Territorial Bloggings

Thank you, America, for getting it right.

Now, I just hope you keep it up & do it again in November…

Oh, and why did Randy feel it was necessary to dress up like Captain Kangaroo last night?

43 episodes of AI:7 — it was a long haul, wasn’t it, people? We made it, though. And I just want to take this chance to thank you all for your time & loyal readership these past five months. Knowing that y’all read my scratchings makes me happy. It’s also pretty darned cool. Heck, I’d do it even if it was only an audience of bigsis (just ’cause I love the image of making her dissolve in giggles at work!), but knowing that there are also good folks out there like TK, IndianaJane, & thewife, along with a bunch of other unnamed/non-commenting folks? Well, that makes it even better. So once again I humbly thank you all for stopping by & reading.

Tonight, So You Think You Can Dance starts its 4th season. This show is, for my money, better in almost every way than AI – the format, voting, contestants, judges, & host are all better. And I don’t feel compelled to do an exhaustive breakdown/write-up of each & every episode — that’s a pretty good thing too, I think you’ll agree.

Anyhoo, congrats to David Cook, the best (yes, I said the best) AI champ ever. And big props to me for getting it right and having called it many, many, many weeks ago. I’m. that. good.

-ghp

Lots o’ stuff rattling around in the blogosphere, in the aftermath of the final performance show last night.

By and large, most of it is hewing to what the judges were bleating, in that folks have already coronated Archuleta.

Reality News Online has its usual strong summary of/commentary on the performances, though I must say they are a bit too resigned to the inevitability of Gnome-boy’s victory than I am.

As always, Reality Blurred has a great summary on what’s going on & being said. Of particular interest is the report from MSNBC, wherein an anonymous source states that Idol producers want Cook to win because Archuleta & his “camp” are considered to be “unmanageable”, his father to be “another Joe Simpson”, and “producers don’t want a rogue winner”. Fascinating. Mayhaps they should’ve communicated that to their judges before they embarrassed themselves by all but formally declaring him the winner last night. Well, Randy even did that, didn’t he?

One last nugget to put in the information hopper: DialIdol.com shows Cook significantly ahead of Archuleta. They’ve been wrong often enough this season, but I don’t think that this is quite the blow-out that so many have made it out to be (I’m talking to you, Dawg!).

I’m fully expecting to be greeted by Seacrest this evening, and to be told that, “we’ve had OUR. CLOSEST. VOTE. EVER. AMERICA. And your winner is… David. You’ll find out which one, America, after the break. And the next two hours…”

-ghp

Well. Here we are. It’s all come down to this. What started back in January, ends here in May.

We made it. Yay for us.

David & David. And I even get to make a throw-away pop-culture reference to an obscure mid-80′s, sorta one-hit wonder (hint: Google the title of this post/entry. Bonus points if you got the reference without having to Google it. Even more Bonus points if you know what handsome Kevin got got or what miss Christina drives…)

I’m glad this season is just about over. I’m glad that I’m reasonably confident that David Cook will beat Gnome-boy. I’m really glad that So You Think You Can Dance 4 starts on Thursday! This season of AI has embodied all that is good & bad about the franchise. It’s been up & down. It’s been excessive, loud, overbearing, self-important, faux, cloying, & absurd. It’s also been inspiring, touching, chock-full-o-talent, fun, and just plain good. It’s been a pleasure to watch, and it’s been a guilty pleasure. Sometimes both at the same time.

Michael Buffer? Boxing-style tale-of-the-tape? Meh…

Cook will win. Archuleta is an immature 17. Last year, Jordin was a mature 17, and it showed, as she grew before our eyes over the course of the competition. This year, Gnome-boy has regressed each week, especially when compared against the stark professionalism & maturity of David Cook. Gnome-boy has become more & more child-like each & every week. He hasn’t crumbled, per se, but neither has he grown and excelled. And that’s a damning observation, when push comes to shove.

