MrX

I'd hate to be Josh next week. Simon and Randy are going to unload on him, which will make people feel sorry for him and he'll make it through again

Ruben in the bottom 2 was more of a surprise then Nikki going farther then Tamyra, though with her performances on Boston Public lately I'm feeling alot less sorry for her.

I think when Ruben was named that was the first time Simon has ever showed emotion during that part of the show.

TheAllPurposeNothing

One of the following statements is true:

1. The show is rigged.
2. Middle America is entirely tone-deaf.
3. Middle America can't accept a black man or woman being the American Idol.
4. Josh is just fabulous and just a select few of us are tone deaf.

Since I refuse to agree with 4, and and pray 2 and 3 are wrong, I'm going with 1. Remember...AI is presented on FOX, one of the single most jingoistic media organizations ever. Their news network especially. No way is the marine going to be voted off, even if the darn thing has to be rigged. Even if his singing is getting progressively worse than Stallone's in "Rhinestone."

One quick bet...if Josh is booted off eventually, his little goodbye montage will contain a 2-3 sec. shot of the flag

At least there is one consolation to Josh not being booted off tonight..didn't have to hear him butcher "Bad Blood" again.

If he's not booted off next week, I wouldn't be suprised if Simon walked. I know I'm toying with it.

Jlbkwrm

See, I'm going with:

5. People feel more patriotic voting for the Marine.

Much like Carmen got by on being the cute pre-commercialized blonde, Josh is riding the timely wave of pro-armed forces.

If the show were rigged, I think Trenyce and Kim would have been the bottom two.

Jadzia

Ok, that does it. Next week I am going to vote for EVRYONE BUT JOSH at least 50 times.

Because I really don't care if Clay, Ruben, or Kimberley wins. I like all three of them and I think they are all good for different reasons.

But I have to get smarmy, cocky, dopey Josh off this show now. He better hang his head in shame. I cannot stand another week of his fake "Am I Country or Not?" twang or his sarcastic remarks to Simon. And this week, he just HAD to mention he was a Marine once again. Dude, it's military service, not an elected office. Get over yourself. And I cannot stand his stupid hand movements he makes while he sings. What is he doing? Calling his dog? Asking the waiter for his check? Jerking off?

I thought the war was over. Isn't it safe to vote him out now?

rkndkn

I actually think Trenyce has a better voice than Kimberly Locke. (Though I've never voted for either one.) She's always had a lot of poise, and took the boot graciously.

I voted multiple times for Clay and Ruben last night. Got through quite easily to both lines.

I actually feel a little sorry for Josh. It's got to be hard to go through elimination after elimination, sensing it's you, then having a reprieve. And THIS one really must leave him with a guilty feeling.

Oh well. . .if it is the Bee Gees theme next week, THAT ought to be interesting.

big whoppa

Poor Treynce. She had one of her best nights and yet she gets the boot. Give it to Treynce. She's shown a lot of class whether you think she was the best or not. When she was up with Ruben, I knew she was a goner. I was hoping Josh or Kim would be the other person but it wasn't meant to be.

Josh deserved to go. Everyone including the judges knew it although none of them especially Simon would point him out. He only alluded to Josh when telling people they should vote who they think is best next week. I'm afraid those Josh lovers rallied for him when everyone told him how bad (sans Neil) he was Tuesday night. I loved how the cameraman kept going back to Josh after the announcement of Ruben in the bottom 2.

Josh, keep reminding everyone that you're a Marine and you may actually win AI2! Boy, if everyone knew his deep dark secret. Josh is actually French.

bralph

Once I saw who was in the final two, I was actually rooting for Ruben to go. I don't have anything against the guy, I just thought it would be funny after all the "love" he's been getting on the show.

At this point, does it even really matter? Not winning last year hasn't bothered the girl on Boston Public, and Justin obviously has a record deal now too.

Decker

My favorite thing last night: When Simon says "You've got to respect America's right to vote" and was soundly booed! Was the audience full of Bush cabinet members and Supreme court justices or something?

shaggybrown

Bah! I don't understand why folks are so quick to think these shows are rigged. There's way to much risk and very little to be gained. If I was the producer, I'd be sure to have a reputable accounting firm in charge of collecting all the numbers and then presenting me with the results. Anything else is just asking for trouble. There's plenty of ways to sway the audience without resorting to cheating.

