S12.E02: Auditions 2

[Drogo]

Auditions continue.

[slf]

Being a fan of figure skating I've seen quite a few sibling partnerships so I'm used to it but sibling partnerships where they're wearing skimpy outfits and stuff always creep me out. So needless to say I wasn't a fan of the skaters. Their act seems very limited in what they can do; it's just him swinging her around in circles. Not a lot of mileage to get out of that. I also dislike how part of their appeal seems to be how dangerously close he comes to bashing the poor girl's head on the ground (something I've noticed is present in a lot of male/female acts). That's off-putting.

The singer-songwriter redhaired guy I thought was average and the song had embarrassingly simple lyrics. When he started rapping I had to mute the tv. Yikes.

Science Guy made me roll my eyes when he first came out but he was actually kind of cute. The experiments were simple but fun and who wouldn't want to get swallowed up in the third experiments 'explosion'?

The little girl (Angelica?) who wants to be the new Whitney Houston was actually fantastic. Usually child singers impress people mostly because they don't sound like children, but she had - to me, anyway - pretty impressive control anda lot of strength. No affectations that I heard. Also I like how genuine she seemed; so many child singers are either little divas or are so, so pretentious. Whereas she seems like she practices singing into her hairbrush. Adorable.

Scary Brothers with the Shovel and the Nails...I hate those acts. I mean, I always wonder how these guys realize they can do this stuff, does someone train them, does anyone love them enough to tell them not to do that? Who was the third guy who wasn't risking anything? Their manager? Is he exploiting them? Do not use your head like a hammer. Do not. No. I felt bad for the brothers. I was with Heidi.

The white kitten was better than the magician. (That's not me slamming magicians. I never understand how their tricks work, that stuff goes right over my head. It's just that was a really cute kitten.)

Mandy, the deaf singer, impressed me with her resilience. For a lot of people that would end their dream of singing, understandably. I thought her voice was very pretty.

[lor]

When chase came on i immediately thought of ed sheeran. 

that guy with the rubber doll probably has another rubber doll as his wife. that's the only way a woman would be okay with what he does

theroller skating brother and sister act looked too inappropriate for me. she's swinging around and his shirt his off. hes bending her into diffrent positions.

i get bored with these mind readers. im sure they plant people in the audience. they probably have a secret code with someone reading in their ear.

[Diana Berry]

Thank you little Angelica for singing so that I could understand the words ( unlike someone last season).  She was a doll.

The magician was really good as were the brother and sister skaters ( so they ended up in the semi finals for Britain's Got Talent).

Nice choice for the Golden Buzzer

 Not all that impressed with the counting dog although good training in whatever signals the dog is picking up ( wonder how the neighbors feel about the barking)

3 hours ago, slf said:

 

The little girl (Angelica?) who wants to be the new Whitney Houston was actually fantastic. Usually child singers impress people mostly because they don't sound like children, but she had - to me, anyway - pretty impressive control anda lot of strength. No affectations that I heard. Also I like how genuine she seemed; so many child singers are either little divas or are so, so pretentious. Whereas she seems like she practices singing into her hairbrush. Adorable.

 

So true

[retrograde]

Did anyone else get a cult-y vibe from that first act with the rocking platform thing? "All of the money goes to Jacques."

Also, the creepy rollerskating siblings were on Britain's Got Talent a few seasons back. Seems pretty lazy to just move them continents. People thought they were a bit inappropriate then too. 

Edited June 7, 2017 by retrograde

[Sapphire]

16 minutes ago, retrograde said:

Did anyone else get a cult-y vibe from that first act with the rocking platform thing? "All of the money goes to Jacques."

No, to me it seemed like a joke. I thought what they did was really unique and, strangely enough, calming.

I thought the singers this episode were all pretty good--weakest would be the Ed Sheeran-wannabe; then the Deaf lady; and then the little 9-year-old with the wicked pipes!

[katycat74]

The science guy Nick Uhas was on Big Brother a ways back.. I remember Ginamarie having a one sided crush on him.

[bluepiano]

2 hours ago, retrograde said:

Did anyone else get a cult-y vibe from that first act with the rocking platform thing? "All of the money goes to Jacques."

Not sure. It could've been just a joke. But more importantly to me, as a viewer, I was just not that entertained. The cuts to reaction shots of the judges, and audience members screaming, were supposed to sell that there was a danger element to the act. But that platform was rocking so slowly, that it didn't feel that way to me. I was kind of bored.

