It's All You David...and David

Just when I think i'm completely over American Idol, the show sucks me back in. Last night me and my husby were sitting on the couch crying along with David, David and Syesha during their video packages detailing their trips home. When little David broke into tears on stage at his High School I just wanted to wrap him in a swaddling blanket, put him on my shoulder and rock him until he felt better.

Last night was the best results show of the season, with no call-in bits or uncomfortable time filler (not counting the horrible group number and bizarre Ford "music video"). We got our best laugh of the evening during Fantasia Barrino's frenetic performance of "Bore Me" when we noticed that Simon had a look of complete disbelief on his face:

I was also pleased to note that Simon had on a white button-up instead of his usual grey T Shirt, although he had about two too many buttons undone.

So they get to the end of the show, and the results are revealed...No shocker, it's going to be a David/David finale. Poor Syesha was not in the least bit surprised or even distressed. She knew what was coming. She handled it nicely, sang her song and made a classy exit. She should be proud of herself. She made it to the top 3 after having been at the bottom of the voting results like 14 times. Not too shabby.

I'm actually looking forward to next week's show. At least the results are not easily predicted, both Davids have a lot of support and it could easily go either way. I've been voting for Cookie since all my faves have been gone, but I almost hope for his sake that he doesn't win. He will still get a record deal, and he won't be saddled with whatever horrible songs the 19 entertainment people will make him record.

So, I'm suddenly feeling revitalized with AI excitement and looking forward to next weeks showdown.

Nigel Lythgoe Speaks About Archuleta's Stage Dad

Here is what American Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe has to say regarding David Archuleta's dad Jeff being banned from show rehearsals:

"He has been asked not to participate in the choice of music with David or be in the room when David is working out his routines that he wants to sing. He's fine to be in the studio -- nothing wrong with that. We just want David to be able to be free like everybody else to get on and do what they want to do.

There was a lyric change that happened that was a total misunderstanding. Just another, um, step along the way of us saying, 'Okay, this is what we want to happen from now on.'

...Let's take some pressure away here, you know? It's like anybody appearing in front of their mom and dad. Let's just open up the pressure cooker, release the pressure, and you just get on and do what you gotta do."

Pics are from VFTW...

Top 3 Show Leaves Me Bitter and Depressed

Jen P. just emailed me and said, "Where the hell is your Idol critique?" I told her that I'm having a hard time summoning enough enthusiasm to write anything about last night's show. I'm feeling some Idol burn out. It's been a long season, and things really aren't turning out the way I imagined they would 3 months ago. And the show last night, which should have been a top 3 spectacular, was really just so-so. And I'm sick of the David Archuleta hype. Randy is so obviously biased toward him that he can't say anything nice about anyone else. And their desire to get rid of Syesha is obvious to everyone. So, I feel that the show is letting me down. And I feel that the show has lost any integrity that it ever had this season. But I will perservere and try to articulate my thoughts.

Everyone gave their best performance during round one. Simon chose David Cook's song, "The First Time Ever I saw Your Face" by Roberta Flack. I thought this was a bizarre choice until I heard Cook belt it out. It was really good. He didn't change it up much, but his voice and rock edge made it sound fresh. I guess that Simon really knows his stuff.

Paula chose "And So It Goes" by Billy Joel for David Archuleta. It was OK. He sang it nicely in his usual manner. I just have a really hard time watching him perform. He's a sweet kid, but he does absolutely nothing for me. Speaking of Archuleta, did anyone but me think it was odd that during the video package, when David was being celebrated by his hometown, that his Dad was up on the stage right next to David just basking in his son's triumph. That guy lives totally through his son. I get the feeling that if the AI people would allow it, Jeff Archuleta would be on the American Idol stage during his son's performances. Sad.

Anyway, Syesha was given an Alicia Keys song by Randy, doesn't matter which one, and doesn't matter that she sang it well. They don't want her in the top two, so no one has much nice to say to her.

