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Archive through February 24, 2005

The TVClubHouse: American Idol/Canadian Idol/Other Talent Shows ARCHIVES: American Idol IV: Spoiler - Elimination 2/23: Archive through February 24, 2005 users admin

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Sunshyne4u
Member

06-17-2003

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 1:33 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I agree with you all. This show was brutal to watch. Ryan Seacrest often was blunt but kinda humorous in the past BUT woo boy, he was harsh tonight!

I am glad someone took note of what the first girl softly said to Ryan when he asked if she knew what went wrong. From above postHaving said that.....I want to add that I felt really sorry for the first girl eliminated because I felt she had a really good point: that the editing did not give equal tv time to all the contestants, allowing an equal chance for viewer bonding for all of them.

Seriously, until this last show where these finalists were singing I dont think I'd ever SEEN that girl before. She is absolutely correct that she did NOT get shown on the TV show therefore did not have a fan base.

I think of Janay, who looked scared to death and shakey singing her song. IF we had been shown NOTHING about her and her mom I can guarantee she would have been GONE! But how many people voted for her just to keep the youngster with the dream IN the competition.

melinda did not get a chance to show HER journey. Once again, a bit of a popularity contest more than a singing contest eh??

Muse
Member

08-09-2001

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 4:53 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
While I agree that Melinda had a disadvantage going in because of her lack of airtime, I don't don't really have a problem with it. That's just the way the show goes. It's shown to entertain people, so they're going to show the contestants they find most entertaining (whether they're good or bad). Simon was right in that it was her job to *make* people notice her. Kind of like Trenyce, or Charles Grigsby, or Kelly Clarkson. Not everything is fair in the entertainment world.

That being said, I did think some eliminations were rather cruel. Judd's was just odd. I don't like how Simon refused to say anything to Jared, either. I know they want to build up the tension for dramatic effect, but there's a point where it just becomes uncomfortable to watch.

Fruitbat
Member

08-07-2000

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 5:47 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I don't have a problem with the elimination format. It is brutal to be cut, no matter how. This is a treacherous business and they all know it. I do think 1/2 hour would do the job, however.

They come on this show and get the kind of instant fame it can take years to build otherwise. Some will get record contracts even if they don't win. Those who get cut can use this experience and exposure to further their aspirations. This is a highly competitive business...rejection comes all the time.

I do think Melinda was correct in that she did not have any face time and that put her at a huge disadvantage.

I doubt any viewer considers pitch, song choice or even one weak night when choosing their favorite.

I am enjoying this season and will roll with the format knowing that these kids are getting an experience that thousands wanted. Many thousands.



Mak1
Member

08-12-2002

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 5:53 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Gee thanks, Rabbit. I was thinking of boycotting the Wednesday shows, too, and just reading the results later.

Azriel
Member

08-01-2000

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 5:59 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I just got through watching the show and I have a big problem with the elimination format. When I read what you all wrote earlier I thought you were all being silly and over-reacting. Oh my heck, you weren't! That was so horrible and cruel. I am so ticked off right now. That was not entertaining.

Justalittlebean
Member

08-15-2003

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 6:10 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I think the elimination format was cruel too. My daughter and I always tape the Wednesday show so we can fast forward to the elimination.

Pamy
Member

01-02-2002

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 6:36 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Great idea! Boycott Wed's show and join my in watching the best show on tv ALIAS!!!!!!!!

Lorie
Member

08-29-2003

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 6:37 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I agree that half an hour would do it. An hour is too dragged out. I lose my attention. I could just tape it and fast forward through all the junk to get to the elimination. Wish they'd read all the negative feedback and change the format.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 6:58 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
The Idol boards are all a twitter too.
Here's the email addy if you want to write to fox.
askfox@fox.com

Maris
Member

03-28-2002

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 6:58 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Paula and Simon looked disgusted at the format especially the torture of the poor people evicted. It was like watching someone pluck the wings off a fly. I think I am also going to just record Wednesdays and fast forward to the eviction.

Essence
Member

01-12-2002

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 7:12 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
That first girl did have a point, BUT it was up to her to make people want to vote for her. She was competing against 11 other young ladies who all believe they have what it takes. Last year, I don't remember Latoya being featured during the tryouts, but she blew people away with her first performance. It didn't matter that I hadn't seen her up til then... she was the one I wanted to win. Melinda just didn't blow people away.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 7:23 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I thought all three judges looked postively stricken during that first girl's elimination.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 7:41 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
COMMENTARY
By Craig Berman
MSNBC contributor
Updated: 11:13 p.m. ET Feb. 23, 2005Give the folks at “American Idol” some credit. They're not afraid to tweak a product that works.