Sometimes I watch this show, and based on the judges' comments, I feel like I've entered a parallel universe. That young guy Chase is a "great songwriter?" No. Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, and Joni Mitchell are great songwriters. What I heard from that guy is what I would hear at open mike night at my local coffee house any day of the week. And throwing in a rap verse is so clichéd, hardly anything original like the judges tried to make out. And Mel B saying this is a topic we never hear about? Huh? A jealous guy who's hung up on a girl. Wow, how groundbreaking. Acts like this make me wonder about the screening process, and how someone so run of the mill could even make it on the show.

Edited June 7, 2017 by bluepiano

[slf]

21 minutes ago, bluepiano said:

The cuts to reaction shots of the judges, and audience members screaming, were supposed to sell that there was a danger element to the act. But that platform was rocking so slowly, that it didn't feel that way to me. I was kind of bored.

Thank you. The leaps were not that impressive. I've seen cheerleaders I'm pretty sure were drunk jump from human pyramids taller than that boat and be expertly caught by other equally drunk teenage girls.

[PhD-Purgatory15]

"I'll see your piano playing chicken, and raise you a counting dog..."

We never got to learn their names, but the family band was like the second coming of the Willis Family/Clan.

I mostly skip the traditional music acts (except the bands) just because I've got enough of that through the Voice and AI when it was on.

We've managed two weeks without a multimedia dance group. Consider me surprised. Every other genre of act is getting some representation. Standup Comic guy from last week, Escape Artist, Mentalist guy, Danger act, Hand Balancers which I swear do not exist outside the AGT universe, precocious kid singers...

[camom]

I was glad to see that Howie knew how to applaud for someone who is deaf.

[Frisky Wig]

Why is Tyra on the show? I mean, what's her purpose? Every time they focus on her mugging and contorting for the camera, I think "can we watch the performance instead?"

[hnygrl]

Am I the only one who was a bit bored? I was doing schoolwork while it was on because I kept falling asleep. The little girl, Angelica was terrific. Definitely AGT-Worthy. But she was kinda the only one thus far. That little bit can SANG. Imagine what she's gonna sound like when she's 13 or 14? Phenomenal. Haven't gotten to the buzzer act yet (10 minutes to go) the Sherlock wanna be is on and the dudes with the nails and the shovel just left. Hated it. The little kid dancers? Inappropriate. They were doing things waaaaaaaay too old for them. It's almost like the moms choreographed the dance and not a professional because they sucked. I don't like sexualizing kids. Those lifts and shit were too uncomfortably OLD for them.

So far, I'm not impressed. Doggy than can count? Eh...seen it. Sherlock? Eh...seen it, Nick Uhas? Eh...Big Brother I forget what season, all I know is it was "that" season with the racists in abundance. I'm sick of Nick. Get off my TV fame-whore.

The brother-sister skaters. Can someone tell me why he had to take his shirt off? Why was she wearing booty-shorts? It was freaking uncomfortable to watch. They're freaking brother and sister. Put some clothes on! I kept thinking maybe there was a reason he had to have his shirt off and not gratuitous. Their act was good though. Seen it before, but it WAS good...now for the last 10 minutes...

Mandy Harvey....The Real Deal Holifield... That girl....wow...just...wow....

Edited June 7, 2017 by hnygrl

[Whimsy]

7 hours ago, bluepiano said:

Not sure. It could've been just a joke. But more importantly to me, as a viewer, I was just not that entertained. The cuts to reaction shots of the judges, and audience members screaming, were supposed to sell that there was a danger element to the act. But that platform was rocking so slowly, that it didn't feel that way to me. I was kind of bored.

Sometimes I watch this show, and based on the judges' comments, I feel like I've entered a parallel universe. That young guy Chase is a "great songwriter?" No. Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, and Joni Mitchell are great songwriters. What I heard from that guy is what I would hear at open mike night at my local coffee house any day of the week. And throwing in a rap verse is so clichéd, hardly anything original like the judges tried to make out. And Mel B saying this is a topic we never hear about? Huh? A jealous guy who's hung up on a girl. Wow, how groundbreaking. Acts like this make me wonder about the screening process, and how someone so run of the mill could even make it on the show.

I agree wholeheartedly about your examples of songwriters (although, there a few more I'd add- Lennon/McCartney just to name one).  While I wasn't fully listening to the lyrics, I think what Mel B was commenting on was something about abuse by the boyfriend? 

[Babalooie]

8 hours ago, Frisky Wig said:

Every time they focus on her mugging and contorting for the camera, I think "can we watch the performance instead?"

She's trying to emulate Nick and failing.  She's trying too hard and it shows.  Nick was a natural when interacting with the contestants.

