American Idol – The Top 24 revealed

Ryan Seacrest voiceover: “Tomorrow night … will Jennifer find the strength to continue … or will Steven and Randy have to handle the eliminations alone?”

*yaawwwwwwwwwwwwwn*

I don’t know. What happened? Did JLo make it back after a visit to the ladies’ room to dab her eyes a bit more and rassle herself up to presentable?

Ladies and Gentlemen: Welcome to more dippy American Idol drama, courtesy of Seacrest’s Wednesday night finish to “the cliffhanger.” It’s not for the faint of heart. (Yes, that was sarcasm.)

Instead why don’t we take a gander at some of the “highlights” from the past two nights on Idol.

First up: The gentle ousting of Chris Medina and the breakdown of Jennifer Lopez:

Yes, the entire Medina story was touching. His audition performance play out culminating in his girlfriend meeting the judges was interesting, but I didn’t think Chris had enough in him to make it through. And he didn’t. There just wasn’t enough heartache in what had come before and not enough umph in his voice to move him forward.

And the JLo drama from Wednesday? Had enough of that? Me, too. *yeeeesh* Let’s move along.

For me, one of the really good things that came out of Vegas for me on Idol Wednesday night was Jimmy Iovine and his “take-no-guff” attitude. Did you watch this guy? Mr. ‘Tude! Did you hear the vitriol he spewed at some of the contestants? Acrid! This is exactly the kind of mentor needed on Idol to propel some of the singers upward and beyond what they know. Iovine will make them reach, push them beyond their boundaries and, possibly, make some of them see they’re capable of much, much more than they think. Love it.

And of course you heard about on-line voting being tossed into the mix this season, right? Somewhere, somehow, that will make things interesting. Stay tuned for back tracking and screw ups. Promise.

With all the contestants who made it through to the Top 24, there are lots of stories, likes and dislikes to discuss. But … there are too many in the game right now and I, personally, am not invested enough to make any overflowing predictions. Not with most of them at least.

For the record, here they all are. The Girls: Ashthon Jones, Haley Reinhart, Julie Zorrilla, Karen Rodriguez, Kendra Chantelle, Lauren Alaina, Lauren Turner, Naima Adedapo, Pia Toscano, Rachel Zevita, Tatynisa Wilson and Thia Megia. The Guys: Tim Halperin, Stefano Langone, Scotty McCreery, Robbie Rosen, Paul McDonald, Jovany Barreto, Jordan Dorsey, James Durbin, Jacob Lusk, Clint Jun Gamboa, Casey Abrams and Brett Loewenstern.

I will make note of a few, however. For example, in front of witnesses last night, I stated of my favorite Casey Abrams: “If this dude doesn’t make it into the Top 24, I quit watching Idol right here and now.” And I was dead serious when I said it.

Fortunately, he did manage to garner a spot.

Jacob Lusk? This big boy’s going to get swallowed up in the competition.

Of the last three contestants in the guys’ category to take the “walk of fate” last night, I was concerned at the fact Brett Loewenstern made it through. Really? Over Colton Dixon? I mean … Brett isn’t bad at what he does but, in my opinion, Dixon blew him away. It won’t be the last surprise of the season for me.

How ’bout the girls? As mentioned I really don’t have any firm grasp on any of them yet. I know I don’t like Thia Megia at this point in the running … just don’t like her at all, despite her powerful, full-range voice. No others trip my trigger. But I am partial to Ashthon Jones.

So … we’re finally at the point where we really like to be on Idol, with the reigns of the competition handed over to the viewers. Let’s see where that takes us. Based on the overall positive vibe from Idol thus far, I’m confident the ride will be worthy.

One more thing: Leave Steven Tyler’s neck alone. The dude’s old, you know, practically 63. And he’s rocked hard. He deserves that neck. And those of you who don’t like it? I hope the cameramen concentrate on some close-ups to freak you out.

Clacked by Michael Noble
on Feb 25, 2011 @ 09:28 EST5EDT