Same Old Tired Song

When I say I'm sick of the long-toothed, tired and over-played phenomenon that is American Idol, don't tell me to change the channel: It isn't that easy.

True, its novelty has been that it's a good old fashioned talent show, or at least it was. Now though it just seems like a tarnished jewel in a giant marketing crown complete with seasonal cliches. Oh look, there's the boyish teen phenom who's adored and cried-over by chubby girls. There's the goofy looking guy who also seems to be adored while suffering some major family drama back home. He sings not for himself, but for his lawyer brother suffering from cancer. *eye roll*. There's the over-singing black girl who hits all the high notes and quivers her way down to the low ones, the small gaggle of pretty blond girls who became convinced they could sing by all their cheerleader friends back home in Atlanta/Omaha/Chicago. There's the tattooed hippie chick, watch her go from belting-out hard rock tunes worthy of making Pat Benator hold a lighter over her head, to a soft torch song dedicated to all her pub friends back home. She's SOOO 'edgy'. And there's my anti-favorite, the Earthy cool white guy with the face of an Aryan poster boy and "dreamy" blue eyes but look, he plays the guitar, wears tattered jeans, flannel shirts and one bad ass set of dreadlocks. If he doesn't make it here, he'll be king of Seattle. *YACK*

When will the flyover love affair with this mess be over? It isn't escapable. Buy a Coke and there it is, something being shilled for or by the marketing geniuses behind American Idol or, as fans refer to it, "A.I.". And no matter it's a Fox Network program, we get morning updates on NBC's Early Show, CBS' Today Show, ABC's Good Morning America. The network anchors are not immune from it's grasp, it must be mentioned, it's what American viewers expect.

Less than 25% of registered American voters cast ballots in the last presidential election but bet your sweet latte most every American with a television or Internet access can tell you who the three judges are on American Idol, and a huge percentage of those can give you an accurate lineup of the final 7 contestants. I can't name all 7, but I can tell you who the favorites are and what songs they sang last night. Yeah I know but it isn't my fault, it's Tom's. How can you miss something playing on a 70" hi-def plasma? It isn't like I had plans last night. Still, there's got to be something else, something non political to capture our national obsession. This one program has become like a bad song, the kind you can't get out of your head, or off your television.

Posted by JD on April 17, 2008 9:36 AM