Topic: Idol-Talk
American Idol Season 9: Top 24 Results Show
Airdate: Thursday, February 25, 2010 [8-9pm]
Quick rundown:
- The Top 24 perform "American Boy" as their first group song of the season. It looked like Crystal Bowersox was just trying to play along; she didn't look naturally happy to be performing in that cheese-fest.
- Janell Wheeler - Eliminated [0/1 - on my predictions]
- Allison Iraheta performs "Scars." Girls, pay attention to Allison; this is what a performance should be like.
- Ashley Rodriguez - Eliminated [Predictions: 1/2]
- Rehearsal Footage. We see Tyler Grady in boots and a bathrobe. Hmm...
- Joe Munoz - Eliminated [Predictions: 2/3]
- Kris Allen in Haiti; performs "Let It Be" in studio. I bashed him for pretty much the entire of last season, but I have to admit that this performance was really well done.
- Tyler Grady - Eliminated [Predictions: 2/4]
- Goodbye Montage: We hear the official goodbye song of the season; "Leave Right Now," by Pop Idol season 1 winner Will Young (he's the guy who won the very first Idol competition in the entire world).
- 9:01pm: It ran over by a minute. I've said before that running over is my pet peeve with this show. I'll keep bringing it up every time it happens.
And now on to this week...
American Idol Season 9: Top 20 (Top 10 Male)
Airdate: Tuesday, March 2, 2010 [8-10pm]
Theme: Top Billboard Songs (I don't really know what the official name is for the semifinals)
**We all know by now that Crystal Bowersox had a medical issue that sent her to the hospital, meaning she wouldn't be able to perform on last night's show. The producers then decided to swap the nights so that the guys would perform last night, and the girls tonight, to give Crystal some extra time to get better. As of this writing, we still don't know if she is well enough to perform, but some anonymous inside sources are saying she will be performing. If she is not able to, she will probably be disqualified. Stay tuned to TV Watch Online for all the latest on this Breaking News.**
First, Ellen was next to Simon during Hollywood Week. Then, she moved to the opposite end during the Top 24. And now, one week later, she has moved one seat closer and is now between Randy and Kara. After the way things went last week, I wonder if the producers decided to see how she is in each of the seats to test the chemistry with all three of the other judges. Maybe next week she will be back next to Simon and we will get to see how they interact during a live episode (though I am enjoying seeing Kara's and Simon's interactions). Speaking of the judges, they didn't constantly rotate the speaking order as they did last week. Instead, if was back to normal, starting on Randy's end and moving towards the other end with Simon having the final say, which is as it should be.
And while we're on the subject of Ellen, I want to give my updated thoughts on her as a judge. I don't plan on doing this every week, but I thought I would this week since there have been some changes since last time. Last week, she received bad reviews for her first live episodes, and I even was critical as well, but was willing to give her a chance to settle more in to her role as a judge. And I have to say that she improved. She didn't ramble as much, and gave some good comments while still throwing in a few jokes once in a while. I even enjoyed her follow-up to the banana comments: we learned that if you put a banana in a brown paper bag, it will ripen faster.
Now, let's get on with the show:
- Michael Lynche ["It's A Man's Man's Man's World"]: Last week, the focus of his performance was on his personality. But this week, while he still kept true to himself in that way, the focus was back on his voice. The song was a great choice and suited his soulful voice perfectly.
- John Park [John Mayer's "Gravity"]: Last time, I wasn't sure what to think of him. Now I realize that it is his lack of stage presence. Kara called it a lack of connection, and that is exactly what it is. Re the song - great song, but it was maybe too slow.
- Casey James ["I Don't Want To Be"]: The best part of the song was his electric guitar ending. But the vocals were a mess. While I don't think the song was the main problem, it reminded me a little of Ace Young in season 5 doing Queen's "We Will Rock You;" his voice isn't "gritty," or tough, enough to pull it off. And while Ace had a more bland pop voice, Casey does have more going for him with regards to his voice, so he's got to do better than this.
- *Alex Lambert [John Legend's "Everybody Knows"]: Beforehand, he and Ryan talked about his nerves. And I could still see that in his performance. But the judges hit it right on the money: his voice is unique, engaging, and a lot better than last week.
- Todrick Hall [Tina Turner's "What's Love Got To Do With This"]: For the second week in a row, he is trying to impress us by changing up the song. And that works, when you have the it factor to back it up (i.e. Chris Daughtry, David Cook, Adam Lambert). But once again, he hasn't pulled it off. And his voice continues to let us down.
- Jermaine Sellers ["What's Going On"]: I considered him for elimination last week, and it looks like I'll be doing the same this time. Once again, I feel underwhelmed. I heard some sharp notes. Along with John Park's, this didn't stand out for good or for bad; just in between.
- Andrew Garcia ["You Give Me Something"]: The judges hit on what I said last week that he may have peaked too soon with "Straight Up." I still really love his voice, but there were a few pitch problems, and I didn't see any wow factor. It wasn't bad, but I was a little let down.
- Aaron Kelly ["My Girl"]: With this song, you run the risk of making it cheesy and/or karaoke-like. I would not have chosen that song because he's playing it safe. The vocals were better this week, but the high note at the end was not good. Like Simon said, I don't know who he is as an artist, and I'm not surprised considering his age.
- Tim Urban ["Come On Get Higher"]: He should have gone home last week, and nothing changes this time around for me. The song did not hinder his voice this time, even though it wasn't near great (so that's a positive), but this was the most forgettable of the night. One of the only things in his favor is that he is performing near the end.
- *Lee Dewyze ["Lips of an Angel"]: Even though Big Mike may have given a more solid performance, Lee stood out more, despite a few pitch problems. I liked "Chasing Cars" better, but he continues his dark horse streak; I can't wait for him to hit it out of the park and blow us away.
Favorite Performances: Lee Dewyze / Alex Lambert
My Vote(s): Lee Dewyze [15 votes]
Elimination Predictions: John Park / Jermaine Sellers
My choices for consideration to eliminate were John Park, Todrick Hall, Jermaine Sellers, and Tim Urban. I got rid of Todrick because even though he wasn't that good, he was memorable for his changing up of the Tina Turner song (though not in a good way). And even though I want to choose Tim, I decided against it this time around because he performed second to last, which means he was more fresh in the minds of voters and probably got votes because of that. So, I am left with John (forgettable) and Jermaine (who I considered last week).
If you want to buy any of the audio performances from last night, head on over to americanidol.com/itunes.
Tonight the girls will perform, and let's all hope Crystal Bowersox is well enough to perform. I heard that producer Ken Warwick said that she could be disqualified if she can't perform. She's perhaps the best girl so far this year, and with an already shaky season, this could turn out to be the worst season of American Idol yet, so I really, really hope she is well enough to perform. The guys improved slightly, but will the girls (I believe they will)? We'll have to wait until tonight to find out (ahh, the suspense! What Idol is best at creating). See ya then...
