Oh, fingernail clippings guy. We barely even new ya, man. I hadn't seen Ryan look that uneasy since last year (was it just last year?) when the woman tossed the dog at him. There is absolutely no denying that they have their favorites that they want to win. They *hated* Taylor. It's no wonder that the record company did nothing for him at all. Which is completely counter productive, but whatever. Taylor has a decent voice and seems like a decent guy, he's just too self consciously weird. It's no wonder to me at all that he won and it's even less surprising to me that he wasn't the next Clay Aiken. I read a review of a show he did about a year ago that was so full of backhanded compliments that it probably left him dizzy. They said that when he really sang and sang songs appropriate to him that he clearly enjoyed then he was fantastic. When he sang Idol-related crap or fell back on the schtick, he was a nightmare. We voted for the schtick that we wound up hating. Usually we snap out of it with assholes like Constantine and boot them, but we took Taylor all the way to the end, probably because there was a nice guy underneath all the bullshit.

See, I really liked Taylor, and loved the music that he did. When we got stuck with the A&R stuff he was given, then it became bad. So, it wasn't necessarily him - in fact, I'm blaming the guy who picked the songs for him. I don't know if I should go as far to say this, but Clay not winning Idol may have been what saved his career.

I like Taylor, too (even though it might not sound like it). I still think most of what he did on the show was bullshit and pandering (probably because it was easier to try to please than to do something interesting), but when he put that nonsense aside and sang something like "Trouble", I thought it was clear that the guy has talent. Plus, again, he's got that "nice guy" thing going on. And I totally agree with you about the music forced on him (as well as your point that losing is the best thing that could have happened to Clay). I don't think that anyone thought that he was going to sell records as Taylor Hicks so they made him into something that wasn't Taylor Hicks which, in turn, bored the people who liked him and made the people who hated him hate him even more. I don't really think they've done any favors for Jordin either, though they clearly like her a lot better. I think her songs suck and she deserves something more than Beyonce's leftovers. She has a lovely voice. Carrie's songs are not my cup of tea at all (and I actively hate "Before He Cheats") but they're well written songs that seem natural coming out of Carrie. Ditto on Kelly's first record.

Whatever happened to Ruben?

Good question. Didn't he get dropped from his label? Or is that really old news that just happens to be the last thing I heard about Ruben? I've been watching some of that Idol Rewind thing that's on weekends (it's on approximately 487 times a weekend here) and they're up to the Clay/Ruben season. Aside from remembering just how much I hated Carmen, Josh, Kimberly Caldwell and, most of all, Corey Clark, it's also reminded me that Ruben *does* have a personality and I kind of like the guy. They have current interviews and he's sweet as can be and I remember why he won. All the post-Idol crap and boring music convinced me that he was awful when he really wasn't that bad, just not my thing.

I read somewhere recently (probably Entertainment Weekly since I subscribe to it) that both Rueben and Taylor had lost their contracts. The first year I watched was the year Taylor was on. I still sort of believe the conspiracy theories that they booted Chris off early so he wouldn't have to record the canned crap the winners get stuck with. I am one of those people who dialed his number and got Kat's recording so I know that those mixed phone calls were really happening. AI isn't really the place for a songwriter. It works for someone like Carrie who doesn't write songs but has a look and a voice.

I read somewhere recently (probably Entertainment Weekly since I subscribe to it) that both Rueben and Taylor had lost their contracts. The first year I watched was the year Taylor was on. I recall that he did at some point, I just wasn't sure if he'd moved on elsewhere. Taylor did lose his and I'm pretty sure Kat was dropped, too. There's at least one more that lost their deal. It's scary when Kellie Pickler is one of the more stable ones. I don't really care why Chris was booted off, as long as he was. And the same way that you believe the conspiracy theories, I have no problem, based on grumbling about his sense of entitlment, that he was voted off legitimately. I have absolutely *no* doubt that it was very, very close and he was just barely ousted, but I still have faith that plenty of people saw the swelling of that ego. I hated him. I was on his side until about halfway through and then I was done. The Eva Cassidy/Imagine thing was mentioned upthread and as annoying as things like that are, as long as David Archuletta isn't actively taking credit for it (rather than the judges simply being ignorant about it all), I don't have a problem with it. That is, until he does it again. That was my main issue with Chris. Nothing about him was original. It was all lifted from other artists. Those amazing arangements? Other people's. Time to do a Stevie Wonder song? He pulls "Higher Ground" out of his ass. His original material might be good (I fully admit that I don't know anything but the song they kept pimping on the show last year), but he totally posed his way through Idol. I was glad, if nothing else, that Elliott (who I thought was better than McPhee and Taylor both) made it farther than him.

