Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Was it just me, or did Adam Levine seem a little overly eager to have his team challenged on the opening night of the cross battles?

I mean, Blake Shelton announced that he was sending Dexter Roberts and his four-chair turn credentials into battle.

Adam Levine begged Blake to challenge him, and got his wish.

The very next cross battle, John Legend announced that he was sending Maelyn Jarmon and her four-chair turn credentials into the foray.

Adam wanted to be challenged again. And, again, he got his wish.

We’ll find out how wise all that was tonight, when the results come in.

By my assessment, five Team Adam contestants took the stage; all five lost their battles, though the Mari Jones-Selkii and Celia Babini-Oliv Blu matches were very close calls.

Here are the night’s results:

Cross Battle #1: Kim Cherry (Team Blake) vs. Betsy Ade (Team Kelly)
The Result: Kim Cherry. She was my pick to win that match.
Steal / Save: Both John Legend and Adam Levine pushed their steeal button for Betsy. Adam notes John let Betsy go in the battles and says joining Team Adam would give her the chance to work with three different coaches. John admits he might have made a mistake in Betsy’s battle round pairing. Betsy joins Team Adam.

Kim Cherry and Betsy Ade after their Voice cross battle. Kim won; Betsy was stolen by Adam Levine. (NBC Photo)

Cross Battle #4: Matthew Johnson (Team Kelly) versus Domenic Haynes (Team Adam)
The Result: Matthew Johnson wins. He was my pick in that battle.
Steal / Save: Adam quickly pushes the save button. So in the first two results, Adam has already used his steal and his save.

Matthew Johnson and Domenic Haynes at the end of their cross battle. Matthew won; Domenic was saved by Adam Levine. (NBC Photo)

Cross Battle #8: Maelyn Jarmon (Team John) vs. Rod Stokes (Team Adam)
The Result: Maelyn won the fan vote. Again, she was my pick in that battle.
Steal / Save: Kelly Clakrson steals Rod. Kelly swears that if America doesn’t get Rod yet, they will when he’s on her team.

Maelyn Jarmon and Rod Stokes at the end of their Voice cross battle. Maelyn won; Rod was stolen by Kelly Clarkson. (NBC Photo)z

Cross Battle #6: Celia Babini (Team Adam) vs. Oliv Blu (Team Blake)
The Result: Oliv Blu wins. Again, she was my pick for that battle.
Steal / Save: John Legend steals Celia Babini. Happy to see it. Celia truly is a talented young singer-songwriter and I think last night was a case of the wrong song choice.

Celia Babini and Oliv Blu await Cross Battle results on The Voice. Oliv won the match; Celia was stolen by John Legend. (NBC Photo)

Cross Battle #5: Presley Tennant (Team Kelly) vs. Kayslin Victoria (Team John)
The Result: Presley won the fan vote. She was my pick.
Steal / Save: Kayslin becomes the first cross battle contestant eliminated.

Presley Tennant and Kayslin Victoria await results of their cross battle on The Voice. Presley won; Kayslin was eliminated. (NBC Photo)

Cross Battle #3: Lisa Ramey (Team John) vs. Karen Galera (Team Kelly)
The Result: Lisa Ramey won the fan vote. Another great decision by voters.
Steal / Save: Karen becomes the second contestant eliminated tonight on The Voice.

Lisa Ramey and Karen Galera await cross battle results on The Voice. Lisa won; Karen was eliminated. (NBC Photo)

Cross Battle #2: Mari Jones (Team Adam) vs. Selkii (Team Blake)
The result: Mari wins the match. Disagree with that one, but it was a close call.
Steal / Save: Blake saves Selkii. Love that decision. Way to go, Blake.

Mari Jones and Selkii await results on The Voice. Mari won the battle; Selkii was saved by Blake Shelton. (NBC Photo)

Cross Battle #7: Dexter Roberts (Team Blake) vs. Andrew Jannakos (Team Adam)
The result: Dexter Roberts advances. That’s no surprise. He’s the favorite to win Season 16.
Steal / Save: Andrew is not stolen and becomes the third artist eliminated tonight.

Dexter Roberts and Andrew Jannakos await cross battle results on The Voice. Dexter won the battle; Andrew was eliminated. (INBC Photo)

So Adam wound up losing four of the five battles in which his contestants participated, but managed to keep Mari Jones and Domenic Haynes and pick up Betsy Ade via a steal.

Meanwhile, Selkii also was saved while Rod Stokes and Celia Babini got steals.

For those counting, that leaves just one save and two steals for the second night of cross battles.