O'CONNOR KO-ed--AMERICAN IDOL RESULTS

O'CONNOR KO-ed--American Idol Review

PRETTY, SOULFUL NURSE PREDICTABLY SENT HOME

Here’s a result that surprised absolutely no one. All day long, as I read recaps of last night’s Top 13 performances on American Idol, every single article that dared to predict a Bottom Three included brunette nurse Kristen O’Connor in its unfortunate trio, and each one guessed she’d be the one going home. After 71 million votes Wednesday night, these educated guesses became reality.

She made it to #13 in a contest for which thousands auditioned, but the simple fact is Kristen just didn’t have enough going for her. She was likeable, sure, and she had a decent voice, but all I could remember of her each week was that she had a really, really wide smile, and she was a nurse. She’s certainly a better singer then I am, and she arguably has a better vocal range then at least one of the remaining contestants, but she came into this week on fumes after surprisingly being selected a Wild Card over the more talented Bria Anai and Spencer Lloyd. Thursday night, when it came time for one of Idol’s most time-honored traditions—playing a schmaltz-oozing montage of Kristen’s highlights on and around American Idol once she'd been eliminated—the screen also held a shot of Kristen’s face as she watched it; her utterly downcast features displayed the crushing disappointment of someone who’s been living a pie-in-the-sky dream, brought quickly and suddenly back to earth by an ugly reality she probably knew was coming.

Whether Kristen knew or didn’t know after a subpar reception from the judges last night—when, as one of last week’s Wild Cards, she really needed to knock people’s socks off—those of us who did know had a hard time seeing the elimination-preceding 55 minutes as anything other than a formality. With live performances by reigning-champion Idol Candice Glover and emo-folk Brit Jake Bugg sharing exposition time with clips of former Idol judge Randy Jackson giving advice to each of the contestants, the show clicked along, but, as host Ryan Seacrest kept saying, it would “get back to seriousness” every now and then. First, brace-faced teen Malaya Watson was sent to a stool separate from the rest of the pack as the first member of the Bottom Three. About ten minutes later, she was somewhat surprisingly joined by MK Nobilette, who garnered some praise from the judges last night but was clearly out of her depth singing a big, gnarly showstopper. These two held hands with Kristen as they waited for Ryan to reveal their fates in the show’s closing moments.

About five seasons ago, Idol introduced the idea of the judges’ save, in which the judges (this season’s are Keith Urban, Jennifer Lopez and Harry Connick, Jr.) can save a contestant who’s mathematically been eliminated if they can agree to unanimously do it. They can only do it once a season. To no one’s surprise, they didn’t choose to save Kristen. While contestants who’ve been eliminated historically get to do an encore performance to say goodbye to the show and to the American public, they now do it before the judges make this decision (Ryan Seacrest kept using the phrase "sing for her life"). In pre-determined cases like Kristen’s, this thin, thin ray of hope for contestants gives us the awkward specter of someone singing with all their might for a “Yes” the judges aren’t going to give.

Other than the actual result everyone tuned in for, the show was pretty breezy. They probably could still condense it into 30 minutes and be that much more watchable, but it was enjoyable enough to tune in after I got off work, and to find I hadn’t missed much. I didn’t see so much as a wink of last season, so I was glad for a chance to see and hear incumbent winner Candice Glover. She has a strong, soulful voice, she just apparently had an album debut at #3 on the R&B charts, and she had to be a breath of fresh air (or a gasp of relief) for Idol’s producers after a parade of plain white guys (Phillip Phillips, Scotty McCreery, Lee DeWyze, Kris Allen) monopolized the Idol title in recent years. Brit Jake Bugg was an intriguing surprise; discovered by Keith Urban, the seventeen-year-old’s folk sound was super catchy. And I was surprised to see MK in the Bottom Three with Malaya and Kristen. Her performance last night was pretty bad, but the judges (and America) seemed to lap it up. This seems a bit premature, even for someone whose days on the show are, I believe, numbered (she’s the one contestant I’m confident in saying Kristen could out-sing).

By the way, the new feature of having a scrolling collage of pictures from the Facebook profiles of people who voted for the contestant who’s singing for their life (Kristen, in this case) is typical of the kind of uncomfortably-sentimental thing Idol does; meant to be sweet and meaningful, I took it as just more salt in an open wound as Kristen sang, in vain, for a judges’ “Yes”.

**Next week’s theme is, according to Seacrest, “Home”. What exactly that means, I don’t know (could all the contestants be asked to sing renditions of the Daughtry song by that name?).**

Finally, here are my Power Rankings of the remaining contestants—the TOP 12!

1. Majesty Rose-Adorable and intriguing, with a quietly-great all-around skill set, Majesty might be the most talented of the girls.
2. Alex Preston-He probably won’t win many votes for his looks, but this brilliant musician and his earnest, acoustic style have proven a breath of fresh air.
3. Caleb Johnson-I’m tempted to call him a man among boys. This season’s lone Rocker has the whole package: a killer voice, great stage presence, and a fiery personality.
4. Sam Woolf-He’s raking in the Adoring Female vote, and he’s talented, too. Sam’s a better musician than most 17-year-olds have any right to be; he just needs to liven up a little bit.
5. Ben Briley-Diverse, fiery, passionate; Ben’s performances aren’t always note-perfect, but he’s always worth watching and he’s never boring.
6. Jessica Meuse-She’s got the serious musician chops, and she’s convincing and effective with country and rock.
7. Dexter Roberts-Dexter stumbled with his karaOK performance this week, but his voting base clearly didn’t notice. THE most country-blooded contestant left is looking for a rebound.
8. Emily Piriz-She’s still best-known for her “ooh la la”-themed attempt at straight-up sex appeal, but a great vocal performance this week turned heads (and won my support).
9. Jena Irene-She’s got that interesting voice I’m still looking for adjectives for, plus she’s got some pipes and she can play the piano, too.
10. MK Nobilette-She doesn’t have much in the way of personality or great vocal range, but she’s easily-recognizable and has a fine voice for crooning. Growing truly comfortable-and bringing real energy-onstage will be a test, though.
11. CJ Harris-Everyone likes this guy, and he’s got a legitimately good voice, but he’s lucky, to say the least, at not even tasting the Bottom Three this week. He’s arguably the one guy remaining whose performances don’t qualify as can’t-miss.
12. Malaya Watson-In terms of actual vocal range, Malaya would be near (if not at) the top of this list, but she’s been swallowed whole by her nerves and hyperkinetic energy two weeks in a row now, and she barely escaped this week. She was standing next to Kristen when Kristen was eliminated; Malaya needs to calm down and let it flow if she doesn’t want to go next.