I have come to the conclusion that I simply cannot watch American Idol and not jot down some thoughts and observations, so throughout this season I'm going to do just that - starting with the first two nights which aired on January 12th and 13th.
Boston and Atlanta
Not to point directly at the elephant in the room, but the first show was like going back to school with your favorite teacher missing. Paul Abdul's eerie absence was evident , and the fact that
Victoria Beckham was sitting in her seat sans the diet Coke was even stranger. Although I will admit that Becky seemed a little nicer than I expected. The stone faced beauty reserves all emotion and expression during photo ops, making me wonder at times if she's even capable of cracking a slim grin. She appeared to be quite warm and sympathetic to the contestants, however, and I found this side of Victoria to be both charming and refreshing.Randy is still Randy, the coolest dawg there is. Love his facial expressions and the repartee he has with the contestants. All is good there. I got mad love for ya, Randy!
Kara is, well..still Kara. I'm still trying to decide how I feel about her. At times, she seems to follow the pack and take her ques from the other judges. At other times, she is boldly opinionated and borders on mean. She seems to feel more comfortable without Paula thus far, but we'll see how much she is able to establish herself as a distinctive entity on the show. Either way, she'll have her work cut out for her as she jockeys for position on a panel that will soon include Ellen DeGeneres.
Then there's Simon. I predicted at the end of last season in an article I wrote that he would be leaving very soon... Recent news about his departure at the end of this season has proven me right. Not that I'm an "I told you so" kind of person. I only mention it to punctuate my next point, and the point is this: Simon looks like he's got one foot out the door already. He's only completed auditions in two cities,yet he appears to be bored, restless, and ready to move on. I think Kara bores him, Randy humors him, and Paula's absence bothers him more than he'd care to admit. I predict that he will be more intolerant, increasingly feisty (if that's possible) and nearly impossible to please this season. Short-timers disease can be a bitch.
With only a handful of real contenders thus far, and far more wanna-be Idol hopefuls yet to be auditioned, the weeks ahead will uncover the caliber of talent that will make up the final 24. Some of us are still swallowing that pill we call pride, after swearing off the show at the end of Season 8. The outrage we felt over the voting controversy has left a bitter residue, and I myself, had to down a glass or two of seltzer before tuning in.
So what is it that keeps us coming back then?
Is it Ellen? Is it Simon? Is it the fundamental thrill we get watching the common man/woman realizing his/her dreams? I think it comes down to something relatively simple. We like to be entertained by the good, the bad, and the ugly. The curiosity factor, the laugh factor, the X factor..whatever it is...it does, indeed, keep us from looking away. At least for now.
The X Factor is a whole other story...
Next week, the troops are in my town...Chi-town.., so tune in. We have lots of wind in our pipes!
Check out one of the highlights of this week's auditions...'General' Larry Platt, 62 years old singing one of his own compositions called "Pants on the Ground"...Only on American Idol, my friends...Only on Idol.
