Soul Patrol!

We’re finally at the end of American Idol…did time fly or what? Anyways, since they’re going to drag this out for two hours, well…who knows what they’ll do until the results at 9:55…

Of course, we’ll have a bunch of group songs. I guess this is why I shouldn’t go sing the AI tour…I can barely sit through these while on my couch. The first one wasn’t too bad (although what were they thinking dressing Mandisa like that?) But the guys all dressed in black singing? Thank goodness for the fast forward button on my tivo. The girls weren’t much better…this is exactly the type of “you can see it on any cruise ship” entertainment that Simon always complains about. The Burt Bacharach medley was even more cruise ship-esque. Ugh.

Apparently we’ll also have some awkward duets as well. Paris singing with Al Jarreau was actually pretty good, but then again, we always knew she was a good singer. And Chris singing with Live was excellent – I would so buy that CD! (yeah, it might just work out best for Chris that he didn’t end up winning after all…) But Katharine and Meatloaf? I just can’t believe that when Katharine sat down with the producers to decide who she wanted to sing with, her first response was “oooh! How about Meatloaf?!?”.(and how sad is it that she sounded better…actually a LOT better…than Meatloaf?) It picked back up with Elliott & Mary J. Blige (another single I would actually buy), but did Toni Braxton not understand the words of “In the Ghetto”? Her performance certainly was inappropriate at best. And what was the point of the Prince performance?

How about some running bits? “Puck ‘n’ Pickler!”How can you go wrong! (seriously, can you imagine the guy pitching this one in the production meeting?) Kellie eats snails! Kellie faces live lobster! Comedy genius!

And some Golden Idol awards! Sure, it’s a different way to show all those hideous audition tapes again. But what would make these people show back up on stage when they know that they are being made fun of? Of course the moment with the Clay Aiken wannabe was worth watching…I guess he really didn’t know that Clay would be there. And aside from the fact that I don’t like his new look, he sounded really good (and I loved that it seemed like the producers really dropped the wannabe’s mic out so we could only hear Clay…thank you…)

And who can forget some airtime for Carrie Underwood? She sounded good, but just pointed out the fact that I really don’t like country music.

Finally, a duet with Katharine and Taylor, which they really should have done more of. They sound really good together. But, alas, still no results. This is the point I’m actually starting to panic. I watched the finale on tivo (thanks to the Red Sox…go Sox!), and they didn’t start the duet until 9:55. 9:55! Oh, how I feel for those of you who were sitting through this live! With one minute to spare, Ryan actually share the results (but not before sharing how many votes were cast and introducing the accountant…oh, I’m really checking my watch…). And no surprise, Taylor is the winner. Soul Patrol!

So, overall, this was a really good season. The show got crazy ratings each week, and somehow there is still a sizeable pool of undiscovered talent out there. And I think that a few of this season’s contestants have an actual shot of being successful in the music industry (Taylor, Katharine, Chris, Paris, Elliott…). And don’t forget that Ace is rumored to be mulling over an offer to pose in Playgirl. Yikes.

This also is the end of this season’s run of reality shows. Of course, any day now the “summer replacement” shows will start. And while they usually aren’t as good as the “regular” shows, let’s not forget that the very first season of Survivor was shown the summer of 2000. So I’ll still be around for the summer, but definitely waiting for the fall!

The Final Two Sing on American Idol

It’s the last night of singing on American Idol, and we have one of the better showdowns in the show’s history. I mean, did anyone really think that Justin, Diana, or Bo would win? Do you even remember who Justin and Diana were? That’s what I thought. So tonight’s contest between Katharine and Taylor will be one of the best – two really good singers with very different styles. This should be good…

Katharine started off with “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree,” which was a great choice. It’s upbeat, and she sounded great. I was also glad to see that she didn’t do that ridiculous dancing on her knees this time. The judges weren’t blown away, but I don’t think they’re ever blown away by Katharine.

I’m not really sure how Taylor’s first song, “Living for the City,” went. I was so focused on that purple velvet jacket. I just couldn’t stop staring at it. The judges loved it – clearly the hypnotic jacket wasn’t such a problem for them. (ok, so Simon noticed it…)

Katharine’s second song, “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” was beautiful. I just wish that she had done something a little different with it. She did the same sitting down thing, the same basic performance. Of course, the fact that her monitor didn’t work makes her performance a bit more impressive

Taylor’s second performance, “Levon,” was good, but not nearly as good as Katharine’s. Randy even thought it was “pitchy.” I’ve been watching the show for years, and I still don’t know what pitchy means. But I agree with Simon – it’s a tie game.

Finally, they each sang what would be their first singles. In the past, each one sang the same original song, which was great in that you could actually compare the two performances. And haven’t they usually sung more than one original song? (rather than choosing their favorites from the season ) Katharine’s song started out really good. But it sounded like in the middle she oversang it a bit. I agree with Randy that the song wasn’t great, but that’s not her fault – those songs are chosen for them. Taylor’s original song wasn’t great either. He had the same problem as Katharine – the singer was much better than the song. The judges seemed to like his better than Katharine's...I'm not sure why. To me it still seems like a dead heat.

So, tomorrow night we’ll have results…which, of course, will be dragged out over an excruciating two hours. (and, of course, will compete with Red Sox-Yankees for my attention…oh how I love my tivo…) I think that this will be close, like Clay-Ruben in season two. And I think that they might do the same thing they did that season, and release the two singles the same time (essentially saying that the show was a tie). In the end, I think it will be Taylor who wins, but in the long run Katharine who will be more successful. (what a prediction!!)

A Week of Recaps...

