American Idol: The Search for a Superstar

It's such a disservice to the incredible singers who don't make it through because they don't have a good enough back story, or not popular with the audience for whatever reason. It's almost become unwatchable. The 2023 season may be worst of all. The three that missed the cut down from 11 to 8 were better singers by far than a few who made it. The kid from Hawaii has no business still being on the show. He's likeable but that's where it ends. May be my last season watching. Shame on you American idol!!! The kid Colin not even close to the three who didn't make it. He's probably popular with the teen girls but he sounds just like the last three male winners, just not as good. I hope changes get made so the gifted singers aren't sent home. "The Voice" is just blowing Idol away now. Please get your credibility back, and keep from being categorized with Desperate Housewives.

I've had really little interest or even a great liking for this show. I did laugh hysterically at the first few seasons of horrible singers that auditioned but after that, I didn't care about the show or it's contest at all.

Reason being is, in my opinion, even though a selected number of these performers "do" have the talent and many with very good voices... I don't feel this is a legitimate way of trying to "hit the big time."

What, "really" have most of these singers done to earn or deserve to be famous? Some of them have have been in school chorus or maybe even done a localized solo career / band maybe. They are ametuers and the judges way of practically slamming for their inexperience turns my stomach.

Especially when singers try to do songs before their time. Nine out of ten times, I feel no emotional connection with their renditions of classic pop & rock songs. In my view,they don't have the proper emotional connection to the songs or understand their meaning.

Making their performance seem empty. After a few years of it, it was nothing short of redundant.

I don't mind what others here call the contestant's "sob stories" , as they are legitimate and great difficulties they have experienced in their lives. (No doubt anyone in charge at the show has these things checked out, beofre alowing them to tell the story. )

I doubt it has any bearing on the judges decision, it's just the contestants telling about themselves. They win for singing , not for being the most pitiful.

I will say, Kelly clarkson still stands out to me as the most talented and I was glad to see her become more than just anohter female who sings about love, break ups or power ballads like, "A Moment Like This."

I've been a bit more than suspicous in the past watching winners after her, just 'fly' immediately up the Billboard Hot 1200 or even debut at the top suddenly and then fall and become immediately forgotten (except Carrie Undrwood, who's the only other that's truly lasted.)

Still, even her debut at #1 that knock Mariah Carey out of the top for a wek back in 2005, seemed fixed, although I know Billboard magzine would get invesigted if that werre the case.

Anyhow, as for the judges? Cowell is no longer there and was horribly mean at times and other judges ranked from understanding to almost as bad as Cowell. I know they want to be honest with these hopefuls but , lighten up.

Imagine, when Cowell ws still there. A young girl, self-conscious about herself already and he makes her feel 10 times worse about herself and her weight. He's changed since then and is on America's Got Talent.

Anyhow, the show by now has become quite repetitive and not even the bad singers could make me tune in again. It's a shadow of it's former self. I enjoyed it for awhile, for the things I mentioned but not anymore, I've moved on.

I'm surprised that America hasn't moved on from this. (END.)

This show is a reality show at heart. Thousands of people audition in front of three judges, the infamous (yet truthful. People, if they're bad singers, don't blame him!) Simon, Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul. They're mostly given the boot but some pass and go through many elimination rounds until we, the viewers, get to vote and slowly one-by-one toss out the final ten until we get one American Idol.

The first episodes are definitely the ones that spark its' popularity. As an exchange for a free contract deal, FOX is allowed to videotape and broadcast anyone they want.

This is the 5, 000+ auditioning stage. With so many people of so many cities, we've got to find at least a dozen people who think they can sing. I'm talking about the bad ones. Emphasize on THINK.

It's sad when they say they've always had a singing dream and are awful. But it's hilarious when people outburst because they now THOUGHT (or still think) they can sing. One guy on a recent season 2 episode thought he deserved to be the American Idol 'cause he thought he could sing and he stood out 5 days in the cold. Too bad he sounded like a bird being strangled.

There was another one of the same episode who said he had a dream(so far sad) of being a singer. He sings, and puts way too much into it(he's trying to sound like Enrique Glasias", and is turned down(still sad). He's OK, though, and walks out with a smile(right now confusing). He then walks out and proclaims to everyone he's going to Hollywood(the next round)(a little funny). About an audition later, the camera finds him sitting waiting for an audition. He explains to the security guard with the cameraman he's been invited back(now funny). As this never happens, the security guard doesn't hesitate to correct him and boots him out(kinda funny). He yells while leaving(the security guard lets him walk out himself) "I'll see you all in Hollywood!".(funny)

One last one, a girl couldn't believe they said she was just under average, good only hidden in a crowd of a choir. She denies being turned down, and when the host(with proof) asks her didn't she get refused Hollywood, she states she doesn't know, and tries to get back in to find out. One thing: she's a terrible liar. For ratings, she's allowed back in. Simon asks her hadn't they already seen her. She clearly wants a second chance, but strangely tries to start with (maybe the host was there) "I wanted to know if I'm going to Hollywood". "No, because you're terrible.". And it ends.

