25 replies to this topic

[TWoP Gadget]

TOP 10 ACTS PERFORM LIVE - The top 10 acts perform live for a chance to win a one million dollar prize and become the most talented person in America. Viewers vote for their favorites. Jerry Springer hosts and David Hasselhoff, Piers Morgan and Sharon Osbourne are the celebrity judges.

Episode one of two this week.

[bigmomma01]

I'd be hard pressed to pick a top five from this group. I'd have to go with Elvis since he is from my town, Eli, and Nuttin But Stringz.

On the bubble - Donald, Queen Emily, Jessica

Kaitlyn - it's time for her to go, although I did agree with Sharon, she was divine in that red dress!

Neal E. Boyd - not my cup of tea.

Wright Kids - cute as can be, but not ready for Vegas

Frank impersonator - thought he was outdated

Edited by bigmomma01, Sep 17, 2008 @ 9:13 PM.

[Tienko]

Still like Eli and Strings the best. Don't mind which of them wins as long as these two are the Final 2.

[Eire75]

I think the judges were trying to let the kids down easy this week. They all know Kaitwin isn't coming back. Dogs in my neighborhood howl when she sings. The nicest thing they can ever say to her is "You remembered all the words." Great, but not a talent. I still have my riot gear ready to go just in case. Oh, and that bus to hell, make it a double decker.

Eli and Strings got all my votes tonight. I was going to use them all for Eli, but my family told me I wasn't allowed to come home anymore if a few didn't get thrown the way of Strings.

[CRFTony]

Underwhelming night until we got to Eli and Nuttin' But Strings.

Kaitlyn sucked hard. I hate her, but before this week she was at least cute and sweet. Tonight she was damn bad. That said, if she gets through to the top 5 I'm powervoting for her to punish the judges for letting her advance past the initial auditions.

My top 5 predictions:

Eli Matson, Nuttin' But Strings, Neal E. Boyd, Queen Emily, Donald Braswell

Braswell's on the bubble, but I think he'll advance over the blonde chick and faux-Elvis.

[chesslover]

I didn't care for Stringz taking their sweet time getting started. Who do they think they are Renny? Their last two performances imo are a slight step down from their top 40 performance. I voted for Eli mainly because he's from my state. Time to put Kaitlyn to bed. Jessica made David Archuletta sound good. Enjoyed Joseph,Neal,and Queen also.

[barkley]

I threw all of my votes to Eli.

I've had enough of Queen Emily because I am sick to death of people shouting at me and thinking it's singing. Aretha was awesome because she was able to manage her power - QE, you are no Aretha.

[junemeatcleaver]

Why did people stand up after Kaitlyn's performance. That was terrible.

[magathia]

Still liking Nuttin' But Strings and Eli. They got all my votes.

Kaitlyn was awful. She did remember all the words, though, which is more than the Sinatra impersonator can say. Not good at all.

Joseph Elvis was passable. I still don't think he is good enough to win. I wouldn't pay money to see him in Vegas.

I pretty much fast forwarded through everyone else. The Wright Kids' song was all wrong. The blonde country singer whose name I can't be bothered to remember isn't good enough to join the ranks of the grand ladies of country, Braswell is a fraud, I don't think we need another shouty R&B singer and I can't stand the obese weeper. If that's not everyone, this show was even worse than I originally thought. America does have talent. Too bad it isn't very well represented on this show.

[barkley]

Why did people stand up after Kaitlyn's performance. That was terrible.

Yeah, I mean, I think she's cute and adorable and all, but Piers has a point - she really should go now because what is she going to do if she wins? The goal is Vegas and it's not like a whole lot of people are going to go and pay money to watch a 4-year-old, who isn't related to them, go sing a song. However, it's the judge's fault for not getting a handle on this thing before it starts getting out of control.

And it wasn't even cute in the good way like she's been before - because even compared to her previous performances, that wasn't good.

[gryphon]

However, it's the judge's fault for not getting a handle on this thing before it starts getting out of control.

Very true, barkley. They could have cut her even before the top 40. They're going to have a harder time cutting her now, for sure, but I don't know how they're going to do it, if the public keeps voting for her.

[fanncier]

Split my votes between Eli and MiddleAged Hottie. Really the only two I can stand at all. Donald is a much better singer than Neil, who is all sob (literally) story. Eli was awesome upon repeat viewing.

I just don't like the sound of violins, especially played in that disjointed frantic manner.

Everyone else was a joke.

