it's the last show of the season. what else will i watch on tv now? my first time liveblogging attempt. just wanted to try it out. lowercase cause i gotta do it fast. spoiler alert! (times are GMT+8)
8:01 a record-breaking 97.5 million votes came in last night. wow!!! 56% and 44% for the two contestants. that's 54.6M vs 42.9M. are we going to be surprised as dialidol.com predicts?
8:02 mikalah gordon and matt rogers have new careers as correspondents in the finalists' hometowns. they look as if they'd be better at this than singing.
8:04 SYTYCD and top 12 in white again. they're not focusing on anyone in particular. go ryan conferido! didn't see melody though.
8:06 yay! did they plant that woman who mouthed, "i love you" and blew a kiss? perfect for TV.
8:09 cookie and archie do "hero" perfect song. cook should have done this yesterday, demmet.
8:11 you can see the diff in how they perform. fill in the blanks.
8:12 love guru plug. agh. DC is playing it cool; DA seems to approach this with some innocent wonder. "it's not the 90s," mike myers tells cook about the facial hair. look who's talking. "soon you'll have hair in weird and wonderful places," he tells archuleta. what's with all the hirsutalk? speak for yourself, pitka.
8:15 and he rolls in onstage on a wheeled cushion. how much did paramount pay for this? mr. seafoam is the best name for ryan i've heard.
8:17 yes, shamelessssssssss. seacrest nearly rolls off the stage. syesha isn't dead. seal isn't, either.
8:19 love the way they look. great vocals from seal.
8:25 castro's greatest hit, "alleluia".
8:27 "let the good times roll" with outtakes from the ford vids.
8:28 why is everyone wearing black? nobody's dream is dead yet. escape hybrids on the green carpet.
8:29 the girls "work hard for the money" in shiny red outfits. hot stuff. donna summer has a new single. did she really need two escorts coming down the stairs? rocker nurse-whose-name-escapes-me doesn't look too excited. at all.
8:33 seacrest made it onstage with the streetdancing guys. last dance, yeah! paula should be onstage because she's dressed like a finalist and dancing. is that a crystal-studded mic donna summers lent syesha? fitting ending.
8:38 "two contestants who left before their time" MJ and carly. the talented imports sign off with "the letter". even match.
8:42 jimmy kimmel is back. sanjaya takes the valet parking joke in stride. kimmel takes potshots at ryan, paula and simon
8:44 wonderful medley of simon's insults. is this downloadable, too?
8:46 top 6 guys relive "the summer of '69". i miss michael johns and hernandez. cook and archuleta come out with "heaven". bryan adams! archuleta must be having the time of his life beside his idol.
8:50 bo bice is in the house, wearing a tie. sweet.
8:54 jordin gives her career and disney studios a boost. the AI theme park experience better have cowell in it.
8:55 cook goes full-on rock with ZZ Top. the two guitarists with the longest beards. mike myers, what did you say again? point is, DC has been trying to tell us something all these weeks, and he's still cementing that.
8:57 more guitar playing than anything else. will paula ever stop dancing?
8:58 mikalah talks to DC's music teacher.
8:59 brooke has an intimate duet. we know where you're headed.
9:00 how long is this? ms.cook hasn't sung yet.
9:06 archie's contemporaries, the jonas brothers. i'm too old for this.
9:09 i know what's coming. the bizaare auditions. renaldo lapuz should be rolling soon.
9:11 here he is! we all knew he'd make the finale. oh man. a full band and USC cheerleaders. can't get the tempo. can't he hear them? paula dances like there's no tomorrow. they cut the whole thing before it goes on eternal repeat, thank god.
9:17 onerepublic apologizes. not as good live, but its a great song.
9:19 DA does it well. and he gets to do his signature "ooooohhh" too.
9:21 matt rogers sounds like a sports commentator. proud grandpas. don't defend willy anymore. as the song says, it's too late.
9:22 jordin's last walk in gold. yaiks. fire your stylist!
