Top 24 Results Recap

Tonight the Top 24 is together for the last time. Four people are going home. I doubt we'll see anything shocking tonight, but you never know on this show.

Ryan starts out by reminding us for the umpteenth time that this is the most talented group the show has ever had. I guess "Idol" is trying to follow the Goebbels-like tactic of repeating a lie enough times that it becomes the truth. They're apparently still doing damage control over the now widely-known semi-pro history of certain contestants, since Ryan brings up the subject of past experience (to Paula, of all people) when chit-chatting with the judges. Paula reminds us that everyone had to go through the same process to get on the show, and that past contestants such as Kelly Clarkson, "Brandon Davis" from last season (is she thinking of Brandon Rogers?) and Mandisa had previous experience. I'd heard about Kelly Clarkson's record deal that didn't quite happen, but Brandon Rogers and Mandisa were never more than backup singers as far as I know. Whatever.

We then see a montage of the Top 24 all dressed up for the photo shoots backed by a "killer track from Daughtry." After it ends we're treated to a medley of 60's songs from the Top 24. It includes "Needles and Pins," "When You Walk in the Room," "Spanish Harlem" and "Bend Me, Shape Me." The Idols are still all dressed up, which makes me think the show is budgeting poorly this year. Rather than spending money to get clearance for interesting songs they're trying to make our Top 24 look nice. I'd rather see them dress the way they want and sing the songs they want, but it's not up to me. Robbie Carrico wears a fedora that makes him look like Kid Rock, but his pop group past means he probably has no trouble with the cheesy-but-fun choreography. Some contestants look less enthusiastic about it than others. They all crowd in for a group shot at the end. Personally, I didn't enjoy it as much as I enjoyed the ones last season. Fewer contestants got solos, they changed the melody to "Bend Me, Shape Me," and it just didn't have the same warmth as the ones last year did. The sound seems to come in more clearly once the commercial bumper music starts up.

When we get back from the commercial it's finally time to eliminate someone. Ryan tells the girls to relax for now because they're going to focus on the guys. He calls Garrett Haley forward and strikes up a conversation with him about how it's always tough to say goodbye to someone (as if anyone watching doesn't know where this is headed). Ryan then announces that tonight we're going to have to say goodbye to Garrett. Garrett doesn't seem very shaken up by the news, handling it with his usual humor and never losing that spaced-out smile. I have a feeling he saw it coming, just like the rest of America. The intro video to his performance made it seem like he tried out on a whim, so perhaps he figures he already got farther than he should have. Ryan asks him if he thought Simon's criticism last night was too harsh or personal and Garrett says something about how he's happy with the way he is. With a hat on his head and his hair straightened he looks kind of like Cheap Trick's Robin Zander as he sings "Breaking Up is Hard to Do" one last time and the clock winds down on his 15 minutes of fame. So long, Garrett. We hardly knew ye.

Now it's time to eliminate one of the girls. Ryan calls Kristy Lee Cook forward. For a moment I wonder if my bold prediction that she'll be eliminated is about to come true, but as I expected, they switch it up and tell Kristy she's safe. Oh well. That's how it goes when you're one of the pimped ones. If Kristy gives another awful performance next week though, I don't see her making the Top 12. They show us a quick shot of the still-seated Amy Davis just before Ryan announces that she is in fact the one going home. Paula gives Amy the usual speech about how she now has more opportunities because of being on the show and that it's up to her to do whatever she wants with it. Amy sings "Where the Boys Are" again and it sounds as bad as it did the night before. I have to believe this girl is sick. There's no way someone who normally sounded this bad would be put through. My mother thinks she has a lump in her throat. She does seem understandably emotional during her final performance, but I don't think it made as much of a difference as being sick did. I guess this is further proof that Vote For the Worst isn't as powerful as a lot of people think (so stop blaming them for Taylor Hicks winning all you sore Katharine McPhee and Chris Daughtry fans!).

After the commercial we get to see the debut of Paula Abdul's new video for "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow." It has to be some of the most expensive filler in the history of this show. This video is mainly just clips of Paula performing the song and doing her thing with a bunch of backup dancers, but it's well-done if you like that stuff. It's a catchy little tune, despite Paula's digitally altered voice. Ryan, Randy and Simon all appear briefly at the end of the video, and when they cut back to the studio Ryan is holding up a big fan as a spoof on the "wind" that was in seemingly every shot. It's good to see the judges getting along and enjoying each other's camaraderie after all the fighting they normally do.

Back to the eliminations. Ryan calls Joanne Borgella and Amanda Overmyer forward and tells the girls on the couches that they're all safe. Wow, they're getting right to the point this year. No more making each person sweat. At this point I'm wondering what to think. After I made my predictions I looked around the internet and most people were predicting Joanne would go home. Then again, Amanda made (in my opinion) a bad song choice, and despite the pimping I could see a lot of people just not "getting" her. Are they setting us up for a shocker? Ryan finally tells us that America voted and Amanda...is safe. For the first time in "American Idol" history the last contestant of a certain gender to make the Top 24 won't make it to the end of the Semifinals. I thought Joanne would stay around a bit longer because some "big girls" would vote for her (don't laugh at my logic, I've seen message boards where people said they were voting along those lines), but I guess she couldn't overcome her weak performance. To her credit, Joanne is extremely classy in her elimination, admitting that she didn't do her best on Wednesday and staying upbeat about her future. She sings "I Say a Little Prayer" again while we see shots of several girls on the couch crying. Even though the other contestants appear more sad about her elimination than she does, I sort of feel bad for her. She seems like a real sweetheart.

Finally there's one elimination to go. Ryan goes over to the couches and asks Chikezie and Colton to come forward. Is it the same deal as Joanne's elimination, or are they going to flip the script just like earlier? I guess it must be, because they dim the lights and get right to it. Amazing. I'm not the only person in America who liked Jason Yeager. I guess having a kid helped him get votes. Back to Colton and Chikezie though. Ryan tells us one of them has to go home and that person...is Colton. Wow. Colton was the last guy to make the Top 24 and now he's going home after one week just like Joanne. I'll say this for Chikezie: For all his attitude, he seems really friendly to Colton, putting his arm around him and giving him a hug before taking his seat. Amanda didn't do any of that to Joanne (unless it was while the camera briefly cut away, but it didn't appear so). It's possible Amanda's just not a touchy-feely person (I'm the same way), but on this show it comes across as a little cold. Paula tells Colton (who is clearly holding back tears) to keep singing because he's young and talented, but Simon tells him he doesn't have a shot at a music career and that he should focus his efforts on something else. Dang. Maybe Amanda's not so cold after all.

Ryan calls the other three eliminated contestants back on stage so that we can watch the video of their journeys on "American Idol." This new "Hollywood's Not America" song will probably become a hit before the end of this season thanks to the weekly exposure. After the clip ends Colton gets to sing his smily version of "Suspicious Minds" one more time while the other Idols are allowed to release their tears. It looks like Ramiele, Kady and Danny will be this season's big criers.

That's it for this week. We say goodbye to four people who had talent but were clearly out of their league on this show. I wish them well, as I voted for all of them, and I hope next week some of the people I don't vote for will be sent packing. I'm hoping there won't be any theme next week, but because of "Idol" offering the performances on iTunes we'll probably be stuck with more middle-of-the-road song choices. Please, Nigel. Go back to the "anything goes" Semifinals after this season. Until next week, I'm out (unless I decide to write about something else on this blog).