Simon Says: the American Idol thread

OK-admittedly I didn't see either episode this week because this pesky thing life thing interfered and kept me from my TV viewing. I've gone and watched Carly's performance. It was karaoke and totally bland and she was screaming not singing. But I have a genuine question for e_c or anyone who can answer this for me: What is so offensive of "Superstar"? I am not trying to make anyone angry or start a fight I just don't understand what would be upsetting about it. Judas is the main vocal on the song, it's not like he's a really popular figure whose opinions are all that respected that the song is giving him a bad name.

I think there are definitely people out there who freak out when they hear the word "Jesus" whether they understand the context or not because they're reactionaries. KLC sings about loving America and there isn't a lot of room for misinterpretation, but Carly sings "Superstar" and I'm sure there are people who turn their noses up. I still don't believe those people have much impact on the votes, though, but I do believe there are people who get bent out of shape about things that aren't logically offensive. I had a friend in high school who misunderstood lyrics all the time and lost his mind over the dumbest things. Did you know that Edie Brickell said that religion is a lie? That's because she didn't, but he was convinced she did. I knew a girl in college who was offended because the Indigo Girls had a lyric about "me and Jesus we're of the same heart" and ranted about it for months. I'm still not really sure what her problem was since it didn't make a lot of sense. I think the mention of Jesus sometimes upsets people because the knee jerk reaction is that it's going to be negative. Shoot first, ask questions later. I assume (and like to think and hope) that that's the minority, it's just that that type of group (the reactionaries) tends to be a bit more vocal in their irritation, no matter what the subject.

Call me crazy, but I think Archie's fanbase is getting smaller. A lot of Michael's voters went to Cook, I'm suspecting that a lot of the Carly voters will jump the Cook train as well(the three of them were bff's), if Jason goes, I suspect more voters will also go towards Cook. I have no idea where Brooke's voters will go, but I suspect they might go to the other Mormon, Archie. I'm reading more and more articles, most recently EW reviews of Tuesday, that the girls are screaming louder for Cook now than for Archie, and Simon likes Cook much better. Of course, I'm seeing this all through Cook-tinted glasses ;) I was convinced it was going to be a David/David final, but I'm not sure anymore, I'm starting to think they might want Archie out because his dad is going to be a pain in the ass for Uncle Nigel's plans with him. I don't think it will be much of a contest if only one David makes it to the final, no matter which David it is. All I know for sure is that Randy HATES Jason. Hates. The is no bus big enough for him to throw Jason under. Also, if either Brooke or Jason make it to the final, I'm willing to bet that they bring out the good old 'this is a singing competition', cause neither has a very strong voice and lack the glory notes tptb love so much. This might say it all really. Archie used to be in the center of those pictures. I need to step away from this show, I'm way too invested.

In the 11/10/9 area, Castro got to be the center square a little bit. I don't go to the main site, though, so everything I see is strictly the handful of portraits released to the press.

My point is, were that many of those people voting for her in the first place? If they enjoyed her vocals on songs that didn't find off-putting, why wouldn't they? . Judas is the main vocal on the song, it's not like he's a really popular figure whose opinions are all that respected that the song is giving him a bad name. But how many people KNOW that Judas is the main vocal? And how many just saw some woman asking Jesus if he's who he thinks he is? Don't get me wrong. I never said *I* found it offensive, but I'm not nearly as conservative as most of the people I know. ;)

Re Superstar: If song choice hurt Carly, I'd say it was because she chose a song she couldn't sing properly. It drove me crazy how she was just shouting tunelessly during the choruses while the backup singers did the singing. It was painfully obvious she just couldn't hit the notes. I'm not saying anyone's wrong about the song turning people off, it just surprises me to think that it could be controversial at this late date. It's, what? 30 years old? Just going on my impressions and reading, it seems most voting is done based on who you want to see advance, meaning people have their favorites and vote for them regardless of the merits of the performances on a given night. I do think a real breakout performance like It's So Bad But It's So Good can garner votes, but there were no breakout performances this week. Syesha was closest, and that may have saved her. It's kind of sad, and I think I'd enjoy the show a lot more if more people DID vote for the best of the night. But the show encourages the fanbases by allowing multiple votes per phone. If TPTB are dissatisfied that it's become a popularity contest, they should consider that aspect. A one-phone-number, one vote policy might generate enough suspense that they wouldn't have to resort to Ryan's little tricks. Carly never seemed to be a fan favorite. I think she got off on the wrong footing because they pushed her audition story so very hard, hyped her in the beginning, and her performances didn't live up to the hype. So I don't think she built up the all-important fan base to compete against the others. It was only a matter of time for her; I actually expected her to go last week. I'm only surprised at her being booted because I thought Brooke or Jason would go first. It does seem likely that David A.'s fanbase is shrinking, or maybe it's just not growing where David C.'s is. I know a lot of casual viewers who were impressed with him at first, but have gotten bored. Plus, he isn't versatile at all and his stuff just isn't commercial. Which may be why Simon seems to have gone off him, too. Comments lately are a far cry from the "master class" of Beatles Week 2. I'd say it's still odds on for a David/David finale, though, because no one else is strong enough to be up there. Getting back to the fanbases, they kind of remind me of ballot stuffing in online polls. And you know how seriously people take the results of those things.

