AI Top Ten: Motown

Three words for this week's show: Adam.Is.Back!

Now that I've got that out of my system, let's talk about who totally rocked it last night.

Matt- He sang "Let's Get it On." I was yelling at the TV as soon as I saw Matt behind the piano, "Nooo Matt! You can't sit this one out! It's 'Let's Get it On', it's groovy, it's not a piano song!" And by some miracle, he heard me. Sigh. Thank you Matt!

Kris - he needs to stop hiding behind his guitar, which I thought added absolutely nothing to the song. He did a great job vocally with "How Sweet it Is" but needs more personality. Overall, a job well done.

Adam - Squee! He was looking slick and singing sweetly, and it was just an amazing performance. Absolutely loved the little acoustic trio of musicians. It totally worked, and the song was fantastic.

Allison - She is NOT bottom 3, America. Can't you HEAR this girl's pipes? Come on now. She is the almighty Allison, and I hope she's here to stay.

By the way, Allison, Adam, and Matt are (and have been) my choices for the final 3.

On to the so-so performances:

Danny - has great energy, and I really liked his little dance with the back up singers. But I don't see him as a lasting recording artist. He's a ham on stage - much better suited for Broadway or the church choir.

Lil - As the judges said, we all know she can sing. But can she bring it as an artist? Not in that silly wig and over-the-top performance. Lil needs to tone it down and just do what she does best, but I don't know if she'll make it to the finals.

Megan - I'll give Megan a little more credit than the judges, but she really needs a song-picking expert to help her translate her unique voice into a good performance. The thing about Megan is that she has the most interesting sound of all the contestants, and it is really a shame that she's wasting it on songs that don't suit her style, and that's the barrier that's keeping her from being in the lead.

Anoop - OK, so my beef with Anoop is that I keep forgetting about him! But I think he did a decent job with the song, I like the softer side of him. Go Kumar! I mean Anoop!

Who I'm still over and needs to go home like yesterday:

Scott- What is there left to say? When it comes down to it, he's a much better piano player than a singer, which can only work for so long. He's old fashioned, unoriginal, awkward, and has a tendency to bore me to tears.

Michael - I think he did a smidge better with Motown than country, but he is still incredibly weak and needs to stick to Karaoke competitions. Please go home this week.

My bottom 3: Scott, Michael, and Lil.

An Interesting FOX pairing...

Michael Ausiello reported a Bones/Family Guy crossover in the May 7 episode. Read on to find out which character will be visiting and the circumstances of his appearance.

What do you think of this pairing? On target or too out there?

Alexis Grace Interview

Read Entertainment Weekly's interview with this week's AI victim, Alexis.

American Idol: Grand Ole Opry

There wasn't much that was grand about tonight's Grand Ole Opry theme. But a couple things first:

1. I love Randy Travis and the country theme really brought back memories of listening to country music at home with my parents. I miss those days.

2. Can someone please explain to me why everyone's idea of country music on this show is either Garth Brooks, Martina McBride, or Carrie Underwood? Poor Randy Travis, though he's probably thankful that nobody picked one of his songs.

OK, I'm done. Onto the performances.

Who I liked:
Matt - He makes me all tingly when he performs. Simon even said he outsang Danny. All aboard the Matt train!

Allison - She sang a Patty Loveless song from...nope, not the 80s.. 1992! But she has an awesome voice and I really liked her take on the song. Also loved her look tonight. Where can I get a red leather jacket like that?

Kris - one of my favorites of the night. I can't remember ever hearing the song and I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that it didn't sound like typical country.

Anoop - surprised me by actually singing, and singing well. Maybe he does deserve to be here.

Who was in the middle:
Alexis - I love, love, love Jolene, but her performance was just kind of "eh". She has a good voice but I just don't connect with her personality.

Danny - Just so-so. He sang well, but I found him kind of bland tonight. Between the white jacket and the song choice, he looked more like he was singing in a church than on the AI stage.

