bluepiano

There's always been a double standard that favors singers. Magicians, acrobats, and variety acts are always being told that no matter how great their audition was, they need to "step it up." And then if they go to the next round, "step it again." A singer just has to sing another song. It's not like they get told, "if you go through, next time I want you to sing standing on your head." They don't even get asked to sing a song in a different genre. It can be see the same thing, week after week. (See "Vanderwaal, Grace") Simon (who we all know has final say) had his own huge double standard this week. He was so hard on everyone except the singers and dancers, and the dog act. (which even he admitted was amateurish). I was floored that both kid dance acts went through. For me, easily the best "underage" performer was the magician, who I thought was polished and confident for a 14 year. But for some reason this year, they are down on magicians, along with the variety acts. It's like they really want the live shows to be all singers and dancers. (plus dogs). The kid dance team has to be one of the worst acts to ever make the lives. Yes, we get it. He's black, she's white, but they don't notice the difference. Okay, I'm inspired. The whole world should be that way. Agreed. But I never want to see them twirl around the stage again. I was surprised that Maxim Popazov didn't go through, and I still think his wife is amazing, even if she didn't "step it up" from her audition. (Sexist comment alert - As a hetero male, I would rather see her walk across the stage in that skin tight gold outfit then see that 14 year kid do the same popping robot act that you can see a kid doing at any mall for spare change). It's been a dismal season, and I will likely be fast forwarding through about 80% of the live shows to see the occasional non-singing or dancing act. (And I agree, all the Golden Buzzers this year were predetermined).

Simon was right. He did an imitation of Joe Cocker's version of the song, like something you'd see at a "Legends of Rock" tribute show. I couldn't tell you if Herbie can sing or not, because I didn't hear him sing as himself. It was a bad choice of song, and then a worse choice to sing it like Cocker and not show any personal style. When he said he'd be shot out a canon "over a helicopter" I pictured the helicopter as hovering in the air. Was that thing even off the ground? The helicopter was a complete non-factor. He might as well have been shot over a parked Mini Cooper. A good example of the judge's inconsistency and hypocrisy is how negative and even rude they were to the limbo dancer, after they loved her initial audition. Yes, she was basically doing the same thing, but it still takes amazing skill. While the dancing dude jumped around and wiggled his butt at the camera the first time, then came back and jumped around and wiggled his butt at the camera some more, and the judges said he "really stepped it up." The only thing different was that he hiad some back-up dancers in skimpy outfits, but his dancing was the same. This business of "stepping it up" is a joke. It's just what they use to keep or cut the people they like. Not looking forward to the steady parade of singers, mostly little girls, in the live shows. When America's voting the "cuteness" factor becomes really hard to overcome. (Witness Grace Van Der Waal). We could end up with a final of mini-Celine vs. kidney transplant girl. Yikes.

Yeah, the moment she walked on the stage I said to myself, Golden Buzzer. That's how freakin' predictable this show is. Has every GB this year gone to a young girl singer (with or without sob story). The guest judges seem to especially like the idea of being the kindly benefactor of one of these moppets. The mini-Celine Dionne and her parents creep me out, and in the "backstage" segment when she was saying to that 12 year old, "you've got this, don't be nervous," it hit me that her parents have already aged her well beyond her years. And speaking of age, why all the drama about a 12 year old being eliminated? "Keep singing, don't give up." Really, a 12 year is going to give up because she didn't make the live shows on AGT? And when she said, "my career isn't over," I thought to myself, "what career?" Was sorry to see the French twins montaged, because it meant they weren't going through, and their audition was one of my favorite of the season. I liked subway singer Mike the first time, but this was just terrible. His showboating was over-the-top, so completely different from the sweet, natural soul voice we heard in his audition. I be someone told him he needed to "step it up" to impress the judges. Sadly, they were right. If he sang that way on the subway, everyone would move to the other end of the car. Preacher is talented, but his act feels like he's working from a computerized composite of every successful young black comedian. And my personal taste is not for comedians who act like they're completely confident everything they do is hilarious. Let the audience decide that. Not sure why people see the incest vibe with the brother-singer roller skating act. We've seen brother-sister dance and acrobatic teams. It makes total sense that siblings who grew up performing together would want to continue to work together, rather than try to find a new partner. Yes, the woman is really hot, but that doesn't mean the guy sees her as anything other than his sister. And I thought their act was amazing. We see so many acts who that what they're doing is dangerous, even potentially lethal, and it just feels like part of their patter. But that woman's head was inches (if that) from hitting the floor on every rotation, and at a speed that would've caused major head trauma. With Bella Knock, on the other hand, I never felt like he was in any kind of danger. Totally don't get why the judges like the big dancing dude so much. For me it was one-time novelty act, a fun surprise because it wasn't what we expected. But the surprise is gone, and truthfully he's not a good dancer. My sense is that by putting him through the judges are trying to make some kind of statement. But I'm not sure about what.

