Idol Thoughts - The Final Pairing is Set

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that by the time you finish reading this entry, you will know who will be singing next week for the Season 9 Idol Crown...or maybe you already knew that.

Either way, tonight is the night when Ryan puts us through nearly 60 minutes of torturous elimination night activities before finally announcing who will make the trip to the Nokia Theatre, sing for your vote, and listen for their name to be added to the eight other Idols who were fast-tracked in their efforts to become household names and recording artists.

The first thing Ryan did was introduce and chat briefly with the judges, then he welcomed the remaining Idols--Casey, Crystal, and Lee to the stage, walked them to the elimination couch, and asked them about their experiences on Idol...about the only thing that was the least bit interesting was when all three Idols made it very clear that they want to win! Surprising, right?!

Finally a commercial! But when we returned it was time for the friggin' Ford music video. FF and we were off to Cool, TX to see what Casey's time back home had in store for him. There was the usual private jet, a police escort, interviews with the local Fox affiliate, a huge gathering of fans at his old high school, and a quick visit to the hospital where Casey recuperated after a terrible accident some six years ago which nearly cost him his life. It was a pretty cool homecoming for the tall Texan.

Taking a break from the Idols, Ryan introduced Perez Hilton who helped welcome his protege, Travis Garland, to the Idol stage to sing "Believe". According to Perez (he of the blogosphere), Travis is BETTER than Justin Timberlake! Them's fightin' words in this house--JT is loved by all...he's funny, a great athlete, and, oh yeah, he can sing! So far I'm not all that impressed with Mr. Garland. He seems to be just like ever other JT-wannabe...it may be more appropriate to compare him to Justin Bieber! (who happens to be on the show a little later).

Before JB hits the stage, we headed back to Toledo, Ohio to see how Crystal was received during her homecoming. It was pretty much a carbon copy of Casey's time in Texas, just a little further north. The highlight of Crystal's time back in Ohio was watching her play the a concert at Bowerstock!--a clever play on her name and Woodstock in case you didn't catch that.

While Crystal wiped her tears, we went back to the Windy City with Lee. As with the other two Idols, Lee was mobbed wherever he went including at the Cubs game where he threw out the first pitch--and did a pretty good job at it! Lee seemed genuinely overwhelmed to be back home and was overcome with emotion when he made a stop at the paint store in Mt. Prospect where he worked before he auditioned for Idol and was whisked off to Hollywood for his Idol ride.

OK, so everyone has gone home, received their well-deserved adoration, and it's time to find out who's singing next week...of so you would think. Instead it's Justin Bieber time....or as I like to call it, time to fast forward to the results which is exactly what I'm doing....

It's minute :53 of the show and Ryan has just now started the results portion of the show. And the first finalist is....Lee DeWyze! While Lee let out a HUGE sigh of relief, Ryan let Crystal know that she would be joining Lee meaning Casey James is heading back to Cool, TX.

As is the custom, Casey sang one last time for his fans. Tonight's bye-bye song was last night's judge's selection, "Daughters". Casey made his way around the audience, stopping to shake hands with the judges, and then walking over to pick up a little girl (his?) and finish his song. It was a sweet moment and one that will no doubt be replayed about as often as his audition in Denver when Kara asked him to take off his shirt (he did).

The finals are set and we are one week away from knowing who the next American Idol is going to be. So tune in next Tuesday to hear Lee and Crystal sing one last time and then vote for your favorite.

As always, I will continue watching TV so you don't have to.

Charlie