There was also a whole lot of skating in Japan this week, and we start our recap with the ladies event, which is always one of our favourites. We discuss some strong season debuts from the ladies training internationally, why a short program triple Axel might be too much of a risk in a field this large and deep, and the many young talented skaters who we really wish could have had a JGP season to really show off their skills.

The trend of skaters who might be injured or ill having inconsistent skates continues with the pairs at Russian Nationals, though even with some messy programs, there was a lot to be excited about. We discuss how much we hate unnecessary late start deductions, some very inconsistent GOE judging, and why we wish Russia would give up a few teams to skate for other countries so that all of their amazing teams could get lots of international competition opportunities.

The men at Russian Nationals were unpredictable as expected, and we discuss the skaters who were able to peak at maybe their most important competition (including a real surprise medalist!), some really shady and uncomfortable camera work, our uncertainty about who here was competing sick and/or injured, and our wish that more men would just try to skate clean and not try to throw out too many quad attempts that are likely to go awry.

The dance event at Russian Nationals was a bit of a messier one than we were expecting, and we break down the unusual number of errors by the top teams, our thoughts on rhythm dance music choices, and who is still in the fight for a coveted worlds top alternate spot (if worlds still happens and everyone is healthy - which is very much still in question).

We start our recap of this past week's bevy of skating content with the ladies at Russian Nationals, and a general discussion of our concerns for the health and safety of the skaters here and why much more needs to be done to try to preserve the health and well-being of athletes who are so often children. We also discuss the impact of injury and illness on a number of the skaters' performances, and why this whole event was a bit hard for us to enjoy.

The final stage of the Russian Cup was a smaller one than we anticipated but we discuss all of the events plus a whole lot of skating news. We discuss the recent cancellation of Europeans, a flood of COVID infections among Russian skaters, and how those factors might affect Russian nationals. Plus we go over some interesting junior fields and some senior skaters who made the push to qualify for nationals, and try to imagine what the junior and senior national fields might look like this season.

The ladies had the strongest event of NHK this year, and we discuss the cost-benefit analysis of putting triple Axels or quads into a program this season, our concerns about the consistency of PCS scoring across the field, and some strong junior skaters who have the potential to really push the top Japanese ladies.

The final Grand Prix event of the season is over, and in this episode we discuss the men (who were a bit of a mess) and the tiny ice dance field! We discuss how important it is to have time to gel and make your lifts look solid as a dance team, why a lot of the men competing are probably attempting too many quads for their readiness level, and the young guys who suffered from a quick turn-around time from their junior nationals and the lack of a JGP this season.

It's our 300th episode, and to celebrate we're discussing and gushing over the amazing pairs at Rostelecom! We speculate about an exciting future for all of these teams and potential quad twists in the mix, plus we delve deep into program choices and how we would compare how the music and choreography suits each pair and whether judges' program preference could make a difference in the standings at nationals.

We saw a fairly international field in the ice dance at Rostelecom, and we discuss the ever changing standings among the Russian teams, why a lot of the scoring was pretty outrageous, strange musical choices, and an emotional moment that was a reminder of what a strange, stressful year this has been for everyone.