S13.E13: The Knockouts, Part 2

[Star Aristille]

From TV Guide:

Quote

Each contestant selects a song to perform before facing off against a teammate.  The coaches each choose a member of their teams to advance, leaving the castoffs up for grabs.  Key advisor is Kelly Clarkson.

This is a two-hour episode that'll either contain six aired matchups only, or six aired matchups and one montaged one, more than likely for either Team Adam or Team Blake.

And to prepare for that episode, here's a sneak preview of one of Monday's Knockouts:

 

I think both did great jobs.  Chris definitely measured up to Rob Taylor's version in season eight's top twelve show, and Katrina, while she didn't best Clarissa Serna's version in season six, definitely did an excellent job that beat Jessie Pitts's version in season seven, as well as Lacy Mandigo's version in season ten's Knockouts.  I think Jennifer might hold on to her original team member, though, since few coaches hold onto their steals.  So imagine Katrina's going home if she isn't picked.

Enjoy the preview.

Edited November 4, 2017 by Star Aristille

[viajero]

Spoiler

They both did good, even if on songs that have been done to death on this show.  At least Katrina changed her song up a bit and gave it her own interpretation.  Chris did his pretty much straight up.  Very smooth and professional, but I think my favorite version of that song from this show remains Jacquie Lee's from Season 5 because of the genuine raw emotion and power she put into it.  It was her breakout moment that ended up getting her all the way to the finale.

[Jabu]

Current team rosters/cheat sheets:

Team Adam
Addison Agen (defeated Dennis Drummond)
Jon Mero (defeated Dylan Gerard)*
Emily Luther (defeated Adam Pearce)
Adam Cunningham (stolen from Team Blake)

(Still Waiting)
Hannah Mrozak
Anthony Alexander

Team Miley
Janice Freeman (defeated Karli Webster)
Ashland Craft (defeated Chloe Kohanski)
Brooke Simpson (defeated Stephan Marcellus)
Moriah Formica (defeated Whitney Fenimore)
Adam Pearce (stolen from Team Adam)

Team Jennifer
Shi'Ann Jones (defeated Lucas Holliday)
Davon Fleming (defeated Eric Lyn)
Noah Mac (defeated Jeremiah Miller)

(Still Waiting)
Chris Weaver
Katrina Rose

Team Blake
Esera Tuaolo (defeated Adam Cunningham)
Mitchell Lee (defeated Anna Catherine DeHart)
Keisha Renee (defeated Kathrina Feigh)
Chloe Kohanski (stolen from Team Miley)

(Still Waiting)
Red Marlow
Megan Rose

Names in bold indicate an artist who has either newly won his or her Battle and stayed on his or her team, or been newly stolen by another coach.  An asterisk indicates that this artist's Knockout was montaged.

[Dots And Stripes]

I noticed quite a few pitch problems on Team Blake tonight. That's usually trouble once we get to the blinds. I thought a lot of his team members were evenly matched. 

I was surprised Miley seemed torn about Mariah's knock out. I thought that was an easy decision. 

You know what would be surprising? Not saving the steal for last. Put it midway to keep us on our toes.

[Star Aristille]

A pretty damn decent night.  At least for the winners and the one steal.  The losers?  Well, the majority of them had no business getting this far, apparently, and absolutely showed why.

So the performances:

Brooke vs. Stephan: Brooke got us off to a wonderful start, I thought.  She was damn near flawless on a song that's been done to death.  Her power, her tone, and control were all unmatched, for sure.  I enjoyed her performance a lot.  She did a good job to make Aretha's song her own.  Stephan . . . was fine, but not wonderful, on that Shontelle song.  Miley would've been an idiot to dump Brooke, since I think she's one of her best artists, bar none.  So she made the right choice.  Stephan wasn't stolen, but I can't blame Jennifer for not using hers.  That wasn't a performance worthy of being stolen.  But I do feel bad for Stephan.  It can't be easy getting constant reminders of his bungled Blind, what with them showing it both before his Battle and before his Knockout.

