They should do the AI equivalent to this one-upsmanship for Neil Diamond night!

Had to look up Neil Diamond to see what songs could be in play. I'm a Believer, Red Red Wine, You Don't Bring Me Flowers, plus a few others that the name doesn't ring a bell, but I may have heard in various movies or sports programming. Has the potential to be at least interesting, especially with 10 songs total.

First spoiler (can't confirm until the rehearsal, obviously)

Argh, Randy. Those aren't octaves, those are minor sixths. Painful.

Oh. My. God.

OUt of all the Paula Abdul WTF moments, that one with Jason topped them all.

Yeah haha.

Did she just call Syesha Brooke?

What are the songs so far?

Sweet America, September America, Blue America, I'm a American..

heh.

Very fast paced tonight.. almost to the point of distracting. Hell, just put all 5 of them out there at once to sing at the same time

Ok, I wasn't the only one who heard that. My wife didn't hear it...

My take:

I liked Castro 1, not Castro 2.
I liked Cook 1, but Cook 2 better.
I thought Brooke 1 was a disaster, but Brooke 2 was right in her wheelhouse.
Archuleta 1 was standard Archuleta, but Archuleta 2 reminded me of a HS choir arrangement.
Both Syesha 1 and Syesha 2 were completely forgettable.

Paula's mid-show critique was by far the high point of tonight's episode.

Castro blows.

Paula is smashed out of her mind.

I thought Syesha 2 was great

dola- Cook is far and away the best of the group

Only one I really liked was Syesha's first one, the rest were either average, or in the case of Jason, awful.

How can Paula continue to have a job

I pretty much agree with The Drake point for point tonight...

Why is Paula still there? That was one of the oddest moments I have ever seen. Randy looked like he wanted to stop her when she first started on the second song thing but was hoping she would just shut up before it got out of control but it was too late.

Wow. I think the fact that no one interrupted her while she was talking just goes to show that even the people around Paula on the show aren't paying attention to her.

I thought the best part of that whole sequence was Seacrest staring offstage as if asking if someone was going to shut her the hell up...

They should have seen that coming. Seriously, asking Paula Pillz to keep track of something that happened at any point more distant in the past than the preceeding 5 minutes is just begging for a meltdown. Still, I doubt they could have scripted better comedy than her "vision into the future."

The Frontier ratings for tonight:

http://www.solecismic.com/frontierblog/?p=254

Overall: After a dreadful first half hour, the contestants picked up the pace with a nice set of interpretations of very dated songs. David Cook has risen to prohibitive front-runner status.

They listen to rehearsal during the afternoon from their trailers, and make notes.

During the show itself, it's apparently rather difficult for them to hear in detail, so they often base their comments on those notes.

Paula, being rather addled in general, apparently confused herself over the new format for tonight, and started talking about Jason's second song, forgetting that the viewers at home had yet to hear it. She was dead on, though. I thought her criticism was more on point than usual. Which is like saying Brodie Croyle had good games and bad games this past season.

I mostly agree with Jim except I have a feeling that Syesha or Brooke will go. Somehow that Castro guy stays in the competition with women actually liking him (I still can't figure that out).

I would be okay with Brooke going as her act is getting tiresome. Syesha hasbeen one of the most improved in the group as she has seemed to get better. Castro seems to get worse each week. Cook is generally on top most weeks and should be the winner but this is about the time where he will end up losing as people start to assume he is getting votes and vote for their second favorite to try to save them (that seems to happen each year in some form or another). Archuleto (sp?) is steady but rather annoying (and boring as hell), especially the screams from the tweens that seem to like him.

With regards to Syesha, last week was a real eye-opener for me. I can see her going the Broadway route and being very successful. I think she has the chops to be a terrific Broadway actress/singer. I'd pay to see her, anyway.

I wouldn't pay to see a Syesha concert, though.

Heh. Jim's blog is now blocking my Firefox access because I changed my User-Agent settings to identify my browser as "Trogdor the Burninator" rather than Mozilla.

And they complain that the singers keep sounding old fashioned. HELLO, they're singing Neal Diamond songs!