In previous years, making it to the finals was a combination of skill and luck. Contestants had to stand out in their semifinal heats in order to advance, which often depended on who else happened to be in the group. That wasn't a tremendous thrill to those stuck in the first semifinal heat last year, and the five who didn't make the finals probably lost sleep wondering who they pissed off to be placed with winner Fantasia Barrino, runner-up Diana DiGarmo and eventual wild-card selection Jennifer Hudson.

But hey, it could have been worse. They could have been in the Season 2 semifinal with Ruben Studdard, Clay Aiken and Kimberley Locke. Yup, the final three in the standings were all in the same heat. What chance did poor Rebecca Bond have? A full 60 percent of the Backstreet Boys wouldn't make it out of that group, much less someone the viewers had never seen.

Maybe it was all the angry letters from Katie Webber and Jennifer Fuentes fans, but this year's semifinalists didn't have to knock it out of the ballpark their first week … just make sure to perform better than at least two other people. Or, rather, get more of a following than two other people. Some had ample opportunity to lay the groundwork for that in the audition stage by virtue of having Ryan Seacrest and the ubiquitous cameras following them around incessantly.

Others were not so fortunate, and on Wednesday night it contributed to four of them losing their dream of being this year's “American Idol.”
Camera time helps
With the initial rounds over and done with, the semifinals are the first chance the audience has to influence the outcomes. The only thing is, not everyone starts on a level playing field. That's particularly true in the new format, where a comparatively small voting block can be enough to live another week.

Scott Savol, for example, picked a song he couldn't do much with and proceeded not to sing it very well. But Savol has been featured so much already that he probably would have had to forget the words entirely to lose enough support to move on. If he'd had to finish in the top two, he'd have been in big trouble. It takes far fewer votes just to avoid rock bottom.

Lindsey Cardinale was in a similar spot. She came up very small with a ballad that put small children to sleep, but anyone who had seen her in the auditions knew that it was a case of a good voice having a bad night. She, too, got the benefit of the doubt.

That's not a luxury Melinda Lira had. She, too, picked a ballad Tuesday night — Celine Dion's "The Power of Love" – and while she didn't butcher it, she didn't do enough to make the audience take notice. Still, when she took center stage with Janay Castine, she had to know she had a great shot at surviving if the voters based their selections solely on Tuesday night. Castine had been shaking with nerves at the start of her song and probably performed the worst of any of the 24 semifinalists.

But that's not what the voters remembered. They recalled Castine's footage from earlier in the competition so she survived. Lira, they apparently forgot entirely. She became the first of the 24 to fall, stood on the stage in shock for a moment, and then blamed the lack of exposure compared to other candidates.

That's certainly a factor, but Nadia Turner found herself in the same position Tuesday night. The difference was that instead of playing it safe and picking a ho-hum ballad, Turner picked a different "Power of Love" — this one by Ashley Cleveland — that allowed her to really play to the crowd and shine. While Lira's performance was forgotten as soon after she walked off the stage, Turner took advantage of her debut to leave an impression that's likely good enough to pay dividends down the road.

Song selection plays vital role
But too few of the new faces took Turner's approach, and the combination of lack of familiarity and poor song selection doomed Jared Yates and Sarah Mather as well.

Yates was in the tougher spot, since it seems like the guys have gotten a lot more airtime than the women at this stage. Anthony Fedorov, Scott Savol, Constantine Maroulis, Bo Bice, Mario Vazquez, Anwar Robinson … a full half of the 12 finalists have been featured enough that we practically know their seventh-grade GPA.

The 18-year-old Yates, consciously absent from the list of previously-featured performers, chose to sing "How Could I" by 98 Degrees, and wound up blending in with the other ballads when he really needed to stand out. Out he went.

Mather took more of a chance, but it was a dumb one — picking "Get Ready" by Earth, Wind & Fire. It's a great song, but a song from a band, designed to be sung by a band, and not ideally suited to a soloist.

Her voice is almost as distinctive among the semifinalists as Cardinale's, but the viewers saw her a lot less before Tuesday night, and the lack of exposure in early February combined with an average performance when it counted was too much to overcome.

Mather was the only eliminated contestant to get real solace from the judges, with Simon telling her "It's absolutely not the end of your world" and saying she'd have done well in previous years. Sadly, however, Mather doesn't get to go back in time and go head-to-head with Kelly Clarkson. She got the boot instead.

Only one elimination was really a surprise, and that was Judd Harris.

For suspense purposes, it was a shock because Ryan Seacrest first told his row that everybody could relax, brought six semifinalists on stage and made them sweat … and then told them, two-by-two, that they were all safe before calling Harris out.

But Harris picked a song that seemed to get the audience's attention, a little "Travellin' Band" sandwiched between a couple of ballads that stood out. The judges didn't love him, but didn't slam him either.

Simon told Harris Monday night that "a lot of girls will vote for you." Clearly, not enough did.