[Paul Servo]

I'm glad Pierce realized that the prize is a Vegas show and they have a fucking four year old with parents that should be thrown in jail. Oh, and before I go further in this rant, fuck you Hoff for giving those assholes the idea to bring her back year after year to make my ears bleed (I fast forward through her singing, but I can still hear it. Actually, this was on at a bar, without sound, but closed captioning and my ears bleed reading the lyrics). And fuck you studio audience for booing Pierce. Anyone that booed needs to be strapped to a Clockwork Orange chair and made to watch Katwin sing for an hour and a half. Best part (bsides Pierce saying "we fucked up and should have let you go earlier" was Pierce saying "doesn't matter what I say, you won't understand"
I also hate Katwin's little video clip (that thing where they stand infront of the light wall), it makes me want to throw up. "Awwww, isn't she cute?" Actually, no she's note cute.
Donald: I really can't say anything bad about him. The guy is really good.

Neil: You made it through a song without crying. Good for you! You sucked tonight!

Sinatra Guy: I'm sad that I won't get to hear him sing "That's Life," because that's my favoriite song by Frank. And Hoff, "New York, New York" is not a hard song to sing. If I can sing it well, it's not hard.

Write Kids: They have a sister? I think she'll be to blame if they lose. I mean she finally says something. Think about it.

No Daddy: I'm glad that she's channeling her sadness into music. But I'd like to see her loosen up.

Queen Em: eh.

Nuttin But Strings: Nice that they had The Cadence in their act. Seriously though, I want to see these guys in the final two also.

Eli: Also in my top two as well.


ETA: Am I the only one that noticed when Katwin was trying to hold up two fingers and do it in different ways, she flipped everyong off for a second or two? Granted it wasn't intentional (but it's fun to think she was directing it twards Pierce). And regardless, why do I find that mildly amusing?

Edited by Paul Servo, Sep 18, 2008 @ 1:42 AM.

[Substantia1979]

We actually got some serious insight into the Vegas act if I am interpreting Springer's comment correctly. He said it would be a headline show with highlight performances...basically said it would be similar to So You Think You Can Dance's tour show. I think it's a one-night-only 90 min act with the winner and a few of the top acts. I do not think this is an actual contract to perform on the strip for any extended time. Did anyone else pay attention to his comment about the Vegas show? Fator's contract with Vegas was outside of the show last time, right?

I think Stringz should win for sure even though I liked Eli a bit too (even though he's another dreaded singer). Why all the singing acts? Next time they shouldn't allow ANY singers and just have other types of acts. We have enough singing shows already...geez.

I feel terrible for Kaitlyn even though I can't stand to watch her (and I have a beautiful little daughter). It's like she's in a freak show and doesn't even know it. Springer wanted to make me smack him in the head for all the crazy comments he made to her. He's losing his mind with this show.

I fastfwd through Hoff's comments every show now. I get really embarrassed listening to him for some reason. Oh, and watching his reactions to the performances. I sink lower in my seat. I'd have to change my name if I were his child.

[GracieM]

Can we vote off Springer and the audience? Ugh, the prompted audience (Stand! Applaud! Boo!) makes me ill, and Springer is an ass. Maybe they can take the Hoff with them - in what universe does being the owner of a robot car, a head lifeguard and a singing sensation in Germany qualify someone to judge talent?

Did Eli try out for AI and not make it through? I find that hard to believe because he's very good.

Stringz wasn't as good last night, not enough fiddlin'.

magathia, why do call Braswell a fraud? Do you know something?

Kaitlyn needs to go; it's been far enough. I still think she is cute as a button, but she can have a great little career singing jingles in commercials for now.

Don't understand how the Wright Kids got this far, terrible.

Queen Emily is just another miasming belter.

My top five: Eli, Stringz, Baton Boy, Russian Pole People, and some random other singer I guess. What's that you say? Baton Boy and Pole People aren't there? La la la, can't hear you.

[Awesome Lessons]

Just a few thoughts on last night's show:

- I knew that when Springer said tonight was Hero's night, we were done for, and I would be punching out before the end of the show....and sho nuff...

- The fact that the judge has to quantify a statement to a performer, like Piers had to do with Wittow Kaetwin tells me that they need to alter the age limit of the competition. Everyone should be prepared to hear criticism, that is the nature of the show.

- I wanted to beat the dickens out of Wittow Kaitwin's parents last night for saddling her with that clunker of a song that seemed...to...go...on...forever. And honestly, was that song out of her register? Or was she sick or something....

- Braswell is starting to grate on me. The guy sings the same song every week. We get it, the guy wants to do musical theatre. Also, the posing he does annoys me like crazy.