What seems really obvious to me is that all of the singers have been exposed during all these theme weeks. Instead of catering to their strengths, the producers have forced them to step outside of their comfort zones nearly the entire season and sing songs that they probably have never heard, and almost certainly don't enjoy.

In the end it's painfully obvious that it's David Cook for the win, and everybody else is miles behind him. I'm finding it difficult to even watch the show these days.

Words cannot describe how much I have grown to loathe Archuleta. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that he's become immune to criticism. Where other contestants can perform well but get no love (Syesha), this guy goes out there and sings the same way for every song and is called "da bomb diggity" every time. How many times has even Paula called someone out for not emotionally connecting to a song, yet Archuleta goes out there and butchers (stylistically, not vocally) America, and it's universally lauded. I don't get it. He performed America like a 6 year old singing Ben Folds Five's Brick - utterly oblivious to (or flat out ignoring) the meaning of the song. Just load the track into the David Archuleta Performance Machine and hit play, baby! The spoilers at first said he was going to do I'm A Believer, and I wish he had, so this issue would have been even more obvious than it was.

Speaking of which...Brooke completely destroyed I'm A Believer. Given the Archuleta rumor (they had America right), I'm wondering if he was supposed to sing it, decided not to, and they made her sing it. Totally wrong song, way too fast, and most concerning, the tremble in her voice for the first quarter of the song was clearly evident. I was really worried she was going to lose it again. That song was maybe 2 notches above KLC's Eight Days A Week for worst performance of the season. She came back strong on song 2, though. And even better for her (off the show, obviously), Carly Simon gave her props for She's So Vain, saying Brooke sang it better than she ever could.

I thought Syesha was very good tonight, but she can't buy any love from the judges.

David Cook...first song was good, not great, but the second song was brilliantly arranged (his or not?) as SImon said, to be a hit in 2008. Sounded like a song Bon Jovi wishes he could write at this point. Interestingly, the wife and I both thought that vocally - especially on the first song - he sounded surprisingly similar to Diamond.

Castro...awful awful awful. Out of his league right now. If he stays, it will be a travesty, although I have no problem with Brooke going. She's done all she needs to do and there's no point in doing any more. Given her nerve issues, I think she can only hurt herself the longer she stays. Only reason I'd want her to stay is to see her do Smells Like Teen Spirit or Angie, Tori Amos style.

And btw, to get back to the discussion we had last week about similar styles...look at last night. Brooke, Cook, and Syesha all did something different between their 2 songs. Archuleta and Castro could have taken one song, split it down the middle, and sang both parts as their 2 songs and we'd have never known the difference.

And now that I've written that and then looked at the Dial Idol results...wow. One huge surprise, the bottom 2 falls where I think it should.

That was the hardest I've ever laughed while watching AI. The reaction of Ryan and the contestants on stage was great.

It was so bad, Simon's first instinct wasn't to make fun of her, but to try to get her back on track. That's what I noticed...once I stopped laughing. He tried to get past it by asking her who was her favorite of the first 5 songs. But she was too out of it/shaken by the realization of what she had just done to take his cue.

Yeah, someone above posted that everyone around her was oblivious to her rant. It seemed to be quite the opposite. It seemed like everyone was trying to slow the train down without injuring anyone before a derailment occured. They honestly handled it about as well as they could have. But it was definitely THE defining Paula moment thus far. Anyone who watched an episode of her reality series last year realizes that she's really that far out there.

That is a great name for a Fire/Fire Dominator (or maybe even a Brute).

I loathe Archuletta as well.


As much as Castro is seen as a weird dude I think Archuletta might be a weirder dude.

I'll be interested to read the fallout about her flub. Already, one of our secretaries said the morning radio shows were going on about how AI looks fixed, etc. I guess most of America doesn't realize how the show is set up, that there is a rehearsal, that the judges usually listen to or watch that first, and that they can't really hear the actual live performances all that well from where they are on the stage, so they make their judgments early and then tweak them to the actual performance. Even someone last week told Brooke that she nailed her song during the rehearsal and it was unfortunate that she messed it up during the live show.

