S14.E20: Semifinals 2

[Lonesome Rhodes]

Semifinalists perform at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles.

[ams1001]

• I think I'm running low on snark tonight.
• V. Unbeatable: Okay, those ladder tricks were pretty damn cool-looking. This is one of the few big dance crews that doesn't have me half paying attention after a couple performances because they've gotten too repetitive.
• Dom Chambers: He's funny, I like him. His swaying on his feet and handing his keys to Terry after "drinking" all that beer made me laugh.
• Luke Islam: I left this blank for a bit but I couldn't come up with anything witty or insightful to say. He's good, but...kid singer.
• Lukas and Falco: Falco off living the celebrity life was more entertaining than the routine. (Don't worry, Falco, I don't like pushups, either.) The song was getting to me at the end. I'm gonna have that stuck in my head all night [edit: it actually got supplanted by something else and now I don't even remember what it was so yay]. (Tonight I learned that the dog having a good time is more important than actually being able to get through the act without mistakes. On a talent competition.)
• Yay, Piff's coming back!
• Chris Klafford: I think I've figured it out. If you want to do an original song without getting criticized for it, be under the age of 16. (So was Simon saying he should have sang the same song again or that he should have saved that one for tonight?)
• Detroit Youth Choir: I did not catch a word of the solo...or most of the rest, either...
• Alex Dowis: Well, that was depressing and anxiety-inducing.
• Marcin Patrzalek: I liked the beginning with some actual guitar-playing. (We can all feel familiar with his song choice? What song was it?) 
• Emanne Beasha: Sure, she was just singing in the shower before this.... Oh, shut up, Julianne.
• Ryan Niemiller: Funny enough but a little too shouty.
• Um...was that all? I guess that was all...the thread wasn't up yet and then I got distracted by Bring the Funny...which was funnier.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

Not a lot from me, either.

Dom's presentation/staging was excellent.  The trick was incredibly underwhelming.  He's still leaps and bounds better than half the acts already through.

Guitar dude completely lost his uniqueness and his specialty.  OF COURSE Simon thought it was great!  If percussion or other instrumentation is to be provided, it then comes down to the quality and difficulty of the music itself.  Tonight's effort was pedestrian.  Any number of guitarists could have played as well, if not better.  What a major bummer.  

The challenged comedian's structure and his delivery were the best of the season in this genre.  The jokes were lame.  

I actively disliked the lite brite dude.  Pretending his on stage actions were creating anything approaching all the detail displayed is a fraud.  Full stop.  If AGT wants a category for computer animation?   Cool.  I might could be a marvel.  This lie of "live' performance is really bad.

The act I most genuinely enjoyed was the operatic girl with the Bryan Adams song.  It actually worked well and it was interesting.  I can see where Julianne was made to feel something.

Unbeatables are going through despite their least impressive performance.  

The dog act was among the worst fails in a semi-or final.  Although I have to admit, the good boy was not stoopid to want to avoid doing push-ups.

Edited September 11, 2019 by Lonesome Rhodes

[DaphneCat]

1 hour ago, ams1001 said:

Lukas and Falco: Falco off living the celebrity life was more entertaining than the routine. (Don't worry, Falco, I don't like pushups, either.) The song was getting to me at the end. I'm gonna have that stuck in my head all night [edit: it actually got supplanted by something else and now I don't even remember what it was so yay]. (Tonight I learned that the dog having a good time is more important than actually being able to get through the act without mistakes. On a talent competition.)

38 minutes ago, Lonesome Rhodes said:

The dog act was among the worst fails in a semi-or final.  Although I have to admit, the good boy was not stoopid to want to avoid doing push-ups.

Everyone knew the dog act wasn't going to win several episodes ago.  But which would you rather see, the dog having a great time effing up his "act" or the Detroit Youth Choir?  Personally, I pick the dog.

I know a lot of people were really impressed by Emanne, but I didn't really see why she needed to sing it in a foreign language.  I would have been more impressed if she had managed to do a really good version in English.

[CrystalBlue]

I'm glad Lukas & Falco got wildcarded because I enjoyed seeing them again.  It wasn't about if they're going to win (they're not) or stepping up their act (sorry, Falco!).  I just enjoyed it for what is was.  I love dogs and therefore, on AGT, I love the dog acts.  (Cats and rats too.)

I thought the Voices of Service quartet gave their best performance of all their auditions tonight.  V. Unbeatable did their best routine tonight as well.  Even Detroit Youth Choir was better.

