Idol Chatter & Voice Views

I’m on record as saying I think La’Porsha Renae should be the final American Idol.

But what do other longtime Idol watchers think.

I’ve rounded up a sampling below, with links to their recaps of last night’s show.

Check back at 8 p.m. for a live blog as we bid farewell to American Idol.

TV Line (Michael Slezak): “To my ears, it was a slight edge to Trent in Round 1, an easy win for La’Porsha in Round 2, and a toss-up of aching, otherwordly perfection versus gut-busting transcendence in Round 3 — and that leads me to believe La’Porsha will and should win (though I won’t be at all upset if it’s Trent).”

People: “This has been (La’Porsha) Renae’s competition to lose since day one. There have been surprises in past seasons, but this one should – and deservedly so – go as expected.”

MJ’s Big Blog (M.J. Santilli): “This is a dead heat, people. Trent and La’Porsha are evenly matched. American Idol goes out with two of the finest vocalists to ever grace their stage.” M.J. picked Trent to win in power rankings posted before the show.

Buddy TV (Jeff Dodge): “I am giving Trent a slight edge overall when you look beyond just the final performance episode since he stepped into the spotlight at the perfect time. We’ve seen it with other eventual winners in the past.”

AmericanIdolNet.com: “Well, this is officially the strongest final two ever. I don’t care what anyone says. These two are amazing and both deserving. A+ to both of them.”

YahooMusic.com (Lyndsey Parker): :Who’s going to win this thing and become that “Kelly Clarkson bookend”? I can declare with 99 percent confidence that it will be Trent. He easily won round one and narrowly won round three, and while J.Lo gave round two to La’Porsha, I think that round was a tie. Keith claimed this will be ‘the closest race in Idol history,’ but I disagree.”