S12.E20: Live Results 4

[Drogo]

Only five of the previous night's performers will move on to the Finals. Viewers will have one last chance to send their favorite performer to the next round.

[Ohwell]

Tyra looks really good in that jumpsuit tonight.  She should just wear those all the time. 

Mel B looks like a crazy woman.

[saber5055]

Wow, after a preview of next week's competitors, almost ALL SINGERS! the judges put through another SINGER instead of a magic act. You know, one of those acts Howie says we can't see anywhere but on AGT. But I guess we don't get to see magic acts on AGT either. At least Sarah and Hero went through, and Darci. So there's that for good news.

[lor]

the cw channel has masters of ilusion and penn and teller fool us.

the choir gut cut because they sang that aerosmith song. what does that song have to do with Christianity. also the heavier woman was a better lead.

i can see Darci winning the whole thing.

chase is nowhere near as good as edsheeran.

where was mike young going when his name was called. maybe he knew it was over for him.

[suebee12]

Was it just me or did Evie Clair not look at all worried? Like she knew she was in? And she should not be in...she is not that good...just a sob story. Sorry but that is how I feel.

And gosh, next week is singer after singer, and child after child!

Question: remember this is my first year watching. The Sarasota dog act was cut but they will be on next week...are there always wild cards?

Lastly...GO DARCI!!!!!!!

Edited September 7, 2017 by suebee12

[rr2911]

11 minutes ago, lor said:

   where was mike young going when his name was called. maybe he knew it was over for him.

I think he forgot to wait until Tyra asked them to move forward.

[Diana Berry]

Yay hero

[rr2911]

Well, that sucked!

Shouldn't have gone through:

Chase Goehring - The next Grace Vanderwaal (who I think is the worst AGT winner)

Evie Clair - Pretty girl, but shouldn't have made it to the finals.  

Sara n Hero - I think Darci is the clear cut favorite to win but like I said before, America is not going to stop loving dogs! If it comes down to Darci and Sara, I think based on America's love for dogs and them drinking Sara's Kool Aid(sob story), Sara n Hero will win AGT.  

 

That other dog act is in as a Wild Card? I'll be pulling for them to beat Sara n Hero. That other dog act is more polished and more entertaining.

 

I think Tyra Banks looked beautiful tonight and she is winning me over. She's coming into her own as host of AGT. Someone must have told her something or she looked at replays and learned from her mistakes. Good Job Tyra!

Too bad I can't say the same for MelB. She looked awful with that hair. It's too bad because she has a pretty face. Pretty face and all, she annoys me and I hope she's gone after this season.   

[healthnut]

I was hoping Just Jerk would be a wild card. 

[friendperidot]

Gosh, so far I'm in a minority, I liked Mel B's hair tonight, I hated it last night, but then again I don't like hair colors not found naturally on someone's head. And I like my dolls with wigs and I never choose other than natural hair colors. I'm a minority in the doll communities also. I'm ok with that.

I love Sara and Hero and Loki, I think she's improved, I don't really think she should win, but I'd be ok with it. I do think Darci will win and I think she is very talented and I'd be ok with her winning too. I'd kind of like to see her with Terry Fator or Paul Zerdin.

I'm sorry that Evie went through, I think she needs to be home with her family, I'm pretty sure her dad has mixed feelings, he's proud of her and wants her to pursue her dreams, but I think he'd kind of like to have her around right now. But I think she needs to spend more time paying her dues as a singer, she has many years left to have a career and I don't think she's all that good.

I would rather have seen the magician, Eric? go through rather than Chase. I think Chase is better than Evie and I thought last night's song was kind of cute, I hadn't really paid attention to him before. I'm not too crazy about teenage angst songs though, not even back in the ancient days when I was a teenager.

[kickedinthehead]

Whoops! Wrong thread (sorry).

Edited September 7, 2017 by kickedinthehead

[ProAc]

Well I picked 4 out of the 5 going to the finals. I don't see what America sees in Preacher Lawson. He gets on my nerves after two minutes with his hyperactive nonsense. Felt bad for Eric Jones but not surprised about the rest. 

[dingochick]

Was happy with most who made it through, but not Chase. He does not strike me as the real deal, and all of his songs are the same. I mean Jay-Z has 99 problems but a bitch ain't one, and Chase has just one problem...a bitch. Or however Mr. dingochick said it. 

[Parker]

2 hours ago, saber5055 said:

Wow, after a preview of next week's competitors, almost ALL SINGERS! the judges put through another SINGER instead of a magic act.