[FrauBlucher]

I came here to see if anyone else thought the brother-sister skaters were vaguely inappropriate. Glad to see it wasn't just me!  I said to my kids, why is he fully dressed, and she's wearing barely anything? And then he whipped his shirt off LOL. Not to mention the very suggestive positions.

The blow-up doll guy was too much for me and I turned the channel until his was done.  Weird.

I wasn't a fan of the dog routine, I couldn't imagine that being an actual show, and isn't that the point of AGT? That the acts will go on to become paid entertainers?  And, massive eye roll at the dog being in a baby stroller. The dog is capable of walking and it's actually GOOD for her to, you know, act like a dog.

Some people are saying the deaf singer got thru solely on her backstory, but I thought she has a lovely voice.

I can't put my finger on why I wasn't crazy about the little boy-girl dancers. They were awfully "muggy" to the cameras. Or maybe it was their choreography. They're both adorable, however, and can obviously dance well. Maybe they'll get better as the show goes on.

Oh, and the red-haired male singer? Why were the judges so amazed at his performance? I have a 13 year old daughter, and what he did is pretty much every band she listens to... Twenty-One Pilots, Fall Out Boy, etc. etc.  Nothing new here!

[illini1959]

14 minutes ago, Babalooie said:

She's trying to emulate Nick and failing.  She's trying too hard and it shows.  Nick was a natural when interacting with the contestants.

Agreed!! I miss Nick :(

I know in the grand scheme of things this isn't a big deal, but when she started a segment with "damn, what the hell?" or some such - I thought really? I guess things are "accepted" as normal these days but I think on a family-friendly show that's not really necessary.  

I wish they could get Nick back, I wonder why he left?

And who dresses Mel B??? :/

[Babalooie]

27 minutes ago, illini1959 said:

, I wonder why he left?

Here's the answer.

http://www.lifeandstylemag.com/posts/why-isnt-nick-cannon-hosting-americas-got-talent-133471

[ketchuplover]

All hail Miss Hale!

[Wings]

I love animal acts so I hope Mia does more.  An hour act of barking would be torture.  Olate Dogs set the bar very high.  

I liked Sherlock but strongly disliked the psychics last season.  Go figure.  

Angelica was a standout and will make the finals for sure.  

I miss Nick.  Tyra is not working.  Find a male or a woman who will wear flat shoes to replace her. 

[marketdoctor]

It's official: I no longer reach for the fast-forward when it's a kid act.  (Acts I don't enjoy still get the FF.)  The kid with the great voice didn't get a golden buzzer, though; I wonder if they'd used them up?  (I know the show is filmed out of order.)

I think the deaf singer would have made it through regardless, but her backstory might have been why Simon pressed the button.  It'll be interesting if two ukulele players win in a row. 

The danger act didn't impress me, because I knew how the bed of nails trick was done. 

Quote

I liked Sherlock but strongly disliked the psychics last season.

ITA; in my case it's because he wasn't claiming to be psychic.  Some of what he did wasn't pure perception, but he made paying attention and perception sound cool instead of over the top.  There was a nice fake-out with the scroll; I thought it was going to describe what they chose, but I liked how it told him to open the box and take out the cat. 

[TaraS1]

4 hours ago, GenL said:

I agree wholeheartedly about your examples of songwriters (although, there a few more I'd add- Lennon/McCartney just to name one).  While I wasn't fully listening to the lyrics, I think what Mel B was commenting on was something about abuse by the boyfriend? 

That was how I took her comment too.  Weren't there allegations of her soon-to-be ex physically abusing her?  Seems like I read that somewhere.

I usually don't like kid acts, but the little girl singer was adorable and could really sing!  And the parents seemed sweet too.  Give me a kid like that ANY day over special snowflake ukelele girl from last season.  

I recognized Nick from Big Brother too @katycat74 and wondered if Ginamarie was lurking around in the audience somewhere lol

[LadyMustang65]

We liked most of the show.  The counting dog was cute, but unless she can do more than that, we've seen all there is to see.  Ditto with the skaters.  We liked the first boy singer.   He wasn't "all that," but we liked his voice, and we liked the song.  Hated the 'danger' act as well as the faux hand balancer.  Ugh.  I liked the dance group with the 'boat,' but the DH wasn't impressed.  He thought what they did was very simple.  I thought it was deceptive - there was, I thought anyway, a lot more going on with people moving around the boat and in and out of it both top and bottom.  I think it's one of those things that actually way harder than they make it look.  So I'm looking forward to seeing what else they do and hoping this isn't a one-trick thing. 