9:26 blake lewis is singing along in the audience. awww.
9:30 gladys knight's 1972 footage? tropic thunder placement! RDJ!!! stiller and black ham it up. but downey jr embodies class. it's summer after all and you gotta promote the blockbusters. thanks for the subtlety.
9:34 that was a charity vid. nice! carrie underwood is in a short short white dress. lemme guess. jilted vegas bride. this is different from her last incarnation on the show. the rock edge isn't natural. clarkson, are you backstage? give her a tip or two.
9:38 i'm hungry.
9:42 the last top 12 number. the girls have "faith". the guys play "father figure". "freedom"! not something they'll have for the next few months.
9:47 george michael. for real. change of pace. this is an elton john song, isn't it? this fits idol gives back more. the crowd is silenced.
9:52 the three judges are on their feet. so he has an american tour. explains it.
9:56 judges are happy. randy says it's "one of the strongest years ever". simon congratulates both and apologizes for his disrespectful comments to DC the previous night. damage control?
9:58 the envelope comes in.
9:59 moment of truth. DC. i had to scream. twice. hope the neighbors didn't mind.
10:00 emotional moment. "this is amazing" was all he could say."this is all your fault," he said to his brother.
10:02 now here's the winning song from the competition. worthy. worthy. worthy.
10:03 america, you did the right thing.
10:05 now this is why i liveblogged! glad i did.
we all thought DA had it in the bag, didn't we? but the voters believed. and dialidol.com was right. DC must both love and hate winning as much as i loved and hated him last night. he rocks. let's hope he gets to make the music he wants to make.
[Update] OMG, has anyone seen DC's Guitar Hero ad yet? As for DA's version,
that girl said it best:
IMHO, Cook’s works for him. I mean, he actually plays the guitar and rocks. He probably even knows the scene from the movie. Archuleta’s, while cute, just didn’t… fit.
Image from
rickey.org
"Be A Man" from Zanna, Don't! made me laugh out loud when I first heard it. The Village People vibe!
"The Speed Test" from Thoroughly Modern Millie and "Show Off" from The Drowsy Chaperone are both Sutton Foster-powered pseudo-1920s musicals. Look up the videos for total effect.
"Practically Perfect" from Mary Poppins has the endearing kind of boastfulness only a nanny like her can get away with.
Two musicals adapted from comedy films: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and Spamalot that stretched the funny through the music.
Tell Me On A Sunday (2003 London Revival Cast) has an updated story fitting Denise Van Outen's tabloid-friendly life. It must be interesting to know how different it was for Marti Webb to take on the role in 1979 at age 34 and in 2004 at age 59.
Talk about differences, the 1997 Jekyll & Hyde Original Broadway Cast album is not the same as the concept albums in 1994 and 1990. It's not supposed to be funny, but I found myself going, "WHAAAA...?" listening to the lyrics. How could you have written this, Leslie Bricusse?
"Some Things Are Not Meant To Be" from Little Women is one of the rare songs that made me cry the first time I heard it. If you decide to explore the cast recording, you'll find my personal anthem there.
I'm torn between ensemble songs "I Believe" and "The Song of Purple Summer" from Spring Awakening.
"Wonder" from The Lord of the Rings. It's one of those odd songs you should probably split into two. Love the drama.
"The Old Red Hills of Home" from Parade gives me the chills sometimes. The Broadway cast recording wins over London.
The Aida I watched made me so angry because the title role performance was sub-par. Fortunately, the 2000 Original Broadway Cast recording with Heather Headley and Adam Pascal won't leave you shortchanged.
This Titanic had the bad luck of opening in 1997, around the time the movie came out. But it still has great songs and the best opening I have ever heard--six run-on songs in a stunning continuum.
There is a haunting quality to The Secret Garden (1991 OBC) that is rare in musicals other than Sondheim's.
After all these years, Once On This Island (1990 OBC) is still my all-time favorite musical.