David Cook, on the other hand, has grown, stretched, and matured as an artist. He has developed a killer instinct as a contestant on the AI stage, understanding how to work within the parameters of the weekly grind, in terms of manipulating arrangements, genre, & song choices. He’s mastered this as much as anyone ever has on the AI stage. Anyone.

Note: that coin flip? Gnome-boy won it, but had to look out to Daddy-Dearest in order to make his choice…

Round 1 – Clive Davis’ Choice

Cook: I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For – A nice enough interpretation, but not a knock-out performance. The performance by the band didn’t do justice to the vocal performance, IMO, and that brought it down a notch or so. That said, his fanbase is solid, and it’s a fanbase that is (I think) virulently anti-Gnome-boy, so he won’t be hurt.

Here’s the thing, though – I don’t think that tonight’s performances matter, in terms of the final vote & results. I think the voting blocs are pretty much set. There might be some play amongst undecideds, but only if someone really screws up & drives votes to the other guy. That is, I think votes could be lost tonight, but not won…

Archuleta: Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me – A typical performance by Gnome-boy. It was well within his narrow range of expertise. As long as he isn’t challenged to go outside that zone, he’ll be OK and he’ll make his fans swoon (and the judges risk statutory indictment). Given what usually happens on finale performance shows, then, I think he’ll be safe.

Round 2 – Songwriter’s Choice

Cook: Dream Big – The up-tempo choice was a very good one, as was bringing out the guitar. He is well served when he plays up his rock-star/front-man chops. The song itself wasn’t near as good as the first one, but the performance was way better. He’s proving his versatility. He’s proving his artistry. He’s proving his bones & why he deserves to win the whole enchilada.

Archuleta: In This Moment – Ballad. Blah, blah, blah. Message. Meh, meh, meh. The same old Gnome-boy. The same old wooden moves & hand gestures. The same old, oh-so-meaningful facial expressions & squinty-closed eyes. Gosh! I’m so over the saccharine triteness from Utah. When Randy says “You can sing the phonebook, you’re so hawt, dawg!” you know it wasn’t that good.

Round 3 – Contestant’s Choice

Cook: The World I Know – Acoustic start = nice. Emotive connection with the song = outstanding. Emotion after finishing the song = outstanding. He’s very possibly the perfect AI contestant. A rocker. Sensitive. A theater guy. A bit Emo. Funny. Mature. Humble. Sincere. Respectful. Consistent. Creative. A risk-taker. Seriously, what’s not to like? What’s not to vote for?

Re: repeating a song, David was right, Simon was WRONG.

Archuleta: Imagine – COP. OUT. He is a coward. An unimaginative coward. This proves to me he’s an immature, and probably insecure, artist, because at this most important stage of the competition, he regressed & retreated to a safe place rather than boldly make a new conquest. For this alone, he deserves to lose the competition. Begone Gnome-boy, you epic annoyance – darken my TV screen no longer. (Well, ok, one more night, but after tomorrow, no more!)

Now that all is said and done, after 5 long months, I’ll leave you with this:

1) The judges are full of it. Plain and simple. They want Gnome-boy to win. A knock-out? Nope. He was the best? Nope. I don’t see it and I don’t get it. Archuleta will not, I repeat NOT, be a moneymaker for them – he’s destined to be a dud, as he doesn’t even have Broadway potential.

2) Cook for the win — Make it so, America.

-ghp

Once again, the circumstances of day-to-day life (read: redhead #1′s first softball game of the season) precluded my preferred live-blogging approach of writing up my thoughts on the performance show. Now that were at the penultimate performance show, however, and I (along with most folks & the AI show itself) am running out of steam & enthusiasm for this edition of AI, I’ll take this break in the routine as a positive opportunity, rather than a negative.

In other words, I’m gonna change up my format & try to keep things reasonably readable.

Round 1 – Judges’ Song Choice – Winner: David Cook

This round was sadly predictable in that Randy & Paula did (respectively) Syesha & David A. no favors in their song choices. I guess Paula sort of gave David a chance to stretch himself, but he failed miserably. Randy pandered to his own ego, and let Syesha fall back into the trap of imitating a current star – something that caused her all sorts of trouble back when she was on the brink of elimination many weeks ago prior to her recent resurgence.