I generally hate mentalists and did not really like the act last year, but I did enjoy Sherlock a lot.  Also we loved the science guy.  We don't watch a lot of reality tv so we'd never seen him before.  The science was cool, and I loved how the judges were enjoying themselves.  And quite frankly I'm pretty much automatically for anyone who can make science seem cool and fun and possibly interest the kids who are watching to think about careers in science. 

We normally hate kid acts, but we did love Angelica.  I agree with those who said she seems like a 'normal' child rather than a stage child.  I hope she gets to stay that way.  The kid dancers were okay, but too 'muggy' for us, and I didn't think their dancing was all that.  I think they'll be one of those throwaway acts that get lost early on. 

Can I just say that I have never been a huge fan of Simon, but I absolutely adored the fact that he wanted to hold the kitten and seemed to really love that little guy.  That may have been the best part of the show for me.  :) 

I agree with those who are not that jazzed with Tyra.  She did better than I was expecting the first week, but she does not come across as natural to me.  Nick is a hard act to follow, and she needs to find her own style.  I think she's trying too hard to do what he did.

[PikaScrewChu]

Ginamarie was probably sobbing into Nick's shorts watching that act. I didn't realize he had his own YouTube channel! He was probably one of the acts they recruit to audition. I was half paying attention and I went wait, that's Nick from Big Brother!

[Whimsy]

6 minutes ago, LadyMustang65 said:

We liked most of the show.  The counting dog was cute, but unless she can do more than that, we've seen all there is to see.  Ditto with the skaters.  We liked the first boy singer.   He wasn't "all that," but we liked his voice, and we liked the song.  Hated the 'danger' act as well as the faux hand balancer.  Ugh.  I liked the dance group with the 'boat,' but the DH wasn't impressed.  He thought what they did was very simple.  I thought it was deceptive - there was, I thought anyway, a lot more going on with people moving around the boat and in and out of it both top and bottom.  I think it's one of those things that actually way harder than they make it look.  So I'm looking forward to seeing what else they do and hoping this isn't a one-trick thing. 

I generally hate mentalists and did not really like the act last year, but I did enjoy Sherlock a lot.  Also we loved the science guy.  We don't watch a lot of reality tv so we'd never seen him before.  The science was cool, and I loved how the judges were enjoying themselves.  And quite frankly I'm pretty much automatically for anyone who can make science seem cool and fun and possibly interest the kids who are watching to think about careers in science. 

We normally hate kid acts, but we did love Angelica.  I agree with those who said she seems like a 'normal' child rather than a stage child.  I hope she gets to stay that way.  The kid dancers were okay, but too 'muggy' for us, and I didn't think their dancing was all that.  I think they'll be one of those throwaway acts that get lost early on. 

Can I just say that I have never been a huge fan of Simon, but I absolutely adored the fact that he wanted to hold the kitten and seemed to really love that little guy.  That may have been the best part of the show for me.  :) 

I agree with those who are not that jazzed with Tyra.  She did better than I was expecting the first week, but she does not come across as natural to me.  Nick is a hard act to follow, and she needs to find her own style.  I think she's trying too hard to do what he did.

There's too much I agree with your post to just quote a little bit of it.  ;)

I absolutely hated the mentalists last year.  With a fiery passion.  I liked this one much better.  I liked how he was explaining how he knew, not just being a smug mcsmugerton with it all.

I love science.  I, personally, suck at science but I work with tons of brilliant scientists so I am thrilled a scientist is trying to create an act and make it on this show.

I really like Angelica.  Part of me hates when singers audition for this show.  The other (serious) acts spend tons of time, sweat, blood tears perfecting their crafts.  Not that singers just float on by, but I just don't think it's the same.  I am marveled when real, natural raw talent like hers comes on, though.

I like Simon now.  I think he's mellowed a LOT.  I don't know if it's being married with a kid, age, or it was all an act before but I like him now.

Nick has a natural warmth.  His interactions with the acts always seemed very genuine.  Tyra is super fake.

[penbrat]

Nick did seem genuine and seemed to have an interest in the contestants and enjoy his interactions with them.  Tyra is all about Tyra.  Period.  And that is okay (at least for me) on America’s Next Top Model.  That is her show and I don’t mind her acting like that on there.  However, on this show, it does distract from the contestants.

[Lady Iris]

I was bummed last night when I realized I forgot to set my DVR but thanks to your comments I didn't miss anything too earthshattering. I'm surprised too there haven't been any multi-media acts too. Those usually tend to be pretty strong. I still miss me some Victor Kee though.

