Nicole Scherzinger Dancing with the Stars Backlash

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There's no question Dancing With the Stars winner Nicole Scherzinger was good enough to deserve that mirror ball trophy. The question is: was she too good? Now that season 10 of the hit show has ended, viewers and costars alike are wondering aloud if Scherzinger, 31, was overqualified for the amateur talent contest. On Wednesday, eliminated contestant Shannen Doherty essentially said that Scherzinger's experience as a Pussycat Doll performer made her impossible to compete against. And on Thursday, competitor Niecy Nash said that she just couldn't root for the singer.

"I like to see the growth. Nicole today is who she was when she got here," Nash told People. "She was a great dancer and she still is. There were moments you couldn't tell her from the pro dancers."

For many, the fun of Dancing With the Stars lies in watching uncoordinated celebrities transform into decent hoofers. The fact that a few contestants are totally, utterly dance-challenged (cough*Kate Gosselin*cough) just adds to the fun.

That's why stars with a ballroom dance background aren't allowed to compete. However, the rules are murky when it comes to other forms of dance experience. Figure skaters like Evan Lysacek, for example, have performed quite well on DWTS -- which is not surprising, since their sport is a very athletic form of choreography. Top 3 finalist Erin Andrews was a member of her college's basketball dance team. But it's unusual to have a contestant like Scherzinger, who actually makes a living singing and dancing for her fans in concerts and videos.

Former DWTS ballroom dancer Edyta Silwinska told People that Scherzinger's choreography was more difficult than the other contestants', to compensate for her experience. And the Pussycat Doll herself has made a big show of how hard the competition pushed her. But even she admits that her biggest transformation was on the inside.

"For me it's been more of a personal reward," Scherzinger said in a post-win interview. "I just feel like I've learned so much about myself as a person."

And that's great for her -- but the show isn't supposed to be about personal growth. It's about who can learn difficult technical skills a few weeks' time. So when a contestant comes along who performs choreography for a living, and who can basically wrap her leg around her head with a practiced charisma that comes from years of dancing in front of audiences -- is it any wonder the wind was taken out of her competitors' sails? She was fun to watch along with partner Derek Hough, but for the future of the show, it might be better if the DWTS producers stick with actual amateurs.