Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Top 10: Results Show

Welcome Back to the Top 10 Results show. A lot of questions to be answered tonight. Will Tim go home? Will the Judges use the Judge's Save? Will Ryan actually get more awkward and uncomfortable to watch? Unfortunately, only one of those questions gets a yes, but we'll get to that. Let's get to the show. Oh wait, sorry, let's get to Clash of The Titans, a movie no doubt from Fox movies. Alright, now let's get to the results. Oops, nope wrong again...

Musical Interlude #1: 3 minutes into the show and we get Ruben Studdard, Season 2 winner, and donut eating champion. Actually the guy looks like he lost some weight, I guess his album sales aren't affording him enough money to eat. Just kidding, but seriously, he does look good, and doesn't sound half bad. Still think Clay Aiken should have won his season but it's been 7 years, I'm over it.

After another corny Ford Commercial we are finally ready for the results. Oh wait, sorry, let's get to another Clash of The Titans commercial.

After nearly 20 minutes of nothing but filler we are ready.

Onto The Results:

Lee-Still looks and sounds so uncomfortable when he isn't singing, but despite that he is completely Safe.

Casey-Another weird awkward interview with Ryan but in the end he is again Safe this week.

Aaron-Ryan asks Simon for advice for the kid and again it turns into a weird moment and Simon says simply "Let's Get Back To The Music". Couldn't agree more, Aaron is safe.

Siobhan vs Katie-Both definitely had worse weeks than the previous. Sibohan says she can give a million excuses for what happened but she's not that type of person. I definitely respect that, given that since Paige Miles was booted from the show last week all she has are excuses for her getting eliminated. Despite Siobhan thinking she was going, Katie actually gets sent to the Bottom 3.

Musical Interlude #2: Guest mentor Usher takes the stage. Obviously, this was taped earlier in the day or at another point but he definitely sounds good.

Back To The Results:

Didi-A quick Bottom 3 entry for Didi. She admits that she would love to play the guitar but is just a beginner and doesn't feel comfortable. I'm sure she is getting used to that, especially with Ryan-Touchy Feely-Seacrest.

Mike-Despite a pretty decent fake out, Mike is Safe, he picks up Ryan in his Shrek-like anger.

Crystal-Um, SAFE. Quick and painless.

Tim v Andrew-Tim still is smiling, Kara still doesn't get it, she kind of thinks that Tim doesn't really totally get what the judge's say, not saying that Tim is just a pretty face but...Andrew had a pretty decent week and gets rewarded for it, he's Safe and Tim is in the Bottom 3.

Bottom 3:
Tim
Katie
Didi.

First Safe Is? Katie. She was in Bottom 3 last week and sent back 1st, same thing again.

Bottom 2: Tim & Didi

Musical Interlude #3: P-Diddy and some strobe light effects.

And The Person Going Home or Getting Judge's Save Is? Didi. Tim(Smiles Like a Goon)Urban is safe. Tim has now become the Sanjaya of Season 9. He keeps getting into the Bottom 3 but is getting just enough votes to stay out. Question is can Didi save herself.

Do The Judge's Save Her? Nope, Didi's going home. Despite a valiant effort and a much better showing than the previous night Didi is going home.

Final Thoughts: Didi wasn't great last night, far from it, but for Tim to still be there while she is gone shows that American Idol really is a shell of its former self. To think that Tim, Andrew, Aaron, Casey & Katie are still around at this point while Lilly Scott, Katleyn Epperly & now Didi Benami are sitting at home is just not right.




We'll see you back here next week when the theme for the Top 9 is singing the Lennon-McCartney catalog.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Top 10: R&B Week

Welcome back all you American Idol fans, and those haters as well. This week the Top 10 is doing R&B with guest mentor Usher. Definitely an upgrade from Miley Cyrus, but that's not saying a tremendous amount. Another 15 minutes before the first performance, they do like their filler. But without further ado, let's see how those contestants did.

How Did The Contestants Do?