Megan - Her voice is really old timey and jazzy, which I think is difficult to put to current music and make it connect with the audience. But no matter how you feel about Megan's vocals, her dancing is never relevant.

Who I didn't like:
Adam - You know I'm an Adam fan, but I truly hated his rendition of "Ring of Fire" and fast-forwarded through the latter half. He completely dissed Johnny Cash, who isn't even that country, and it was like he wasn't even trying, and Ring of Fire was the only country song he's ever heard of. And if he was going to do a different version, he should have taken on Social Distortion's.

Lil - She could have taken any bluesy country song and run with it, but she chose the most trite, overdone country song of them all, not to mention it didn't lend itself to her voice. Her performance was plain and unoriginal.

I'm kind of over it:
Scott- Every song is the same-- boring. Next.
Michael - Yes, you're country, even when it's not country week.

My bottom 3: Scott, Michael, and Megan

My vote to leave: Scott

AI Top 13: Michael Jackson Night

I'm not going to go through all of the performances individually, but I will offer my initial reactions, observations, and predictions.

• My favorites tonight were: Danny, Kris, Matt, Adam, and Allison.
• Lil Rounds’ horrendous outfit distracted me from her actual performance. What did she sing again?
• Props to Kris for making “Remember the Time” sound like a groovy Jason Mraz song.
• Danny actually impressed me tonight and should stick to upbeat songs.
• Anoop is just an afterthought in this competition, and he has yet to prove himself to me.
• I think Allison is stuck in the 80s, even though she’s never been there.
• Someone please tell Megan to stop dancing. Seriously.
• Of all of Adam’s qualities, I like his humility the most.
• I would buy Matt’s album right now, when does it go on sale?
• Alexis kind of freaked me out. Is she a goth lesbian?
• How come all of the girls over the age of 18 are mothers? Go Teen Pregnancy! (folks, I’m being facetious)
• The “twist” will be what all the other competition shows are doing: the audience picks the bottom 3, but the judges pick the one that goes home.
• Bottom 3: Jasmine, Jorge, and Alexis.
• Jorge should be sent home.

**3/11/09 3:37 P.M.** Apparently, I didn't realize that Idol was sending two people packing instead of one. My hope is that it's Jorge and Jasmine, but the judges favor her quite a bit, but not over Alexis, who really doesn't deserve that final spot at all, I'm just afraid she's the one that will be stuck in it. Other contenders for the boot: Anoop and Scott.

Bachelor Meets DWTS

For all you Dancing with the Stars fans out there...

DWTS scrambled this past week to find a replacement for Nancy O'Dell, who injured her knee(s) during rehearsal. And who did they stumble upon? None other than Bachelor winner-cum-reject/former Dallas Cheerleader Melissa Rycroft.

Interesting, true, but I still probably won't watch.

Wild Card Show

I wish all Idol nights were like this.

The eight Wild Card choices really showed what they were made of tonight. I was completely captured by Matt Giraud's performance. I said, "If he doesn't make it after this, I'm done."

I personally was not impressed by Jasmine or Megan, the two girls that ultimately made it through. Jasmine sounded (and looked) like she was a Disney princess singing for little girls at the Magic Kingdom. Megan's voice is really weird and whiny to me - I get that she's different, but it just doesn't sound right to me. I'd much rather have Felicia and Mishavonna- despite her poor song choice- over these two. However, I find Megan's personality (but not her dancing skills) to be a little less grating than Jesse, although I prefer Jesse's performances.

At least this means that we're finally done with Tatiana, who sang Whitney Houston's "Saving All My Love" for the third time. And seriously, where did that accent come from? She doesn't belong on Idol, she belongs on a telenovella!

But the fact that two girls went through to the Top 12 meant that there was only one spot left for the boys, who really outshone the girls tonight. The girls swooned over Anoop and "his perogative" - but didn't his parents look completely appalled, wondering why oh why didn't he want to be a doctor? Despite his likeability, I preferred Matt's sultry voice to his Bobby Brown, and was in agreement with the judges decision.

