Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Think the Idol contestants might be a little nervous about performing on live television in front of millions of viewers.

Apparently, they aren’t the only ones. Judge Kara DioGuardi told The Associated Press that judging in front of millions of viewers makes her nervous, too. Here’s a link to the story.

Idol’s fourth and newest judge hasn’t exactly been warmly embraced by an adoring public.

And the Kara karma didn’t improve last week. First, OK! magazine published a cover story saying the other three judges don’t get along with the new girl at the table. Then Simon blamed too much talk from Kara and Paula for a performance night judging change that infuriated lots of fans. Many of those fans pointed to it as proof of what they’ve been saying all along: That four Idol judges is one too many. Finally, E! online posted poll results indicating Kara is the judge fans would prefer to fire.

So, how is Kara doing as the new judge on the block?

Well, at least she can be critical of the contestants at times, which is more than you can say for a certain other judge. And Kara is a big improvement over most of the guest judges from Idol’s past.

As for Idol’s inability to squeeze the show into its one-hour time slot, I have trouble blaming Kara. Heck, last week, only two judges critiqued each contestant, and the show still didn’t finish on time.

And, yeah, Kara has made a few gaffes — like referring to Studio 54 as Studio 57; like telling Adam Lambert she had six words for him, then spouting off eight. But she hasn’t made a stumble yet that compares to last year when Paula reviewed a Jason Castro song — before he had performed it.

The problem is this: Kara’s presence seems to have messed up the chemistry and the timing at the judges’ table. By the time it’s Simon’s turn to talk, I’ve completely forgotten what Randy said about a performance because Kara and Paula tend to … well, ramble on a little, sometimes a lot.

And Paula suddenly seems to be showing up on performance night with prepared comments. (Lots of Idol watchers seem to think she’s determined not to be outjudged by Kara.) A prepared Paula is a lot less fun than a Paula who wings it on performance night.

Look, adding a fourth judge wasn’t Kara’s idea. It’s one of several changes to the show this season. Some have been atrocious, like the new semifinal format. Some have been improvements.

For instance, the results shows have been much more bearable now that there’s less chat and more focus on performances by guest stars. And the judges’ save, as much as I hated the way it was used last week, has certainly added a sense of suspense.

The fourth judge? Just chalk it up as a failed experiment, something that didn’t work for a variety of reasons, some of which have nothing to do with the person sitting in the fourth seat.

But, hey, it’s sure given Idol watchers something to talk about, hasn’t it?