Fox'2 "24": Does Fantasia have it wrapped up?

I have just enough energy for some quick thoughts about tonight's show:

- Prof. Althouse was right in predicting that Quentin Tarantino would be the best guest judge ever. Tarantino still suffered a bit from overpraising, but he at least offered useful opinions about the performances. And he certainly showed more characterization than the usual singers, with lines like "You're the bomb!" (Fantasia) and "You're the geek singer!" (Jon Peter).

- At this point, it's hard to see how Fantasia won't end up winning the competition. Of course, stranger things have happened, like Nikki McKibben finishing ahead Tamyra Gray in season 1. But Fantasia's versatility, her charisma and presence, and her consistency look unbeatable right now. It was especially apparent when Jasmine -- a relatively strong singer -- followed her and came off as just flat.

- I feel really bad for John Stevens. He picks the perfect song ("As Time Goes By") -- the only kind of song he seems to be able to sing -- and he still gets trashed by Simon as having no charisma. Even worse, Simon seems right. But hey, the kid is only 16.

- Those skit/commercials featuring the remaining contestants are starting to get annoying. No, actually, they've been annoying for a while now.

- Jennifer Hudson did a pretty good job, but rule #1 for "American Idol" contestants should be: Do not pick songs by Whitney Houston, because you will suffer by comparison to the original. Instead, if it's your style, pick something by, say, Melissa Ethredge, who is a good singer but does it more on sincerity of emotion than on purity of vocal tone.

My very tentative guess is that the bottom three will be Jasmine, Jennifer, and (finally) John Stevens. Jasmine and Jennifer haven't shown much strength among the voters, and while John S. has, I think he doesn't have enough supporters at this stage.

Comments

[Pauly D]

Here on the west coast I haven't seen it yet.

So, I am pretending I never read anything on that page.

[tom]

The question that I wonder about Fantasia is, is she too good for American Idol? I think she sees music as an art form and herself as an artist, and by her song selection, I think she aspires more to that than to pop diva-dom. And since she has the chops to pull it off, I wonder if she wouldn't be better off shooting for jazz or musical theater (serious musical theater, like Sondheim, not dinner theater stuff like Clay) or maybe even opera? Should she be pushing herself to something higher than silly little pop songs on the radio?

[Will Allen]

I'm not a regular watcher, but I thought last night's episode was interesting. It really is tough to sing a song like "As Time Goes By" well, unless one has lived a little bit. Teenagers affecting adult sentiment rarely come off very well. Along those lines, how old is Fantasia? I was suprised with her understanding of "Summertime". Finally, what was with all the cartoons being named as favorite movies? I can see it with a 16 year old, maybe, but when you're in your mid 20s? Somebody should have sucked up to Tarantino, named "Resevoir Dogs" as their favorite movie, and sung "Stuck in the Middle with You ", perhaps while wielding a straight-razor. It would have been worth a few laughs, at least, and Simon wouldn't have the guts to criticize it, assuming he values his ears.