Reality Roundup: Nov. 1

“Dancing with the Stars” Season 33 Episode 7

“Dancing with the Stars: Halloween Nightmares” brought spine-chilling performances to the ballroom.

The seven remaining celebrities faced their fears during their spooky and spectacular performances inspired by different Halloween nightmares, followed by three couple vs. couple dance-offs.

Ilona Maher hit the dance floor first with a spicy tango, encapsulating the persona of her nightmare: psycho killers.

The Olympian is continuously trying to improve and her dedication is clear. She and her partner Alan Bersten earned eights across the judges panel.

6-foot-11 Dwight Howard then took the floor with a contemporary dance alongside his partner Daniella Karagach.

Fans had high hopes for Karagach’s choreography, and it did not disappoint, as Howard embodied the nightmare as he acted as the Boogeyman.

After getting pretty emotional during judging, the creative and spooky performance earned them their first nines and the very first 10 of the competition from judge Carrie Ann Inaba, for a total of 28 out of 30.

Former NFL player Danny Amendola faced his fear of snakes with his Argentine tango to “Poison” by Brittney Spears. He and Witney Carson also earned a 10 from Inaba and scored a 28 out of 30 for the night alongside Howard.

It’s about time the 10 paddles start rolling out, but fans aren’t too sure that Inaba’s scoring was consistent, which seems to be a running theme this season.

Season 32 finalist and “Buffy” actress Alyson Hannigan crashed her former partner's rehearsal to help Jenn Tran take on the role of her nightmare: a vampire.

She and Sasha Farber performed a contemporary to Olivia Rodrigo’s “Vampire,” scoring yet again another 10 from Inaba, followed by eights from judges Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli.

Joey Graziadei and Jenna Johnson performed next, acting as a ventriloquist and his puppet for their Argentine tango to “Ramalama (Bang Bang).”

Graziadei has been super consistent throughout the competition, but he truly stepped it up for the Halloween-themed episode. Hough gave him a nine and Inaba gave out yet another 10, but Tonioli agreed, resulting in a 29 out of 30 for the former Bachelor.

Another contemporary graced the floor as Stephen Nedoroscik conquered his fear of the dark.

This was definitely one of Nedoroscik’s best dances, and fans can tell that he is working hard to improve. He earned another 28 out of 30 for the night with his partner Rylee Arnold after Hough mentioned he was seeing a pattern with Inaba’s scoring.

Well, the pattern sure stopped at Chandler Kinney.

The actress danced a stunning Viennese waltz with Brandon Armstrong to the “Pretty Little Liars” theme song, encapsulating her fear of creepy dolls.

Inaba faced backlash after saying the dance was not perfect, but Hough and Tonioli both disagreed. When one of the judges mentions former DWTS judge Len Goodman, fans know it was a truly incredible dance.

Kinney earned a 10 from both Hough and Tonioli, as Inaba raised up a questionable nine.

The stars were then ready to compete in the dance-off round, fighting to earn three extra points added to their night totals.

Kinney and Armstrong earned immunity from the dance-off, so the first two couples to go head-to-head were Howard and Karagach and Maher and Bersten.

The two couples that tend to hang at the bottom of the leaderboard danced a side-by-side Cha Cha to “Ghostbusters.” The judges named Howard and Karagach the winning couple.

Tran and Farber then faced off with Nedoroscik and Arnold, performing a salsa to “Jump In the Line.” The judges praised both stars, but ultimately decided Tran was the winner.

The final dance-off was between leaderboard-toppers Amendola and Carson and Graziadei and Johnson. The couples went head to head with a jive as both boys brought the energy.

Hough mentioned that it was a difficult decision, but the judges chose to award Graziadei and Johnson with the three points.

After a night jam-packed with Halloween spirit, the scariest part of the competition was at bay: elimination.

Shockingly, it was revealed that the eliminated couple was Tran and Farber. The former Bachelorette praised the experience and expressed gratitude to have gotten so close with everyone, especially her partner.

Due to Election Day on November 5, “Dancing with the Stars” will return in two weeks on November 12.

Sarah Gavlak is a third-year majoring in telecommunications. To contact her, please email sng5393@psu.edu.