It's hard for me to see who could be a solid winner from tonight's group though.  I thought Queen Latifa was a good judge, as she made a good appearance and was interesting (with no negative comments).

Howie must really hate dogs!

[InternetToughGuy]

As with every week, I was feeling immense pressure to come up with enough material for a post, though I quickly realized that that pressure was a migraine beginning to form, as I realized not even 2 minutes have elapsed of this episode. This show has convinced Alcoholics Anonymous to begin handing out 5 minute sobriety chips, though I am forced to return them, as there are far too many singers to make it any longer than that without succumbing.

It's at this section of my post that I would usually say some weird remark about a woman's scent, but with Queen Latifah as the guest judge, I found my libido traveling 50 years into the future, as there was absolutely zero interest.

V. Unbeatable - It's rare an act is good and consistent to the point that there is nothing to poke fun at, which puts me out of a non-paying job. The kids were jumping off a ladder that appeared to be bent in half, which I am assuming Jackie Fabulous climbed to see how many people in the back were leaving the venue during her set. A legitimate question: in the opening segment, one of them mentioned a guy working in a factory for $150 a month - do they see that as how paltry westerners would or is everything where they live priced appropriately? Perhaps only an Indian could answer that question, but they might not be able to afford internet, so I'm probably just talking to myself.

Dom Chambers - Seeing we're only this far into the show causes me to form new associations with that song 99 Bottles of Beer On The Wall, though I'm sure I'd be needing something like that mega beer if Terry interrupted the act to announce AGT will be preempted with an Ansley Burns concert. Other than him trying to sensationalize the idea of binge drinking, it seems his acts are nothing more than pretending he doesn't tell Simon what to say 5 minutes before he goes on stage.

Luke Islam - I had a timely joke prepared about his name, but I am too big of a pansy to post it. How accurate for his video segment to be an overweight American too fatigued to get out of bed - on a serious note, I hate this shit being paraded around like it's normal. I have no interest in Broadway, as I don't wear short shorts and make kissy faces in photos, so I can't really offer a critique, but then again, that's not why I write these posts anyways.

Lukas & Falco - The act was embarrassing for the first half, since the dog didn't cooperate. The blaring unrelated music never fails to make me wince in second hand humiliation, as does the array of unneeded props, though I'm guessing that car was there so they could immediately drive home after being eliminated tomorrow. Perhaps Lukas rolling around and whimpering on the floor for the viewing audience's sympathy will cause the creation of another means of them being saved.

Piff the Magic Dragon and Tokyo Myers will perform on tomorrow’s results, to which I have to say Piff was one of the acts I hated most, though I appreciated feeling superior in the hierarchy of midgets for a very rare time. As for Tokyo Myers, is that Shrek colored a yellow hue to appeal to Japanese audiences?

Chris Kläfford - That long greasy hair and under-the-bridge beard make him look like the Little Critter book character (no idea how popular it is, so you might not get the reference). I didn't like the performance, which is to be expected, so I don't really have anything else to say. With the array of health problems brought on by the typical American diet, I am guessing the "old age" he is referring to in the song is somewhere around 35.

Detroit Youth Choir - These crying kids need to be employed as sprinklers on a golf course with all their tears; it's embarrassing that me at almost 26 still crying into my pillow about girls not liking me makes me look like a tough guy in comparison. The lyrics referring to shooting for "the stars" made me furl my brow, as I consider the night sky outside my window to be Photoshopped. Them singing about high hopes is odd, since it's a near guarantee that they'll be going home - them returning will mark the only net gain to Detroit's census this year, as the current state of things may have citizens thinking of starving in a hut in Zimbabwe as greener pastures. All my other posts will show that I am quick to anger, so Gabrielle and Julianne standing up to start wildly swaying to the music made hot steam come out of my nostrils. Does anyone know why women are always possessed by music? Even with my fascination with wearing women's underwear and kissing my own arms while giggling under my comforter, it has not enlightened me any on female behavior.

Alex Dowis - I found it odd that Mr. White of the choir would aid in this performance by supplying him with Flint tap water to draw with, but I guess they have a connection by knowing they'll both be going home tomorrow. It took me to the end to realize he was pandering for the lowest common denominator viewer who actually responds positively to these obvious suck ups. His attempt at a profound speech in the opening video of nothing lasting forever fell rather flat, as the minute hand on my watch seemed to stand still during this performance. He definitely will not win the million dollars, though perhaps his talents can get him a job drawing anime for 20 hour work days in Japan for $11,000 a year.

