“Lost”: Can’t find my way home
Melissa Ruggieri
May 30, 2008 1:49 AM
First came “The Bagel.” Then, “The Challah.”
These code names given by the “Lost” producers to the super-secret pivotal scenes in the season finales have so far been nothing more than goofy red herrings, having absolutely nothing to do with the action.
Who would have ever thought that this year’s nutty code, “The Frozen Donkey Wheel,” would turn out to mean …A FROZEN DONKEY WHEEL! One that makes the island disappear! And banishes Ben so he can return to L.A. to torment Jack!
We know that Ben time travels after spinning the wheel, because in “The Shape of Things to Come,” he wakes up in the desert wearing that snow jacket, and nursing a wound on his arm.
But the fate/relocation of the island is just one of a bajillion more questions the brilliantly stuffed season finale of “Lost” raised last night.
However, let’s stop our complaining about how the show never finishes story lines (yes, I, too, am waiting to see how –or if ever—Desmond’s long-ago vision of Claire getting into a helicopter with Aaron will be explained) and relish the information we DID receive. By “Lost” standards, it was a pretty juicy meal compared to those skittles they usually toss us – but, naturally, even the answers provoked more questions.
To ponder for eight agonizing months:
-- We now know the inhabitant of the coffin is John Locke/Jeremy Bentham. I will not pretend to be smart enough to have realized at the first mention of Bentham that the real Bentham was a 19th century British philosopher… and a successor to the real…John Locke.
Thank you, obsessive-message-board-posters-whom-I-would-never-mock-because-you’re-incredibly-entertaining (http://abc.go.com/primetime/lost/index?pn=mb&cat=33026) for pointing that out.
But who re-named Locke and submitted his obituary to the newspaper? And didn’t Sayid’s explanation to Hurley about Locke/Bentham’s death – “they said it was suicide” – seem a bit suspicious, like maybe Ben’s new killer-for-hire had something to do with this “suicide”? And why this hatred toward Locke? In last season’s finale, Kate snarled at Jack that the deceased “was neither friend nor family.” You would think that she would have considered Locke a friend…until we see what happens next season for her to feel otherwise, I guess.
-- So Ben was capable of moving the island – or at least making it disappear in an awesome CGI moment of the ocean swallowing it like a Tic-Tac. And Christian Shepherd appeared to tell Michael the island was finally ready to let him die (the dude has made numerous suicide attempts, yet he doesn’t have a second to ponder his fate when he finally bites it – somehow, that seems unfair).
But where are Daniel Faraday and the others who were on the raft headed for the freighter? And what happens to Shirtless Sawyer, Juliet, Locke and his new flock once the island is sucked into what is likely some kind of time/space continuum?
And IS Jin dead? I’m still taking the optimistic route on that one, partially because Sun’s heartbreaking reaction to the freighter explosion unnerved me so much, I had to go back and watch it three more times, and also because of her flash-forward hatred of Jack, whom she blames as the second person (along with her father) responsible for Jin’s death.
My guess is that Jin dove off the freighter immediately before it exploded and survived the blast, but something happens between the Oceanic 6’s arrival on the island of Sumba and their return home that leads to Jin’s death. And somehow Jack is responsible. Or something like that.
-- The Penny/Desmond reunion. OK, come on. Even for a show rooted in suspension of disbelief, that Penny’s boat just happened to stumble upon the Oceanic 7 was ludicrous (yeah, I know, she has a “tracking station.” Whatever). But, since her reunion with Desmond was the only shred of happy news in two hours of plane crashes, freighter explosions, deaths, leaping Sawyers, morose Juliets and creepy Claire dreams, here’s a photo to keep the romantics placated.
But also, have we seen the last of Penny and Desmond, or will they try to find the other castaways, despite Jack’s instructions to the contrary?
-- Speaking of Kate’s creepy Clarie dream… Some of the techno-geeks (love you guys!) already decoded the disturbing backward audio from Kate’s phone call (what is this, the “White Album”?).
Hear it here (and check out some cool hi-res screencaps):
http://losteastereggs.blogspot.com/
Or I’ll save you the effort: “The island needs you. You have to go back before it’s too late,” is what understandably spooks Kate.
