Thursday, March 01, 2007
American Idol: Women 2/28/2007
I wish I had the time to do a lengthy review of last night’s episode, which was excellent. But I am swamped with work at the moment. So here are my impressions.
The women continue to outshine the men this year, with a few exceptions. Last year, my favorites to win were Taylor Hicks and Katherine McPhee and they came in 1 and 2 respectively. This year my favorites to win are Blake Lewis and Melinda Doolittle. Of all the great singing last night, Melinda was clearly the best. She remind me of a cross between Shirley Bassey and Sarah Vaughn. Really a great performance that would have fit right into the heyday of American Pop. I was really taken by her performance of “My Funny Valentine”. I have hear that song many times by different artists, but she did her own unique version which was truly wonderful.
Second best was Lakisha Jones who did “Midnight Train to Georgia”. Great cover, but not as wowing as her performance last week. Still, really good.
Everyone else did decently, except Haley Scarnato, Antonella Barba and Aliana Alexander. They did better than the previous weeks, but the judges knocked them. Antonella is popular (major sex appeal) so I suspect the other two will fail to make it this week. I also predict Leslie Hunt will go, so it will be a toss up between these three. Hunt, I think is the most likely to get voted off. She sang decently, but she is just an average performer. The competition is too good this year.
I think this show will be very interesting this year because there are some real stand outs. Especially on the women’s side. Previous seasons had a lot of contestants who were easy to dismiss. But this season has a lot of potential winners. I am standing by Blake and Melinda for now. They have impressed me the most of all of them.
UPDATE: Nick, Leslie, Aliana and AJ went. Aj was the surprise, since he did a great job. I guess one should not a Nina Simone song if they want to stay, because both AJ and Leslie picked the same song and got booted. Too bad, it’s a favorite of mine.
It was fun seeing Kellie Pickler again, but did she get a boob job?
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Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Who Needs Tivo?This great site has tons of on demand TV shows, including a lot of British shows that haven’t come here yet (like Torchwood, the Dr. Who spin off).
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
American Idol: Men 2/27/2007
The men came back to prove they were better than last week’s performances made us believe. And they succeeded. It was a night of old classics, and of newer stuff done with style. I have to say, I am beginning to like a few of the people this year. They seem like a good bunch. And once again I find myself getting sucked into the show which has an earnest quality that is hard to beat. The contestants on this show are ordinary people from all walks of life. And they are singing their heart out. There have been a lot of imitator shows but Idol has the best formula. Aided by the fact that they can do two hour shows over three nights in a row. No other show gets that amount of air time, which gives them more room to tell their contestant’s stories.
As a result you come to care more about the people than you do on most shows of this kind.
Phil Stacy was up first. The sailor on leave sang John Waite’s “Missing You” and did a decent job. It didn’t blow me away, but it was solid. The judges were pleased. Simon felt about the same way I did. Good but not great performance.
Jared Cotter was next, doing “Let’s Get it On”. He dedicated it to his parents. The guy is a decent singer, but his performance was hokey. He made a lot of strained expressions that often didn’t go with the song. It was OK. But more m=powerful than what he did last week. Mixed responses from the judges.
A.J. Tablado also dedicated his performance to his parents. And he was miles better than last week. He sang the Nina Simone classic “Feelin’ Good” and it was very solid. The singing was really good. Heis performance was decent. The judges liked him.
Sanjaya Malakar dedicated his song to his grandfather. He came out dressed a little like Michael Jackson during his Smooth Criminal video. The song “Stepping Out is an oldie. A good song but he is so young and his singing was pretty so so. The result got him panned by the judges. The audience seemed to like him. I think he’s safe. On Dial Idol he is #2 today. I suspect he will be around awhile. Easily making it to the top 10. The little girls with the text messages are dialing up a storm for him, I think.
Chris Sligh was next. Dedicating his performance to his wife, who is very attractive. And apparently, she has been very supportive to him. So he picked a Ray Lamontagne song which Taylor Hicks did last year: Trouble. He did a very solid job and the judges liked him for it. I think he’s one of the better singers on the show. Not one of my favorites, but up there.