Marcin Patrzalek - I skipped the judge's commentary because I don't need to be told what to think (that's for election season), so I don't know if any of them mentioned or hinted if he was doing a rendition of Shape of You by Ed Sheeran (how a song about British women's disgustingly oblong torsos is supposed to be sexual, I don't know). It was a bit odd that having a full backing band didn't really add much, since his guitar is obviously supposed to be the lead instrument and there was no singing, so it seems a bit lesser than the other acts in terms of grandiose in my worthless opinion. His blazing fast alternate picking of the 9th and 11th frets on the high E string were a fitting display of national resilience, if you were able to catch it.

Emanne Beasha - "This stuffed animal reminds me of Simon"; Christ Almighty, is there some 400 pound gay guy who writes this material? I feel terrible for the guy whose job is to motion track lip movement for a stuffed animal to bring the "joke" to life. It has always seemed like every opera act worldwide is singing the exact same one song and are counting on the audience never realizing it due to boredom, as this act is the equivalent to the gross dinner your Mother In Law prepared that you have to grin and bear. Perhaps her name sounding like a drunk missing teeth slurring "A man beats ya" is referring to Chris Klafford going through to the next round over her, though I would not feel like any more of a winner because of that.

Ryan Niemiller - His opening segment was funny and so was his set; there's nothing bad to say about him, especially since I can relate to him in the sense of loving comedy and understand the difficulty in possessing distorted limbs, as I am missing half a foot, so I have to crane my head to look 95% of people older than 13 in the eye.

Voices of Service - I have no interest in fuming at the keyboard in debate over the moralities of the military, which is why my remarks about this act are always very minimal and empty; I'm sure a lot of people can agree that them sniffling in every segment is getting older than a 20 year old British woman in a tanning bed. I thought the performance itself was actually alright for once - I was impressed that 3 of them were somehow singing piano notes until the camera zoomed out and ruined the illusion. Sometimes I get fixated on stupid things that I don't even think are that funny, like for the whole performance, I could only see the woman as a high school principal yelling at truant students with melody. I skipped over the judge commentary, as being told how to think and behave is reserved for the CNN broadcasts I leave on at night to allow them to seep into my subconscious while I sleep.

Pretty boring show overall, as V. Unbeatable was decent and Ryan was the only act I outright liked. Without me making a cartoony wink face like I'm being goofy, I find the shows are much more boring when there are no attractive women to leer at - I doubt I can be blamed, since the alternative we're usually given for every year's semi-finals is watching testosterone deficient men doing gymnastics with hula hoops, to which I can say I am glad my Father is not around to see me watching that (never mind at 0.25 speed and multiple times, ya know, just to prove that I don't find it arousing whatsoever).

Edited September 11, 2019 by InternetToughGuy

[Neet]

V. Unbeatable - The leader said he used to operate dangerous machinery for low pay before starting the dance group. Good thing he left that lifestyle behind to flip off of tall ladders without padding in the hopes of splitting a taxable grand prize with 20 people. In addition to the baseline hypertension I get from just sitting on the couch doing nothing, the act is quite exhilarating to watch and is still a highlight of the night. One semi-complaint is that there's so much going on, you might have to watch it three times...unless they're so used to hard work for low pay that they'll agree to do the same act repeatedly in Vegas until everyone's absorbed it.

Dom Chambers - When Dom is on tap, my face is buried in the foam -  mattress, that is. Elimination would fittingly be the cure for what ales me about having to watch him do routines about alcohol time after time. I hate everything about his delivery, it's full of try-hard attempts at quips that never deliver (which may be like looking in a mirror if InternetToughGuy didn't talk me off my ledge every week and convince me I am worthy and my voice does matter). He's fairly attractive but acts like a dweeb. Overall, the trick wasn't that impressive and was the same type of thing he always does but on a bigger scale, and we're supposed to suspend disbelief that Simon didn't know the number beforehand. I'd have a worse chance at guessing Dom's text voting number due to my lack of enthusiasm.

Luke Islam - He said he actually wants to have a broad weigh career? Diversity in show biz is all fine and good, but we're talking about his health here. They still have to mention that he's Julianne's golden buzzer, acting like the judges are cosigning mortgages for the contestants when it's totally meaningless. Quite a solid performance, even though I don't usually like him.

