TELEVISION: 4 Reasons American Idol is Ruined
This season of Idol so far has sucked. None of these contestants would be in the top 13 in any other year. But this year the Judges are exerting more blatant control over the process than ever. I’ve come up with a list of why American Idol is terrible this season.
4) Kara DioGuardi
I like KD but she adds nothing to the show, yeah her comments are cogent and on point but it seems like this year there really hasn’t been any disagreement from any of the judges on anything this year. I would have liked to see what would have happened if there was a 2-2 split decision, but so far that hasn’t happened. The Producers hired her as a big FU to Paula so she serves as a check against Paula’s antics, only problem is sober Paula is just boring.
3) Contestants
Can we have a more generic batch of folks with mediocre talent this year? I’ve said it before, but after spending 8 years scouring the country and auditioning millions of people maybe it’s time the producers of AI finally give up. There really is a finite amount of truly talented singers in this country and they all have probably already auditioned for Idol. There’s no way this year’s crop of talent would be in the Top 13 in any other year – well maybe the Sanjaya year. I can see how these folks have potential with the right producer and songs behind them, but standing up there “naked” they just don’t have it. Even the Adam guy. He’s a good showman but singer, no.
2) Houseband/Production Values
I don’t remember if it was this bad in other years, but this year the houseband has been terrible. The arrangements were all really weird, the background singers have been off key and the audio quality on the microphones seem off which further exposes the fact that most of these people really aren’t that good.
1) Judges taking Control
I firmly believe that Simon hated Taylor Hicks so much that he raised his fist to the air and screamed “Why, God, Why!??!” And then vowed, “Never again.” Personally, I loved Hicks the season he won. But every since then the Producers have become more proactive in trying to direct the show to get the results they want. Last season it was the blatent favortism and over the top praise for the matchups that they wanted. They clearly wanted Archuletta to be last year’s Idol and they went through great lengths – in terms of their commentary to make that happen. David Cooke actually really fought his way to victory because the Judges clearly didn’t start to like him until round 5 or 6. This year beyond simply directing the voting with overenthusatic praise and viciously slamming the people they don’t like. They’ve become more braisen, starting with the call back round when they saved 3 people that the audience had already voted off which was bad enough. But then they changed the top 12 to top 13 to save Anoop who they really liked. And now they instituted this ridiculous Save card. So now if the judges disagree with America, they can decide to save one contestant as long there’s total agreement amongst the judges – who haven’t disagreed on anything else so far this year. So I seriously doubt there will be a case where Paula will want to save someone but then everyone else will veto her. This is total crap, it destroys the spirit of the show and proves the Producers ultimately don’t care what America thinks. I for one don’t think I’ll be watching any more Idol the rest of this season. This year they keep changing the rules at the last minute to get the result they ultimately want. The ironic thing is, this year, everyone is so mediocre and bland that’s it’s hard to tell who the judges actually want in the top 3 this year. Where in the past it was always pretty clear.
at first i thought AI had some pretty good talent this year, but as i watch and listen each week, i’m changing my thoughts a bit. i think some of that is because as time goes on, we get to hear the real voices under the pressures of rehearsals and everything else the contestants do in a week’s time, and everyone’s voice can’t stand up to those pressures and you hear it. that’s not to say they don’t sound good, but everyone isn’t an american idol, which also includes stage presence as well a good voice.
i was talking with someone else about Paula’s soberness so far. it’s still early on the series though, so stayed tuned on that one.
i still can’t believe the judges chose that Tatiana girl, that Norman guy (with the double personality), and a couple of other people and sent Jamar Robinson home. when stuff like this happens, this is when i think it’s just about the ratings, not the talent. and then to bring Tatiana back for the wild card–now that was wild in itself.
Adam has previous experience from plays or broadway or something like that, so this isn’t his first time doing this. i think he’s a judge favorite so far.
Simon has commented a couple of times about how he didn’t like the song arrangements, and when he said that, i wondered was that the orchestra’s or the idol contestant’s choice to do it that way.
as for the judges’ control, i see that also. it’s like let the people vote, but if we don’t like their choice, we’ll have the last say-so this year. as much as i’d like to not watch AI sometimes, i just don’t want to miss anything, so i continue to watch. so far, i have no favorite(s).