The other factor is we don't know how much of a vote difference there was between Trenyce, Reuben, and Josh, assuming Josh was third, which may not be a safe assumption. I suspect Trenyce has very few votes, compared to Reuben, and Josh probably just edged him out.

Even if Josh wins, so what. If anything, it makes for good TV. Ultimately, I'm not likely to purchase anything by Clay, Kim, Josh, or Reuben anyways. I'm only in it for the drama and witty reparte between Ryan and the judges.

Patman

The voting system of American Idol can produce losers from voter apathy. That's just the nature of the beast.

This is pretty much the same reaction when Tamyra Grey got the boot over Nikki McKibbin, who somehow wound up in the final 3 on last season's AI.

But worry not, unless Josh finds a way into the final 3, no real outrage needs to be fester.

BTW, I still think Clay will prevail because he's got a good mix of brains, manners, distinctive vocals, and stage presence.

RichardW

If it's anything like his performance Wednesday night,

Patman

Hmm...maybe I'm glad I tuned in for the final 5 minutes of the results show last night.

SleepyW

Rigged.

However, this does prove my point that the American public has no clue about talent. I was hoping the judges had some kind of veto power. I figured Trenyce and Josh would be the bottom two with Josh going. Trenyce has been good enough to be in the top 4 overall.

What a travesty. America, you suck.

das Monkey

• Quoth Patman •<HR SIZE=1>The voting system of American Idol can produce losers from voter apathy. That's just the nature of the beast.<HR SIZE=1>

Yeah, I don't know why people (especially the stupid judges) keep forgetting this. Most people are only going to vote for one performer. Last year, in the Final 4 you had 3 types of appeal: Great Female Singer, Last Male Left, Alternative Crowd. Two people, Kelly and Tamyra, were fighting for the Great Female Singer vote, and Kelly won out, leaving Tamyra in the cold. Were Kelly not in the competition at all, Tamyra would have won the whole thing. Being eliminated from the Final 4 doesn't mean 4th Best ... it's just that nature of the voting. She and Kelly were fighting for the same audience.

Same here: Ruben and Clay are fighting for the Great Male Singer audience; Kimberley and Trenyce are fighting for the Not-so-bad Female Singer vote, and Josh is just picking up the stragglers who don't care. Clay kicked Ruben's ass on Tuesday and dominated the vote leaving Ruben lacking. Kimberley clearly took votes from Trenyce in similar fashion, and Josh just maintained his average fan base. It's not that a huge number of people thought that Josh was great; it's just that Clay and Kimberley very likely took enough votes from Ruben and Trenyce for Josh to stumble through. If he makes it past the next round (unlikely), he won't may it past the 3, since there won't be the voting dichotomy anymore.

Chances are the vote was along the lines of this:

Clay: 60%
Kimberley: 20%
Josh: 9%
Ruben: 8%
Trenyce: 3%

Josh's fans are likely insignificant, but when all of Ruben's fans are voting for Clay, it leaves him in the bottom 2. I'm sure all those fans will double vote next week for both Ruben and Clay, and it won't matter.

They're voting for the BEST, trying to pick a SINGLE WINNER. The vote is not intended to pick an "order." It's only a "travesty" if the wrong person wins, not their order of elimination or who is in the bottom 2/3 from one week to another.

das

P.S. Justin blew chunks last night.

Daytripper

What a great post Jadzia. Thank you for that. I seriously laughed out loud. And I'm at work. Almost got busted.

rfduncan

SleepyW

:::Yawn:::: Are you always looking for a scrap?

I find it hard to believe your theory is accurate. If only one vote per person was allowed, maybe. This isn't the Grammy's where often the best loses due to votes cancelling each other out and allowing the third-best person to win. You know damn well many, many people vote several times (or more) for their "favorite," and Josh obviously had a following pull him through. I say it's a "travesty" (partially tongue-in-cheek, mind you) that I think Trenyce had performed well enough to have a shot to win if someone else had an off night. Even the judges were disgusted with the results.

Patman

OMG, is this true: Next week: Bee Gees songs with Robin Gibb as guest judge?

Tygan

To AllPurposeNothing:

I have been reading these boards for some time now and I am constantly offended by your hatred of "Middle America". I grew up in California and ended up moving to KC for school and later my career. The elitism of some of the east/west coasters here sickens me.