So, I know that I am way behind on my blogging. No real reason other than the fact that there have been lots of Red Sox games on tv the past week, so I watched nearly all of the reality shows later on tivo. Come on – the Sox are in first place and just pounded the Yankees last night. It really doesn’t get better than that. So a few thoughts from the last week…

American Idol was rather anti-climatic as Elliott was finally voted off. It’s a shame really, since he has such an amazing voice. They really dragged out the results show, with all the footage of the top three’s visits home. In all that though, I felt really bad for Katharine. I know she lives in LA, but it seemed like no one really did anything for her. (especially compared to the hoopla surrounding Elliott & Taylor) And Ryan tried something new to drag out the results, giving the percentage of votes that each of the three contestants got. It was close, but no one should really be surprised that it was Elliott that went home. And even though I think that Chris should be in the finals, a Katharine-Taylor showdown will be pretty darn good.

The finale of The Amazing Race was fantastic. The hippies started with a definite advantage with the leg in Japan (who knew that they spoke Japanese?), and it really helped as they did the amusement park task (which, by the way, was amazing…I love coasters, but I don’t think I could have done that!). Even though Ray and Yolanda caught up at the airport, they had no money. I also loved that the race ended where it started – who saw that coming? Oh – just in case you were wondering where they all got the snow gear (because all of a sudden, the two teams who had no clothes or money were wearing parkas and snow pants), the teams are provided with snow gear from the producers (thank you Brennan for the info…Brennan, of course, won AR1). And the final roadblock was fantastic…it can’t always come down to luck! I was rooting for the frats, but I’m glad that the hippies won. They always had such a positive attitude, and really seemed to soak up the cultures of each place they went. It was a really fantastic season.

Finally, there was yesterday’s episode of The Apprentice. It’s been a good season, but the editing lately has been disappointing. It was clear early on that the girls were going to lose, and I was even thinking before they went to the boardroom that Trump might fire them both. Even though both teams asked the employees what they wanted, the guys actually listened to what the employees had to say. It seemed like Allie knew what she wanted to design, and was going to use that regardless of what the employees wanted. Culottes? Puffy sleeves? Does Allie live in the 80s? And Roxanne was right – she was unprofessional towards their designer…she didn’t even call him by the right name! So, no surprise that the boys won (although I was kind of surprised by how bad the girls’ designs were), and I wasn’t surprised to see Trump fire them both. It sets up a really good final next week – Lee and Sean are so different, it will be interesting to see how they both handle the final task (and what will happen if Sean is able to put Tammy on his team). There’s also some sort of element of audience voting this season…this might just be the sign that The Apprentice has jumped the shark. Back to baseball…

Top Three Sing on American Idol

After the controversy of last week on American Idol, I would have thought that this week’s show would have started with some sort of mention of the mayhem. Even just an acknowledgment that everyone has been talking about it, or a statement that the voting system worked fine – that they checked it out and everything. But there was nothing, which was kind of strange.

Speaking of last week, did anyone but me catch Chris Daughtry on The Ellen DeGeneres Show this morning? Oh my goodness. It was phenomenal. If you live somewhere that re-runs the show, make sure you see it. He played the guitar (and, by the way, he’s an amazing guitar player) and sang “Wanted: Dead or Alive.” I would pay to see that performance live. Really. Just that one song. Wow.

Tonight’s show featured three songs for each contestant – one chosen by legendary producer Clive Davis, one chosen by the judges, and one chosen by the contestant. With all these songs, there won’t be any time for banter…thank goodness.

Elliott kicked off the show with his Clive Davis song choice, “Open Arms.” Davis said he wanted Elliott to try a rock song, but that’s not really a rock song. It sounded pretty good…I think that the fact that this was the first song of three will really help him.

Paula chose “What You Won’t Do For Love” for Elliott’s second song. It was a good choice...definitely an “Elliott” kind of song. His final song, “I Believe to My Soul” was an odd choice. He sang it really well though, and I think his performances built through the night.

Katharine’s Clive Davis song was “I Believe I Can Fly,” which sounded like it was a tough choice…the song is so overplayed. She did put her own twist on it, and I’m sure that singing the song in that dress (hello cleavage!) didn’t hurt either. I didn’t understand Randy’s criticism of her song choice, and I was glad that Katharine talked back a bit about it. Even Simon recognized that she couldn’t do anything about the song choice, and she did a good job with what she had to sing. Simon chose Katharine’s second song, “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” It was a beautiful version, especially the a capella part in the beginning. That might win her the competition. Katharine’s final song was an older song, “I Aint Got Nothing But the Blues.” I don’t think anything will top her last song, but it was still really good. I just get so annoyed with the judges – it seems like Katharine can’t win with them. But I think that she’ll make it through on the strength of her second song.

Clive Davis’s final song choice was for Taylor – “Dancing in the Dark.” (and can I interject an important question – what was Davis drinking when he chose these songs?)

It was a decent rendition, made rather strange by him doing the Courtney Cox – Bruce Springsteen dance with Paula. Randy chose “You Are So Beautiful” for Taylor’s second song, which was really a fantastic choice. He did a great job with it – he might have just stamped his ticket to the final. His final song was classic Taylor, “Try a Little Tenderness.” It was a great performance – he was really in the zone.

After last week, I’m done trying to vote (I did try to vote for Chris for a couple of hours and never got through…go figure). But I think that it will be Taylor and Katharine in the final next week. And you just know that Simon is sweating it out realizing that he quite possibly will have to market a Taylor Hicks album.

A Real Shocker on American Idol

You know how last night I said I wouldn’t be surprised if any of the final four on American Idol went home tonight? Well, I was wrong. I am shocked at tonight’s results. I did not see that one coming.

