'American Idol' - The Final 12 on the Big Stage

Tonight was the first outing for the final twelve contestants. All are winners as all will participate in the tour, so their lives have certainly already been changed. [Update note: Apparently only the top ten go on tour, but the exposure the top twelve get is life-changing nonetheless.]

I know I've voiced my own opinions on who I think should win and once again tonight, those thoughts were also voiced by Simon. To me, it's the Melinda Doolittle and Lakisha Jones show.

But tonight, it was also the Diana Ross show. I grew up on old school Motown and have observed and listened to Diana Ross throughout her career. The last time I saw her live was at a very rainy free concert in Central Park (NYC) some long years ago. I thought that she may have gotten a bit "odd" over the years since. After all, much of what we've seen connected with her in the last decade or so was Michael Jackson related. Ah, but not so! I thought her advice to each contestant was the most spot on that we've ever seen in this situation. She rocks!

Alas, some of the contestants, not so much.

First up was Brandon Rogers. I want to like him for some reason. However tonight, I just couldn't. He sang "You Can't Hurry Love." He forgot some of the words and didn't recover all that well. It was just kind of boring. Yes, it was better than I can sing, but...! Randy said he had to be a lot better and it was boring. Paula thought his nerves got to him. Simon said it was a complete letdown, not star quality, not good enough, sorry. Sigh, Simon said it.

Then there was Melinda Doolittle. I swear this woman has magic to do songs I don't even like well enough to enamor me with her voice and stage presence. She sang "Home" from The Wiz. I really don't like that song. I don't like it at a show. I don't like it in the snow. I just don't like it, don't you know. But I sat there and admired her talent. Paula sobbed through the performance. Randy called it hot and exciting. It gave Paula goosebumps. Simon said she made a boring song fantastic and likened her to a young Gladys Knight. Pip Pip Hooray for Doolittle!

Then I was let down by my favorite male singer on the show... Chris Sligh. Now, Diana told him to follow the melody. He didn't. He wanted to "hip" up "Endless Love." He didn't wear his glasses and looked even pastier than usual. Oh, he was better than Brandon, but he let me down nonetheless. Randy called it a mess. Paula told him he tried to be hip and cool with a classic song and he didn't need to do it that way. Simon said the arrangement ruined it and to keep his glasses on. Come back, Chris!

Gina Glocksen chose to sing "Love Child." I think it was a good song choice for her. Diana told her to pronunciate and project, tell the story. I thought she did okay, but nothing to write a blog about. Randy, who was very hoarse this evening, said it was pitchy with no excitement. Paula said she was better than how she sang. Simon declared it okay, not terrible, not fantastic... a middle-pack performance.

Next up was Sanjaya Malakar. I'm going to keep messing with photos of him until he goes away. Diana thinks he's "love." Blech. He sang "Ain't No Mountain High Enough." Now, there was a boring rendition. I don't care how much he smiles to the camera while he sings. Randy said it was weak, but his hair looked good. Paula told him he must explode and get into his songs, but he's adorable. Simon said that a wail will be heard somewhere in Beverly Hills when Diana hears what he did to her song. To say something nice, he said Sanjaya was brave.

Haley Scarnato took the stage next singing "Missing You." Diana said that Haley has a recording studio voice moreso than a live performance one. I think she may have something there. I thought she came across as a bit mumbly and she forgot some of the lyrics. At times, the tone in her voice was very nice, but the flaws were many and obvious. Randy said it was a valiant effort, she forgot the words and it was pitchy. Paula told her she looked lovely, but forgot the words and was pitchy. Simon said he didn't think it was all that bad and she had a real stage presence.

Phil Stacey sang "I'm Going to Make You Love Me." I thought it was perhaps my favorite performance of his so far this season although it was a bit boring. Just going on the voice, he did well. Presentation, not so hot. Randy thought the vocals were hot, but the overall song was on the boring side. Paula said he needed to up the tempo a bit. Simon said the tempo was fine, but he has to watch not to shout the big notes. He said it was better than last week. I agree.

We found that Lakisha's nickname is Kiki. I like it. She sang a song that seems like it's been in my life all my life - "God Bless the Child." I have the original Billie Holiday, the Diana Ross from Lady Sings the Blues, and even Blood, Sweat and Tears cover. There's something about that song which has always touched a chord with me. And, for Lakisha Jones, one of my two favorites to sing it? Wow. She added a bit of herself into the song, yet remained true to the original. Wow.

Randy said it was a perfect song choice and sensational. Paula called the performance beautiful. Simon told her that you've either got it or you don't... and she has it. He once again said that Lakisha and Melinda are in a different league from the others. He's so right.