Nick Pedro dedicated his set to his girlfriend. I like Pedro, and he did a good job, but I suspect this will be his last show. He sang the Peggy Lee classic, Fever. He sang really well, but as Simon pointed out, his performance was nothing special. He’s kind of a classic style singer. But he doesn’t seem to have a lot of confidence for a salesman, which is his previous job.
Blake Lewis came out and dedicated his song to his parents. And I have to tell you, this guy has become my favorite so far this season. He sang Virtual Insanity, which is a tune I really like (it has a great video), but he threw in some scat and beat box as well as some smooth dance moves. Paula and Randy were blown away. Simon felt it was a copycat performance. I don’t think so, but anyway, it was very current and cool. Great job. He’ll stay this week.
Brandon Rogers dedicated his set to his grandma. He picked a Cyndi Lauper song, Time After Time. Even though he did a decent job I think that was a huge mistake. I think he’ll be voted off with Nick this week. His performance seemed very sincere. But, the judges were underwhelmed. There is also the gay black man factor. I don’t know if he’s gay, but he’s a great looking 29 year old without an apparent girlfriend. And he was singing a girl’s song while wearing a pink shirt. The teenagers who do most of the voting on this show seem to be merciless when it comes to gays, especially black gays. They get voted off really fast. Even if Brandon is straight, his clothes, lackluster song and such proably did him in this week.
Chris Richardson is the closest in style to Blake. He dedicated his song to his grandma as well, then chose the song “Geek in the Pink”. Okaaay. Well, he did an excellent job even though I’m not crazy about the song. His moves are very Fred Durst. But he sings really well. Randy said he did a better job than Jason Mraz, who wrote it. Simon said it was the best performance of the night.
Finally, Sundance Head. He dedicated his performance to his newborn son. It was a very touching intro. And then he came out roaring Mustang Sally, and really kicked out the jams. So much so that he is way ahead on Dial Idol at #1. So I suspect he is goiing to be back next week for sure. Sundance is popular. And he has a soulful quality like Taylor Hicks had last year. The judges loved it. Paula and Randy were especially exuberant.
I have to say, I am warming up to this year’s people faster than last year, which was my favorite. A lot of likable talented people. Last year there were a number of contestants I felt like dissing on here. This year, I don’t have anyone I feel that way about yet. We’ll see how long that holds up.
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Wednesday, February 21, 2007
American Idol: Women 2/21/2007Wow. The women really kicked ass tonight. And the black chicks ruled. The white girls were looking pretty weak by comparison except for maybe Gina Glocksen.
At the top of the list is Lakisha Jones who sang one of the key songs from Dreamgirls, “You’re Gonna Love Me”. And she sang it better than Jennifer Hudson, who’s up for the Oscar. It was so good my eyes got all watery. I’m not kidding.
The second best singer, in my opinion, was Melinda Dolittle. She reminds me of a young Gladys Night. Really nice and yet a very powerful singer. The third place is shared by Stephanie Edwards who kicked off the night with a very polished and strong performance. Sabrina Sloane really kicked out the jams. The two of them were equally great.
I think everyone else was varying degrees of good. Probably the weakest performance was hot Jersey girl Antonella Barba, who was just OK. And Alaina Alexander, who did an uninspired, waver y version of “Brass in Pocket”. Everyone else was pretty good.
The white girl who has a chance this year is Gina Glocksen, but I have a good feeling about Leslie Hunt. None the less, they have a real fight on their hands.
I thought the talent last year was really good, but overall, this year might have better singers. Especially on the female side.
UPDATE: Rudy Cardenas and Paul Kim got the axe tonight along with Amy Krebs and Nicole Tranquillo. I was not surprised by the guy choices, but Nicole going kind of surprised me. I was also not surprised to see Sundance and Sanjaya skate. Apparently, they are very popular. Sanjaya probably has the teeny bopper vote sowed up.
Bummer: Lex Leaving Smallville
Michael Rosenberg is planning to leave Smallville after next season.
If bad guys make the show, then Smallville could be in trouble. Michael Rosenbaum has confirmed that next season will be his last as Lex Luthor. Will next season also be the last for Smallville? Rosenbaum has done things with the Lex Luthor role that no other actor has, and perhaps no other actor could. It’s hard to imagine Smallville without him.