Agreed, If I had not seen Matthew in past episodes I would've thought, wow, this show finally did find an actual potential star. The truth is, he's been far and away the most consistent contestant, in terms of both presentation and food. He's aced some camera challenges that nearly everyone else crashed and burned on. Now that there are three left, it's going to take some really major screw-up for him not to win. Of course, considering how scripted this show is, that could be what they're setting up. Matthew thinks he has it in the bag and then gets crushed by stumbling at the finish line. (Karmic payback). In addition to Amy being a scatter-brain with no presentation skills, this week I had a really hard time understanding her. Where did that Valley Girl accent suddenly come from? Like you said, way past her shelf life. And so is Rusty. He was equally awful this week. In fact, this week's show screamed for a double elimination. This last in the season and he doesn't know better than to say "I got stuck with hot dogs and potatoes." And with his pronouncing cloche as "cloak," I now believe that he really did think "buongiorno" was French. Slightly off topic, but which "Ben's" deli were you referencing? There's a deli in Queens called "Ben's Best" that I grew up going to, and I even played on a Little League team they sponsored. It's still there, and was cited in a New York Times article last year as one of the last remaining neighborhood delis in New York, a dying breed. (Katz's is different, because it's become a tourist attraction. The last time I was in NY there was a line out the door and down the block).

Thanks to you guys for providing the phonetic spelling that I didn't dare attempt.

What his accent and speech pattern reminds me of (and this is an obscure reference) is the little southern girl on the old Shake'n'Bake commercials who said "And I helped."

And of top of all that, I hate when a 16 year old says, "I've been waiting for this my whole life."

Wow, so disgusted by tonight's show. Yet another completely mediocre singer gets a golden buzzer. I guess the guest judges feel they have to give their GB to a singer. The two girls who got put through in the last judging segment were both so boring I changed the channel during their acts. (Hate that we see all the singer's performances, but almost everyone else is montaged or gets about 40 seconds). Puddles also bored me tonight. He's a good singer but not a great singer, and the whole sad singing clown bit was for me a one-time joke. I did not need to see it again. And again. And Mirror Image? Are you freakin' kidding me? They're like a Gong Show act. Their singing and dancing (if you can call it that) are high school talent show level. Counting Puddles and Mirror Image as singers, 5 out of tonight's 7 spots went to singers. And not one of them is remotely special. I really believe that people watch this show to see the variety acts, but maybe because Simon Cowell made his fortune on American Idol, they keep shoving these mediocre (or juvenile) singers down our throats. I did think that the brother-sister salsa duo were better the first time, but was just happy to see a non-singing act go through. From the very short clip we saw, the comedian who did the routine about the answering machine was pretty funny. I thought he and the magician who did the trick with the torn out page both deserved to go through. The most entertaining act of the night for me was The Quiddlers. That showed way more originality than any of the singers. And that young guy from Miami (I believe his name was Samuel) sang circles around any of the singers who went through., While dancing way better than Mirror Image. That kind of music is not my thing, but if the show is called America's Got Talent, his talent was off the charts. But he's not a young, cute blonde girl, so sorry dude. Thoroughly disgusted.

Over the years, the "moms" on those show have always made a point of telling us what they make for their kids. But I'm a grown-up, so why should I care? Most kids don't exactly have developed culinary tastes. Until my son was about 16, he would've been happy to eat nothing but peanut butter sandwiches and hamburgers every day. In his defense, it's much more commonly used in the south, where it's meant more in friendliness than condescension. (Not that he doesn't overuse it). And of course, a female waitress calling male customers "hon" is part of diner tradition. It amuses me how even 20 something hipster waitresses do that. Keeping the tradition alive.

