Articles Celebrations Obituaries

The Watercooler: Best and worst of 'Idol' guys

The Season 9 semifinalists have been the most consistently inconsistent group of contestants ever to perform on “American Idol,” none more so than the eight remaining men, who had one last chance last night to prove themselves worthy of a place in the finals. As far as I’m concerned, only one of them is good enough (so far).

Presumed early front runners Lee Dewyze and Andrew Garcia continue to struggle with pitch problems. Andrew, particularly, has failed to live up to his early promise after peaking during Hollywood Week with his surprising rearrangement of “Straight Up.”

---

---

The Watercooler: Who should be the top 6 'Idol' women?
The remaining eight women gave their last semi-final performances Tuesday night, and two of them were awful enough that I’m pretty sure I know which six will make the Top 12.

The Watercooler: Dull 'Race' leg no match for Oscar
“The Amazing Race” saved its dullest episode of the season to date for last night, as it went up against the Oscars. The eight remaining teams faced tasks included kicking soccer balls, eating sauerkraut and drinking beer, none of which was nearly as daunting as navigating Germany’s public transportation seemed to be.

The Watercooler: Give 'Idol' a 'Survivor'-like tribal council? Nah.
Can you imagine if “American Idol” were structured like “Survivor,” wherein the contestants voted each other out and the last one standing would win?

The Watercooler: Crystal clear front runner among 'Idol' women
My hope in this season of “American Idol” has been fully restored thanks to last night’s return of Crystal Bowersox, who continues to fascinate and entertain me, and the performances of three or four other women that solidified my belief that we could have a pretty awesome Top 12 if the voters don’t let me down.

The Watercooler: Things look bad on ‘Idol,’ but hope isn’t lost
I’ve been having trouble getting excited about this season’s group of “American Idol” contestants, and as I read EW.com’s weekly ranking of the remaining 20 yesterday afternoon, I realized why.

The Watercooler: Speed reading could slow you down on 'Race'
If anyone out there harbors dreams of being a contestant on “The Amazing Race,” please remember: Nothing is more important than reading the clue and following its instructions to the letter. If you need proof, just watch the teams bumbling their way through the Horse Sense detour on last night’s episode.

The Watercooler: Top 12 'Idol' men only slightly better than women
The Top 12 men finally took the stage on “American Idol” last night, and although they weren’t great, as a whole, they didn’t disappoint me as much as the women did — not surprising since I didn’t expect as much from the men.

The Watercooler: 'Idol' women disappoint big time
I’d be lying if I said the season’s Top 12 women on “American Idol” didn’t let me down last night. After two straight years in which the girls seemed to get lost among the uber-talented men — Adam Lambert and Kris Allen, Davids Cook and Archuleta — this seems to be an estrogen-fueled, Lillith Fair kind of year, with several charismatic, guitar-slinging women in a race for the top spot.

The Watercooler: Colorful teams race for the 'Amazing' million
It usually takes me a few weeks to get to know the teams on “The Amazing Race,” but this season the personalities are so colorful that I know most of them by name and already know which teams I’m rooting for (and against).