Lukas & Falco - I thought America 'vetted' the dog as not good enough to make it through to the next round, and yet the eternal purgatory aka wild card has brought them back again despite nobody ever getting. American border patrol is less strict about saying "hey, I told you to stay out" than this show is when all wildcards get swiftly kicked out the night after coming back. Anyway, it's nerve-wracking to watch these pet acts stumble because there's no guarantee they'll end up cooperating. I'm surprised more of them don't get a quartet of Xs after the animal stands in place doing nothing and not listening, so this one wasn't terrible.

Chris Klafford - Of course his song is about being afraid to lose a long term relationship; how could a woman trust him when he's kept Swedish Idol a secret from everyone for so long?

Detroit Youth Choir - The conductor must have had a false moment of clairvoyance because he spent a lot of the song jumping up and down like they were just declared the winners. A part of their song sounded like they were copying Ndlovu, which probably means nothing because it's hard to believe the audience is torn about which choir they'll never see again to not-vote for.

Alex Dowis - To channel Perez Hilton, those sunglasses can't protect himself from this shade. (and Perez could easily kick my ass) I take it these displays are supposed to be inspiring, but it takes a while to even figure out what he's drawing with the green paint that eventually becomes an eyesore to watch everything be illustrated in that putrid monochrome. The inspirational angle is hard to see when it always comes across as him drawing events verbatim instead of powerful imagery that leaves at least some of the narrative up to interpretation. Nobody's going to want to talk to this guy when he's old if he goes mute from a stroke, it's going to take several minutes and a room full of aerosol fumes to engage in the most basic conversation.

Marcin Patrzalek - Performing "Shape of You" in front of the self-conscious American audience was quite risky, since Ed Sheeran literally won a BMI Award for the defamatory song. This was a wiser choice for Marcin than playing his "originals", which were sometimes like polished versions of a 2 year old punching a piano with their fist and calling it music. (due to lack of structure, not because he sucks) It took a while to figure out which song he was playing, since I don't recall if Terry mentioned it, and I didn't find it ultra exciting anyway since Ed Sheeran is hardly an artist that calls for a stage surrounded by fire when covering him.

Emanne Beasha - When lecturing my grandchildren about how I got "the belt" when acting up, I'll be referring to watching opera performances like this on AGT. Since it's voluntary, I must have done something in a past life to feel deserving of this self-torture. Mind-numbingly boring and I'll bet even the Shazam app can't identify any of these songs that are comprised of 95% vowels.

Ryan Niemiller - A lot of the jokes were a hit IMO, even though it did seem like he was just a bit exposed without relying on his disability for material. He could come up with a 'crab claw' joke in a pinch if he was really drowning (which he's apparently okay with), but he thankfully avoided that and didn't need to do so. I think it's just a bit weird for him to shift from insulting himself to delivering nothing but relatable humor.

Voices of Service - The audience of voters who enjoy them must also be wearing camoflauge, because I still don't get the appeal despite this probably being their best performance so far. You know that joke "how do you know if someone's a vegan? they'll tell you"? That's what these guys are, we don't hear anything about them aside from war stories because therapists are admittedly quite expensive.

Someone named Tokyo Myers is performing tomorrow, why does that just sound like Gonzo sneaking his way back into the arena?

Edited September 11, 2019 by Neet

[ams1001]

7 hours ago, InternetToughGuy said:

Chris Kläfford - That long greasy hair and under-the-bridge beard make him look like the Little Critter book character (no idea how popular it is, so you might not get the reference).

I give you an extra laugh for this one. 

7 hours ago, InternetToughGuy said:

so I don't know if any of them mentioned or hinted if he was doing a rendition of Shape of You by Ed Sheeran

Gabrielle (I think?) said something about how we can all "feel familiar" with the song. I had no idea what song it was, so thank you for enlightening me. (I have heard it before, but not enough to recognize without hearing the words of the chorus. Literally the only line I know is "I'm in love with the shape of you." [edit: which is now stuck in my head. Dammit.])

6 hours ago, Neet said:

Good thing he left that lifestyle behind to flip off of tall ladders without padding in the hopes of splitting a taxable grand prize with 20 people.

Everyone's gotta have a dream, right?

6 hours ago, Neet said:

Someone named Tokyo Myers is performing tomorrow,

Maybe I'll remember when we see him but I have no clue who that is. I'm looking forward to Piff the Magic Dragon and (I assume) Mr. Piffles. But I'm partial to Chihuahuas, so...