All the online/snap chat stuff seems like a desperate attempt to make the show feel hip and "relevant." And it's why they brought back Matthew, whose shtick is that he's Mr. Social Media. I think you mean Rusty, not Randy, but I totally agree about all the shouting. Yet, the judges and guest judges constantly praise him for that, because it shows "enthusiasm." His shouting wears me out after about half a minute. Agree also about Amy. Her "quirkiness" doesn't come across as natural. It feels like something she's doing to make herself different. In a few years she'll no doubt be the mom who embarrasses her kids by trying to be "cool." I remember reading a few years ago that Giada's show was popular viewing at college frat houses, and you can guess why. She's still a very attractive woman, but at this point in her life the ever escalating display of cleavage reeks of desperate attention seeking. And though I can't find the quote, a thousand thumbs up to what someone previously posted about the last thing America needs is a show celebrating gluttony. FN already does enough of that, with their travel shows featuring people stuffing themselves with sugar and fried foods, and all the BBQ competitions. Funny how almost every year on FN Star there's someone with a POV like "make healthier versions of favorite foods," but they never go very far. It's not what FN is about.

I was thinking that FN was pumping up Amy because they wanted to keep a woman contestant around, but now I'm being gripped by the frightening idea that she could actually win this. Of the remaining contestants, she's probably the one the FN brass thinks could most likely connect with their audience. No doubt FN is watched by a lot of stay-at-home moms who are trying to cook something more creative than meat and potatoes for their husband and kids. They may think that she would be entertaining in a frazzled sit-com wife sort of way. Like an episode of "I Love Lucy" come to life. I'll know that they really want Amy to win if the next challenge is, "your husband just called and he's bringing the boss home for dinner. You have one hour to cook a meal that will get your husband a raise, using ingredients you have around the house." I believe you may be right about Alex. Because nothing scream that you're (I mean "your") an out-of-touch old fart like correct grammar.

Did it seem to anyone else that every time one of the contestants said "ginormous" there was a shot of Giada's "girls" spilling out of her dress? Maybe that's just my level of immaturity. Or the editor's. (New show title: "Giadanormous Foods.") In this new texting/tweeting word, "your" saves two characters over "you're," and you can type it that much faster. I see this in work emails I get from people who definitely know the difference. It's a combination of laziness and trying to do everything as quickly as possible. Soon, contractions will be a thing of the post. It's too much of a hassle to enter an apostrophe.

Another reason Amy should have been gone long ago is that she ends every presentation by stuffing food in her mouth, then having half of it dribble down her chin. It's gross. How can you respect someone as a "food authority" when they eat like a kindergartner. But the fix was obviously in from the beginning to get Amy to the finals. This episode was actually the first time all season that her presentation was semi-coherent. But Cory has one bad week and he's gone. Well, maybe as a lot of people are posting, the script is for him to return and "redeem" himself. And not to sound like too much of a bleeding heart, but I can't help think about all the people in the world who are lucky to eat one meal while these bozos gorge themselves for no real purpose other than "entertainment." Arguably you can say that about other FN shows that waste food, but the "ginormous food" thing is really over-the-top piggishness.

FN Star keeps alive its string of never having the best chef win this thing. Well, in reality, actually being a great chef or having "food authority" has not been a requirement for getting a show on FN for years now. They're just hiring people that they think will appeal to viewers (or "celebrities") and giving them scripts to read. This episode was about building up Amy, because since she was the one woman left they didn't want people to see her as a laughing stock. I guess saying that you're a mother and mentioning your kids ages qualifies as telling a personal story? She could go on to win this thing and I still wouldn't see her as anything but a competent home cook. The whole "ginormous food" thing is symbolic of the dumbing down of Food Network. It doesn't show any skill or creativity to take a dish and "supersize it." It's just gross. The bearded hipster dude who hosts their ginormous food show, and the new "Man vs. Food" host are more of the big, sloppy dude in flannel shirt type that FN thinks people want to watch. Every year FN Star gives us at least one and usually several of those. This year's version is Rusty. Here's an idea for a new FN show. It's a variation of Next Food Network Star, but all the contestant are big sloppy dudebros. It would be called "The Next Guy Fieri."

