In this episode of Canada’s Got Talent, we encounter something that’s been missing for ages: the Moccio sway. Judge Stephan Moccio has remained remarkably stoic, judging silently in his scarves, but beatboxing contestant KRNFX has Moccio out of his chair, ever-so-briefly. Other crowd pleasing standards of the show are firmly in place: someone makes a comment about Measha Brueggergosman’s hair (there were stars in it this time), and host Dina Pugliese wears a ball gown (a lemon yellow one with revealing cut-outs at the waist—girl looks good). Absent from this episode is a dose of Short’s sexually charged commentary, and we’ll leave you to decide whether that’s a good thing or not. Of the six semi-finalists, this is the first we’ve seen of two groups: Silvia Ricciotto, a busker-singer, and Karen and Jeffrey Chang of Jive, a brother-sister dance duo. Though both performances are strong, it’s hard to feel invested in these acts when, 17 episodes in, this is the first time we’re seeing them do anything.
Terry “KRNFX” Im is another beatboxer (we’ve already seen Scott Jackson advance to the finals) we love. He starts out with a beatbox rendition of “I Want You Back” by the Jackson 5 (the judges didn’t like that bit, but we sure did) before getting into the serious vocal acrobatics. KRNFX gets the crowd (and Moccio) moving, and ultimately our biggest pet peeve is his obnoxious fedora that completely covers his eyes while he performs.
Sagkeeng’s Finest are a clog dancing trio from the Sagkeeng reserve in Manitoba. The boys were awkward at their audition, staring at each other’s feet to be sure of their next step, but in this episode, they’re looking pretty good. They engage the audience by actually making eye contact, and they impress with a routine that starts traditional and then morphs into something modern (think Black Eyed Peas songs and sparkly shirts that read “We’ve Got Talent”).
Angela and her dog Rally are a Frisbee-catching act, but Rally misses the majority of the Frisbees tossed. Sure, he’s adorable and some of his jumps (onto her shoulders and the soles of her shoes) are impressive, but we’re not convinced that’s enough to win. Moccio claims Rally is the most-loved dog in Canada, but we think he’s forgetting a little dog named the Littlest Hobo.
Eric Saintonge was one of our early favourites for his energetic work with the German wheel, but like Short astutely observes, how many times can you reinvent the hoop? Though Saintonge impresses Brueggergosman with his buff bod (she gushes: “those are very lucky pants”), his act comes off a touch boring. We don’t see Saintonge moving to the finals.
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