But wait! Anoop's not done yet - he's the final contestant in the Top 13! Amazing!!

Because we didn't see that one coming from a mile away. :)

There you have it- the final four contestants. What do you think? Were you surprised that the judges made an extra spot - just in case they couldn't pick just 3?

American Idol Week 3- Results

First, I would like to give props to the choreographers for making a Scott-friendly routine. I’ve already seen it bashed online, but seriously, come on. I thought it was cute and well done.

To the results.

Lil is the first to be chosen as a top 12 contender. Not a surprise at all.

Ryan has the first row stand up – Arianna, Taylor, Alex, Kendall, and Scott. Out of this group, it’s pretty obvious who’s through – it’s Scott. He gets another chance to perform, and I’ll be the first to say he’s shaky and not always on key, but he sings with so much feeling its unreal. Is it sad that I want to go out and download “Mandolin Rain” right now?

Ryan announces the final person in the top 12 by telling them in pairs. It’s a no for Kristen and Nathaniel and Von and Felicia, which comes as a shock to me, narrowing it down to Ju’Not and Jorge. I thought Ju’Not would slide in, but it’s a win for Jorge instead. He’s got a cute little personality, but I think he will be eliminated early on.

But before Jorge can perform, the judges announce their wild card picks. It’s not a full twelve like I anticipated, but eight judge-worthy singers. I’m fairly happy with *most* of the choices, although there are one or two I would wholeheartedly disagree with. (We could easily guess who was making it back from the first two groups, because they only brought back a handful of them).

The judges pick Von, Jasmine, Ricky, Megan, Tatiana, Matt G, Jesse, and Anoop.

It’s hard for me to pick just three, but I’ve narrowed it down to four: Anoop, Megan, Jesse, and Matt G.

Von, Jasmine, Ricky, and Tatiana (seriously??) should go home.

What did you think of the results? Did you agree with the judges’ wild card choices?

American Idol Week 3 - Performance Night

Last night was the third and final round of performances, and frankly, I was underwhelmed by most of them, so let's get right to it.

Von – I don’t exactly understand the love for this kid. He looks kind of like a squished squirrel that borrowed some clothes from the set of Miami Vice. The judges previously berated him for being too “shouty” but I really didn’t hear much improvement this week. It was difficult to hear his unremarkable voice singing a Marvin Gaye song. Simon compared him to Clay Aiken and with any luck, he’ll have his music played in shopping malls across the country, come out of the closet, and only make headlines when he donates his sperm. I think he’ll score with young girls, so he might make it through.

Taylor –I don’t remember this girl at all, and I don’t think I will after tonight. Funny how later Simon forgot there was someone named Taylor that performed. She picked Alicia Keys, and, well, you can’t pick Alicia Keys and butcher it like that if you want some votes. I think this is the last we’ll see of her.

Alex – I had high hopes for this kid, as it’s always kind of fun to have a geek in the mix. Not Sanjaya or Archie, but a real, bona-fide geek. But apparently, he just hit puberty and smoked a pack of cigs before his performance, ‘cause his voice was all screechy-growly, kind of like my Dobie when she wants something. But she doesn’t get a reward until she’s quiet. Maybe Alex can take a cue from her.

Arianna – Of all the ABBA songs in the world…*sigh* I actually like Arianna’s look and her voice, but that song was like the soundtrack to a divorce, kind of middle-aged and depressing. Unfortunately, this is not the song that will get her through to the next round, but hopefully the judges will take pity on this “cute as a button” singer and give her another chance.

Ju’Not – OK, so he performed “Hey There Delilah” in Hollywood, and seemingly “stripped it down” for this performance. However, I was not a fan of the R&B “spin” he gave it, and I grew bored after the first minute or so. I don’t doubt that he can sing, but I’d like to see him with a little more vibe. Good enough for a wildcard.

