American Idol: British Invasion Induces Hysteria!

Haley Scarnato - "Tell Him"

Terry: No bra, sheer and shiny shirt with short shorts.....uh, did she sing something? Wow! I had no idea she had that bod hidden under there. Yowza! Playful and fun and a even a bit minxy. Probably her best yet.
Coolia: I guess Antonella left her shorts behind. Haley is smart to take over the sexpot role, and her performance was actually pretty good.
Nerdia: Saucy and smart.

Chris Richardson - "Don't Let the Sun Catch You Crying"

Terry: Decent voice with a suave demeanor and delivery. Not great but good enough to stick around.
Coolia: I'm not feelin' Chris. He seems kind of saccharine.
Nerdia: The first performance of his I've liked. Smooth and groovy. I thought the girls would eat that up.


Stephanie Edwards - "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me"

Terry: Zoinks. For one of the better voices she did not pull that off. It was a nice controlled effort but she wasn't able to project the feeling of the song. Didn't care much for this.
Coolia: I think Stephanie did a decent job with this demanding song, but she's not radiating much personality. She's probably the prettiest of the divas but that may not be enough to keep her around.
Nerdia: This song requires kind of an attitude of pining innocence. Young girl struggling with love. Stephanie looks too smart to pull it off. Cher did a better job when she was 16 and she couldn't match socks.


Blake Lewis - "Time of the Season"

Terry: Nice updated spin on this one. I dug it. And the live crowd dug it, too.
Coolia: Loved it. He's got great energy, and even a bit of sex appeal. This was the perfect song for his voice and it allowed him to make his special sound effects. Blake, you can be my daddy anytime.
Nerdia: K.E.W.L.


Lakisha Jones - "Diamonds are Forever"

Terry: I was yelling at the TV, "Listen to LuLu! Listen to LuLu!" She didn't listen to LuLu. Her worst yet. But, her worst is still better than most of the others.
Coolia: I disagree - I thought it was good, if not sensational. She looked great - loved the green dress and the diamonds. At times, she seemed to be imitating Shirley, which she didn't need to do.
Nerdia: I LOVED this performance. Thought the judges were all wrong and that she showed us a more sophisticated side. It gave me a chill actually...her whole blinged out doo and her eyes when she sang the song.


Phil Stacey - "Tobacco Road"

Terry: Decent but something was missing. It wasn't angst but it was something like that. Then Simon said it. "Grit." Yup, that's what it was missing. That realness of having been there and experienced it.
Coolia: I don't see why this guy is still around. This was just a generic bar band performance for me.
Nerdia: So utterly dull.


Jordin Sparks - "I Who Have Nothing"

Terry: I got chills. This little flower is blossoming right before our very eyes (and ears).
Coolia: Fantastic. And it made me think how great a Tom Jones night would be. She really connected with the emotion of the song, more than I would expect a 17-year-old to do.
Nerdia: This was a dissappointment for me. I felt she never really let go into the song. She's too young to understand the songs underlying pathos.


Sanjaya Malakar - "You Really Got Me"

Terry: Ugh! That's by far the most life he has shown but the singing was TERRIBLE!! I applaud his bravery for letting it all hangout but someone hang ME if this madness doesn't end soon.
Coolia: I thought this was Sanjaya's best yet. Sure, he doesnt have the best voice, but he's got energy and a lot of tween appeal. Watching that little girl get hysterical was a riot.
Nerdia: H.O.T.!!!!


Gina Glocksen - "Paint It Black"

Terry: Weak. Weak. Weak. But, compared to Sanjaya's vocals....Brilliant!! Yet, still weak.
Coolia: Sounded muddled and mumbly. It's hard to take on an iconic Stones song when you're not Mick.
Nerdia: This was a mess. She needs to get that hair out of her face, too. I know the whole hair in your face is cool and all, but America needs to see you to vote for you.


Chris Sligh - "She's Not There"

Terry: Perhaps I'm wrong, but his affable self seems to be turning into a bit of smugness. Good vocals with a few mis-cues along the way. Certainly tried to put on a good stage performance. B+ for effort.
Coolia: Good job working the room, but kinda pitchy.
Nerdia: Chris Sligh has hit his threshold of interesting for me. He always sounds the same. And I agree, too much eyebrow raising for what he's bringing to the table. It's hard to see him emote when we can't see his eyes. (see Gina note above).


Melinda Doolittle - "As Long As He Needs Me"

Terry: Hello, Jordin? Don't forget about me! Wow! Best of the night again! And, the best she's ever looked to boot (bout damn time those money grubbing stylists and pubicists earned their keep).
Coolia: Good, but didn't blow me away. I don't really like the song.
Nerdia: It's outrageous that Lakisha gets slammed for sounding old with her performance this week and Melinda sounds and looks old every freakin week! This week was the worst...old hair, old dress, old body, old song sound, old vocal stylings. Even her "aw shucks!" mugging has grown old. And the judges lap it up.


General Comments

Coolia: This show was one of my favorite episodes ever. Great songs and Peter Noone and Lulu were two of the best guests ever. They both seemed to really know and understand the show and they gave very specific advice. All that, plus the hysterical Sanjaya fan!
Nerdia: some great performances this week. Kudos to Peter and Lulu who were very enthusiastic and fun.


Predictions

Terry: Gina goes home. Oh God how Sanjaya deserves to go home, be the sole member of the bottom 2 (him and his hair) and the sole member of the bottom 3 (him, his hair and his smile), but I fear the power of the American teeny-bopper girl. Good lord, that crying, shaking, bout ready to pass out little girl said it all. And that's exactly what's wrong with our beloved American Idiots. Sigh. God bless America!
Coolia: Phil goes home. America is tired of looking at his Nosferatu-esque self.