If you start an AI thread and nobody posts, does it make a sound? American Idol 4/11

Cafe Society
181

It seems like every season, at some point, there’s an elimination that nobody saw coming. Okay, Mandisa was a bit of a surprise, but it’s not too hard to explain why she went. Bucky…sheesh, your guess is as good as mine. He was definitely well above average both this and last week.

From now on, I’m going to call the first completely inexplicable elimination of the season the “icebreaker”.

Dang. I figured Bucky might be in trouble next week, but never this. Ah, well…this just means he has more time to work on his outfit for the tour. If it doesn’t include spurs, a floppy hat, or a way too big belt buckle, I will be seriously disappointed. :slight_smile:

And don’t anyone think for a second that Ace getting knocked out next week is a sure thing. Elliot is right on the bubble, Kellie can crash and burn at any moment, and don’t think for a moment that Katharine is resting easy. Rock bottom plus 1 is just that, and everyone starts at zero the next week. I know he’s meat one of these days; just don’t stake your mental health on it being next week. That’s rarely a winning proposition.

(Personally, I just think he’s just rough and relies too much on gimmicks. He has the potential to turn this into a career, it’s just not happening on this show.)

182

Just for the record.

Times in the Bottom Three:

Ace - 3
Elliott - 2
Paris - 1
Katharine - 1
Taylor - 0
Chris - 0
Kellie - 0

183

[QUOTE=DKW]
It seems like every season, at some point, there’s an elimination that nobody saw coming. Okay, Mandisa was a bit of a surprise, but it’s not too hard to explain why she went. Bucky…sheesh, your guess is as good as mine. He was definitely well above average both this and last week.

From now on, I’m going to call the first completely inexplicable elimination of the season the “icebreaker”.
[/QUOTE]
I like the term “icebreaker,” but I don’t think Bucky is it. He’s been hovering near the bottom of people’s “ratings” list here for weeks. The only reason he’s lasted this long is that he is so charming and likeable, and he’s picked excellent songs. He’s easily the worst vocalist of the top 12 for sure, and probably of the top 16 or more. Yes, I’m sorry but it must be said - Ace is a better singer than Bucky. Not by a lot, but he is.

Also, I think voters are going by how contestants have been doing overall rather than starting at zero each week. In other words, the singers are competing against themselves in previous weeks, not necessarily against their fellow contestants in a given week. Look at our ratings above. Looking at this week alone, I probably would rank Kellie above Chris (god, it hurts me to even type that), but I hate her and all that she stands for, so I’m still putting her in my personal bottom 3. I didn’t think Elliott was the best of the night, but I threw all my votes his way because I really, really,* really* want him to last longer than Ace.

Right now the untouchables seem to be Chris, Kellie and Taylor. It will take a LOT of them screwing up to get them voted out. Elliott, on the other hand (IMO the best vocalist of them all) is struggling because he has failed to build a strong enough following. One more bad song will be Elliott’s ticket home, where the other three will be around for a while even if they really biff it one week. But too many craptacular performances in a row, and even their fans will turn on them. If one of them gets voted out next week, that will be your icebreaker!

184

[QUOTE=Dolores Reborn]
Damn, I liked Bucky.

Speaking of crying, did I hear the Pickler say “snotrag?” Good Lord… (I was in the kitchen, and couldn’t hear very well.)
[/QUOTE]

Yes, she said it twice. Once it was “community snotrag.” (The contestants were passing it around, as it was family night and therefore extra-teary.) She put it on Ryan’s stand, then seemed a bit surprised that he pushed it away. Good gravy. Every time she does something or says anything stupid like that, some people seem to think it’s cute. I don’t.

185

Was that Sam of Sam and Dave in the audience? :confused:

186

vaderspal - What I meant by starting over at zero was that previous votes don’t carry over to later weeks. (That’s one of the things my proposed system would address, although of course it doesn’t have a snowballs’ chance of ever being enacted.) I don’t think a lot of voters go by overall record, either (I’m sure Mandisa would’ve lasted longer if it were that simple). For the most part, the voting blocs are set; survival depends on getting the other, “free” votes, and that’s where even one clunker can be fatal. This is even more true in the later rounds mainly because, obviously, they need more votes to stay alive.