And why does Kate tell Aaron, “I’m sorry”? Does she already know that they have to return to the island – and presumably Aaron also falls under Ben’s mandate that EVERYONE, even the coffin-bound Locke, must return or else the island won’t allow them back?
It’s a good thing we have eight months to obsess over all of this. So while you’re thinking about it, theorize on these topics, too.
-- What did Sawyer whisper to Kate – which was obviously the directive that we saw her carry out in “Something Nice Back Home” (my vote for the season’s best episode, excluding the finale), which set Jack into a booze-fueled tirade?
-- Who is following Hurley – and possibly the other returnees? Is Widmore at work?
-- What is Sun’s ulterior motive in cozying up to Widmore?
-- And, um, has anyone seen Vincent the dog lately?
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American Idol: David Cooks speaks
Melissa Ruggieri
May 23, 2008 3:31 PM
After the past two days that David Cook has experienced, you might expect him to be a bit groggy.
But while the scruffy “American Idol” champ has been on the usual victory lap of 983 interviews and TV appearances, he found time to sneak in an hour nap Thursday afternoon, and as soon as his promotional duties ended for the day, hit the sack.
That seems to fit the personality of season seven’s winner – a low-key, humble guy who thinks his first album will lean toward rock, but is more interested in making a record “that will make the hair on the back of your neck stand out.”
The mere presence of the sweetly soulful Cook on TV undeniably had that effect on millions of voters – many of them women of a certain age who unabashedly swoon over the 25-year-old singer/guitarist – enough to catapult him to victory over 17-year-old teddy bear David Archuleta.
In a conference call with reporters today, Cook disclosed that some of the lyrics to the songs during the finale were made available on a TelePrompTer (and no shame there – he and Archuleta had at least six performances to learn, some including choreography, in a matter of days). He also talked about what it was like playing with ZZ Top, his past musical experience and why it was such an “honor” to share the stage with young Archie.
On his background:
“I started in bands at 15 in Kansas City and played in and around there quite a bit. I traveled around the Midwest on occasion. Then I graduated college and the opportunity to continue music presented itself in Tulsa…I played acoustic gigs a couple times a month, full band gigs a couple times a month. I kinda hoofed it around the Midwest for 10 years.”
On getting ready for the finale:
“You’ve got to prepare for the best, but expect the worst. That’s pretty much how I operate...I made sure that I was prepared to win, but Archie did a great job and I’ve said it the whole time that if you were basing it off of Tuesday, that he deserved to win. He came out and did three amazing songs.”
On the frenzy that’s surrounded his every move – including that “Guitar Hero” commercial (now available on YouTube here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZ12-bNpHpk):
“I can’t believe the level of support that has come out of me doing this crazy TV show. All I can do is try to embrace it...the sky’s the limit right now.”
On performing with ZZ Top on the finale:
“You know, those guys were so nice. You hear horror stories all the time about established rock bands and musicians being about them, but that couldn’t have been further from the truth with those guys. They made it so fun and so easy, given the fact that there were 90 million other things going on. I couldn’t have asked for a better scenario.”
On whether he really thought he would win:
“I thought Archie was probably a little bit ahead of me, if I’m being honest…I attribute the finale vote discrepancy to my fans just being awesome…but my hat’s off to Archie for the whole scenario. He handled himself with a lot of grace, but more importantly, he’s just an amazing human being and I was just honored to share the stage with him.”
On the emotional roller coaster that is “Idol”:
“This show has been great for my diet. I’ve lost 10-15 pounds since the start of the season…There was a lot of intensity the last few weeks…The crying after I won was like an exhale. This whole experience has been about eight months, including auditions. I felt like that whole time I was holding my breath, and to be able to breathe and enjoy the moment was the main thing.”
On what to expect from his future musical endeavors:
“The covers were great, but I’m ready to get back into the creative process of writing songs and baring my soul on these records…I’ll probably put out a rock record because that’s the music I enjoy playing. That was the exciting thing about this show—I loved knowing there were things I could do that people never expected I could do. Andrew Lloyd Webber night was fun for me. I loved the fact that everybody was like, “WHAT?” I’m going to try to recreate that imagery with this record—I want it to have some twists and turns on it. I want people to feel like they got taken on a trip from beginning to end.”