[PepperMonkey]

Meh.... just end this now and give the chicken the money!

[saber5055]

Lady Iris, this episode is being rerun Friday evening in my market, which is why I didn't have a problem missing all but the last few acts last night. I'll see it Friday, and comments here will help me enjoy/not enjoy! it more.

[backformore]

13 hours ago, Frisky Wig said:

Why is Tyra on the show? I mean, what's her purpose? Every time they focus on her mugging and contorting for the camera, I think "can we watch the performance instead?"

I think the way the episode is edited was kind of funny - as though Tyra gets a new outfit, makeup session and hair style between each act.

I was annoyed at the judges tripping all over themselves to praise the "counting dog".  Train a dog to bark on command, and to stop barking on command, then make the "command"  something simple like a hand gesture or facial expression.  it takes work, but it's not really all that much "talent".   It's also not that entertaining to listen to a dog bark.

[giaNtsandYankees]

Lady Iris, if you have Hulu, you can catch the episode there! ☺

I'll have to re watch the episode myself. I got a little distracted through some of the episode.

I'm curious as to how many more animals we'll see this season, and what they'll bring to the table. I thought the counting dog act was cute, but I wonder how long that act can be ridden out. Unless her owner has something else up her sleeve.

I thought that Angelica was so adorable and sweet coming out. I was curious as to what to expect when she said that she wanted to be the nect Whitney Houston...but when she sang...wow! I didn't expect that voice. She'll go far for sure. She just might make the finals.

I was touched by Mandy's story and her song, having a rare illness that left me disabled and left me having to try a lot harder when it comes to my writing. My brother made this comment, "Simon's going to sign her. I'll bet he'll drop a contract off at her door tomorrow."

I'll be honest, I was not comfortable watching the brother/sister skating duo perform like that. I'll just leave it at that. ? By the way, last year, there was a husband and wife skating duo that had done something similar at the auditions for AGT. At one point, the wife was being swung/spun around by her hair. I don't know why the judges are acting like this is something new.

 

I'll have to re watch the episode on Hulu tonight to see how I felt about everyone else.

I will say this. I don't really care for how predictable the golden buzzers are. I understand if TPTB for AGT would like to end an episode on a high note, but it just takes the excitement away for me. At first, I thought that Angelica might get the golden buzzer, but then I checked the clock and thought, "Nope, It's only 9:30." Not to knock Mandy.

Edited June 7, 2017 by giaNtsandYankees
misspelled a few words...damn cell phone!

[backformore]

12 minutes ago, giaNtsandYankees said:

I'll be honest, I was not comfortable watching the brother/sister skating duo perform like that. I'll just leave it at that. ? By the way, last year, there was a husband and wife skating duo that had done something similar at the auditions. At one point, the wife was being sung/spun around by her hair. I don't know why the judges are acting like this is something new.

interesting to me that Simon talked about how they had been on the British version of the show.   I wonder if that was because of backlash from the regurgitator  from the past season, whom people found out had been on several other versions of the show in different countries.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

Euro brother/sister who now live in Vegas?  They're not professionals.  Nah.

Cirque du Simon is BS.  This is not World's Got Talent.  Or is it?

Deaf girl wouldn't have survived an AI audition except for her handicap sob story.  Million dollar act?  Puhleaze.

The biggest problem I had this week was that doll guy took up so much time and we got only a hint in passing of several acts which seemed interesting.  Surely there were better acts out of dozens we'll never know about.  I love me some goofball/cray cray auditions.  However, there is no reason to waste more than a second or two on the pre-audition chatter.

Tyra is all me-too!!!!!!  Oftentimes, less is more.  In this care, none is more.  No host is required.  

[SnarkyTart]

It was hard for me to understand Heidi's comment to the skating siblings that "you are both very nice to look at".  Yes, the sister has a bangin' body and a pretty face.  But, the brother is homely and has a very mediocre-looking body...and that Amish beard?  Ick!  The two of them look so unrelated, that I thought they must be step-siblings.  In either case, their act was skeevy. 

2 hours ago, backformore said:

Train a dog to bark on command, and to stop barking on command, then make the "command"  something simple like a hand gesture or facial expression.  it takes work, but it's not really all that much "talent".   It's also not that entertaining to listen to a dog bark.

