S15.E21: Top 3 Perform

[Biggie B]

I think Trent has a great voice but I can't watch him. There's something about his mannerisms when he performs that turn me off completely.

 

For me, it's that his eyes are set too close together. It really disturbs me. I feel as if they are almost touching!! If I get a glimpse of him in profile, it's OK, but 99% of the time, he's not in profile and then I get all creeped out by his almost-Cyclops eyes. 

[Archery]

Scott Borchetta is an a**hole.  Look at Bette Midler's performance of Stay With Me, which was featured in the movie The Rose.  How are you gonna watch and listen to this woman two weeks ago pour out her soul telling how she escaped an abusive relationship and then give her a desperate, pathetic begging song?? Are you kidding me?! Go to hell, Scott.  You suck.  Her response was perfect, just laughing and saying, I just had to sing the daggone song.  She made him look small.  Which  he is.  Dick. 

 

I think it's hilarious that Trent's songs were basically about booze.

 

I would be totally satisfied with either a La'Porsha or a Trent win. I really can't choose between the two.  Guyliner Owl City, though, I can't take.  

[Tara Ariano]

In case you missed it, here's the Previously.TV post on the episode!

 

American Idol Cuts Down To Its Final Top Three
As usual, the wrong person goes home because America makes bad choices for bad reasons.

[Stratego]

From AI's website:

 

In addition to superstars Clarkson and Underwood, Thursday’s final episode will have all-star performances by former IDOLs, including Fantasia, Ruben Studdard, Taylor Hicks, Jordin Sparks, David Cook, Kris Allen, Lee DeWyze, Scotty McCreery, Candice Glover, Caleb Johnson, Nick Fradiani, Allison Iraheta, Amber Holcomb, Blake Lewis, Bo Bice, Bucky Covington, Brandon Rogers, Casey James, Carly Smithson, Chris Daughtry, Clark Beckham, Clay Aiken, Colton Dixon, Constantine Maroulis, Danny Gokey, Diana DeGarmo, Elliott Yamin, Ace Young, George Huff, James Durbin, Jessica Sanchez,  Joshua Ledet, Justin Guarini, Katharine McPhee, Kellie Pickler, Kimberley Locke, Kree Harrison, LaToya London, Lauren Alaina, Melinda Doolittle, Pia Toscano, Sanjaya, Skylar Lane, Tamyra Gray and more

So, P2 is still "on the outs" with the AI gang?

[Rick Kitchen]

So, P2 is still "on the outs" with the AI gang?

 

Lawsuits will do that to a relationship.

[drafan]

In addition to his Princess Diana tilt head down and look up from under my lashes routine, did he drop the last word of his song (Everybody Wants to Rule the World) again or did I just lose interest by the end? Hmmm...those things aren't mutually exclusive.

 

OMG...this made me LOL so hard. I was also picturing the big shoulder pads that went with that "Shy Di" look.

 

So, P2 is still "on the outs" with the AI gang?

So no P2 on the finale??? Total SCORE!!! Was not looking forward to watching him shuffle, mumble, and wince.

[27bored]

I've always wondered about the contract aspect of this show. A lot has been written about the restrictive aspect of the contracts they sign. On one hand, it doesn't seem that bad given the overall lack of high-profile contract disputes. On their other hand, it seems like whenever someone does fight back, they usually win or at least get released.

I think some of that had a chilling affect in the show as well. 19E hooked up with Interscope who didn't want to spend a buck promoting the Idol winners, and that made the show lose its luster a bit as a star maker. Big Machine might be better, we'll have to see what happens with Nick. But really, I'd rather take my chances with a USB mic, a YouTube page, and iTunes than sign my life away just to be ignored by Idol.

[BogoGog24]

MacKenzie -

 

Hallelujah - Honestly aside from Roses I think this was his best performance and if he had to leave, this was the song to go out on. I thought this was beautiful and a return to what he does best, just him with the guitar. The moon backdrop was especially beautiful too. This was the only song I bought on iTunes besides Dalton's. Sure, did we need to hear the 1,000th rendition of this song? Not really. But Mac did a beautiful job IMO so I'm ok with it. Glad he got to redeem himself after last week before leaving. I heard he plans to record and release Roses soon as a single, I'm very excited and happy for him about that. It's a great song.