I have to give Blake Lewis some credit for being into some of the technical aspects. He tech'd up "You Keep Me Hanging On." The judges didn't care for it, but in a way I did. That's a song which has been covered by many artists, as well.

From the real dragging version by Vanilla Fudge to the more up tempo Supremes. No, I wouldn't go out and buy it, but I did find it interesting. Had he been strictly adhering to the original, I think it would have been boring. Simon didn't "get it" at all, but I kind of did. It's no Melinda or Lakisha, but definitely on the interesting side.

Stephanie Edwards sang "Love Hangover." And she skipped the disco part! Blasphemy! I thought she looked attractive and sang quite nicely at times although she's another one who forgot the words at one point. Diana Ross said she had star quality in the pre-performance taped segment. I think she does. But, this performance didn't do it for me. Randy mentioned forgetting the lyrics. Paula told her to strive to be better. Simon said it was if she just sang the intro to the song and that it was the wrong song.

Chris Richardson didn't impress me with his version of "The Boss." I thought he sounded nasal and it was my least favorite performance of his so far. Randy thought he overdid it a bit. Paula thought he nailed the blend between contemporary and the original. Simon said the vocals were dreadful and terrible. I have to go with Simon on this one.

Jordin Sparks closed the show "If We Hold On Together," not really a favorite song of mine. But, wow. She nailed it. I can't believe this kid is only seventeen! She has a good voice and poise. She makes her age-counterpart Sanjaya look like a silly kid. (Oh, wait... he is!) Randy declared it a three-girl race. Paula gushed. Simon called it a "gooey song." (Yes!) But he said it was a good vocal and thinks she has a shot at the finals.

So, who's going home? Of course, I want it to be Sanjaya, but I think the teenybopper vote will keep him in longer. I think we may say goodbye to Brandon tomorrow night. I think all of the girls are safe although Haley might be on the edge.

TV Newsy Bits - Monday, March 12, 2007

No Heroes tonight. Yikes! At least there are two new episodes of The New Adventures of Old Christine and, later on, The Black Donnellys.

It's going to be an odd week -- no Survivor either (on Thursday). Oh, but fear not... I'm sure I'll have something to watch!

Here are the TV Newsy Bits I found out and about the Internet today:

• "If You're Female, it's Over," claims Rita, the recently booted Survivor contestant in an interview on Reality News Online. She has a point.
• In Amazing Race bits, David and Mary are featured in a recent interview. Surprisingly, they don't think much of Mirna and Charla (heh). They wanted Rob and Amber to win. Speaking of Romber, Reality TV World has an interview with them posted. As I mentioned in my review/recap of last night's show, the end was nowhere near as close as editing made it appear. Rob said in the interview that there was a good 10-15 minutes between Charla/Mirna and them. The other team was at the mat before Rob finished reading his letter.
• According to Celebrity Spider, Josh Holloway (Sawyer of Lost) thinks the local police target show stars.

East Coast Update - 'The Apprentice: L.A. - Firing 03/11

Although I'm no longer doing full reviews of the show, here's the East Coast lowdown:

• The teams had to create a halftime show promoting GNC for a pro soccer game.
• Kinetic, led by Kristine, won.
• The reward was golf with Trump and golf clubs.
• Surya brought Tim and James to the Boardroom
• Surya got fired.
  

'The Amazing Race 11: All Stars' - Ep. 4 -or- Sometimes "Next" Means "Tonight"

Thanks to graphic artist Zoetawny, I have a new image for the TAR entries!


Well, we can't trust Phil Keoghan, we just can't. Last week I mentioned how he opened the show with "who will be eliminated tonight?" This week, it was phrased differently leading me to believe it would probably be a non-elimination leg. After all, we're due one. Ah, but not this week and it was a shocker indeed.

"Eight teams remain. Who will be eliminated next?" (See the difference?)

Rob and Amber, the first-place finishers for the first three legs we've seen so far this season, left the Pit Stop at 6:11am. The last team to arrive at that Pit Stop, Charla and Mirna, left at 8:11am, thus a perfect two hour between first and last place at the starting gate for the new leg.

The teams had to fly to Punta Arenas, Chile, then travel by taxi to find the Lord Lonsdale shipwreck. As they arrived early and had tickets for the earliest flight, Rob and Amber thought to do an online search for the site of the wreck thinking that would give them a head start.

Although the airport scene seemed a bit less than other weeks, we still had to waddle through some drama and trauma. The ChaChas (Oswald and Danny) are determined not to leave their sense of style behind. Mirna thinks she constantly has to "make up for the shortcomings" of her team and that she's the hardest working person running the race. (Can I get an eyeroll here, please?) Mirna doesn't trust the Team Guido (Joe and Bill). Well, duh. They were one of the sneakiest teams ever in their season. Why would anyone trust them? It's just common sense! Silly (and annoying) Mirna.