This.  My little furbaby watches my face constantly, as toy breeds (like MiaMore) often do naturally.  He responds if I barely lift an eyebrow or even slightly widen my eyes when he's looking at me.  I didn't have to train him to do it, though, if I wanted to train him to bark in response, he would easily learn it.  I don't think my neighbors would appreciate it. :-)

Mandy Harvey has a mildly pleasant singing voice, and I'm sure it took a ton of hard work and intense dedication to learn to sing the way she did.  I applaud and celebrate her for those reasons.  But I have no interest in hearing her sing again, and doubt she would have made it through if not for her disability.

Count me as another who hates child acts on all mixed-age talent shows, but who appreciated Angelica.  That little girl can sing her face off, and doesn't come off like a pageant princess or overhyped subpar singer (I'm looking at you, Miss Vanderwhat).  If there had to be a golden buzzer act last night, it should have been Angelica.

The rocking device dance/acrobatics group may have been good, but the camera editing made it impossible to know.  If you add up the seconds spent watching the judges' and audience reaction shots versus the seconds spent watching the act, the act comes out on the very short end of that equation.  Actually, it seemed that every.single.time the act might have been doing something daring or awesome, the camera was on a judge or audience member with a shocked "oh!" face.  I nearly got motion sickness from all the rapid-fire camera cuts.   

Tyra bugged me even more last night than she did last week, and I wouldn't have thought that possible.  She couldn't possibly be more miscast.

I didn't see anything else on this night's show worth commenting on.

[Wings]

Youtube exposed last years psychics with one google!  I would love to know how Sherlock does it.  4 kittens in the box, 2 blue 2 white so names and colors are covered.  He had to be sure Heidi chose a cat and not a cheeta.  Fascinating. 

Edited June 7, 2017 by wings707

[Mr. Sparkle]

17 minutes ago, Lonesome Rhodes said:

Deaf girl wouldn't have survived an AI audition except for her handicap sob story.  Million dollar act?  Puhleaze.

15 minutes ago, SnarkyTart said:

Mandy Harvey has a mildly pleasant singing voice, and I'm sure it took a ton of hard work and intense dedication to learn to sing the way she did.  I applaud and celebrate her for those reasons.  But I have no interest in hearing her sing again, and doubt she would have made it through if not for her disability.

This and this. Yes, what she's accomplished is impressive, but she has an OK voice at best. 

Edited June 7, 2017 by Superclam

[Wings]

The deaf girl was studying music, she could sing before she went deaf @SnarkyTart. 

[SnarkyTart]

10 minutes ago, wings707 said:

The deaf girl was studying music, she could sing before she went deaf @SnarkyTart. 

Yes, that's true.  But, I believe that singing in tune (and very well on pitch) as Mandy Harvey certainly does would be enormously difficult if you couldn't hear.  She has to (as shown in her intro pkg) learn to sing each note using a digital pitch analyzer.  It impressed me a lot.  She also writes her own songs, which would seem to be yet another level of ability and difficulty for the deaf, regardless of prior experience when able to hear.   Still, she doesn't have a great voice, and that's too bad, but it should have eliminated her from golden buzzer contention. 

[Wings]

4 minutes ago, SnarkyTart said:

Yes, that's true.  But, I believe that singing in tune (and very well on pitch) as Mandy Harvey certainly does would be enormously difficult if you couldn't hear.  She has to (as shown in her intro pkg) learn to sing each note using a digital pitch analyzer.  It impressed me a lot.  She also writes her own songs, which would seem to be yet another level of ability and difficulty for the deaf, regardless of prior experience when able to hear.   Still, she doesn't have a great voice, and that's too bad, but it should have eliminated her from golden buzzer contention. 

Thanks.  I didn't pay much attention to her back story.  Zzzzzzz.  She was an obvious choice for the golden shower.  That is not a typo.  :^) 

[SnarkyTart]

14 minutes ago, wings707 said:

Thanks.  I didn't pay much attention to her back story.  Zzzzzzz.  She was an obvious choice for the golden shower.  That is not a typo.  :^) 

LOL! 

[Maverick]

 Was I the only one bothered by how much make the 8 year old girl dancer was wearing?  She had on more than her mother. 

[slf]

39 minutes ago, Maverick said:

 Was I the only one bothered by how much make the 8 year old girl dancer was wearing?  She had on more than her mother. 

No, you were not. It was not only too much, it was horribly done and made the little girl's face look off.

[rr2911]

Here is my take on auditions 2:

. Skating Siblings - Yes, it was a bit awkward. I mean the brother has to look at her crotch  while he's twirling her around. Besides, I was a bit bored already.

. Red haired guy - He was just o.k. Nothing special

. Science guy - I liked his science act, although I think his act is best suited as a side attraction rather than a million dollar act.

