David Cook Burned by David Archuleta on American Idol Finale

There are no doubts now. David Archuleta will be crowned Season 7's American Idol. When David Cook said, "as far as I'm concerned, competition's over; we're just having fun" it wasn't idle chit chat with Ryan Seacrest. Archuleta, on the other hand, was there for the win. He remained the mild, humble guy many have grown to love, but his attitude changed. He stammered less in his answers. I noticed right away, his body language was slightly more aggressive: at times he had a forward leaning forceful stance not seen before tonight. I don't agree with Cowell's assessment that Cook looked extraordinarily tense. All things considered, I thought he seemed fairly comfortable and at ease.

Despite his mild-mannered nature, Archuleta is a competitor and this was truly the fight of his life. Cook gave it a good try, but he didn't bring his all. I thought back to a Bo Bice Rolling Stone interview following Season 4 (June 2005), "People ask me, what were you thinking while you stood there waiting for them to announce the winner?'" Bice told his Rolling Stone interviewer. He continued, ''Please, God, don't let me win this thing...if I won American Idol then I would not have the freedom to perform the music I want to do. That is more important to me".

It makes perfect sense. Bo Bice didn't want 19 Entertainment calling all his shots and the likelihood of them doing so as a runner-up was less. I do wonder now, though, how he feels about that idea, when he sees the enormous success Underwood has achieved. When I watched David Cook's performances in the Season 7 finale, I didn't think he threw the competition by any means, but I did wonder if maybe he just didn't try as hard as he could have perhaps with Bo Bice logic in the back of his mind. Cook is very much an artist and it seems he has strong feelings about taking his own path.

What else could explain his choice to perform "The World I Know" as his final song of the show? I was sure he would repeat his "Billie Jean" performance. I would have bet on it. It was with the "Billie Jean" performance that many really took notice of David Cook. It also would have been a perfect opportunity to duly credit Chris Cornell for the arrangement. And I was gratified with Simon's comment that confirmed my opinion.

David Cook began the finale performances with U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For". His showmanship and vocals were great. When he went into the audience, I thought his superior stage presence was going to be difficult for David Archuleta to overcome. If memory serves, that was the first time a contestant went into the audience during a competitive performance this season. I was filled with anticipation for a close match. Cook's performances, while still good, went downhill from there. The top ten submitted song "Dream Big" was a flop. Cook likely made this song a lot better than it is. But by this point, I was disappointed in the match-up and it seemed the judges were as well. Archuleta was clearly in the zone, while Cook was not even performing as well as he did in prior competitions. Finally, Cook sealed his fate by indulging his artistic nature by selecting a song of his choice rather than a fans' favorite. "The World I Know" was performed well, but wasn't a song that even had the potential to electrify the audience and get viewers to spend their night calling in votes.

It wasn't even close. Cook is toast. They could have announced David Archuleta the winner last night and I believe only the die-hard Cook fans would have objected.