Craig Berman is a writer in Washington. D.C.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7020286/

Kittystj
Member

08-10-2001

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 8:05 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I was disgusted with the show, the way they eliminated the kids. It seemed more like the Ryan Seacrist show! I think they need to eliminate Ryan! Seacrist OUT

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 8:09 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I seriously doubt that it was Ryan's idea to do the eliminations that way.

Hobbs
Member

08-05-2002

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 8:55 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Thanks for the addy, Texannie. I wrote to tell them I don't watch television to feel uncomfortable. If enough of us write, maybe they'll listen. I'm sure the switch board lit up. But then, they love controversy.

I think the show has outgrown itself. It's power hungry and egomanical from the executives at Fox, down through the producers all the way to Ryan, Simon, Paula, and Randy. And if they're going to destroy some people on the way, oh well.

I came away from the show feeling that it was a lot like the past eliminations during the finals. Did they make the losers sing their way out in the semis before? The semis use to be the semis. You weren't there yet. It wasn't that big. I don't know what the finals are going to be like.

I know I'm not making sense.


Mizinvanccouver
Member

02-22-2003

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 10:29 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I was surprised that Judd was voted out last night. I thought he had great charisma, very entertaining to watch IMO.

I would have hoped that Scott or trachy guy were booted before him.

Someone above had the same question as me, did the ones who were voted off had to sing??

Scout
Member

01-20-2005

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 10:29 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
This may have already been mentioned above, but does anyone else notice how on the night of the performance, the judges always say these really great things about certain people, but then when they're voted off, they'll say, "when we watched it back on tv, it sounded bad". I've often wondered about some of their great comments on people who were obviously out of tune. They did this last year, too. Maybe they need to watch it on a monitor in another room, so they hear it on television like we did. Better yet, if they can't come up with something a little different than you didn't choose the right song, why have them at all? Why don't they make real suggestions each week to the contestants and then see if they did what they've asked. Once in awhile they do this, and at least it's constructive. It feels like they just want to make sure their comments are geared to make the person they want to win actually win. It definitely feels like they want a boy to win this year.
Also, I don't agree that there is a need for the eliminations to be so cruel. I don't think it makes for great tv. It makes me uncomfortable. These are not hardened celebrities. This might be the first time they've ever performed like this. What's gained by crucifying them? The look on that first girl's face was the saddest thing I've ever seen. I wish they'd just skip the Wednesday show (which is the longest, most padded hour anyway) and the next time each group gathers, tell who was eliminated, show a little clips highlight of them, and then interview them when they have a chance to get over the shock.

Texannie
Member

07-16-2001

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 10:37 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
don't you think that's a way for the judges to CYA their comments and not look like idiots for saying they liked someone....oh, you got voted out cause you didn't sound good on tv.

Alisons
Member

01-10-2003

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 10:39 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Melinda had a point about airtime, but MAN was she off key! Those notes were not corrected as she was holding them either which is a much worse singing problem than when people overshoot sharp and then slide into the correct pitch. The bottom line is that she just was not good enough.

Several of the men were blending together for me, and two of the "blendees" got eliminated. So that was no surprise.

I'm thinking it should have been Janay out rather than Sarah, but I do not think Sarah would have made the final six anyway.

Part of the competition is being interesting enough to grab the airtime, so I do not really have a problem with any of this.

I still say these people are LUCKY to have the opportunity to be on AI and to have made it as far as they have. ONLY ONE PERSON WINS so every other person has to face elimination at some point. Is it any more fun to be eliminated tactfully? Do you think it was EASIER for Diana D. last year when Fantasia won and all the streamers came down, etc?? Everyone is disappointed when they lose.

Jimmer
Member

08-30-2000

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 10:55 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Not to blow our horn up in Canada, but I think that the Canadian Idol judges offer far more in the way of constructive criticism and have far more empathy for the contestants. They do make funny remarks and they can be tough on bad performances. It’s just that the meanness doesn’t seem to exist as much on the Canadian show. Plus our contestants have more talent! (just kidding).

Scout
Member

01-20-2005

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 11:08 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
I'm coming to nice Canada!

Highlighter
Member

09-03-2003

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 11:23 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
The secret is probably calling/writing/emailing all the advertisers to tell them you refuse to watch the show or that you will be fast-forwarding to the results section because you are too bothered to watch real-time. They are probably paying big bucks for the airtime and won't appreciate that Fox is offending and chasing off all the viewers! I don't remember who any of the advertisers were last night, though-I tivo'd through it all!

Maris
Member

03-28-2002

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 12:02 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Overall I thought the judges were way too easy on the women. Randy if he didnt like them just said they were alright but a little pitchy. Paula would say you stayed true to yourself. Then they look like fools when the people move on.

Ladytex
Member

09-27-2001

Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 2:47 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post    
Foxesonidol has an article posted that pretty well sums up how I feel right about now:

http://www.foxesonidol.com/cgi-bin/ae.pl?mode=4&article=article1667.art&page=1