Simon was the only one who got it right, with his choice of song for David Cook. Yes, it was a tiny bit old fashioned. But, more important, it gave David a chance to show (yet again!) that he is a talented and versatile artist, one who is capable of stretching & growing, and of bending & molding the music, such that both he and the music both end up in new & exciting places.

Perhaps the most frightening part of the first round was that Paula spoke truth, when she correctly observed that it wasn’t about Randy & Simon dumping testosterone on each other, but rather about the singers & what they did with the songs. Scary…

Round 2 – Singers’ Song Choice – Winner: David Cook

This was the weakest of the three rounds, and the one where I think the 90 second time limitation was the most obviously evident.

Syesha, well, I’m not quite sure what she was thinking, but I don’t think her choice was as damaging as the judges did. Frankly, I was expecting Simon & Randy’s reactions – it was Paula’s that surprised me. That’s about as close to a verbal bitch-slap as we’ll ever see from Ms. Abdul – I think it’s pretty clear that she didn’t like that song choice. At all.

David Archuleta’s song choice was, quite honestly, illuminating & baffling. Baffling, because I don’t know why he would decide to go outside his wheelhouse now, of all times. Illuminating because it proves my earlier point about David Cook, re: versatility. This type of versatility is something that David Archuleta has proven himself singularly incapable of doing! It is why he should not win the competition. Yes, he is talented. No, he is not versatile. Yes, he has skills. No, he is not a complete artist.

David A.’s failure in stepping out of his talent zone was so obvious that even Paula & Randy couldn’t lob the usual praise bombs his way after his 90 second crapfest. They didn’t eviscerate it like they did Syesha’s (superior) performance, but neither did they risk a visit from the Special Victims Unit, like they do after the “normal” Gnome-boy warbling session.

David Cook’s second song was merely OK. He got hosed by the 90 second time limitation. I’ll say he won the round only because the other two did worse – it’s a backhanded compliment, but a compliment nonetheless.

Round 3 – Producers’ Song Choice – Winner: David Cook

Honestly, the producers screwed over Syesha. Big time. A song from the Happy Feet soundtrack? Really? Who’d she piss off? Wow…

And, despite Simon’s protestations about the cheeziness of Longer (of course it’s cheezy – that’s what makes it great!), I thought it was actually a great choice for Gnome-boy. It actually solidified in my mind what his niche is. He’s a balladeer in the Dan Fogelberg/Christopher Cross mold. He’s just not quite that good yet. Some day he might be, and he will probably make a nice bit of money from it, as long as his dad doesn’t suck the will to perform and/or live out of him before then.

Closing the show in the pimp slot was David Cook, and he did it up right, proving that he is the one David who belongs to be in the finals next week NO. MATTER. WHAT.

Should Go Home: David “The Gnome-Boy” Archuleta

Will Go Home: Syesha

I don’t think it’s a foregone conclusion that it will be an all-David finale, or that Archuleta is a/the lock to be there. I think it’s quite possible that Syesha could sneak into the finale, and that she could do it at Gnome-boy’s expense. It’s a gut feeling I have, based on equal parts of my personal preference & my take on how the voting blocs could break down – i.e., Syesha has a unique & potentially significant voting bloc, while the Davids split some demographic groups in such a way that I see the majority going to Cook because he’s more completely/versatilely talented (and the folks who like/respect that will get out the vote to protect that against the tween vote for Gnome-boy).