For round two, in which the contestants picked their own songs, they all flopped. Cook sang Switchfoot's ''Dare You to Move'' (which was different than the Collective Soul song Vote For The Worst's spoiler predicted. Of course that has now been changed to reflect actual events). It was one of his rare flat performances. I was hoping he would finally sing a Depeche Mode song for his brother, but maybe they couldn't get clearance (According to my reliable source Jen P., Cook's sick bro wants him to sing Depeche Mode on the show). Anyway, it wasn't good.

Syesha picked the classic Peggy Lee song "Fever" and I thought it was pretty good, other than the choreography with it's hint of striptease. Personally, I enjoyed it, but the judges all said it was the worng song for her, and not what they wanted to hear. The girl can't catch a break.

Archuleta had me squirming uncomfortably with his second song, Chris Brown's "With You." His voice was shaky and off key during the whole thing. And the poor kid cannot pull off lyrics like, “I need you boo” and “Hot little figure, yes you a winner.” I don't think I'm alone in my discomfort. Shockingly, the judges gave him the poor reviews he deserved. Even Randy couldn't call that performance, "A hot one."

For round three the producers should have come on stage to receive the critiques instead of the singers. Poor Syesha, the girl sang what they told her to, did the best she could with a song from an animated penguin movie, and the judges unanimously told her they didn't like the song. It didn't show them "Who she was." SHE DIDN"T PICK IT! Get off her back, geez. She's never been my fave, but the blatant bias against her is ridiculous.

Archuleta was given a Dan Fogelberg song, "Longer." Snore. Not his fault, but so boring.

Cook actually did great with Aerosmith's "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing." I've never liked this song, but I liked his performance of it. I thought it was better than Aerosmith's.

Note to Simon: I know Diane Warren is your friend but "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" is NOT one of the best songs ever written. Give me a break.

Simon was right when he said David Cook won the night, and I place Syesha second. The only thing that can wake me out of my Idol lethargy would be a top 2 shakeup with Syesha edging out Archuleta. Unfortunately she doesn't have a popsicle's chance in hell to make the final. I'm sure she'll go home tonight, and I'm sure I couldn't care less. Phlurrgggg....

More Tears For Castro, Tonight's Songs

This week should be a great week on Idol. The contestants sing three songs each, one of which they choose themselves. Usually this turns out well, since the judges and producers are picking songs for the contestants which removes the possibility that they will pick out something really unsuitable for themselves, at least for two of the songs.

For me this week is bittersweet because in his EW exit interview Jason Castro says that he was going to sing Cary Brothers "Blue Eyes" this week. Seriously, that would have been a FABULOUS song for him. It's fresh, somewhat familiar but not too well known, it was written in this decade, which is nice, and it is in a nice range for his voice. If only he had been able to sing something like this instead of Andrew Lloyd Webber or Bob Marley. He still may not have made it to the top 3, but he maybe he wouldn't have come to such an ignominious end.

Jason cleared up some other issues and rumors in his exit interview with EW. On saying he wanted to go home:

"The fact of the matter that day was I was in a bad mood. I was frustrated with a lot of things. Then I got on the phone...I was just not in a good mood. I couldn't find a quiet place to talk...I couldn't focus...I don't even remember much of what I said. There are some days that are just like that. You just don't want to do what you are doing."

Did he say, "Don't Vote?"

"What I said was, 'Vote. Vote.' I said it twice trying to emphasize it. Then, when I was sitting down, I thought about it, and I thought it was going to look like I said, ''Don't vote.'' So the next time the camera came to me I just said, 'Vote.'''

Did he sabatoge himself so he could go home?

"I did not want to go home. But at the same time, now that it happened, I'm kind of glad. It all worked out like it was supposed to. I was reaching the point where I couldn't do it anymore. I wasn't able to keep up and it all caught up with me."

