Idol - the Final 3

[JasonEvans]

I am busy with the !#^@$&@#& endless Democratic primary season, but I will watch before the results show tomorrow.

Anyway, I just wanted to get the thread started and put up the poll so we all could get it wrong.

--Jason "I wonder if they will mention that Archulettabot's father was kicked out of backstage... not a chance" Evans

[Lavabe]

I am busy with the !#^@$&@#& endless Democratic primary season, but I will watch before the results show tomorrow.

Anyway, I just wanted to get the thread started and put up the poll so we all could get it wrong.

--Jason "I wonder if they will mention that Archulettabot's father was kicked out of backstage... not a chance" Evans

But at least there was a Sideshow Bob (err, Justin) sighting!

Cheers,
Lavabe

[gotoguy]

Thought I could vote for Fred Lind here. He sent the tarheels home.

[JasonEvans]

Well, I watched it...

This season has come down to --

1) a baladeer who can only sing balads.

2) a "performer" who is best doing classic Broadway style stuff

and 3) a really talented rocker

Syesha, who did a version of "Fever" that would be fine on Broadway but had no place in the final 3 of American Idol, will be going home. It ain't even close. Her third song was just totally unmemorable. I hit FFW about halfway through it because I could not stand it. She's a fine performer and has nice command of the stage. But, she is not a singing star. Making it to the Final 3 was a huge, huge accomplisment for her. She's toast though and it won't be close.

Archulettabot was predictible singing his balads and just bad when he went out of theat comfort zone to try the up tempo "With You." I am not sure if he just swallowed at the wrong moment or he forgot the lyrics but he was certainly mumbling at times during "With You" and he was fortunate it was not the only song he sung tonight. I think it will take something truly revolutionary for him to stop the Cook train next week.

Cook's version of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" was stunningly good. Yeah, maybe it is predicitble that he takes a slow song and rocks it out a bit at the end because he has made that a staple, but I still really enjoy hearing him do it and he is putting his unique stamp on every one of the songs he does that way. I found it kinda funny that he picked a song that already follows that pattern in "I Don't Want To Miss a Thing" for his last song. I almost thought he was going to keep it slow the whole time, which would have been a big mistake. His singing style is not all that different from Steven Tyler so picking a great Aerosmith song was very smart.

It will take a real flop by DC next week not to win it all. He is miles better in terms of stage presence, confidence, and singing ability than anyone else on the show. I'd buy an album of his or see him in concert, which is not something I would say about more than maybe 2 or 3 other contestants in the history of Idol.

I will be intrigued to see how they maintain the suspence tomorrow as Syesha is a mortal lock to go home. Bet the farm on it.

-Jason "someone check Intrade or one of those online gambling sites for me and let me know what the odds are on Syesha going home" Evans

[Lavabe]

They each sang three songs last night. I didn't disagree too much with Jason's review of everyone's songs, but it seemed as though only one each of the non-Cook performers' songs' was reviewed. In that regard:
1) Archulettabot: I agree with Jason's review of the Arch's 2nd song (all 2nd songs were selected by the performers). It was extremely awkward. This came after Paula's selection for him, Billy Joel's "And So It Goes." This first song was typical Arch, over the top schmaltz. Given Arch's bizarre 2nd song, the producers had him sing Dan Fogelberg's "Longer." Arch oversang this song; Arch had a powerful voice, but as a result, it missed a lot of the gentleness of the original.
2) Syesha: Her first song was selected by Randy, Alicia Keys' ''If I Ain't Got You." She did a good attempt at Keys, but I didn't see her put enough of herself into it. Jason pretty much nailed Syesha's own selection, "Fever." The producers then had her sing ''Hit Me Up," which was okay, but again, she didn't bring enough originality and strength. Then again, it might have resonated well with young audiences.
3) David Cook: Song of the night was probably his first, Simon's selection of Roberta Flack's ''The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face.'' Solid, Cook put his own spin on this, and sang it with a lot of respect to the original version. His second song, Switchfoot's ''Dare You to Move,'' was off key in a number of spots. The producers then selected Aerosmith's ''I Don't Want to Miss a Thing.'' Solid performance, and the songwriter in the audience was highlighted afterwards.

I'm afraid that Cook did not go after ANYONE in the younger audience. He sang two older songs and an alternative rock song. Arch had two average performances with older songs, and an awkward one that went after younger audiences. Syesha tried two more popular songs that may resonate well with younger pop audiences.

I hope Archuleta is gone. I am tired of ballads!

