bluepiano

Howie is supposed to be the comedy expert, but Alex Hooper is nothing at all like Don Rickles. He's more like a cross between Rip Taylor and Richard Simmons. It's the first time I saw the Bello Sisters, so I don't know if they were just repeating themselves. Actually, I would say I still haven't seen the Bello Sisters, since the strobing lights and smoke effects completely hid them. I could tell they were women in (very) good shape, that's about it. They were probably not likely to go through over all the sob stories and "uplifting" messages, but bad stage design took away any chance they had. "People hate me because of how I dress" is the worst fake sob story ever. Where the heck is she from? Where I live, people would get more hate for wearing a nicely pressed suit.

I think I watched this episode in record time, since I fast forwarded through the boring singers and also most of the judges' comments. No point in listening, since every performer is "amazing," "super talented, "a star," and "best act of the night." I guess if you don't get a standing ovation that means they didn't like you? I feel like it's been years since a live performance got any kind of critical or even mildly negative review. The hip hop based dance crews are all running together in my mind. The mask wearing by the salsa dance group was ridiculous. Way to virtue signal. For that alone they should be eliminated. I want to watch this show for escapist entertainment. Not to see what I see when I walk out my front door. So Usama is going to make jokes about his name every time, like the comics who base their entire act around their stutter or physical disability? And funny how times have changed. 9/11 used to be considered a national tragedy. Now it's fodder for comedy. Sorry to be a downer, but I wonder if the families of the 9/11 victims think this stuff is funny. (The tramp joke was bad too. Bye bye dude). Drummer with his pre-recorded tracks was terrible. Again. I'm convinced the judges have no concept of what good drumming or real music is. Anything with a beat, right? Heidi, please stop "dancing." When Terry did the intro for Nolan Neal ("tragedy, "second chance in life" etc). I thought, wait, it's not time for Archie Williams to return yet. Sorry, if someone has success and every advantage and then screws up their life by getting into drugs, that's not a tragedy. That's a bad choice. Tragedy is when you are the victim of something outside your control, like being in a wheel chair because you were hit by a drunk driver. Please stop selling this guy on a contrived sob story. (Beyond that, I think he's an okay singer, but I can hear that kind of growly voice at any coffee shop open mic in my city. At least I could, pre-covid). I "played at home" with the mentalist, and my mental image was of a bus, not a smiley sun face. Wonder what that says about me? I actually enjoyed his act, but probably mostly because he wasn't a singer and there was no dance music. Starting with the mask wearing dancers, through the bad drumming, mediocre singing, the unfunny comedian, and the boring judges, this episode really put me in a foul mood.

But the sad thing is that Bello has not done well on AGT. Why would he even enter? He's certainly set himself up to be humiliated by losing to a bunch of amateurs, or marginal professionals. There have been some other seasoned professionals who have gone on this show, but they're built their careers in other countries, so it's worth it to them to get established in the US, and if they fail, it's not that big a deal. As for Bello, well, I once met him an a corporate event put on my then-employer. He had lots of attitude and was not liked by anyone who had to deal with him. So his lack of success on AGT is fine with me.

She's always come across as an intelligent, down-to-earth girl, not an entitled show biz brat. So after performing professionally since she was 10, as she gets into her later teen years it might be time to step away and experience a more normal life. Whatever she does, I hope she's happy. For me, she's always been a ray of sunshine and one of the three or four best winners of this show. She's also the exception to the rule about needing age minimums. (I still think they should have them).

I'm one of those people, and have been advocating a minimum contestant age for years, but it will never happen. This show is built around kid acts and sob stories. (And if you have a kid act who has a sob story, that's gold). As someone else mentioned, had Simon been there, he probably would've pushed through that lame dog act. There's never been a dog act, no matter its quality, that he didn't fight for. Voices of the City Choir and Bad Salsa were no-brainers for getting through. I think both will be there at the end, but Bad Salsa will likely finish fourth or fifth and the choir has a real shot at winning. It's all about the uplifting message, the sob stories, and the "diversity." I see no one this year who has the overwhelming talent (like Shin Lim) to beat that. (Anyone remember "talent," what this show is supposed to be about? It's right there in the show's title). Well, at least only 2 musical acts went through out of 5, instead of 4 out of 5 like last week. (Although you could argue that Double Dragon is as much a comedy act as a musical act). Even better, only one of the two kid singers went through. Some tough comments here on Darci Lynn. I agree that act was not up to her usual standards, but for me, a second rate Darci Lynn performance still beats anyone on the show this year. I do think that as she grows into young womanhood they may need to retool her act a bit. Some of the stuff that was adorable when she was 10 will not work the same way at 16. (I wonder if at some point she will step away from show business, or take an extended break and maybe reinvent herself. She's good enough to make it as a singer without the ventriloquism. I remember someone writing that she's the best kid singer AGT has ever had, even with her mouth closed). That was the second night in a row that I had to do a double take because I wasn't sure it was Heidi. She must be really bored. When they first showed her what flashed through my mind was 1970s Dyan Cannon..