You know what it is...he's been doing the "pageant" scene (for lack of a better term) for so long that he's like one of those child actors who completely missed his childhood. His performances are basically nothing more than an act, a shell, with no human emotion behind them. He does the same vocal runs, the same hand gestures, everything is calculated and planned out and wooden. He's 17, but he lacks any youthful spirit whatsoever, aside from being a bit socially awkward in dealing with the sudden fame (which is understandable). But he's been groomed for so long that he is completely missing any authenticity in his personality and, as a result, his performances.

...and here it starts. And this is from Slezak on EW.com, who I would think knows better. Maybe he does, but a story is still a story.




''Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!''

I know some of you are asking, ''What's a nice Wizard of Oz quotation doing in a TV Watch like this?'' But tonight, in the immediate wake of what will from here on be referred to as Paulagate, I'm feeling as duped and bewildered as Dorothy at the exact moment she realized the great and powerful Oz was just a sad old man, one who didn't have the power to send her back to Kansas, let alone provide her ragtag pals with a brain, a heart, and some courage.

Am I being melodramatic? Yeah, of course. But I can't help myself after witnessing the moment American Idol's loopiest judge made what is indisputably the biggest (and most credibility-crushing) gaffe in the show's seven-season history. (Yeah, even worse than Janay Castine's season 4 semifinal rendition of ''Hit 'Em Up Style.'')

At the midway point of tonight's Neil Diamond week performance episode, after each of the five remaining Idol contenders had sung one song apiece, Ryan Seacrest appeared to call an audible (perhaps the show was running ahead of schedule?) and asked David Cook, David Archuleta, Jason Castro, and Brooke White to join him and Syesha Mercado on stage. Ryan then asked each of the judges to quickly weigh in on the contestants' performances, before the Idols returned for their second numbers.

Let's roll the tape and get Paula's critique: ''Jason, the first song I loved hearing your lower register, which we never really hear. The second song, I felt like your usual charm wasn't...it was missing for me, it kind of left me a little empty. And the two songs made me feel like you're not fighting hard enough to get into the top four.''

When Randy jumped in and reminded Paula that the contestants had only performed one song at that point in the telecast, the typically bewildered ''Straight Up'' singer gasped, then declared, ''Oh my God, I thought you sang twice!''

Me? I hit the pause button on my DVR, needing a moment to catch my breath from a combination of shock, embarrassment, and outrage.

I don't for one second buy the explanation given by Paula herself, that she was momentarily confused and was reading her notes for David Cook; if that was the case, how come she changed course, seconds later, and told Cook he was ''fantastic''? And I find it hard to believe Paula's flub was simply the result of her boarding the La-La Express; her critique of Jason's performance was far too specific. (Note the use of ''charm,'' a noun attributed to the Dreadlocked Dude all season.)

Nope, as far as I'm concerned, Paula's blunder heard 'cross the nation — click here to watch a video clip and to read Adam B. Vary's report of how it played inside the Idol studio — can only be explained one of two ways:

A. Paula took notes during Idol dress rehearsals and used them (at least in part) to critique the televised live performances.

B. Paula was reading from notes given to her by the show's producers.
Either way, Idol has some serious explaining to do.


The idea that Paula, or any of the judges, would base their comments on dress rehearsals is preposterous. In my mind, Paula, Simon, and Randy should neither see nor hear the contestants' warm-ups, and even if they do, how is it that they're not explicitly instructed to give feedback only on the same set of performances the viewing public sees on their TV screens?

And if there's a chance that something more nefarious is going on, that Paula's comments are pre-scripted by someone other than her, then I've got a feeling I won't be the only Idol fan wondering if there's any way Fox can make amends and give me a reason not to walk away from the show I've loved and obsessed over for seven straight seasons.

I know, I know, a lot of you are probably shaking your heads, wondering if I'm taking my conspiracy theory a little too far. Or else you're thinking, ''We've already seen the man behind the curtain, Slezak! He's in all the ads for So You Think You Can Dance!'' But consider: Only seven nights ago, I was wondering aloud in my TV Watch column if the judges were reading off pre-written cue cards after they failed to call out Little David for forgetting his lyrics on ''Think of Me.'' At the time, I wasn't being literal.
Sigh.

I agree that the Paula Abdul moment was hilarious. They really need to get someone credible in there.