Anna Catherine vs. Mitchell: So we finally meet the elusive, twice-montaged Anna Catherine, and we see that she's . . . actually quite a good singer.  But she still paled in comparison to Mitchell, who was solid, if a bit dull, the whole way through.  It was a strong effort on a song that (I think) has never been done on this show before, and definitely one worthy of the win.  Anna Catherine was bold to take on a Faith Hill song, but while she did a nice job, Faith's songs are really hard to interpret without just sounding like you're a lesser version of her.  So I agreed with the choice to name Mitchell the winner.  Really thought that Miley might've gone for another country girl, but considering that she didn't go for her in the Blinds, either, it's not surprising that she didn't for the steal, either.  And Jennifer isn't a country girl, of course she wouldn't, either.  Adios, Anna Catherine.  Glad we finally saw you (unlike poor Alexandra Joyce, the only contestant this season to be montaged her entire time on the show now).

Jeremiah vs. Noah: It was pretty obvious from the rehearsal with Kelly that Noah had this in the bag.  Jeremiah was just awful from start to finish.  Granted, Justin Bieber songs are almost always terrible.  But I can't even recall one part of his particular performance that I enjoyed.  Noah had yet another strong performance and completely wiped the floor with Jeremiah.  It wasn't even close.  (The app voters only leaned five percent in Jeremiah's direction.  Noah got the other ninety-five.)  It was a well-earned win.  I like the Elvis-like vibe Noah gives off when he hits his lower register, too.  And if any daytime fans are out there, would you agree that he looks like Chandler Massey, who plays Will Horton on Days of our Lives?  And I'm not surprised that Miley didn't want to steal Jeremiah.  That performance didn't warrant it.

Kathrina vs. Keisha: I actually enjoyed Kathrina's performance as an overall performance.  But there were still a few pitch problems, and she came right out the gate dialed up to eleven.  She needed to learn the definition of "dynamics."  Because of this, I would've given the win to Keisha, as well.  She started out small, then built up to a great moment.  Her vocals were solid, and they had a good mix of country and soul.  However, she's going to have to pick better songs that really showcase what she wants to do going forward if she wants to go the country route.  Kathrina not getting stolen doesn't surprise me.  Jennifer has too many singers like her on her team, and she clearly isn't Miley's cup of tea, either.

Moriah vs. Whitney: Moriah took one of the more difficult Kelly Clarkson songs and did it extremely well.  I was impressed that she did as well on it as she did.  Her tone was spot-on, her pitch was perfect, and her voice held the same power as it had before.  I was mesmerized by how well she did.  Once again, her rock voice intrigues me.  Whitney actually wasn't too bad, either, but something about hers wasn't quite there, while I felt like Moriah was knocking my socks off the entire way through her performance.  So Miley chose correctly here.  Not surprised that Jennifer didn't steal her, though.  She doesn't do rock very well, so why bother with another rocker?

Adam P. vs. Emily: I really hate to give Adam credit for anything, but they really saved one of the better matchups for last.  And color me shocked that he actually told Adam P. to get rid of his guitar!  He's usually all about guitar players!  Still, with or without it, he did very well.  He really does have that rock voice that can do well with almost any rock song there is.  As for Emily, she was just gorgeous throughout.  Just a beautiful, clear, unforced tone.  I was surprised to see her do so well at a contemporary pop song rather than a throwback pop or jazz song.  P!nk was definitely the right song for her, and she just as definitely earned her keep on it.  I could see how Adam could've been torn, but honestly . . . I might've gone with Adam P. just because I like his rock voice a lot, but Adam couldn't have gone wrong with Emily, either.  Since I thought Adam P. should've taken that, I'm glad that Miley stole him.  But I get the feeling that he's only going to be with us for one more round.

Montage:

So I'd like to ask @wings707 if he/she remembers saying this, way back in the second Blind episode about Dylan promptly kicking Jennifer in the shins despite her actually helping him get instant improvement with a passage of his song he'd done wrong:

On ‎9‎/‎28‎/‎2017 at 9:05 AM, wings707 said:

I loved seeing one guy she coached on stage choose Adam!   I am shocked anyone chose her.

Well . . . gotta be a nice dose of karma for him that Adam dumped him and that Jennifer didn't steal him.  Would've liked to have seen what he sang, though.  And to really stick a pin in it, he gets the ax over Adam's only four-chair-turn, Jon, who sounded fairly decent on a very bad song choice for him.  I was shocked that he sounded as decent as he did.  And I was also shocked that he got so much love for it, since it didn't sound that good to me.  Still, getting the Knockout montage might hurt his chances with the fans, so he'd better hope for a good Playoff performance after his lowered visibility.

