ACI. That boy skates so well and has a gorgeous triple axel. However, that obsession might be difficult to sustain as he is probably done until nationals, and then, will he get further assignments?

I was very pleasantly surprised with Keagan Messing as well. He is so much fun to watch live.

3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
Erm... Sorry TSLDAVE but that question is silly.

At Finlandia, I agreed with the judges. However, Mao is Mao, one of the greatest ever.
4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?
Another silly question

Patrick and I'd answer that question the same way, if he were compared to any of the actual skaters. No matter what he lands, he is the most interesting and beautiful skater to watch. His two programs this year are gorgeously crafted.
5. How many quads is too many?
Depends how they are done. I never felt like Hanyu and Fernandez, or even Reynolds were doing too many quads. All of them paid attention to the rest of their skating in various ways. I felt Nathan's decision to add a 5th quad may have won him Finlandia but may be costly in other ways.... it may be what will pidgeon hole him as a jumper with no artistry... in some ways, it would have been better for him not to win Finlandia... because right now, everyone is talking about how empty his LP is... how poor his skating skills and PCS were.... yet he won... in some ways, it's not a good thing for him at all... there's nothing worse in a judged sport than having a winner that people do not see as a winner. The kid is so young, I hope he doesn't spend anytime on social media, forums etc... I see him as a world champion one day... he has everything he needs to achieve that, but if he wants it right now, he may never get there. Develop your skating, learn how to get level 4 spins and stay healthy.
6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?
From seeing Patrick's positive attitude in the KnC, after some rough skates, Marina may exactly be what he needs. I won't answer the other question as I have no clue how the US fed works....
7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
sigh... i don't know... are they done? I realise that starting from NOW... i didn't listen to the TSL program.. I stopped at manbuns so I have no idea what TSL said about Dance
8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?
don't know... we wear grey here.. not gray... but seriously, a neutral colour looks good on everyone. A mumu with a very short skirt though is a no no no .
9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?
I don't know what the shibs are doing... I think they were in an advantageous position. For Weapo, they are playing the game very well, and so is Skate Canada by making sure they will not meet V/M in the GP season/ Challengers. Weapo were going to be at Finlandia but they announced there was a major change for them... What is the major change? A new program? New coach? New training centre? I always have been a dedicated Weapo fan. I hope they will have their moment to shine.
10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?
not like i have watched many... but I do prefer Jenny and I realize she's not a guest cohost... but the cohost... however, I felt that she had some objective concepts to back up her opinions sometimes... rather than just listening to random subjective banter... like seriously, if you want random subjective banter, I would do a great job LOL many people on this forum would

daphenaxa · Oct 11, 2016

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?
i agree, so many of those choices are godawful also so many of the choices are similar (muse, i put a spell on you... like WHY). I prefer it that way though. The problem is not too many options, the problem is skaters and choreographers making dreadful choices.

2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?
Marin Honda and Liza Nugumanova I guess. but I was already pretty obsessed last year.

3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
:scard7: Mao Obviously she is the queen of all things. (did you know she was injured since last season on her left knee?)

4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?
I prefered Nathan, I have a problem with Patrick i just can't enjoy him (sorry).

5. How many quads is too many?
honestly I think 5 is too many seeing this program. But then if he manages to land them I will probably not think that anymore.

6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?
:confused2:

7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
change SP, more speed, more lightness as they look so heavy on the ice. It's also personal opinion but I find them so dated and tepid in general.

8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?
bad 99% of the time

9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?
yeah but politics can go so far. Shibutanis and Weapo have hit their glass ceiling imo

10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?
Emily Tuttle was my favourite then Drew Meekins. Both are super knowledgeable with strong opinions but said subtly.
I do not enjoy La that much tbh. And for Kori Ade she could have done herself a favor and not state/accuse that Tuktamysheva won worlds because of meldonium. That was honestly kinda gross.

Obviously I think everyone misses Jenny but I appreciate you continuing. I really like TSL tho i disagree with a lot of what you say

ioanna · Oct 11, 2016

First of all I'm the one whose edit got stolen so I'd like to make things clear. People steal tumblr bloggers' edits all the time, without crediting. This is not the first time I see one of my edits being used without credit or permission. Someone on twitter stole it, posted it without giving credit, and the post became more popular than the original so much that it showed up on Google search. Moral of the story is: when you see a picture that obviously looks like it was edited by someone, don't use it. Also, whatever pictures you use, document yourself and give credit to the original source. We do that on tumblr so I believe it's common sense for well-known channels such as TSL to do the same.

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?
I'm not against the use of lyrics, but some people don't know how and when to use them.

2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?
Not exactly new but Nathan Chen, Wakaba Higuchi and Cha Jun Hwan.

3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
Mao Asada. Her programs and packaging this season showcase her great talent.

4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?
Patrick Chan.