Or, I could be full of crap. We’ll see…

-ghp

Circumstances dictated that I not write up my thoughts as I watched the performances this week. It’s probably just as well, as I was tired & cranky. As I’ve had a chance to consider my initial thoughts & then tweak them a little bit, I’m actually surprised at just how much thought & consideration I’m able to put into it when I’m writing them up during a ‘normal’ week of doing it while watching the performances. I very much prefer doing it that way now. Yesterday was just a perfect storm of getting kids to practices & then getting myself to meetings at church. (I know, I know – priorities… )

David C. – Hungry Like the Wolf & Baba O’Riley – David is not a Duran Duroid, plus, the AI production staff did him no favors with how they mixed the audio on the first song – the band was nowhere to be found, and the song suffered because of it. The second song was much, much better, both as a song, and as a performance. Given Jason’s self-immolation, I don’t think this unfortunate dip in song choice (combined with the accursed first slot in the final four upset week) will hurt him. Thankfully…

Syesha – Proud Mary & A Change Is Gonna Come – She’s peaking at a good time – sounding good, looking fabu, & benefiting from being the only girl left. She ain’t that great, but she is the best girl left singing. And that’s enough to get her into this season’s Top 3. Although Syesha might’ve, just might’ve mind you, been better served by not equating her getting into the AI top 4 with the Civil Rights movement of the 1960′s. I’m just sayin’…

Jason – I Shot the Sheriff & Mr. Tambourine Man – Good Lord. He just gave up, didn’t he? Never before has a contestant just flat out given up on such a big stage. I’m even more offended than Randy & Simon, especially after seeing Carly in the audience. Jason doesn’t want to be in the competition any more, & I don’t want to write about him any more.

David A. – Stand By Me & Love Me Tender – Gag. If the judges stroked him any more, it would be considered statutory child abuse. He’s not that good, folks. A glimpse into his soulless, unfeeling eyes will tell you that. If Jason wasn’t so painfully bad, I’d really push harder to see Gnome-boy gone. He’s got as much soul as a hunk of government fromage.

Should Go Home: Jason

Will Go Home: Jason

I was not happy to see David C. in the oft-cursed lead-off slot this week, the week of the final-four, when so many true upsets have happened in odd-numbered past seasons (Tamyra in AI:1, LaToya in AI:3, & Daughtry in AI:5). I was hoping that this year we might see David A. somehow sneak in as the Final Four “upset special”. I don’t think that’ll happen. Neither, though, do I think we’ll see David C. get the Ziggy. No, I think that Jason will deservedly get sent home, unless his fans are as high as he seems to want to be, or are just plain stupid. He obviously wants to go home, and I think he deserves to go home. You don’t disrespect the contest at this stage (by forgetting lyrics, for example) without paying a price. I hope.

-ghp

Carly’s gone. I’ll take partial credit for getting that right, as I predicted the circumstances where it was possible, but not that it would happen. Kristy’s votes, along with a boatload of sympathy votes, went to Brooke, thus keeping her safe for another week. I don’t buy the bogus argument that singing Jesus Christ Superstar generated some sort of holy/fundie backlash against Carly. Remember this contest is rigged such that it’s hard to vote against someone & get them out… No, I think this was just the end of a several week streak where Carly just didn’t perform consistently good enough to stand out & build a rabid voting bloc. She had been up & down on top of having had been a little controversial coming out of Hollywood week (along with Michael) because of her prior recording contract, and her having been “chosen” by the producers & Simon. That ended up being too much for her to overcome in the end. At least she seemed ok with it…

This week, it’s Neil Diamond. I can only imagine that bigsis is happy, as I do believe she is a big fan. Me? Eh. He’s ok. I respect the man’s talent & all (and I’m secretly hoping that David C. will sing America…).

Frankly, I’ve been in a wretched mood most of today, and I think that I’m going to try something different this week. I’m going to keep it short, sweet, and succinct.

Jason – Forever In Blue Jeans & September Morn – Forever was barely ok. Same with September. Neither was what was needed to get the job done in this competition. EPIC SUCK. BEGONE.

David C. – I’m Alive & All I Really Need Is You – Hot. Compelling. Strong. I didn’t know the songs, but he made me want to know them. EPIC WIN. IDOL.