Much better performances tonight, and I hope they continue going into the final Knockouts tomorrow night.  It looks like Miley's team for the Playoffs is decided, so let's see how Adam, Jennifer, and Blake's teams all shake out!

Edited November 7, 2017 by Star Aristille

[Wings]

I don't remember that. ^^^^  :^)

[vb68]

Oh my. The visuals I'm going to remember from this one were the Coaches' faces while Jeremiah was singing. It was really bad. I mean bad bad. Miley and I think Adam just looked like they were trying to figure out what they could possibly say that sounded halfway nice. 

Emily was fantastic. Not only can she sing her butt off, she looks like a star.

Kelly Clarkson is adorable. She seems very well suited for the role of a coach. And I'm not talking about Idol. I mean her personality and how she interacts with contestants.

34 minutes ago, Star Aristille said:

Well . . . gotta be a nice dose of karma for him that Adam dumped him and that Jennifer didn't steal him.  Would've liked to have seen what he sang, though.  And to really stick a pin in it, he gets the ax over Adam's only four-chair-turn, Jon, who sounded fairly decent on a very bad song choice for him. 

Sometimes I struggle to remember the blinds, but I actually said "Ooof" aloud when they didn't even show that guy's song. It really look did look like a "don't let the door hit you in the butt" situation. 

[Star Aristille]

15 minutes ago, vb68 said:

Sometimes I struggle to remember the blinds, but I actually said "Ooof" aloud when they didn't even show that guy's song. It really look did look like a "don't let the door hit you in the butt" situation. 

Unfortunately, that's how it goes with the Knockout montage.  They only show a few seconds of the winner singing and literally none of the loser.

However, someone reported that Dylan's song was "All of the Stars" by Ed Sheeran.

[frogzapper]

I think Noah jumped to the top of my list after tonight's performance. Loved those low notes! Love his old soul vibe. I'm with Miley - he's cute as hell and sweet and dope and all that, heh! I thought it was cute how Kelly was boppin' up and down listening to him sing and how moved she was by him.

Moriah is another one I'm rooting for since I like seeing rock represented on the show and I was so impressed by her Blinds performance. Tonight's performance was good, although I thought her high notes bordered a little on the shrill side, but I'm glad she moved forward.

I was a little surprised that Miley stole Adam Pearce. I mean I think he's a good rock singer (and I'm glad Miley saved a rock singer), but to me he mostly seems like a really good cover band singer and I'm not sure I see enough to make him stand out to me. I'd be happy if he proves me wrong though.

[PhD-Purgatory15]

*Pours one out for Whitney* The second I saw her in the background of Moriah's performance on YouTube I knew she was toast. I really liked her voice and vibe, so hopefully her time on the Voice gives a tiny boost (at least) to her career. Moriah, it's usually death to perform a Kelly Clarkson song on a reality singing show but she was up to the challenge at least to a B+ grade. A few notes here and there seemed a bit pinched or sharp but there's no denying her talent. I hope she continues to pick interesting songs moving forward.

Mitchell over Anna Catherine. AC had an opening here because Mitchell is the epitome of generically pleasantness (to look and and listen too, he looks like a mashup of Sam Hunt mixed with someone else...maybe the Property Bros?). Unfortunately AC wasn't really up to the challenge. The chorus's were relatively strong on Breathe but the verses weren't and she didn't really leave much of an impression.

Noah basically had a bye considering how horrible Jeremiah Bieber was....but he continues to impress. I don't know how many people remember Dez Duron....but Noah's got Dez's looks with a way more interesting voice and performance style.

Emily and Adam P, this had to be the quintessential everyone else made some sort of sense as a pairing and these two were the only ones left over. Also has to be one of the first times in reality singing show history that Smoke on the Water got a little love. I guess I'm relatively happy that these two are still in the competition, but I have a sneaking suspicion that both will need judge saves from Adam/Miley to survive next week.

Katrina and Stephan were extremely, extremely lucky to even be in the competition at this stage so for both of them to lose to solid female frontrunner's Brooke (for Miley) and Keisha Renee (for Blake) made for zero surprises.

[Star Aristille]

1 hour ago, PhD-Purgatory15 said:

I guess I'm relatively happy that these two are still in the competition, but I have a sneaking suspicion that both will need judge saves from Adam/Miley to survive next week.

