Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Big night, huh?

We learn the identity of the five guys and five ladies viewers have voted into the finals.

We learn the identity of the three wild card choices by the judges.

And, somehow, Idol is going to stretch that into a two-hour program.

Of course, there is that Jennifer Lopez video to watch. Don’t know about you, but I’ve paid little attention to the alternate endings.

I’ve been paying lots more attention to the talent of the contestants whose fate will be determined tonight.

And their talent is considerable. Too much talent, I would argue, to have their fate determined by a single song.

But I’ve written that blog already. On to the business at hand.

My top grades for the guys on Tuesday went to: Casey Abrams (A), Scotty McCreery (A-), Jacob Lusk (A-), James Durbin (B+), Paul McDonald (B), Brett Loewenstern (B).

My top grades of the gals on Wednesday went to: Pia Toscano (A-), Haley Reinhart (B+), Kendra Chantelle (B+), Ashthon Jones (B), Lauren Alaina (B).

But does that mean that’s how I think the voting will go?

Not at all. As a matter of fact, I expect Jacob Lusk not to be voted into the finals. I suspect he’s going to need a wild card entry.

In short, here are my predictions.

Can rest easy (in other words, a sure bet to make the finals)

Casey Abrams, Pia Toscano, Lauren Alaina

Should be able to rest easy

Scotty McCreery, Paul McDonald, James Durbin, Haley Reinhart, Ashthon Jones

Will probably need wild card help

Jacob Lusk, Lauren Turner, Karen Rodriguez, Clint Gamboa

On the bubble

Naima Adedapo, Kendra Chantelle, Thia Megia, Tim Halperin, Stefano Langone, Brett Loewenstern

Should be headed home

Ta-tynisa Wilson, Julie Zorrilla, Rachel Zevita, Jordan Dorsey, Jovany Barreto, Robbie Rosen

Conclusion

Even if you eliminate the six contestants who did so poorly last night or have done so poorly to this point that they shouldn’t receive serious consideration for the finals, that still leaves 18 contestants for 13 spots.

Meaning tough, tough decisions await our judges.

Commercial interlude

Hey, Idol will have a zillion commercial breaks tonight. I should be allowed one.

If you haven’t been checking the site today, you might have missed the news that Kelly Clarkson has reached number one with her country duet with Jason Aldean, you might have missed listening to the Idol farewell song by David Cook and you might have missed the blog about how Randy Jackson has become Idol’s new tough judge. Now you have handy links to all three.

And the show begins

And, immediately, I’m confused. I thought each judge got a wild card pick on top of the viewers’ top 10 for a final top 13.

In his intro, Ryan said we’d meet our 12 finalists tonight. Oh, well, guess time will tell.

Just for fun, I think I’ll rate each decision tonight with a thumbs up, a thumbs down, or a neutral.

Turns out once the top 10 are announced, some contestants are going to be asked to sing again for a wild card spot.

“Drama like we’ve never seen before,” Ryan promises.

Good, at least we’ll have something to keep us entertained for two hours.

The top guys are announced

Whew, 20 minutes in, Ryan finally dims the lights.

Scotty McCreery is in the top 10 (thumbs up); Robbie Rosen is not (thumbs up);

Clint Gamboa is not in the top 10 (neutral), Jovany Barreto is not in the top 10 (thumbs up), nor is Jordan Dorsey (thumbs up);

Casey Abrams, Jacob Lusk and Tim Halperin are summoned to stage. Jacob is in the top 10 (thumbs up). Casey is in the top 10 (thumbs up). Tim Halperin is not (a totally understandable thumbs down).

Brett Loewenstern and Paul McDonald learn their fate. Paul is in the top 10 (thumbs up). Brett Loewenstern is not (neutral).

James Durbin and Stefano Langone, roommates since Hollywood Week are the last guys up. James Durbin is in (thumbs up). Stefano is not (neutral).

So, our five guys in the finals are: James Durbin, Paul McDonald, Casey Abrams, Jacob Lusk and Scott McCreery.

The top girls are announced

Pia Toscano and Lauren Alaina are summoned to the stage together. Lauren is in the top 10 (thumbs up); Pia is also in the top 10 (double thumbs up).

Of course, Ryan has to remind us that Randy compared Lauren Alaina to Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood.

Apparently, Kelly disagrees. Lauren Alaina reminds her of Kellie Pickler. Actually, I’m pretty sure Kellie Pickler is one of a kind.

Ta-tynisa Wilson and Julie Zorrilla are summoned to the stage. Neither made it through (double thumbs up).

Kendra Chantelle, Ashthon Jones and Karen Rodriguez are summoned to center stage. Ashthon is not in the top 10 (first thumbs down). Karen Rodriguez makes the top 10 (thumbs down). Kendra Chantelle does not (neutral).

Naima Adedapo, Lauren Turner and Thia Megia are summoned to center stage. Naima does not make the top 10 (minor thumbs down). Thia is into the top 10 (minor thumbs down). Lauren Turner is not (neutral).

Haley Reinhart and Rachel Zevita on the stage. Haley Reinhart is in the top 10 (thumbs up). Rachel is not (thumbs up).

So, our female finalists so far are Haley Reinhart, Karen Rodriguez, Thia Megia, Lauren Alaina and Pia Toscano.

The Wild Card

Ashthon Jones: Since “And I’m Telling You I’m Not Going.” Come on, judges, there is no way you can send this girl home. She just delivered a brilliant performance, showing tons of style and courage in a pressure-packed situation. Grade: A-

Stefano Langone: He’ll sing “I Need You Now.” He started a little shaky, but he’s going for the big notes. And J-Lo thinks he has a star on his forehead, so that’s a plus. Very nicely done. Not as good as Ashthon, but impressive. Grade: B.

Kendra Chantelle: The gal with the bluesy voice will sing “Georgia on My Mind.” Honestly, this is not a solid start to the song. There’s that bluesy voice on the chorus. I’m still not certain Kendra has the spark or the personality of some of the other ladies in this competition. She’s trying to pull it out with a series of glory notes at the end. Grade: B-.

Jovany “Shame I Can’t Sing Shirtless” Barreto: Hey, Jovany can sing. This is worlds better than his performance from earlier this week. But I’m not sure it’s going to be enough to make the finals. Grade: B-

Naima Adedapo: She’ll sing “For All We Know.” Don’t know whether it’s nerves or what, but this is the weakest, easily the weakest of the semifinal performances we’ve heard so far. Shame. I wouldn’t mind seeing Naima in the finals at all. Grade: C-.

Her selection means the end of the road for Rachel Zevita, Lauren Turner, Julie Zorrilla and Ta-Tynisa Wilson.

Robbie Rosen: He’ll sing “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word.” Not sure I understand this selection from the judges. He’s singing better than he did on Tuesday, but I’m not crazy about his voice. He seems to be smiling throughout a song that calls for anything but a smile. Grade: C.

His selection means the end of the road for Tim Halperin, Brett Loewenstern, Jordan Dorsey and Clint Gamboa.

The Choices

And the wild card choices are … Ashthon Jones, Naima Adedapo and Stefano Langone.

Recap coming soon.