First, there’s a lot of filler about the Idols’ trip to Graceland. And the most interesting part of it was how Priscilla Presley looks. I couldn’t tell if she’s had work done or naturally looks really young (or both) but I was shocked at how good she looked. Of course we have a Ford commercial. Which, by the way, may have been the worst so far – they didn’t even pretend to sing on this one. (although I do love anything with Kermit in it…) And the cheesy group song was especially cheesy tonight as they each got to play “lead singer” and “backup singer” for each other. Ugh.

This is where it got really weird. Idol producers love to show celebrities who are there because they are fans. Most of them have their kids with them, but not Rebecca Romijn and Jerry O’Connell. Not only are they huge fans, Rebecca somehow got to make a request…and Taylor actually sang for her. Very very strange.

So we finally get some results – Ryan groups Elliott & Taylor and Chris & Katharine. And even though most people predicted Chris & Katharine to be the final two, it’s Elliott & Taylor that are safe. At this point you can just read it all over Katharine’s face that she knows she’s going home. Add to that Simon’s prediction that it was it for her, and, well, she didn’t look to good. So it was genuine shock on her face when Ryan announced that Chris was going home. I just don’t get it. And no, I didn’t vote, but not for lack of trying – I couldn’t get through as long as I tried. The only upside is that of the four, Chris can probably best have a hit CD on his own; the others really need the show to launch their careers.

So no Chris next week, but the final three…only two episodes of this left…what will I do with my time after that?

Elvis Lives on American Idol

As promised last week, the American Idol contestants were whisked away to Graceland to prepare for, that’s right, Elvis night. You heard me, Elvis night. Oh dear.

Taylor’s first choice, “Jailhouse Rock,” may have been his best song choice of the competition. It was perfect for him, and he did a great job singing it. He was back to being crazy (but not too crazy…no lying down on the stage tonight…), and he was really entertaining. He set the bar for tonight’s show very high – good for him. I didn’t understand Simon’s criticism. Of course it was a bad Elvis impersonation – that’s what they’ve asked all of the contestants to do tonight. I’m not sure I totally agree with the judges about his second song. It was good, but I don’t think it was the best.

Chris isn’t the only one who loves “Suspicious Minds.” And it was a great choice for him. I loved it. (I know, I know, I always love him…what do you want from me?) Even Simon liked it – that’s fantastic. His second performance wasn’t quite as good. And he did the whole “Bo-Bice-carry-the-mic-stand-around” thing, which bugs me. But it was definitely good enough to get him through to the next round. Well, at least I hope so…

Elliott’s first song was a really obscure choice. So his song just sounded good – not like he was doing Elvis. I think that how good Elliott is sometimes gets lost in the shuffle – he is really really good. His second performance was even better than the first. And I agree with Simon – he came into tonight as the underdog, and showed tonight why he deserves to continue on.

Oh Katharine. She may be the best overall singer left in the competition. But tonight’s theme was really rough for her. Her first song was, well, strange. People are always talking about her personality (or lack thereof), so it was odd to see her dancing around. It was ok vocally; I agree with Simon that she is lucky that she has two songs tonight. Of course, that’s what he said last week, and she ended up in the top two, so we know she can handle this position. Of course, that was when she got to choose that second song. (which, by the way, is getting all sorts of radio play since Katharine covered it last week…). Tonight it was just more Elvis. And while it was a good performance, it certainly wasn’t her best.

This may be the first top four where there’s no clear winner and loser. They’re all so good…it’s almost a shame that they’re up against each other. Any one of them could have beaten Fantasia or Carrie (sorry Fantasia and Carrie…but have you heard these four??). I have no prediction for the top three, and I wouldn’t be surprised with any combination at the top. And since I haven’t been able to get through for the past few weeks, guess it’s all up to you America. Vote well.

Another cut on American Idol

This might be the most talented top 5 ever. I don’t think I would be surprised about any of the contestants going home. (even my favorite, Chris, isn’t safe any more) I've also read that it's better to go out this round than the next...something about track record of the contestants voted out this round. Are people actually studying this sort of thing? Yikes.

Oh, Idol group songs…how I have missed you! (although did we really need that many backup singers?...this must be one of the songs going on the Idol CD…)

So, we’re at the 20 minute mark, and we’re finally going to get to some results. Oooh…the final four are going to Graceland! (wait, does this make them want to win?...) Taylor is first, and he’s safe. So is Chris (thank goodness!). Paris is next, and she’s in the bottom two. So we get to see a very strange shoe choice (white heels??) as Ryan asks her to sing. And I think she just spit her gum out into his hand so she could regale us with Prince. Very bizarre. After yet another commercial break we find out that Elliott is the other contestant in the bottom two. And while he didn’t spit anything into Ryan’s hands, he also got to sing once more.

After all that, it’s Paris that’s going home. I can’t say that I’m even a little bit surprised. The good news for Paris is that she’s extremely talented…as soon as her contract with Idol is done, the record producers will be knocking down her door to sign her.

Down to Five on American Idol

Two songs for everyone on American Idol tonight…oh boy! One from the year they were born, one from this week’s Billboard chart. I guess they couldn’t find a singer who wanted to sell more CDs this week. Well, I guess they’re trying to sell the American Idol CD. Does that really count?

Elliott was born in 1978, so we get to hear some George Benson. It was a good rendition – I think that if his voice was coupled with Chris’s looks, there wouldn’t be a contest. But Elliott is so darn goofy looking, who knows. His second song, a Michael Buble song that I’ve never heard before sounded good too. It was especially good following the franticness of Taylor’s performance.