5. How many quads is too many?
I believe four quads in a free skate (or five in Chen's case...) are an invitation to injuries, sloppy skating and subpar programs.

6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?
I'm still processing the fact that Marina Zoueva has established her status as Patrick and Nathan's fairy godmother.

7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
Not documented enough to answer this.

8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?
Did you mean white

9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?
Not sure but at the moment it feels like ice dance is going back to who gets to win the bronze medal, except this time it's Papadakis and Cizeron instead of Davis and White.

10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?
Drew Meekins.

s_parks · Oct 11, 2016

Loved this episode, love La.

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?
- I liked a few programs with lyrics, but I kind of agree with the cheesecake factory comment- many seem to choose bad ones.
2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?
- Jun hwan Cha.
3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
- Asada. loved the footwork, like Dave.
4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?
Chan. the program is great.
5. How many quads is too many?
- I guess it depends on how effortlessly a skater can do them, but 5 is a bit stretching it, for most skaters.
6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?
- I think she could be a surprisingly good for Patrick, to keep him in line and such. Ha, I think Dave might be onto something with her potentially being a national team coordinator.
7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
- didn't watch too much dance so far, so can't answer this well...
8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?
- depends on the specific shade of gray and the person.
9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?
- probably. the Shibs did get valuable feedback early last season, but it's definitely a different situation this year...
10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?
- La! Great insight and so much fun.

solani · Oct 11, 2016

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?
Singing is fine, talking isn't.

2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?
Probably Elizaveta Nugumanova, she's such a fine spinner.

3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
Mao.

4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?
Tough. Nathan, because of the 4Lz and the 4F.

5. How many quads is too many?
5.

6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?
I have no idea. I just enjoy her sitting in the K&C with them.

7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
Work hard I guess ...

8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?
Boring choice, but if fits the program I'm fine with it.

9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?/I]
I won't matter.

10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?
Probably Kori Ade. Although I think that you haven't treated her very nicely. Letting her talk about Tuktamysheva without asking her additional questions regarding doping in general and TUE's was not well done of you. You should have either asked her additional questions or cut that question about Elizaveta completely. She didn't look very nice because of that.
By the way, what's your opinion regarding TUE's, especially for ADHD medication in competition? Because we all know that f.e. Justin Gatlin served his first doping ban for using ADHD medication in competition.

yume · Oct 11, 2016

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?
no problem with lyrics, but it depends of the song.
2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?
rika kihira, Yuzuru and his white pants
3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
Mao of course.
4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?
Patrick Chan.
5. How many quads is too many?
Five in the LP. it's crazy
6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?
i don't know. maybe
7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
change their programs.
8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?
it depends of the person who wear it.
9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?
yes.

tulosai · Oct 11, 2016

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?
Lyrics are fine for me... I don't really see how they are more or less like the Cheesecake Factory than the instrumental choices... there is really a limitless variety of music out there, both with and without lyrics. I think as others have said though, it falls on skaters and their teams to make good choices which some of them seem incapable of doing. I don't see how this is an argument against lyrics in and of themselves, though.

2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?
I like Cain and LeDuc in terms of new teams/skaters.

3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
This is like saying do you prefer classical music or pop. They are both great but they are very different skaters with very different strengths and weaknesses at very different points of their careers. I suppose I prefer Mao if I just have to pick one but to me it's a more nuanced question than that and needs to take into account what one values and is looking for in a skater at this point. If you're asking do I think Katelyn fairly won the competition, though, then yes absolutely.

4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?
Similar question to the Mao Katelyn one and I have the same answer... I prefer Patrick but appreciate Nathan, and do think Nathan won fairly.

5. How many quads is too many?
As someone else said, I'm okay with them up to the point where they start to cause injury.

6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?
I hope so!

7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
I like their SP but it's clear the majority (including judges) do not, so I think if I were them I'd get rid of that entirely and start from scratch.

8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?
This very much depends on the specific skaters and their coloring, as well as the specific shade of gray.

9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?
I guess we'll see. I tend to think the benefits of receiving feedback from an international panel outweigh the potential cons, but I hope it works out for them.

Tolstoj · Oct 11, 2016

Questions of the week:

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?
I don't mind it, sometimes it's better using the lyrics sometimes the instrumental version, actually i think it's better when you have more options.

2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?
Anastasiia Gubanova.

3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
Mao. Sorry Kaetlyn, but it's like comparing Gandalf with Pippin. :laugh:

4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?
Nathan Chen.

5. How many quads is too many?
As many as they want. These kind of limitations doesn't help the sport to grow.

6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?
I think so, she did a good job for other skaters in the past but i feel Patrick should have moved to a technician instead, like Alex Ouriashev or Mishin to improve his awful jumping technique and adds another quad in the SP (because he doesn't need to improve in the artistry)

7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
Stay consistent, the marks will go up

8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?
It depends on the skater, personally i like a gray costume (maybe shaded)

9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?