Although the Guidos tried to get the airport to hold the plane, they didn't make it on the first plane. But, in the end, it didn't really matter as it often doesn't matter in the grand scheme of a leg. However, Uchenna and Joyce were on the same plane as Rob and Amber. Now, Uchenna asked the stewardess to write him directions to the shipwreck. Rob claims the woman gave it to him while Uchenna insists Rob "stole" the note from her. Who's right? I just don't know. But it was Rob who ended up with the note in question and was giggling about it.

The Detour was Magellan-related as he's important to the history of the area. The teams could either Detour It or Sign It. In Detour It teams had to navigate the city by map and compass to find the Nautilus Building where they would receive the next clue. In Sign It teams had to erect a sign post with all of Magellan's stops. The cities didn't have to point the right direction, but all must be spelled right.

That was the beginning of the end for a fan favorite team or one that folks loved to hate. Either way, a team who maked this race more interesting started what would do them in at the end by choosing the wrong task. The teams who chose Navigate It seemed to sail through while the teams choosing Sign It fell further and further behind.

While Uchenna and Joyce, Rob and Amber, and later Charla and Mirna, struggled with the sign task, the ChaChas, Eric and Danielle, and Teri and Ian made it to the next point on the race. They snagged the first charter plane of three leaving three hours apart on their way to Playa Larga in Ushuiai, Argentina. Amber tried to convince Rob to go to the other task, but he was determined. Finally, Romber teamed up with the Beauty Queens (Dustin and Kandice) to do Navigate It. Even Charla and Mirna switched to that after horribly trailing the other teams.

I have to mention how nasty Mirna's treatment of Charla was tonight. That woman is condescending, mean, evil and outright mean to her very own cousin. She creeps me out. I so want her gone.

But, back to the race at hand... Rob, continuing his streak of bad decisions, led the BQ to the wrong building, thus increasing the lead the other teams had on them. As one of the Beauty Queens later said, "Rob and Amber weren't very helpful." Amber teased Rob to admit he was upset because he wanted to come in first again. Rob sheepishly turned to the camera in the cab, "I want to be in first." Aw. They later lied to Charla and Mirna and had all the other teams laughing about it. Alas, the cousins caught up.

After the charter flight, teams had to take boats which left every 20 minutes to the Isle of Redonda or, as it's known, the end of the world. It's a longitudinal thing. After they got to that point, they faced a Roadblock at the local post office. One member of each team had to search through a huge bag of letters for one addressed to their team. The letters were from a team which had raced the race with them in their own seasons.

Blake and Paige wrote a nice note to the ChaChas. Jeremy and Dani, the previous partners of Eric and Danielle, wrote to them. Ian and Teri got a note from Flo and Zach. Frank, who hated the Guidos in their season, wrote to them. Lyn from Bama actually wrote a nice note to the BQ. Susan and Patrick wrote a nice note to Uchenna and Joyce while writing a nasty letter to Rob and Amber. Lance and Marshall wrote to Mirna and Charla.

After the teams found and read out loud their letter to their team mate, they had to find the Pit Stop on foot. It's not a big island, of course. Here's where things got worse for Rob and Amber. Why the heck was he so lackadaisical while going through the mail? He was so sure they could beat Mirna and Charla in a footrace that he didn't even seem concerned. ACK. Sure enough, Mirna and Shmirna found their letter and made it to the Pit Stop before Romber. I repeat... ACK.

Here's the order of arrival to the Pit Stop:

1. Oswald and Danny - they won a trip for two to Maui
2. Eric and Danielle
3. Teri and Ian
4. Team Guido, Joe and Bill
5. Dustin and Kandice
6. Uchennal and Joyce
7. Charla and Mirna
8. Rob and Amber -- Philiminated (sigh)

Although they showed Uchenna helping Charla and Mirna to the mat, I got the feeling that Rob and Amber weren't exactly right on top of them at the finish. I think they were a good bit behind, more than a helping hand to the mat would accomplish.

I'm going to miss Rob and Amber on the race. I've mentioned that neither thrilled me on Survivor, but I liked them as a team on The Amazing Race. I really would like to see Mirna and Charla out of the show. While Rob is entertaining, they're annoying.

Oh, well... it's back to cheering on Oswald and Danny... or even the Guidos. Heck, Teri and Ian. Anyone but Charla and Mirna, mainly due to Mirna.

'The Amazing Race 11: All Stars' - East Coast Update... OMG

The arrival at the Pit Stop:

1. Oswald and Danny'
2. Eric and Danielle
3. Teri and Ian
4. Joe and Bill
5. Dustin and Kandice
6. Uchenna and Joyce
7. Charla and Mirna
8. Rob and Amber -- ELIMINATED.

I'm in shock.