Ok, I can’t believe that Paris was born in 1988. My husband was a senior in high school. Wow. So I know that there were so many great songs that came out in 1988…why oh why did she choose Prince? What, you don’t want to sing “Pour Some Sugar on Me?” or “Bad Medicine” (a.k.a. my favorite songs from 7^th grade…)? It wasn’t that good, but not as annoying as Simon thought. Her second song, by Mary J. Blige, wasn’t a great choice either. It needed to be bleeped – not a good sign. She sang it well…but still, not one of her best performances.

Who knew that Chris is younger than Elliott? His birth year song was a great choice. He’s back to his rocker roots, and gosh darn it he sounds sexy. (yes, that’s right, I said it…sexy) Simon was right – that was a million times better than the two performances before him. His second song wasn’t as good, but it was still so much better than the others. I agree with Simon – his first song was so good that he’ll hopefully sail through.

Paula doesn’t seem as drunk tonight. Of course, the night is still early. And Simon is definitely cranky, so not everything is topsy turvey.

Apparently Katharine had a “wardrobe malfunction” last week…I guess that would explain how she finished in the top 2 even though Simon hated her performance. All you horny guys out there, we know you’re voting for Idol. Stop denying it. Tonight she started out ok – I wasn’t a fan of her song choice, but she has such a strong voice that it sounded pretty good. There was some confusion though with the judges…Simon said “it was by far one of your best performances” (thank you tivo), then corrected himself as she talked to Ryan to make sure we knew that he meant that it wasn’t one of her best performances. Whatever. Her second song sounded a lot better. But it was a strange performance done almost entirely on her knees (insert your own joke here). Hopefully people remember that vocal instead of her first.

Taylor’s first song choice was interesting for one reason, and one reason only. I’ve recently become addicted to “Karaoke Revolution Party” on my husband’s PS2. I’m a horrible singer, but I love it. “Play That Funky Music” is one of the songs on the game, and when you play the “random song” mode, it comes up all the time. And I, one of the world’s worst singers, can do a pretty decent version of it. It was way too safe for him, and his attempts at being funky were, well, scary. His second song wasn’t much better. I agree with Simon – how he was able to sing a Beetles song for the “hits of this week” portion is a mystery. It was good…just nowhere near as good as the original.

I think the bottom two will be Paris and Taylor…who knows which will actually go home. The only person who I really think is safe this week is Chris…maybe Katharine, but who knows. Off to vote…

Not Enough People Pick Pickler

Another week, another contestant gone on American Idol. But first, a performance by Andrea Bocelli showcasing just how bad some of these contestants really are. Seriously – what is he doing on this show?

Anyways, after Simon apologized to Katharine (thank goodness…I’m so glad she sounded as good as I thought she did!), we get to Ryan’s naked cruelty. This week, he divides them into three groups of two – Katharine & Chris, Taylor & Elliott, and Kellie & Paris. To me, it seems pretty clear that Paris and Kellie are the bottom two. And I’m right – Chris and Katharine received the highest number of votes last night, and rightfully so. They’ll probably be the final two, and they’re both going to make great CDs. (and that would explain why I was never able to get through on their lines...)

So, it seems that the power of votefortheworst.com has run out, and Kellie is going home. I just feel bad for the better singers that went before her. Sure she’s cute and sweet, but she’s not a great singer. And she may be the first voted off contestant who didn’t get to sing one last time. I guess no one really wanted that anyways.

Love Songs on Idol

What the heck is Andrea Bocelli doing on American Idol? Really. This show is one of my favorites, but it is so below him. He must be really hurting for record (CD?) sales. Although the producer that was with him really did give the contestants some good advice – I liked that he just told them how it was – no sugar-coating.

Katharine had the dreaded first spot tonight. Her clip show before she sang showed just how great of a singer she is…I don’t think anyone else in the competition could have busted out the opera with Andrea Bocelli like that (at least not as well as she did!). And even though her hair extensions creped me out, I really liked her performance. I totally disagreed with the judges – they really ripped into her. I understand that they didn’t like her song choice, but she sang it really well. Simon sometimes talks about how the show sounds different when he hears it back on tv…maybe it was something with the acoustics tonight, but I thought she sounded a lot better than they thought.

Elliott, who hasn’t been a judges favorite lately, actually moved Paula to tears. Now, he really was fantastic, but I think Paula might be drunk out of her mind to be crying like that. I just hope that Elliott’s singing can trump is somewhat lackluster charisma.

Speaking of a disconnect between personality and singing ability…oh Kellie. The judges hated your rendition of “Unchained Melody” (or, “that song from Ghost”), and I have to agree. The fact that she’s still in the competition proves that lots of guys vote for Idol. Lots of horny guys.

I liked Paris’s hair this week…not so much with her song choice. She sang it well, but it just wasn’t a great song for her.

I wonder what sort of options the contestants had for songs tonight. I know that they said love songs, but it seems like they’ve all chosen older ballads…nothing new, nothing up-tempo. I guess I understand the ballads, but I would have put money on someone singing a more current song like James Blunt’s “You’re Beautiful.” They have to choose from a large list of songs each week…I guess the songs on the list were all older.

I love Taylor – it was such a good performance. Of course, Randy hated it…I seriously think that there is something up with the acoustics tonight. Randy even said “maybe it’s just me”…I couldn’t agree more.

So, Chris gets to close the night, and it’s not looking good. I think I might be the only one out there that knows all the words to his song (I am such a nerd!), and who knows if he can sing ballads two weeks in a row. And did anyone else catch the bit with the producer before Chris sang? He said something about Chris maybe having the performance of his life…then the audio cut out, but before we cut back to Chris, you could see the producer start to say “but…”. What a vote of confidence. BUT…he sounded GREAT. And he looked hot all dressed up. Even Simon liked it. Hopefully he won’t be back in the bottom three for awhile.