Last week, they put through a magic act over a singer... Colin Cloud.

[Mockingbird]

I wonder if Sara and Hero were supposed to perform next week but got pushed up when the other dog act was brought back. That's the only way Howie's comment (about only having five days to prepare) makes any sense. 

Edited September 7, 2017 by Mockingbird

[CelticBlackCat]

40 minutes ago, Mockingbird said:

I wonder if Sara and Hero were supposed to perform next week but got pushed up when the other dog act was brought back. That's the only way Howie's comment makes any sense. 

Are you talking about the only five days comment?  I instinctively shrieked a yes when they got put through.  In the end, I doubt Sara and Hero will be the final winners, but I'm so thrilled they've made it (with Loki!) this far.

Of the Dunkin Save 3, I think Eric the magician should have won.  I feel Evie got the sympathy vote from America's voters with her sob story.  I do not think Chase is that great for the reasons others have stated, i.e., all his songs sound the same and I am not a fan of his singing style.

[SnarkyTart]

Wow. When Tara called Yoli and Johnny Manuel up together, I was shocked when she said, "Whoa...(pause)...You're both going home."  If the show has done a reveal that way before, I don't remember it.  In any case, I thought it was cruel. 

I can't complain too much about the results, as Darci is the only one on the show this season that I think is worthy of the win and she's still in. 

Edited September 7, 2017 by SnarkyTart

[suebee12]

1 hour ago, Mockingbird said:

I wonder if Sara and Hero were supposed to perform next week but got pushed up when the other dog act was brought back. That's the only way Howie's comment makes any sense. 

I had not deleted last week's result show so I ran it to the last section to see if Sara and Hero were scheduled and no they were not! Also it showed the Robot kid performing also(sorry I can't remember his name, Merrick maybe?) this week. So they definitely changed it up. Guess they knew better than two dog acts on one show(or maybe they could combine and make it really interesting...just kidding). Anyway, that is where Howie's comment came from!

[Songbird]

So happy Darcy, and Sara and Hero with Loki were voted through. I love these acts as they make me smile and forget about all the bad news in our country for a moment....

[silverspoons]

I have mixed feelings about Evie. I have followed her fathers cancer journey via her moms blog. I believe AGT picked her for her story & some Mormon connections she had. Her dad was so proud of her. He was a prison social worker and pastor and adored his family. He really believed he was going to beat cancer and made his kids believe he was going to get well and told Evie to go to CA and get her dream. AGT played up her backstory, I think Evie would have been fine with a religious or modesty storyline too.  Her mom didn't tell her yesterday her dad had gone on life support and had final rites till after she performed. I don't think Evie understands that she is flying home tonight and her father is not going to be awake or get better. 

Im from Utah , not Mormon, but Evie will be big in the Mormon circles, she already played at stadium of fire which is the concert of the year for many in the state. I am saddened seeing so many hateful things, like she used her dad's illness to get votes or she is a bad person for not quitting AGT. I believe her dad wanted her to be in the show, and it was horrible timing ( reading the blog, the doctors thought he had another year, he was working in the prison in July and then just went down fast with organ failure).  I hope she does not regret being on the show vs being at the hospital and I hope her mom or family erases the hateful posts on her social media. 

Im a numbers person, and there is no way Darci loses this right now. I was kind of hoping for a close race (after the horrible summer of big brother), but Darci will win. 

I agree that we sure need more variety. More, comedians, magics acts, real Vegas style acts. I think there will be at least 6 if not 7 singers in the finals which is boring. 

[Frankenstein123]

I got 5 out of 5, just not in the order I thought. Not bad. I'm actually fairly pleased with the TOP 3 and all 3 are acts I'm looking forward to seeing again. I was quite surprised to see Chase end up where he did, my brain was always telling me he would sail through due to his "pretty-boy" status, but I guess America really might be getting sick of hearing about his fantasy relationships. It's a damn shame to lose Mike, Simon mentioned that "age shouldn't matter" with talent, but it certainly seems to matter with voters. Maybe he just should have milked his sob story more *sigh*

It's interesting to think that an act that barely made it through the audition stage has now sailed through each round straight to the finals. Could anyone have guessed early on that Sara & Hero would make it this far? One could claim that America loves dogs and will vote for them no matter what, but Pompeyo didn't even manage to get into the Dunkin Save and this is the first time in over 5 years that an animal act is back in the finals so people are clearly seeing something special in Sara and her love of dogs. I know in my heart I SHOULD be angry about her making it over Billy & Emily and even Mike, but I enjoy seeing this act too much to do that. Besides, I find her underdog (pun intended) story of getting here far more endearing than all the sob stories they try to shove down our throats.