On how he was inspired:
“There was a short article that Debbie, our stage manager, hung up in the red room that talked about Frank Sinatra and how he would go about the song process. Before he listened to the music, he would read the lyrics and try to tune into the lyrics and try to tune into what the lyrics were saying, what the song was about and then he would go into the music aspect of it and figure out the melodies and all that.
So for me, that was really an eye-opening article. It made me think, OK, I need to step back and before I even try to learn this song, I need to read the lyrics and that really helped as far as trying to find the vibe...With the Mariah [Carey] song, I loved it that the lyrics had a little bit of longing in them, but then it was still packaged in this upbeat pop song. For me, that was a very natural transition to just slow it down a little bit.”
On whether he thought NOT winning might have been better for his rocker cred, a la Daughtry:
“I definitely went into this to try to win it. Daughtry’s success is amazing, but I’m not trying to be Daughtry. I’m just trying to put out a solid record. Even if it doesn’t do well commercially, as long as I can put out a record that I’m proud of, that’s the goal right now, and hopefully if I can do that, the success will follow.”
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American Idol: Victory!
Melissa Ruggieri
May 22, 2008 2:23 AM
Rarely have I been so happy to have been wrong about a prediction.
Congratulations, Mr. Cook. You displayed yourself as a sweet, classy guy last night and even made the “Idol” winners song sound good.
See you on the charts.
American Idol: The long and winding road
Melissa Ruggieri
May 21, 2008 12:09 AM
Sometimes, when I go to Las Vegas and sit down at a video poker machine, I just have a feeling, an intuition if you will, that this will NOT be the machine that will increase my bank account.
Do I get up and move to another machine?
Nope. I stick it out, even somehow knowing that I’ll never walk away a winner. Why? Because the odds are the same no matter the computer chip – it’s all a matter of timing and, of course luck.
That’s kind of how I feel about last night’s “American Idol” finale.
I know in my gut that the little Ewok-Muppet-blinky puppy David Archuleta is going to win. He didn’t display a “knockout” of a night, as Simon proclaimed (I’m starting to think Simon and Randy are being paid off by Daddy Archuleta, because their drooling over this kid is so off base), but, you know, once Randy tells you that you are “molten” and “can sing the phone book” (AGAIN he pulls out the phone book!! And people want Paula fired?!), you’re pretty much on your way to singing “In This Moment.”
I’m not even going to bother commenting on the embarrassingly cheesy theme of pitting the Davids against each other like boxers, right down to luring Mr. Let’s Get Ready To Rumbleeeeeeeeeee opening the show and making those poor young men reveal their weight in front of the bajillion countries Ryan said were watching.
But you just know that Nigel Lythgoe and Co. have been salivating over an all-male finale since Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken way back in season two – and, well, face it, you really couldn’t pull off a boxing motif with those two.
So back to my luck theory.
Yeah, Archuleta is going to win. But I’m still holding out a teeny bit of Hillary Clinton-like hope that David Cook’s jackpot is going to hit.
Watching the cougar magnet prowl around that rampy thing behind the judges table while singing U2’s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” (nice choice, Clive Davis), he looked like a star. You felt his passion, and saw his rock star swagger. And swagger, but the way, is a lot different from the unappealing cockiness displayed by “Idol”’s other major rock star who shall go unnamed but was surprisingly ousted during Elliott Yamin’s season.
Little David, meanwhile, did what he always does. He gave Elton John’s “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” a smooth texture, added a few too many refrains that aren’t in the song to begin with for good reason, concentrated really hard on not blinking too much (and welcome back, Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber, the bestest mentor in all the land!) and…yeah…what? He leaves the stage with nothing. No soul. No passion. Just a robotic desire to please.
It is amusing – at least to me – that when it came time for the “songwriter’s choice,” David Cook pulled out the guitar and galloped through a not-entirely-awful pop-rocker called “Dream Big,” at which I jotted in my notes, “Wow, not a gloppy ‘Idol’ ballad.”
