American Idol 2011 Was Set Up

Apart from the obvious favoritism among the judges, the producers, and America by extension, another thing that struck me as unfair was the way the judges tried to guide the talents to ‘polish their skills’ and miserably failed, as all they provided for the idols were false praises and double-sided support.

Let’s face it. It is NOT normal for a professional to use the SAME phrase over and over until the world population falls into an irreversible coma until further notice. Or at least until the show is all over and it is safe to reemerge in a Randy-less existense again. You know what I’m talking about, right? ‘Innittowinit, innittowinit, innittowinit…’ It’s still ringing in my head. Sometimes, on a dark, cold night, I wake up screaming ‘The show’s over, Randy! LEAVE ME ALONE!’ And the screaming drags away into the night, reminding me that I am safe in my room, unperturbed by the T-dogs of the world.

It’s also NOT normal to catch the bored expressions of the judges one moment and find them as extatic as ever the next. Plus we all know that Steven was taking naps the whole time, only waking up to defend the little red-riding boots from the big bad barking co-judge two seats to his left. Thank God he at least had the courtesy to spill his Taylorisms by the dozen and sing ‘Dream On’ at the end. And should I even comment on Jeniffer’s tears and unconditional support for her Chosen Ones, all the while barking down Haley’s tree together with her colleagues?

Thank God for Ryan Seacrest. He was the only bright pillar of hope on Idol stage. Bless his soul.

So apart from the gift of music, some Idols had style as well. Thank the Mighty Heavens. The one redeeming quality of this season was the fact that some of the contestants actually KNEW what they were doing instead of groping around in the dark for the right tones. However, I have no doubt about their future successes, and I am truly looking forward to seeing more of: Casey Abrams, Pia Toscano, & Haley Reinhart.

THEY had style. They didn’t mumble or play comedians on the stage either. Except for Casey who mostly did it off-stage, which is part of his charm. So they were undervalued for that reason. They did not act their way to the top, like those who got to the finals had to do.

Of course, I saw real value in some Idols who had their own style and mastered it. I respect them for that. Too bad they did not know what to do with that voice seeings as their ‘judges’ didn’t know either.

Jacob Lusk, though having a unique voice and delivery of style, kept choosing the same kind of inspirational songs that are nice to hear the first time and make us go ‘wow’, but then become annoying to the point where we have to fast-forward (if watching on tape) to the next performance. I was shocked that he lasted as long as he did.

James Durbin’s performance of ‘Uprising’ by the Muse was one of the few exceptional performances he delivered by the book. He tended to mismatch his skills much like he did with his clothes. Whenever he hit the notes right, he didn’t perform well enough, and vice versa. And I was actually appaled at the way he burst into tears after very performance as if those performances are not rare jewels that should be savored but a bag of chickens waiting to be cut up, sliced open, and eaten by the hands that fed them.

And the worst part was the endless praise after that, raising his hopes for the win only to be rudely awakened by reality. Praise on stage, behind stage, on Twitter, on TV, in the Idol house, outside of the Idol house… will you give it a REST? He’s home already. And he lost. Move on. I was more shocked when Casey and Pia were eliminated. James had to go long before those two in any case.

Casey Abrams was good with all kinds of instruments (no dirty pun intended), and he had the growling come-hither thing down for the ladies. Unfortunately, his scruffy appearance held him back the whole time. It’s good that he hooked Haley up at least.

On the serious side, I truly expected Casey to win the prize at first. Granted, he had some pitch problems when he got all wound up on pleasing the audience (again, no dirtiness intended, really!), even though the judges tried to mask it with unbridled enthusiasm, but he was all-in-all a nice chap with the makings of the next contemporary jazz-legend. I believe it can happen!

But then Haley Reinhart started to rise on the stage, quickly overshadowing the rest of the Idols, which changed my mind completely. Doesn't this remind you of a certain Clarkson gal?