Idols in Hollywood

Is it just me or was this week’s “Hollywood Week” on “American Idol” a little less dramatic and memorable than years past?

When Ryan Seacrest so blissfully declared near the top of Tuesday night’s show, “The blood bath begins!” I let out a sinister laugh and got comfortable on the couch for an hour of memorable singing and show-stopping breakdowns …

Oh, to hear Simon say once more, “I thought it was inDULgent nonsense.”

But the shows were sort of a let down.

Kates and I are really liking our hometown boys Anoop Desai and Danny Gokey, along with Jasmine Murray and Jamar Rodgers. Meanwhile, the cameras have all but forgotten Megan Corkrey, and some of the other faces we really liked during the audition rounds … The footage of good singing was sorely lacking.

Ugh.

What’s with the judges fascination with Lil!? We thought she was way off on her version of “I Will Always Love You” and couldn't believe the judges passed her.

And who does this Norman/Nick guy think he is?! What, is he auditioning for a sitcom!? Be yourself or get off the stage, dude. The judges never should have sent him through.

At least they had some sense to finally get rid of Katrina Darrell, aka Bikini Girl … Her antics this week came as no surprise to me. The judges never should have let her through, either.

Admittedly, the Wednesday Night Fights were slightly entertaining (Did you see the camera guys in the background when some of those fights broke out? You could almost hear their minds speaking to each other: “Hey, camera guy over by group No. 3, come with me to get a shot of this group over here! We’ve got girls ready to pull hair!”)

The group performances couldn’t come soon enough … But even those were sort of a let down.

Kates and I will forever compare “Hollywood Week” group performances to the legendary Chris Sligh/Blake Lewis/Rudy Cardenas/Thomas Lowe quartet during Season 6…

(Speaking of great “Hollywood Week” moments, check out EW's Top 10 list here ... Yeah, I was totally thinking about Josiah Leming's meltdown last year, too.)

Action Squad made a good attempt at Fleetwood Mac’s “Don’t Stop” (one of my all-time favorites), but the more they sang, the more they mangled it.

Our favorite of the night was White Chocolate’s take on the Jackson Five’s “I Want You Back” …



I had “Mercy” in my head the rest of the night thanks to the number of groups that were compelled to do that song.