I think you're probably right, peggy. A's audience isn't shrinking, C's just getting more people behind him, whether because fans of ousted contestants have moved over to him or because this is the time that some people wait to start voting in the first place. It does seem that the interest in C has grown while the interest in A is pretty much the same. I think A could be the surprise vote out in a couple of weeks, but I also think he could go all the way, so who knows. As for Carly's performance, except for a couple of shouty lines, I enjoyed her performance because, for a change, it looked like *she* was enjoying it. I was glad that ALW pushed her in that direction because it seems to me that Carly's been stuck in the middle of trying to figure out who she is and trying to figure out what the hell the judges expect of her. I also think her personality is one of her downfalls. I don't find her at all off putting, but she's a spaz. She's a dork. She's just as bad as Brooke and Jason, the difference is that when it comes from Brooke and Jason you get those big doe eys or stoned doofiness and when it comes from Carly there's that slightly sad desperation underneath it all. If you've got a bunch of dorks knocking each other on stage, the sad one and the airhead make you less uncomfortable than the one that seems like she's about to fling herself from the stage in desperation. But how many people KNOW that Judas is the main vocal? It's not an obscure song. Phantom and Evita are probably more popular overall, but JCS crosses into all corners of pop culture. So, yeah...plenty of people know that Judas is the vocal. And how many just saw some woman asking Jesus if he's who he thinks he is? Probably a few. Because every audience has idiots. But, again, how many of those people who would defiantly put their phones down in anger were picking that phone up in previous weeks? How many people who are offended by a song they don't even bother to take the time to understand were voting for the weird girl with all the tattoos, the freaky husband and the spazzy social skills? eta to fix one spelling error. all other spelling errors remain. {g}

Hasn't it always been a popularity contest? I remember with Clay and Ruben, how there was a theory in the media that Ruben won because people in large cities were clogging the phone lines calling in for him so that people in rural areas couldn't get through (which is where more of the Clay demographic lie). A's audience isn't shringing, C's just getting more people behind him, whether because fans of ousted contestants have moved over to him or because this is the time that some people wait to start voting in the first place. There are plenty of people who wait until the top five to start watching, myself included (and we flock to threads like these to catch up). We all figure that by this point, the quality people are remaining.

Hasn't it always been a popularity contest? Pretty much. That's why it's been irritating me more than usual that the judges, Paula in particular, are acting like this is the end of the world as we know it. Do they watch their own show? There are plenty of people who wait until the top five to start watching, myself included (and we flock to threads like these to catch up). We all figure that by this point, the quality people are remaining. That used to be my family until "Gilmore Girls" went away. None of them paid any attention to AI until GG would go on the pre-sweeps break and then they'd tune in. Now they watch from beginning and if Brooke winds up winning it will no doubt be because my mother keeps voting for her.

Hasn't it always been a popularity contest? I remember with Clay and Ruben, how there was a theory in the media that Ruben won because people in large cities were clogging the phone lines calling in for him so that people in rural areas couldn't get through (which is where more of the Clay demographic lie). On the Grassy Knoll the general opinion is that Ruben won because the producers wanted him to win, he's the most pimped contestant in AI history. The difference between the two was 'too close too call' and Ruben conveniently won, despite Clay having the most votes in every single round since the Wild Card show. *adjusts tin foil hat*

As for Carly's performance, except for a couple of shouty lines, I enjoyed her performance because, for a change, it looked like *she* was enjoying it. I was glad that ALW pushed her in that direction because it seems to me that Carly's been stuck in the middle of trying to figure out who she is and trying to figure out what the hell the judges expect of her. I also think her personality is one of her downfalls. I don't find her at all off putting, but she's a spaz. She's a dork. She's just as bad as Brooke and Jason, the difference is that when it comes from Brooke and Jason you get those big doe eys or stoned doofiness and when it comes from Carly there's that slightly sad desperation underneath it all. If you've got a bunch of dorks knocking each other on stage, the sad one and the airhead make you less uncomfortable than the one that seems like she's about to fling herself from the stage in desperation. The judges' inconsistency really did seem to get to her more than most. She got so obsessed with pleasing them that she wasn't thinking about pleasing the audience, let alone herself. She did seem to be enjoying this more than usual, I just thought it was a bad arrangement for her. One of my sisters commented that the song doesn't work well as a standalone, because it's too specific to that show. May be true.

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