TV Tuesday On Wednesday: American Idol

The final 9 had the pleasure of working with Dolly Parton and singing one of her songs. Seacrest opened with a lame April Fool's joke that the show was being pre-empted. Not! Oh, and NOT FUNNY! After seeing Pat Sajak reveal a bald head and Alex Trebek sport a fake moustache merely and hour earlier, I was prepared for something that lame.

My Favorites Of The Night
Carly Smithson — Here You Come Again
• I thought it was fantastic and I loved the slower pace. Have you noticed that she hasn't covered up that arm with the tattoo yet? It was interesting that Simon made a comment about her clothing choices, too. Is that what he was getting at? BTW, have you seen her husband? Tattoo boy even has his face covered with them!

Brooke White — Jolene
• She ditched the piano and picked up her guitar. I suppose there are lots of folks out there that can play multiple instruments (hey, I play the trumpet and skin flute) but I appreciate the instrumental aspect of this year's show as well. When she was singing it reminded me of Sheryl Crow. Maybe she does have a pop career ahead of her. For the first time this season, I made note of a nice outfit. I thought her understated yet fashionable slacks and blouse were really pretty and complimented her well. She needs to keep her big yap shut when the judges are giving their opinions.

Syesha Mercado — I Will Always Love You
• Give props to this girl for picking big songs. She may not be Whitney Houston, but no one is, and she comes close enough for me. I've been complaining about the contestants not seizing the chance to "blow the roof off." Well, she cranked up the power at the end of the song and did just that.

The Rest (In Order Of Performance)
David Cook — Little Sparrow
• I thought it was boring. I know my readers like him, but as Simon says, "Sawree." The haircut was a big improvement, but really, how bald is that huge head of his?

Ramiele Malubay — Do You Miss Me?
• I liked it but the whole thing was forgettable. Except that outfit. Does she work the night shift down at the iHop?

Jason Castro — Travelin' Through
• Damn. Damn, damn, damn. I was looking forward to this loser taking a hike this week. But he did pretty darn good and I think he'll get enough votes to stay. Note to the band: if they are going to start with close-ups of your hands playing, please consider a manicure. Long fingernails packed with dirt are not attractive or appealing. The only thing worse is a huge pimple on the ass of a porn star.

David Archuleta — Smoking Mountain Memories
• I think I've figured it out. This kid is petrified when he's on stage. I thought his performance had the same sound and pacing as all his others. Monday on the Today show, they had a story that his father is a tyrant stage dad that berates him to tears in practice. There was some talk about Simon saying last week that he couldn't believe that David had selected the song which was a backhanded comment that the Dad was pulling the strings and not necessarily in a good way. Why Oh Why? reader cb made note of this in his hilarious recap last week. I also noticed that there weren't any family shots of the Dad in the audience last night so Fox may be putting his ass on ice.

Kristy Lee Cook — Coat Of Many Colors
• First, what an absolutely hideous dress. Aside from the cut and material, why would you wear a huge turquoise stone dead center to draw everyone's eyes to your lack of cleavage? Now that I have that off my chest (ahem), I really liked her. I love this song and I could imagine hearing it on country radio. And then there was Seacrest. How many straight men know what a French pedicure is?

Michael Johns — It's So Wrong, But It's So Right
• It was boring. My mind wandered half way through. However, I have to acknowledge that the judges loved it.
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