# America's Got Talent - spoilers **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 1, 2011, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957 "2011-06-01T14:21:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2011, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/161 "2011-09-14T16:38:30Z")
Wasn’t impressed by Silhouette but then I’ve seen a (much) better shadow (hand shadow artist) performing to It’s a Wonderful Life ([shadow puppet - YouTube](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAIRblMyfdI)). But that was the only act I saw (my wife watches and I was passing through) so have no other opinions. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2011, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/162 "2011-09-14T16:40:52Z")
I didn’t get to see Landau except in the clip at the end of the show, but I thought he sounded pretty good. Silhouettes were boring. They’re a one-trick pony. The first time I saw them they were impressive, but the last few weeks they’ve done essentially the same thing with different window dressing. It’s cool, but it’s slow. I wouldn’t pay to watch their act. PopLyfe was a trainwreck. The girl was flat a lot of the time, the boy singers were terrible…the spouse and I looked at each other and said, “_This_ made it to the finals? Are we watching a different show than everybody else?” They looked good, but I’ve heard high school dance bands that were better musically. iLuminate impressed me as they do every week. I would totally pay to watch a show by them, especially if they had the money to really upgrade their gear. It’s a cool idea, cool implementation, and just fun to watch. So my vote goes to Team iLuminate, with Landau second. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/163 "2011-09-15T05:16:24Z")
I’m glad Landau won, but holy crap, Silhouettes coming in second? Team iLuminate kept changing and growing. The only time Silhouettes tried to change it didn’t work. I vote on rare occasions, and one of those was last night for Team iLuminate. Guess it didn’t do any good. Oh well. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 6:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/164 "2011-09-15T06:55:48Z")
> [@Nobody](#): > > I’m glad Landau won, but holy crap, Silhouettes coming in second? . Yeah. But really, does it matter whether you’re second or third? I wonder if Silhouettes will even be able to do the tour. I mean, they’ve got a ton of school aged members – just how long can they be kept out of school? Or, I suppose, they could take tutors along. It might depend on how much the acts are paid. A weekly salary that would be nice for a single or duo act is going to be a lot less impressive divided by thirty or whatever it is. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 9:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/165 "2011-09-15T09:15:36Z")
> [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > Yeah. But really, does it matter whether you’re second or third? I’m just shocked that apparently America, or those who voted, thought that Silhouettes were better than iLuminate. > [@](#): > > I wonder if Silhouettes will even be able to do the tour. I mean, they’ve got a ton of school aged members – just how long can they be kept out of school? Or, I suppose, they could take tutors along. > > It might depend on how much the acts are paid. A weekly salary that would be nice for a single or duo act is going to be a lot less impressive divided by thirty or whatever it is. Excellent point. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/166 "2011-09-15T13:24:00Z")
> [@Folacin](#): > > They were having technical difficulties prior to the Silhouttes coming on (hazards of a live show). Was it my imagination or was Poplyfe’s sound not mixed right? Heavy on the drums and REALLY heavy on one background singer’s mic? Is anyone going out to see the show while all 4 of the finalists are there? Mrs. Cad and I are because we’ll be in Vegas anyways. ---
**Author:** ![FlightlessBird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/cdc98d/32.png) [@FlightlessBird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlightlessBird)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/167 "2011-09-15T15:55:57Z")
> [@Nobody](#): > > I’m just shocked that apparently America, or those who voted, thought that Silhouettes were better than iLuminate. I’m not shocked anymore by Americans. Plus it’s a reality-popularity contest show, so talent has little to do with it. I voted for both Iluminate and Landau, so I’m glad he won. I was smiling throughout his duet with Patti Labelle. (Though not because it was technically amazing, but more because he was having a really good time with an idol of his. Though he held his own with her. Unlike PopLyfe. Maybe it was technically problems like **Saint Cad** says, but I felt like the lead singer’s confidence was so shaken from the previous night. In the end it was a good show. I didn’t feel like I wasted my time, so yay for that 😃 Didn’t Jerry say that the entire Top Ten would be at the show headlines by Landau? **Saint Cad** , you’ll have to reopen the thread with some comments about the show afterwards. I want to hear what you think. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/168 "2011-09-15T15:59:42Z")
I completely forgot that the show started an hour earlier and missed the first half hour, including Landau and Labelle. ☹ I have a DVR and thought I had it scheduled to record the show, but when I went to look, I must have deleted the timer. Oops. And when they have professional acts on, or returning acts from other seasons, I keep thinking how funny it would be if they screwed up. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/169 "2011-09-15T17:44:32Z")