Sibohan:(Through The Fire) She is definitely getting into that one trick pony territory. She hits the high note, but honestly not too much more, at least not tonight. Probably her weakest one yet, definitely all over the place. Don't get why the judges got to say their critiques, then went to Ryan, then did it a second time. I know they don't want her to get voted out due to one bad performance but isn't that what the Judge's Save is for? If anything weird happens they can save her, there's no need to give her false positivity tonight. Grade=B-

Casey(Hold On I'm Coming): Alright, Casey is the one trick pony, if this was Guitar Idol he'd be in good shape. Has he come out with his guitar yet and done anything different than any other week. Sure he is in his safety zone, but when the numbers start to dwindle a little he's going to be in trouble. Probably safe this week but it's getting old fast. Grade=B-

Michael(Ready For Love):Still feel that when Michael plays the guitar it looks like he isn't actually playing, but I give him credit for trying to switch it up. He sounded pretty decent, but it was a little boring. Still solid, he is definitely of the best on this show, but again, that's not saying a whole lot. Grade=B+

Didi(What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted): She's in trouble, not saying she's going home due to the atrociousness of Tim, but I actually agree with Kara, she's lost her way a little. I definitely root for to succeed but she doesn't really have anything definable yet. The song itself started slow then got faster, I think if she stayed slower it would have helped her a bit,she did a little too much with it. Still very cute girl, but she could possibly be in trouble. Also, can Ryan stop touching her, it makes me awkward, her awkward and the audience awkward. Grade: C+

Tim(Sweet Love): Yikes. Honestly, that's really the word. I'm sure the guy is very nice and all but honestly he's becoming a joke at this point. He sings just terribly, he has a weird looking smile and odd eye contact with the camera. I know there are plenty of bad singers left on this show but he is by far the worst. He doesn't even deserve any more words. Grade: F

Andrew(Forever): I give this guy a lot of credit, he has gotten panned every week since he did "Straight Up" about 2 months ago, but he stuck around and this week he definitely proved that he deserved to outlast Lacey and Paige. He did a really nice job of a current song. He made it different and he just seemed like a different person. Not saying he won't go from up to back down next week, but for this week very solid. Grade=B+

Katie(Chain of Fools): So Randy comparing Katie as a young Christina Aguilera is like comparing a tee-ball player to a major leaguer, there's no comparison. Sure she has a big voice and can hit the high notes but if she was Bottom 3 last week and I believe sounded better than this week than she can fall right back into the Bottom 3 again. Grade=C

Lee(Treat Her Like A Lady): Definitely stepped up his game. Lee did a really nice job, still looks a little awkward when he is just standing or being judged but when he sings it's really pretty powerful. He definitely surpassed Siobhan in the rankings this week as Top 2 contender with Crystal. Grade=A-

Crystal(Midnight Train To Georgia): Honestly she would be good in any previous season of American Idol, but in this dreck of a season she is making this into her own personal concert with everyone else competing for Top 2 or 3. I love that she tried something different and did the piano. I can definitely see that she lost a little of her vibe when sitting behind the piano or standing, but if goes back to who she really is then she is in good shape. Still, head and shoulders better than the rest of the bunch almost put together. Grade=A

Aaron(Ain't No Sunshine): This song is almost as overplayed and done on this show than last week's "Against All Odds". If you do a song that has been done tons and tons of times before on the show then you have to go even beyond those comparisons, let alone the original, and Aaron didn't quite pull it off. Very shaky the whole way through. I agree he'll be safe due to Tim's craptastic performance, but like Casey, when the numbers start to dwindle a little he'll definitely be in some danger. Grade=C

How Was The Show:Overall, the show was a lot better than last week. Andrew stepping up his game, the more entertaining critiques by the judges, and a better guest mentor all added up to a solid show. This was probably Ellen Degeneres' best week, she was funny and on point. The only one who really is making the show weird is Ryan. He is making things way awkward this year, from getting Andrew Garcia's mother to pick a fight with Simon, to making Didi uncomfortable and crying, to touching Didi again the entire time, Ryan has got to tone it down. I know he is getting paid alot and he is getting pretty famous but he's beginning to be the weak link in the show. Also did anyone else notice that they didn't pan to Usher after the first half of the show? I think he left, and who wouldn't after Tim's performance. And speaking of Tim...

Who's Going Home? Tim, he was Bottom 3 in Top 12, Bottom 2 last week, so he should be going home this week. He can't hide behind Lacey or Paige anymore, he is the weakest singer/performer and he's becoming kind of a mockery of the whole thing. He gets to go on tour, that's enough reward for this guy, it's time to go.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Top 11 Results Show

Welcome back to the Top 11 Results Show Recap. Pretty important week, the Top 10 gets to go on the American Idol tour. And on we go...

Group Performance: A terrible beginning of the show, kind of fits with last night's show. Are they really singing "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go"? Yikes. Wham? Really? Alright, great start. Did anyone else notice that they aren't even singing live anymore? I feel like Bowersox wasn't even trying to mouth the right words. Gotta love Bowersox.

On To The Results(Finally):
Siobhan-Safe, no doubt about that one. She is potential Top 2 or 3 right now.