Hate to say it, but that's been the case with every female judge they've ever had on this show, at least in the time I've been watching. (Mel B., Julia, Gabrielle). As soon as the music track starts they're out of their seats. It's like otherwise we might not know what cool, swinging chicks they are. Or else, maybe they don't get out much. Question? Is Sofia actually known for being a salsa dancer, because the other judges turned to her for "expert" commentary on Bad Salsa. Or is just the fact that she's from Columbia supposed to make her an expert? Ethnic stereotyping? (PS - Salsa was actually invented in New York City. Look it up). She came right out and said she was voting for Double Dragon because they're Latinas. I guess that "identity" voting is human nature, but it kind of rubbed me the wrong way a bit.

I know I've said this before, but that was the worst collection of "talent" I've seen on this show in years. Agree with SABER5055, the only act I found entertaining at all was Bad Salsa, and from what I've seen so far, I would be glad with them winning this whole thing. Briefly... Alexis - Getting by on cuteness. We've seen way better dog tricks before, and as someone else mentioned, the dogs are trained by her parents anyway. Sorry Howie, I thought the pigs were more entertaining. At least there's a novelty factor. Vinny Markus - WTF, virtually exact same act as first audition. Where was Simon to say that he didn't step it up? I expected something different this time, and assumed he can do other impressions, but maybe not? I think that's the difference between the real entertainment industry and social media. On social media you can have a huge following of people who will watch the same thing over and over. If he wants to reach a broader audience he will need to something besides imitate the same handful of rappers. (This time he didn't even have Terry telling people who they were). Jonathon Goodwin - I don't believe he actually had to pick those locks, which makes the whole trick a waste of time. Houdini he ain't. Bonavega - I actually found his first audition somewhat amusing, but that was terrible. His one legitimate talent seems to be playing the guitar, but he only did that for about 8 seconds. After his audition I called him "this year's Hans." Last night he didn't even reach that level of non-entertainment. Spyros Brothers - Guess I want them to go through just because it's not a singing act. Choir - Musically boring, but the uplifting social message and multi-racial membership guarantee them going through, and probably even being top 5 in the finals. From the first week of live performances we got 4 out of 5 singers. Will likely be something close to that again this week, even though I don't think any of the singers were very good. (And I especially dislike all kid singers on this show).

Has every GB this year gone to a POC? (including the mixed race San Diego choir). They kept saying that they've never had a spoken word artist on, but isn't that what rap is? It's certainly all about the words, and not the non-existent "music." My prediction is that his next piece will be about his baby daughter, and the kinder gentler Simon will gush all over. The "niceness" factor on the show this year is bordering on the nauseating, from all the judges, including Sofia. Several times this year contestants have been told "we love you" even before they start their act. When Simon said "the kids are taking over this year," I thought, yup, and that's my worst nightmare. According to the super nice judges, every kid is a "star," and an "amazing talent." The truth is, including this week's crop, most of them wouldn't even win a high school talent contest. The best this week (not saying much) was the 15 year country singer from Utah. She had a decent voice, but I wish she'd sung a cover, because the trend now is that kid singers perform original songs, and most are pretty bad. Every original song is the same, about how no one's going to stop me from achieving my dream of being a star. Well, most teens are self-absorbed I guess, but it's not very interesting to listen to. The woman comic did yet another variation on the "whites do it this way, blacks do it this way" routine that we've all seen so many times. (Anyone else remember Homer Simpson watching a comedy jam show and saying, "it's true, we're so lame.") She tried to soften it about by identifying her friends by names and not saying "white" and "black," but it's still the same bit. And apparently her National Anthem routine isn't even original. I agree with other posters that it was refreshing not to have the over-the-top screaming and applause for every act. I think it's a bit rough for the comedians, but I thought that judges were trying to make up for that laughing extra hard. Lots of sob stories as usual, though I have to say, a former Olympic athlete being paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair really is very sad. His wife seemed like a super lady and I wish them well. The unicyclist telling us about his grandmother dying of cancer was completely gratuitous. The harmonica bros were just okay. I know Topanga, where they're from, and for the most part it's very affluent. I get a vibe from a lot of the kid performers on this show that they come from privileged backgrounds. I got that sense about the other kid performers this week, except for the country singer. Simon is an idiot. Their version was a bit loungey, but that's a beautiful song. Considering that Simon made his fortune on boy bands singing "songs" that are three notes and a rhythm track I hardly think he's in a position to comment.