Brooke – I’m A Believer & I Am, I Said. – Shrek did Believer better. Writing that made me sad. I Am, I Said was only marginally better. Writing that made me even sadder. EPIC SAD.

David A. – Sweet Caroline & America – Sure, this punk had to go and sing my favorite Neil Diamond song. Punk-ass punk. Both of his arrangements sounded like a commercials/adverts. Weak-ass, wussy, punk. Grow a pair, let ‘em drop, & learn some rock & roll. EPIC SUCK. STOP ANNOYING ME.

Syesha – Hello Again & Thank The Lord For The Night Time – Damn, she looked good again tonight. Sounded good too. She can stay another week. EPIC PIMP SLOT.

The Top: David C.

The Safe: Syesha & David A.

The Bottom 2: Jason & Brooke

Should Go Home: Jason

Will Go Home: Jason

-ghp

Before getting to the Top 6 & Andrew Lloyd Webber, first a brief comment on last week’s elimination, seeing as how I didn’t actually see fit to write anything about it in a, you know, timely fashion. I’m not shocked that Kristy got sent home. A little disappointed, perhaps, but not shocked or surprised. In a voting bloc dynamics sense, it makes sense, even if it doesn’t make much sense in light of the fact that she was actually improving over the past few weeks. We’re now in the phase of the competition where what happens on the stage isn’t of paramount importance from one week to the next. In the aggregate, over several weeks, it can take its toll, but from one week to the next? Not so much. Keeping that in mind, let’s move along to what could be the oddest of our theme weeks, shall we?

First, a question: If Simon says someone is “too Broadway,” is that a good or a bad thing this week?

Second, David Duchovny’s in the house? But where’s Téa Leone?

Third, all those arm waving ditzes in the mosh pit? They’re sorority girls they bus in just for that purpose.

Wow, Ryan pinned Paula down. Paula didn’t like that one little bit, did she? She stammered & stuttered her way through that non-answer more than usual. Heh.

ALW says it’s all about words, words, words.

Ok, then. Let’s sing, sing, sing.

Syesha – One Rock and Roll Too Many – I’d like to see her fall prey to the ‘curse of the opening slot’ (it seems that more eliminations have come from the first performer slot than would be statistically warranted). That said, I think that Syesha is the ‘bad penny’ for this season – the one who inexplicably stays around too long (ala Nikki McKibbin, Josh Gracin, Jasmine Trias, etc…). Her acting ability seems to have served her well this week (and she does have a fundamentally good/solid voice), they did her hair up nice this week, and she surely wore that little red dress up nice! Randy, Paula & Simon were right – this is her element & her sexy, happy place.

Jason – Memory – He hadn’t seen any of the musicals? The hellz you say! I’ve never seen Cats, so I can’t compare Jason’s version to the original – that said, Jason’s was nicely understated, and I can’t imagine it not appealing to his core constituency. He looked sharp, his eyes were clear, his smile was bright, and the voice was pure. I liked it. Paula, as a member of the core demo, ‘gets’ him. Randy & Simon don’t. Pretty simple. I’m not sure how it’ll translate & play out in the voting bloc arena, but my gut inclination is that he’ll be safe this week.

Brooke – You Must Love Me – The connection that ALW had with Brooke was palpable. It was the kind of moment that you hope for when they announce who the celeb coaches will be, and it makes it worth enduring all the drek that we endured from people like Mimi Carey last week. ALW is a monster talent and a consummate professional, and Brooke is a truly talented cypher – genuine, caring, & vulnerable. She won’t win this contest, but if she can deliver moments like this one, she’s well worth having on this program.

Wow. She forgot the words. So she had the band start over. That took guts. Screw what Paula said. In the end, though, that was not a great performance. Heartfelt & vulnerable, but not great. Paula wanted to verbally bitch slap her, and came about as close to doing so as we will ever see from Ms. Abdul. Unless this generates a boatload of sympathy votes for her, and/or she picks up a lots of support from VoteForTheWorst.com as their new choice, I think Brooke’s time could be running out.