Lee & Casey vs. Paige & Tim-Although Ryan tried to and almost did trick Tim into thinking that he wasn't heading to the bottom 3, he along with Paige are sent to the uncomfortable Bottom 3 stools, therefore Lee and Casey are safe this week. Deservedly so, Paige and Tim were terrible last night and the American public got it right.

Musical Interlude #1: Miley Cyrus. Don't quite get the Miley Cyrus hype, is she really a star or is her Hannah Montana character the star? Plus, the girl just doesn't sound great at all, she kind of sounds like a 78 year old smoker, but the teen girls in the audience love every second of it.

Back To The Results:

Aaron-Safe and very happy about it, opposed to Lee who still looks pissed. Dude you made the Top 10 take the stick out.

Didi- Safe. Thankfully she's safe despite getting trashed by the judges. I like that she doesn't want to conform to the judge's whims. Let her be who she wants to be. Kara especially likes to put people into a specific box and if they try to do something different it gets panned, just not right. Also, does anyone else notice that Ryan touches Didi in some form or another every week? This week he held her hand, another week he kind of touched her shoulders. Very interesting.

Michael-Safe. And he seemed a little more humble this week, which is always good. Stay humble, please.

Crystal-Safe. Still love that she doesn't listen to anything the judge's say but listens to herself and what she wants to do. We'll see next week if she leaves the guitar at home.

Katie vs Andrew-Suprisingly, Andrew is safe and Katie is in the Bottom 3. Despite Simon saying Andrew sucked the soul out of the song he sang Katie is in the Bottom 3.

Bottom 3:
Katie
Tim
Paige


First Safe: Katie, she didn't deserve to go home this week, but don't mind her going into the Bottom 3.

Bottom 2:
Tim & Paige. Again incredibly predictable and right on the money

Musical Interlude #2: Joe Jonas and Demi Levato. I guess they are supposed to be something cute and enjoyable but instead I feel they should be voted out tonight. They sound worse then the majority of the contestants did last night, and that's saying something.

Who's Going Home? Paige, and she doesn't even get the chance to get saved by the judges. Simon tells her that she has no chance of being saved and before she was about to sing they tell her not to. Rough, but it was the right way to go. Don't give the girl hope if she has none. They should do this every week. Don't let the contestants sing for the judges, unless they actually have a shot to be saved. It was the right person going home tonight for sure. Goodbye Paige, we hardly knew ye, yet knew too much.




See you next week for Soul & R&B Week with Usher.

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Top 11 Perform: #1 Billboard Hits

Welcome back, American Idol fans, and non-fans. We were in for a treat tonight, with Ms. Miley Cyrus as the guest mentor. Awesome!(By the way, that was sarcasm). Although it took nearly 10 minutes before the 1st performance on the show I'm not going to delay any longer. Lets' get to the show and how these contestants did:

How Did The Contestants Do?

Lee(The Letter)--Over 5000 songs to choose from and Lee decided to do this one. Lee still looks pretty sad and or pissed off. I don't really get the big band arrangement. Plus what the hell was Ellen talking about with the pen bit. The whole thing was very strange. Grade=B

Paige(Against All Odds)--First of all why does she have to sing like she's in a library, the whispering is really weird. The song was very choppy and had no flow. If the best thing you can say about the chick is that she didn't fall down then it probably isn't great, and it wasn't. She seemed like she gave up and no spoiler alert but Paige has just got to go. Grade=F





Tim(Crazy Little Thing Called Love)--I give the guy credit for trying to hide his voice behind moving around the stage, but in the words of Randy Jackson "Dawg, that was not good". Thankfully, Paige before him was just that terrible that Tim deserves to be in the Bottom 3 but won't go home. Grade=D-

Aaron(I Dont'Want To Miss A Thing)-He's definetly a cute kid but nothing to faint over. His hair looks better than last week, that's for sure. Sounded pretty good despite saying that he's been sick. The high notes were pretty bad but overall solid, and the kid is definetly a David Archuleta type. Grade=C+

Crystal(Me & Bobby McGee)-)-I'm sure Crystal didn't enjoy trying to impress Miley Cyrus. Not sure if she's a big Hannah Montana fan. As Simon said, Crystal is in a league of her own. She can't even be compared to the dreck that is the rest of the contestants. As long as she stays humble and doesn't get cocky she has a great shot to win this thing.Grade=A-

Andrew(I Heard It Through The Grapevine)- -Very odd performance, he is going to give Paige a run for her money in going home this week. I think just barely he will stick around, but that just wasn't a good perfomance. It was stiff and just gave off a very weird vibe. Simon was right on the money saying that they might have overhyped his version of "Straight Up" several weeks back, because since then he has just been terrible. Grade=D