10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?
Drew Meekins, but i do feel TSL needs a more objective view on figure skating instead of talking about two-three favourites and bashing or even ignoring the others. Kori's thoughts on Tuktamysheva were disrespectful.

euroskate · Oct 11, 2016

1. How do you feel about the use of lyrics? Is it equivalent to the Cheesecake Factory menu? Are there simply too many options?
like when not the whole program is with lyrics. depends on Music.
2. Who is your new skating obsession of the season?
Kevin aymoz, marin Honda, eunso kim, virtue moir
3. Did you prefer Mao Asada or Kaetlyn Osmond?
asada
4. Did you prefer Patrick Chan or Nathan Chen?
chan
5. How many quads is too many?
if they Need to much preparation and that harms transitions
6. Will Marina Zoueva be successful at overseeing Patrick and Nathan? Will this set her up for a National Team Coordinator role?
she will be fine
7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
continue their work
8. Is wearing gray a good choice/bad choice?
bad
9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?
yes
10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?
non want Jenny back

TSLDave · Oct 11, 2016

karne said:
Dave, I have a question for you in turn.

Would you have ever given credit to the creator of the image you stole for your This and That thumbnail if you hadn't been called out for it?

I was in a rush posting and made an error. I took over the web arm this summer and need to make sure to credit all media going forward and will do my best to do so. And you are certainly welcome to hold me accountable. It was not an intentional slight and I will do my best to do better going forward.

Koralai · Oct 11, 2016

Hi there Dave! I just wanted to offer my thoughts on a few of the questions:

7. What do Hubbell and Donohue need to do in order to improve?
I really, really hope that they will work on the emotional arc of their free dance. I think they've made a risky music choice because all three musical sections seem to be about people who are falling in love: they're falling in love in part one, falling in love in part two, and falling in love in part three... For this reason, I think there is a real danger of the FD being a one-note performance, and that's the way it came across to me when they performed it in Salt Lake. However, when I watched the Finlandia performance, I thought the dance was much improved, and I started to understand the differences between the sections: part one is about longing for love, part two is about the first stages of falling in love, and part three is about the ecstasy of knowing that you've found someone to love (in my interpretation, of course!). I would love to see each section of that dance become more distinct and start to tell its own unique part of the overall love story. If they can take it to that level, then I think the FD could be quite moving and a real challenger at nationals.

9. Were the Shibutanis and Weaver and Poje smart to not be seen until they are 100% given the tenuous state of shifting ice dance politics?
I don't really have anything new to contribute to this discussion, but I just want to say that I hope so!! I hope the Shibutanis and W/P have a really strong showing when they debut their programs... I hate to see good skaters left behind by politics. Sadly, W/P seem to be in the most danger in that respect, now that Virtue and Moir are back in the game...

10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?
I know it would probably be hard to track her down on a regular basis, but I really enjoyed the episode with Kori. I think her coaching experience really shows in the answers she gave to your questions; of all the hosts, her answers gave me what feels like the strongest "insider's perspective" on the sport. And I thought her comments about Tuktamysheva and meldonium were very diplomatic; they didn't seem out of line to me at all. All the hosts have been fun to listen to, though!

It's always a treat for me to find out a new TSL episode has been published; I listen to them while I am working on crochet projects in the evenings. Thanks for all you do!

Tavi... · Oct 11, 2016

So I'm just intrigued by the question of whether Raf will still be coaching Nathan going forward. Yes I read the Icenetwork article, but quite honestly, it seems a little strange to me that Raf wasn't with Nathan at Finlandia. Yes Marina was already going to be there, but cmon. Nathan is Raf's greatest hope for the Olympics. He's been with Raf for years, and this was Nathan's senior debut. Why wasn't Raf there? If it was cost (cheaper for Chen and Chan to split the cost of Marina), then why didn't Icenetwork at least get a quote from Raf saying how proud he was of Nathan or whatever?

Overall I enjoyed this edition of This and That a lot. La and Dave have a good rapport, La has good insights, and the pacing was much improved from the first La-Dave program. But I hope La can get her camera to focus better next time!

Just to be clear, I also liked the editions with Drew, Kori and Emily Tuttle - it's nice to get insights from hosts with expert knowledge in particular fields, and I hope that continues, whether or not it's in a co-host situation or as an invited guest. Unlike some others, I didn't find Kori's comments about Tuk offensive. In response to your question, I liked Kori the best of all your co-hosts because she has strong opinions, a lot of technical knowledge, and she's intense and brings a strong energy to the show. I would say I've enjoyed the other three hosts equally, with the edge maybe going to Drew, again because of his energy level. Emily is very thoughtful, which is a great quality in real life, but sometimes makes for slower pacing in the show. La is funny and I enjoy her comments but the two of you seem to have similar opinions on many things and I kind of like the contrast of opposing points of view or at least different knowledge sets. I loved her hair advice to Jason, though!