It seems like Cook can adjust to just about any musical style they throw at him. On the other hand, I would love to see Nirvana week -- imagine Archuleta trying to Disneyize one of their songs. :)

When is Lita Ford week?

Castro could do "If I Close My Eyes Forever". Archuletta could turn "Back To The Cave" into an up-tempo, inspirational number.

"I'm so ugly, that's OK cause sooooo are youuuuuu!"

Syesha will never win. I've always thought she was the second best woman and the fourth or fifth best overall at the beginning behind David A, David C, Carly, and possibly Michael Johns. She doesn't get support from the judges, which may help her in an odd way, and she has improved throughout the show, more than anyone else. She's compared by people to Whitney, but I don't think she tries to emulate her now. She did early on in the contest, realized she wasn't going to come close, and started adjusting her style to fit her vocal range.

I have no idea how Brooke and Castro are still there. After 7 weeks of hearing them, they really seem like very limited singers. Brooke does not seem comfortable singing uptempo songs and doesn't have much of a range at all. The only reason she outlasted Carly is still a bit of a mystery to me. Maybe it was the tattoos, maybe it was the attitude. But in singing ability, Carly should've stayed. And Castro. What is there to say besides WHY!?!?

David A is definitely the Michael Bolton of the show. And he could make a career doing power ballads. Look at Bolton, Vandross, et al. What I'd like to see is David nailing an uptempo number and look like he's enjoying it.

David C has definitely impressed me throughout the show. I didn't think he'd last 3 weeks, but he has made smart choices and used smart arrangements for most of his songs. Whether they're his or not, he's done the best at varying his style and showing versatility.

My final 3 from here would be the Davids and Syesha with the Davids battling it out for the top spot. But the way the votes are going, I think it'll be an all-male top 3, with the Davids and Stoner Castro.


Oh, and is it just me, or is David C's head a little large?

Dola, in Paula's defense, I thought Ryan said at the top of the show that the singers were going to perform twice, and the judges would comment after the second performance. Maybe he misspoke.

I believe that was Andrew Lloyd Webber and not one of the judges, FWIW...

So, if/when Cook makes it to the final and they give him the schlocky contest winner song, would he be ALLOWED to rearrange it? I know Blake didn't rearrange the song last season, but there really wasn't a beat in that song for him to do his thing with. I'm just curious if they're forced to sing it straight or if they can do their own thing with it...

What is the theme next week?

Perry Como's greatest hits?

He did, and that's what the conspiracy theorists are jumping all over. Like Slezak says, either they listen to the rehearsals and shouldn't, or the "opinions" are on cue cards and handed to them. Someone pointed out that it was suspicious last week when no one mentioned Archuleta's screw up. Could be because they've been told what to say, or a general direction to steer him to the finals?

You all know I'm big on conspiracy theories, but this one I don't buy into. I don't think they are controlling it down to what comments the judges make, nor do I think it is inappropriate for the judges to listen to the rehearsals. How many times have we seen Simon complain about the acoustics from where he's sitting or not hear a Ryan comeback during one of their fabricated cat fights?

It's large. I believe even David C referred to his noggin as something a super villian might have.


Oh, and if anyone thinks that the judges aren't influenced by the dress rehersals and jot down notes to use was just fooling themselves. I'm sure they come up with the bulk of it and change it depending on what happens live, but there is too much going on from a noise level standpoint to not do this.

There are alot of things AI does to influence voting patterns. From the rotation they sing in to the comments they say. Paula's gaffe wasn't a bombshell, but rather a 'gee.. you're an idiot". The only bombshell I could think of would be if they discarded votes or just flat out ignored the votes and proof come out.

19th century Victorian music. David C is going to do a mad arrangement with a calliope and a zither.

Weird Al Week.

Who's gonna sing "Amish Paradise"?

Weird Al week would be AWESOME!

Actually Perry Como week would be better. And I would seriously enjoy a Weird Al week.

What's the matter with you people, Perry Como rules.

This is pretty much the funniest thing I've read all year.

Too much Kathy Griffin and not enough reading, apparently.