Anyway, I’m sticking with Bucky, because there really wasn’t any indication I could see that he was going this week. Kellie screwed up Bohemian Rhapsody, and her dumb schtick was getting grating. Taylor pulled out a Hail Mary that had mixed reactions. Ace did a flat-out weird rendition of We Will Rock You. Elliot was, well, dependable as usual. Any one of them should’ve gone before the likable Bucky coming off of two solid weeks.

Just calling them as I see them, pal.

187

I would guess Ace, then Elliot will go. :o

188

Sigh. That sucks about Bucky. I liked him. And I was eager to see the last of Ace. I would hope for a backlash next week, but who knows.

Meanwhile, when are Ryan and Simon just going to go to hot-oil wrestling and be done with it?

189

[QUOTE=DKW]
everyone starts at zero the next week.
[/QUOTE]

I don’t think that’s true though. The people who find a favorite and actually vote usually stick with that person. Say that Chris does really bad next week, and Ace does really well, no way is a die hard Chris fan gonna change their vote just because he had a bad week. By the time last season ended I would have voted for Bo Bice if he dressed in drag and sang showtunes. Cause I had already picked my favorite and nothing was gonna sway my vote.

190

[QUOTE=Stillwell Angel]
By the time last season ended I would have voted for Bo Bice if he dressed in drag and sang showtunes.
[/QUOTE]

Wouldn’t have happened – don’t you remember the trouble he had on Broadway night? But, he might have sung Eartha Kitt songs or something. Now that would have been a sight to behold. :wink:

191

Goodbye Bucky. I’m going to miss you. :frowning:
Rod Stewart, ugh! I always said if a cockroach could sing, it would sound like Rod Stewart. I think it’s because his voice reminds me of their horrid little legs: scratchy and repulsive.

192

[QUOTE=RachelChristine]
On another note, does anyone else think Elliott gets cuter every week?
[/QUOTE]

Absolutely, yes. I’ve been thinking that for a few weeks. I think that’s partly because they’ve done some work on his teeth. In the early shows, both he and Bucky were noticeably self-conscious of their teeth. Both of them got a lot cuter when the work on their teeth began. I think it’s given Elliott some additional confidence besides just, “Hey, I can sing.” Now it’s, “Hey, I can sing and I look pretty good doing it, too.” Also, for some reason he kind of reminds me of Eminem. Don’t ask me why, because I can’t place my finger on it. Nerdy white boys with soul turn me on.

I’m really sad to see Bucky go, but I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised. I’m so over Ace as eye candy and Bucky had become my eye candy. He seemed to be a really hard worker and a genuine person as well. Definitely one of the most likeable people on the show. I could be wrong (as I am most of the time), but I actually see a career for Bucky in country. He’s got the look and the sound, he can play guitar, and from what I understand he also writes music. If Josh Gracin, who I never saw as genuinely country can do it, Bucky sure as hell can.

Next week should be interesting. As usual. I’m going to have to look up what songs Rod did on his “Songbook” albums. I think there are four of them. I actually listened to the first with my sister once, and bought the second for her. Hey, it’s not my fault she’s a huge Rod Stewart fan.

193

Darn. Bucky? I’m gonna miss him. As long as I didn’t watch my TV when he was singing, I really enjoyed him. And I don’t think his voice is all that bad – there was one country song he sang a few weeks ago that I saw the original video of a few days later, and honestly, Bucky sounded a whole lot like the guy who did it first. (Can’t remember who it was, don’t follow country.) I think he’s got decent musical chops for the country market, and with his likeability, will hopefully have a solid if unspectacular career.

Whose evil idea was it to run last night’s results show against BOTH Amazing Race and Lost, though? :wally

194

Well. I don’t know some of the songs on those albums. From the ones that I knew, here are my choices:

Chris—Blue Moon
Taylor—What a Wonderful World
Katharine—My Funny Valentine
Paris—Someone to Watch Over Me
Kellie—Smile
Elliott—I’m in the Mood for Love
Ace—I’ll Be Seeing You (Hey, a girl can dream, can’t she?)