Last week I posted that I enjoyed the first audition show because of what we didn't see, including kid singers. This week they made up for that in spades. Yawn. In general it was back to the same old-same old for AGT - kid singers, kid dancers, a woman and her dog, sleight of hand magic, contortionist dancer, sob stories about bullying, sob stories about parents who don't want their kids in show biz etc. I dislike the kid singers because there is no way to avoid grading them on a curve. It's always, "he/she has an amazing voice for that age." Same with kid dancers, actually. The pair from Columbia seemed like sweet kids, but the whole act was really their facial expressions. The dancing was nothing special. (Unlike the Indian pair who I thought were great). The rock screamer who concluded the show is kind of this season's Hans. Though I actually think he has more talent. (Wish he'd done more on the guitar). This is going to sound nitpicky, and a bit personal, but it annoyed me when the comedian said he's only played bad gigs in bad bars. Doing those gigs is how you learn your craft. Did he expect to start his career headlining at Caesar's Palace? He came across to me as arrogant and entitled. I'm a professional musician, and I don't feel any gig is bad if you entertain even one person. (And having not been able to perform in months due to COVID I especially value every place I've ever played).

Simon's new line this year is "are you ready for two minutes that can change your life?" He said that before almost every act. How many people's lives are actually really changed by this show? A very tiny number. BAD Salsa did say they wanted to be able to go home and support their families, but that's only going to happen if they go all the way. Though I'm wondering if they are already successful in India. My guess is that they would've started with India's Got Talent. Even if they had won that, or some other Got Talent show, AGT wouldn't tell us, as they want it to see like every act is an unknown. I think that AGT is likely going to push the social media impersonator to show that they can connect with a younger audience. It's not my generation, so the whole social media performer thing is weird to me. I can't imagine a performer not wanting to get in front of a live audience and get that personal response. It's weird that his first live performance ever was in front of a giant audience. Didn't he ever think of doing an open mic or performing at a local club?

I wonder why the producers decided to go with the homeless choir for the final spot and GB. The guy who served 37 years for a wrongful conviction was a way more compelling and unique story, and I also thought he was a good singer. The choir was musically mediocre, but as someone else pointed out, last year Terry gave his GB last year to an inner city choir from Detroit that almost made it to the finals. I think we might see the same thing with the homeless group. They will get a lot of support because of the important social issue they're highlighting. Funny, until that last act I was thinking this was one of the better AGT shows in recent memory because of what we didn't have - no kid acts, operatic singers, old people dancing, or choirs. I thought the brother-sister Indian dancers were great. This year's V-Unbeatable on a much smaller scale? The Peruvian twins were fun but I don't see them lasting past their second appearance. Since I'm not into rap every voice that the impressionist did sounded the same to me. I guess I'm not the only one, because they had Terry telling us who everyone was. I've seen some amazing street drummers. That guy was not one of them, at least not from what we've seen so far. His act was all flash but with very little substance. I have a feeling that the pigs showed us everything they had, though they sure were cute. That giant pig has such an intelligent looking face. Made me not eat bacon for at least a whole day.

A win for the violin kid would really be a travesty. Not only is he not a prodigy, he flat out can't really play. It's all about the back story. They just pretend it's a talent contest. A lot of young singers make songs sad and depressing as a way to show that they're serious "artists." The little girl dog trainer seems very sweet. Not a great act, but it doesn't annoy me like Ryan Neimiller or Cancer Violin Boy, so that's something.