- Elvis Joe absolutely cannot do a decent Elvis impression to save his life...what was entertaining about that thing last night? He also couldn't hit anything in his lower register. It was just awful and don't get me started about the swinging elvis ass.

- When is our Blubbery Opera Star Neil E Boyd going to stop it with the sad songs...I want some upbeat numbers over here.

[babymama]

Here are my rankings from last night:

1. Nuttin But Stringz- I agree with Piers in that if I had to pay to see one act, it would be theirs. I like the fact that they write their own songs, and could probably play in any venue.

2. Eli Mattson- His piano playing puts him ahead of the other singers. Got to love his facial contortions.

3. Jessica Price- I thought she would be a total afterthought, but she tore it up with that song last night. Other than last night, I do find her rather dull.

4. Queen Emily- Really can't stand her, but I will give her credit for doing a good job last night. To me, she got on my last nerve when she fell on the floor crying during Vegas Week when she found out she made it to the top 40. I really hope she isn't in the top 5, but I'm almost certain she will be.

5. Joseph Hall (Elvis)- I really like this guy, but after last night, it is probably time that Elvis left the building. Although the silver lining for Joseph is that he seems that he could be one hell of a pussy magnet much like the real Elvis.

6. Neal Boyd- Other than the chorus, his song blew chucks last night. I like him better than Queen Emily and Jessica Price as a talent, and I still think that he will be the overall winner when its all said and done. How much do you wanna bet that NBC puts him on last at the finale to give him an edge. At least he got through his song without too much sobbing this time.

7. Paul Salos (Sinatra)- I also like this guy, and he deserved to be in the top 10, but I don't think he should go any further. Seems as though he is either running out of steam or material since his last 2 performances were subpar compared with his earllier ones.

8. The Wright Kids- Hey its the Children of the Corn...... I think these kids ARE talented, especially the oldest boy. They did a good job through the competition and did deserve to be there unlike a certain 4 year old, however this is where they get eliminated.

9. Donald Braswell- ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ. Please wake me up when he is finished. What a boring performance and performer. Same old over-the-top romantic sappy barf worthy love ballads. Donald and Daniel Jens should form their own group. I bet if they did that David Hasselhoff would probably cream his pants.

10. Kaitlyn Maier- Last night was her worst performance. I have a sneaking feeling that she will end up in the top 5. I think this will also open up the floodgates of 4 and 5 year old kids trying out for the show next year. Can anyone honestly say that she should have been their over Jonathan Birkin (baton) and about 50 of the other acts.

I hope the top 5 is:

1. Nuttin But Stringz
2. Eli Mattson
3. Joseph Hall
4. Neal Boyd
5. Wright Kids

I think the top 5 will be:

1. Neal Boyd
2. Nutting But Stringz
3. Eli Mattson
4. Queen Emily
5. Kaitlyn Maier

[sandisays]

Wow, I have not watched this season and just tuned in last night. What an eye opener. First off if these are the final 10, America is sorely lacking in talent. I am not sure anyone of them could carry a Las Vegas venue. Come on they were on for 2 minutes tops what are they going to do for at least a hour on stage in Vegas. Americas got talent --- not so much.

[wordnerd]

I hate to be mean about a little girl, but Kaitlyn made my ears bleed last night. Seriously, it was really, actually painful. Please America..... If you have a heart, DON'T vote for Kaitlyn! She should be at home, WATCHING Beauty and the Beast on video (probably like a thousand times a day), not on stage in Las Freaking Vegas. Seriously.

I love sappy songs, but man, Donald Braswell sings more Josh Groban songs than, well, Josh Groban (and I say that as a die-hard Grobanite!). Dude needs more variety -- but then again with his style of singing it's pretty much Josh Groban or Broadway. I see a future of singing the National Anthem at minor-league baseball games for our Donald.

I love Eli Mattson, and I think out of all the contestants, he's the only one I'd actually pay money to see on his own. I'd pay to see Nuttin' But Stringz if they were part of some sort of variety show..... and i wouldn't pay to see Queen Emily, at all. Maybe I'd jaded but I'm just not impressed by "shouty" singers. And if I never see a heavy-set black woman singing "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going" ever again, it will be too soon. This is all Jennifer Hudson's fault (although I LOVE how she wiped the smirk off of Beyonce's face by winning a freaking Oscar!).

[NYLawGirl]

8. The Wright Kids- Hey its the Children of the Corn......

Ok, you owe me a new keyboard, babymama. I haven't laughed THAT hard in years!

What I got out of this show:

Joseph Hall is really packin', ain't he?

