American Idol Season Nine Rockets to the Final 3

For big-time reality TV music fans, the ninth season of American Idol might best be described as a NASA space shuttle ride of fantastic highs and humdrum lows. After eight amazing seasons, American Idol's cookie-cutter, city-by-city auditions may have fizzled a bit. Over time, the show blasted off but then cruised in the lower stratosphere of the talent pool with only occasional thrilling boosts into the far-reaching and spectacular orbits of newly-discovered songster glory.

As one of the lowest-rated seasons in the juggernaut's history, American Idol season 9 may have fallen short of the dazzling display of sensational solo fireworks of previous missions, but overall the show has definitely delivered on a variety of levels.

First, you've got the kids. Like me, if you've watched American Idol season 9 from the start, you know how easy it is to like this year's cast of hip, harmonizing vocalists. They're young, talented, and full of life. They may not be the top crop of Idols in flight school, but as with other seasons of American Idol, if you keep watching the singers week after week you can't help falling in love.

Second, you've got the music. While the voices and performances of the contestants this season have raised the eyebrows of a few American Idol critics, one thing is true: Most of the top 10 finalists can carry pretty good tunes on a bad day, and belt out pitch-perfect, crowd-pleasing, and awe-inspiring melodies on any good one.

Then you have the American Idol judges, with the bright eyes and impeccable comedic timing of Paula Abdul replacement Ellen DeGeneres rounding out the Fab Four. And there are plenty of guest American Idol mentors, superstars like Jamie Foxx, Harry Connick Jr., and Shania Twain, all hanging out and lending a helping hand in the guidance and development of our favorite season 9 serenaders week in and week out. It's all part of the hit musical variety reality-TV show, and the show must go on.

This week, American Idol shined its top-three spotlight on two safe bets, Crystal Bowersox and Lee DeWyze, and one long shot, Casey James. The three skyrocketing, twenty-something Idols beat out Michael Lynche for top bragging rights going into the final weeks of the competition. Big Mike almost packed his bags a few weeks ago, but the judges voted him back on with the one-and-only season save.

It was "Songs of the Cinema" week, and Lynche's version of "Will You Be There" from the movie "Free Willy", probably fell a bit flat on the ears of often finicky American Idol voters. The late, great Michael Jackson sang the original, and that's always a tough act to follow in any universe.

But Lynche's fate may have already been sealed. During the performance show, James' crooning of the Simon and Garfunkel ditty "Mrs. Robinson" from the film "The Graduate", also fizzled into a lyrical dud. All of the judges, in fact, felt the solos by the three remaining guys, including Dewyze, lacked the star power to pull off their risky cinematic song choices. James probably scooted past Lynche on looks alone. As this season's golden-locked heartthrob, James is the type of American Idol musician who often gets his votes the old-fashioned way: by popularity contest.

In the end, it was Bowersox, the only gal still standing at the start of the final four showdown, who left the men standing still in the jet stream of her star-like rendition of "I'm Alright", the smash by Kenny Loggins from the hit movie "Caddyshack". Bowersox proved once again she's the barnstormer to beat in what will undoubtedly be a close race against her male contenders to the final landing pad.

As one of the top-rated reality shows of the past seven years, American Idol's show-stopping shuttle ride may be slowing, but it's still got plenty of bang for your melodious banknote in pure entertainment value. From this season's initial audition launch in Boston, through the Hollywood rounds, into the countdowns from the Top 24 to the Top 10 and now the Final 3, the ambitious young artists from season 9 are continuing the American Idol legacy of transforming fledging songbirds into soaring rocketeers.