• ‘Idol’ Gets Smokey

    I can’t believe they are still doing that lame melodramatic thing where the judges walk onto stage and are announced. Is this the reason the show is still clocking in at two hours? Ridiculous! (I also can’t believe Ryan Seacrest made an allusion to oral sex when Paula reached under the desk to get a…

  • Results Show: Gunnin’ for a Guy

    Two things stood out about the opening Travis Tritt “T-R-O-U-B-L-E” number. First of all, did anyone realize before then that the men outnumbered the girls by almost 2 to 1? America’s gunnin’ for a guy this year. Secondly, looks like the producers finally got sick of teaching the choreography to Scott MacIntyre and just stuck…

  • It’s Carrie Underwood … um … ‘Country’ Week!

    Seacrest promised that it was gonna be a good show and, in the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day, suggested that it might get even better after a few pints. As a card-carrying Kelly, I can attest that this was indeed the case. I can also tell you that Paula’s brow lift seems to have settled…

  • Reality Shows Pay With Resuscitated Careers

    “Some people are parlaying those 15 minutes into 30 minutes or hours.”

  • And the Judges Saved (or Did They?) …

    Seriously, are the producers just making the rules up as they go? First there was the (supposedly) spur-of-the-moment Top 13. Now comes the Judge’s Save, in which they can overrule one of America’s votes during the season. Yet another way for the judges to push through their favorites. You’d think it would be easy to mock…

  • The Way They Make Me Feel (on Jacko Night)

    First things first: Nice brow lift and new cheeks, Paula! Secondly, thank God for Seacrest! How else would we know to be “extra careful” when dialing the “special number” given to the 13th contestant? No doubt 866-IDOLS-13 got more traffic than usual last night as fans either misdialed or called out of curiosity. Didn’t have…

  • Not So Wild About Wild Cards

    The long awaited Wild Card round aired last night, with performances at the top and results at the end of the show – yes, including yet another “shocker.” Don’t you wish Hollywood Week had been this efficient? The Performances: Jesse Langseth kicked off the night with a sultry performance of “Tell Me Something Good.”  It…

  • Winners and Wild Cards

    “Idol” again took a stab at making us misty-eyed by airing slow-mo clips of the hopefuls crying and whatnot, backed by poignant music. But at least this week’s results show had a bit more meat to it than last week’s. Let’s get to the good stuff. After a cheesy Up With People group version of…

  • The Last of the Top 36 Compete

    It’s difficult to say which “Idol” news is bigger this week: the upcoming Wild Card round or the homoerotic photos of Adam Lambert flooding the web.  In either case, today’s biggest story is the last round of semi-final performances.  Here’s how it went down:   Von Smith: He toned the singing down about 30 decibels and turned…

  • Confused About That “Wild Card” Round, Are Ya?

    Confused about how Thursday’s Wild Card round will work? You’re not alone. In fact, it could be that’s just what Fox wants – part of the network’s master plan to drum up viewership. There’s reason for the confusion. Initially, it was announced that the next-highest vote-getter from each group (essentially the fourth-place contestant) would automatically…

  • 3 More Move Up …

    Does Fox actually program their “Idol” shows now with the knowledge that everyone is watching on Tivo? How else to explain the hour-long Results Show? And the filler. Did I mention filler? Oh, sorry, they call them “recaps.” First, there was a video montage RECAP of the hopefuls’ “Idol Journey,” which mainly featured our contenders…

  • Bland, Bland, Bland, Bland, Bland

    Unlike a certain curvaceous diva who is touted as a great songstress yet chose to lip-synch on Oscar night, at least last night’s contestants actually sang live.    You’d never have known it. As the judges continue to stress, with only three people from each group moving forward, now is the time for these would-be’s…

  • The First Round = Bad News for Anoop

    ANOOP TROOP DISAPPOINTED IN ‘IDOL’ SHOCKERAlthough viewers were promised a shorter results show this season, last night’s “American Idol” timed in at the usual 60 minutes.  Time was filled with recaps, a toe-tapping group performance of Jason Mraz’s “I’m Yours,” encores from those progressing to the Top 12 and a duet from last season’s Carly…

  • Group 1 Sings to Survive

    GROUP ONE SUFFERS IDENTITY CRISIS Last night’s show definitely had a theme and it was this: identity crisis.  Many of the contestants, perhaps in an effort to “take risks,” sang songs that completely contradicted the artists that they had claimed to be in weeks prior. There is a sense that the contestants feel that they…

  • The Top 36 Emerge

    HERE COME THE TOP 36 This round marked the end of the judge’s decisions and the beginning of America choosing its own Idol. From the Top 54, the judges narrowed the contestants down to 36, even forcing them to engage in “Sing-offs” with one another when they weren’t sure whom to progress.   CONTESTANTS TO…