The other contestant this week who seemed pretty much resigned to an unhappy fate was Jason Yeager, who ended his performance of ''Long Train Runnin' '' on Tuesday with his head down and arms stretched outward, almost as if he were expecting to be crucified by Randy and Simon and wanted to get it over with as quickly as possible. A reader named Motown said that the male judges' ''personal insults to the underdog performers'' like Jason were so over-the-top the last two weeks that they've been ruining his enjoyment of the show.
On the flip side, a reader named Nan held the Yeagermeister himself accountable for marring Tuesday night's festivities. ''Jason Y. reminds me of an out-of-work Vegas lounge singer,'' she wrote. ''His demeanor, his grin, his creepy staring straight at the camera...it all has got to go. I see him, and I see white patent-leather shoes and a gaudy plaid polyester suit, paired with gold chains and a faux Rolex. He's the epitome of 'when lounge goes bad.' Seriously.''
The hilariously named Asia'hhhhhhhhhhhhh agreed: ''Jason Y. suffered from the same problem Colton did last week, singing a song like Long Train Runnin' with a big ole grin on his face. Read the lyrics! Passion, people!!''
Jason wasn't alone, however, in his ability to stir up rancor among EW.com readers. This week's second man to get expelled from the semifinals, ''Rocker'' Robbie Carrico (who also sported a black bandanna, emblazoned with hardcore skulls!), inspired a rather amusing rant from a reader named Ahoy: ''I hate Robbie for singing that dated Foreigner song. (BTW, did anyone else think he still kind of looked like a pirate?) I'm supposed to be sending this project out at work and I have 'I'm hot blooded! Check it and see!' playing over and over in my head.''
But don't feel too bad for Robbie. If, as he contended all season, he is truly a rock & roller at heart, he can at least rest easy in the knowledge that he'll never have to participate in another soul-destroying results-night sing-along with his fellow contestants. Truly, tonight's was so off-the-rails awful that instead of devoting another sentence to it, I will offer my two favorite reader comments about current Idol golden boy David Archuleta.
The first is courtesy of message-board regular DJM: ''David A did make a good choice in changing up the arrangement of 'Imagine.' Singing it straight would have been beyond cheesy. Still, I have no doubt after the 'aw shucks' routine and the cameras turn off, he's all, 'That's right MF-ers! That's how I roll!' ''
And our second David comment comes from a reader called No One Puts David in the Corner: ''Even my 18-month-old loves David A. Every time he comes on, she points to the TV and says 'Baby!' When he's done, she claps and yells 'More, more!' She doesn't do it for any of the other contestants.''
And on that note, riddle me this: Does anyone out there believe that Sony released the rights to the Lennon-McCartney songbook this season because of the strength of the current crop of contestants (as Ryan would have us believe)? Also, who else is loving the way David Hernandez spontaneously busts a move at every opportunity? And have you all noticed how Ryan and the judges are using the show intro to defend Idol against criticism from fans? (Last week we had Paula sticking up for semi-pro constestants; this week Randy pimped on behalf of theme nights during the semifinals.)
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