But then there it was! Leave it to Archuleta to Disney up the night with “In This Moment,” an insufferable ballad not only, as Simon pointed out, incredibly self-centered, but also as simplistic as a nursery rhyme – without the cleverness ( “Give me a chance and I’ll show you what’s real…I’m stuck in a moment and no one can take it from me.” )
Ack. I think I just coughed up a hairball.
(Oh, I just remembered, I can’t make fun of Disney ballads this week because Elliott Yamin’s remake of “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” came out yesterday on the new Disney compilation. Yes. Seriously.)
Anyhoo, to wrap this sucker up, Cooksy performed a pensive version of Collective Soul’s “The World I Know,” sniffed away tears at the end of the song and listened as Simon basically told him that even though he’d been touted all week as the frontrunner, eh, sorry buddy, no deal.
I did love that conspiratorial wink Simon gave David at the end of his slightly stinging critique, almost as if he were saying, “Don’t worry, kid, I made Scary Spice a household name – just wait and see what I can do with you!”
And then Little David pulled out that version of “Imagine” that, when he first performed it months ago, much of the world fell in love with him and I shrugged.
The judges didn’t seem to mind his cracked note toward the end or his habit of emphasizing lyrics on the wrong syl-la-ble (did you catch the “BROTHERhood of man”?). They gushed and praised and Paula said something slightly more coherent than she had to David Cook (“You’re standing in your truth,” she told Scruffy David. Um, what?), Simon continued the dreadful boxing theme to proclaim Archuleta’s performances the “knockout” of the match, the end.
Oh, but wait! The teddy bear himself, Ruben Studdard, was back to atone for Fantasia’s crazy-silly hot mess of last week to perform an appropriately pensive version of Kenny Loggins’ “Celebrate Me Home,” the show’s Stop Crying And Go Home Now song of the season.
I’ll say this – watching those scenes from the season flicker behind Ruben on the massive video screen does remind us that it’s been five months – do you know how much can change in your life in five months? – since we started this year’s journey with these kids.
Yeah, “Idol” has its issues. What show doesn’t? And yeah, some of its past viewers found other things to do during the writer’s strike and never re-committed themselves to watching TV, so ratings have slipped.
But this show is such an emotional investment that even though I say I’m not going to get sucked in, I do. It’s hard to resist.
As for tonight’s winner – well, you know, maybe NOT winning the show will be David Cook’s jackpot after all.
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Lost: The Oceanic 6 return
Melissa Ruggieri
May 16, 2008 1:54 AM
Two weeks.
Two weeks we have to wait to find out if Jin and Desmond get blown to smithereens on the freighter.
Two weeks to see what “plan” Ben had in mind when approaching The Orchid station in surrender mode, allowing Keamy to cold-cock him across the jaw with a pistol (how very un-Ben like to play victim).
Two weeks to hopefully see more flash-forwards of Future Jack and how he digests the information that Claire is his half-sister…although I think the glimpse we got of Future Future Jack in last year’s finale – he of the paste-on beard and suicidal tendencies – answered that question.
Two weeks to figure out how the Oceanic 6 depart the island as a sextet, since in the last few frames last night, they were scattered across the island and freighter in various forms of distress.
Normally, I would question whether we might actually get some answers in the two-hour finale airing May 29 (though last night’s ep was technically the first of a three-part whammy), but I have to say, I’m pretty satisfied with the level of information that has seeped out these past few weeks – especially in those gripping flash-forwards.
But as usual, the questions raised during “There’s No Place Like Home” were endless.
What is Locke supposed to do once inside The Orchid? Ben sort of left him to figure that out on his own. Or maybe Jacob will finally appear and show Ben the way to ….whatever.
Where was Richard “Hot Guy From Suddenly Susan” Alpert taking Kate and Sayid?
Why was the typically jittery Daniel almost passing out from fear upon consulting his notes about The Orchid?
And who thinks Hurley continued to munch on that tube of 15-year-old saltines even after Ben told him they might be a little stale?
