Well that didn't take long. The day after the American Idol final twenty-four is announced a couple of pictures of poor Antonella have hit the internet. They come here by way of VOTE FOR THE WORST and they reached that site by way of Bastardly.com. The picture you see is cropped, but to view the whole thing head on over to VOTE FOR THE WORST. It happens every year.

Okay, the final 24 are picked and what do you think? If you are thinking like me, you’re probably thinking why even bother. I can’t think of one contestant out of this bunch who has wowed me vocally, and for the most part it’s all a concoction of left over goulash.

Of course, some of the contestants who made it through were absolutely no surprised. Having won the Arizona Idol contest and depriving another perhaps more needy contestant of a car and a chance to appear on Idol in the process, Jordin Sparks and her twenty page resume made it through. Speaking of which, after looking over that resume again, I find it a bit irritating that she uses having sung at the Memorial for Pat Tillman as part of it. Was she there to honor him or was she there to pad her resume? And was it me or did it seem that she began celebrating a second before Randy even told her she was moving on? Go back and take a look. Maybe I’ll put up the video if I can find the time.

And what about the strange saga of Sundance Head? After his auditioin, people were already penciling him into the final twelve. But after he began singing in Hollywood, viewers were scratching or erasing his name just as completely. Of all the contestants that they did show singing in Hollywood, he had to be one of the worst. So what happens? They put him through to the final twenty four anyway leaving behind the obviously more talented Thomas Daniels whose previous arrest record may have had more to do with his departure than anything else. Then again, this show has never been one to skirt around controversy when it suits their needs.

And every year Simon tells the contestants not to forget their lyrics in the group sing because they will face dire consequences. And every year contestants butcher the lyrics as if they were a pound of ground chuck and make it through anyway. Let’s welcome Antonella to the final 24 after she garbled her lyrics, and let’s say goodbye to Bailey, who after completely forgetting the lyrics received her walking papers home as a reward. On the other hand, I kind of like Antonella as she has grown on me since that stupid Valley Girl presentation she did with her best friend who was sent back home early on.

Then there was Sanjaya who made it and his sister Shyamali who didn’t. Sanjaya kept his clothes on, Shyamali posed nude with a guitar (although she says not), and that probably has more to do with her going home than vocal ability.

And there are at least four or five of the female contestants who sound just like one another. In other words, the same type of vocals different faces and stories.

And what happened to Sean Michell, the guy who looked like Osama or Castro. The story is that Fox executives were afraid that his “look” would be associated with their logo, and they weren’t going for that. So the fact that he refused to get a hair cut may have done him in. The nasty Fox executives sound like my old high school principal.

But you can read all about it at Foxes on Idol.

A couple of quick awards to go out and they both go to the same contestant. The Fantasia Barrino My Boyfriend Should Have Used a Condom award goes of course to Lakisha Jones. Popping out a kid and heading over to Idol auditions seems to be the thing to do these days. Yeah, yeah, I know, we all make mistakes but we don’t wear those mistakes like a badge of honor to win on a reality show. And the other award also goes to Lakisha. I’m officially naming this award the Sarah Burgess Tearjerkoff Memorial Award, named after the contestant who put new meaning to the words “cry at the drop of a hat.” Sarah didn’t make it to the final twenty four, but you will always remember her as the contestant who supposedly had to lie to mums and pops about being in New York to audition. So you won’t be forgotten Sarah, as now Lakisha takes over for you by letting those tears flow like the Amazon River.

And while we’re on the subject I would like a new American Idol rule. Any contestant with a kid should not be allowed to talk about the brat until they are eliminated from the competition. And if at some point either Lakisha or Philip Stacy brings their brat up on stage in attempt to sway voters as Barrino did, I may just throw my TV set into the Kern River, all 55 or so inches of it.

Anyway, we will be writing about it all here and there whenever we can. Until then catch you later.

Some of you may recall last year when I wrote how it seemed like Hicks was simply trying to pout his way through a few songs. At least one of these appearances was after he was forced to change his song by the producers. I said at the time that instead of trying to make the best of a bad situation, Hicks did the song as if he were in a big snit. Seems there may have been something to that.