Top 8 Girls Recap

It's all down to this. Eight girls perform, only six make the Finals. Judging by the song choices we heard though, a more accurate name would be "Idol Retread Night", because several of these songs have been done to death on "American Idol" already.

First up is Asia'h Epperson. She tells us her most embarrassing moment was when she was an extra in a movie and she crashed into a set light on roller skates. Then she tells us she laughed it off, so I don't know how that would be her most embarrassing moment. She sings Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance With Somebody". Wow. She's three for three. Each week Asia'h has become the fourth person in "American Idol" history to perform whichever song she's chosen. Look it up if you don't believe me. She gives an enjoyable performance. I don't listen to Whitney Houston, so I'm not familiar enough with any of her songs that an "Idol" performance would pale in comparison to the original in my mind. As we know though, Simon doesn't give anyone good feedback who sings a Whitney Houston song, so the big question (after "Will Asia'h ever pick a song that hasn't already been done on this show?") is how the judges will like it. Randy (after his obligatory name-drop) says she proved she deserved to be there, Paula says she nailed it, and Simon says it was second-rate Whitney at best, but that she deserves to be in the Top 12. I think the biggest thing working against Asia'h is that she went first, and voters might forget about her.

Next up is Kady Malloy. Ryan chats with her before her performance, and she tells us last week she thought she was going home, since Alaina did so well. Her most embarrassing moment was when she bombed auditioning for a talent show, and on her way out she tripped over the microphone cord which made the entire speaker system collapse. She sings Queen's "Who Wants to Live Forever". Bad move, Kady. Not only is it a boring song, but she's off-key throughout the entire thing. It didn't work for Katharine McPhee either. Randy says it was a good job, but the lower notes were bad. Paula says it was her best performance, and that the real magic in Kady's voice is on the tender soft notes. Simon says she's too robotic when she sings and he doesn't hear any emotion. Kady was lucky to survive last week, but I think her time may have officially run out. I'll give her a few votes because she's an underdog, but I can live without her if she goes home.

Now we come to Amanda Overmyer, and everyone's wondering if we'll see the magic from Hollywood or the horror from last week. Her most embarrassing moment was when she left an outdoor fireplace burning overnight and her family's deck and pool were destroyed. She sings Joan Jett's "I Hate Myself For Loving You" and actually does a good job with it. It fits her voice much better than "Carry On Wayward Son", but the song still reminds me of Pink's intro to Sunday Night Football in 2006. Randy says that it was the Amanda they love, Paula says she's found her niche, and Simon says it was fantastic. Amanda gets a lot of pimping this week, so they must really want her in that Top 12.

Carly Smithson is next. Her most embarrassing moment was when she was on a break from work and she got her legs stuck in a railing. Her drunk friend (sheesh, first she can't stop talking about tattoos and now she can't stop talking about alcohol) had to grease up her legs to get her out. Her song is Cyndi Lauper's "I Drove All Night". I can't find any complaints with her vocals, but her tattoo is still hideous. I'll be glad when she gets eliminated so I don't have to keep looking at that thing. Randy says it was great. Paula says she's like a dependable dog. Simon says it was the wrong song for her, because he mainly knows the Céline Dion version. He gets booed by the audience. Wouldn't it be funny if the audience cheered when Simon trashed someone? When Ryan comes on stage to give the number they show Carly's mother in the audience, who's visiting from Ireland. Carly says her mother met her husband for just the second time. Ryan asks if she approves of Carly's husband, and her mother nods "yes". As long as we're discussing funny scenarios, wouldn't it be funny if she shook her head "no" on national TV?