So, it’s time to vote (and for some reason it sounded like Ryan’s mic was still on as he and Chris chit chatted over the first few recaps)…I think I’ll be voting for Chris and Katharine…that is if I can ever get through. Even with two lines I can’t get anything other than a busy signal. And if there is any justice at all, Kellie will be going home tomorrow.

Ace's last song on American Idol

America, what were you thinking when you voted for American Idol last night? I mean really. Who keeps voting for Kellie Pickler? And where were the Chris Daughtry fans last night? (and why was he in the bottom three when I never could get through on his line?) Ugh.

After fast forwarding through Rod Stewart's performance (THANK YOU tivo!!), there was barely time for Ryan to be cruel to the contestants. Somehow, though, he managed to find a way. He put them into two groups -- Ace, Chris, & Paris and Elliott, Kellie, & Katharine. And it sure seemed like this meant that Ace had somehow been saved...after all, how could Chris and Paris be in the bottom three. So Ryan tells Taylor, who's all alone on the couch, that not only is he safe, but he needs to figure out which group he belongs with. And somehow, Taylor selects Elliott's group, and is correct. Wow. How much power does that votefortheworst.com site really have?

So, Paris, Ace, and Chris are the bottom three. Which makes no sense, since Paris and Chris were amazing. And what's even more amazing is that Paris got sent back to safety instead of Chris. Thankfully, there is some justice in the world, and Ace was eliminated instead of Chris. I guess his fans just didn't like that look last night. But that still doesn't explain why Kellie was safe while Chris was in the bottom two. It doesn't make sense.

Speaking of not making sense, Andrea Boccelli is the special guest next week? Strange. Very very strange.

A shockingly good night on American Idol

There wasvno question that tonight’s episode of American Idol was going to be interesting. After all, it’s American Idol does Rod Stewart doing the American Songbook. On the surface, this seems like such a bad idea. Randy Jackson was on Ellen today talking about why they choose themes like tonight’s. He talked about stretching the kids, and showing their range. Well, “American Songbook” will certainly do that. The strange thing was just how flexible they were.

I was nervous about Chris, but his rendition of “What a Wonderful World” was phenomenal. Randy talked today about how Chris could make a CD right now, and is the most “CD-ready” of the contestants. The judges loved him…they clearly are rooting for Chris to win.

While some contestants have probably been dreading this week’s theme, this era’s songs were made for Paris. She is so strong when she sings these songs, and she looked so classy tonight. Paula talked of how it reminded her of Paris’s original audition when she sang Ella Fitzgerald. That was when my husband thought they should just hand the competition to her. She was fantastic tonight…I just hope that America recognizes how great that really was.

The thing about Taylor is that not only is he a great singer, he does an excellent job choosing songs that are perfect for his voice. Even Simon complimented him tonight…did he actually just call the performance “magic”? All of a sudden, I’m becoming a believer in this ridiculous theme.

Back to Randy’s interview on Ellen today…he actually said that he didn’t think that Elliott had a chance at winning; that he didn’t have the stage presence. I don’t get it. At the beginning of the season, Simon praised Elliott up and down, and now it seems that they are trying to make sure that he doesn’t win. Granted, he doesn’t have the look or charisma of Chris and Taylor. But he’s a darn good singer. He did a great job tonight – it was a fantastic song choice for his voice.

You know a performance is bad when the performer thinks she botched it. At least Kellie could tell that she wasn’t very good – could you imagine if she had argued with the judges on this one? She’s just out of her league, especially following four exceptional performances. Did anyone else see Simon’s reaction during the song? Not good for Kellie, but a great camera angle for us.

Was anyone else freaked out by Ace’s hair tonight? He just looked so strange – not at all like Ace. And while the song was good, I don’t think it was as good as the songs from earlier in the night. I’m also wondering how his hair will affect the “girls-who-vote-for-me-‘cause-I’m-cute” vote.

The show ended on such a high note with Katharine’s performance. Wow. She showed that she is a good singer, not just a pop star. Wow.

I am in awe of how good tonight’s show was. Who would have known that they would do such a good job? I don’t know how to vote…I mean, anyone of them deserves the votes. Well, anyone but Kellie. I will be floored if she doesn’t go home tomorrow. And I’m sorry for mocking the theme.

Where are the blogs?

Ok, so I know that there were some GREAT episodes of reality tv this week, yet no new blog entries. Well...it's Passover. So I spent Wednesday, Thursday, AND Friday nights with family. What an adventure. So I've been spending some quality time today with my tivo catching up on tv. Some thoughts...

American Idol...that might have been the cruelest results show ever. Did they really need to string those kids along for a full hour by showing family videos? And having everyone in the bottom three singing? (poor Elliott…he just didn’t know what to do with himself!) I was kind of surprised that Elliott was in the bottom three, but not shocked at all that Bucky went home. Idol does Rod Stewart does American classics should be interesting next week…

Amazing Race…LOVED the fact that Lake & Michelle are finally gone. I was so worried that it would be the hippies. Am I the only one who wonders what sort of impact Lake’s behavior has had on his dental practice? I certainly don’t want to go to a dentist that acts like that. And why haven’t we had a non-elimination round yet? Are we just not having them this season?

Unan1mous…yes, I wasted my time with this again. I am such a loser.

Survivor…this is the only show that I watched during the week…I just couldn’t wait! And it was totally worth it. The reward challenge rocked…I really thought that Shane’s team would win after he bawled from seeing such a short clip of his son. Him and Cirie seemed to be the most motivated to see videos from home (and a great food reward to go with it). Just a guess that getting to diagnose Shane’s “problem” wasn’t how Cirie wanted to spend her afternoon! And can I just tell you how much I love Cirie? She will be nearly impossible to beat in the final two. What I didn’t like was the immunity challenge…it was absurd that the responsibility of beating Terry fell solely on the shoulders of Aras. And I really could have done without seeing Shane’s mouth full of cheeseburger. I’m sad (but not surprised) to see Sally go. Hopefully she’ll cause some trouble on the jury.