The second round is OK, as the crowd of about 200 is brought down to 30. The people who don't make it get a chance to speak out.

After that, we start voting, while the judges provide their thoughts. In a clearly planned move, you take away the bad singers now, and wind up with audience interaction. It's not the same, but you still see one vote and wonder how many people are trying to mess it all up by purposely trying to wind up with a bad singer winning.

I really enjoy the first parts more. But it's truly speechless. You have to see it to believe it.

I've watched every episode of this show from its inception, and, sadly but not surprisingly, I have seen it become more and more cheesy as the years go by.

For starters, Seacrest has to go. If you look up the word smarmy in the dictionary, you will see his picture. And the judges are all a joke at this point - they've become caricatures of themselves, it seems, and nothing they have to say means anything, nor do the viewers' votes actually count, since I believe the producers of the show will not have someone win whom they do not approve of (meaning someone they can't control). The contestants are still good, though, which is why I still watch: I'm a sucker for a talent show and I do love seeing someone do really well, as Jordin is doing this year. And let's face it, the show is an incredible spectacle - the modern equivalent of, say, the gladiators in the Colosseum.

Last night, they kicked off the "Idol Gives Back" thing, where, for every vote cast, ten cents would be donated by the shows' sponsors - Ford, Coca Cola, and A T & T - toward the world's hunger crisis. Seacrest stood there, in all his sanctimonious smarminess, preaching to us about how we were not just voting this week, we're "saving lives." I'm all for ending hunger in all countries of the world, beginning with our country, don't get me wrong, but this to me feels like a very underhanded and sleazy way to obtain more publicity for the show.

The corporations in question have enough money to fully end all world hunger if they wanted; they do not need our votes to contribute to that cause. And it would be a tax write-off for them, to boot. By telling people they are "saving lives" by voting, the producers of the show (and Seacrest, as their shamelessly pathetic talking head - he's like Max Headroom without the soul) are implying that the opposite is true, as well: if you don't vote, you are NOT saving lives.

About the show itself: the worst thing is how they never let the contestants sing a whole song, they have to condense their song into a minute and a half, and then they get criticized for not having enough feeling or enough conviction or enough personality, blah blah blah. A song has to be complete in order for it to legitimately 'live' - the emotion or feeling of it has to build and you cannot genuinely do that when you're forced to cut out most of it. They have time on the show for all sorts of crap, but they can't make time for the performers to actually SING. I commend anyone who can come on week after week and manage to give a credible performance under these conditions, something the judges don't seem to acknowledge or appreciate.

Where will it all end? I predict a few more seasons, and then hopefully the network will take the show off before it deteriorates into an even tackier circus than it's already become.

Added 3/6/13 ~ This season hopefully will be the last. Brutal.

Added 2/21/14 ~ Still going' on. It's a joke at this point; everybody feels it. Keith Urban, J-Lo and Harry Connick Jr. are very strange judges, not much credibility there, and of course Seacrest is still on board, still smarmy as ever. This time the question is : WHEN will it all end? I couldn't even watch the preliminary episodes this year, the whole selection process and the Hollywood thing, the group challenge, blah blah blah. Cannot stand how they play with the contestants' heads, when they call them in to That Room, making them walk from the elevator all the way to their desk in Outer Mongolia, only to torture them with the 'well, you know we can't pick everyone and we're really sorry, we don't know how to tell you this...(long dramatic pause)...but you're going through!" Pathetic.

If it weren't for Simon Cowell, I have to wonder how many people would watch this show. I admit this says something of my character, but he's the reason I watch this show. His blunt matter of fact, tell-it-like-is approach to telling the unvarnished truth to the no-talent wannabes who audition is something I find very refreshing. Especially when their egos and attitudes are directly proportional to the extent that they suck -- meaning the more they suck, the more ego and attitude they tend to have. (Not with all, but certainly a lot of them) Then there are others who don't have attitude and are devastated by criticism and can be seen in tears later, and even if they were bad I feel a little sorry for them. But that's simply the reality, of the music business and if these kids can't handle it, then they shouldn't be trying to forge a career as a musical artist.

That's reality, and Simon gives them this much needed reality check. It's reality TV in every sense of the word.