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Like a chihuahua trying to be a tiger
Let’s face it. By this point in the American Idol season, every viewer already has a favorite contestant. If you want Syesha Mercado to win, you might think that the song about the penguins could be a defining moment, despite what Paula said. If you love David Archuleta, you don’t care that “Longer” is a gooey song that sounds as if it’s written for a 90-year-old, as Simon put it. As for the rest of us, we didn’t think David Cook was pitchy on the Switchfoot song, even if Randy did.

For me, David C. had the top two performances of the night (out of nine total). His vocal talent really soared on both “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” and “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” and his rocker side, the one everybody wants to see, was never more evident than in the song he picked for himself, “Dare You to Move.” He performs like a star, and he’s been getting all my votes for weeks now.

David A. is not Chris Brown, and he probably doesn’t need to try to be that kind of performer, because I don’t think that’s where his future is. He was much easier to listen to (and watch, for that matter) when he sang “And So It Goes” (which I loved) and “Longer” (which was just okay for me, and I do sort of agree with Simon that the show’s producers made an inappropriate choice for him). I thought his “With You” was the weakest song of the night for any of the final three.

Simon called Syesha’s version of “Fever” a “lame cabaret performance,” but it was my favorite of hers tonight, and I thought she did a fine job with it. I didn’t think either of the other songs she did, “If I Ain’t Got You” (chosen by Randy) and “Hit Me Up” (picked by the producers), showcased her talent nearly as well, and if she does come in third, she can still say she did her best with the material she was asked to perform. And that’s probably what’s going to happen, but this show gets unpredictable at this stage, so I’d better go vote for Cook a few more times.

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