I’ll leave the intricate postulating to the gazillion other bloggers out there who are more inspired to theorize about why Hurley might have picked up a Jesus statue to use as a weapon, whether that scene of the Oceanic 6 departing the Coast Guard plane was an homage to “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and if Ben handing Locke his “death stick” thingy was some sort of torch passing.
I also still can’t figure out the reasoning behind the Oceanic 6 sticking to this story of their group initially containing eight members. Any theories?
I will, though, award the line of the night to the Oceanic flack telling the group upon touchdown that the assembled media had already dubbed them the Oceanic 6. “That’s not the best branding as far as we’re concerned, but…it’s catchy,” she said, flinching on the outside and grinning inward at the publicity this amazing rescue will bring the tarnished airline.
One final thought regarding Oceanic. Obviously, based on Sun’s whip-smart, table-turning maneuver on her father and his company, the settlements disbursed to the survivors were some kind of stupid money, like, Hurley-winning-the-lottery money.
Hey, I expect a food voucher and an upgrade to First Class when my plane is 17 minutes late to the gate, so I’m totally in favor of giving giant rewards and golden tickets to a group of people who had to dodge smoke monsters and eat food wrapped in weird Dharma Initiative packages for more than 100 days.
But, even considering this is TV, do most airlines have that kind of dough to compensate plane crash victims? I’m thinking not. But Oceanic apparently does, and who else has a boatload of bucks?
Ah – Charles Widmore, maybe? What do you think?
Some notable “Lost"-centric sites:
http://darkufo.blogspot.com/
http://www.hawaiiup.com/lost/
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American Idol: Syesha speaks
Melissa Ruggieri
May 15, 2008 4:37 PM
Now we know why Syesha Mercado was so hard to warm up to those first Top-whatever weeks on “American Idol” – the girl is a classic workaholic.
In today’s exit interview with reporters, Syesha acknowledged those frosty moments when she sounded great, but emitted all of the heat of an ice cube.
“When I first stepped into the competition, I was really in a little shell,” she said, noting the vocal issues that plagued her during the Hollywood rounds. “I don’t feel I was at my whole potential because of the negative mind frame I was in. It was really harming my performance. When I got my mind right again, like it was during the auditions, I became more comfortable with myself… I just enjoyed myself more every week. I separated that fine line between overworking and doing so much that you’re unfocused and not enjoying yourself, and trusting yourself and letting go and taking it all in. My goal every week was to feel satisfied after every show, and I felt more satisfied the more the weeks went on.”
When asked which of the remaining Davids she prefers, Syehsa was expectedly non-committal, saying that she felt like a “little sister and a big sister” to both of them. But, she said, “David Archuleta has that beautiful smile and that really, really good connection with a younger audience, and David Cook has that connection with the younger audience—girls go crazy over him—and the older audience thinks he’s really, really charming, all of the older women.”
Despite regular appearances in the bottom three, or, as the contest narrowed, the bottom two, Syesha refused to consider that she might be sent packing – so much so that she literally refused to get her stuff in order.
“I never packed my bags,” she said. “They told us, you know what, you’ve got to pack your bags, but I was like, I’m not packing my bags because I don’t want to go home yet! I’m not ready. I think if you want something, it’s gonna happen for you. If you want top three you’re gonna get top 3. If you want to win, you’re going to win. Whoever is the most passionate, they’re gonna win. Every week, I set a goal and I just wasn’t ready to go home.”
After next week’s finale and the “Idol” tour, Syesha already has a detailed list of ambitions to attend to for life post-show.
“I know that whatever goal I set, it can be accomplished whether it’s within a year span or 10 years,” she said. “I want to make an album. I want to star in a film. I want to do Broadway. I want to open up an organic restaurant…it just depends on what comes first, but I have goals and I write them down.”
American Idol: And so it goes…
Melissa Ruggieri
May 15, 2008 12:08 AM
So it’s David vs. David in next week’s finale.
Yawn.
Even as Scruffy David (that would be Cook) sweetly held out his hand to clasp Syesha Mercado’s as the final trio waited to hear Ryan Seacrest shatter a dream, was there ever any doubt who was going home?