 

Dalton -

 

Calling You - This was pretty and sweet and I would say even had a hint of magic in it, but I saw him sing this at his hometown visit concert and the way he sang it there was just him and the guitar and I honestly preferred that more intimate arrangement. Wish he had done it like that instead. He just gets consistently drowned out by the band and I think he should try something more stripped down and acoustic for a change. It's really what suits his voice the best. 

 

Dancing in the Dark - I thought he sounded really good on this, vocally, especially in the beginning on the slower part. I still don't get the "he can't sing" comments. He doesn't have the biggest range or most powerful voice, but his voice has a very beautiful tone IMO. He does a lot of subtle things with his voice that most people might not pick up on, like at times there is a gentle fragility and vulnerability to it (God Only Knows), and at other times a grit comes out at just the right moments of a song, which he did a lot of here. He plays really well with different colors and textures of his voice and honestly I think is a more skilled vocalist than most people are willing to give him credit for. Very underrated IMO. Anyway, I liked this and bought it on iTunes, though haven't listened to the full thing yet. JLo bouncing in her seat was ridiculous and distracting though. I don't think this was a great choice for a competition, nor this far in the game, but it did feel like a "we're at your show" type of performance. I could see him doing this in concert, just for fun. 

 

Everybody Wants To Rule the World - I'm going to have to agree the key was a bit too low for him. However I went and listened to the original and I really prefer the key Dalton chose. Overall I don't think it was an issue for him, it was just a few notes that were too low for him that he basically gasped because they were so low. The higher key was probably too high so there was probably not much he could do. I hate it when the judges criticize a contestant's performance of a song THEY chose. On paper this sounded like a good choice but clearly there was an issue with getting a correct key for him. 

 

Trent -

 

Tennessee Whiskey - Gorgeous. Really nothing more I can say than that.

 

Drink You Away - This, on the other hand, was not. I think this was a good performance of an awful song. I couldn't tell what the hell this song was supposed to be or sound like. Terrible. Trent did what he could with such a god awful sounding "song" I guess.

 

Waiting Game - Again, gorgeous. One of the best of the night. Great way to end the show and to leave CBS Television City with.

 

La'Porsha -

 

Glory - Fantastic. Probably the best of the night. She just came out and slayed this. Felt like a superstar performance.

 

Stay With Me - I didn't like this really and that's probably because she didn't either. Scott was a huge dick for picking this, knowing her backstory. Getting into a character is like if you're Carrie Underwood singing Before He Cheats, asking someone who just got out of an abusive relationship to sing a song about staying with a man is just a bit too much IMO. I liked La'Porsha's clear but polite shade at Scott for picking that. We all know he did it on purpose to try to throw her under the bus even further than he already has been doing for the last several weeks. Seriously, La'Porsha isn't even a favorite of mine, but every single week in his interviews he throws her under the bus somehow and that annoys me so much. It's really disgusting. Go La'Porsha for standing your ground!

 

Hello - Meh. Don't care for her version, sorry.

 

 

Overall I think each of them won one round. I would say La'Porsha easily won the first round with Glory, Dalton won second round with Dancing in the Dark (Trent's song was a mess and LP clearly wasn't feeling hers), and Trent won the third with Waiting Game. 

 

I wasn't surprised La'Porsha was in B2. She didn't have her strongest performances last week and Dalton's fans rallied after he was in B2. Maybe her fanbase is not as big or strong as people think it is.