Kristen –here’s the girl that lost on “Nashville Star” – but was it because she can’t sing, or because she’s not “country enough” (Read: Kendall Beard). This girl definitely has a voice, and I kind of like her awkward, hopeless, style-lacking image. But she loses lots of cool points for her ghastly arrangement and over-singing of “Give Me One Reason.”

Nathaniel – is there really much I can say about Nathaniel? He one-upped Nick/Norman with a sparkly headband –his version of Homo Flashdance? (Did Simon and Kara just refer to him as Richard Simmons? Nice!) And to be honest, he’s a little to chubby to wear skinny jeans. (So am I, but I don’t go around wearing them!) Oh, I’m supposed to talk about the song, right. He sang “I Would Do Anything For Love,” but Simon thinks he would, even though he just killed that song, and not in a good way.

Felicia – Seriously, the judges let this girl go? So far, I think she’s the only one with a nice voice, even though her song is a little karaoke. Another Alicia Keys, a better choice IMO, but she didn’t play up the uniqueness of her sound enough. Next time I hope she chooses a really daring song that really showcases her voice. Yes, I said next time – I hope she goes through, but if not, I think she’s definite Wild Card potential.

Scott –I wasn’t expecting much when he said he’d be singing “Mandolin Rain,” but I think he did a fair job. Definitely one of the top men thus far. I’m glad that someone dressed him in a collared shirt and vest, but equally appalled that they continue to promote his electro-shock hairdo.

Kendall – If you’re going the country route, please pick something a little less in-your-face, or even something non-country that you can put a southern flavor on. Carrie Underwood did exactly that 4 years ago and won. But sticking to mainstream country will be the kiss of death– just look at Kellie Pickler or Kristy Lee Cook.

Jorge –I have nothing against Jorge, or his heritage, or even his accent – heck, Enrique Iglesias sure makes it work for him—but I just don’t see this sweet guy going very far in the competition.

Lil – She goes last, the final contestant to be pimped by the judges. It’s pretty safe to say she’ll come out the clear leader this week, joining the ranks of Danny and Adam. She sings a Mary J. Blige song, but she doesn’t make it her own. She’s a great singer, but needs to prove that she’s young, fresh, and current.

In my opinion, this was the worst group by far. If it were up to me, I’d reluctantly keep Lil and pick two others from the previous groups and send the better ones straight to the Wild Card Round. – Jesse, Megan, and Anoop arguably deserve to be here over most of these contenders. Unfortunatly, that’s not the way it works, and three have to be chosen. For me, those three are Lil, Felicia, and either Scott or Ju’Not for the top male.

Wild Cards should go to Scott or Ju’Not, Kristen, Arianna, and Von.

Jason Gives out the Final Rose...then Takes it Back

***SPOILERS AHEAD***

The Internet has been a-buzzing with rumors that Jason would make his choice in the finale... and then go back on it in the "super secret" After the Final Rose. And they were right.

In last night's finale, Jason did what everyone thought he would do... he chose Melissa, proposed to her, then six weeks later, dumped her in favor of runner-up Molly. He said that he and Melissa were "not a perfect fit" and that he "couldn't stop thinking about" Molly. In all truth, I think he picked Melissa because she was just like his ex-wife and former Bachelorette Deanna, then realized that if he couldn't make it work with them, what chance did Melissa have?

Molly was right in saying that Jason was making a big mistake... after all, Melissa was a bit too grounded for him. So in between sobs, he asked flaky, country-club girl Molly for a second chance.I half-hoped Molly would laugh in his face, tell him she had moved on, and left him alone, but she didn't. Maybe these two dingbats are a perfect match after all.

As for Melissa, she was spot on when she asked Jason, "Why did you put a ring on my finger if you weren't willing to fight for our relationship?" and that "Getting engaged is a once-in-a-lifetime event, and you took that away from me." I couldn't help feel her pain. Well said, Melissa. I hope you find yourself a nice boy in Texas to settle down with.

What is your take on last night's turn of events? Do you support Jason's decision, or do you think he's a jerk?