Brett Ferino
05-08-2003, 07:19 AM
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - There must have been something in the water (or, rather, Coca-Cola) on Feb. 11. That night, the second group of "American Idol" contestants performed with a trip to the finals on the line.
The three best singers on that balmy winter evening were Ruben Studdard, Kimberley Locke and Clay Aiken. One night later, Ruben and Kimberley advanced, while Clay had to wait to become a wild card selection. Now, nearly three months later, Group Two is all that's left. The final outlander, Josh "The Once and Future Marine" Gracin, received the fewest votes following the Tuesday night Bee-Gees Spectacular and was dismissed from the show.
Host Ryan Seacrest opens the Wednesday night (May 7) program by announcing that there were 22 million votes cast after Tuesday, which constitutes an awful lot of redialing.
After a recap of Tuesday night's show, the gang launches into a Bee-Gees medley, beginning with the first rendition of "Stayin' Alive" to be performed by three men who refuse to even move their feet.
At this point, the four finalists don't really go together very well vocally. Just about every arrangement and harmony is slightly off and nobody in this quartet can even muster two-step choreography. The crowd is still pleased, especially when the finalists storm the audience.
Ryan rushes along to announcing the bottom two. After weeks of greeting elimination with playful nervousness, the signs of painful tension are now evident on all of their faces. Kimberley, biting her lip, is the first contestant in the bottom three. Clay, looking too terrified to even wink at the camera, is safe and he balances between a smile and tears of relief. America's Velvet Teddybear even looks scared. Josh is serene, but his smile isn't as cocky as usual. Ruben and Josh are left hanging for the commercials.
Some credit must be given to the extended Ford ad, which features a white-suited and bejeweled Ruben transforming Clay from Alfalfa-style geek into Mr. Whitefolks-style playa. Done to the tune of Nelly's "Ride Wit Me," the commercial is hilarious, though it's hard to tell what it has to do with the car. Apparently, Pimps up, Ford's down.
Speaking of pimping, Ryan returns with yet another push for "American Juniors." Then Ryan sends Josh off to join Kimberley. Ruben, back to representing the 205 in a color scheme resembling Cole Trickle's racing car in "Days of Thunder," is relieved.
The judges wisely point out that the competition is just getting tougher. Randy says that the correct two are safe. Paula mutters something about everybody being winners. Simon says that Josh should have been voted out last week and that this should be Kimberley's week to go. Then, having provided two minutes of quality programming, FOX feels entitled to sell some more products.
Somebody dropped the ball on pacing this week's show, because upon returning from commercial, Ryan just eliminates Josh without a second of ceremony. It was Josh's turn to go, to be sure, but probably having made it this far, he deserved a little more time to say goodbye. Still, he does a nice job singing the show off the air. It might have been a tiny bit exploitative, but Josh crooning his final song with his daughter in his arms was undeniably emotional.
Josh had a good run, at times fueled by talent, at times fueled by patriotism and at times a total mystery. Josh will never become a pop icon, but there's every chance he'll be given the opportunity to don his black cowboy hat and take the stage again in a country forum. Or at least that’ll be the case if he’s ever entitled to take leave time again. He’s probably going to be standing a post for the next few hundred weekends.
In the end, though, it all worked out for "American Idol." After weeks of strange themes, soft guest judges and sometimes erratic voting, the three best singers in the competition are the three finalists. That was true back in February and it's still true today.
Did the vote go the way you hoped? Discuss it on our message board...
(http://tvbb.zap2it.com/cgi-bin/Ultimate.cgi)
The three best singers on that balmy winter evening were Ruben Studdard, Kimberley Locke and Clay Aiken. One night later, Ruben and Kimberley advanced, while Clay had to wait to become a wild card selection. Now, nearly three months later, Group Two is all that's left. The final outlander, Josh "The Once and Future Marine" Gracin, received the fewest votes following the Tuesday night Bee-Gees Spectacular and was dismissed from the show.
Host Ryan Seacrest opens the Wednesday night (May 7) program by announcing that there were 22 million votes cast after Tuesday, which constitutes an awful lot of redialing.
After a recap of Tuesday night's show, the gang launches into a Bee-Gees medley, beginning with the first rendition of "Stayin' Alive" to be performed by three men who refuse to even move their feet.
At this point, the four finalists don't really go together very well vocally. Just about every arrangement and harmony is slightly off and nobody in this quartet can even muster two-step choreography. The crowd is still pleased, especially when the finalists storm the audience.
Ryan rushes along to announcing the bottom two. After weeks of greeting elimination with playful nervousness, the signs of painful tension are now evident on all of their faces. Kimberley, biting her lip, is the first contestant in the bottom three. Clay, looking too terrified to even wink at the camera, is safe and he balances between a smile and tears of relief. America's Velvet Teddybear even looks scared. Josh is serene, but his smile isn't as cocky as usual. Ruben and Josh are left hanging for the commercials.
Some credit must be given to the extended Ford ad, which features a white-suited and bejeweled Ruben transforming Clay from Alfalfa-style geek into Mr. Whitefolks-style playa. Done to the tune of Nelly's "Ride Wit Me," the commercial is hilarious, though it's hard to tell what it has to do with the car. Apparently, Pimps up, Ford's down.
Speaking of pimping, Ryan returns with yet another push for "American Juniors." Then Ryan sends Josh off to join Kimberley. Ruben, back to representing the 205 in a color scheme resembling Cole Trickle's racing car in "Days of Thunder," is relieved.
The judges wisely point out that the competition is just getting tougher. Randy says that the correct two are safe. Paula mutters something about everybody being winners. Simon says that Josh should have been voted out last week and that this should be Kimberley's week to go. Then, having provided two minutes of quality programming, FOX feels entitled to sell some more products.
Somebody dropped the ball on pacing this week's show, because upon returning from commercial, Ryan just eliminates Josh without a second of ceremony. It was Josh's turn to go, to be sure, but probably having made it this far, he deserved a little more time to say goodbye. Still, he does a nice job singing the show off the air. It might have been a tiny bit exploitative, but Josh crooning his final song with his daughter in his arms was undeniably emotional.
Josh had a good run, at times fueled by talent, at times fueled by patriotism and at times a total mystery. Josh will never become a pop icon, but there's every chance he'll be given the opportunity to don his black cowboy hat and take the stage again in a country forum. Or at least that’ll be the case if he’s ever entitled to take leave time again. He’s probably going to be standing a post for the next few hundred weekends.
In the end, though, it all worked out for "American Idol." After weeks of strange themes, soft guest judges and sometimes erratic voting, the three best singers in the competition are the three finalists. That was true back in February and it's still true today.
Did the vote go the way you hoped? Discuss it on our message board...
(http://tvbb.zap2it.com/cgi-bin/Ultimate.cgi)