Thursday, January 17, 2008

Thursday Thirteen #38


Okay, fine, I admit it. I'm one of them. One of who you ask? I'm one of the millions who watch American Idol every season. And yes, I watch from the God Awful audition process all the way to the finale. I love music, I love discovering new voices to add to my music collection, so I enjoy Idol. So, this week I was excited about the return of the show, and have been glued to my television set the past two evenings, watching the audition shows. And this brings me to my Thursday Thirteen today...Thirteen Observations about American Idol:

1. Enough. Seriously...enough. Enough with the William Hung's of the world. ENOUGH! Does anyone really still find the audition process with the obviously staged bad singers making complete and utter fools of themselves fun or funny?? Really? Because the brain cells I've lost the last two evenings as I fast forward through all the bad auditions? I can't get those back. OH, enough already!

2. If only they would focus on the actual "singers" who try out, and let us hear some more of the talent that exists out there, we as viewers could get so much more out of this show. There are some AMAZING singers out there, incredible, and every once in a while they showcase one of them and blow me away. MORE of that, please.

3. Simon Cowell? I Love the guy. I love him. I know he can be a real jerk, and I know that if I knew him in real life...well, no, actually, I think we could be great friends in real life. He's funny, he's sarcastic, he's a jerk, but he's right. He's right 99.9% of the time. Think about it, how much fun would it be to be friends with this guy and be out places with him, picking on the people around you? Admit it, FUN.
4. Paula Abdul? I know it's early in the season yet, but...is she more normal this time around or is it just me? I'm just sayin'.

5. Randy? I don't think I've heard him say "dogg" once yet...could it be? Has he retired that annoying need to be "young and cool?" Still with the "pitchy" though, but I guess you can't teach an old "dogg" all new tricks, right?

6. Do you think they'll change the voting method this year? After the whole SanjayaGate, I can't help but wonder if perhaps they'll change it so that the judges have some weight toward the vote (a la "dancing with the stars"), or if they can select the bottom three or the audience to vote from (a la "so you think you can dance"), or will the voting stay the same? And if so, then who will be the next Sanjaya, Scott Savol or whoever else "Votefortheworst.com" has targeted in the past? Will the judges be more careful to not allow someone like them through?

7. Back to the bad auditions for a minute because I'm actually typing this as I watch the show...okay, seriously, do these poor children not have parents, friends, siblings, enemies...ANYONE at home to tell them that they should stay home? Anyone?
8. My favorite American Idol to date? Hands down Kelley Clarkson. Funny thing is, I never watched the first season of AI, and I wasn't even really a fan of hers until recent years, but that girl can SING and I just love her "angry" music. It's fun, it's powerful and it's really good for "angry days at The Firm" too.

9. Close second? Carrie Underwood. I love her. That's it, I just love her. She's talented and her music is beautiful.

10. And then there's Daughtry. I loved Chris Daughtry from the very beginning, and was one of the many really pissed off when he got voted off. But hey, he laughed that loss all the way to the top of the charts didn't he?

11. And then there's the other winners...Ruben who? Taylor what? Guess it doesn't work for everyone, does it? Is it something about the "guy" winners? Because all the girls seem to be doing pretty well for themselves. Fantasia's on Broadway, and it's too early to tell, but Jordyn Sparks seems to be doing alright too. Yet, the "guy" runner's up seem to do fairly well for themselves. Odd?

12. Okay, so I get the whole "back home I farm and own 3 horses" stories for those who actually make it through, or at least the ones who stand a chance...but for those who obviously won't be going through...see, this is where the staging comes in...when you've got them going home with the crazy chick with the eye glitter...can we save this stuff for when we actually care about the singers (emphasis on the word SINGERS here)?

13. I'm thinking of doing an Idol recap post (in addition to regular posts) as the season progresses on the day after the performances (and again a short one after the results show)...what do you think? Should I do it? I think it could be fun...

Okay, that's it, I'm done. I know it wasn't the best TT list ever, but I told you, my brain cells are shrinking in number by the minute as I watch this audition show...see, there goes another one...


9 comments:

Melanie said...

I hate the first set when they are finding contestants...I squirm in my sit when the bad singers sing..ARGH..I am so embarrassed for them. WHY, O, WHY couldn't SOMEONE tell them how bad they were before they went on international television. I look forward to the upcoming season..once the contestants are chosen.

Anonymous said...

Kelly.
Kelly.
Kelly.
Kelly.
Kelly.
Kelly.
Kelly.
Kelly.
Kelly.
Kelly.
Kelly.
Kelly.
Kelly.

That's my Top 13, and I got to write it twice today!

Julia Phillips Smith said...

I always skip 'American Idol' but always watch 'Canadian Idol'. It's because of Simon, I have to say. He may be right, but he totally failed 'diplomacy' and I don't like to watch him crush people for no good reason. I also skip the embarrassing audition process and start watching once the actual show begins. Because of the saturation media, I always know what's going on with 'American Idol' without having to watch Simon. But I never miss 'Canadian Idol'. That doesn't start until late spring. If you do the updates, I'll be able to keep tabs on things, so I vote for yes on 'American Idol' updates.

Unknown said...

Second T13 I have read on this topic....you know I try to watch the audition phase for the humor, but like you wonder why someone would let their loved one make a major fool of themselves....so not watching this season. I love Daughtry, shame he didn't win, but he is succeeding. Carrie Underwood, definite fav and the Marine guy....his name is escapingme now but he sings country. I actually even like Kelly Clarkson because my daughter does. Nice review of the show and process. Paula normal, that would be interesting to see.

My list is up for the week.
Peace, love and Mama Bear hugs!

My Busy Life said...

LOL- I just posted about this on my blog a little bit ago and then went to visit more TT's. How funny is that? Anyhow- I can't agree with you more! I am up too

qualcosa di bello said...

#7...do you know how many times over these last few years D. & i have turned to one another & said this very thing??? yeah...you know! very good list

Jill said...

i have to agree with you. why on earth let your son/daughter/whatever go and make an ass out of themselves on tv, or even in public? 2nd, why show us their backstories. god i was pissed at that. what a waste of time. how about the GOOD people's back stories, eh? and finally, yes, DO show us some more of the at least moderately talented singers. it's getting 'old'. really. and Kelly does rock as does Carrie. totally. and I have loved all of the stuff Daughtry puts out as well. so there!

Michelle | Bleeding Espresso said...

Fun list. I watch AI too, although here we get it several months later so of course I already know the major players from the (damn) Internet. It's still fun to watch even when you know the ultimate outcome though, so I'll be looking forward to the new season here, whenever it shows up.

Anonymous said...

If they eliminated all the bad ones before the auditions, they would have to have 2 sets of auditions, which would cost more. Plus.... when you dwell on the misfortunes of ordinary people you get a huge TV audience (E.g Springer etc). For every one who doesn’t like watching people make total idiots of themselves in front of millions, there are a dozen people who love every second. In days gone by we threw people to the lions to watch them being eaten. These days we just humiliate them. I watched American Idol just once, and saw a selection of people trying out. A few were good. Most were just adequate, so they didn’t get through. And some were terrible. I have never watched it again because I don’t enjoy listening to people singing songs. Bores me to tears. But I wish I had a percentage of the profits!