Funny, I feel the same way. A certain smugness? In addition to adding fire and nails, they upped the sex quotient, with her very tight little shorts. They also played the cuteness card, with the phone call from the daughter. Well, at least they didn't tell us to help the homeless. Silhouettes owned the socially redeeming message card. I fast forwarded through all of cancer kid and much of Duo Transcend, because it's the same act every time. So is Hans. And it wasn't entertaining the first time. V Unbeatable made the Star Wars dancers look pathetic. What a stupid act. Not being able to see their faces creates zero connection to the audience. Also hated that one guy (I assume) acting like he wanted to fight Howie. Did not like the 14 year old girl, with her all her meaningless runs. Don't get all the praise. Not even the best young girl singer they've had. I guess all you need to do to get a rave review from the female judges is play some dance music that gets them out of their seats. That's not exactly a talent. A win for V Unbeatable would the only thing that would somewhat redeem this terrible season. I can't imagine anyone else winning. But nothing surprises me on this show anymore. By the way, over the years viewers (at least the older ones) have remarked that AGT brings us the kind of variety acts we used to see on Ed Sullivan. I'm watching reruns of old Ed Sullivan shows now on cable, and darned if there wasn't a "Russian Bar" act. (Of course they didn't call it that). There was a guy who I actually remembered from when I was a kid, who laid on back and juggled things with his feet. Amazing. Have never seen that on AGT.

Agree with others who said this was easily the best night so far, despite some really bad acts. (Romanian dancer - I guess he won RGT because enough Romanians wanted to make a social statement, but the actual dancing was pretty boring. Even in high heels. And the anonymous background dancers did all the exact same moves! UK rappers were like some act you'd see in the mall atrium. You have to be pretty bad as teen boy music act if even Simon doesn't like you). But despite it being a mostly entertaining night, in the end I was disappointed by who went through. Silhouettes - yet another "storytelling" act designed to tug at your heartstrings, and for me they all run together. The little kid "comic" made me cringe. Like being at someone's house for dinner when they trot out their precocious child to entertain and you have to grit your teeth and smile. (Though I admit would rather watch him then Ryan Neimier.) BKJ made a great WTF face when Howie gave him his vote. Sorry BKJ, you had no chance with Cancer Violin Kid already in the semis. I get that what the Russian Barre act does takes skill, but you know it's going to be the exact same thing every time. I can't believe I'm saying this, because I am usually anti-singer on AGT, but I enjoyed listening to the British girl and would've been happy to hear her again. I was really surprised she wasn't even in the top 6 "Superfan" voting. They do seem to like singers a lot less than the regular voting public. Pretty, good voice, plays piano, former child contestant - I thought she was a shoo in. I was pleasantly surprised that the contortionist went through. Back stories usually make me groan, but getting arrested 13 times while hiking through the jungle to Cameroon is definitely a first. People from other parts of the world do have to overcome obstacles that it's hard for us to imagine. As opposed to the usual AGT sob story of "my parents got divorced" or "I was bullied in middle school." (Like half the population).

Considering Cancer Violin Boy got a standing ovation from the judges just for walking on stage there was zero doubt he'd go through. That's why I cringed when I saw him. I knew we'd be stuck with him for awhile. Same with Ryan Neimeir. Two judges' pets who I found entertaining.. And they're back so soon. There should at least be a rule about having to wait three years before being on Champions. Otherwise I just feel like I'm watching reruns. Especially in the case of these two because their acts are literally exactly the same at every performance. At least the international acts I don't know, but they've been almost uniformly unimpressive. That Italian guy won? Really? Hard to believe. And I like harmonica playing. Toots Thielemans he wasn't. What a dog this season has been. Except for the dog act. They at least gave me a smile.

Oz's trick was amazing and I totally can't see how it was done. He got jobbed because the other magician pulled in Shin Lim and anything to with Shin Lim is going to be a winner on AGT. I didn't think the trick was impressive at all, and I hated the stupid mask and robotic voice. Are these really the best acts they could come up with? The first two shows have been boring and I don't have any hope things will improve. Too many of the acts that were on AGT are way too recent. I don't need to hear Ryan talking about his hands again. I got enough of that last time. It feels like it was just a few months ago. He's always been a darling of Simon and Howie and the producers. Seems like a nice guy, but "comedy" on AGT pretty much means someone talking about their disability. Or if you're a woman, how unattractive you are. Agree with guy who said he doesn't get Puddles. Sings sad songs in clown make-up. It's a gimmick that gets old. Speaking of gimmicks, the same hip hop dances moves we've seen a hundred times become GB worthy because people are wearing Star Wars suits? Huh? To repeat myself, people should not be allowed to use Shin Lim in their act on any version of AGT. That should be a rule.