Up next is Kristy Lee Mannequin, who tells us that her most embarrassing moment was when she was about seven years old and pretended to be a dog for the whole year. Oh come on, I'm an adult and I still do that sometimes. She sings Journey's "Faithfully", so we know Randy's going to love it. My complaint with her is the same as last week. Sure, she can sing OK, but nothing about her stands out. Sure, she seems like a nice girl, but she's boring and I really don't see any star power. I think it's becoming increasingly obvious why she lost both her record deals. Randy says he liked her this week because she incorporated two of his favorite things: dogs and Journey. He also likes that she gave the song sort of a country lilt. Huh? I didn't hear anything country about that performance. Paula says that song could be a country hit for her right now. Simon says he liked the country influence in the song, but that he thinks Kristy is too forgettable. He also says that the highest finish he sees for her right now is 10th place. I'm puzzled by this "country" thing. I went back and watched it again and I still don't hear it. I guess the judges are all saying it in hopes that a few country music fans will vote for her, but I'm hoping those fans let their ears decide.

Ramiele Malubay is next on the schedule, but first she has to tell us how embarrassing it was when she left her picture at the house of a boy she liked and she watched him and his mother laugh at it from across the street. She sings "Against All Odds" by Phil Collins and simultaneously wins the Most Overdone Song Choice Award. After three straight songs that had never been sung on this show before we get one that's been sung to death. "Against All Odds" has now tied Whitney Houston's "I Have Nothing" for being performed the most times on the "American Idol" stage with six. While she doesn't match Scott Savol's definitive "Idol" version, her performance may be good enough for second place, despite the fact that she messes up the lyrics. Randy says she needs to be more confident on stage. Paula spends an entire minute saying basically nothing before she finally says Ramiele deserves to be in the Top 12. Simon says it was too old-fashioned, predictable and missing the "big money note". I think Ramiele's good, but she needs to stop recycling boring songs that have already been done on "Idol".

Now we come to the lovely Brooke White, who tells us that when she was about 12 or 13 she ran up behind her father after church and put her arms around him...only to discover that it wasn't actually her father. She sings Pat Benatar's "Love is a Battlefield", but rather than rocking out like Carrie Underwood did, she does it all acoustic. It actually makes this performance interesting. Aw heck, I just like Brooke altogether. I think she may be my favorite of all the contestants, or at least the one I like that has the best shot at winning. My mother thinks Brooke sounds like she has a cold, but I think it's more her natural, untrained voice. Randy says she didn't bring anything new to the song but that it was interesting. Paula says she loves Brooke's voice, but that she wished the band had joined in the middle. Simon says it was a great performance, and that it worked precisely because she didn't bring the band in. I'll be casting my usual votes for Brooke, though she'll probably sail through the next few weeks even without them.

Unfortunately, the ever-conceited Syesha Mercado gets the pimp spot. What's her most embarrassing moment going to be? That time someone walked right past her without realizing who she was? No, it's when she was in 2nd Grade and passed a note to a boy she liked who then told on her. Once again we get a song that's been done already on "Idol", with Whitney Houston's "Saving All My Love For You". Syesha starts off all right, showing some actual subtlety, but returns to belter form at the end. Like I said, I'm not a Whitney Houston fan so I'm not sure if that's how the original goes. Still, this performance was nothing special to me. Syesha can sing, but who cares about another Whitney Houston wannabe? Since the show is live and they're running out of time, the judges all hurriedly tell her it was good, with Simon adding that it was a bit predictable.

After they show the numbers one last time, there's some quick chit-chat with the judges. Paula says she doesn't want any of them to leave, while Simon says he only liked about three of the performances, with Amanda's being his favorite. As the credits roll Asia'h gives Kady a piggy-back ride. Isn't it cute how they're such good friends? While the girls weren't as good as the guys yesterday, I'd say they still gave us a decent show. My mother actually stayed awake for the whole thing this time. Anyway, let's make some predictions.

Probably Going Home

Kady
Kristy

Also Vulnerable

Asia'h
Ramiele

Probably Safe

Amanda
Syesha

I'd Be Shocked

Carly
Brooke

Whom I Voted For: Kady, Amanda, Ramiele, Brooke (hey, one from each group!).

Tomorrow we'll have our Top 12. Then we'll only have to lose one deserving, likable underdog per week.