Edited September 11, 2019 by ams1001

[suebee12]

I was bored the whole night...in fact, I fell asleep! What was amazing was Simon saying he was looking forward to the most exciting(??????)final ever. Boring should have been the adjective he used. It is pretty sad when a forgettable dog act was better than most of the other acts put together...at least the dog is cute!

I just watched the V-Unbeatables on YouTube and they were pretty good actually...

Edited September 11, 2019 by suebee12
I just noticed that like @saber5055 I also misspelled the dance groups name....wonder if this is foreshadowing?

[Lady Iris]

The artist guy. I had no idea what he was babbling about with his drawings. I could tell there was some kind of accident? Sounded like a car? Then it morphed into a pity grab of attention using 9/11. Or was the whole thing supposed to be about 9/11 in which case I'm even more mortified to use that as the backdrop of a plea for votes.

[ams1001]

8 minutes ago, Lady Iris said:

The artist guy. I had no idea what he was babbling about with his drawings. I could tell there was some kind of accident? Sounded like a car? Then it morphed into a pity grab of attention using 9/11. Or was the whole thing supposed to be about 9/11 in which case I'm even more mortified to use that as the backdrop of a plea for votes.

I was confused, too. But I wasn't totally watching because all the sirens and the music were raising my blood pressure.

[saber5055]

I got home late and missed the first two acts, V Beatable and Dom, my two favs. So I gave 10 votes to each of them based on me liking them whether I see them or not.

I heard the Broadway Boy singer. He was okay. I hope he does get a job on B-way out of this.

Oops, I just noticed I misspelled V.Unbeatable. But I'm leaving it.

The Light Guy I didn't pay much attention to until the end, when I stopped what I was doing and watched. The end brought tears to my eyes. And however he's doing it, I'd rather watch him fake spray paint than see those Light Balance Kids dancing around with lights on their clothes, doing the same steps over and over and over and ...

I felt sorry for Lukas and Falco but hopefully their getting the Wild Card meant they get more money or something. I liked the intro video and could see Falco starring in some Disney movie. Commercials too maybe.

I did not like the comedian, too much reliance on poop jokes and other things my mother taught me are not suppose to be talked about in public. No votes from me.

I liked Guitar Guy this time. I guess adding more instruments to his "solo act" improved him, or maybe just changed him to a regular guitar player. At least I stopped and listened/watched him.

Thank you choir, military singers and opera girl for giving me extra time to flip over to Bachelor in Paradise. Judges too, I even watch commercials on other stations so I don't have to hear whatever they are spewing. Why are there judge comments now anyway since aren't WE suppose to be the ones voting, not them?

Oh yeah ... they're the real stars. I forgot for a minute.

[truebluesmoky]

Can someone explain to me how Dom’s beer trick was even a trick? I just assumed that huge beer glass was attached to something in the whole big set it was on that emptied it at the touch of a button. There was nothing about it that seemed like an illusion. The set was also so big and bulky that it would have been super easy for someone to sneak out to the white board and add Simon’s guess while it was still turned away from the audience. It just didn’t seem like a magic act at all.

[InternetToughGuy]

47 minutes ago, saber5055 said:

Why are there judge comments now anyway since aren't WE suppose to be the ones voting, not them?

Oh yeah ... they're the real stars. I forgot for a minute.

I've always thought Howie's place was undeserved, since it seems like his main claim to fame is Muppet Babies, which he has no problem mentioning pretty frequently, despite it being D- tier in notoriety, and 35 years old, so I'm guessing the audience just humors him in pretending to recognize the easily duplicable voice he'll occasionally break out into. I guess there's also Deal or No Deal, to which nobody seeks clarification when mentioned "the new one?" - Howie probably breaks into a cold sweat hoping the new episode will break 50,000 viewers, cause I don't know who would possibly have interest.

[ams1001]

19 minutes ago, InternetToughGuy said:

I've always thought Howie's place was undeserved, since it seems like his main claim to fame is Muppet Babies, which he has no problem mentioning pretty frequently, despite it being D- tier in notoriety, and 35 years old, so I'm guessing the audience just humors him in pretending to recognize the easily duplicable voice he'll occasionally break out into. I guess there's also Deal or No Deal, to which nobody seeks clarification when mentioned "the new one?" - Howie probably breaks into a cold sweat hoping the new episode will break 50,000 viewers, cause I don't know who would possibly have interest.