American Inventor…ok, I’ve been saying all along that my biggest problem with this show was that they never explained what the next rounds were. And now that I’ve watched the next round, I still don’t know. It just seemed like they wanted to hear the presentations one more time to decide who the top 12 were. Although I did like that it wasn’t dragged out – we went from 50 to 12 in one night. Thank goodness. There are a couple of the inventions/inventors I really like. I like the receiver’s training pole, the bathroom clip, and the word game. Hopefully they will all make it to market. Personally, I’m just hoping that I’ll understand the competition before the show is over.

Phew! Can you believe that I had time to watch baseball too? What a weekend...

American Idol does Queen!

It’s Queen night on American Idol…the next in a long line of questionable theme choices for this season’s show. It seems that any singer or band who agrees to be on the show can ensure that their songs (or era) are the theme for the week. And did anyone else notice that Mandisa was in the videos with Queen? I guess that answers the question of how far in advance they start preparing for the next week.

Bucky kicked off the Queen lovefest, and he sounded better than he had in weeks, but that bad hair is back. It was a great song choice for him…it might just mean that he lasts another week.

Singing “We Will Rock You” is such a strange choice. There’s no way do this song justice, and everyone knows it. Just say no. And did Ace just ask Queen to change their own song? Oh dear. You know it’s bad when Randy admits that he was just trying to be nice…you’re not rocking anyone Ace.

I had been saying earlier that I thought that the Queen theme would be hardest on Kellie. But she actually did a decent job. Now, she definitely had the advantage of singing right after Ace. But she “worked it out.”

No surprise that the first person that Queen was really complimentary of was Chris. He’s the only one tonight who can really do these songs justice. And he did more than just do the song justice – his performance was incredible. I disagree with Simon’s comments about song choice…I was actually really pleased with Chris’s song choice. Since he has some knowledge of Queen songs, he was able to pick a song he really likes instead of just choosing something from the “best of” album.

Katharine also had a strong performance. Her voice fit that song really nicely, and even though it had its moments, she was one of the best of the night. Elliott’s performance was also excellent – I was actually shocked at how good it was.

Oh Taylor. When it takes you two tries to kick over the mic stand, you lose the cool factor completely. Hee hee! It really was a good song choice for him…much better than “We are the Champions” would have been. And he managed to dance around like he was having a seizure while he sang. Way to go.

Paris’s performance was interesting. If you just listened to it, you probably though (and rightfully so) that she was amazing. But if you had your eyes open, you probably have the same questions that I do. She looked, well, funky. The outfit and hair extensions made her look way older than she is, and it wasn’t a good look. And she really shouldn’t dance. Maybe she and Taylor can take some classes…

So, until they did the recap, I honestly had forgotten how bad Ace’s performance was. And hearing Kellie’s again in the context of the others showed just how much she was helped by singing early in the evening and after Ace. I think the two of them will be the bottom two tomorrow. Not sure who else will be in the bottom three…maybe Paris or Katharine or Bucky? Off to vote…

American Idol shows why plastic surgery is NOT a good thing...

What happened to Kenny Rogers? He’s performing tonight on American Idol, and it looks more like an advertisement for background checks for plastic surgeons than his new CD. Seriously…what happened to him? It sounds like him, but it looks like someone totally different. If you don’t believe me, go to www.donandmikewebsite.com, and click on the link for Daily Log for April 5…they have side-by-side pictures…it’s quite frightening.

Quick side note -- what do you think is going through their heads as they’re filming those Ford commercials? Do you think that they’re wondering if a music career is worth this?

Anyways, in tonight’s version of naked-cruelty, Ryan split the contestants into three groups of three. One is the bottom three. It’s just so mean to these kids…and most of them really are kids. I can’t imagine how many therapists they have in that “Idol house” of theirs. So one group is Mandisa, Elliott, and Paris, the second is Chris, Kellie, and Taylor, the third is Ace, Katharine, and Bucky. And with a really strong singer in each group, it’s hard to tell.

The first group is sent back to the couch – after all, we did know that the group with Chris and Taylor wasn’t going home, even if it did include Kellie (and I wonder if that votefortheworst.com site is really having an impact…) Then Bucky, Katharine, and Ace get sent back. What people see in Bucky is beyond me…perhaps there are more rednecks who vote than I thought.

So, one more commercial, and we’ll finally find out who is going home. The bottom three, Mandisa, Paris, & Elliott, are actually good singers. And it’s a shame that one will be going home tonight. And after Paris gets “sent back to safety,” Ryan reveals that it’s Mandisa who’s going home. And after she blesses us in the name of Jesus, maybe that’s a good thing. But the best part would have to be the look they caught on Taylor’s face. Please tell me you saw it. As Ryan announces that Elliott is safe, they show Taylor just about to clap when he realizes that clapping when someone is going home isn’t the best choice. Fantastic.

Next week…the songs of Queen. Set your tivos now.

Amazing Race? Maybe....

Is it just me, or do the tasks on The Amazing Race seem to get easier and easier each season? If you watch the first season (they re-run episodes on GSN all the time), the tasks were really hard. Most of them were puzzles to even figure out where to go next. And the roadblocks were hard – so hard that there were teams that couldn’t finish. But now it seems that if you have a good sense of direction you can win the race hands down.