That pretentious. phony way she made "fire" into three syllables, sung with some kind of weird accent, is another reason I hate all these little girls singing grown-up sings, with no idea what the lyrics mean. It's supposed to be cute, but I find it creepy. Let these little kids have a childhood, instead of turning them into singing bots. So pretty much every golden buzzer has gone to some precocious little girl singer. It's become a cliché on this show. Only singing moppets need apply. Simon must've pushed really hard for Sarah and Hero, because it was better than the first time but still not great. The old Simon definitely would've said "this is not a million dollar act." But I don't feel bad about her going through, because I'm a dog person, and because the girl seems like a lost soul who needs something positive in her life. The young Australian singer is super talented, but I agree with Simon that his first performance was better. His version of The Queen sing felt like a bag of vocal tricks designed to impress the judges. I was pleasantly surprised that neither the Argentinian opera singer or the nerdy Harvard comic went through, because both got tons of praise from the judges, and lots of camera time.. I'm glad the opera singer didn't go through because they never mentioned that he's a seasoned professional performer, and I just didn't think that the comic's routine about the guy being hit by lightning was even vaguely funny. It was like bad Seinfeld Lite. I was actually more entertained by the "Make some noise-good job" guy. That Dancing Pumpkin Man's YouTube video has something like 17 millions hits makes me worry about the future of civilization. And that's one of the worst escape acts they've had on the show. Is it just going the be the same every week? The wife fakes pretending her husband's been injured or killed, and then he shows up as one the rescuers. Boring. Does anyone else think that Singing Trump looks more like actor Lloyd Bridges than Trump?

Well, Giada was, being all cutesy and flirty. Barf. While Bobby was acting like the cool dude, who doesn't want to let on to any of his bros that he "likes" a girl.

I agree, total BS. Anne said that David's shrimp and grits was delicious. If Bobby beat him it was by a hair. Amy couldn't even cook her steak properly. They obviously needed to keep a woman around for another week. (at least). From the start David has been one of those obvious "Tier Two" contestants with no chance of winning, but I still don't like him going out under bogus circumstances. Amy actually keeps getting worse. She's verging on being a parody of the ditsy housewife. It's like "Lucy" is competing on FN Star. I know FN wants to keep a female around, but she's hardly any shining example of female empowerment. And one of her husband's favorite dishes is steak? There's a shocker. A man liking steak. But she managed to make it "personal," so points for her. (I can't believe that FN Star has gone back to "tell us a story" for every dish.) I don't believe that Matthew hadn't heard of coq au vin, because I see him as having been a pretentious little kid who learned all the names of classic French dishes so that he could impress people. Nothing about FN this year is believable. It all feels scripted.

Another thing that struck me about Brandon was that even with his talent and love of music, he went out and did something with his life. We've seen other performers on this show, with less talent than that, who act like the world owes them a living as a singer.

But that's the problem. This show has always had a huge dose of "Queen for a Day." (One of the earliest shows I remember watching as a little kid) But her act was singing "Summertime," so arguably she was still a singer. Ditto what others have said about the girl who got Heidi's Golden Buzzer. Nothing special at all. Might not have even gotten a char turn on The Voice. Apparently now Golden Buzzers are reserved for young girl singers, especially those with sob stories. And none of the ones who got it this year were really that special. (Neither was Grace der Vaal, IMO) I could've done without that growl at the end, but otherwise I thoroughly enjoyed Mike Yung. He has a classic soul voice, and he sang with real feeling, while avoiding the vibrato and other vocal tricks we see so much of on this show. Mel's dislike of him seemed almost personal. I feel like there was something else going on, because otherwise I can't understand how she could hold him to such a high standard when she goes nuts over some really crappy acts. (ie Dancing Pumpkin Man). I've known a few people who performed in the subways, and if you have the physical and emotional stamina to be out there all day, you can make a living. You won't get rich, but remember, it's a cash business. No taxes. If I had not known that Brandon Rogers had passed away, I think I still would've liked his singing. And I definitely still would've been impressed by him as a person. He had a great life ahead of him. So sad. Thank you for the info that it was a wind machine, because I kind of didn't get what was going on. And I feel bad for the people who get put through but because they only show an edited clip we never get to hear their name. But we hear the names of a lot of bad acts who don't get through. I think I would've rather watching that pole dancing "Godzilla" (show in a montage) then the pole dancing school administrator.

The way Addie said that made me feel sorry for her. Really, was she beaten if she ever showed any enthusiasm? Clearly she is way too controlled a person to ever provide the "personality" FN looks for. As soon she said in her usual flat monotone "I have to be a lot more fun" I know she was history. Lucky for Amy, because she was pretty terrible also. Like Addie, she has some clear limitations, but she may last another week or two just avoid it becoming all guys. Were Addie, Amy, Kao, Middle Eastern Momma, and NASA Granny really the best female contestants they could find? That's pretty sad. Rusty's supposed charm continues to elude me. It feels like he's playing a character, the big ole loud southern boy who's really a teddy bear underneath, and for me it registers as being calculated and phony. More so that Jason's homespun shtick, which he's been called out for yet, yet the judges (especially Giada and the female guest judges) seem to totally buy in to Rusty. I still don't think he has a chance to win, but no doubt he and Jason will be added to the FN roster of recurring guest judges/contestants. I believe this is Cory's to lose. His food has been consistently excellent, and he's got the smallest downside of anyone remaining. David is my pick for saying "adios" next week.