 

My prediction next week is La'Porsha and Dalton will be B2 and Dalton will go home. He was ok in his performances tonight but IMO didn't have a moment with any of them and at this point in the competition you need to have moments and not just "pretty good" performances. Trent and LP came out swinging hard tonight, and there was no way he was ever going to match them vocally. I'm glad he at least brought out the theatricality and performance quality as that's what he does best, as well as interpreting lyrics and telling a story. As much as he's my favorite and I want to see him in the finale, I'm ok with him bowing out in third. He's getting so much hate as it is for even being top 3, I don't really want him getting even more negativity if he makes it into the finale over LP or Trent, let alone if he won. And this way he is free to sign with whatever label or management team he wants and isn't bound by any contract. I heard next week all 3 get to sing in the first round, so hopefully that means there will be no Jaxing of the eliminated contestant. As long as he doesn't get Jaxed, I'm ok with him leaving in third. Although my preference for a finale is Trent and Dalton. If it comes down to Trent and LP I'm rooting for Trent. 

 

Other:

 

Hometown packages - As usual, sweet and touching. I really loved MacKenzie's and Dalton's the best. I can't handle Dalton crying, but I'm glad at least this time they were happy tears. It was sweet how he was so touched by everyone's support. And MacKenzie talking to the kids about hope was so touching. I wonder if that's why he has an issue with sounding so breathy when he sings, was because of the illness he went through, they said something about lung failure or something, and I wonder if that could explain the reason he sounds so limited and breathy when he sings. I loved the segment in La'Porsha's when she was speaking at the women's shelter. So inspiring. All 4 of them seem like such down to earth, sweet, humble, kind people. It's a shame there won;t be a tour this year. I honestly would have gone for the first time just to see Dalton, although I also would have enjoyed seeing the others. Honestly the entire top 10 from this year could have made a great tour, such a wide variety of styles and genres. Avalon is jumping on a tour with someone though, so I guess this gives them the opportunity to tour individually. Guess I'll catch Dalton on his solo tour. 

 

Yes Harry's comment to La'Porsha about looking "graceful" was weird to me too. I got the sense he was shading artists like Miley, etc. who wear skimpy clothes onstage. 

 

Didn't care for Keith's performance at all, aside from the guitar playing. What is that song? Is that supposed to be country?

 

The contestants meeting Ray Romano and doing voice overs was cute. La'Porsha sounded like a natural and Trent and Dalton were cute with their roles. Don't know who the hell that Vine artist was supposed to be. Don't care. They make the contestants waste time with this shit instead of rehearsing more? Yeesh.

[howmanywords]

This is a REALLY great interview to listen to.  Afterbuzz had as a guest this week Rick Barker who is someone that works with the contestants behind the scenes (his title is "social media mentor")   Talk about enlightening listening to him.  He's pretty neutral and honest about his views on everyone but he really emphasizes over and over about hard Trent works and how important that is and also how he's willing to listen and learn, compares him to Nick from last year quite a bit. Also, one big thing he mentions, and I said this in the Knoll thread..too many people focus on Instagram and Twitter followers but he said Facebook is the biggest thing where the main Idol demographic is concerned.  He encourages the contestants to be very active and be visible on Facebook because not only is it used more by the main voting demo but it gives you a better platform to "tell a story" and let fans learn more about you that you can't do in 140 characters. Rick offers a lot of little behind the scenes pieces of info.

[BogoGog24]

I follow Rick on Twitter, watch his Periscopes, and am subscribed to his email list where he sends tips on how to navigate the music industry and learn how to build an audience. He also has a free eBook about it too.

He gives a lot of really good advice about how to get noticed by the contestants on social media. It's really insightful and he seems like a great guy. I really enjoy all of the information he shares and appreciate him trying to help fans connect with their favorites.

I did notice Dalton is using FB much more than he was a couple weeks ago.

Edited April 2, 2016 by BogoGog24

[perfectstorm]

19E hooked up with Interscope who didn't want to spend a buck promoting the Idol winners, and that made the show lose its luster a bit as a star maker. Big Machine might be better, we'll have to see what happens with Nick.

Interscope produced 2 of the biggest winners with Scotty McCreery and Phillip Phillips.  They also gave Idol its biggest song with Home.  With Candice and Caleb, the problem was their limited marketability.

 

BMLG has yet to produce any successes.  I think Nick Fradiani's newest single is a one way ticket to him being dropped.

