2024 has been a season to remember for both Olympians Stephen Nedoroscik and Ilona Maher. Of course, the two had their career first Olympic wins in Paris. But the year that seems to have followed is an equally interesting one. Both of them have been consistently killing it on the dance floors of Dancing with the Stars. The two have been able to dodge the eliminations till week 6.

Week six, aka the last episode aired, was Disney-themed week. The world saw Ilona Maher leave behind the very persona she was trolled for and transform into the figment of the Disney imagination. Meanwhile, Stephen wasn’t far behind. He hit the floor with a storm of his brewing. While the journey up until now has been rather smooth for both the athletes, the upcoming episodes might not be!

The number of contestants as the weeks pass is going down. During week 6 performances, both Stephen and Ilona gave their hearts and souls to dance. Unfortunately, despite the dedication, the scores told a different story. Ilona Maher and her partner, Alan Bersten, danced to “Surface Pressure” from Encanto. The performance earned them a score of 25 out of 30 points.

Meanwhile, Stephen and his partner, Rylee Arnold, struggled with timing issues in the routine. The issues were so blatant that all the judges took note of them. A note that showed in the unfortunate 24 that the duo ended up with. With both contestants hovering near the bottom of the leaderboard, fans began to wonder how many weeks of dancing were left in their blood.

One fan went on to write, “I’m sorry, I know this will ruffle a lot of feathers, but the reality is, Ilona is not a good dancer I think she’s a sweet girl, yes I love the message she gives out, yes I think it’s great that she’s strong and able to do lifts.” The sentiment is not a new one. Since the inception of the current season, Ilona Maher has been the subject of various online debates. Perhaps the most popular one was the debates that claimed that she was a bad dancer or sometimes not feminine enough to be one.

The heated debate even called for comparisons! Ilona has been compared to other top contestants like Chandler, Joey, and Jenn. Despite all the noise, Ilona performed on Week Six fearlessly. And the performance was sure impactful. With Bruno Tonioli even saying, “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the strongest of them all?” While this remained the general tone of feedback, all the judges, especially Derek Hough, emphasized the “Balance storytelling and dance.” While the balancing act seems to be missing in Ilona’s routines, Stephen is the king of balance. But some of the fandom disagrees!

A fan went on to write, “Insert Stephen’s name, and you could say the same thing. They are both likable people, and that’s half the battle on this show. It’s a mix of being likable and basically just not being unwatchable when you dance.” The one aspect that the fan rightly points out is that likeability and gradual improvement might just be the keys that Stephen and Rylee need to avoid eliminations! But that’s not all. The sixth week of DWTS was a fall-from-grace moment for Stephen Nedoroscik.

Rylee and Stephen danced to “A Star Is Born” from Hercules and scored 24. Now, why was this a fall? Well, the duo in week five scored 33! That’s right, during ‘Dedication Night,’ Stephen performed on the pommel horse and mixed it up with some Argentine Tango. The best part was that both of them executed it to perfection. While both Ilona and Stephen remain on the fences when it comes to their future at DWTS, the winds are definitely stronger towards Stephen.

A strong rally for Stephen Nedoroscik and a mixed bag for Ilona Maher!

One fan passionately defending Stephen Nedoroscik’s position wrote, “Stephen definitely deserves to be there longer than Ilona because if he fixes his timing, he will be just as good as the other top contenders.” Well, yet again, the fandom is not wrong. Let’s look at the week four performance to understand the same. Week 4, also known as Hair Metal Night, saw Stephen’s transformation.

Stephen went from being the Clark Kent of gymnastics to wearing a leather suit and an ’80s mullet. That night, he brought his alter ego out to play and danced to Whitesnake’s “Here I Go Again.” And the scores? Well, the duo went on to get a 32 out of 40. Bruno Tonioli, after the performance, went on to call Stephen a “good student”! While the rally for Stephen grows stronger by the minute, Ilona is facing yet another bout of comparisons.

The latest comparison? “To me, Ilona is very comparable to Alyson. She wasn’t the best dancer, but she was genuine and entertaining to watch,” wrote a fan. So, who is Alyson? Alyson Hannigan competed in Season 32 alongside Sasha. Both Alyson and Ilona seem to have one thing in common. Their performances are often about connecting and the journey rather than the technicality of dance.

But unfortunately, DWTS is a dance show! Despite having issues and receiving criticism about the dance, Alyson went on to finish 5th that season. This is, if anything, a glimmer of hope for Ilona. Ilona might not be at the top of the leaderboard, but she can still carve out a historic moment in the show’s history. Her last performance might just have been one. So much so that Carrie Ann went on to say, “When you dance, what’s so spectacular about you is you change the storyline in other young ladies’ heads. You are telling them a different story, and that is so impactful.” While Ilona continues to inspire, there is no escaping the loud cries for Stephen.

One fan put up a final counterargument, saying, “Stephen actually dances though and nails his kicks and tricks.” The fan also went on to mention that while Stephen might be off-beat, he is still putting in the effort to perform, unlike Ilona, whose movements appear less polished. As the heated argument continues, one thing that both fandoms seem to agree on is that both Ilona Maher and Stephen Nedoroscik are progressing. It is only a matter of perception of that progress.

As DWTS heads into Week 7, the future of Ilona Maher and Stephen Nedoroscik remains uncertain. Will they rise to the occasion and prove their critics wrong? Or will their DWTS journey come to an end sooner than expected?