Don't forget Bobby! I actually heard him on one of the comedy channels on Sirius XM on my way home yesterday, talking about the origin of the Bobby voice (basically being the class clown as a kid).

[saber5055]

56 minutes ago, InternetToughGuy said:

I've always thought Howie's place was undeserved, since it seems like his main claim to fame is Muppet Babies,

If you check out Howie's IMDB, he's never stopped working. While I never saw Muppet Babies and have never heard of Bobby (even though that show ran for seven-some years!), I remember him as Dr. Wayne Fiscus on St. Elsewhere. And his comedy crutch of putting a latex glove over his head and inflating it until it blew off was famous, he did it on every guest talk-show appearance. The guy has more credits to his credit than Simon. His net worth is less than Simon's estimated $550 million though, just $40 million. He gets $70,000 per AGT episode so I guess that pays for part of his mortgage so he can stay solvent.

[ams1001]

37 minutes ago, saber5055 said:

If you check out Howie's IMDB, he's never stopped working. While I never saw Muppet Babies and have never heard of Bobby (even though that show ran for seven-some years!), I remember him as Dr. Wayne Fiscus on St. Elsewhere. And his comedy crutch of putting a latex glove over his head and inflating it until it blew off was famous, he did it on every guest talk-show appearance. The guy has more credits to his credit than Simon. His net worth is less than Simon's estimated $550 million though, just $40 million. He gets $70,000 per AGT episode so I guess that pays for part of his mortgage so he can stay solvent.

It must be hard to live on $40 million... 😞

[Mr. Sparkle]

I remember watching one of Howie's stand-up specials over 20 years ago, when he still had hair. He was funny, spontaneous, and pretty dirty. The rubber glove thing was always dumb, but I don't know when he became a total cornball. 

[InternetToughGuy]

2 hours ago, saber5055 said:

If you check out Howie's IMDB, he's never stopped working. While I never saw Muppet Babies and have never heard of Bobby (even though that show ran for seven-some years!), I remember him as Dr. Wayne Fiscus on St. Elsewhere. And his comedy crutch of putting a latex glove over his head and inflating it until it blew off was famous, he did it on every guest talk-show appearance. The guy has more credits to his credit than Simon. His net worth is less than Simon's estimated $550 million though, just $40 million. He gets $70,000 per AGT episode so I guess that pays for part of his mortgage so he can stay solvent.

His name is pretty upper level in stand up, though it seems like there are only a few household names in that, like Dave Chappelle or Seinfeld, since any time I catch a stand up special, it's "who are you?" for every act. $70,000 seems kinda low, I think I just assumed he got like $5 million a season or something, though at a certain point, I doubt many celebrities are motivated by money - someone as rich as Simon must really like what he does or he got the botox just to keep up the fake smile without effort

[bluepiano]

6 hours ago, suebee12 said:

I was bored the whole night...in fact, I fell asleep! What was amazing was Simon saying he was looking forward to the most exciting(??????)final ever. Boring should have been the adjective he used. 

That comment just kind of sailed by but I caught it too. I can't ever remember a final I was less excited about. Not one "can't miss" act in this year's crop, like a Shin Lim or Darcy Lynn. 

Agree also about this week's show.

The dog act is there only because Simon is nuts for dogs.

The choir there only to give the show allegedly some kind of spiritual uplift. Musically weak.

The guitarist had his worst performance of the year. I would actually just like to hear him do more guitar playing, without drumming his fingers on the guitar body, which makes every song sound the same.

The singers do nothing for me, whether slightly chubby kid or grizzled bearded Swede. (of course both will probably go through because they're singers). Emanne did what she always does, which I have to admit is still fairly impressive. She's probably the only singer I've enjoyed this year.

Dom Chambers has been one of the few bright spots for me this season. Until this week. It was like watching an aging star who's now coasting by reminding us how good he used to be. "Remember that great beer trick I did."

I don't get Alexis Dowis. At all. And the first responder stuff that's supposed to be inspirational feels to me like manipulation for votes.

Best of the night - Unbeatable, though I think they still haven't equaled their initial audition, Ryan the comedian, because he actually did some material that wasn't about his disability, and, to my everlasting surprise, Voices of Service. That was a solid vocal performance.

[InternetToughGuy]

29 minutes ago, bluepiano said:

The singers do nothing for me, whether slightly chubby kid or grizzled bearded Swede. (of course both will probably go through because they're singers). Emanne did what she always does, which I have to admit is still fairly impressive. She's probably the only singer I've enjoyed this year.