Edited April 2, 2016 by ifoundit

[Kromm]

Does it signify that the top 4 are all Southerners from neighboring states? It was weird they even used the scrolling map device in the opening sequence when the "scroll" was like... an inch each time.

I think Nick Fradiani's newest single is a one way ticket to him being dropped.

Nick Who? was boring on the show, so a boring single certainly doesn't help.

 

 

 

The contestants meeting Ray Romano and doing voice overs was cute.

 

Yeah, but in what alternate world is Ray Romano some cool person people are awed about seeing?  Stupid synergy tie-ins!

As usual, sweet and touching. I really loved MacKenzie's and Dalton's the best. I can't handle Dalton crying, but I'm glad at least this time they were happy tears.

My big problem with Dalton's was that a lot of that sounded like people were reading off scripts. Some of the stuff those girls said, and definitely that old lady with her reading of "they didn't make 'em like that when I was a young girl". And Dalton's own parts too, like "Leeeeeeetssss gooooo". Edited April 2, 2016 by Kromm

[Stratego]

Does it signify that the top 4 are all Southerners from neighboring states? It was weird they even used the scrolling map device in the opening sequence when the "scroll" was like... an inch each time.

Nick Who? was boring on the show, so a boring single certainly doesn't help.

 

 

 

 

Yeah, but in what alternate world is Ray Romano some cool person people are awed about seeing?  Stupid synergy tie-ins!

My big problem with Dalton's was that a lot of that sounded like people were reading off scripts. Some of the stuff those girls said, and definitely that old lady with her reading of "they didn't make 'em like that when I was a young girl". And Dalton's own parts too, like "Leeeeeeetssss gooooo".

"Popping a bubble"--reality shows are scripted.

[Kromm]

"Popping a bubble"--reality shows are scripted.

Gee. I hadn't known!

 

But seriously, the problem was how blatant it was with his footage. Badly done in other words.

 

------

Now onto the performances: Round 1

 

MacKenzie - Hallelujah. That was cheerbait. But to me it totally felt leached of the proper feeling for that song. 

Dalton - Calling You. Not exactly a crowd pleaser of a song, and it's a tricky mid-tempo that rarely winds up workable for a show like this. It was sung okay for what it was, but it's just a bad song for a show like this. And then J. Lo just babbled some random shit I easily tuned out.

 

Trent - Tennessee Whiskey. I STILL think it's amazing how much he looks like Ollie Murs. Anyway, this song is clearly what he should be doing with his music.

 

La'Porsha - Glory. Clearly right in her wheelhouse. I don't know if you sell records with this kind of music, but it's certainly good viewing. Interesting that we get two opposite sides of Mississippi between Trent (almost all white crowd) and La"Porsha (mostly black crowd, but more mixed of the two).

 

Round 2: Slimechetta's choices

 

Dalton - Dancin' In The Dark. Um.  I don't get it. I mean I actually think this was well performed. What I don't get is Borchetta's positioning of the song. It made no sense--it's like he totally doesn't understand what the song really is. Also, I'm sure Bruce traditionalists hated that too. It was more of the same of Dalton's Emo-izing a song in that exact Me First and The Gimme Gimmees way, and it's really indicative of J. Lo's lack of musical knowledge for example that she keeps babbling about how fresh and new this approach is (it probably IS to her--heck maybe to Harry too, since he compared it to 80s New Wave music). That said it was well done within those parameters, for sure.

 

La'Porsha - Stay With Me.  Lord Slimy Borchetta ought to go fuck himself. Sure she sang it well in a technical sense, but had to fake the heart of the song... and it showed.

 

Trent - Drink You Away. Justin Timberlake would seem to equal "good song". But no.... this was shit. Trent couldn't do much with with that mess. It's not really his fault, other than going along with Scott's shitty choice.  Fuck you again, Borchetta. You suck.

 

Judge Picks (in other words, probably Harry and Keith's)

 

Dalton - Everyone Wants To Rule The World. Actually a good choice for him, in theory at least. I do agree with others that the key it was in was odd though. Heck, even J. Lo somehow got that.

