Is Dancing With the Stars a dance contest, or a popularity contest?

That question was apparently answered tonight when Donny Osmond was handed the prestigious but still ever-so-tacky Mirror Ball trophy as the season 9 champion, edging out R&B singer Mya.

Look, it's hard to say anything against Donny. He's lived practically his entire existence in the public eye without a hint of scandal, whereas many of today's celebrities rarely make six months without adding to their rap sheets. And at age 51 he kept pace with contestants less than half his age. It was also nice to see his victory shared by partner Kym Johnson, a 'DWTS' stalwart since season 3 who had previously been saddled with trying to make the likes of Jerry Springer and Mark Cuban look graceful.

However, there is simply no disputing that Mya was the better dancer.

Donny Osmond has won more than just the coveted mirror ball trophy on Season 9 of 'Dancing With the Stars.' The popular entertainer now has permanent bragging rights over his sister Marie, who came in third when she danced in Season 5 of the reality competition series.

After an impressive Broadway-themed freestyle on Monday and an encore of their Argentine tango on Tuesday, Donny and his partner, Kym Johnson, were able to match the judges' scores of front-runner Mya and her partner Dmitry Chaplin. Donny's fan base, which dates back to the 1960s when he appeared with his singing brothers on The Andy Williams Show, helped propel him to the winner's circle.

As soon as he won, Osmond grabbed his wife, Debbie, and carried her onto the stage. Then, in the ultimate sign of brother-sister solidarity, Donny hugged sister Marie before accepting the trophy (no, she didn't faint).

AOL was right there on the dance floor immediately after the star-studded finale to talk to the winners, the finalists (including third place finisher Kelly Osbourne and her partner Louis Van Amstel), other Season 9 competitors and returning favorites to get their reactions.

Who won 'Dancing With the Stars' 2009? In tonight's 'DWTS' finale, it was Donny Osmond, the "showbiz legend," who edged out R&B singer Mya in the viewers' votes. Since both of them had received the same total score in the judges' evaluations of their four dance routines in the two-night season-finale competition, Donny took home the season 9 Mirror Ball trophy.

Coming in third was Kelly Osbourne, the second-generation reality TV star, an apparent viewer favorite who had come in a distant third in the judges' votes.

Based on tonight's finale, who should win 'Dancing With the Stars' season 9?

The anticipation over tonight's primetime showdown on 'Dancing with the Stars' is so palpable, you can practically feel the collective heart beat of the 18 million viewers who tuned in last week to watch Kelly Osbourne, Mya and Donny Osmond make the final cut after nine weeks of gorgeous but grueling competition.

Regardless of who wins, the standout star of the season is Kelly Osbourne. Her two-month triumph in using dance as an outlet for personal growth would make the kids from 'Fame' and 'High School Musical' proud. In in our opinion, she should be the one to win the Mirror Ball trophy. Why? We've got five reasons:

1. She has gone the distance. "Kelly's journey has been incredible," 'DWTS' co-host Samantha Harris told 'The Insider' the day after Osbourne made the finals. "She's gone from completely being the farthest thing from a dancer to developing into a beautiful lady [who is] graceful on the dance floor, and I love to see that kind of success."

Get ready to rumba!

AOL TV will be live tweeting this week's 'Dancing With the Stars' finale, beginning tonight at 8PM EST. We'll also be covering tomorrow's two-hour results show (9PM), so plan your tweets accordingly. See you then!

Follow us on Twitter @readytorumba.

Back in August, shortly after 'Dancing With the Stars' announced its newest cast of contestants, an AOL Television poll asked users to predict the winner of this season's competition. Out of a potential 16 choices, our readers' Top 5 most popular picks included Season 9's last 3 remaining contestants: Donny Osmond, Mya, and Kelly Osbourne. Sure-footed Osmond received the majority of poll votes as the most likely champ of the ballroom.

However, once the season kicked off, everything changed. In a recent 'TV Guide' poll, Mya received the highest votes (43 percent) for most deserving winner of Season 9's competition. As the intensity heats up, bloggers and famous fans remain divided over who will take home the Mirror Ball trophy.

Though maybe not the show's best go-round, season 9 of 'Dancing With the Stars' has provided its share of moments, some of which we'd just as soon forget: Debi Mazar's grouchiness; Macy Gray's bleeped comment about, er, losing her dance virginity; Aaron Carter's weepy surrogate father-son relationship with Len Goodman; Donny Osmond and Bruno Tonioli's smoochy journey to the dark side; and the weekly brain freeze when we tried to figure out again who exactly Mark Dacascos is.

But 'DWTS' is really all about the dancing. Right? We've compiled our list of the five best and worst performances of this season. Feel free to take issue in the comments or add your own favorites.

Mya had the top scores. Donny Osmond has the biggest fan base. And Kelly Osbourne likely captured the young vote. Alas, that didn't leave a spot in the 'Dancing With the Stars' finals for model Joanna Krupa and her partner Derek Hough, the couple that arguably turned in the most consistently creative dances this season. (The orange-clad duo's ultra-sexy mambo on Oct. 26th was almost too hot for the family-themed show.)

AOL was backstage to talk to Krupa and Hough about making it to the semi-finals, her Playboy cover and their plans for the future. We also chatted with the three finalist couples about the tough semi-final competition and what they'll need to do to win the coveted mirror ball trophy in the season 9 finale next week.

We're down to the Final Four. Which star doesn't deserve a place in next week's finale? Vote now!

They've received the only perfect score of the season. But can singer Mya and her pro partner, Dmitry Chaplin, go all the way and win the coveted mirror ball trophy?

Although they've made it to the semi-finals, Mya and Dmitry still have their work cut out for them, including winning over the millions of fans watching the show at home.

But popularity isn't everything on 'Dancing.' The sexy duo has also turned in consistently solid dances all season, and they now have the scores to prove it.

AOL TV recently spoke to Mya and Dmitry about their perfect 30, their semi-final competitiors and the behind-the-scenes video packages.

Aaron Carter and partner Karina Smirnoff have been voted off 'Dancing With the Stars' just missing out on advancing to the semi-finals. The pop singer has nothing to be ashamed of -- especially since this season started out with a record 16 competing couples.

After the elimination show, AOL spoke to Carter and Smirnoff about their exit and to the remaining couples (except Kelly Osbourne and Louis Van Amstel, who had to get on a plane for the east coast) about next week's competition, as well as deadpan Kenny Mayne's merciless 'Dance Center' segment.

Also, Sabrina Ryan ('The Cheetah Girls'), who's the poster child for shocking eliminations due to her early dismissal in season 5, shared her thoughts on getting to live out every former 'DWTS' celebrity's dream by being invited back by viewers to take one more twirl on the dance floor.