Speaking of sob stories, I could rant about  Evie making it through, but I'll save myself the time and energy. I think it's just time for me to make peace with the fact she's here. She got through and she's here to stay, but she wont win and if this show helps a young girl get through the darkest period of her life then I guess that's not the worst thing that's ever happened? I'm being careful not to blame Evie herself here, no I fully put all the blame on the show and the producers for milking her story like this and the voters for falling for it.

Oh and we also have a wild card. Did I mention already that Simon likes dogs? Because he REALLY likes dogs. I half imagine the producers going "OH SH--, IS IT TOO LATE TO CHANGE THE FOOTAGE?" when Sara actually went through as Pompeyo really have no shot of doing as well as her (which feels weird to say considering how it seemed the other way around for such a long time). A more worthy wild card act would still have had an incredibly tough time going through next week and I guess I'm okay with it just being a fun cannon fodder act like the Pompeyo family instead of me getting my hopes up again for someone like Puddles.

And that finally brings us to next week. Oh boy. Let's just get the personal ranking over with:

11: In the Stairwell
10: Celine Tam
9: Pompeyo Family Dogs
8: Kechi
7: Christian Guardino
6: Angelica Hale
5: Colin Cloud
4: Diavolo
3: Merrick Hanna
2: Mandy Harvey
1: Light Balance

Just looking at that list is giving me a minor panic attack. I'm not sure who they are trying to kill off here, but having a bunch of fan favourites and 5 Golden Buzzer acts in semi 2 while dumping all 3 of the Judges Choice winners into semi 1 seems like insanity. This is a slaughterhouse!

Pompeyo and In The Stairwell are the only 2 I would confidently consider out. America loves dogs and the military, but the competition is simply too tough this time around.

It's impossible to get all 4 of Colin, Diavolo, Light Balance and Merrick to the finals, at best we'll probably only see 2 of them making it through. Diavolo and Light Balance seem like the obvious stand-outs, but we have seen what's happened to acts like Siro-A in the past. America simply responds better to individuals than groups, no matter how impressive they are so it seems likely we are losing at least 1 of them. Merrick has been a dark horse from the very beginning and has gathered a decent fanbase, but he would have had a MUCH easier time going through this week. Colin seems like the easiest one to eliminate due to his dunkin save status, but if Eric Jones managed to get to the top 6 despite only being a judges pick then Colin has all the chance in the world to pull off a comeback.

And then we have the singers...Mandy Harvey is probably the safest choice out of ANYONE in this semi. At least one of Celine or Angelica is guaranteed of going through, but will both? You'd think with them finally put up against eachother that America would finally come to a decision and pick the better one, but I can just as easily see both of them making it due to their insanely big fanbase. And affter seeing what Evie did with just a sob story this week, what will the voters do when faced with Kechi, who is a much better singer and a performer? Even Christian can't be considered done for if he manages to step it up.

So that's 4 deserving and likely-to-go-through variety acts battling it out with 4 fan-favourite and likely-to-go-through singers with Christian watching nervously in the middle on a dark horse. All for just 5 spots! I haven't got a CLUE, this will be the most interesting and potentially frustrating show so far. 

Edited September 7, 2017 by Frankenstein123

[LadyMustang65]

Our top 2 favorites - Darci and Sara & Hero - made it through.  I would have picked Eric Jones over either of the two singers, if for no other reason than to get some variety in the finals, but instead we got stuck with Preacher, as I suspected we would.  He is such a polarizing figure.  So many seem to really like him, but then there are a lot, like us, who can't stand him and don't find him the least bit funny.  Howie is talking about him getting a sitcom, and we're sitting on the couch going, "Oh My God No.  Just No!"  smh

[saber5055]

Thanks for the info here about Sarah and Hero being switched with Merrick so there wouldn't be two dog acts next week. Finally, that explains why Sarah only had five days to prepare ... while Pompeyo dogs will have had what, a month maybe? It's funny we can't have two dog acts but we can have six singers on the same show. But then again, this is America's Got Singers. I did vote Dunkin Save for the first time ever, for Eric. even though I knew Evie would win. Call me psychic. But I was disappointed the judges saved another SINGER. Gah. And if Preacher gets that sitcom as Howie thinks he should, that'll just be another show I won't watch. So, whatever.

