“May I take your order?” …. “Yes…I’d like one bucket of KLC to go, please!”

If you like your sustenance deep-fried and crispy, you’re out of luck on AI for the rest of the season. The last remaining countrified contestant took the last punch she could withstand last week and went down for the last time. After becoming a near-permanent fixture in the bottom three, KLC finally got the hook. What’s surprising is that she actually seemed to be getting better. The first 2-3 weeks were almost unbearable, but something happened and she began to make progress. Her pick of “Proud To Be An American” was a stroke of genius and I really thought she might make it to the top 5. But, I’m not cryin’ in my grits over her departure either. This has become a very up and down sort of season with contestants rising and falling and rising again and falling again. There have really only been two consistent performers so far which makes everybody vulnerable. So, with that said, on to this week’s rankings.

  1. David Cook (STEADY, Last week #1) - I didn’t really care all that much for what DC did last week. I thought it was a step backward for him, but all of the judges took a different point of view. I really don’t care if the judges disagree with me or not, I didn’t dig it, and I didn’t think it was “all that”. Still, he has enough good-will built up from a string of rock-steady performances that I’m still not ready to drop him a spot here. But he is teetering on the edge of dropping.
  2. David Archuleta (STEADY, Last week #2) - No change here either. The kid consistently delivers high-quality performances. It’s just that they almost all sound alike. If that’s what you like, you must be absolutely loving this kid. If you like it in small doses, a little goes a long way. This is his primary weakness. Give him a ballad and he’s gold. Give him something else and he suffers by comparison. The speed-dial element still makes him a strong candidate to take it all, but I’m not quite convinced yet that he’ll get there. Another solid week by DA, and another slightly off week by DC could rearrange these two.
  3. Jason Castro (UP, Last week #4) - For the second consecutive week I’m forced to rank this guy in a place I do not think he deserves. It’s not that I have a personal vendetta against him, but I just honestly don’t think he’s that good. But he’s still here. The difference between him and KLC is that he has a lot more personality. I think that’s what’s keeping him alive. And quite honestly, I think it has him ahead of the rest of the gals.
  4. Brooke White (DOWN, Last week #3) - Brooke and JC have shuffled spots in this week’s ranking. If you offered a recording contract today to both BW and JC, she would run rings around him in sales and tickets. But we’ve learned that AI is not always about identifying the most marketable or promising entertainer. BW has the potential to be an amazing artist. I believe she will be successful regardless of the outcome of this season of AI. JC’s future in the recording business depends on success on AI. But with AI being what it is, and with Brooke falling into the bottom three yet again, I have to drop her this week.
  5. Carly Smithson (UP, Last week #6) - I just really don’t get the whole Smithson thing. Every week I confess she has great skills. But every week she fails to truly connect with what she is doing. She has been applauded, lauded, and wound up in the bottom three. She’s all over the chart. Which I think indicates that there are lots of people who believe in her overall talent, but don’t believe in her performance. And they can’t make up their mind. She is in this spot purely because she did not wind up in the bottom three last week, but I still think she should have gotten the exit cue cards last week.
  6. Syesaha Mercado (STEADY, bottom feeders don’t move a lot) - Mercado actually out-fought Smithson last week, but got no credit for it. As with Smithson, she has real talent. But unlike Smithson, she HAS consistently wound up in the bottom. Even when she delivered a stellar performance, she would up in the bottom. That spells disaster. When you can’t rise above the bottom three when you deliver what was possibly the best performance of the night, I think you need to get out the oxygen bottles, because she is on life-support.

Early in the early rounds of the competition, predicting who will get knocked out is relatively easy. The middle rounds prove to be pretty challenging as contestants disappear and new voting alliances form. It’s also a time when contestants are finding their stride or losing steam. Which makes the middle rounds pretty unpredictable. I think the only safe bet is that DC and DA are safe and everyone else is up for grabs. Once we say goodbye to a couple more, it will stabilize again, but right now it’s a crap-shoot. Stay tuned tomorrow night for Round 7 analysis.

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