I love Eli too, but the facial tics and shoulder shrugs are starting to annoy. Wouldn't it be fab if Elton John showed up tonight?

BTW -- I'm sure Elton John does watch this show. He watched AI enough to be really upset when Jennifer Hudson got bounced, so I'm betting these shows are his thing.

Hoff really looked misty-eyed talking to Jessica. And creepy. Like he wished he was 30 years younger. Wonder what his date thought of that. I know what I thought. Ew.

Neal E. really bit last night. I was saying "oh no" for all but one note of his routine.

All That should have entered this year. I'm still p.o.'ed that they lost. Thank God for the opening montage.

And if I never see a heavy-set black woman singing "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going" ever again, it will be too soon.

Me too!

Edited by NYLawGirl, Sep 18, 2008 @ 3:23 PM.

[Leonina]

Dear Jerry Springer:

Please do not sit on the controls in the control room at the beginning of the show. Apparently the sound engineers cannot fix the damage you’ve done and most of the performances suffer because the sound is completely off. You’d think they weren’t employing competent sound engineers or their equipment isn’t state-of-the-art.

Thank you. (By the way, I’ve loved you ever since you were on Dancing with the Stars, Jerry!)

Love,
Leonina

My ranking of best to worst:

1. Eli Mattson – Elton John’s “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word”: Always looks like he has tears in his eyes when the judges praise him but that may be because they’re always bloodshot. Love his soulful, passionate and emotional performances, bluesy piano playing and singing, his shyness and humility. I’m glad the producers didn’t throw in dancers, a light show, background singers or much of anything else—just a darkened stage with a few spotlights and a colorfully lit floor. Beautiful eyes and eyebrows—I’m a sucker for a pretty man! I think he hides under his hat though due to his shyness. His looks remind me of a young Frank Sinatra (maybe he and Paul Salos could . . . nah).

2. Queen Emily – “And I’m Telling You”: Loved her from Day 1. Hate this song. Didn’t AGT S1 winner Bianca Ryan perform this song at 10 years old (or whatever she was at the time)? Over it. I have enjoyed her old school Motown, R&B performances. I would pay to see Queen Emily perform for 90 minutes. She has heart and soul. Love her.

3. Paul Salos – “New York, New York”: Not his best performance but I still like him. He’s charming. I wish he’d lay off the eyeliner though; it’s a little disturbing to me.

4. Nuttin But Stringz – original composition: Talented. Too much other crap on the stage with the drummers and acrobats. Still, I’m bored before they even finish.

5. Neal E. Boyd – Eric Carmen’s “All by Myself”: (Mostly sung by women, Piers? I guess in addition to Celine Dion, Leona Lewis performed it on Britain’s X Factor. She doesn’t count in my book.) Surprisingly awful. Should stick to opera. I’m also a sucker for blubbering men.

6. Jessica Price – Sarah MacLachlan’s “Angel”: Beautiful, sweet young lady. This performance was just all right. As LuluBates recapped, I just can’t help but think of maimed cats when I hear this song now. I also have to change the channel when that ASPCA PSA comes on. Anyway, Sarah MacLachlan’s voice is haunting and plaintive. Jessica’s performance was nowhere near that. (By the way, check out Jessica’s hands. Her fingers are already enlarged and broken in from factory work. I wonder if at her age her hands could go back to being softer if she doesn’t go back to the factory? Sad.)

7. Donald Braswell – Josh Groban’s “To Where You Are”: I don’t feel anything when he sings. Good enough to do local musical theatre.

8. Joseph Hall – Elvis Presley’s “A Little Less Conversation”: I’m sure if you threw a poker chip anywhere in Las Vegas you’d hit a better Elvis impersonator. I thought his singing was competent enough but as Joseph said there aren’t any live versions of Elvis performing this song. I think had Elvis performed it live, it would not have been as entertaining to see and hear as some of his bigger hits. Poor song choice at this point but it’s time to lay Elvis to rest in peace at Graceland anyway.

9. The Wright Kids – Jackson Five’s “ABC”: Older brother will be a gorgeous young man when he grows up. That said, he does not have the X factor that Michael Jackson had nor does the group have the spark that the Jacksons had back in their day. Wish we could have heard them perform bluegrass. I think that may have set them apart from just being another kid act.

10. Kaitlyn Maher – Jackson Five’s “I’ll Be There” – Beautiful, adorable, styled well with tastefully beautiful dresses and shoes, not overdone hair and no make-up so that she still looks like a child (and not one of those JonBenet pageant scary children), poised, polite, articulate (albeit with a speech impediment), remembers lyrics but is possibly tone deaf or just sings like an average four year-old. The cruelty of letting this thing drag out as long as it has is ridiculous. She’s FOUR, judges-who-let-her-through-in-the-first-place and Mr. and Mrs. Maher. I don’t want to see this little girl crushed when she’s inevitably sent home. Unfortunately, due to putting her through, it has to happen.