195

[QUOTE=yellowval]
Ace—I’ll Be Seeing You (Hey, a girl can dream, can’t she?)
[/QUOTE]

Funny as hell!

196

I’ve always hated the sing out after the person is kicked off. I really really liked how they changed it with the bottom three singing before they knew who was off. I thought it was so mean to make them sing after they knew and had their dreams crushed.

197

I wouldn’t mind if the sing-out was a song of the person’s choice, but it’s always the one he/she sang the night before. Which, seeing how he/she just got voted out, probably wasn’t that person’s best song. I think they should let the contestants choose their sing-out songs. It wouldn’t be that difficult. All you’d have to do is say, “Pick your favorite AI song that you’ve done so far.” Since the band has already done all of those songs with the contestants, it should be no problem.

BTW, they only do the sing-outs for everyone in the bottom three when they’re trying to fill an hour-long show that could be done in 10 minutes.

198

[QUOTE=Mama Tiger]
Whose evil idea was it to run last night’s results show against BOTH Amazing Race and Lost, though? :wally
[/QUOTE]

Wait, what? The Race was on an hour before the AI Results Spectacular, no?

199

[QUOTE=DKW]
Anyway, I’m sticking with Bucky, because there really wasn’t any indication I could see that he was going this week. Kellie screwed up Bohemian Rhapsody, and her dumb schtick was getting grating. Taylor pulled out a Hail Mary that had mixed reactions. Ace did a flat-out weird rendition of We Will Rock You. Elliot was, well, dependable as usual. Any one of them should’ve gone before the likable Bucky coming off of two solid weeks.

Just calling them as I see them, pal.
[/QUOTE]
Fair enough! :slight_smile: I do think it’s sad that Bucky was voted off after two weeks of marked improvement. I would have rather seen Ace go, but he also did better than usual. For some reason that saved him, while it didn’t save Bucky. Too bad.

[QUOTE=yellowval]
Absolutely, yes. I’ve been thinking that for a few weeks. I think that’s partly because they’ve done some work on [Elliott’s] teeth. In the early shows, both he and Bucky were noticeably self-conscious of their teeth. Both of them got a lot cuter when the work on their teeth began.
[/QUOTE]
I wonder what work they’ve been doing? They don’t have braces, obviously, so how do you fix snaggle-teeth without recovery time? Any dentists out there? I have noticed they’ve gotten cuter, but I couldn’t figure out if it was just creative use of facial hair or what. Whatever it is, it worked.

[QUOTE=yellowval]
I think it’s given Elliott some additional confidence besides just, “Hey, I can sing.” Now it’s, “Hey, I can sing and I look pretty good doing it, too.” Also, for some reason he kind of reminds me of Eminem. Don’t ask me why, because I can’t place my finger on it. Nerdy white boys with soul turn me on.
[/QUOTE]
I think it’s his bouncy little hip-hop dance he always does. He also does the hip-hop hand gestures. Which is funny, because he is so not hip-hop.

[QUOTE=yellowval]
I could be wrong (as I am most of the time), but I actually see a career for Bucky in country. He’s got the look and the sound, he can play guitar, and from what I understand he also writes music. If Josh Gracin, who I never saw as genuinely country can do it, Bucky sure as hell can.
[/QUOTE]
I hope you’re right. He doesn’t have the loveliest voice, but he is a good performer, and if he can really play guitar and write his own stuff, I do hope he gets a career out of it. One thing that I never liked about AI is that everyone has to do someone else’s songs, when I’m much more impressed with people who can write and play their own music. I always hope there will be a “perform your own song week” and then half the contestants would be eliminated. :smiley: But it’ll never happen; that’s not AI.

200

[QUOTE=rockle]
Wait, what? The Race was on an hour before the AI Results Spectacular, no?
[/QUOTE]

Nope. At least in my time zone (Eastern), the Race was 8-9 pm, Lost was 9-10 pm, and AI’s Results Spectacular was 8:30-9:30. Why oh why do they insist on scheduling everything I watch simultaneously?