This past week was Dolly Parton week, and it was, well, odd. It wasn't a terrible show, but it wasn't great, either. Highlights of the night were David Cook (who finally cleared up where he's been getting his 'originality'), David Archuleta (his first good performance in three weeks), Carly Smithson (who sang beautifully, note for note) and Michael Johns (his best performance thus far... he seems to improve each week).
Brooke White, one of my favourites in the competition, was only average - for the song "Jolene", she seemed a bit too happy/smiley, and thus it didn't come off as sincere as it should have ("Jolene" is about a woman who steals the singer's man), although she sang very well. The judges gave Syesha Mercado a tough time, but I thought that she sang "I Will Always Love You" with a lot of emotion, which probably saved her. Of course, it didn't compare with Whitney, but it was still an amazing display of her talent. Jason Castro sang the most recent Dolly Parton song, "Travelin' Thru" from Transamerica. The song definitely suited him, but I couldn't help feeling that it was a little boring... each week, Jason looks more and more like a one-trick pony.
And finally, there's Kristi Lee Cook and Ramiele Malubay. Dolly Parton's signature style is country, and so Kristi Lee Cook did fairly well (it's her element). But Ramiele... I knew right away that she was leaving after that performance. She was awkward, she didn't enunciate, and the song just didn't suit her voice. That girl can sing, but she never shows it on air!
So, when it came to the results show, there were no huge surprises. Ramiele, Kristi and Brooke were in the bottom 3, although I was a little surprised it wasn't Jason instead of Brooke. Also, while I find David Archuleta's constant humbleness a bit annoying, Kristi's pessimistic attitude is downright intolerable - I know she's trying to be funny/realistic about her chances, but it comes off as attitude from her.
Aside from the results, the one hour results/useless filler show really had a lot going on. The non-results portion of the show began with a performance from The Clark Brothers, who aren't, er, my cup of tea? I felt like they didn't do the song "Let It Shine" justice, and at one point sounded more like they were shouting than singing. Next came a touching story of how Idol Gives Back has helped a homeless girl become reunited with her sister. While a very emotional story, I can't help feeling like this story was shown to pull money out of the pockets of viewers and, while for a very good cause, I don't like being guilted into donating - it's like one of those commercials that use gimmicky tricks. Good gracious, what type of show is this? Oh. Wait. That's right, it's American Idol (flashes back to Coke, Ford and Apple products flaunted throughout the show). Anyway, the last act on the show was a performance by Dolly Parton. Now, I'm not a country fan at all, but I do love Dolly - she's very down to Earth and a nice person. She performed "Jesus and Gravity", a song that was surprisingly catchy, although a song about Jesus and gravity? This is why country isn't for me (Religion and Science have found a harmonious place to coexist, and that place is Dolly Parton).
And, at the very end of the episode, we finally get the results: Ramiele Malubay just didn't do enough to stay on the show, which is too bad, because I felt like she had a lot more in her.
Next week is the Idol Gives Back, so who knows what's going on in terms of the competition. I'll update this post if I get any more information about the show.
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