Hans really has no talent. Can't sing. Can't dance. Hey, it's 2020, is acting like a cliched flamboyant "queen" really so amazing it gets you the semifinals of this show? More little girl singers getting Golden Buzzers. Snore.

Kodi Lee was doing a lot of performing in clubs before America's Got Talent. This show didn't invent him.

The officially sanctioned or sponsored pages for these shows are always for the people who have been drinking the Kool Aid.

Every year there is a Chosen One. This year it was Dorian. What any of the contestants actually cook is irrelevant. The winner has been decided before the cooking even starts.

I probably shouldn't speak for someone else, but I'm guessing what was meant is that the choir from Detroit finished runner-up while the choir from Africa, WAY more talented, collectively and individually, didn't make the top 5. And that V Unbeatable, from India, a WAY better act than the DYC, finished two spots lower than them. Xenophobia is about nationalism, not race, so as Kodi and the veteran's group were Americans, the word doesn't apply there. But it would apply to favoring a group from Detroit over a group from Zimbabwe. I do agree with you that DYC had no business being in the finals. I didn't even think they deserved to be in the second round. As someone who lived for several years in Detroit, I can tell you that there is a certain amount of "urban decay chic" attached to the city, mostly from people who have never been there. And AGT certainly played up the sympathy angle, so you could feel good about yourself by voting for the plucky kids from the ghetto.. (Actually, Detroit is not the hell on earth it's often made out to be, and it's a surprisingly interesting place to visit. Some amazing architecture and beautiful old theaters left over from the era when, thanks to the early automotive pioneers, it was one of America's wealthiest cities).

From what I know I would say she's certainly talented, but there are some technical deficiencies, not unexpected in someone so young. There are reasons that you don't see people singing in major opera companies until they are much older. Which brings us back to the inescapable fact that as long as you have contestants so young they are always going to be graded on a curve. A 25 year old professional who sings at the Metropolitan Opera would get a big ho-hum if he/she went on this show. (Of all the kid performers on this show, I feel that Darci Lynn was the only one who was so talented that they didn't need to be graded on a curve. Her act was great for a performer at any age.) What you said verifies what I've always felt, that despite this show's obsession with singers it's given us a really weak crop over the years. Regarding the tour idea,, I don't think this show has the kind of dedicated following that Idol has had, at least in the past. I can't imagine many people actually buying tickets if an AGT touring show came to their town.

Ndvolu Youth Choir sang "Africa" because they're from Africa. Detroit Youth Choir rapped because they're from Detroit. If that helps you keep it straight.

That sums up the season. It wasn't a talent competition, it was about saving the world. Or inspiring us to better people. Or have more empathy for poor/downtrodden people. There's certainly no other way to account for the Detroit Youth Choir being in the finals. Among others. My favorite all year has been Kodi Lee, who I think is a huge talent, independent of his disabilities, but his best performance of the year was his first one, "A Song For You." It's almost like after that he "was playing not to lose," because the song choices were safe and boring. Early in the season someone posted that he does a killer version of "Bohemian Rhapsody" and would probably save that for the final. I personally don't ever need to hear that song covered again, but wish he'd done something fun and upbeat tonight. Maybe his advisors thought it would cost him votes if he sounded happy? I just hope he didn't blow it last night. I was disappointed that Ryan went back to doing an entire routine about his arms, and it bugged me that he used part of his "act" time to beg for votes. To me that was not cool, even with the "hate crime" joke. So Emanne is literally an angel? Sorry, I didn't hear that she died. Wow, that was some crazy commentary from the judges. Especially Gabrielle, who was screaming at me all night. I previously wrote that nothing could ever make me want Mel B. back. I may now be rethinking that. If Tyler B-F was busking on the street or in the subway I would be entertained for at least 30 seconds.. But please, he really does not play the violin that well. Even for a kid. Light Balance Kids do the same act week after week, and I've never found them entertaining. I also believe they shouldn't be on the show, because it's really just a second chance for their parents, who obviously do everything except the actual dancing. Which isn't that great anyway. Benicio Bryant is so musically not my cup of tea that it's hard to for to comment. But I will say that he's as far from being a "Vegas Act" as any finalist I can remember.