I just watched that part again, and Cao said that bombing her demo reminded her of when she froze doing stand-up comedy. Yeah, hard to fathom, but I image it was in front of an audience of hipsters who were similarly energy-challenged. I have worked with a few millennials who have that same flat affect. I had to learn not to take it personally when it felt like everything I said bored them to tears. Amy was also a hot mess, especially when she finished her presentation by stuffing a wad of food into her mouth, much of which ended up on her chin. Giada (of the teeny tiny bites) must've been horrified. I imagine that Martha Jr. was too, by the breach of etiquette. A couple of people on this forum have said they have trouble telling Amy and Addie apart, but to me their polar opposites. Addie is Ms. Perfect, while Amy wears rumpled t-shirts and always seems a bit buzzed. I can see her being the "fun mom" who amuses the neighborhood kids while embarrassing her own. I think Addie will make the finals because they will want one female, but I can't imagine her winning. FN does not seem to me to cater to the Martha Stewart crowd. And I believe you're right that Jason won't win either but will be active on the FN guest judge circuit.

The order of elimination this season continues to be completely predictable. Each week we know the person whose time has come. This week it was Cao. Next to go has to be Amy. She was so frenzied and frazzled and seemingly in over her head. Well, at least she had some entertainment value, compared to Cao, who has been sleep walking through the entre season. (Early on the judges were talking about her being "charming" but I never saw that). And Amy's inappropriate comments (like the one about calling child protective services) have added a little spice to an otherwise boring season. That's actually why (I know I'm in a small minority here) I hope Matthew stays around. At least getting annoyed at him is keeping me awake during this snooze of a season. (Addie is another one who puts me to sleep). Maybe that's the reason for Giada's judge's table outfit. She was trying to wake people up.

I thought Sirqus Alfon's act showed a lot more creativity than the video projections on Heidi that the judges (including Simon) went nuts for. I was one of several people posting last week about AGT lying to make professional performers seem like undiscovered amateurs hoping to escape from their mundane day jobs. Sorry to hear that with the opera singing cab driver they're at it again. I wonder if these people legitimately try out and then the producers come up with the phony baloney story, or if they're recruited from the beginning. When the Popazovs said they live in Vegas, that's one way of making it clear that they're already a performing professional act. I liked both of them, though as a guy I have to say I enjoyed watching Maria a lot more. (Sexist I know. But there's a double standard on this show, where Heidi and Mel ogle the muscular male dancers or acrobats and say things like "you're really hot" or "my favorite part was when you took your shirt off." The male judges have always kept those kinds of thoughts to themselves in order not to be accused of crossing the line.) When the sheriff was dancing, did anyone else think he looked like one of the Village People?

Thanks, because I felt the same way about Johnny Manuel and thought I was alone. I admit it's not my style of song or singing, but I also thought he was on the same level as a lot of the r&b singers who go on The Voice, so really not that special. I was also pretty quickly bored with the projections on the white body suit. For me it was another example of the judges going overboard and praising an act as the most amazing, creative thing ever, when there were have been many similar acts over the years. And I found the whole behind the scenes "mysterious geniuses" thing to be juvenile and dumb. Also, how could Heidi not have been in on it in advance, as they needed to create that leotard to fit her perfectly. You don't buy those off the rack. The "pirate dog" act was kind of sweet, because she obviously had a great relationship with the dog, and they seemed to be real partners, unlike your typical dog act. But her breakdown and Simon's pleading were uncomfortable. Overall I thought the singing acts were good, maybe because none of them were kids. It was a pleasure not to hear squeaky, cracking voices followed by way over the top praise from the judges. I liked the quartet from Atlanta and the trio of "older gentlemen." My only quibbles are that "It's a Man's World" is one of those songs done to death on competition shows, and I thought that brining in the Civil Rights movement and the death of Dr. King as the reason their act never took seemed inappropriate.

Back in Queens, where I'm from, we would add, "I got your beef jerky right here."