You haven't heard?  Carson only said "Playoffs," not "Live Playoffs."  The Playoffs this season were pretaped, just like back in season six.  Next season's might be, as well.

Edited November 7, 2017 by Star Aristille

[Keekski]

Not an Adam Pearce fan at all and Emily is boring as hell. She's a total bot.

Love Brooke & Noah!

[vb68]

4 hours ago, Star Aristille said:

You haven't heard?  Carson only said "Playoffs," not "Live Playoffs."  The Playoffs this season were pretaped, just like back in season six.  Next season's might be, as well.

Was this done to accommodate Adam's and/or Blake's touring schedule or something?

[peachmangosteen]

There are so many people I like this season. The same thing happened last season though and then most of them didn't make the live shows and I lost all interest in the show. Actually that happens most seasons lol!

I love Emily's voice and I kinda like her, but there's also something super strange about her to me. At times she almost makes me uncomfortable. Her hair looks a million times better than it did during the blinds though and for that I am grateful.

I don't remember Noah from the blinds but hot damn I love him. And finally there's a man I like! I tend to favor the female singers on The Voice.

Edited November 7, 2017 by peachmangosteen

[talktalk]

Emily and Noah are the clear standouts for me. Hope both stick around to the end. 

[atlantaloves]

Oh I have been all about Emily from the get go, I have really been worried about her, cause that gal has a jazzy voice that is classically trained and pure and she doesn't need to scream or do stupid "runs". Glad she updated her hairdo, that bob she was sporting was just a little too perfect for the younger crowd. She's my favorite female singer, period.  Thank you Adam!

[Star Aristille]

2 hours ago, vb68 said:

Was this done to accommodate Adam's and/or Blake's touring schedule or something?

No.  A much lower budget.  Couldn't afford the Playoffs being live this season.

[SunnyBeBe]

Maybe, I'm biased, but, I was thrilled with Brooke's performance with a very overdone song.  OMG, is it just me?  I think that Brooke's voice is better than any of the coaches.....and Keilly C.'s too.  I just can't say enough good things about her. I'm rooting for her for the win.  There are some great voices, so, competition is tight.  (She's from my hometown region of NC.)

I was sad to see Kathrina go.  I really liked her A LOT.  

I really wish that the coaches and guest coaches would really think about what they are saying when they hurl insults to another coach about letting a contestant on their team go.  The show REQUIRES them to do this, in  order for the others to advance to the next round.  AND, there is another contestant that is on that coach's team who was KEPT.  When they are outraged that one contestant was let go, it implies that the one KEPT should not have been kept.  IT's quite insulting to the kept contestant.  Why haven't they figure this out.  It's a no brainer.  lol 

Edited November 7, 2017 by SunnyBeBe

[bluepiano]

I liked Whitney a lot.. She has such a beautiful tone. But as we've seen over and over, it's hard to beat out someone who's dialed up to 11. I can't deny that there are a number of very talented female singers this year, but not much variety. So many belters with "big voices." In past years we seemed to have more of a mix of styles.  Emily could benefit from that, but she needs to pick the right songs in order not to suffer the same fate as Whitney.

Did Whitney not get considered for a steal because there were no steals left? It was weird that we didn't hear Carson say anything about a steal until the last pairing of the night.  I wasn't even sure that steals were still possible at this stage of the show, as I thought all the teams were full. Color me totally confused.

Sorry we didn't get to see Jon's whole performance, as it looked like it was pretty entertaining. And I always feel bad for the people who make it that far while only being montaged, and then get sent packing without their 15 minutes of "fame."

Edited November 7, 2017 by bluepiano

[Star Aristille]

1 hour ago, bluepiano said:

Did Whitney not get considered for a steal because there were no steals left? It was weird that we didn't hear Carson say anything about a steal until the last pairing of the night.  I wasn't even sure that steals were still possible at this stage of the show, as I thought all the teams were full. Color me totally confused.

Yes.  The Knockouts are aired in a different order from when they're taped.  The first taping of the Knockouts had six matchups, and four of those very six saw the coaches all using their steals.  Yes, right in that very first taping.  Whitney and Moriah's Knockout came in a different taping, after all of the steals were gone.  That's why Carson didn't say that Whitney was available for a steal.  She wasn't.

[viajero]

This was an evening of mismatches, with a lot of favorites going up against some of the weakest singers to make this round.  Only the final knockout was really close, though Whitney did put a good fight against Moriah.

