The Rushfield Review: The Top 12 takes shape

All will be revealed is the promise of many a current television epic, but Wednesday night’s "American Idol" featured enough curtain lifting to keep the online Idolsphere’s collective head whirling for a year.

Not only did we, as expected, fill out the final slots in the Top 9 (with the predictable Scott MacIntyre, Lil Rounds -- pictured at left on Tuesday's show -- and Jorge Nuñez) but the most puzzled-over mystery of the season was finally cleared up: The identities of the wild card contestants were unveiled.

Actually, this was the first truly suspenseful results show thus far.  While the sudden death element of each week of the semifinal rounds raised the stakes immensely, the contests ended up completely lopsided, with at least two of the three weekly chairs almost certain to go to the huge favorites (Danny Gokey, Alexis Grace, Adam Lambert, Allison Iraheta, MacIntyre, Rounds).  Due to whatever quirk of fate, the distance between the favorites and the field each week has been a mile.

On the flip side, each results show, we have been treated to the spectacle of those many, many who had fallen in their performance nights, trotted out to the death couch -- a grim march to  certain execution. It was, for instance, beyond tragic to watch the once-effervescent but now utterly deflated 16-year-old Arianna Afsar, whose trembling lips and tear-stained eyes gave no doubt she knew what exactly Angel of Death Ryan Seacrest had in store for her, forced to tell the Reaper, “Obviously, I have regrets.”

Thinking about what kind of Top 12 this season’s altered format will produce, it can be said that the above favorites would likely have made it to the big stage in any season in which they appeared, while the jury is very much still out on the remaining three (Nuñez, Michael Sarver and Kris Allen).

Phil Stacey blog: The final chair

So coming into tonight, we already knew that Lil Rounds and Scott MacIntyre would easily coast into their spots in the finals.  I would like to brag that I called that when we first saw them during the audition rounds.  What we did not know was who was going to win that coveted third spot.  No matter who got it, it was going to be a surprise to all of us.

Felicia Barton is the first cousin of a friend of mine.  She is also connected to me through church relationships, so I admit that I was really rooting for her.  But I knew that her lack of screen time accompanied by some unshakable nerves would together create quite a challenge in winning over the voters.  She did not make it through tonight.

One by one, elimination by elimination, many good contestants fell victim to this year’s format.  In any other season, we would have a different group of finalists.  And we would not have had to endure so many –- for lack of a better term –- boring performances.  I am a big fan of the show, but there were definitely times I wanted to change the channel -- although tonight’s elimination episode was very enjoyable.  They started with Katy Perry’s “Hot 'n' Cold,”  which hinted that they are trying to make the show a little more current this season.

The judges confused me a little bit last night when they told one serious contestant to be more fun and a fun contestant to be more serious.  Comments such as these prove my theory that judges find their favorites and criticize the others.  But I do not think this is unfair.  Each contestant has the exact same time and opportunity to make himself/herself a judge favorite.  A few actually succeed, while many do not.  What is important to remember is that the judges do not dictate the voting and the voting is fair.  At the end of the day, America decides who will stay and who will go home. 

I had put the competition for the last spot between Felicia, Jorge Nuñez, Von Smith and Ju’Not Joyner.  And finally Ryan Seacrest announced that the third spot went to  Jorge. This is a good thing.  He has a fantastic voice and is certainly worthy of this show.  The only bad thing is that as of today, there are six guys in the finals and only three girls.  I am so glad they didn’t do the Top 36 when I was on for rather obvious reasons.  Season 6 could have been 12 girls…  Or not.

-- Phil Stacey

photo: Fox

Phil Stacey blog: Is it rigged?

As we come into this American Idol episode tonight, I’d like to say that I hope they return to regular format next season.  This would be the last week of semi-finals, but we have yet another on Thursday featuring the contestants who did not get our attention the first time around.  Many of my favorites from this season, including Anoop Desai will have another chance to make it into the finals – and I am glad for them.  I just feel that in the regular format, people like Anoop would not have been voted off in the first place.

