Four extremely worthy couples faced off in one of the most closely contested finals Dancing with the Stars has ever seen, all for a shot at the coveted Mirrorball Trophy.

It was a very solid finale after a very poor season. With two hours and only eight dances, the show finally adopted the more luxurious pace it used to have, instead of the frantic atmosphere of this past season. There were videos of the stars talking about how much everything matters, how important the freestyle is, how stiff the competition… I, for one, love these cheesy videos. The cast of the Annie remake showed up to perform a number from the upcoming movie, and I am still very much not sold.

The freestyles all received perfect scores, as they usually do, and it is really anyone’s game at this point. I really have no idea who will be taking home the trophy tomorrow – all the contestants present a convincing case. This was Derek’s ninth time in the finals (out of fourteen seasons), a new record. Mark is now in second place, with this being his eighth finals appearance (out of fifteen seasons). Val marks his third appearance in a final out of seven seasons, and Witney is in the finals for the very first time.

At the end of a superb final, the couple eliminated in fourth place is… Bethany and Derek! I can only assume their indolence last week caught up with them. Derek already suffers backlash as a perceived judges’ favorite; when he choreographs lazy routines and still gets awarded high marks, that reinforces the impression. As the general voting public stopped dispersing their votes among myriad candidates, Bethany’s Motavators had less impact, and this week they just couldn’t cut it.

A fourth place finish is well below average for Derek, it ties for his lowest finish in ten seasons. (Of course, a fourth place finish is well above average for every single other pro, so it’s nothing to sneeze at.) However, I am just thrilled that he got to do a freestyle with Bethany, a freestyle that I found to be the second most impressive of the night.

First, the judges picked Bethany’s week 1 jive to “Shake It Off” for Bethany to reattempt. Bruno came by rehearsal to give Bethany pointers, and while Bruno is a ham, he is actually very helpful when critiquing dancing. Roles were reversed when Bethany got Bruno on YouTube – he was very excited to be in an online video now, as opposed to YouTube dredging up some embarrassing clip from his past. This jive was good ten weeks ago; it’s great now – full of content that Bethany executed with aplomb. There was an issue with the set, and later on in the side-by-side Bethany and Derek lost sync for a moment, but it was still a top-notch dance.

Their freestyle was spectacular. In keeping with Mockingjay being released this weekend, the freestyle was set to “Revolution,” and Derek ran with the theme. He and Bethany did a paso doble-inspired freestyle surrounded by half a dozen professional dancers in silhouette supporting them. Intricate choreography and superb syncopation created one of the most dynamic routines we’ve seen all season, and this is the kind of freestyle that might have sealed the deal for them, had they not gotten eliminated.

Now, for the final time this season, let’s welcome our stars!

First Place, 80 points: Alfonso and Witney. Judges pick’ was their jive from week 1, which scored nines across the board way back then. There was not much to improve on, but improve they did, so it was all tens this time around. The judge to stop by was Carrie Ann, who instead of teaching them dance, did yoga and massaged Alfonso’s still-injured back. I think we’ve finally found a use for Carrie Ann!

Their freestyle was cleverly done, paying homage to many of their dances throughout the season, and allowing Alfonso a tap solo. I was less impressed by the pan away from Alfonso to professional dancers, and the several runs Alfonso and Witney did past the camera in lieu of dancing. Still, it’s clear Alfonso and Witney really want it, and they delivered a good freestyle.

Alfonso clearly has an enormous non-polarizing fan base, something neither of the other two can claim. He both desperately wants it and works his hardest to earn it. There is the slight drawback of Witney being a new pro – in the last six years, the only pro to win the first final she appeared in was Peta in season 12. But Witney is likable, with a bubbly personality and a good work ethic. Alfonso has managed not to literally fall apart before the final (though he’s come close), and there is a good chance he will realize his dream of ten years to hoist the Mirrorball Trophy.