Since it's been pointed out to me that you can David A. breaths between words when he sings, I've been noticing it and it's really annoying me. I wonder if that is something that can be corrected by a voice coach, I'd assume so, and why it's not being corrected, yet.

The reason I believe it is because I voted for Chris, hit redial, and got Kat's line. There was something messed up in system that night. Just as you saw Chris having an ego, I thought Taylor was of the opinion that the sun shines out of his ass. I liked him for about half the season. I don't think it's bad that Kellie Pickler has steady album sales. She may be an idiot, but she does have a good voice. Actually, I think Bucky had better sales than Taylor and Kat too. I liked Bucky because he seemed like a really nice guy even if he wasn't the grea-*test*-('") singer. I'm not shocked by tonight's cuts so far--other than that I really expected Danny AND Jason Yeager to both get cut. Since Danny got through, I'm going to guess Luke will get the axe.

I don't think Alaina deserved to be voted off.

I don't either! She was much better than Kady or Ramiele (who was awesome last week) and more versatile than Amanda. I didn't really care for Syesha's performance either.

I didn't think Alaina sang well, but she was obviously better than Amanda, who was just plain terrible. Think we can chalk this one up to Vote for the Worst. I thought Alexandrea deserved to stay - good, interesting voice, and I don't blame her for her song not being good.

I didn't expect Robbie to get cut at all!

I did expect Robbie to get cut, I just thought Luke was a more obvious choice. They both deserved to go imo. Kady and Amanda were both more obvious choices than Alaina, who wasn't that bad yesterday. I didn't like Alexandrea, I don't believe for a minute that she picked that song herself.

Just as you saw Chris having an ego, I thought Taylor was of the opinion that the sun shines out of his ass. I liked him for about half the season. I didn't see anyone else on the show that season repeatedly take other bands rearrangements of songs as his own or sneak into the Stevie Wonder songbook by taking a song RHCP already covered. They praised Chris up and down for how clever and talented he was and he took the praise without giving it up to the fact that that "brilliant" arrangement of "Walk the Line" was something he learned from a Live record. He even let the mentor of the week think that that was his original idea. He was disingenous. The show's full of egos, Taylor included (though I have no particular alliance to Taylor), but Chris has a special brand of hubris, imo. I don't think it's bad that Kellie Pickler has steady album sales. I don't think it's bad either. I was joking about the irony that the whatever place finisher she was wound up with a more stable career than either of the actual "winners". It was an aside, not a legitimate criticism of her. I did expect Robbie to get cut, I just thought Luke was a more obvious choice. They both deserved to go imo. Kady and Amanda were both more obvious choices than Alaina, who wasn't that bad yesterday. I didn't like Alexandrea, I don't believe for a minute that she picked that song herself. Yeah...on almost all of that. I called the boys easily. There were no surprises there and Luke or Danny could have easily been shown the door as well. I *liked* Alexandrea in spite of the bad performance last night because I think she's far more genuine than Robbie or Amanda. I think she's really kind of an oddball and not just an oddball who got taken on a shopping spree to the "cool" store at the mall. Still, I thought it would easily be her, Amanda or Kady. I never thought Alaina was in danger at all. I felt bad for her because I don't think any of that was posing, I think she was genuinely embarassed. And I think Ryan handled it really well, as did Paula and the rest of the girls. It was good that they pressured her to sing and I think she pulled it off. And naturally, throughout it all, Simon just looked bored.