I have really come to love what you refer to as "middle america", so I guess I am a "Middle American". Well, I can tell you that I am not tone deaf, do not vote because he is a marine. So I hope that helps change your mind and stereotypes of "middle america".

das Monkey

Sure, many people vote several times for their favorite, but does that mean they vote several time for EACH of their favorites? I'm sure a few do, but I can't imagine they represent the majority. The average viewer likely has a favorite he/she wants to win and votes once or more for that person.

I'm not sure what "looking for a scrap" means, but I don't see why you have a problem with someone presenting a well-reasoned and logical theory that not only explains this week's voting but last year's as well. You may not agree with that theory, but forgive me for not simply dismissing the entire system as "rigged" with a broad stroke just because someone I like got eliminated.

das

TeeSeeJay

KC MO? Welcome to the boards, dude.

Actually, if you ever have the misfortune to drive through southeast missouri, you'll get a better idea of what "middle america" is.

henrywooten

Last night American Idol almost got it wrong.

I am sure people got on their phones last night or the internet and for a few minutes screamed in horror that Reuben was in the bottom 2 and not Josh. i know that is what happened at my house.

My assessment? People got lazy about Reuben and either saved Kimberly Locke or Clay since they all figured Reuben would sail through. Josh got the votes of all the other people who have already been voted off. I don't think it was rigged; it was what happened to Tamyra Gray last year: the people who watched the show saw a bad performance from Tamyra and voted her off. Josh had a bad performance and people voted to keep him on for patriotism. Treynce, although a better performer still probably was suffering from her criminal record revelation a few weeks ago. She would never have won because of that even though it was expunged.

Reuben is the best performer on that show. Every night he turns a song into what Paula always says "his own." He sings a song like you heard it the first time. Simon sees that now. Reuben has the support I bet of the 35 and older crowd because of it. I know in the future if he records that I will listen to the Reuben album when it comes out 10 years from now just because of his timeless voice. Everyone else except Kimberly are headed for Knotts Berry Farm.

Clay, on the other hand, has become the teen age girl pin up. He has a good voice and is entertaining. However, Simon is right in saying he is a Broadway performer ( I see "Rent") and not a recording artist. I find Clay's performances annoying and tedious. I cannot see him holding a concert with 20,000 people or 30 people like Reuben could do. And I don't think Clay could pierce the 35 and up crowd. And finally, that Solitaire song he sang was as grating as Justin's song the second night.

Kimberly Locke is the spoiler here. She has the voice that would have been drowned out if Frenchie was still in it. Kimberly is probably getting the same older vote as Reuben I bet as well as the "I'm voting female" vote. She is as versitile as Reuben but not as smooth. She will have a career but a smaller fan base.

Josh is a great country singer. I said it ! He is not a wellrounded singer though like Kimberly or Reuben. He has sounded bad on songs that don't fit him like the disco night and the awful "Bad Blood" song. Was that a hit even when it was released??? Ryan Secrest even said on Access Hollywood that Josh told him he felt that he would be voted off last night. Josh has talent or he wouldn't be here but is not as all-around talented as Reuben and Kimberly.

It all comes down to who just sounds like a singer covering someone else's song or who sings THEIR song.

I think we know Reuben is that that man.

briank

Clay could be in trouble now, since everyone shocked over Ruben being in the bottom two, may think Clay is the automatic safety and focus the voting attention to Ruben.

I agree, show probably isn't "rigged", but I bet they would overide/rigg it if Josh was actually about to take 1st place.
They would fix the voting before that happens, I'm sure of that!

Alyoshka

I can actually see why Ruben would not be voted for.

Each song he has done since the beginning has been the same boring song. He's a boring performer. Would anyone here honestly buy a cd of his? Would anyone pay money to see him sing? I sure wouldn't. He's nothing but a clown.

I don't think anyone got lazy about Ruben. I think everyone forgot about voting for Ruben because he is entirely forgetable. He doesn't do anything but walk up to the stage and sing. When the judges give comments he doesn't reply. He just sits there with a weird goofy grin. The guy is lame and won't be voted for unless he entertains.

Patman

People don't vote off anyone on American Idol. People vote to keep people ON the show. There is a subtle difference that many here are not quite grasping.

Ruben is not really distinctive sounding, not like Clay, who, has shown the capacity to grow in this environment. I don't really see the same growth in Ruben's performance, who is more of a one-trick pony than I had initially thought. You take Ruben out of his comfort zone, and he sounds like he's like a drowning man gasping for air.

Do people really find Kimberley's voice soothing or sounding all that good? I truly don't find her voice quality tonally attractive.