As usual, the kids are divided into three rooms to await their fate, but it's obvious that whatever group includes Andrew Garcia and Katie Stephens is a gimmee.
We get to see a few of the singers- Angela Martin has a good jazzy voice, and is wearing a one-shouldered animal print top, leggings and heels. Casey James (he of Kara's sexual harrassment) sings something very much in the style of Jack Johnson. While I don't quite see Kara's fascination with Casey's looks, I do like his voice a lot. Jermaine Purifoy has a good voice and Jermaine Sellers does not. Both, I believe, sing Michael Jackson's Man in the Mirror.
We get another glimpse of the judges- Ellen is wearing a suit jacket, vest and tie. For some reason, Kara is wearing a horrible, strappy, skimpy gray knit dress that appears to have built-in nipples (or, as we say in Taylorville: her turkeys are done).
Sometime previously, Ellen commanded Siobahn Magus to youthen herself, which advice Siobahn implemented by wearing a shiny rayon mini-dress, leg warmers and a ratty denim vest.
We get a clip of Crystal Bowersox on stage, and ooooohhhhh, I love love love her. I assume Crystal will be part of the Top 24, and I hope she engages the services of a good dentist.
Alex Lambert survived both a ukelele and Mary Powers. He Jack Johnsons himself admirably as well.
New daddy, Big Mike Lynche plays his guitar and sings. He does both just fine.
Todrick Hall is equal parts attitude and boy band, neither of which is my style.
Thaddeus Johnson's momma is enthusiastic and supportive (and maybe just a bit of a Stage Mom- how old is Thaddeus anyway, that his mommy is here with him?). The band begins playing the wrong song, and Thaddeus rolls with the glitch, and then sings Man in the Mirror better than the previous singer(s).
Mary Powers ditched the pink highlights. Unfortunately, she kept the personality.
Charity Vance's voice is weak and not pleasing. Ditto Tasha Leighton's.
Dockworker Lloyd Thomas misses his family, so he won't be too sad when he has to go home, which I assume will be the case after his performance.
Brian Walker, police officer, got finger guns from Simon, which may or may not be a good thing.
Hope Johnson tempts fate by singing Home badly, in a tunic, black leggings and ugly shoes.
Shelby Dresser, she of the facial paralysis, has a much stronger voice than I remembered. She's nervous though, and has a hard time remembering her lyrics. My compliments to whoever is helping Shelby with her styling- she looks great.
Foster Home kid Aaron Kelly is forgetting Sarah Maclachlan's lyrics too.
Ashley Rodriguez has troweled the tanner on, and she's playing to the camera rather than performing for her audience (which, I suppose, is us, but still).
Lee Dewyze is a singing paint salesman. And Jose Munoz makes me hope that Man in the Mirror will be officially and permanently banned from American Idol.
Janell Wheeler is sick, and her journey through the Taylor Swiftian universe where Romeo and Juliet live happily ever after, is plodding and boring.
So Room 1 has Tori Kelly, Lilly Scott (sandwich maker with the platinum hair and huge crocheted earrings), Andrew Garcia, Katie Stephens, and Casey James. Room 2 has Mary Powers, which is all I need to know. I don't recognize anyone in Room 3, but since it doesn't have Mary Powers, I don't care.
None of the kids in Room 1 have ever seen this show, because they're actually worried when the judges enter. Of course, they're through.
Room 2, of course, is going home. Goodbye Singing Policeman, and cute, sad, little Hope, and... Mary Powers.
Evidently Room 3 is far from the jubilation and despair of Rooms 1 and 2, so they don't know that they're safe, which allows the judges to yank their collective chains.
So we're down to 48 kids, and have an hour of air time left to kill, and we're obviously not going to name the whole Top 24 tongiht because that would leave nothing for tomorrow night's hour.
But we have time to name a few. The next morning at 7:00am, the survivors file back into the Kodak Theater for the final cut before they're thrown to the voting lions.
Ellen is in pirate stripes, and Kara is wearing a ruched, ruffled, and gathered gold bubble top, which is every bit as ugly as yesterday's dress, but at least leaves the state of her chestal area to our imaginations.
First up, ushered into the theater and on stage- just him and the judges, is Michael Lynche. Michael feels just fine about his performances and chances, which Simon fixes in a hurry, undermining every bit of Big Mike's confidence before giving him the good news that he's in the Top 24.
Next is The Hub's favorite, Didi Benamin (one of my top 3 performers from last week). Didi is fragile, and prone to tears, and is scared because her other performances were not as good as she wanted them to be. Didi falls apart before, during, and after hearing that she's also in the Top 24.
Katelyn Epperly, whose sob story is that her parents divorced (which strikes me as not quite tragic enough to trot out as a sympathy-grabber). She's wearing a dumb hat and an ugly dress, and I don't think she's very interesting or talented, but she gets in too.
Shelby Dressel is next, and given that the first three shown move on, the odds are against her. Randy delivers the bad news, which Shelby accepts gracefully. I wish her well.
The judges don't bother torturing Casey James. He's in.
Aaron Kelly biffed his final performance, and had a hard time with that whole remembering the words thing, but he's in. I like his voice, so I'm glad for him.
Lee Dewyze struggled, and Simon was obviously bored during at least one of his songs, and I figure that Kara is breaking the bad news to him, but it's not bad. He's in too.
Todrick Hall annoyed the hell out of me in his original audition, and he hasn't done much else since. Reminding me that he's related to Fantasia in some manner isn't helping. He's in.
Jessica Furney made it to Hollywood in Season 8. She is certain that she is good enough for, and deserves a spot in, the Top 24. She reacts badly when Randy tells her otherwise, first begging, and then demanding a recount. Unfortunately for Jessica, the decision is final. She blames her failure on everyone and everything, except herself. Good riddance Jessica.
So, we have now met 7 of the Top 24. We'll see the rest, or as many of the rest as they allow us to see, tomorrow night. I have high hopes for Crystal Bowersox and Andrew Garcia, and the two South Dakota girls whose fate remains unknown.
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