"America's Got Talent" NBC Show

I didn’t watch the finale – can you elaborate on this?

I watched several of the early episodes, but it quickly became unbearable and I gave up. Terrible direction – there was way too much filler crap on top of way too many commercials. Without TiVo I couldn’t have gotten through one episode. I liked the show’s premise of featuring a range of talent, but as has been pointed out non-musicians get blasted for being repetitive, so it ends up being “American Idol With Some Other People Who Won’t Win”. And the fact that the rapping granny and yodeling girl made it past the first round completely destroyed the show’s credibility for me. Ugh.

The had all 10 finalists (more than 10 people as some were groups) line up on the stage. Then Regis called out five of the acts to step forward. It was made to seem that these were the group from which the winner would be announced–to get their hopes up-- but then they had them go sit on one side of the stage, and the other 5 sat on the other side of the stage, and it was announced that the ones who had been led on were actually the bottom 5.

Here’s literally what happened for the final 20 minutes.

Regis calls divides the acts up into two groups. Tells one group to step forward. They step forward tenatively one by one.
Regis then says that all these people are in group number 1 and group number one…stands there. But group number 2 goes to the right side of the stage. Go there now group 2! They go and you can see in the background how they’re all trying to play musical chairs because they have no idea where to actually sit.

Now group number one…you go to the left side of the stage!

OK audience, we now have two groups of people. Who do you think the winner is? The winner’s in one of these two groups. One group has the highest total scores…the other the lowest.

We’ll find out after this break.

Welcome back! OK group number one contains (and he lists off the names). And group number two contains (and he lists off the names).

Group number one…CONGRATULATIONS!!! For getting this far.
But I’m afraid this is as far as you’re going to get.

Our winner is in group number two! Come on out here group number 2!

:they file out to center stage:

Well done group number two. Now, can I have The Millers and All That out here?
Congratulations you two!
:they look at each other excitedly:
Who here thinks The Millers won the competition?
:Audience cheers:
And who here thinks All That won the competition?
:Audience cheers:

The answer is…NEITHER DID! SORRY!
Buuuut, you both win this: And the screen shows Leonid the Magnificent pointing to two cars. No announcer at all to even say what cars they were or if they actually won cars at all so I guess it’s up to the audience to infer this point.

Well done you two! I hope the 12 year old gets his driver’s license soon!

So now it’s down to three performers! (at this point, and even before this, the camera has randomly been going to Bianca more often then any of the other performers).

So who is the winner? We’ll find out after this break!

Welcome back! Again, just to recap. We’re now arbitrarily down to three people! Isn’t this exciting?

Judges what do you think? Who should win?

Hasslehoff: I…I just want to say you’re all winners in my book.
Brandy: I agree. You’re all just winners. Well done.
Pierce: Never let it be said I could never say anything nice. I think all ten of you did great. Well done.

That’s great. So true, Regis says.
AND THE WINNER IS…

Pause…

Pause…

Pause…

BIANCA RYAN!!!

She instantly starts breaking down in tears and you can tell emotion has so overwhelmed her she can’t possibly find the breath, let alone the thoughts, to say anything.

But Regis persists in trying not once, not twice, but at least FIVE times to get her to answer questions on how she feels and what it’s like being the winner while Bianca stares up at the lights, tears streaming down her face. He clearly can’t comprehend that she’s just not ready to say anything at this point.

And so the show ends. Yes, that’s how the show ends. Bianca in tears. Regis flustered. Cameras cutting to every portion of the studio to try to find something to focus on. And Bianca’s parents still in the audience.

See you next year America!

Wow. That really sucks. Glad I didn’t bother watching.

The best part was when Regis turns to the sobbnig Bianca and says, “Think you can finish the show with a song for us?” She stammers, “Uh… I guess so… I’ll try…”

And then nothing happens. No song. Either someone realized it was a really bad idea, or Regis was an idiot and asked her to do a song with no preparation, no rehearsal, no music…

Not only that, but when he asked her, there was about 30 seconds left in the show. How the hell they were supposed to cue up a song, clear the stage, get the band going, and sing anything in that time is beyond me.