Having said that, I didn't think any of the performances in this episode were quite as great as Chloe or Janice from last week.  Part of it was that neither Brooke nor Moriah quite matched their previous performances, despite which they were both still among the best of the night, along with Noah, Emily, Keisha, and maybe Adam.

14 hours ago, Star Aristille said:

You haven't heard?  Carson only said "Playoffs," not "Live Playoffs."  The Playoffs this season were pretaped, just like back in season six.  Next season's might be, as well.

This is not good news.  I'm particularly worried about Mylie's team, where I fear that she's put Ashland through even though I consider her to be the weakest on what is admittedly a very good team.  It would be a real pity to lose Brooke, Janice or Moriah just because Mylie is determined to take a country singer to the live shows.

[Bridget]

12 hours ago, Keekski said:

Not an Adam Pearce fan at all and Emily is boring as hell. She's a total bot.

Love Brooke & Noah!

Couldn't agree with you more!

[jhlipton]

"Smoke on the Water" still hasn't gotten any love on this show. 

Best pair of the night: Keisha and Kathrina.  I'd rather see (and hear) both of them move on than Chris or Adam (blegh) -- he made me tired watching him pace back and forth.  Just no.

Edited November 9, 2017 by jhlipton
Moved Chris comment to correct night.

[Star Aristille]

13 minutes ago, jhlipton said:

And, Chris, could you sing with a little less emotion?  Yeah, he's a freight train, with no finesse at all.

He wasn't in this episode.  He was in the next one.

[jhlipton]

10 hours ago, Star Aristille said:

He wasn't in this episode.  He was in the next one.

Thanks -- I've moved the comment.

[Adusk81]

Noah Brooke Emily chris for the final. Brooke deserves to take this. She is Kelly Clarkson good.

Edited November 10, 2017 by Adusk81

[Sugar]

I guess mine is an unpopular opinion, but I can't stand Emily *ducks rotten tomatoes. Her voice is fine; it's clear and she has great pitch, but it has zero character. I completely agreed with Adam/Kelly when they said it was "too perfect" - it's an excellent musical theatre/lounge voice, but I don't think she's a pop or radio vocalist. I think the song choice was especially bad, because as was mentioned, Pink's voice is sooo full of character, and her natural breaks and rasp make the lyrics more poignant. Emily's performance, by contrast, bored me to tears, and all I got was that she is a technically good singer who can hit the right notes. Also, she is just too mature. She looks old, she sounds old, she acts old, and that's certainly not a dig towards old people (I always lean more towards the middle aged contestents!), it's more so that the end result is that she comes across as old fashioned. I get major "fuddy duddy" vibes.

Also a little disappointed with Moriah tonight. She was just "okay", and I think she sounds better on the full out rock songs than the rock lite/pop stuff. If she wants to steer clear of the 80's rocks stuff, she could tackle songs by Halestorm, Paramore, Ame Lee, etc. But personally, I'd love to see her do Janis, Joan Jett, Patt Benatar, etc. I think she may be too niche to win the whole show, but if she tried to do more of a modern vibe like Florence or Alanis, I think it could keep her fresh and more relevant in today's market. Still my main reason for watching the show though, and I'm sure she'll sail through the first few lives with no trouble.

Oh god - I totally forgot about Jeremiah. What the hell was that?! One of the worst things I've seen on any vocal competition show. Also - did they edit part of it it out, or is it just me? It seemed super short. I loved the one shot of Miley looking confused as she watched him.

Love Deep Purple, love Smoke on the Water, and I thought Adam did a decent job with it. But I find him very distracting without the guitar; his pacing and the weird fist bump thing he kept doing took me out of it. I hope Miley can help him to hone his showmanship, and I would actually love to hear him sing something slow and stripped down, to really get to hear his voice.

Really enjoying Brooke, and I think she's worked her way up to my favorites this season, joining Moriah, Noah, Janice, and Esera.

I'm just happy to see a bunch of new songs this year. There have been some refreshing song choices so far, and I don't feel as though anyone really messed theirs up (except Jeremiah - dude. no.)
 

[jhlipton]

On 11/10/2017 at 1:07 PM, Sugar said:

Love Deep Purple, love Smoke on the Water, and I thought Adam did a decent job with it.

I thought it was very blah.  I didn't get the chaos of the original.