[anthonyd46]

Darci has this on lock. Unless America is voting for Sarah and Hero because of the story. I don't think anyone else has a chance. 

[anthonyd46]

21 hours ago, rr2911 said:

 

Sara n Hero - I think Darci is the clear cut favorite to win but like I said before, America is not going to stop loving dogs! If it comes down to Darci and Sara, I think based on America's love for dogs and them drinking Sara's Kool Aid(sob story), Sara n Hero will win AGT.  

I think really think this is the final 2. I can't see anyone else challenging either of them. Says a lot when only 3 go through without a dunkin save and they are 2 of the 3. I looked at all the history since the snapple/dunkin save was formed and the winner has NEVER been a save act in the pre-final week whether it was the semifinal leading to 1 final or the top 12 leading to the top 6. 

 

Season 9 : Mat Franco, Emily West, Quantiouvs Johnson, and Acro Army. 

Season 10 : Derek Hughes, Drew Lynch, Oz. Piff,Regurgitator, Paul.

Season 11: Grace, Jon Dorenbos, Sal Valtinetii. The Clairvoyants, Brian Justin Crum, Linkin Bridge

Those were all the voted through acts in the final pre-final stage whether it was semi final or 12 into 6. 

[Nilknarf]

I've been saying since the beginning that Darci would win.  I remember the first season when a girl her age knocked everyone out of the water with her voice, and although the prize has changed to a Vegas-centric starring role, I still think she is the most likely - and deserving - of the win.  Of the others, I am not overly impressed by many.  I don't think Kechi, Evie or the Sheeran-wannabe have any business being in the finale, but I didn't think Grace deserved to win last year, so who knows?

I love Light Balance, and I do like Sarah and Hero - even though they were (justifiably) not as polished this week.  Celine is OK but her voice is just "too old" for her and she needs a few years to be able to match her appearance with the maturity of her voice. 

Darci should win this in a cakewalk - and good for her.  Is it too much to wish for Terry Fator to join her in the finale? (I saw him promoting her act on his Facebook page, so maybe he will!) I would love to see him mentor her in the future, as my only "complaint" about her act is all her characters sound very much alike; despite their added accents and characterized speech pattern. 

[silverspoons]

Just to update, Evies dad died. She was able to see him briefly before he passed.

[Mr. Sparkle]

I'm really saddened to hear that. The family blog is very touching. 

[Lady Iris]

10 hours ago, silverspoons said:

Just to update, Evies dad died. She was able to see him briefly before he passed.

Oh wow, that is so sad.

 

I'm rooting for Darci to win. Kid is crazy talented, her puppets are awesome, making Simon blush the way he did needs to be recognized. Plus, that kid can sing.

 

I'm shocked the skaters didn't make it through. They have a pretty thrilling act and compared to blah blah singers I thought they had a shot of at least making it through.

 

I'm still in America's Next Top Model mode with Tyra when she's announcing who's going through. Love to see a "We were all rooting for you" meltdown.

Edited September 8, 2017 by Lady Iris

[CelticBlackCat]

I would have wanted Billy & Emily England to have won out over any of the singers as well.

[Songbird]

I'm really sad for Evie and her family with her Dad's death coming so much sooner than they expected....

[saber5055]

My sympathies to Evie and her family.Thanks for letting us know here. It's so very sad. I hope the show doesn't exploit her. Makes me want to root for her now. As for Tyra in ANTM mode, she now is ending the show with "Stay fierce." Next she will be asking contestants to smize for America.

[ZuriGee]

14 hours ago, Superclam said:

I'm really saddened to hear that. The family blog is very touching. 

 Very sad. The story on the blog is touching but I think so many pictures of him in his last days is an invasion of privacy and in poor taste for a public blog. Close-ups of his face and legs and all his equipment were not necessary to post publicly. He seemed like a dignified man and this is so personal. 

[Rachel81]

13 hours ago, Lady Iris said:

I'm still in America's Next Top Model mode with Tyra when she's announcing who's going through. Love to see a "We were all rooting for you" meltdown.

 

2 hours ago, saber5055 said:

As for Tyra in ANTM mode, she now is ending the show with "Stay fierce." Next she will be asking contestants to smize for America.

I keep waiting for that weird eyelid fluttering thing she does before she announces the contestant who is still in the running. 