Michael(When A Man Loves A Woman)--Don't get all the love that Michael gets. He's decent but in reality if this season's contestants were just a little bit better Michael would get swallowed up. Obviously, he has nothing to worry about due to Paige, Andrew and Tim. Grade=C

Katie(Big Girls Don't Cry)--Sounded better than she has ever sounded. Still not even close to being in Top 3 or 4 but she can stick around for awhile. With the terrible performaces that there have been, Katie just has to stay under the radar and she'll last for awhile. Grade=B

Casey(Power of Love)--A pretty solid performace, but honestly there's nothing really special or unique about this guy. Similar to past contestants like Ace Young or Constantine Moruilis, maybe Top 6 or 7, but that's about it. He needs to stay out of doing the karaoke version of songs, he fell into that this week, he'll stick around to try and improve for next time. Definetly disagree with Ellen about him being the best vocal of the night, did she forget about Crystal. Wow. Grade=C+

Didi(No Good)--Despite the judges, I still believe Didi is a dark horse. She got panned by the judges so she is in danger of Bottom 3 territory, but with Paige still being the worst of the night, just don't think Didi's going anywhere. Grade=B-




Siobhan(Superstitious)-Not my personal fave, but she definetly has a great voice and has found her little nitsche. I think she has great potential. Definite front runner at this point. Grade=B+


How Was The Show Overall?
The beginning of the night started with the microphones not working when the judges walked in and unfortunetly they were eventually turned on. Other than Crystal the night was just very poor. The judges were dissapointed and so was I. At the bare minimum 2 out the 3 of Tim, Andrew, and Paige will still be around next week and that is just really tough. Is it really a coincidence that the night was terrible and Miley Cyrus was the guest mentor? No need to ponder that question too much.

Who Should Go Home?
Paige. She is just not in this thing anymore. She doesn't even look like she wants to be here. Let her join her roomate Lacey and be gone. Tim and Andrew better be thanking their lucky stars that Paige was this bad or they would be in some serious trouble. At least we don't have to think about them using the judge's save this week.

We'll See You Tommorow for the Top 11 Results.

Monday, March 22, 2010

Top 11 Theme: Billboard #1 Hits

Just a quick scheduling note about this week's theme for the Top 11. The theme originally was supposed to be Teen Idols, but now has been changed to Billboard #1 Hits. Miley Cyrus is supposedly the mentor this week, yes I said Miley Cyrus. I am sure the several contestants that are older than her and have children of their own will love having an 18 year old mentor. Either way, we'll see you back here tommorow(Tuesday) night after the next new episode of American Idol.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Top 12 Results Show

Alright, back for the Top 12 Results Show. And the awkwardness continues between Ryan and Simon, but the announcement about the Judge's Save is made.

The Judge's Save: It's okay that it's back, but it would only get used this week on Crystal or Michael. The contestants get to choose from their past performances what they would like to sing, they don't have to necessarily sing the song that put them in the position they are in, which makes a lot more sense.

Musical Interlude #1: David Cook-Jumping Jack Flash. Obviously, The Rolling Stones didn't return American Idol's phone calls to come and perform. I don't blame them. I mean I'm sure only the Rolling Stones' grandchildren..oops...I mean wives watch the show. David Cook obviously has nothing to promote so he gets the great opportunity to come on and prove that he doesn't have to be in those lame ass Ford commercials anymore(which are just as lame as always).

Onto the Results:
Paige
-In the Bottom 3. Figured she would be, she looked for the sympathy vote but didn't get it. The American audience knew that she wasn't good, now they want her to know that they know that she isn't very good, so now she knows.

Lee, Siobhan, Aaron-All Safe, and I am glad that Aaron washed out whatever gook was in his hair, now he doesn't have to worry about poking anyone's eye out and getting sued.

Andrew v Tim-If Andrew goes to Bottom 3 he could be gone. But, Tim is in. Andrew gets another week to show off his chops by singing "I Am Woman Hear Me Roar". ''

Didi-She's safe. Hopefully she starts dressing a little bit hotter, but other than that she's doing really well.

Crystal, Katie, Michael-All Safe, and Crystal is still pissed off and she might have told the judges off a little bit, not sure, but definitely could have, she's gotta watch that this early on.

Lacey v Casey-Although Ryan never gave his recap on Lacey she is in the Bottom 3 and Kara gets another week to call Casey dirt. Does anyone else remember when she called him dirt? Yep, she really did.

Solid Bottom 3: Paige, Tim and Lacey. All deserve to be there, any of them to go.

