By Jen Smith
Fancast.com
I’m feeling déjà vu tonight. All I can think about is that night back in 2003 where Clay, Ruben and Kimberly Locke stood on that very stage awaiting their fate. Once again, the girl was presumed to be going home, while the guys were supposed shoo-ins to be in the finals. If that doesn’t happen tonight… well, then I expect it would be the biggest upset in American Idol history. After 56 million votes, is Syesha going home?
Before the results, we get a performance from Fantasia, the winner of season three. If you voted for her, then perhaps you might have regretted it after tonight’s charade. I admit, I don’t exactly listen to R&B, but whatever it was that she was shouting cannot be classified in any genre. She died her hair red-orange with long press-on nails to match and squeezed herself into a body suit that her mom bedazzled in the basement. There was a lot of booty shaking and screaming… not to mention the presence of much of the backup dancers’ derrières. Even Simon’s jaw was on the floor. It was unlawful. Ryan briefly chatted about her upcoming tour while she tried to catch her breath. This is one critique I am not apologizing for.
I will apologize for my critique of David Archuleta from last night. In hindsight, yes, perhaps I was hard on the little guy. He does have a wonderfully natural instrument and I do commend him for that… I’ve even downloaded his songs from iTunes. I don’t, however, think he should be the American Idol. Next week, I will tell you why. Any of you reading this should free to sway me otherwise. Speaking of Muppet (sorry, the nickname stays) we got to see him visit his hometown of Murray, Utah. After being accosted by his high school’s cheerleading squad, Muppet started crying his poor little eyes out. It was actually kind of nice to have a reminder that he’s just a kid trying to leave his dream (or his dad’s dream… but whatever). The girls in the crowd were going ape sh*t, and I swear it was like the return of Beatlemania. He says “gosh” a lot, doesn’t he?
Syesha went back to her hometown of Sarasota, which is just outside of Tampa, Florida. Women were practically throwing their babies at her for photo ops. There was a full grown adult giving a perfect stranger an infant. Think about that. Anyway, Syesha loves the crowd and her family seems really sweet and supportive. Later in the limo, she just breaks down and cries. She’s happy and overwhelmed… and for once I was kind of rooting for her. However, I do think she’s better off as an actress that happens to sing well. She’ll never be the next Rihanna.
David Cook goes back to Kansas City, home of the Royals. He gets to sing the national anthem (I presume) but I couldn’t get over how much I liked him in that jersey. The uniform is nice, Cook. Anyway, the girls are going crazy again, perhaps even more so than Muppet’s fans. I was super excited to see him sing Livin’ On a Prayer during a mini-concert… and I’m hoping he sings this song next Tuesday! David, please, if you sing this song you will win. Trust me. He also breaks down in tears at one point, and just like the others, I was brought back to reality that these people have feelings, too.
After all that, we see quick montages of the finalists’ time on American Idol up to this point. It’s kind of exciting that it’s almost over, but I will miss it. That being said, it’s time for elimination. Ryan says that the first person in the final two is… David Archuleta. OK, no one’s shocked. This is when I get nervous. American doesn’t always vote correctly (the mental image of Fantasia from earlier tonight is projected onto a very large screen in my brain and I can’t shake it), but I have confidence that Syesha will be voted off just like Kimbery Locke was five years ago. The other person in the final two is… David Cook! We’ve all seen this coming since the Top 12, I’m afraid. We knew it would be a David/David showdown, so let’s get it on! Sorry to see Syesha go… but she’ll be fine. Now go spread your wings and live it up on Broadway!
See you next week for the final week of American Idol!