David A. – Think of Me – Much like Syesha, I think that David is in his element this week. Sweeping, emotional, powerful ballads. That’s Broadway. That’s showtunes. That’s David. He kept his eyes open, so he followed the advice he was given. He’s golden again this week. I still don’t want him to win, but he’s safe as a baby again this week. Just don’t make me listen to him talk, ok?

Carly – Jesus Christ Superstar – ALW once again proved his worth as a coach, getting her to switch to the proper song. and she knocked it out of the park. The Carly who the producers preordained as a pre-Hollywood pick to tout graced us with a visit tonight. And it was really nice to see her again – it’s been a while since we saw her sing Come Together. Plus, good or bad, right or wrong, she’s better served when she covers up the tatts…

David C. – Music of the Night – Good news: He gets the pimp slot. Not so good news: He gets the pimp slot during ALW week. He grew up doing musical theater, eh? Ok, sure. I shouldn’t have doubted him. Dude. Nailed. It. He proved that he can flat out sing. He is the best this competition has to offer this year. You can keep Archuleta. Cook is better. BETTER. It’s just that simple. That was an Idol Moment, people. Goose bumps & everything. Even if he, by some odd chance, doesn’t win the vote count, David Cook will be the real winner of AI:7 – he’ll be the one that will be remembered 5, 10, 15 years down the line.

The Top: David C.

The Safe: David A. & Syesha

The Bottom 3: Brooke, Carly, & Jason

Should Go Home: Brooke

Will Go Home: Brooke

Please note that on the bottom 3, I would prefer to have Syesha there instead of Carly, but I really think that the voting bloc breakdown will happen in such a way that Syesha will be safe. The one wildcard scenario is if Kristy’s fans continue to vote, but shift their votes en masse to Brooke (which would be my most logical guess, unless they somehow view either Jason or David C. as more appealing – that’s the thing about trying to predict…). If that happens, then that could drop Syesha into the bottom 3 and spell doom for, quite possibly, Jason. I don’t think it’ll break that way, though, and we’ll be seeing the last of fair Brooke tomorrow night.

-ghp

Yeah, yeah, Ryan. Shocking elimination. Every vote counts. Blah, blah, blah. Pimp the vote out, Ry-ry.

Paula’s looking especially glammed up tonight. Gee, I wonder why?

Tonight, we get the Top 7 singing, and being ‘coached’ by quite possibly the ‘diva-iest’ of all the divas, Mariah Carey. She has 5 octave range. She’s a legend. She’s sold millions upon millions of records. She’s gorgeous. She’s just your friend. Wearing spray-on black jeans. Just normal old Mimi from the block. Oh yeah, and she’s a certifiable whack-job. I can only imagine what fun this will be tonight…

David A. – When You Believe – Meeting Mariah was scary? Why? Because she’s a girl? Because she’s got those boobie thingies? Who let him wear leather pants? Why is his posture so bad? Can I write every sentence as a question? Did I like the falsetto? Did I like the lower register? Will David be safe? No, no, no, and yes.

Carly – Without You – She was emotional last week because she thought she was the one who was gone, that’s why. Nice dress. The first girl to perform, and, thus, the first to be suffer in comparison. And rest assured, all the girls will suffer in comparison to Mariah this week – that’s just a given, because none of them are as talented. That aside, Carly did a very nice job of delivering this performance, rebounding from a few sub-par performances. I wouldn’t eliminate her this week, by any stretch, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she finds herself in the bottom 3 again this week.

Syesha – Vanishing – The actress/mimic was able to learn directly from the source this week. I would hope that the voting blocs will shift & move in the aftermath of Michael’s elimination such that Carly is kept safe & Syesha is kept at risk. The judges, predictably, loved her this week. Hopefully, that will lull her fans into a sense of complacency, and they won’t feel the sense of urgency to get out the vote. She’s the one I want gone & banished from my TV.