First Saved: Tim, alright my pick is gone but his time will definitely come.

Musical Interlude #3: What the hell's a Kesha and why is she trying to be Lady Gaga?

And The Person Going Home Is: Lacey. Paige lives on to another day, cementing the fact that at least Tim or Paige will be in the Top 10 and on the American Idol Concert. Wow.

Do The Judge's Save Her? Nope, Despite the chance to be saved by the judges Lacey deservedly goes home tonight.

We'll see you next Tuesday after the next new American Idol.

I'Dol Be The Judge-Top 12 Rolling Stones Week

During American Idol, these are the opinions I have about the contestants, Ryan or the judges. Take it as you will. If you are looking for a place to get a real sense of what in the world is going on then you've come to the right place.

Rolling Stones Week-12 Contestants

How Did The Contestants Do?

Michael(Miss You)-Weird, but safe, obviously. Grade=B

Didi(Playin With Fire)-Please don't let her go home the 1st week, or there won't be anymore hot chicks left on the season. Plus she has gotten a little better. Grade=B+

Casey(It's All Over Now)-Totally past this guy. He's a one trick pony, a honkey tonk blues guy, we get it. Grade=C+

Lacey(Ruby Tuesday)-Oh please put away that sexy shoulder, is she actually wearing an ace bandage as a dress? Grade=C

Andrew(Gimme Shelter)-He's still waiting for Britney Spears week to sing "Hit Me Baby One More Time". Grade=D-

Katie(Wild Horses)-She looks like she is going to Carrie's prom, she's 17 but looks like she is 12. Grade=C

Tim(Under My Thumb)-Please leave and join the Justin Bieber fan club, you know that's all you want to do. Grade=F

Siobhan(Paint It Black)-Amy Winehouse would've been proud 3 years ago for that performance. Love everything but the facial expressions, they scare me a little. Grade=B+

Lee(Beast of Burden)-He just looks so sad. I think someone needs to give him a kiss just so he feels a little better. Grade=B-

Paige(Honkey Tonk Women)-Simon keeps pushing her and I just don't get it. Also I hate when people change the words of songs to fit their gender. Plus I really don't care if she has laringitis, I had a slight cough the other night but I didn't try to get sympathy from millions of people. Grade=C-

Aaron(Angie)-No words to express the annoyingness of this guy. Also if he puts his head down and someone runs into him he'd probably stab them. Grade=D

Crystal(You Can't Always Get What You Want)-Can understand the hippiness now that we see that David Crosby is her father. She is turning into the female equivalent to Andrew Garcia, been there done that since Day 1. Not saying it's bad it's just it's Rolling Stones Week, rock it up a little. Grade=A-


How Did Ryan and the Judges Do?
Ryan is starting to think that he is something way bigger than he really is. Your whole job is, stand, introduce the contestants, give the numbers and step away...step away...step away. If you want to have Simon's job then fill out an application otherwise cut it out or my pining for Dunkleman will continue. Randy was the same as always, offers minimal comments, sometimes funny. Ellen continues to just be. She tells them if she likes the song, or if she doesn't. She is pretty much doing the job that almost anyone could do. Even though Paula was annoying she was at least entertaining because of all the gabbity goo coming out of her mouth. Kara is mad hot but definetly on a sinking ship. She got promoted to the second top spot, has her neck swagging sassitude going on but isn't going anywhere because the show is going downhill for sure now that Simon is leaving. Simon has gotten criticism that he's meaner than ever, which might be true, but why not. 1. The others aren't giving out strong opinions and he has to and 2. He's out of there soon, and has nothing to lose, he's a lame duck. Might as well go all out. Next season they'll either bring in an unknown who is going to be a carbon copy of Simon or a big time celebrity that has no real opinions. Either way American Idol is sinking, and sinking quickly.

How Was The Show Overall?
There was definite good potential with Rolling Stones week but it definetly fell by the wayside a bit. The majority of them took lesser known songs to sing, which I guess they chose so it would be more difficult to compare them to the original. But unfortunetly it was very underwhelming. Nowhere close to when they did Beatles week a couple years back. That week was also the week where my dislike for David Archuleta came from. That's when he mentioned that he really wasn't that familiar with who the Beatles were. Yep, he actually said that. Overall, the show wasn't great, but with a crop of contestants like this, it really isn't hard to see why.

Who's Going Home?
Tim Urban. If he doesn't leave this week there's no doubt he is going the way of Sanjaya. People vote week after week feeling sorry for the guy, Simon gets more and more crazy and it undermines the credibility of the show. Soon enough we'll be seeing a faux-hawk.