 

La'Porsha - Hello. This is as close to tanking as she's come. If she was supposed to change that up... well... what happened to that? It wasn't bad. It was just a cover (and a flat one at some points). I hope between this and the garbage Borchitty served her, she survives this.

 

Trent - Waiting Game. I guess Trent owes Keith a debt for finding this for him. It fit him, and he did it really well.

Edited April 2, 2016 by Kromm

[wiggiebegone]

So LP says her home town is racist. Not much love coming your way from there. Kinda thinking her backstory may be mostly BS, as it seems to be just a sympathy ploy. If she isn't crowned winner will she call sharpton? The show and wardrobe dept have done her no favors.

. By the way, what the hell have those gross fake? dredlocks got to do with her gospel/Whitney style singing?

 Can't remember a worse final four ever. Or worse judges. Thankfully this crapfest is nearly over. The music business is full of slimy greasy cretins and this show has more than it's share!

Just some random thoughts.......

Edited April 2, 2016 by wiggiebegone

[BogoGog24]

Does it signify that the top 4 are all Southerners from neighboring states? It was weird they even used the scrolling map device in the opening sequence when the "scroll" was like... an inch each time.Nick Who? was boring on the show, so a boring single certainly doesn't help.    Yeah, but in what alternate world is Ray Romano some cool person people are awed about seeing?  Stupid synergy tie-ins!My big problem with Dalton's was that a lot of that sounded like people were reading off scripts. Some of the stuff those girls said, and definitely that old lady with her reading of "they didn't make 'em like that when I was a young girl". And Dalton's own parts too, like "Leeeeeeetssss gooooo".

Ray Romano is a legend. Who wouldn't be excited about meeting him? I know I would. His career peaked right around the time I and the final 4 were growing up, mid to late '90s, so I/they probably grew up watching him. I've always been a fan of his sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond.

The things people said in Dalton's package probably were scripted. Producers probably fed them lines. Everyone's package had shades of that though. *shrug*

[Kromm]

So LP says her home town is racist. Not much love coming your way from there. Kinda thinking her backstory may be mostly BS, as it seems to be just a sympathy ploy. If she isn't crowned winner will she call sharpton? The show and wardrobe dept have done her no favors.

. By the way, what the hell have those gross fake? dredlocks got to do with her gospel/Whitney style singing?

 Can't remember a worse final four ever. Or worse judges. Thankfully this crapfest is nearly over. The music business is full of slimy greasy cretins and this show has more than it's share!

Just some random thoughts.......

She didn't say her hometown is racist. She implied it, sure. And lets face it. It's Mississippi. In other words, the chances that it's not are microscopic. I tend to believe her implicitly on this.

 

She certainly didn't "spin" that statement for sympathy. Heck, just by saying it she likely set a good many people against her in the voting. I doubt she considered that, either negatively or positively though. To me it sounded like she was simply speaking her truth. 

 

I won't even pretend to get the comment about Sharpton. What's he got to do with any of this?

[DonnaJo]

She certainly didn't "spin" that statement for sympathy. Heck, just by saying it she likely set a good many people against her in the voting. I doubt she considered that, either negatively or positively though. To me it sounded like she was simply speaking her truth.

It would be so upsetting if people take her comments as anything but an honest statement about what she has seen and experienced living as a working class African-American woman in a state infamous for racial inequality, race riots and the like. I'm sure there are many people in Mississippi who aren't racists, but some still are (true everywhere). If people don't vote for her based on this, that would be a shame.

[27bored]

Interscope produced 2 of the biggest winners with Scotty McCreery and Phillip Phillips.  They also gave Idol its biggest song with Home.  With Candice and Caleb, the problem was their limited marketability.

 

Scotty just happened to catch on at the right time, in the right genre. Country is an easier market to break into for Idols. Even less popular Idols have found some success, or at least working, because they decided to go Country after their stint on Idol. That said, Scotty's...not with them now. So that was roughly two albums in a short span that they helped with his success. (I'm not counting the Christmas album).