Syesha didn’t look very surprised at the news, remaining poised and able to flash a mega-watt smile to the Broadway producers watching from home. You almost expected her to make the universal “call me” sign, hoping that someone will save her from becoming the next Melinda Doolittle (my favorite contestant from last year who has, unfortunately, lived up to her last name – at least in any major, public way).
But it’s funny how I’ll always equate third-place week with Elliott Yamin.
Just watching Scruffy David tossing out a pitch at the baseball stadium (albeit with a major league team), Syesha riding in the back of a top-down limo with her parents as squealing fans lined the streets and David “Gosh” Archuleta getting handed a special proclamation from the groovily mustached mayor of Murray City, Utah, instantly brought back memories of Elliott’s magical day here two years ago.
So here’s to Syesha having some Elliott-level success.
But if there were any revelations last night – aside from the fact that I wanted to start a new drinking game and down a shot of whiskey every time David A. murmured “gosh” and blinked…but then I’d be too drunk to type – it’s that Fantasia, God bless her, hasn’t changed a whit.
She’s not my favorite “Idol” winner if we’re talking about vocals – I always found her a bit too screechy and overbearing – but has there ever been a more spirited, command-the-room performer as Lady F? I think her guest appearance last night proved that the answer is most definitely NO.
(Also, was there a more priceless camera cut in the show’s history than to Simon’s nearly dropped-jaw reaction to the Fantasia workout?).
Anyway, that’s why I’m throwing what little gusto I still have for this season behind Scruffy David next week. No secret that David A. just doesn’t do it for me, and Fantasia was another reminder why.
Scruffy David isn’t about to start booty-boppin’ across the stage (and after watching him dance, poor thing, during last night’s dreadful group song, that’s a good thing), but he has presence. His quiet authority projects an underlying sexiness and he’s demonstrated repeatedly that he can mold any style of song and inject it with originality.
David A., meanwhile, still looks and acts like the “Star Search” contestant he once was – a sweet-faced boy in a Members Only jacket who does treacly well and is as dull as a PBS telethon.
But, as Simon predicted moments before Syesha was celebrated home – or, back to her “Idol” dorm – next week’s D&D finale has the potential to be a “humdinger” that will come down not to talent, but to the fan base with the fastest phone connections.
Britney. Must. Be. Stopped.
Cynthia McMullen
May 14, 2008 6:16 PM
So Britney ran into another innocent driver—again—yesterday. Her Mercedes Benz coupe rear-ended a Ford 
Explorer in Beverly Hills. My guess—since she didn’t have a child in her lap—is that she was reaching for her 27th Starbucks of the day and just did not notice that pesky 2 tons’ worth of metal in front of her.
Or ... and here’s a theory worth investigating ... did she hit Drew Barrymore? I would’ve jumped on that one—made sense to me—except Drew was hit from behind on Monday. Of course, it still could’ve been Ms. Spears. That one gets around.
Seriously, somebody needs to take her driver’s license and grind it into tiny pieces, impound her car and put a lock on her front door till she gets some sense. Sure, I feel bad for Britney. She needs help. But does that make it OK to put others’ lives in danger?
American Idol: The final countdown
Melissa Ruggieri
May 14, 2008 12:07 AM
Remember way back in 2006 when Simon Cowell so despised Taylor Hicks, couldn’t think of put-downs for the hyperactive bar singer fast enough, yet had to sit and grimace through his performances week after week as that omnipotent Soul Patrol boosted Hicks to what has now become a hollow victory?
That’s pretty much how I feel about David Archuleta.
Resigned to the reality that no matter how blatantly he jumbles lyrics (or, in the case of last night’s “With You,” mumbles over the melody to disguise his mistakes), how shiny, yet empty his vocal performance, or how ill-equipped he is to handle anything resembling a conversation, the teen with controlling daddy issues will be in next week’s finale and likely win.
Speaking of resignation, David A.’s read of Billy Joel’s “And So it Goes” (interesting choice from Ms. Abdul) sapped the poignant song of its weary acquiescence and instead made it the equivalent of studying a Monet and walking away with a shrug. It’s a deep song about loss and miscommunication, but as presented by David A., it could have been a nonchalant “oh well” about Banana Republic being out of his sweater size.