Speaking of Anoop, some of his fans made a great video for him that I thought you might like to check out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=es5EDO0G0hc&fmt=18

Well I’ve decided after tonight that the show is RIGGED!  The dorky kid, Alex Wagner-Trugman, sounded good to me!  I liked the growl!  Sure, the appearance was a little awkward…  But I thought it was funny.  Come one, they appreciated the humor of Norman Gentle…  But I guess if you can sing then you aren’t allowed to use humor.  So what if he isn’t he best singer this season.  I think he does a great job and I believe they over criticized him so there was no threat of him beating out one of their favorites for a top 12 spot.  I’m just saying…

Well many contestants tonight talked about how much fun they had and how “magical” it was to be on that stage.  I for one would like to say that I HATED singing on that stage!  Don’t get me wrong – I love to sing – it’s what I do.  But – there is nothing in this world more nerve wracking than making one's self that vulnerable in front of so many people.  We don’t do American Idol because we enjoy singing on that stage, we do it so we can sing for a living.

All in all, it was a mixed night for me.  I thought many contestants showed some great potential.  I think the clear winners for the night are Lil’ Rounds and Scott MacIntyre as declared by the judges.  I think there are many possibilities for the third spot.  Von Smith did great and so did Jorge Nunez.  I also like Ju’Not Joyner’s performance.  Felicia Barton had some shaky spots but that voice was AMAZING.  I think if she can get her nerves in check, she could be a contender for the crown this year and I am not joking.  But there are only three spots given each week, so your guess for the third spot is as good as mine.  Between those names – I think whoever does not get that third spot will be back next week during the wild card round.

What do you think?

- Phil Stacey
photo: Fox

The Rushfield Review: The last of the 36

We have now seen our next American Idol.  After all the buildup, one by one, all 36 warriors of competitive singing have been paraded before us. Somewhere in that lineup stood our next pop overlord; the one who 12 weeks from now will stand anointed in the footsteps of Clarkson and Underwood, Sparks and Cook.

It has been a shaky preseason, with semifinals rounds heavy on the train wrecks. The work of sorting the wheat from the chaff in this new format, having to pull out three singers from the pool of 12, has at moments over the last couple of weeks felt like work.  But in the final night of the semifinal rounds, "Idol" delivered a pool overall worthy of its legacy. 

The preseason has been short on "Idol’s" trademark star-is-born moments, but finally, in the very last performance of the semifinals, we got one and a star was born in tornado survivor Lil Rounds, who delivered a drop-dead Mary J. Blige that will live forever in "Idol" lore.

Here then is a roundup of the night:

Top 12-bound:
+ Lil Rounds (pictured): Belongs to the world now.

+Scott MacIntyre: "Idol’s" first legally blind contender delivered a solid if not earth-shattering “Mandolin Rain.” His Forrest Gump-like naïve, unguarded earnestness won the room though.

+ Jorge Nunez: "Idol’s" first great Latin heartthrob’s waterworks should melt enough hearts to see him through.

+ Ju’Not Joyner: Little seen in the preseason, which may mean he had too far to come tonight to win over the voters, but his quietly effective performance was one of the night’s best.

Wild card maybes:

+ Von Smith: Grated on America’s nerves in the preseason, but delivered well tonight with few traces of prior shoutiness. 'Tween appeal means he can’t be counted out.

+ Arianna Afsar: A favorite of the preseason delivered a misguided somber Abba rendition.  Her vocal skills and winning persona may earn her a second chance on Thursday.

+ Felicia Barton: Recalled after the Joanna Pacitti dismissal, Barton proved that she deserved a place in the Top 36, but is up against too much talent to break through this week.

+ Kendall Beard: Bubbly heiress to the Kellie Pickler country gal throne.  Likability could carry her through despite a so-so performance.

Heading home

+ Taylor Vaifanua: Very likable but stepped into the classic "Idol" teen pitfall of shooting for Celine Dion instead of Katy Perry.

+ Kristen McNamara: The Napa karaoke hostess was solid and likable, but that likely won’t be enough to see her through against a strong field.

+ Alex Wagner–Trugman: L.A.’s local nerd instantly cast himself into Vote for the Worst territory.

+ Nathaniel Marshall: The designated train wreck of the week came in as over-the-top as could be hoped for.

So it should go, but the "Idol" electorate works in ways mysterious it's wonders to behold. Will they follow the playbook?  We'll see Wednesday night, when the final pre-wild card seats are filled.

NOTE: Please join us tomorrow, Wednesday at noon PT for our post-game chat here at latimes.com/idoltracker.

SECOND NOTE: A previous version of this piece referred to the song Scott MacIntyre sang as "Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me."  Thanks to commenter Daniel M. for catching that and alerting us.