Brooke – Heroes – She’s all sparkly & back in her comfort zone at the piano. Her genuineness hasn’t warn out its welcome with me like David A.’s has (the wife disagrees with me slightly on this…). Not a great performance, but a very, very good one. If things were based solely on performances, Brooke would be safe without question, I think. Factoring in voting bloc dynamics, I think she’s more than a little at risk of being in the bottom 3, but not really in much danger of getting sent home.

Kristy – Forever – Her confidence has been growing over the past few weeks. I’m not sure it’ll continue. She looks awfully good, in a Carrie Underwood-esqe way. Ok, I was wrong – she’s continued the got streak. They countryfied the arrangement, making it just twangy enough to let Kristy shine. And she did, perhaps even enough to stay out of the bottom 3 again this week. Nicely done.

David C. – Always Be My Baby – Another step outside the box? Uh-oh. Pretty & haunting? Ruh-roh, Raggy! Well, David Alt/Emo-Rocked the crap out of that pop hit didn’t he? I’m not a fan of the song, but I liked the performance a whole bunch. He’s back with a vengeance & ready for radio. Taking risks & making them pay off. Boo-yah!

Jason – I Wanna Cry – Rasta in the pimp slot, party people! Very understated. Very focused on his pure vocal tone. I don’t think it was an ‘Idol Moment’ performance, but it was a great follow-up to last week’s performance. I think his fans will like it a lot, and he’ll still be able to expand his voting bloc with it. Solid.

The Top: David C.

The Safe Middle: David A. & Jason

The At-Risk Middle: Kristy

The Bottom 3: Brooke, Carly, & Syesha

Should Go Home: Syesha

Will Go Home: Syesha

This is when is starts to get tougher to pick a bottom 3 and, oftentimes, to predict the contestant sent home. This week, I agree with Simon – the guys carried the night. The bottom 3 will be populated by 3 of the 4 girls. Who’ll get a pass? I don’t know, but I’d guess Kristy, who has a rather motivated voting bloc. I will not discount that I’m engaging in wishful thinking, because I really do want her gone, but I’ll stick with my predictions.

-ghp

Down & out down under.

Is the elimination of Michael Johns the shocking & outrageous elimination that we seem to get every season? “Why, oh, why?”, so many seem to be asking, did America get it so very wrong?

No, I don’t think this was the shocking elimination. The only truly “shocking” eliminations would’ve been either of the Davids. Anyone else would’ve been easily explainable.

“How could that be?” you ask, as Michael was such a favorite from so early in the audition phase.

Well, it’s pretty easy to explain, actually. As good as he was, overall, and as nice a guy as he was, in general, Michael had pretty long dry spell from Hollywood week through to about two weeks ago. He pretty much coasted by on talent/rep, looks, & other contestants who had more of the suck than he did. Once the field got weeded out & the competition got comparatively stronger, it was too little, too late for him to ratchet up his game. Folks like David C. had already firmly established their hold on the commonly held fanbase votes, so there was no real way for Michael to play catch up enough to stay in the competition.

It’s too bad, but that’s the phase of the competition that we’re in now. Now, it’s all about seeing how the voting bloc dynamics play out, especially after each elimination. Michael’s votes are most likely to get split between David C. & Carly, I would think, which doesn’t bode well at all for Syesha.

Aside from this lesson in voting bloc dynamics theory, the only interesting part of the results show for me was anticipating the outrage — outrage, I tells you! — at how Seacrest tormented poor Michael by hinting that there might not be an elimination, because there wasn’t one last year. Here’s the thing – while I agree that it was more than a bit tacky, I don’t think it was in any way, shape, or form Seacrest’s idea. He’s just saying what they tell him to say. So, I don’t blame him.

Next week, I think we’ll see things get back to a more normal/expected form re: the contestant eliminated.

-ghp

Idol Gives Back week. Yipee…

Bill Ford’s in the house. I wonder just how they were ever able to get him on the hook…

Wow, not only were the performers inspired this week, as it looks like Paula’s boobs were inspired to make another appearance this week. (were they the chihuahuas that everyone kept mentioning?)