 

Phillip Phillips' success can be condensed to two singles, that enjoyed a fair amount of success 1) given the time they were released, and 2) that they were heavily used in ad campaigns. Plus, P2's two albums basically reworked the Dave Matthews Band sound, which people still enjoy, so there was a market for that.

 

And Scotty and Phillip were two young cute WGWGs. There's an audience for them in popular music. Candice is a heavyset woman of color (I think she's an attractive woman, but good luck making a name for a black woman whose name isn't Beyonce, Rihanna, or Nicki Minaj in mainstream music solely based on the waning appeal of an Idol win...just sayin') and Caleb's got the looks of a weekend-bar-band guitarist and the music sensibilities of Jack Black and Meatloaf, but dude can sing his ass off and he put together a fairly entertaining album; they just didn't promote it. I didn't see mainstream success for Caleb, but they could've done more than they did. Dude didn't even get a music video (I think I recall him saying he had to pay for one himself).

[ari333]

Scotty just happened to catch on at the right time, in the right genre. Country is an easier market to break into for Idols. Even less popular Idols have found some success, or at least working, because they decided to go Country after their stint on Idol. That said, Scotty's...not with them now. So that was roughly two albums in a short span that they helped with his success. (I'm not counting the Christmas album).

 

Phillip Phillips' success can be condensed to two singles, that enjoyed a fair amount of success 1) given the time they were released, and 2) that they were heavily used in ad campaigns. Plus, P2's two albums basically reworked the Dave Matthews Band sound, which people still enjoy, so there was a market for that.

 

And Scotty and Phillip were two young cute WGWGs. There's an audience for them in popular music. Candice is a heavyset woman of color (I think she's an attractive woman, but good luck making a name for a black woman whose name isn't Beyonce, Rihanna, or Nicki Minaj in mainstream music solely based on the waning appeal of an Idol win...just sayin') and Caleb's got the looks of a weekend-bar-band guitarist and the music sensibilities of Jack Black and Meatloaf, but dude can sing his ass off and he put together a fairly entertaining album; they just didn't promote it. I didn't see mainstream success for Caleb, but they could've done more than they did. Dude didn't even get a music video (I think I recall him saying he had to pay for one himself).

 

Were any of these people on this show? I didn't watch the whole thing.

[JenFromCincy]

Please tell me that someone else heard Mackenzie whisper, "Don't lose now.  Don't lose to them chumps."   I was like, "Huh...whaaaaa?"  Even if it was in jest, dang dude.  In her defense she didn't say a word back.  

 

Couldn't agree more with the Borchetta critiques.  I can't believe you can be in the music industry and be that completely tone deaf to the theme of a song.  Then again, as skeevy as he is, it probably never occurred to him that a woman shouldn't beg a man to stay. 

 

I think they put LaPorsha in the bottom two to 1) give her the vote boosts that contestants in the bottom always get when their fans realize if they don't vote they can go home, and 2) to make it look like more of a horse race than it really is.  Everyone I've talked to IRL about the show has said it was going to be Trent and LaPorsha since the Lives.

[JenFromCincy]

I was curious so I rewatched the elimination online and he did say that, though it was through a big grin so it seemed like it was said jokingly.  He didn't whisper it, it just was hard to hear I think because the crowd was cheering for LaPorsha, and his mouth was inches from her face since they were hugging.  

Poor word choice on my part for the word "whisper", I just knew I had to turn up my volume and rewind to catch it word for word.  I did acknowledge that it could have been in jest, but regardless it's the kind of joke you make in private, not on TV with millions watching.  I realize they aren't media savvy, so I'm not trying to beat him up over it, but I was still taken aback.

[dcinmb]

In the L.A. Times article I linked in the media thread, the reporter—who spent three days "embedded at 'American Idol' headquarters"—wrote:

Rapattoni sneaks up from behind the stage and spooks [La'Porsha] before wrapping his arms around her in a bear hug. Among the contestants, these two appear the closest.

