At this point in the competition, every elimination is going to come as a shock, as the remaining contestants on "Dancing With the Stars" are some of the best we've seen in a while. With Bindi Irwin rarely receiving anything less than a perfect score, Nick Carter proving his boy band days really paid off, and Carlos and Alexa PenaVega competing as a married couple, the six stars left in this competition are performing nearly flawless dances every single night.
From Tamar Braxton's hospitalization, and shocking return, to an emotional elimination that was hard to watch, last night's episode brought on all the feels.
During dress rehearsal on Monday, Braxton, who is partners with Val Chmerkovskiy, was taken to the hospital because she's had pneumonia for the past two weeks, and had completely exhausted herself. For the first dance, the judges had to base their scores off a pre-taped performance done during rehearsals and they only scored a 22 out of 30. The judges made sure to inform Chmerkovskiy that had this dance been performed live, the raw emotion from it most likely would have earned them a much higher score, but they had to be realistic based on the pre-taped dance.
After seeing contestant Kim Zolciak taken out of the competition earlier this season because of her mini-stroke - which didn't allow her to perform - Chemerkovskiy had no choice but to prepare for the worst. Since it was a live show, host Tom Bergeron continued to explain that they were not sure if Braxton would be returning in time for the second dance, the Showstopper routine, with Carter and his partner Sharna Burgess.
As the show came to an end, Braxton made a triumphant return to the dance floor so she, Carter, Chemerkovskiy and Burgess could perform a Cirque du Soleil number from the Beatles' "Love." Thanks to her return, they were able to receive a score of 27 out of 30.
While she gave it her all, the entire dance was still very challenging for her because of her condition.
"There was a moment right before when she came out, a minute before we were going to perform and Val actually came to me and said, 'Listen, everything aside, I need you to be a lead man tonight and I need you to protect her and take care of her,'" Carter told Us Weekly following the performance. "She was unstable. So on top of everything else I needed to know and didn't learn because of our lack of rehearsals, I had to really put her first and assume that responsibility and really just kind of make sure that she was taken care of."
The rest of the night was an exciting one, as both Irwin and Alexa received perfect scores. Carter and Carlos weren't far behind with a 28 out of 30 and a 27 out of 30, and then American Hero Alek Skarlatos fell a little short with his salsa, earning a 24 out of 30.
Even though Irwin has received several perfect scores before, her Viennese Waltz last night was her most beautiful one yet and she left the judges in awe. "Every week you are so flawless, but tonight there was something different," judge Julianne Hough told Irwin and her partner Derek Hough. "The thing that makes you grow is that you take risks. You don't play it safe ever."
The most amazing thing about Irwin's performance was that she was blindfolded for most of it. "This dance meant to much and it's so beautiful," the 17-year-old said to the judges as you could literally see her shaking. "The energy feels so good that I can't stop shaking every time I do it."
Alexa's dance was also perfect, and she and her partner Mark Ballas did a contemporary routine inspired by her past struggle with bulimia. She and Irwin then went on to perform the second dance, the Showstopper routine, together with their partners, and received yet another perfect score for their "Chicago" inspired Charleston. The entire night was such an emotional one, especially for these two stars, but not as emotional as the shocking elimination that came at the end of the night.
It all came down to Alexa and Carlos as the bottom two, and neither of them wanted to see their other half go home. With them being the first married couple to ever compete together on the show, this elimination was more monumental than any other in "DWTS" history. Alexa, who had just received two perfect scores, ended up going home, and Carlos just couldn't stand to watch as they announced her name instead of his.
"I wish it had been me," he whispered in her ear as they cried in each other's arms. "It's okay," Alexa replied. "I'm just so happy we ended on this note."
"I am the luckiest man in the world. I would do anything for this woman," Carlos captioned a photo of the two kissing following her elimination. "She gave it her all. She was brave. She was a positive light. Tonight she showed the world that she was not afraid of her past. The courage she gives me can not be matched. Alexa...You are my rock. You have given millions of people hope. You are a true woman of God and your love for Jesus is infectious! I'm so proud of you. So proud to be your husband...And I am going to cuddle you so hard on this flight to NYC!!! Couldn't stand a night without u!! I LOVE YOU!!!"