I love Landau’s voice, would totally download his songs from iTunes, but I couldn’t believe that not only did iLuminate not win but they came in third. Somewhere the Silhouettes are probably locked in a basement for not winning and I’m amazingly okay with that. I just hope they don’t feed them after midnight or there’ll be hell to pay. Those kids creep me out- their Village of the Damned smiles could be the first evidence of carved-face comprachicos has been found- when they swarmed Landau at the end I was sure he was a goner and the cameras would draw back to see his bloody clothes and maybe part of a shin left. Plus the million dollar prize would have been about $12.88 each after taxes. I’m happy for Landau- great success story, etc., but I hope somebody signs iLuminate as they’re perfect for Vegas. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/170 "2011-09-15T20:24:22Z")
So, would it be a good thing, or bad thing, if they went on tour with Fighting Gravity? ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2011, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/171 "2011-09-16T03:03:35Z")
Love that Landau won and almost boycotted the show forever because the damned Silhouette people almost won. Total BS they got second…but as was mentioned upthread second really doesn’t mean much (unless you’re Jackie…but she’s different) I love this show so much. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2011, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/172 "2011-09-16T13:28:26Z")
I imagine that Silhouttes edged out Iluminate on the friends and family vote alone. On the Landau swarming thing - I told my son that one of the dancers would shank him, and then we’d have the first runner-up as the winner. They’ve got enough members that they can easily sacrifice one to jail for the #1 slot. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2011, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/173 "2011-09-16T13:35:35Z")
Howie Mandel was actually probably right on when he told iLuminate that Landau had an edge in that audiences find it a lot easier to root/vote for an individual than for a group. Landau has a face, a wife, a great American success story in a time when so many people need one, etc., while iLuminate has crazy talent but other than the programmer they don’t really have a “face”. Did anybody notice Sharon’s “WTF!?!” face when iLuminate was dropped? > [@Nobody](#): > > So, would it be a good thing, or bad thing, if they went on tour with Fighting Gravity? I think a cool tour would be iLuminate, Fighting Gravity, and Diversity (the winners of the Susan Boyle season of _Britain’s Got Talent_). Unfortunately they’ve cumulatively got so many members it would look like the Exodus from Egypt, but it would be a helluva show. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2011, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/174 "2011-09-16T13:48:43Z")
> [@Sir\_T-Cups](#): > > Love that Landau won and almost boycotted the show forever because the damned Silhouette people almost won. I would have been happy with Team iLuminate or Landau winning so it’s a slam dunk right? Poplyfe obviously 4th because they allow some of the musicians to sing backup (and they can’t sing) and because the lead is ALMOST good enough to take on a big song but with her it is more about attitude. Silhouettes 3rd because it is interesting and their final show was good but after a while it is a lot of the same. So Nick read that the next act to be eliminated is TI 😕 :eek: But even if Silhouettes had won, it would not have been as bad as Kevin Skinner beating Recycled Percussion (BTW: great 1 hour act in Vegas. Mrs. Cad & I loved their show) and Barbara Padilla and arguably Voices of Glory. And while Skinner is IMO the weakest act ever to win, there is absolutely no way Michael Grimm should have beat out Evancho, Poppycock and Fighting Gravity. I did not like FG as much as everyone else and Jackie and HRH were both vastly better and more entertaining than Grimm. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2011, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/175 "2011-09-16T18:58:57Z")
Well, I was scared that the Mormon Tabernacle Drill Team was about to win, and a little surprised that the Griswold’s Christmas decorations came in third but I was not surprised to see Archie and the Jugheads come in fourth. I was pleased to see the skinny black dude with the soothing voice prove “Yes I Croon! Yes I Croon!” Still - the weakest season yet, and glad to hear they are starting auditions in October - maybe 9 months will give them time to find some talent, as there was apparently a dearth of it this year. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2011, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/176 "2011-09-16T19:58:46Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Did anybody notice Sharon’s “WTF!?!” face when iLuminate was dropped? I did, and I loved it. Usually Sharon won’t chose between acts if she doesn’t have to, so it was refreshing to see her true feelings in that moment of shock. > [@DMark](#): > > Still - the weakest season yet, and glad to hear they are starting auditions in October - maybe 9 months will give them time to find some talent, as there was apparently a dearth of it this year. I loved how the judges kept saying it was the best season. I wonder, if you asked them to be honest, they would admit they were just saying that for the cameras. I mean, they can’t honestly believe what they were saying, can they? ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2012, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/177 "2012-06-27T23:42:55Z")
Ha…maybe he should post on this board “Ask the guy who was hit by a grenade and can stutter but now sing well” ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2012, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957/178 "2012-06-28T02:19:56Z")
Not sure what the bump was about, but since this is the thread for last season and there’s a thread for this season, I’m going to lock this. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americas-got-talent-spoilers/583957.md?page=8)