The Final Cut - Top 24!

Here we go...

Sanjaya Malakar will be a popular contestant throughout the show, methinks.

Tall Anna couldn't believe she wasn't chosen.

Tami Gosnell didn't make it...not too surprising.

Melinda Dolittle made it through. I'm glad. I like her talent. The other backup singer, Brandon Rogers, made it too.

Ryan Seacrest's outfit let me know that it's alright to wear your shirt untucked beneath your sweater, even when it's longer than the sweater. Maybe that's only true if you're wearing a sports coat over the sweater which is longer than everything else?

AJ Tabaldo was impressive, and made it. I like him.

Haley Scarnato made it.

Phil Stacey, he guy who missed his daughter's birth, got through. Good.

Chris Sligh made it. Let's see how long he lasts.

Rudy Cardenas made it. I'm surprised.

Paul McCartney wasn't selected.*

Paul Kim made it.

Jordin Sparks made it.

Tatiana McConnico got the boot.

Leslie Hunt made it, and looks interesting.

Nicholas Pedro made it with his husky voice. I tend to think he won't last, but we'll see.

Alaina Alexander made it, but I think her Hollywood audition was pitchy.

Chris Richardson made it, but I didn't like his audition, either.

Sabrina Sloan made it, but I wasn't impressed with her talent, either.

Lakisha Jones sounded great in her Hollywood audition, and I'm glad she made it.

I really don't understand why they have to mess with their minds by saying stuff like, "I'm sorry ............pause and tone pregnant with doom and gloom).............. but it looks like you'll have to be seeing a lot more of us".

Nicole Tranquillo made it, and looks interesting.

The guy that sang Cupid made it...very good.

Amy Krebs (?) made it.

Antonella Barba made it, while Marisa didn't. Awww.

Thomas Daniels didn't make it, while Sundance Head did, in spite of turning red while he sang, to Simon's disapproval. I was actually a little surprised.

I'll have to go back and correct the names when the post the top 24 on the AI site.

Not a bad show. Next week will be the real beginning, for me.

See you then!...

...John


*Just seeing if you're really paying attention.

Hollywood - The First Cut Is The Deepest

Simon will have a tough time, what with having to send home all the very cute girls that just don't cut it in the singing department...know what I mean, Vern? . Huh? . Huh? . Huh?

Countrified Perla was something of a standout, but I didn't catch her last name.

It was good to see that Ashlyn Carr got her second chance.

So many others went by so fast, I couldn't catch their names.

They seemed to show a little more of the guy's auditions, or maybe it just seemed that way to me. Again, I was lousy at catching names.

Marisa Rhodes stood out in the group songs.

Chris Sligh and his crew represented nicely.

Sundance Head was a bit pitchy, and I agree with Simon that Paula was a bit generous to let him through.

Baylie Brown blew it, forgetting lyrics. Too bad, and fare thee well...

Tomorrow should be interesting...

...John

Hell Today, Hell Tomorrow

So, they've cut down 5 days of Hollywood auditions to 1 hour. I should cut my list of ten lessons we've learned down to 3 or 4 words. I'm already over the limit so I can keep going or I can stop now. I guess I'll keep going, but I really am underwhelmed at this point.

Here are my "Top 10 Things We've Learned in Hollywood."

10. Sundance Head is among the "undeserving" to this point. Great audition. Terrible Hollywood. I admit we didn't see his final solo audition, but he really shouldn't have made it that far.

9. Gossip and rumors surrounding Hollywood are most certainly just that: rumors. Both of our potentially disqualified contestants (Ashlynn Carr--sweetening her boyfriend's gasoline, and Sean Michel--refusing to chop the locks) were really sent home because their auditions weren't good enough.

8. Pleas for a second chance/second song/second look/etc. will not be rewarded, especially if your mother appears on stage to present them. You pick the song. You deal with the consequences.

7. Get it together! I loved the group with Chris Sligh, the beatboxer, et al. From what they showed us, they looked great, and it looks as though all (?) of them made it through so far.

6. Momma supports you, but if you forget the words she may just say, "You what?!" I wasn't mentally prepared for 15 weeks of telephone calls and tearful exchanges, but I did feel a bit sorry for the kid (Matt Cato?) at that point.

5. If you have reservations about the group you joined (they're totally BFF!) make a switch before the audition the next morning. Confronting the group afterward won't help you get through to the next round. I did enjoy seeing the "trained" one of the group get sent home, though (albeit a day later)! I guess God does like good people!

4. I'm tired of hearing people sing their original audition songs on the first day of Hell Week. Can we all say "one dimensional" together? Thank you. It's come back to haunt many, many contestants, past and present.

3. Your hips do lie.

2. Having a My Space page doesn't mean you will make it on A.I. I mean, they let anyone have a blog these days!

1. One week in Hell can't chase the nice out of genuinely good people. I loved seeing Sanjaya Malakar run to find his sister rather than whoop and holler with the rest of the 40. He should have plenty of moments to celebrate as time goes on. Thanks Sanjaya for one of the more uplifting moments this season so far.

Here is my haiku, inspired by this uninspiring show:

One hour departed
Forty contestants remain
Did I miss something?

I thought I wanted more time to see Hollywood crap, but I'm actually a bit glad that tomorrow we get the Top 24 and then get on with the show. I'm ready to hear the "real" stuff and not the fluff. I am not ready for more Ford commercials, however!