Well, Archuleta fans, what can I say? Last night’s episode was a strange one…very strange indeed.

“Inspirational” songs was on the menu, and once again, our man Archuleta delivered a powerhouse “Angels” performance that featured his piano skills, his wide range, his expert note selection in the ad-libbed melismas, and his ever-growing readiness for a world-wide concert tour!

What’s interesting about this week’s performance is that his voice was not as on-pitch as it has been in the past. In fact, he looked exhausted as he sang. Has Archuleta been losing sleep (like I have these past few weeks)?? However, that look of exhaustion added a whole ‘nother dimension to the entire performance, and he ended up turning it into artistic gold. His performance last night was on par with seasoned performers who take the stage at their concerts and just absolutely captivate the audience with their voices and musicianship, regardless of the minor pitch issues and vocal faults. I challenge everyone who is reading this to attend a concert with the absolute best singer on the face of the earth that one can think of, and I can guarantee that he/she will not sing everything in tune.

The judges loved it, the fans loved it, I loved it, and that’s really all that needs to be said. AWESOME JOB, ARCHULETA!!!!!

Now for the strange….follow me over the break for the rest of the review…..

The night began with Michael Johns singing Aerosmith’s “Dream On,” a rather bold selection of song that featured a blood-red background as Michael desperately attempted to mimic everything that made this song wonderful……even Steve Tyler’s high-pitched shriek. It was an alright performance, I guess, but this guy is nowhere near the kind of performer that Steven Tyler was and still happens to be, and it would be really nice if he performed a song which was more suited to his voice (like last week…now THAT was the performance that we’ve all been waiting for from him). Meh.

Next was Syesha Mercado performing Fantasia Barrino’s “I Believe,” one of the most saccharine and cloyingly ridiculous AI anthems of all time. Why does Syesha do this to herself?? Why the hell does she pick these songs that are WAY over her head (or just plain BAD)? Does she honestly think that she can compare to the original? Apparently she does…and if that’s the case, then she needs to be gone. Her Disneyfied performance was blasty and annoying, and her high note was totally off! My cat, who hits things if she hears anything loud and screechy within earshot, stared at the television for about two seconds, and then she ATTACKED THE TELEVISION to try to make Syesha shutup!!! If my CAT doesn’t approve of Syesha’s performance, SHE’S GOTTA GO!!! Sorry Syesha fans, didn’t like.

Jason Castro performed next with Iz’s rendition of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” Oh great. I didn’t get it. Did. Not. Get. It. At. All. What the hell is the big deal about this kid?? Ukelele and violins? Tiny Tim is rolling in his grave as I type this. The way Jason sings…..I don’t know, it just bugs me. His facial tics are completely off-putting because not only is it visually distracting, but they also totally change the timbre of his voice, and it’s not good. His high range, though, was very nice. I remember when he completely blew that last part of “Hallelujah” in his high register a few weeks back, and tonight was a definite improvement. Overall, though…no thanks.

Kristy Lee Cook performed “Anyway,” and I was actually pleasantly surprised. The song itself was very forgettable (sorry, not a fan of Martina McBride), but she was so sure of herself in her performance that it made me not think of the suckiness of the song. This was definitely her best performance of the competition thus far.

David Cook followed with a really pitiful choice of song, “Innocent.” Sorry, I’m about to be somewhat harsh here. After a string of weeks where David Cook commanded the stage and arguably had some of the best performances of this season, he took the stage last night and tanked, in unequivocal fashion. Bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad performance. Did I mention it wasn’t really very good? This was not the right song for him to sing. The “Give Back” written on his hand seemed like a desperate plea to the audience, as if he were unconsciously trying to tell us, “Look guys, I know I sucked tonight, but go ahead and vote for me anyway because I have these overly sentimental words written on my hand which spreads the message of love and peace to the people of the world!!! VOTE FOR ME DAMMIT!!!!!” Not a good week for him.

Carly Smithsen followed afterwards performing “The Show Must Go On.” What the hell is with tonight? This was not good either. She’s looking really very good, very sexy, but the voice was gallons of awful. Her voice was so strained and overworked - even Freddie Mercury was calling from beyond the grave just to tell Carly, “Lady, tone it down a bit!” She just completely lost it in this performance. Not a good week for her. She might be going home Thursday.

David followed afterwards - AMAZING!

After David came Brooke White performing “You’ve Got a Friend,” a rather nice song-choice for her, but she’s beginning to pigeon-hole herself a bit…which isn’t necessarily a bad thing for her. Brooke has the folksy vibe going on, and she chooses songs that are appropriate to that style. No complaints there…I just worry that she’ll be viewed as boring down the road. Her performance was one of the most uncomfortable experiences I can remember on this show. She held onto that microphone stand for dear life, and the look in her eyes was that of a deer looking into the lights of a runaway freight train. This effected everything about her performance - her voice, her stage presence, her movements and mannerisms. I felt really bad for her. Now, her performance was not bad by any means, but there was something majorly off about it. I think she may be either in the midst of or having a nervous breakdown.

Order of Performances from Worst to Best:

8.  David Cook - D

7.  Carly Smithsen - D+

6.  Brooke White - C

5.  Syesha Mercado - C 

4.  Michael Johns - C+

3.  Jason Castro - C+

2.  Kristy Lee Cook - B

1.  David Archuleta - A-

Alright, well that’s it from me for this week’s edition. Sorry about last week’s lack of a review.

ARCHULETA, FTW!!!!!!