last night's american idol:
well, simon was obviously right about who the two losers were, and it was the two with whom he went out of his way to say what nice guys they were: jim and a.j. (yeah, jim does seem like a nice guy; but a.j. has always been my least favorite -- he has the wimpiest voice and he seemed to have the biggest attitude, e.g. anytime he entered a room.) jim needed to sing some high-octane four tops number, but instead he chose to blend into the scenery of the newly-refurbished american idol set by performing the commodores' "easy." a.j., on the other hand, gave his larynx a workout with...another leisurely stroll through "my cherie amour." maybe he hasn't sung it before, but he makes every song sound the same. these two shouldn't make it through tonight or, as simon said, it will be a DISASTER. it would be a lamentably american thing for the voters to think, "i'm not going to let some frog tell ME who an american idol is," and then vote for either of these two.

as far as the others go:
ryan -- one of the judges commented on her outfit, but isn't that the same exact outfit she had on last time? if so, where did the $2,000 go? she doesn't already have a habit yet, does she? otherwise, i thought she performed well enough to get through this round.
justin -- i don't like justin, i'll say that now. he apparently has a weak falsetto and a trite manner with the audience (those fucking winks). others have been nastier elsewhere, but i'll be kind here: he looks more like sideshow mel. still, i respect him because he knows his audience -- mostly teenage girls -- and he knows the tried and true methods of whipping them into a frenzy. if the voting demographics trend towards young females, he's got it sewed up.
tamyra -- she looks great, she sings very well. ideally, she'll win the competition.
nikki -- i really liked nikki. like liked nikki. and i don't mind the kid, but the ex-husband...at her age...no good -- the engagement is off. and simon was right, she did look like she had a daytime tv makeover. i hope she gets through because she does have some grit in her vocals even though "ben" ("BEN"!) didn't really allow her to express that. and she's still kinda hot.
ejay & kelly -- they're like the low-rent justin and tamyra. both of them sing as well as that pair (ejay may have the best voice in the competition) but, again, simon said it well when he stated that ejay wasn't an american idol. he has absolutely no stage presence -- when i saw him performing at six flags on his little film, it all made perfect sense. kelly is a very nice girl, but her voice, though powerful, is also kinda forgettable. like anastacia, another woman who got her break on a tv show (mtv's the cut, if you've forgotten, hosted by the late lisa lopes.) unfortunately, kelly isn't as hot as anastacia. but, in kelly's favor, i bet she knows all the words to the anthem.
christina -- christina is very nice, and simon seems to agree. unlucky for her, he doesn't get the final say. she won't be eliminated until very late when there aren't enough people around to shield her from the fact that she's the favorite of a very few.
r.j. -- almost forgot him, though i've totally forgotten his performance, which isn't a good sign. didn't seem to make the most of his second chance. he should be the next to go.

in general:
-i'd like to see the male singers grow some fucking balls. (but, being a baritone, i would say that.) all of the women are ballsier than any one of them -- with the exception of christina, who probably wouldn't even say "balls."
-paula needs to stop being so damn nice.
-i actually do hope ryan seacrest and brian dunkelman get voted off. (the latter reminds me of a cartoon character i can't quite recall; the former, baywatch's david chokachi.)

bottom line: jim and a.j. have to go. (more music commentary to come, i promise.)