. Angelica - She has a good voice but come on know, the judges never have judged kid contestants the same. That's what gets me about this show and the judges. But, she was a good singer.

. Brothers doing dangerous acts - I like this type of performance but rarely do these get far. Again, I think the judges especially Heidi Klum should judge the performance not whether she can't stand to look at this act. She knew that she would be seeing strange and unusual acts.

. Magician/Mind reader - I thought he was very good. I don't know how he did the trick with the coin but I'm sure there are lots of people here licking their chops ready to reveal the secret.

. Mandy - I thought she had a pretty good voice but not a great one. I do think that her story helped push her through. There will be other singers and probably better ones at that. Then again, look what happened to last season. The worst winner in my opinion in AGT history!

. The young dancing couple - I didn't like them at all! Simon was right in buzzing them. They were good in a sense that they had the moves especially how young they are, but just because you can dance and you're a kid doesn't mean automatically they're going through. That what the judges not named Simon were thinking. They passed them through just because they can't say "no" to kids. I guess negativity might damage them for life. The song was too fast, and they were really helter skelter out there.

 

Tyra Banks needs to be replaced or come up with her own routine. Trying to be like Nick is just not cutting it for her. Here's hoping they replace her when the live shows start. 

 

Until next time....

[friendperidot]

I thought the mind reader was obvious. And I like to know how magic is done and I'm still impressed by it. When the audience was yelling out the colors and animals and names,

Spoiler

I couldn't understand anything they were yelling, they weren't all yelling the same colors, animals and names, he picked out what he picked out, because...

Spoiler tagged in case it isn't obvious and you don't want to know what I think.

[Wings]

23 minutes ago, friendperidot said:

I thought the mind reader was obvious. And I like to know how magic is done and I'm still impressed by it. When the audience was yelling out the colors and animals and names,

  Hide contents

I couldn't understand anything they were yelling, they weren't all yelling the same colors, animals and names, he picked out what he picked out, because...

Spoiler tagged in case it isn't obvious and you don't want to know what I think.

Yes, of course it was obvious that he chose the animals, colors and names he wanted but the rest remains in question. 

[Frankenstein123]

Episode 2 of 8000 has aired, so it's time to do the rankings..be prepared:


11. Artyon & Paige - Had they been dancing to a One Direction song Simon would have given them a standing ovation. As it is though, it was a cute little number that felt more suitable for a school party than a big stage. Also I'm going to have that damn song stuck in my head all day now, THANKS AGT.


10. Mia Moore - Yeah, starting off with another gimmick animal act really does nothing to shake up the formula. It's a clever trick, but that's unfortunately all it is, there's nowhere this act can go unless the dog learns how to play a guitar, shove him together with the chicken and THERE is an act.


9. Pelican212 - Is this just named after a fake youtube spambot? Harmless enough I guess...


8. Chase Goehring - Meh? It's nice of him to do an original song, it's just a shame nothing else about him felt or sounded original.


7. Azeri Brothers - Take 1 cup of Jackass, 2 cups of Steroids and remove any and all trace of charm and personality and voila. The tricks themselves seemed a lot less "OH MY GOD SOMEONE IS DEFINITELY GOING TO DIE" than Howie was trying to make them seem, but they were both impressive and dangerous. That being said I prefer my muscle/freakshow acts to have better presentation than this.


6. Mandy Harvey - Yeah she got the golden buzzer because of her story, but I'm kinda okay with that...She seemed nice and for once the sob story actually means something ABOUT her talent and isn't just "My entire family died in a freak car accident, so now I juggle". It's hard enough to speak when you are deaf so I can't even imagine how hard it must be to sing, but she made it worked and had a good voice. Good on her for coming out with an original song too.


5. Nick Uhas - I'm pretty much placing this as high because it was fun and entertaining and different from the usual norm on the show. I've seen the guy pop up on youtube before and he's charming and knows his stuff, unfortunately what works as a neat online video or a segment on Bill Nye the science guy doesn't really work...as an act? The IDEA of using chemicals and science to create a big stage show is fascinating, but I don't think he's really figured the second part out yet. It's just a way for every chemistry teacher in America to scream "YOU THOUGHT MY CLASS WAS BORING BUT YOU WANT TO GIVE HIM A MILLION DOLLARS? That's it, I QUIT" at the TV. I'm conflicted...yet intrigued what he might do next.


4. Angelica Hale - I was pleasantly surprised by her. Maybe it's because I was terrified I would have to hear nessun dorma again, but her voice was lovely and I was waiting for Stitch to join her any moment as she was adorable enough to be in a Disney movie. She probably needs an ukulele to win, but that's another story...