Rosenbaum’s Lex Luthor debuted on screen just one month after the tragic September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. It was October 2001 when Smallville first appeared on television - then the WB, now CW. Smallville traces the life of a teenage Clark Kent who wrestles with his alien identity, discovers new powers, and tries to keep it all a secret - while also learning how to just...well...be a man.
To be honest, they can’t keep up this storyline too much longer anyway. Clark should have become Superman by now. They keep dragging it out, but they are getting close to the fateful moment he decides what he wants to do. Next season might be really exciting.
Personally, I can’t wait to see James Marsters come back as Brainiac. I hear he’ll be back this season (probably for the cliffhanger at the season’s close).
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Tuesday, February 20, 2007
American Idol: Men 2/20/2007The new season is off, and since I had so much fun covering it last year, I decided to cover the show again this year.
Unfortunately, unlike last year, there are no real standouts for me this year. But there are a few I have picked to make it to the final 12. Tonight it was the men’s turn singing. I will point out the highlights and skip over the rest since there we 12 singers and I am insanely busy right now with deadlines (hence my lack of blogging lately).
My impression of the men this year is too many skin heads. I mean, come on, Daughtry is the most successful of last year Idols so far. His new CD has sold 1.5 million to Taylor Hicks 640,000. And he has two hit songs so far to Taylor’s none. Which is a disappointment, I must say. (Hey, even Kellie Pickler has outsold McPhee so far.) None the less, the majority of the dudes this year all seem alike. And they all have that Britney Spears/Chris Daughtry look. What is this, a pool hall? I have never seen so many cueballs since a Dr. Evil convention.
Of these shiny pated chumps, I would say the two stand out singers for me is Chris Richardson, who everyone compares to Justin Timberlake and Phil Stacey who looks a little like a love child of Don Knotts and Telly Savalas. His sob story is that he missed the birth of hid first child to audition for Idol. I suspect he will make it to the final 12 due to his humbleness and good sining skills.
For me the standouts with hair this year are Chris Sligh, who looks nothing like a pop star but has the singing chops and the personality to make it on some level. Brandon Rogers, who is competing with Sanjaya Malakar for the Ace Young 2007 award. Both are extra cute so the girls will vote for them, both know how to mug the camera. Though Sanjaya seems to be very sincere about it. I suspect he will lose in a few rounds because he is too timid. But I’m dating myself when I say he reminds me of a young Leif Garrett. I can see him becoming a teen idol. We’ll see. His singing was not great, but neither was Kellie Pickler’s and she almost stole the show last year.
I think my favorite is Blake Lewis, the beat box singer from Seattle. Aside from his Anime hair style, he is not only an excellent singer, he shows a lot of versatility. I think he has a shot at the final three.
The rest were fair to middling. Jared Cotter was really good but kind of familiar. The one guy I was sort of rooting for, Sundance Head, seems to be flaming out. He may get another chance next week, but he really needs to bring it to survive. Though I suspect Vote for the Worst will champion him this year.
The balance of the men will probably be weeded out in the next few weeks unless one of them turns out to be a surprise. I am still hoping Sundance will bring it, since he showed so much promise in his audition. We’ll see.
I am looking forward to ladies’s night tomorrow. They have some real stand outs this year on the girl’s side. Probably because they had a bigger talent pool to choose from. Meet me back here tomorrow.
UPDATE: Dial Idol predicts Paul Kim and Nick Pedro to be voted off. Sundance is the most popular of the night! Followed by Sanjay. Interesting.
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Tuesday, February 13, 2007
BSG ReturnsBattlestar Galactica got picked up for a fourth season. Next season, apparently, one of the crew will be revealed as a Cylon. Probably Baltar, but who knows?
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Friday, January 19, 2007
Japanese Spiderman
For those who haven’t seen it, these are the credits for a 1978 TV show for kids in Japan. I kinda like the theme song.
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Tuesday, January 09, 2007
The View Becomes a Comedy ShowRosie and Barbara have a tiff. They got rid of Star Jones and found someone even worse. Good move, girls.
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Monday, January 08, 2007
That’s What I’m Talking About
Sharp unveils it’s new 108” LCD TV at the CES this week.
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