Tonight’s tasks were softballs. Neither detour choice was very hard…gross, but not hard. If you didn’t mind getting covered in fish juice (is that the right term?), carrying a swordfish 1/3 of a mile isn’t that bad. And the roadblock was a joke…it looked like they really just had to get into the kayak and throw the ball in. And what happened to the rule where no member of a team could perform more than a certain number of roadblocks? I love that rule…sure, it can hurt some of the female teams, but it’s boring to see the same people always do these tasks.

Speaking of rules and things gone by, where is the beloved fast forward? Early on in the show (the first few seasons) there was a fast forward on every leg of the race. And since you could only use it once, there was a lot of strategy involved with going for it. It also mixed up the game. Even though I like Eric & Jeremy and BJ & Taylor, it’s getting boring to have them so far in the front. It’s no fun if you can never really get out of the back of the pack.

Oh the hippies. I loved the move at the beginning with the “official sign-in list.” I don’t know what was funnier, them making the list, or Eric & Jeremy thinking it was real. “Boy, this list is really ghetto…” Hee hee!

The other innovation the past few seasons has been prizes for coming in first at each pit stop. I know, it’s just a way for the sponsors to get some more airtime. But in the game, the goal is to not come in last…coming in second or third out of eight really isn’t a problem at all.

Anyways, to the producers of The Amazing Race – bring back the fast forward and the difficult tasks! Make these people earn their million!!!

9 songs that Simon hates

It’s country week on American Idol, or “9-songs-that-Simon-hates” night. And with Kenny Rogers helping out the contestants, how can we go wrong? Maybe we would have been better off with cranky major league pitcher Kenny Rogers instead.

Taylor started the show off…I’m starting to really love Taylor. I think he has a legitimate shot at winning the competition, which is really funny, since Simon didn’t even want to let him through the first round to Hollywood. (didn’t he say that he thought Randy and Paula would never let him sing in front of voters?). Even though the judges didn’t love his performance, I really liked it. I think it was a good choice for his voice, and close enough to the original that voters know he did a good job.

Oh Mandisa. So many poor choices…poor outfit choice, poor song choice…what were you thinking? I just didn’t get it. You’re such a good singer…this is two weeks in a row that just didn’t show it.

So Elliott sang “If Tomorrow Never Comes” by Garth Brooks. I’m not a country fan, but I do love this song. And while Elliott did ok with it, he showed why he’s NOT a country singer. Granted, he was good by comparison, but that’s not saying too much.

All of a sudden, the show started to get weird. Ok, it was already weird (country?)…weirder than it already was. Ryan actually just started questioning what the judges are drinking (Paula, really). And I think he just asked if there was a flask over there. So I guess I’m not the only one who thinks she’s drunk.

I’m not really sure if the song Paris chose was country. But I do know that it wasn’t very good at all. It did get a bit better as it went on, but only a small bit. She might have just bought herself a ticket to the bottom three.

Ace actually chose a pretty good song for his voice. And he’s working the whole sexy look thing again. It’s a good thing he’s so cute…his voice just isn’t up to the level as some of the others that are left.

Kellie was next, sounding really good. She’s the first person tonight who actually sounded “right” singing country music. It’ll probably get her an extra week or two on the show. She seems to be really nice, so good for her.

Now, you know that I patiently wait each week for Chris to sing. And he didn’t disappoint. He was fantastic – he showed that he’s not just a rocker. This is why he’s going to win the competition. And you know I’ll be there to buy his CD!

Katharine was really good tonight too. I liked her song choice, and she rebounded from being in the bottom two nicely. I also liked her confidence when talking to Simon. She’s right – Simon just doesn’t like country music, and that’s ok.

Bucky finished off the night mumbling his way through another song. I would have thought that Bucky would have taken this theme and run with it. I mean, it could essentially give him an extra week on the show. But it was a really bad song choice, and not a great performance of that song. And when they showed the contestants with Kenny Rogers Bucky was playing along on his guitar…I would have loved to see him actually play tonight…it might have taken some of the focus away from his mumbling.

So, who do I think will be in the bottom three? This is hard…but I think Bucky, Paris, and Mandisa will be in the bottom. And this is probably the end of the line for Bucky. Oh well.

Did you know that they don't have jingles in Russia?

Tonight, on a very special episode of The Apprentice…a team pulls together, only to ultimately fail. Oh, the humanity…

So, after a miserable task last week, Bryce started Gold Rush down the right path. He was a great leader – pulling them all together to attempt to end their bickering. And they really did work much better together than they had before. Bryce seemed to be a good leader – the type that people really respond to. Of course, good leadership can’t always fix bad decisions. Like, who schedules a meeting for 30 minutes from now? In New York City? In the rain? And then doesn’t leave for another 10-15 minutes. Did they not learn anything from last season? And Lenny. I don’t care if you don’t know what a jingle is. You’ve watched tv…you know what commercials are. Step up to the plate and stop playing the “I’m from Russia” card.

Over at Synergy, ladies man Sean has a much stronger team working for him. And with stronger players (and an on-time meeting with the execs), you’re bound to get a better product. Their jingle really was good – way better than most of what you hear on television. It was clear that they were the winners – now go eat your $4000 dinner.

Ok, so Gold Rush has to go to the boardroom (after a tearful moment in the suite), and this is when I started to get angry. Very angry. Lee missed this task because he was observing Yom Kippur. For those of you who don’t know, Yom Kippur is the holiest day of the Jewish year. Jews spend the day in synagogue – no work or school. But because this was the second task that he missed, he came under fire from some members of his team. It bothers me that Bryce would bring him in to the boardroom. But it makes me angry that the producers put Lee in that position to begin with. How hard is it to look at a calendar and not schedule a task for Yom Kippur? It’s one day – have the task be the day before or after. Could you imagine the uproar if candidates were required to do a task on Christmas Day, and then were criticized for attending church instead of the task? Someone on this show has got to learn some tolerance.