Dom Chambers has been one of the few bright spots for me this season. Until this week. It was like watching an aging star who's now coasting by reminding us how good he used to be. "Remember that great beer trick I did."

I don't get Alexis Dowis. At all. And the first responder stuff that's supposed to be inspirational feels to me like manipulation for votes.

Best of the night - Unbeatable, though I think they still haven't equaled their initial audition, Ryan the comedian, because he actually did some material that wasn't about his disability, and, to my everlasting surprise, Voices of Service. That was a solid vocal performance.

Slightly chubby? He legitimately looks 100 pounds overweight, which I have to wonder how much that may impact his breath control (for real). The painter's name is just Alex, unless he has confided in you as to his true identity, to which we fully support ❤️.  I'd speculate on who is going home, but it's kinda pointless if the results start airing in like 15 minutes and any commentary should be saved for the other thread.

[rr2911]

There is some great posts here. Probably from former journalist or current! I'm going to keep things short and to the point since the Results Show starts in about an hour.

Lukas and Falco - Thank goodness they ran out of material! You could tell they weren't prepared to be called back. In danger

Dom Chambers - His performance was total crap! Where was the magic? That's what happens when you ask a magician to do something he doesn't know how. Or.....maybe his lackluster act was a plea to be eliminated. In danger

Emanne Beasha - Why is it when someone sings opera people start clapping and cheering even though they don't know what their singing? I recognized the song of course, but her singing is more screeching than anything. In danger

Ryan Niemiller - I was hoping he would get away from the disability jokes. And he did! Sort of. It takes a special and kind of comedian to peak my interest since comedy is not at the top of my list. He failed. In danger

Detroit Youth Choir - They are good. Not their best performance. I was expecting for them to sing "Up with People", a 70's feel good generic song in the first half of their performance. They have lasted this long because of the rough lives these kids are living. In other words...sympathy votes! In danger

Voices of Service - I have enjoyed every performance from them every time. I would place them higher but unfortunately there were better acts. In danger

Luke Islam - Look, the kid Is good! I don't know if he has a sob story or not. I fast forward to the actual performance. I think he's better than Benicio. Going through

Marcin Patrzalek - This kid can play the guitar and I was glad he chose a familiar song. He'll probably won't win the whole enchilada but he's safe. Going through

Chris Klafford - He looks and sounds like he's been "there" already. I liked the song he sang yesterday. He suffers from not having a sob story. Going through

Alex Dowis - His art making and incredible storytelling gave me chills! He has a unique talent that needs to be showcased. Going through

V. Unbeatable - They certainly looked unbeatable yesterday! Even though many of their high flaying routines were repeated, there were some that I hadn't seen before. I don't normally like dance groups, but they are the exception. Going through

Parting shots.....

It's amazing that Chris Klafford had a good performance but Howie and Simon still found things to critique. While Kodi Lee hasn't been judged on "his singing". In fact all the judges ever say about Lee's performance is that he "brightens" the room, or he tells a story and he lets us into his world. Nothing about his singing. 

I think I prefer MelB over Julianne Hough.

[helenamonster]

I liked how V.Unbeatable brought something new with the ladders.

Dom's presentation has massively improved since his audition--he's so much more confident now, when he first came on he was nervous as hell. Wasn't impressed by the final trick (as somebody else said, the beer probably just got sucked out through a tube) but liked the illusions at the beginning. If faith in other people was a talent, Dom would deserve to win--relying on the AGT crew to get that shot of the beer glasses just right so that they could eventually reveal they were tiny? Playing with fire, my friend.

You know Luke is a favorite cuz he got to sing a Greatest Showman song, and only the people Simon deems worthy get to sing those.

I feel bad for Lukas and Falco--he seems sweet and the dog is cute, but he keeps saying that he's getting older and this is kind of his farewell show. I just don't think poor Falco is up to this anymore. I also don't think they've managed to capture the magic that Sara and Hero had--even when they weren't at their best there was something about that act that just clicked. You can see how much Lukas loves Falco but it's just not the same.

Why was Simon asking if Chris had sung that song before? Why would he perform the same song twice? What?

Not crazy about Detroit Youth Choir in general but I thought their performance this week was really bad, almost amateurish. 