 

-- Richard Rushfield

Photo:Fox

Handicapping the winners - The Top 36

Only a fool would try to predict the ultimate outcome of American Idol without having seen all the contestants.  But these times make fools of us all.  So try I must. My complete tip sheet will be coming soon, but before too much time expires I wanted to go on the record with my predictions of who will win and who will lose and in what order.   Last year, I predicted Syesha would win it all, so that should show what my track record is worth.  In any event, for the historical record, here is my prediction from first place to 36th where the brave souls of Season 8 will finish.   

(Of course the order of finish for contestants eliminated in the semi-final rounds has little real meaning since we do not know the order of finish at those levels, but let these rankings represent my rough sense of where in the Idol firmament they stand.)

36. Nathaniel Marshall

35. Nicholas Mitchell

34. Matt Beizke

33. Jeanine Valies

32. Casey Carlson

31. Stevie Wright

30. Felicia Barton

29. Alex Wagner-Trugman

28. Tatiana Del Toro

27. Ricky Braddy

26. Allison Iraheta

25. Brent Keith

24. Von Smith

23. Kristen McNamara

22. Jackie Tohn

21. Junot Joyner

20. Arianna Afsar

19. Ann Marie Boskovitch

18. Kendall Beard

17. Jasmine Murray

16. Steven Fowler

15. Kai Kalama

14. Kris Allen

13. Anoop Desai

And to see my Top 12, continue after the jump.

The Contenders: Meet Felicia Barton

Virginia Beach, Va. 27-year-old Felicia Barton has already gotten a lucky break on "American Idol" Season 8. She replaced Top 36 choice Joanna Pacitti when it was determined that Pacitti was ineligible. Felicia Barton auditioned in Louisville, Ky. with Corinne Bailey Rae's "Put Your Records On", also the audition song choice of Arianna Afsar. Paula was into it and even Simon smiled. Felicia went to Hollywood, but little did she know what a stir in "Idol" news she'd make!

She says she's secure, loves to sing, and isn't "chasing some pipedream". She'd like to make an impact on people, singing songs with the hope that music will change lives, the same way it did her own.

The married bar singer, church worship group leader, and mom to baby son Malakai has performed at Virginia Beach's Beach Street USA. The fortunate brunette has a MySpace page.

--Leslie Anne Wiggins

Photo: Fox

Burning question: Why was Felicia Barton picked when Joanna Pacitti was axed?

In doing some Googling this morning, one notices that the Web has come to certain conclusions about why Joanna Pacitti was removed from contention in "American Idol." We will further speculate ourselves that the decision must have come quite late indeed, since the producers did not have a chance to reedit Wednesday night's Green Mile episode, which featured Pacitti.

But another curiosity -- and here there are no answers yet -- is how Team Idol went about choosing her replacement. Why was Felicia Barton picked over, say, one of the losers of a sing-off?

When we know the answer, we will let you know.

-- Kate Aurthur

Updated: Joanna Pacitti disqualified from 'American Idol,' Felicia Barton in

A bit of a mystery has emerged on the first night of "American Idol's" season proper.

Just as the Green Mile episode was put to bed today, a contestant has gone missing: Joanna Pacitti, who has been considered one of the favorites because of her previous singing experience.

The official Fox news release announcing the top 36 contestants lists female singers Alexis Grace, Allison Iraheta, Anne Marie Boskovich, Arianna Asfar, Casey Carlson, Felicia Barton, Jackie Tohn, Jasmine Murray, Jeanine Vailes, Jesse Langseth, Kendall Beard, Lil Rounds, Megan Corkrey, Mishavonna Henson, Stevie Wright, Tatiana Del Toro, Kristen McNamara and Taylor Vaifanua.

And below the long list of names was this:

"[EDITOR'S NOTE: It has been determined that Joanna Pacitti is ineligible to continue in the competition. AMERICAN IDOL contestant Felicia Barton has replaced Ms. Pacitti as part of the Top 36.]"

That's right, no Joanna Pacitti, whom we saw make it through the Green Mile tonight.  And the list includes Felicia Barton, who was seen being sent packing on the Green Mile episode.

A source close to the show now tells us that Pacitti was disqualified to avoid the appearance of impropriety.

In the last week, tabloids had been reporting on a private relationship between Pacitti and executives of 19 Management, one of the companies overseeing "Idol."

-- Richard Rushfield

Photo: Fox