[Lonesome Rhodes]

This was the cakewalk semi.  It is absurd that Preacher was granted this pass by TPTB.  He would have zero shot in the coming semi.

I'm happy for the dog act, but it just isn't as good as the other one.  No way will we have two dog acts in the final.

The Clairvoyants were pretty good.  The dude put on some pounds, though.  Needs a tailor or new threads. 

[saber5055]

Oh yes, the Clairvoyants WERE good. I enjoyed seeing them again. They made Colin Cloud's Let's Kill Simon routine look ... well, not very good. And while I agree there can't be two dogs acts in the same show, I do wonder why since there are multiple singers in each episode. Singers don't sing the same song, but the dogs don't do the same stunts, either. Is it because singers are common, dog acts are not? I don't know. I hated the skeevy skaters but I would rather they stayed in instead of some singer. Any singer. Although when the singers perform, it gives me time to do something else, like watch the other channel.

[galaxychaser]

Evie Clair isn't very good.  For a restaurant or coffee bar okay for a professional singer no. 

But since her dad died today watch her win the whole show. 

[CelticBlackCat]

I'm going to ask if anyone here thinks it was not the time in Evie's life to pursue her AGT dream, while her father was at home dying.  I am not trying to start an argument, but just wonder what people think.  You don't have to answer (of course) and please don't berate me for asking the question.

[Mr. Sparkle]

. 

Edited September 10, 2017 by Superclam

[CelticBlackCat]

I was also thinking if I would have allowed this to happen if I were the wife and mother.  What would I do if my husband was terminally ill, dying at home; would I be shuttling around one of my children to a talent show?

[rr2911]

3 hours ago, CelticBlackCat said:

I'm going to ask if anyone here thinks it was not the time in Evie's life to pursue her AGT dream, while her father was at home dying.  I am not trying to start an argument, but just wonder what people think.  You don't have to answer (of course) and please don't berate me for asking the question.

It's a good question. Even if Evie's dad wanted her to keep on with the show, I would think she would've gotten out of the show. The mother probably should've gotten her out of the show. That's what I would've done.

[rr2911]

20 hours ago, Lonesome Rhodes said:

I'm happy for the dog act, but it just isn't as good as the other one.  No way will we have two dog acts in the final. 

I like dogs but Sara and Hero's act is not polished and is all over the place. So, I'm not a happy camper when it comes to this fantasy AGT world. This dog act shouldn't have gone through. As much as I think Darci has a huge chance in winning AGT, I have a feeling that Sara and Hero will win because America is not going to stop loving dogs, not even for one night and not even in favor of a much better and more talented act in Darci. 

[saber5055]

No one loves dogs more than I do, but I disagree that Sarah and Hero will win. I don't see how Darci could lose this. Of course, YMMV. I didn't care for the dog act that won, was it two years ago? Although I sure liked them better than Grace Vanderwall or however you spell her name. Heck, I like the Skeevy Skaters better than Grace Vanderwall and I hate them. If I were King of the World, Bello would be in the finals. So, obviously, my taste does not lineup with the voting public.

As for Evie being on AGT, that's such a personal decision, one that had to be made within her family and what I (or anyone else) think means nothing. Perhaps it was her father's wish. Perhaps it was a welcome distraction from a cruel real life. Maybe it gave her father some peace and enjoyment in his last days. Everyone reacts to a dying family member differently. While I sat with my dying mother 24/7, it was "too hard" on my sisters and they disappeared, never to be seen ... until the reading of the will. Then it was all gimme gimme gimme. Maybe the show told Evie she could return next season at the exact same semi-final position and she turned it down. Who knows.

[rr2911]

I'm the first to say that Darci should win it all but was it last year or the year before, there was a singer who was just dominating the rounds. Everyone thought that he would win. He was eliminated I think in the semis. My point is a heavy favorite sometimes loses, especially a fan driven contest and popularity one at that. People are pointing out that even if Sara's dog act isn't perfect, that's what they like about her act. I'm hoping she goes early in the finals. If she's in the final two against Darci, Sara will win.  (imho of course)

[DarkRaichu]

I just hate how the gospel choir and the rollerskate act were BOTH got lower votes than the magician and the girl with dying dad.  The magician was not that good.  If I could figure out how he did the trick on first watch, then he is average at best.  I am glad he is out :P

The girl only got this far because of sympathy votes.  From this side of the television screen, her situation seemed to negatively effected her performances.

Oh my bad, I forgot, this show is called America's Got the Best Sob Story.