Cheers,
Lavabe

[dukepsy1963]

It is painful for me to watch and listen to David Archuletta. To me, he shows signs of clinical depression (and possible abuse of some kind). Should he win the thing, I see a "crash and burn" for him somewhere down the pike.
He shows no joy at all in his singing; no involvement whatsoever. His voice is good and he has a great musical sense (despite his breathing problems), but he is a victim. He's like a choirboy who has a great voice and does what he is told; but has a dark story to tell. Sad. Very sad.

Not a good year for AI.

[AtlBluRew]

I too am ready to buy David Cook cd's. He's a very good performer with a terrific voice. Even though the judges (and Jason) panned Archuletta's song choice, I thought it was a good idea to break the ballad mold and try something uptempo. I suspect that his fans liked it. Syesha, for some reason, just bores me. She has a nice voice but every performance over the last several weeks has left me wanting something more. For me, she should be the one going home tonight.

[blublood]

O.k., I'll just say this to get it out there... (deep breath)... I liked Archuwhatever's "With You". I liked it, I liked it, and I'm not sorry at all!

[micah75]

He shows no joy at all in his singing; no involvement whatsoever. His voice is good and he has a great musical sense (despite his breathing problems), but he is a victim. He's like a choirboy who has a great voice and does what he is told; but has a dark story to tell. Sad. Very sad.

Learning that his Dad got banned from backstage after he changed some lyrics that his son sang would seem to indicate a rather controlling father, possibly someone who wants to get rich off his progeny. I'm guessing he lives in fear of his father's criticisms due to being over-coached.

Paula kind of nailed it regarding Syesha: song choices. She isn't singing songs that showcase her true talents, despite having a good voice and stage presence. She's toast, as far as I'm concerned.

Not a good year for AI.

Agreed. It's been a letdown. I kept hoping they would finally crank it up as the season winded down, but instead the show just kept going downhill, mostly due to the presence of Jason "Capt. Thorazine" Castro at the expense of far better performers such as Johns and Smithson. That and song choices by the remaining contestants.

[BobbyFan]

I'm rooting for Cook, but he was off last night. His 2nd performance was horrible (his low notes were completely off pitch) and I didn't see what was so good with his Aerosmith. Simon's selection for his first song is what saved face. Overall, though, his performances are becoming formulaic, ending with the typical yell.

Still, I'd take him over the dull Archie, who was comical with his 2nd song, and Syesha, who, after several strong weeks in a row, struck out in a golden opportunity when the other 2 were not so hot.

[SoCalDukeFan]

Overall I like Syesha the best. I really hope David A goes home but think that it will be Syesha.

I also think David A may win the whole thing. He will probably add the Jason Castro voters to his mix.

A final 3 or Carly, Michael Johns, and David Cook would have been great.

SoCal

[SoCalDukeFan]

Cook that is.

SoCal

[brevity]

Syesha did as well (really, better) than most of us expected.

But I'm actually glad to see an all-David finale. This whole season I've been wondering whether Cook or Archuleta has more voter support -- with one exception, they've been safe every week, and it's impossible to know who's been "more" safe. Now we'll finally get an answer.

Aside from that, though, next week is meaningless. Neither needs to win the competition; I'm sure that 19 Entertainment has already mapped out their career paths.

[Lavabe]

Thanks Dukepsy1963 for your analysis of Archuletabot. I believe that's part of the reason I can't stand his performances.

Here's to hoping that Cook wins, knowing in the back of my mind that he won't.

Hopefully they'll change around the formula for the last show of the season. Will they both have to sing with a choir in the background? Some new song that has sappy lyrics? One of their favorite songs that they already sang this year?

Is it my imagination, or did Paula actually give out sharp comments this week?

So far, I have a perfect score of choosing the loser each week! .000!
Cheers,
Lavabe

[JasonEvans]

Was anyone else sure that Ryan was going to say, "The person who moves onto the finals next week is... David."

I usually hate the silly "here is their journey" videos but I actually sorta enjoyed the looks at each of them going to their hometowns. It put in perspective how crazy this must feel to each of them. 4 months ago, these folks were nobodies. DC was a freaking bartender! And now they have to have police escorts wherever they go and they are mobbed by thousands of adoring fans. Sure, they have experienced it in Hollywood, but it probably really brings the insanity home when that happens in your hometown, in places where your world used to be normal.

I agree tha the final is meaningless. I almost hope Cook loses so we can continue the trend of the non-winners often doing better than the winners.

--Jason "I'd love to hear a Cook-Daughtry rock duet sorta thing" Evans

[BobbyFan]

Maybe it's just me, but the visits to their hometowns felt at least partially scripted. The camera happening to catch their shocked look at the number of fans, the tears (even from Cook), etc.