May 10, 2012

"Neither man nor woman has ever sang that good or with that much compassion on this show, ever."

Said Steven Tyler, one of judges on "American Idol" last night who "sounded like the characters in that kids book 'Guess How Much I Love You,' competing to be Ledet's biggest admirer."
The poor judges had peaked too soon and run out of superlatives. They had little left to offer Sanchez, although, as she stood before them, trembling and weeping, they had scraped together what they could.
What judicial drivel this season!

25 comments:

Rusty said...

I'm proud to say I've never seen it.

MadisonMan said...

All those Standing Os for Joshua. They've been pushing him down our throats. Meanwhile, this year's Lee DeWyze, Mr. PP (another White Guy With Guitar), whose voice is weak weak weak, moves inexorably towards the title.

Hollie has shown such improvement over the show. That has been what is so interesting to watch.

Known Unknown said...

The show is nothing without Cowell.

Ann Althouse said...

"whose voice is weak weak weak"

But he's sick, we're told vaguely. He's struggling against some unspoken adversity. What are you supposed to do with that information? He does that Louis Armstrong style grimace when he plays, and I can't help but think it may be actual pain he's feeling.

That bothers me.

All the contestants bother me though.

Lyssa said...

I agree. I used to plan my whole TV watching week around Idol, but now, it almost feels like a chore to watch. Thing is, I like Steven Tyler, and I like J-Lo, I just don't like them together, and their influence on Randy Jackson. They need real judgement back.

Also, the husband and I completely don't get the Joshua love (though, admittedly, we hated Fantasia, too).

Dan in Philly said...

People still watch that show?

Wince said...

What judicial drivel this season!

Suck my dicta.

clint said...

I watch Idol DVRed, so that I can flip through the results show immediately after watching the performances.

By coincidence, last week I finished watching Idol just as "The Voice" was finishing up. I was more than a little shocked at how much better the two songs I heard on the Voice sounded than *any* of the Idol performances.

I'll be surprised if any of the current Idol crop have big post-Idol careers.

BrianE said...

The "judges" on Idol are judges like the "reporters" on Meet the Press are reporters.

Bushman of the Kohlrabi said...

Meanwhile, this year's Lee DeWyze, Mr. PP (another White Guy With Guitar), whose voice is weak weak weak, moves inexorably towards the title.

History is replete with famous singers who posses mediocre voices. Bob Dylan comes to mind. Not that I consider PP to be a potential Dylan, mind you. Anyway, his real weakness is that he makes every song sound as if it was performed by a Dave Mathews cover band.

The problem with Idol is that it now revolves around great singers. Great singers don't usually make great artists. This year has some great singers. They will all be forgotten once the season is over.

Known Unknown said...

The Voice has an interesting premise, but most of their talent was pretty awful this season.

damikesc said...

I keep forgetting Idol is televised.

MadisonMan said...

Great singers don't usually make great artists. This year has some great singers.

Agreed. The artist-y ones -- Colton, Elise -- have been exiled already. Hollie has shown such growth in the past month that I think she could have a post-Idol career. But I think she's going home tonight. (I'd rather see PP leave)

syd B. said...

I think an interesting show would be a reverse Idol, where they go a full season to find the worst singer in America. The fact that nobody would watch it might be a drawback, but hey, based on some of the crap that is aired now,....

Cedarford said...

Idol is still our family show. Though it is NOT something we stay riveted to the TV for the full time. Some singers my wife likes, and if she was doing something else, I call her to let her know James Durbin, Colton, Casey James, Lambert, etc are coming on.
And vice versa.
Some singers I like (Bowersox, Brooke White, Siobhan Magnus, ABSOLUTELY Hailey Reinhardt) others I hated. (Big Mike, Jacob).

This year, I liked Colton, Elise, Hollie, Joshua...And think Jessica Sanchez is a possible future Great Singer....at a Mariah Carey, even a Whitney Houston level of success.

I don't like the judges trying to shove Joshua down our throats. It may cost him - at a certain point, the Audience backlashed against Cowells pets, Paula Abduls..and they may punish Joshua Ledet from the judges bootlapping him.

Paddy O said...

So, Duets sounds intriguing. Kelly Clarkson is back on tv and it's hard to argue, in my mind at least, that this 1st season Idol winner has been surpassed in either voice or passion (compassion?).

It's a little troubling, however, that some descriptions have Lionel Ritchie involved (much more intriguing!) while more recent ones highlight John Legend, an apparent replacement.

MadisonMan said...

I think -- for one week -- America should vote for the person they want kicked off. Not the one they want to stay.

That would be an interesting twist.

Lauderdale Vet said...

I do love Philip, Joshua, Jessica. Have enjoyed watching Hollie grow, but think Skyler was better.

*Really* loved Philip's volcano last night.

@cedarford, absolutely loved Hailey Reinhardt last year, too.

Aridog said...

I am stunned about how many people actually watch these shows. "Reality TV" has so much to offer ... Tuna fishermen, bad song & dance acts, crabbers, shark geek shows, obnoxious Alaskans per se, etc. How long before we start watching a plain blank screen? The anticipation that something might just come on would be thrilling. Sigh.

Okay, all done with my superiority crap for today.

DKWalser said...

Each week my wife says: "I miss Simon." She said it several times last night and added: "I miss Paula."

Unknown said...

I think the problem with AI, and I still watch it and enjoy it, is that the kids now have watched it and trained for it since they were five years old! They're not really amateurs. It's the 11th season, and like Miss America, an institution, with an industry around it to prepare contestants. So they're all pretty good, and the show becomes a variety show.

I thought Joshua is worth watching in any venue. His Man's World was amazing. Jessica too will go far. The Dave Mathews guy I guess had a kidney stone, then a stent inserted. Ouch. Hollie should be in Broadway musicals.

My two cents...

DKWalser said...

What bothers me about Joshua is that he almost never seems to hit the note. He surrounds the melody line as if he were trying to harmonize with himself. He compounds that error by slurring the words he's singing in what, I suppose, he thinks is an artistic style. He has a richly textured voice and he'd be quite enjoyable to listen to if he'd be more true to the words and music as written.

Take last night's duet with Phillip as a counter example. Joshua stayed away from the vocal flourishes that he employs as a soloist. The result was that the two voices blended and harmonized well. You could even understand the lyric they were singing. Joshua proved he could hit the notes written by the composer. Their duet was very enjoyable. In contrast, Joshua's solo performances were a muddy mess.

Lauderdale Vet said...

Season 10 was the first season we ever watched as a family. It's like a new thing, to us.

damikesc said...

I am stunned about how many people actually watch these shows. "Reality TV" has so much to offer ... Tuna fishermen, bad song & dance acts, crabbers, shark geek shows, obnoxious Alaskans per se, etc. How long before we start watching a plain blank screen? The anticipation that something might just come on would be thrilling. Sigh.

Given how little scripted television doesn't consist largely of slams against conservatives, I'll take what I can get.

Aridog said...

@damikesc ... you have a good point. A sad state of affairs, but your point is valid ... although more than a few of the "reality" shows are beginning to have distinct progressive a slant.