Having said the above, should she have done the show in her circumstances? I know what I would have done in her shoes.  I just hope she understands the the pros and cons before deciding to go forward with the show.

[anthonyd46]

18 hours ago, rr2911 said:

I'm the first to say that Darci should win it all but was it last year or the year before, there was a singer who was just dominating the rounds. Everyone thought that he would win. He was eliminated I think in the semis. My point is a heavy favorite sometimes loses, especially a fan driven contest and popularity one at that. People are pointing out that even if Sara's dog act isn't perfect, that's what they like about her act. I'm hoping she goes early in the finals. If she's in the final two against Darci, Sara will win.  (imho of course)

Emily West??? I can't think of anyone else. Last few years it was pretty obvious Olate Dogs, Kenichi, Paul Zerdin, and Grace were winning easily. I had a feeling Mat Franco and Emily would be the final 2 for a while, but I was surprised to see Mat win over Emily even though I thought he deserved it. 

Edited September 11, 2017 by anthonyd46

[rr2911]

16 minutes ago, anthonyd46 said:

Emily West??? I can't think of anyone else. Last few years it was pretty obvious Olate Dogs, Kenichi, Paul Zerdin, and Grace were winning easily. I had a feeling Mat Franco and Emily would be the final 2 for a while, but I was surprised to see Mat win over Emily even though I thought he deserved it. 

I found out!  It was  Brian Justin Crum! At least I thought he was the or one of the heavy favorites and he ended up eliminated I believe it was against Grace Vanderwaal.

[ketchuplover]

I thought BJC finished 4th

[anthonyd46]

BJC was 4th. 

I mean I can't think of any "shocking" final 2's in the last few years

Olate and Tom Cotter, Kenichi and Taylor, Mat and Emily, Paul and Drew, Grace and Clairvoyants ? Maybe Clairvoyants over BJC was slightly surprising. I think most final 2's are pretty obvious.

No snapple/dunkin save has even finished better than 4th place though Taylor was a Judges choice before the save existed.

[helenamonster]

It's sort of amazing how acts that fly through in the quarters don't even make it into the Dunkin Save in the semis (Johnny, Billy&Emily, and Mike), though because of their Dunkin Save Status in the quarters, I'm not surprised about Yoli or Greater Works (disappointed about Greater Works though). Guess it all depends on which acts are matched up against each other.

I hope Sara brings the third dog, Marvel, into her act for the finals.

On 9/6/2017 at 9:14 PM, lor said:

the choir gut cut because they sang that aerosmith song. what does that song have to do with Christianity. also the heavier woman was a better lead.

Someone else has mentioned this before, but they kind of have a Sister Act thing going on, reinterpreting popular songs to give them religious meaning. YMMV, but as someone who's not really a fan of religious/gospel music, I enjoyed it and was sorry to see them go.

On 9/6/2017 at 9:23 PM, suebee12 said:

Question: remember this is my first year watching. The Sarasota dog act was cut but they will be on next week...are there always wild cards?

Yes. They never have the numbers right for acts going through each round (they usually end up with an odd number) so they have to fill them in with wild cards.

On 9/6/2017 at 10:44 PM, dingochick said:

Was happy with most who made it through, but not Chase. He does not strike me as the real deal, and all of his songs are the same. I mean Jay-Z has 99 problems but a bitch ain't one, and Chase has just one problem...a bitch. Or however Mr. dingochick said it. 

Oh man, this is hilarious. Thank you for this laugh today.

On 9/9/2017 at 8:27 PM, CelticBlackCat said:

I'm going to ask if anyone here thinks it was not the time in Evie's life to pursue her AGT dream, while her father was at home dying.  I am not trying to start an argument, but just wonder what people think.  You don't have to answer (of course) and please don't berate me for asking the question.

No, I get where you're coming from. Cancer is huge and life-changing and an incredible burden for any family. So it has always struck me as kind of odd that this is the time they decided to schlep one of their kids out to LA every few weeks for a talent competition. At first I thought Evie was the only child and could kind of get it; you don't want their lives to be defined by their parents illness, but then when I saw that they seemed to have at least four kids, I was very confused. It just seems like so much extra work and stress to put on a family that is already going through something very stressful. It also feels like it must take a huge emotional toll on Evie. That's a huge swing between highs and lows for a teenage girl to go through. I commend her for not having had a complete breakdown. Though now that her father has passed I wonder if she will still appear in the final. It just seems like too much all at once.