I was confused by the message of Alex's performance. The beginning was a car crash, not 9/11, though the "remember" ribbon at the end was clearly supposed to evoke the latter. Was it just a tribute to first responders in general? 

My boy Marcin still kills it, but I didn't think this performance was his best. I like that he played a well-known song, and added more peaks and valleys instead of just a constant onslaught of his (admittedly amazing) skills, but the backup band took away from it. He can do the whole song on his own--let him!

Also liked the Ryan deviated from material about his disability. I kept expecting each joke to have it as a punchline, and it didn't. Even when he was talking about not knowing how to swim, it wasn't really about his arms. He seems like a solid dude.

Predictions. Lukas and Falco, Chris, and Marcin are out since they needed saves in the quarter finals. Hard to say for anything else, though. It was such a blah night.

[ams1001]

14 minutes ago, rr2911 said:

I think I prefer MelB over Julianne Hough.

I'm beginning to agree with you. Definitely prefer Heidi to her.

[bluepiano]

16 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

I'm beginning to agree with you. Definitely prefer Heidi to her.

Heidi could make me crazy sometimes with her ditzy comments, but I always felt she was being genuine, and that it was about the acts, not her. Julianne strikes me as the exact opposite.

Gabrielle is neither a positive or minus to the show. She's just kind of there. Same with Terry. 

Sorry, I don't think anyone could ever make me want Mel B. back. 

[foxfreakinmulder]

45 minutes ago, helenamonster said:

I was confused by the message of Alex's performance. The beginning was a car crash, not 9/11, though the "remember" ribbon at the end was clearly supposed to evoke the latter. Was it just a tribute to first responders in general? 

Yes. It was a tribute to first responders, it showed them at car accidents, fires and the twin towers.

Short and sweet. If I was a voter the acts I would not vote for are Luke, DYC and Lukas and Falco. I'm on the fence with Emanne because I don't like opera but there's no denying the girl has a voice.

Every time Gabrielle and Julianne speak all I hear is Charlie Brown's teacher.

[Babalooie]

28 minutes ago, bluepiano said:

Heidi could make me crazy sometimes with her ditzy comments, but I always felt she was being genuine, and that it was about the acts, not her. Julianne strikes me as the exact opposite.

Julianne seems to be trying to "wax poetic" with each comment.

1 hour ago, rr2911 said:

It's amazing that Chris Klafford had a good performance but Howie and Simon still found things to critique.

Since Chris has already won Sweden's Got Talent, I figure that he's just on this show to push his songs and take up a space.  He doesn't expect to win I don't imagine.

[CrystalBlue]

1 minute ago, Babalooie said:

Julianne seems to be trying to "wax poetic" with each comment.

Since Chris has already won Sweden's Got Talent, I figure that he's just on this show to push his songs and take up a space.  He doesn't expect to win I don't imagine.

Julianne needs to stick with waxing something else.  😉 She thinks she's all that, and her jumping up and dancing, throwing her arms around, gets on my nerves and is distracting from the acts.

[bluepiano]

15 hours ago, Babalooie said:

Julianne seems to be trying to "wax poetic" with each comment..

To me, Julianne's comments are intended to make you see how special she is because she has all these deep feelings. I guess sometimes she might be genuinely moved, but it's hard to tell.

[Parker]

While I understand they are trying to give the contestants some personality and give the audience an emotional connection,  I get really tired and have basically quit listening to the background of many of the performers. 

Whether someone is handicapped, came from a war-torn country, an American inner city,  or is an orphan, should not matter in this competition.

I get a little tired of Simon saying that some of the performers are making incredible social contributions.  It's a talent show, not a Peace Prize competition.

Plus, so many of the performers saying their dream is to win.  Really?  That is your dream?

[Parker]

Queen Latifah was a total waste.  She was channeling Paula Abdul, as every act was good.  

And what was she wearing?  She looked like she was going jogging and dropped by the show. 

[CrystalBlue]

3 hours ago, Parker said:

Queen Latifah was a total waste.  She was channeling Paula Abdul, as every act was good.  

And what was she wearing?  She looked like she was going jogging and dropped by the show. 

I thought she did pretty well, but you have your points.

[saber5055]

I'm watching the rerun since I missed the first acts of the live show. First, Queen was hilarious coming out in a track suit. But it was a fleece/fuzzy one, so I guess that's her fancy one.

Then Simon stands up and he's wearing jeans and a stretched out t-shirt that was so bad, I have to compare it to the "You look so comfortable" commercial.