Second Place, 78 points: Sadie and Mark. The judges’ pick was Sadie’s samba from week 4, which was really just an excuse to rehash a Duck Dynasty-themed dance. The samba was fun before and fun now – definitely weird, but containing actual samba. Sadie and Mark lost sync a bit, for which Len and Bruno took off a point. Len stopped by to give them pointers, highlighting his newly contentious relationship with Mark. In a departure from previous seasons, Len is the one being conciliatory towards Mark, who has finally realized he doesn’t need to pretend to respect the judges. A more welcome guest this week was Liam Payne of One Direction, who is a member of the Quack Pack, whatever that means. Sadie fangirled rather extremely, reminding us all that for all the “maturing” she’s done, she’s still a seventeen-year-old girl.

The reason their judges’ choice was themed around Duck Dynasty was so Mark could run with a different theme for the freestyle. Their freestyle was, without a doubt, the best of the night. Having gotten the Duck Dynasty homage out of the way, Mark based his freestyle on the Mario video games. Mark was Mario (winning Tom’s award for best use of detachable facial hair throughout the season), with Sadie as an utterly adorable Princess Peach. Their quartet was rounded out by Luigi and Toad, and they served up one of the best and most memorable freestyles ever seen on this show. Good dancing, coupled with seamless and inventive integration of the theme, really showcased the best of both Mark and Sadie.

In a season light on big story arcs, I think the story of season 19 is the redemption of Mark Ballas. Once a fan favorite, Mark got increasingly irritating as the seasons went on, squandering good partners along the way to either shimmy-centric or Mark-centric choreography. But this season, Mark has been a supportive and respectful partner, highlighting Sadie in all the right ways, and choreographed solid routines full of content, while never losing his kooky flair for over-the-top themes. I never would have thought it, but I think Sadie could win on the strength of her freestyle (it’s certainly happened before). She has seemingly overcome the negative bias towards her because of Duck Dynasty, with her sweetness and her hard work, and I actually voted for her tonight.

Last Place, 77 points: Janel and Val. Judges pick was their week 6 samba, a frantic and hectic dance that does not go well with Janel’s cracked ribs. Some of those dips looked like they would be really painful. Janel also lost three days of rehearsal to filming Pretty Little Liars – Mona’s dead, so just give the girl a week off! But Janel did not let the injury or lack of rehearsal get in her way, and she delivered an excellent samba – I thought it worked much better now than it had the first time. Julianne was the judge who worked with them, and she appeared to be the most grating person ever in the video package. We’ll just have to hope that was an unflattering edit – Julianne assured us that she worked on more than just passion with Janel, and I wish Val would do the same.

Janel and Val are so full of FEELINGS. Their entire freestyle was about their feelings; it was a contemporary dance with impressive lifts, clad in little fabric and lots of emotion. It was good, but I also feel like I’ve seen this at least three times already this season from them, and I wanted something more from their freestyle. The only remarkable thing was that they actually kissed, but otherwise, this was the weakest of the freestyles. Why can’t they channel their passion into dance styles other than contemporary?

If Janel and Val win, it will be purely because Val is the sentimental favorite. Val has been on the show longer than any of the current professionals who’ve never won, and there is a feeling that he is due for a Mirrorball. This is the same thinking that got his brother a Mirrorball in the last travesty of a season, and that earned Tony a Mirrorball in the All-Star Season. While I agree with the sentiment, this has been Val’s weakest season by a longshot. His choreography was nowhere near up to par, especially considering the things he pulled off with Zendaya and Elizabeth Berkley Lauren. It was just contemporaries full of FEELINGS week after week.

Janel, meanwhile, is an unknown entity to the vast majority of DWTS viewers. And Brant Daugherty proved that the Pretty Little Liars fans are not enough to vote a contestant to the Mirrorball. All Janel has going for her is her unconvincing showmance with Val, and people who want Val to win regardless of partner. She still could conceivably win, but after this freestyle I’d say the odds are not in her favor.

My ultimate prediction is for Alfonso to narrowly win over Sadie, though I hope for the opposite. But really, this is wide open for any of the three to win. Who do you think will win? Whose freestyle was your favorite? And what do you think of the final three?