Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Random thoughts on American Idol’s Season 10 finale.

Another male winner: Scotty McCreery marks the fourth straight male winner of Idol. And some folks are already calling anew for changes to Idol voting, saying a female will never win again.

Truth is, Scotty was the deserving winner. (Go here for the Scotty McCreery victory blog). This wasn’t a case like last year, when a clearly superior female performer (Crystal Bowersox) lost.

I agree the voting should be changed, because it is unfair to females. But the best Season 10 example is the fact that the first five eliminations were gals. Some (like Ashthon Jones) were gone before we had any idea what they were capable of.

Hey, not bad Idol: I was spitting mad over Tuesday’s show and Idol’s clear goal of turning the tide Lauren Alaina’s way.  But Idol again put on a pretty entertaining season finale. Not that I wouldn’t have done a few things differently … OK, perhaps a lot (read on), but a pretty good show, all in all.

Best filler segment: Casey Abrams and James Durbin engaged in a comical debate over whose elimination was most shocking. Both quickly shut up when Pia Toscano shows up wearing a tiera and a sash that reads: “Most Shocking Elimination.”

Most revealing musical number: Jennifer Lopez dances while hubby Marc Anthony sings, showing she’s a much better dancer than judge.

Most entertaining musical number: Jack Black and Casey Abrams singing “Fat Bottom Girls.” Casey is a riot. How much fun would it have been to see he and Haley Reinhart square off in the finale? Just saying.

Biggest disappointment: We did not hear a potential first single from Haley Reinhart, as her parents had indicated we might. At least I hope that song she sang with Tony Bennett isn’t her first single. If so, Idol has sabotaged Haley yet again.

Worst filler segment: The presentation of keys for Ford Focus vehicles to a pair of educators who Lauren and Scotty invited to the finale. I hope Ford paid a small fortune for that long in-show commerical.

Worst Idol idea: Having Lauren sing “Before He Cheats” alongside Carrie Underwood. It showed how the would-be Idol pales vocally to the Season 4 Idol. The song went flat every time Lauren started singing.

Idol still relevant?: Watching Lady Gaga perform “Edge of Glory” atop a make-believe mountain, strip down to a Conan the Barbarian outfit, make out with a male dancer, then drop off the mountain into a pit prompts this question: If Gaga is what’s hot and relevant in music, are we ever likely to see Scotty or Lauren atop the Hot 100?

Where were the past Idols?: This being Idol’s 10th anniversary, I thought surely there would be a tribute to past winners, perhaps even all the past finalists. I mean, I guess it was nice seeing Gaga, Beyonce and Bono perform, but not finding a way to involve former contestants (besides Carrie Underwood) showed a serious lack of appreciation for the show’s history.

Steven’s future: Steven Tyler sounded great singing “Dream On” near the end of Wednesday’s episode. Here’s hoping he makes up with his former bandmates, records a new album and they head out on tour … oh, say next January. Because Steven never sounded anything close to that special as a judge on American Idol Season 10.

Ah, those judges: And since they contributed so little to Idol in terms of judging, and since they had already gotten to hawk their new singles (and a book in Steven’s case) on the show, did they really need to be showcased performers as well on Wednesday? After all, it was the cast that made Season 10 special. How about giving Pia Toscano a solo with one of her idols? Or Stefano Langone, who was a wild card contestant and wound up finishing seventh?

Ah, those judges, II: And what does it tell us that all three judges picked Lauren Alaina as the Season 10 Idol, and the fans at home didn’t listen? Gee, Nigel, perhaps that’s a clue of how relevant your new judging panel became over the course of Season 10. Just saying.

Editor’s Note: You can go here to see my picks for top 10 performances of Season 10 and here to see my picks for the top five non-performance moments.