The Masked Dancer recap: Moth flies away, revealed as famed activist
Michael Becker/ FOX
Warning: This article contains spoilers about The Masked Dancer season 1, episode 3.
The Masked Dancer has so far revealed a compelling array of famous faces, with Ice-T unveiled in the premiere and Bill Nye unmasked last episode. The show continued the tradition with Wednesday's Group B Playoffs, as Moth was eliminated — and you'll never guess who was beneath her wings.
We started off the episode with a rare sighting: panelist Ken Jeong donning a crown and being celebrated for his correct guess. Last week, he was the only one to predict Ice Cube was the beloved science educator, a feat the comedian jokingly (I hope) said outranked "my wife and both of my kids."
He was joined by Paula Abdul, Ashley Tisdale, Brian Austin Green, and guest Cheryl Hines at the panelists' table, while Craig Robinson once again served as host.
First to the dance floor was Zebra, who performed a duet to K-Ci & JoJo's classic R&B track "All My Life." The UFC, mentorship, and record breaker clues had the panelists guessing all sorts of people, from Floyd Mayweather to Tito Ortiz.
"He has a really big neck," Green said of Ortiz and Zebra's similarity.
Making the case for Mario Lopez, Tisdale argued, "Latin guys know how to thrust really well."
Can't argue with these ironclad reasonings!
Next was Cotton Candy, who did a group performance set to the very fitting "Sour Candy" from Lady Gaga and Blackpink. The contestant showed off some impressive moves last episode — especially considering she took a rough fall during rehearsals — and she continued to wow this time around. I felt a kinship with the non-dancer panelists, who praised Cotton Candy's steps with expert terms like "twirl around" and "straight leg butt wiggle."
Her package featured lipstick, the phrase "iced out," and an eagle with a USA pin, leading Tisdale to guess she was Tara Lipinski. Meanwhile, Green leaned toward another Olympic figure skater, Kristi Yamaguchi.
Moth stepped to Michael Buble's version of "Sway."
Then Sloth capped off the night with a ribbon dance set to Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes' "Up Where We Belong." In his clue package, we saw Sloth recreating the boombox scene from Say Anything, as well as the clue "00FEEd00."
The furry competitor, who once again displayed his physical comedy chops, was thought by the panelists to be Jonathan Groff, Keegan-Michael Key, or Will Ferrell, who actually twirled with ribbons in the movie Old School.
Robinson announced that Moth scored the least amount of votes from the audience, panelists, and "superfans" from around the country.
She was revealed to be ... child safety activist and New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Smart!
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Green was the sole panelist who guessed Smart, as he said he was passionate about working with child safety organizations. Like Moth stated in her clue package, Smart has given a Ted Talk, has connections to the letters EAS and BYU (her initials; and she's an alumna of Brigham Young University), and appeared on Dateline (the dates on a line image).
"You have been an inspiration for so many people. And you've done so much good with a really difficult situation. We need more people like you on the planet," Green told Smart, who survived a 2002 kidnapping that gained national attention and went on to work as an advocate for victims of sex abuse, after her reveal.
Next week, Group A's Shark, Tulip, Cricket, and Exotic Bird will duke it out to see who will join Zebra, Cotton Candy, and Sloth in the Super Six.
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