While some reality series grow stale by the second episode, Fox’s mega-hit American Idol remains fresh even in its seventh season. This week’s pair of episodes, which featured songs by John Lennon and Paul McCartney for the second consecutive week, proved once again that the show remains exciting and unpredictable.
Tuesday’s performance show featuring the eleven finalists tended to drag a bit due to its two-hour length, since the singing portion of the show only took up about 20 minutes of air time. Nevertheless, it is the interplay between the judges, Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell, the host, Ryan Seacrest, the contestants, and often the crowd, that frequently provides the show with some of its best moments, as was the case on Tuesday night.
When the often acerbic Cowell told the first singer of the evening, Amanda Overmyer, that she is beginning to lack variety in her selections, Overmyer fired back, much to the delight of the audience, that she wants to perform songs that best suit her Janis Joplin-like rocker style. Cowell quickly reminded her that she was not famous yet, and that she should heed his advice. Shortly thereafter, Cowell also came into conflict with two of the favorites in the competition, Carly Smithson and David Cook. Cowell suggested that Smithson’s rendition of The Beatles’ classic ballad, “Blackbird,” was overly indulgent after her performance was praised by the other judges. He also labeled Cook as being overly “smug” following his rock performance of “Daytripper.”
On this evening, there were several performances that the always perky Abdul even criticized. Michael Johns’s arrangement of the Lennon-McCartney masterpiece “A Day in the Life,” was criticized by all three judges. However, it was Abdul who made the moment unforgettable with her analysis that Johns’ poor performance must have been because he was working with an earpiece for the first time. When the host Seacrest asked Abdul to explain what she was talking about, Johns revealed that he was not even wearing an earpiece, much to the obvious amusement of a smirking Cowell.
However, if all of the contestants are bad enough to be strongly criticized, American Idol would not have the seemingly limitless fan base it has. Syesha Mercado’s heavy vibrato on “Yesterday” and David Archuleta’s simplified take on “The Long and Winding Road,” were met with adulation from the both the judges and the studio audience. Cowell went so far as to call Archuleta’s performance “master-class.”
American Idol’s continued credibility derives from the long list of successful recording artists the show has fostered like Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood. Viewership and voting numbers remain high because the show enables the viewing audience to learn the contestants’ back stories. They become emotionally invested in the result through their own participation and knowledge. The quality of the contestants (Season 7 is one of the best in this aspect) continues to bring viewers back, and though the quality of the judges and the host can be disputed at times, they really appear to be having fun. As a result, the viewer at home does too.
The Wednesday night result show often provides almost as much drama as an episode of Grey’s Anatomy. When the contestants learn whether or not they will get to stay another week, Seacrest asks for the audience to become silent and the lights to be dimmed. One by one, the contestants are forced to learn whether they will be in the bottom three or whether they are “safe” for another week.
Most of Wednesday night’s episode was filler that included a group sing-along of Beatles classics like George Harrison’s, “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” and the filming of a new Ford commercial featuring the Idol wannabes, however Idol watchers are almost forced into tuning in because the show remains unpredictable in the manner in which it eliminates its contestants.
The elimination is always done at the end of the program, like it was on Wednesday night when Amanda was sent packing, but the Idol producers pack just enough surprise into the show that it forces viewers to watch the entire program. One really shocking moment was the early revelation that Carly Smithson was among the bottom three vote-getters, despite the critical acclaim of the judging panel for much of the competition.
Many shows have tried to replicate Idol’s immense success, but Idol producers caught lightning in a bottle six years ago, and the show’s greatness has not waned with time.
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