Let the guilt-a-thon begin with an 8-pack of ‘inspirational’ performances.

Hopefully they won’t be insipid performances.

Michael – Dream On – Aerosmith. Nice. And he actually sounds a tiny bit like Steven Tyler did way back in the day 30+ years ago before he became the caterwauling wall of sound that we all know & love. The falsetto? Yeah, dawg – he went for it & got it. That was great, both to show that Michael is still hot, and to show just how awesome good that Aerosmith was back in the day. Their early stuff. ROCKED. DAMN. HARD. But, Michael? Lose the ascot. Kthx.

Syesha – I Believe – A song by Fantasia? Fan-freakin-tasia? I am writing this before hearing the song, having paused the DVR so I can write this — SYESHA MUST BE ELIMINATED. THIS IS NON-NEGOTIABLE. I do not care how anyone else performs for the rest of the show. Syesha deserves to go, as she has proven that she has no ability at all to chose a song properly. And I don’t like Syesha’s attitude that much anymore, either.

Jason – Somewhere Over The Rainbow – A ukulele version, huh? Ok, it works for me. Risks being a bit kitschy, but I think I remember it from the movie 50 First Dates, and it was actually kinda sweet there. It didn’t have the emotional power of Kat McPhee’s tour-de-force performance in AI:5, but it didn’t really have to be all that, did it? I liked it a lot, and Castro’s fans will like it even more.

Kristy – Anyway – Staying with Country? Good choice. She’s looking very good tonight, and that never hurts, especially when it’s a contemporary good looking rather than an old-fashioned good looking. I think that Kristy has a career waiting for her in Nashville – not as a superstar, but definitely as a successful singer of some sort.

David C. – Innocent – Hrm. A song from a band that might not be known by the widest range of people. Potentially a risky choice, no matter how much he likes it personally. It started out a little rough for me, and it never really improved all that much. He was into the performance, emotionally, and that was all well and good, but I just didn’t get it tonight. This was his weakest performance to date, IMO. He’s due an off week, but he’d better not make a habit of it, because he’s still my favorite to win the whole shebang. ‘Pompous’ isn’t the best word to describe the performance – ‘self-indulgent’ is.

Carly – Show Must Go On – Queen’s always a risky choice, and it usually kills the guys who take it on. Carly looked fierce tonight, and she sounded just as fierce. She took the risk and made it pay off. This girl has really got the goods, in terms of the vocal instrument with which God has blessed her. This wasn’t my favorite Queen song, but she did it fierce justice.

David A. – Angels – He had a hard time picking an inspirational song? But when doesn’t he sing an inspirational song that hits us over the head with a message? Sheesh! SMOKE MACHINES? Spare us the dramatics. Aw, I guess it was a technically good enough performance, but I still find him an ever more annoying presence on my TV, particularly when he’s not singing. It’s like we’re looking back at the teen pictures of a little old troll doll.

Brooke – You’ve Got A Friend – Well, it feels kinda strange writing this, but Brooke’s in the pimp slot. Well, I think this is a song that’s right in her 70′s/hippie/folkie chick wheelhouse. And Brooke didn’t disappoint, as she did a standout job with it. For this week, on tonight’s show, this was the song & performance you wanted in the pimp slot (with Jason’s being a close second, I think…).

The Top: Jason

The Safe Middle: Michael, David A., & David C.

The At-Risk Middle: Carly, Brooke, & Kristy

The Bottom 3: Syesha, Syesha, & Syesha

Should Go Home: Syesha

Will Go Home: Syesha

Maybe the most inspiring, hope-filled moment for me tonight? The very first teaser advert for SYTYCD? – now that’s what I’m talkin’ about!

As for AI, tonight was ok. Not the best we’ve seen, but not the worst, either. AI this week? Well, I’m not a huge fan. At least I don’t have to worry about watching it tomorrow night. It’ll be like an unexpected night off, before jumping back in with the results on Thursday.

Hopefully, the results show won’t be too difficult to sit through.

-ghp