Theme for next week is supposedly songs that shaped or inspired rock 'n roll. Rumor is that this list of songs is what they will choose from:

http://www.rockhall.com/exhibithighlights/500-songs/

Ok, there are some interesting songs on that list, and I'm just on the first page. Tennessee by Arrested Development? Planet Rock? Loser? The Breaks by Curtis Blow? Can I assign songs? I'd pay money to see David A performing Le Freak by Chic or Brooke performing Give Up the Funk by Parliament.

Knowing AI, they will take that list and whittle it down to 25 songs or something.

Well, if Brooke makes it, she really could break out Amos's version of Smells Like Teen Spirit then...

Why call it a conspiracy theory? I have not known one single episode in the history of TV that wasn't directed, scripted, produced or edited to present the best product to its consumers and advertiser.

qft

Yeah but this show pretends to be based on reality.

I do disagree with that, as long as they keep tallying the voting numbers internally and don't disclose the percentages to the viewing public. Who's to say who got the highest and lowest number of votes?

So I missed the fist 20 minutes or so as my DVR decided not to record what I clearly told it to record (and my wife was a witness). Anyway, did they say anything about Paula's flub, try to explain it, come clean, or did they just skip it?

They came out with a "We're all behind Paula" statement in respnse to rumors reated to the screw up.

WTF does Castro have to do to get voted off this damn show?!?!? Obviously sucking big time isn't working.

Women love him, big time. "You haven't looked into his eyes." That was a comment I got from one lady today at work. Sheesh.

Also, I didn't pay close attention...did they actually say Brooke and Syesha were the bottom 2? I don't think they did, but I'm not sure. According to Dial Idol, Syesha was not only safe, she had the highest score of the week. Once I saw Castro and Archuleta safe, I knew Brooke was going.

Yes ... awkwardly.

Dude makes the Terminator and Rasputin look like wimp outs.

I'm starting to believe he could go up there and make fart noises with his hand and armpit and make it through.

They never said the bottom 2. They said one of you is safe, and the other one is going home.

My guess? They were trying to protect David Archuleta who had the 2nd lowest number of votes.

That's what I thought. Very possible they were saving Archuleta. It was him or Castro, by a wide margin. No way Syesha was bottom 2. I'd be pissed as hell if I was her. She has been absolutely shit on the last few weeks. She's never been great, but she was mediocre until a few weeks ago, and it's like her hitting her stride wasn't in the AI script, and they're doing all they can to not let her be the wild card who screws up the all-David finale.

You know what else is possible...Castro was bottom 2, but they didn't want it to appear that Paula's flub cost him votes, so they spared him bottom 2, couldn't put Cook or Archuleta there, and it was Syesha by default. I could buy that.

That is the most likely scenario to me. It was clear to me that Syesha was not in the bottom 2 as Ryan was very careful to never say this was the bottom 2.

Also, the Paula support statement was very awkward.

i missed the support statement, did they offer any excuse or anything?

But if a fan favorite falls into the bottom 2 (or 3), doesn't that usually get them more votes the next week as people try to protect him/her? If Archuleta was actually in the bottom two and they sent him to the couch, seems like that would hurt him, not help him...

Nothing was better than Castro and his goofy stoner smile behind brooke as she's bawling her eyes out and the other contestants are consoling her. Then you have dreds boy playing pocket pool over her left shoulder trying not to laugh.

Just that it was a live show and they threw an audible at her. Nothing more was explained.

In this case, I don't think so. I think it would show that his support has fallen off big time.

I think Syesha benefited from Carly leaving, and took a lot of her votes.

I agree. This guy is like the crazy villain at the 1 hour, 10 minute mark of a two hour movie. Everyone watching knows he is snowing the others and has bad intentions, yet it seems no one in the movie can catch on.

He's a complete buffoon with zero awareness of his surroundings. I think they could have a vote off where they say "Jason, you were in the bottom 2, but you are now safe because a bus ran over two other contestants this afternoon.' I guarantee his response would be "Cooool" with a sh*tkicker grin.

I almost hope he wins so we can find out 2 months later that half his neighbors were hacked into pieces in his basement fridge while he was performing on AI.

After leaving the studio, Carly Simon was arrested for drug possession.

With Archuleta being extremely repetitive and boring in the last several weeks, showing him in the bottom 2 would probably validate what a lot of people are thinking about him (that he's not that great), even while the judges are laying on the praise to manufacture him as a star. At this point they don't want to show any weakness on his part.