Dave, you keep mentioning the book club. For those of us who don't frequent FB, would you mind explaining that?

Otherwise, late to work now so can't answer fully, but for me, so far, two quads in the short and and three in the long seems to be optimal in terms of balancing tech excitement and presentation. Javi and Hanyu have both demonstrated that an extraordinary skater can give great performances with this tech level; no one attempting more quads has convinced me that they can do more than kind of get through a relatively empty program with a lot of long jump set ups. Maybe Hanyu will do it later in the season. At Finlandia, I preferred both Patrick and (surprisingly to me) Kovtun to Chen. But maybe Nathan will convince me otherwise later in the season.

silverfoxes · Oct 11, 2016

Koralai said:
10. Which 'This and That' guest cohost has been your favorite?
I know it would probably be hard to track her down on a regular basis, but I really enjoyed the episode with Kori. I think her coaching experience really shows in the answers she gave to your questions; of all the hosts, her answers gave me what feels like the strongest "insider's perspective" on the sport. And I thought her comments about Tuktamysheva and meldonium were very diplomatic; they didn't seem out of line to me at all. All the hosts have been fun to listen to, though!

Diplomatic? She drew conclusions based on no facts whatsoever - only the biased reporting of TSL. None of them know when Liza started taking meldonium or for how long; they don't know what effect it had on her performance. if any. There was never any benefit of doubt given to Liza; nobody ever said "allegedy," "possibly," etc. which would have been the correct and professional thing to do (apart from not bringing up at all, since she never broke any rules in taking it). And it's extremely hypocritical for TSL to keep talking about her using a drug that was not banned at the time, now that we know how many US athletes legally dope with much stronger drugs through the use of TUEs. Why isn't that addressed on the show?

TSLDave · Oct 11, 2016

Tavi... said:
So I'm just intrigued by the question of whether Raf will still be coaching Nathan going forward. Yes I read the Icenetwork article, but quite honestly, it seems a little strange to me that Raf wasn't with Nathan at Finlandia. Yes Marina was already going to be there, but cmon. Nathan is Raf's greatest hope for the Olympics. He's been with Raf for years, and this was Nathan's senior debut. Why wasn't Raf there? If it was cost (cheaper for Chen and Chan to split the cost of Marina), then why didn't Icenetwork at least get a quote from Raf saying how proud he was of Nathan or whatever?

Overall I enjoyed this edition of This and That a lot. La and Dave have a good rapport, La has good insights, and the pacing was much improved from the first La-Dave program. But I hope La can get her camera to focus better next time!

Just to be clear, I also liked the editions with Drew, Kori and Emily Tuttle - it's nice to get insights from hosts with expert knowledge in particular fields, and I hope that continues, whether or not it's in a co-host situation or as an invited guest. Unlike some others, I didn't find Kori's comments about Tuk offensive. In response to your question, I liked Kori the best of all your co-hosts because she has strong opinions, a lot of technical knowledge, and she's intense and brings a strong energy to the show. I would say I've enjoyed the other three hosts equally, with the edge maybe going to Drew, again because of his energy level. Emily is very thoughtful, which is a great quality in real life, but sometimes makes for slower pacing in the show. La is funny and I enjoy her comments but the two of you seem to have similar opinions on many things and I kind of like the contrast of opposing points of view or at least different knowledge sets. I loved her hair advice to Jason, though!

Dave, you keep mentioning the book club. For those of us who don't frequent FB, would you mind explaining that?

Otherwise, late to work now so can't answer fully, but for me, so far, two quads in the short and and three in the long seems to be optimal in terms of balancing tech excitement and presentation. Javi and Hanyu have both demonstrated that an extraordinary skater can give great performances with this tech level; no one attempting more quads has convinced me that they can do more than kind of get through a relatively empty program with a lot of long jump set ups. Maybe Hanyu will do it later in the season. At Finlandia, I preferred both Patrick and (surprisingly to me) Kovtun to Chen. But maybe Nathan will convince me otherwise later in the season.

We will be reading 'Skating on Air' for the book club. I'm going to interview the author, Kelli Lawrence, after Skate America to discuss the history of skating on TV, the differences among networks, and the current coverage of skating and the Olympics on TV.

TSL/This and That 2016-17

TSLDave

el henry

Go have some cake. And come back with jollity.

Sugarpova

#EmpressAirlines #SinKatsapologist

Marin

"Efforts tell lies, but it will not be in vain."

karne

in Emergency Backup Mode

DiamondDust

4everchan

daphenaxa

ioanna

s_parks

solani

yume

🍉

tulosai

Tolstoj

euroskate

TSLDave

Koralai

Tavi...

silverfoxes

TSLDave

Similar threads

Connect with us