Dancing with the Stars 2009 cast: Why I'm glad Kelly Osbourne made the finals (video)

Kelly Osbourne doing the paso doble.
ABC/Adam Larkey.

It's a bit of a surprise how upset people seem to be about Joanna Krupa and Derek Hough missing the finals and some comments posted online have ripped into Kelly Osbourne. Yet Kelly Osbourne represents the transformative nature of dance and she ably communicates that joy on the dance floor, largely thanks to Louis Van Amstel.

Osbourne has had her missteps in her young life: drugs and alcohol. Her life was under severe scrutiny when her family became the subject of a TV program--one that has since launched a few other reality shows. "The Osbournes" won a reality TV show Emmy in 2002. But Osbourne is more than a bored rich girl. She has been on stage and she has shown she can also be a fierce competitor.

Her 2002 album "Shut Up" did well in the U.K. (peaking at 31) and was number 1 on the U.S. Heat chart. Her 2005 album, "Sleeping in the Nothing" peaked at 57 in the U.K. and was number 2 on the U.S. Heatseekers chart  and the U.S. dance/electronic albums chart. She had a number one hit in the U.K. ("Changes" with her father Ozzy Osbourne in 2003) and the U.S. ("One Word" in 2005).

Osbourne had a short run, playing the prison matron in the stage musical, "Chicago" and has been both a presenter and an actress.

Some people take exception to her use of raw language, but the clips we've seen have not shown her to be angry and vindictive as say Krupa toward her teammate Terrell Owens on a different reality show, "The Superstars." Krupa clean up her act, but seems determined to raise her recognition value via reality shows and Playboy, yet what is her real talent?

When Osbourne began the show, no one expected her to do well and yet she has. She's shown grace although troubled by a clear lack of confidence and focus. If her first dance, the Viennese waltz (with 23 points she did better than Mya and Chaplin who had 21) was a revelation, so was her paso doble (24) to her father's song. In her Charleston (23), she truly sparkled and perhaps someday, she'll be in a stage version of "Cabaret" as Sally Bowles. Why not?

Osbourne, unlike Krupa and Mya, doesn't have the kind of physique of a dancer. Yet like Mya and unlike Krupa, she finishes her moves with full extension. Both Krupa and Osbourne do not have the fluid hip motion one would like in the Latin dances, but Van Amstel has choreographed dances to represent the fun, somewhat innocent side of flirtation. Considering her age, 25, to his age, 37, and the sense of innocent vulnerability she projects, that's a wise decision. Osbourne has done better on the fast dances than Krupa such as the quickstep and the jive.

Quickstep

Mya and Dmitry Chaplin: 29 week 8
Kelly Osbourne and Louis Van Amstel: 27 week 9
Aaron Carter and Karina Smirnoff: 27 week 2
Donny Osmond and Kym Johnson: 24 week 7
Joanna Krupa and Derek Hough: 23 week 8

Jive

Aaron Carter and Karina Smirnoff: 27 week 2
Mya and Dmitry Chaplin: 27 week 2
Kelly Osbourne and Louis Van Amstel: 26 week 8
Donny Osmond and Kym Johnson: 25 week 2
Joanna Krupa and Derek Hough: 20 week 2

Dance requires discipline and hard work. Osbourne has lost weight and gained confidence. Like Aaron Carter, she has matured.  If you think Krupa and Hough have been cheated, remember so were Carter and Smirnoff. Carter's jive dance routines were truly great while Krupa was at the bottom, even in comparison with other week 2 performances by the final five couples. Osbourne and Van Amstel and Osmond and Johnson were better than Krupa and Hough in the jive and the quickstep.  I agree with some of the posted comments (here and elsewhere) that Osbourne's feet aren't always pointed, but that has also been a problem with Krupa.

Because the couples often dance different dances, I try to compare the scores by dance which hasn't been easy this season. Apparently, there was never any intention by the producers of the show to have all the competitors dance the Charleston (Osmond and Johnson, Osbourne and Van Amstel), lambada (Carter and Smirnoff, Krupa and Hough and Mya and Dmitry Chaplin), two-step or bolero. That says something about this season in itself.

It was recently reported that Osbourne feared relapsing into drugs and alcohol abuse. That's the problem with any recovering addict. One can't predict the future, but perhaps Osbourne will continue with dance and it will continue to bring her confidence and joy, no matter who wins the mirrorball. Weight loss and confidence are the joys of dance that any audience member can experience, not matter what size or shape.