On whether or not Simon sometimes rewrites music history to suit his own purposes:

"You know, sometimes he says things that are obviously wrong. But no, I wouldn't have said that to him. My mom taught me never to make a person look wrong. I am just respectful. It's my place to sing a song and his place to judge."

Even though the show is somewhat hollow for me now that all the contestants I was rooting for are gone, I still can't wait to see what everyone is singing tonight. I am putting all my vibes behind David Cook now, and he should have an interesting night. Vote For The Worst has somehow gotten a hold of some of the songs for tonight, so stop reading now if you don't want to know...

Archie:

His Choice: "With You" (Chris Brown)

Paula's Choice: "And So It Goes" (Billy Joel)

Nigel's Choice: "Longer" (Dan Fogelberg)

Syesha:

Her Choice: Unknown

Randy's Choice: "If I Ain't Got You" (Alicia Keys)

Nigel's Choice: Unknown

D. Cook:

His Choice: "The World I Know" (Collective Soul)

Simon's Choice: "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" (Roberta Flack)

Nigel's Choice: Unknown

Roberta Flack? That should be, uh, interesting.

Here's the link for the Castro interview.

Oh Ace, I Forgot Just How Cute You Are

Last night was one brillianty wacky Monday night of television on Fox. Starting with my new favorite "Bones," which guest starred both Ace Young and Brandon Rogers, past American Idol contestants. I love it when TV shows cross over. Like when the guys from Happy Days showed up on Laverne and Shirley, or when Briscoe and Curtis helped out the SVU team.

Neither Ace not Brandon actually spoke on the show, although they both did some singing (Does that earn them their SAG cards? Something to look into...). Ace smiled a lot and looked real pretty but, lucky for him, didn't actually have to play a corpse. The whole episode was peppered with references to AI, with Booth calling Brennan "Paula" at one point. At the end they all converge on a cabaret bar where Brennan gets on stage and starts singing an atrocious version of "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" until Booth gets shot by a crazy stalker. Thankfully, it's not the season finale and we'll see next week whether Booth lives or dies. I can't imagine that they would kill him off since that would basically end the show.

The music theme continued on "House" where Fred Durst from Limp Bizkit (remember them?) played a bartender. He wasn't half bad. The show was fantastic and trippy, with an injured House slipping in and out of a hypnotic state to try and figure out a medical mystery related to a bus crash that he was involved in. I was holding my breath the last five minutes as House finally figured out that he was trying to remember Dr. Wilson's girlfriend Amber (cutthroat bitch) who had been seriously injured in the accident. It was so great! Can't wait for next weeks season finale.

I Think I've Dreamed This Scenario

To use some of that text-message lingo all the kids are using, OMG! It's a season finale collision of Bones and American Idol!

Two of my favorite shows have their wires crossed this week as Ace Young, the hottie from AI's fifth season, is guest starring on the season finale of Bones. Ace doesn't have to stretch much in his role as a dead rock musician whose murder is being investigated by Booth and Brennan. Ah, the irony.

Ace must have one heck of an agent because this guy hasn't been seen or heard from since his AI tour ended 2 years ago.

You can see Ace on the Bones season finale tonight at 8:00 pm on FOX.

UPDATE: My bad...This isn't the season finale.

Archie's Awful Stage Dad Is Out

Jeff Archuleta, father of American Idol favorite David Archuleta, has been banned from show rehearsals after meddling with a song that was to air after he had been warned by producers not to.

According to MSN, "Jeff Archuleta's intense backstage involvement had become a source of concern for the series, the person connected with 'American Idol' said — but it was a lyric change on Tuesday's show that pushed producers to act. Despite a warning, Jeff Archuleta insisted on altering 'Stand by Me,' one of two songs his son sang on the show Tuesday. By adding a verse from Sean Kingston's 'Beautiful Girls,' the father incurred additional costs for 'American Idol,' the person said."

The producers then told Archuleta he would no longer be allowed to help his son prepare for the show.

No one from either camp has commented publicly about the situation. We'll see this week how this will affect little David's performance.