One thing I hate about all of these shows that are produced by the same people as American Idol, X Factor, and So You Think You Can Dance, is all the producer manipulation. After the initial auditions, it’s clear that the producers add all the extraneous people to a lot of these acts (pirates, little people, dancers, etc.) and throw in so many distracting flashing lights behind and underneath the acts that it’s hard to watch the finalists’ acts. They also make them sing certain songs or only let them choose from a short list. Last week Piers said to Eli Mattson that “some of the acts at this stage of the competition start moaning about the song choices they may get . . . given and so on” when he performed “Alicia Keys’s “If I Ain’t Got You”. I think that’s why so many of these acts are told that their song choices are poor but it’s not their fault!

As far as having acts like Kaitlyn make it to the top 10, I remember seeing one of the American Idol producers saying that they are putting on a show each week and are not focusing on who would have the best careers at the end. Hence, AI puts through people like Carmen Rasmusen and Sanjaya just for entertainment value (people you love to hate). I just tell myself that AGT’s top 40 to top 20 to top 10 doesn’t really matter because there will only be one winner. Some of the people who get cut along the way may have a future in entertainment by getting picked up by someone else. Baton boy, Jonathan Burkin, may get picked up by Cirque du Soleil or something. Joseph Hall and Paul Salos may get to take their Elvis and Frank impersonations to some Las Vegas casino that does impersonator shows. I think a lot of these acts could only be “featured” performers but not carry a whole 90-minute show. And some of the all-female dance groups could become showgirls!

[divayenta]

Hey Leonina! I'm callin' you out g-friend! Your assessment was hysterical but true. Well, Nuttinbutstringz with a great producer could be the hip hop version of "River Dance"- I'll do it!

Joseph Hall is a hunk, but even Clay Aiken did a better Elvis vocally in his Jukebox Tour.. but Clay sure as hell didn't move like Joseph.

Neil is getting on my nerves with all that blubbering. Enough with the "my mama saved my life and everyone hates me". Gee, that sounds like another singer I know.

Queen Emily is great- stick to Motown and do some great cabaret numbers, too.

"Children of the Corn" Wright Kids is hysterical. BWAH.

Poor Kaitwyn, I too am thankful for her loss tonite. I agree, at least she was presented tastefully.

Robert "Foolet"- great voice, zero connection. Broadway.

Eli "little Elton" Madsen. Now that's an impressionist! Yeah, he's passionate and talented, but he does sound just like Mr. John!

I think Neil might win if he goes back to opera. Queen Em has a shot at it, and maybe NBS if they lose the flying pole dancers and get some real dance crews (SuperCru, Boogie Bots, whoever) behind 'em and ballet dancers , too.

[tall1az]

Maybe I'm the only one on this side of the fence, but I CRINGED all the way through Jessica's performance. Her loud breathing (and demonstrated total lack of breath control while singing) was just awful, and the ends of the phrases got all muddy. And they all raved about it... after telling her the previous week that she should stick to country songs. Which Angel is not. If I'm Sarah McLachlan and I'm listening to that, I'm running from the room.

I also hated Queen Emily's yelling and screaming her way through that song. Just can't stand that style. Bianca Ryan did it more justice than that.

As for the rest of them, I threw all my votes to NBS, figuring the others I liked at all would get thru anyway.

Edited by tall1az, Sep 19, 2008 @ 5:26 PM.

[Awesome Lessons]

I also felt that Jessica's performance was unprofessional and substandard.

Backstory rules the day and that's why Eli and NBS are going to be out unfortunaly....and let's be honest, Eli isn't anywhere near as good as Cas Haley was last year.

[GracieM]

Don't NBS have a sob-backstory?

It really bugs me that Jerry is too stupid to say Nuttin' instead of Nothing. His job is to introduce the acts so surely he can learn their proper names. Reason #120 why he needs to go.

Couldn't Eli just try for AI if he doesn't win AGT?

And why did Hoff say that Kaitlyn could come back for the next 70 years? I thought AI had some sort of rule that once you made the top 24 (or something), that was it. You couldn't audition again. AGT doesn't have the same rules? So Cas Haley could have tried again?

[Vermicious Knid]

wrong thread

Edited by Vermicious Knid, Sep 26, 2008 @ 1:03 PM.