by Cathy Miller

Created on: September 15, 2008

Dancing With The Stars is a very popular show averaging more votes in a season than there are in a Presidential election. The popularity of the show is based on watching well liked actors, actresses, singers, sports personalities, even magicians and talk show hosts strut their stuff on the stage with professional dancers. We love watching our favorites make complete idiots out of themselves (proving they are human like us)or accomplishing dance moves we thought they could never do. We also like having a say in the show by being able to vote for our favorites.

I have had a favorite in each of the 6 seasons and most of them have won. However, the contestant that I loved watching every single week not only because he was cute, but because he could really shake his groove thing was Mario Lopez.

Mario was paired with Karina Smirnoff, a lady that he actually hooked up with in real life until recently. Their chemistry was amazing, their moves were very well choreographed and most of all, Mario was a natural at dancing. And who could resist that adorable dimple? Evidently, not many as Mario was voted People's Hottest Bachelor for 2008.

Eye candy issues aside, Mario was clearly the best dancer in Season 3, however, he was beat out by ex-football player, Emmitt Smith. Not saying that Emmitt wasn't great because he was. He was also very entertaining. Still, Mario was clearly the one to beat that year and should have won. Why didn't he? I have my theories.

Mario showed excellence in his dancing from day 1 which led people to believe that he had had formal dance lessons. Mario denied it, but later it was revealed that Mario had taken tap dance lessons, been a dancer on "Kids Incorporated", and had danced on "Saved By The Bell". Also, while Mario was competing, people on the internet began talking about his two week marriage to Ali Landry, a marriage dissolved due to Mario's "infedility". During his stint on the show he was also reprimanded by the judges for doing lifts a couple of times, thus breaking the rules. A big stink was made when Eva Longoria, a long time friend was shown in the audience wearing a "Vote For Mario" t-shirt. After all of this, you could tell the audience was leaning away from Mario and more towards Emmitt.

This angered me a lot. "Dancing With The Stars" is about contestants dancing, not about who they were married to or why the divorced. So what if Mario is a Romeo? That's not what people were supposed to be judging him on. Yes, Mario had danced on the

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