3. Billy & Emily England - What they do is incredible to watch and I can't even imagine the amount of time it takes to rehearse something like this and NOT end up with a metal plate in your head. There's just one problem...I've seen it before. As Simon mentioned they were on BGT back in 2015 and by seeing them there I can kinda confirm that this...is all the act is. Their 2 performances on BGT ended up being pretty much the same, just in slightly different order and while I'd like to hope they have learnt more since then and can shake things up a bit, I have a hard time seeing them making it through even MORE rounds here when they resorted to repetition in just 2. It was a case of "seen it once, seen it all" the last time, I'm HOPING they can prove me wrong this time.


2. Diavolo - Creating a giant see-saw out of what looked like a piece of the titanic was enough to sell me on this. Are they the best acrobatic act we have seen? I have no idea, but I do know they have a LOT of potential to do something cool in the future and hopefully surprise us.


1. Colin Cloud - I know, I know..It's yet ANOTHER mentalist and had it been anyone else I would probably have been sick of them by this point. HOWEVER, I have seen our Mr Cloud here before on various TV shows including Penn and Teller and Good Morning Britain and know that he is REALLY good. He is so good in fact that he's part of The Illusionists, which makes it a bit weird to see him on this show. From what I know he's quite a big deal in the world of mentalism and mostly comes up with his own tricks, which I can very much respect. He is the guy OTHER starting mentalists *coughozpearlmancough* learn routines from. I guess he's just not quite as known outside of the UK so this show should give him the boost in popularity he needs overseas. This wasn't him at his BEST, but I know he's a very very clever guy that mixes genuine psychology, misdirection, suggestion and a healthy dose of bullshit to sell the whole "Sherlock" gimmick and seeing what he CAN do on other shows, I am very intrigued to see how this goes for him...


To conclude, not as strong as the first episode, but still a couple of potentially great acts...It's looking like at LEAST an okay season so far so let's ride that choochoo train all the way to the end.

[CrashTextDummie]

On 7.6.2017 at 11:41 PM, Lonesome Rhodes said:

Deaf girl wouldn't have survived an AI audition except for her handicap sob story.  Million dollar act?  Puhleaze.

Surely a person who can not only sing, but sing quite beautifully despite being deaf for 10 years is worthy of a talent show, no? The sob story is literally the act, the talent. I didn't need to know that little girl singer was a kidney transplant recipient, but deaf singer's disability definitely informed the performance. I also thought the song was quite lovely. And I liked her minimalist band.

[rr2911]

Something that a few posted here about the audience's reaction. I told my wife that the audience reaction doesn't fit the performance.  Even Diavolo, with their see-saw rig and performers jumping off didn't seem to fit the audience expressions. I think that since it is a taped segment, we are watching two different scenes that are edited to make it look like the same. With Diavolo, I never reacted with awe. I was bored after awhile a told my wife that this act was a "dead end" act and won't win AGT.

Edited June 9, 2017 by rr2911

[Whimsy]

5 hours ago, rr2911 said:

Something that a few posted here about the audience's reaction. I told my wife that the audience reaction doesn't fit the performance.  Even Diavolo, with their see-saw rig and performers jumping off didn't seem to fit the audience expressions. I think that since it is a taped segment, we are watching two different scenes that are edited to make it look like the same. With Diavolo, I never reacted with awe. I was bored after awhile a told my wife that this act was a "dead end" act and won't win AGT.

Yeah, it's been mentioned in previous seasons that the editors just pick whatever reaction shots of the audience they want and insert it.  The reactions could've been from a different day, for all we know. 

[saber5055]

Since no judge had ever seen a skating act like the bro/sis, I guess they never watched "I Can Do That." Nicole Scherzinger did that same act partnering with the Skating Aratas, and they were shown over and over on that episode. So to me, seeing the bro/sis team was BOOOOR-ing. I thought the dog was okay, but really did NOT want people to choose 16 and then 20 barks. Ugh, please, no. I can see the deaf singer getting the GB since I don't think she'll change/improve much over the weeks, so this way she goes directly to finals to stay in competition. I wish I could have seen the arc acrobat team instead of multiple ADHD shots of the audience and judges. I don't have a clue if their act was good or interesting or anything since the camera work about put me into a seizure. And now, because of you posters here, I am paying attention to Tyra and her multi-outfit changes per episode. Make that outfit AND hair changes. WTH? The judges keep the same clothes per episode, it's too much for Tyra? What, is she Cher now? So thank a lot you guys. Anyway, welcome to AGT I guess.