So, Bryce brings back Lee and Lenny, which pretty much assures that he will be fired. He had to know that Trump would not risk the backlash of firing Lee for observing the holiday. And while it seemed like he was resigned to the fact he would be fired, he still should have fought a little harder. Did I miss the game for this?...

It’s time for someone to go home on American Idol. And with only 30 minutes, you would think that they would have to cut right to the chase. If only…

First, we get to see them going to a premiere of a Fox movie (wait, what network are we watching?), getting made up in a photo shoot, and singing in a really horrible Ford commercial. Then a performance by Shakira and Wyclef, which, for what it’s worth was really good, but not sure why it was there. I did love the look on the judges faces as one of the rappers came a bit too close. Paula loved it, but Simon wasn’t so amused. It was a great look. And why are they having guest stars sing on results night this season instead of the big group songs? Not that I’m complaining…just wondering.

Of course, when we finally get to some results, we’ve wasted so much time that Ryan just tells us straight up that the front row is all safe. No surprise with Chris, Taylor, and Paris, but I am a little surprised that Kellie is safe. And I guess that Mandisa’s voice trumped her song choice.

So we get to the top row, and no surprises at first – Elliott is safe, Lisa is back in the bottom three. And not really surprising that Ace is in the bottom three either…he’s cute, but he didn’t sound great last night. Then we get to Bucky and Katharine, and somehow, Katharine is in the bottom three. And when someone gets sent “back to safety,” it’s Ace that gets sent back, not Katharine. Very strange. Although I was a little bit pleased that Simon talked about the fact that watching the show back, Katharine didn’t sound nearly as good as she did in person (so it wasn’t me…).

Finally, we get to the result, and Lisa is going home. She seemed like she knew it, and she took it really well – it’s nice to see someone her age act so much more mature than her age. And next week’s theme is country…maybe Lisa is glad she’s going home now.

We’re down to 10 on American Idol, and it’s “songs of the 21^st century night.” That’s right, a theme that’s not really a theme. Go ahead contestants, pick something that’s been popular in the last 6 years. Melissa and Kevin have got to be kicking themselves that they didn’t do this the first week. It also means that we’re out of contestants who awkwardly try to figure out how to hold up enough fingers to tell us to vote for contestant #11.

Lisa started off the night with a Kelly Clarkson song, which wasn’t a great choice. Heck, it wasn’t even a good choice. Lisa is good, but she’s not nearly as good as Kelly Clarkson. And you need to know your audience – Idol viewers love Kelly Clarkson, and have probably all heard her song. They know that Lisa’s version paled in comparison. Oh well…she was going to be in the bottom three this week anyways.

Did Kellie really explain the “story” of the song to us? It’s country music – we can figure it out. I’ve never heard the original, but her version sounded decent. I agreed with the judges – two in a row with bad choices. This is her wheelhouse, so she needed to knock it out of the park on this one (can you tell that baseball season is only days away?). Why she didn’t choose a more popular, challenging song is beyond me.

Ok, maybe this theme is harder than I thought. They’re singing songs that we all know, and we all know how they should sound. So we know how great Train is, and Ace didn’t do the song justice. And Ace – “Drops of Jupiter” is hardly a “rock” song.

Wait a second – did Paula just ask Ace to tell her one day how he got that scar? And even though she didn’t think anything of it, Randy and Simon instantly thought of the Corey Clark scandal…you can’t just ask him like that! Someone has GOT to fix the delicate balance of her medications…

I’ve never heard of the song that Taylor sung, but it was great. Finally, someone who understands the whole song selection thing. I totally disagreed with Randy – it was great to hear such a good song, especially after the previous three. And it was nice to see him not dancing around like he was having a seizure.

Speaking of song selection, I’m not a fan of Mandisa’s. She sounded good – she always does, really. But I’m not sure if choosing a religious song is really the best choice. I’m guessing that there are more than a few who won’t vote for her simply because of the nature of her song. And Paula talking about worshiping at the “church of Mandisa” probably didn’t help that situation.

Now, I might be one of the biggest Chris Daughtry fans out there. So, of course, I loved his performance. But I agree with Simon – it might (might) have been a bit indulgent. Of course, earlier in the show Simon talked about whether or not their performances could hold up to their contemporary counterparts, and this definitely holds up. And the fact that he’s such a hottie doesn’t hurt either.

Katharine’s performance I just didn’t understand. She is such a good singer, and the judges seemed to like her tonight. But I didn’t think it was that great. It got better as it went on, but it started really rough. Maybe this is why I don’t sing in public…or maybe it just didn’t sound as good as the judges thought.

Ok, I think Bucky just sang, but all I heard was mumbling. Go figure.

If, by some chance, you had your eyes closed while Paris was singing, you definitely heard the best performance of the night. She sounded fantastic. Of course, if you’re like most people, you were watching. For some reason, Paris thinks she can dance like Beyoncé. She’s wrong. And to whichever stylist is doing her hair – what is wrong with you? She is such a cute girl – stop making her “uncute.” Please.

Finally, we wrap up the show with Elliott. I wasn’t a huge fan of his song, but I appreciate the fact that he didn’t just sing the song. Hopefully people enjoyed it as much as the judges – I like Elliott and I hope he hangs around.

So I guess that songs of the 21^st century was harder than I thought. Hmmmm. So tomorrow night is results…my prediction? I think that Lisa’s luck has run out. The rest of the bottom three? That’s tougher…probably Bucky and Kellie, simply because they’ll split the country vote. I wouldn’t be surprised if Ace or Mandisa were in the bottom either.