But, as usual, Randy Jackson lapped up the youngster’s downy delivery, stopping a smidgen short of anointing him the “Idol” prince.
Eh, just as well. As Chris Daughtry has more than proved, not winning “Idol” is usually the best thing that can happen to any contestant not interested in singing double-glazed, tear-jerking pap. So hey, David Cook, we’ll soon see you opening for a major arena rock band … but only if you promise never to sing that Switchfoot song again.
I’d love to see David C. and Syesha Mercado face off if only because they both resemble the complete package far more than the Mouseketeer. As David C. demonstrated last night, he is capable of much more than restructuring pop songs into Nickelback-worthy rockers.
Anyone who can hit all of the twisting key changes in Roberta Flack’s “”The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” and then stay on point while a squealing guitar derails during Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” – as David C. did --deserves more compensation than tepid praise from Randy. (Side note: Coincidence that Simon’s pick for David C. was a song that Leona Lewis, Simon’s protege, also covers on her debut album?)
But clearly, Randy’s thesaurus failed him last night, as he told BOTH David’s that they were capable of singing the phone book. Is that really a compliment?
And just as I was anticipating a night of good notices for three solid Syesha performances (OK, two and a half), Paula – Paula! – bludgeoned the suddenly sassy songstress’ dream right in front of all 21-million-and-rapidly-falling of us.
“I don’t know if it’s going to be good enough to get into the finals,” Paula told Syesha, who continued to beam bravely, likely because she was relieved to finally be freed from the spandex and sequins that nearly swallowed her during a stellar run on Alicia Keys’ “If I Ain’t Got You.”
Well, I know who we can blame when Syesha is sent back to her room tonight – those goofy producers who chose for her third song a bright, syncopated slice of vapidity that no one knows.
Are you really telling me that with all of “Idol”’s juice, Nigel Lythgoe and Co. couldn’t get a Beyonce or Rihanna song cleared, instead saddling Syesha with Gia Farrell’s “Hit Me Up” from the “Happy Feet” soundtrack? It would not be inappropriate to ask at this point, “Who the heck is Gia Farrell” and “Didn’t that penguin movie come out almost two years ago?”
The answers are a) a young singer whom you have no reason to have heard of and b) yes.
But none of that matters, because the “Idol” gods determined weeks ago that this year’s winner would be named David.
What I would like to know, though, is why we were subjected to what felt like dozens of plugs for iTunes, the “Idol” tour and other Fox shows – not to mention an inordinate amount of playful bickering among the judges – yet there was no time to show footage from the final trio’s hometown visits aside from cursory “Oh, look, Simon Cowell has just sent me a text message. Let me see what song he has chosen for me to sing,” contrivance.
Maybe we’ll get a look tonight – as long as the show can fit it in between the Ford commercial and endorsement of Coke products.
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Ooh, ooh, this just in!
Cynthia McMullen
May 13, 2008 4:48 PM
Forget what I said in the previous entry, Shayne Lamas’ career is clearly burgeoning.
This just in from Santa Monica, Calif.:
“Newly engaged actress Shayne Lamas, who was selected over 24 other girls for a marriage proposal by Matt Grant in the season finale of ABC TV’s popular ‘The Bachelor’ series, has chosen the Girls Gone Wild Magazine for her national print debut.
“Shayne says she decided to pose for Girls Gone Wild because ‘To me, Girls Gone Wild is about fun and freedom. It’s a way for a girl to express confidence in herself.’ The magazine contains no nudity.”
I’m more nonplussed by that last statement than I am about Shayne’s posing for the mag. How can it be Girls Gone Wild sans naked women? Do they paste those rectangular blocks—the one you see in the TV commercials—over each and every girly part?
Oh, wait, here you go: “Each issue of the magazine comes packaged with an exclusive, uncensored Girls Gone Wild DVD.” So I guess the magazine is just an entree to the vids.
Shayne is even classier than I thought. We can only hope Matt Grant agrees.
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