[howmanywords]

If they had to pull a stunt to try and boost LaP's votes doesn't that say something about how her votes are going?  Some winners just never hit the bottom, period and they didnt have to be reduced to being thrown in the bottom to scare fans into voting. I don't know why her being in the bottom is such a shock especially coming off her worst week.  There have been so many shock boots over the years around this time. A front-runner hitting the bottom against 2 isnt all that surprising especially now at a time where IMO people arent voting like they use to.

[TheGreenKnight]

Please tell me that someone else heard Mackenzie whisper, "Don't lose now.  Don't lose to them chumps."   I was like, "Huh...whaaaaa?"  Even if it was in jest, dang dude.  In her defense she didn't say a word back.  

I didn't hear that. I wish he'd said it louder for everyone to hear, but I guess it would've riled up Dalton's and Trent's fanbases.

 

I'd like to think La'Porsha is still the show's TCO, but they've been pretty extravagant with Trent the past two or three weeks. And then he got the final performance of the night this past week. I'd like to think they were just doing this to assuage Borchetta, and they go full-out for her next week. Either way, I hope she wins the coin toss and performs last.

[drafan]

I think they put LaPorsha in the bottom two to 1) give her the vote boosts that contestants in the bottom always get when their fans realize if they don't vote they can go home, and 2) to make it look like more of a horse race than it really is.

 Was she actually in the bottom two? Didn't Seacrest say , "In no special order"?  I may have to rewatch.

[Stratego]

 Was she actually in the bottom two? Didn't Seacrest say , "In no special order"?  I may have to rewatch.

Yes, he did say that.  The inference often drawn by the audience is that they are the bottom two--even if that is wrong.

[AlliePK]

 

But you know, I can't really talk shit about him after the ketchup/grape jelly meatballs. That shit is the business.

Totally.  I make them with little meatballs, chili sauce, and grape jelly in the slow cooker and they are so good.  I got the "recipe" from my mother in law and now I make them every holiday

[howmanywords]

I just ran my DVR back. Once Dalton is declared safe Ryan said "Mackenzie and La'Porsha are your bottom 2".

[Neet]

Please tell me that someone else heard Mackenzie whisper, "Don't lose now.  Don't lose to them chumps."   I was like, "Huh...whaaaaa?"  Even if it was in jest, dang dude.

I thought it was nice to see him show some more personality, for a change. None of the contestants seem very animated or dynamic when speaking, it's pretty dull.

Thursday's show was total garbage, and IMO the worst performance episode in many weeks. Mackenzie going home was rather obvious, though I'd rather have seen LP eliminated. I guess Trent was the best of the night, but the song choices for everybody were so drab. Not going to join the hate club for Borchetta, despite his evident incompetence with the song themes. I just don't care enough about it to vilify him, as I think he's generally okay or at least inoffensive most of the time. Calling him "creepy" and "slimy" and these other catch-all buzzwords don't make much of a point, even though it dominates any conversation about him. I care much more about the awful judges, notably J Lo and her stupid moon bounce dancing through Dalton's entire performance.

It seems pretty hard to predict the final two. I think Trent is a lock, but LP or Dalton is a mystery. Dalton's age demo votes a lot more rabidly, but he's clearly been slipping through the cracks for weeks and LP's performances get received a lot better. I'll give the edge to LP, although we haven't gotten a shock elimination this season (that I can remember, anyway) and Dalton making it to the finale would be surprising.

[bluwater]

Bing Predicts has Trent going home and says Dalton is in danger, with LaP safe. I don't put a lot of stock in that, but it is interesting.

How are they doing the finale this year? We voted last week, so I take it that third place goes home on Wednesday, then we vote again Wed to crown the winner Thursday?

[kili]

Bing Predicts has Trent going home and says Dalton is in danger, with LaP safe

 

Bing has sent Trent home at least twice before. He seems to be a stealth candidate that flies under the radar of whatever their algorithms are tracking.

 

How are they doing the finale this year? We voted last week, so I take it that third place goes home on Wednesday, then we vote again Wed to crown the winner Thursday?

 

Yes. I think the third place finisher will get to sing at least one song (unlike Jax last year) with the elimination being done in between rounds. There has been various articles stating that all three will get to sing on Wednesday.