Another Gray Area

Idol Elimination: It's time for Ramiele to be "Alone"

A month and a day after getting my driver’s license, I tried to drive my mother’s new Cutlass Supreme between two trees. The gap was about six inches wider than the car. I failed.

Working at a Burger Chef when I was in high school, the first time I cleaned the fryer, I emptied the oil that was heated to 375 degrees into a PLASTIC pickle bucket.

To the list of dumb things I’ve done in my life, I can now add picking David Cook to finish eighth in my American Idol pool.

Since I work here, I can’t play Idol Elimination, but I am in an Idol pool where I had to rank the 12 finalists in the order I thought they would finish. Every week Ramiele lasts, she hurts my overall score (I picked her 12th), but I was on the mark last week picking Amanda Overmyer to go out at 11th place.

Last year I finished tied for second in the pool and won a little money. I’m just out of the money right now. But my bracket buster is I picked David Cook to go out at number 8 and right now he looks like the frontrunner.

Week in week out Cook is the one contestant who no one will mistake for a karaoke artist. He takes familiar songs – “Eleanor Rigby,” “Day Tripper,” “Happy Together” – and gives them a distinctive touch, either through his performance or by picking less-familiar arrangements. His version of “Billie Jean” last night was an amazing reworking of that Michael Jackson hit.

Except for David Cook, it wasn’t a good night for the frontrunners. Carly Smithson’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart” was a bit shrieky. Not one of the worst, but no better than the middle of the pack. Jason Castro, singing Sting’s “Fragile,” seems more and more like an adorable one-trick pony with each performance. Brooke White’s stop and start on “Every Breath You Take” won’t help her (she also should stay away from the hair straightener). And David Archuleta, everyone’s pick as the one to beat when the competition began, still should make the top four, but he doesn’t sound all that invincible anymore.

Kristy Lee Cook should have her most enjoyable elimination night tonight. After being on the edge the last two weeks, her rendition of “God Bless the USA” should keep her out of the bottom three. Not only did the choice shore up her standing with country fans, she pandered to the patriotic crowd who doesn’t have a veteran to vote for (Phil Stacey and Josh Gracin both benefited from that support in past years).

Michael Johns, who deserved to be in the bottom three last week, is safe as long as he can keep turning “American Idol” into “Rock Star: Queen.” And past bottom three finisher Syesha Mercado also delivered one of the strongest vocal performances of the night.

Ramiele Malubay finally should make the bottom three, unless Paula Abdul’s efforts to bring out the pity vote for her are successful. Ramiele supposedly had a cold. All I know is I’m sick of listening to her sing. I think Chikezie will join her in the bottom three, along with one of the supposed frontrunners. Either Carly will be back again or Brooke or Jason might get their first taste of danger. But, as her song choice said, at the end of tonight Ramiele will be “Alone” and going home.