And yes, I think that's exactly the opposite of when a favorite gets a boost following a bottom 2 week. Point is that I don't think Archuleta is a favorite anymore.

It seems like the past few seasons, we always had a top 3/4 where anyone of those could win. This year, we have a top 1 and then it drops off badly. Can anyone believe that Castro or A would be in the top 4?

A? Archuleta? Of course. That one was easy.

How would Archuleta stack up with previous top 4s (talent-wise, recording artists, not counting the Saysha-type votings)? That makes sense?

About average. I'd have to see a list to formulate an exact opinion, but that would be my guess based on feel.

I bought into the hype of Archuleta being the male Hannah Montana for the first several weeks. Then I realized he is a one trick pony, and robotic as is mentioned earlier in the thread. This guy will disapear FAST after that tour is done. Clay Aiken he ain't.

Let's hope that this was the last week of the specific singers themes. I don't think they could possibly pick a worse bunch of singers for these kids to cover. You wonder why you're not connecting with the singers, and then you realize they probably never heard of any of these songs until the last week, and probably don't even like the songs on top of that. How are they supposed to convince millions of people that they are truly superstars despite this? The producers are setting them up for failure and not success.

The 4's

Kelly Clarkson
Justin Guarini
Nikki McKibbin
Tamyra Gray

Ruben Studdard
Clay Aiken
Kimberley Locke
Joshua Gracin

Fantasia Barrino
Diana DeGarmo
Jasmine Trias
LaToya London
(weakest of the 4's.. easily Idol's worst season IMO)

Carrie Underwood
Bo Bice
Vonzell Solomon
Anthony Fedorov

Taylor Hicks
Katharine McPhee
Elliott Yamin
Chris Daughtry
(post idol, might be the strongest group along with season 2)

Jordin Sparks
Blake Lewis
Melinda Doolittle
LaKisha Jones

Syesha Mercado
David Archuleta
David Cook
Jason Castro

Probably in the middle. I'd rate Clarkson, Gray, Studdard, Aiken, Locke, Gracin, Barrino, Underwood, Bice, McPhee, Yamin, Daughtry, Sparks, Lewis, Doolittle, Cook above him... (maybe not solely on singing, but more of a combination of singing, talent and just who I consider more entertaining...)

Edit : Syesha also after the last few weeks

I actually listened to each of the Top 5 performances in youtube and just couldn't believe the difference in quality. Brooke was ok, Sayesh (whatever her name is) is purely stage quality while Castro and Archuleta were embarassingly poor. I don't get how anyone can think they can sing and perform at a professional level, unlike David Cook who was great (but he needs to work on his appearance).

Thanks Mustang (and MJ4H), that doesn't say much if Archuleta is considered average.

You should probably watch more than one of his performances before not getting how someone can have any opinion different than yours when that person has watched all of his performances. At least, that would be my suggestion. Take it or leave it.

Out of that group I would place David A ahead of:

Nikki, Joshua, Jasmine, Diana, Anthony, Vonzell, Taylor, Blake, Lakisha, Jason Castro, and about even with Syesha (also about even with Elliott Yamin). He was very, very good earlier in the season, but hasn't been very consistent and has had a few flaws exposed since then. He is still very, very good and easily worthy of top 4 or 5 in this season.

Just my opinion.

Amazingly, I don't consider Castro the worst of that group. That honor goes to Diana DeGarmo for me... ugh..

There are several worse than both of those. Hello? Jasmine Trias?

I can't dispute that either. That whole season was an e'fin train wreck. But, either way, seems we are on the same wavelength.

I don't even remember someone named Vonzell Solomon. I do remember Anthony Federov, though. What a weak top 4 that was, even factoring in Underwood's success.

I always liked Bice, not one of the top vocals in AI's history, but I'd put him towards the top as one of the better entertainers.

I'll probably leave it because from what I have read and heard, his performances this week were not atypical and were considered to be decent. So knowing that this week's performances by him were not exceptional (bad or good), then I would say they would be a good indicator. Jim G said, "I think Archuleta is just preening for the camera at this point, and I have no idea why the judges are so thoroughly behind him." I don't either.