Great News!
The! Drama! Is! Over! Hollywood is far, far, far away in the rear view mirror and everyone is happy as clams! No more pencils! No more books! No more teachers’ dirty looks!
Come on! Where would the fun be in that … ?!? That’s not the American Idol we all know and love. No one wants an Idol sans drama! I don’t. Do you?
No. I didn’t think so. The season’s just begun! We have a few weeks before we nail down the Top 12 contestants and begin moving forward with the meat and potatoes of the competition. We’ve been pining for it and we’re on the verge of getting close. And we’ve come so far! Just last week we had 309 contestants. That number has been hacked to 42. That’s really saying something.
Not everyone can be mentioned who performed last night (nor would I want to do so), but let’s point out one particular group — Angie Zeiderman, Ericka Van Pelt, Shelby Tweten and Adam Brock. They committed The Killer’s “Great Balls Of Fire” with flair and gumption and a little bit more. It would have been very easy for any of them to get lost in such a frantic song, but they managed to individualize performances as well as come together as a pack … not an easy thing to do:
That was to their advantage, of course. By managing distinct takes for each of them, it helped make it easier for the judges to push all four of them through. I had no doubt Adam would make it (not with the terrific version of “Georgia On My Mind” he easily mastered during his solo the previous night), but I was surprised Angie Zeiderman got the nod. She was the weakest link of the four. But justice was served in the end when she ultimately got dismissed, the judges having need to make further cuts to pair things down to a more manageable number.
The final selections will be rendered next week when our finalists are finally chosen, always part of the tensest moments of Idol. But I’m ready for it, ready to see who stays and who goes.
Notes:
Clacked by Michael Noble 
on Feb 17, 2012 @ 12:18 EST5EDT
I’m gonna miss Johnny. *sniff* And, after the pout Colton Dixon displayed when his sister was sent home, I would be willing to replace him with Johnny in a minute.
I was glad to see the gal go home who got to Hollywood because of her back story of supporting her boyfriend post-stroke. My instant read on her at her audition was fully vindicated in her sour grapes speech of farewell. I hope the boyfriend has a back-up plan, because I think this girl is soon going to decide that she “has” to “do what is best for me” and move on.
That whole Richie/Jermaine duet was interesting, and I’m a little surprised at the judges’ reactions. I found the song dragged at the tempo they set, and Richie’s performance [and attitude] kept Jermaine from doing his best. I’d like to see Jermaine do the same song for his solo, after working with Peggy again and trying it her way. But that wouldn’t be Idol either, would it?