Pia Toscano is Eliminated on 'American Idol' On April 7, 2011

Fox, April 7, 2011, 8 PM (ET) "American Idol" had a rough elimination night, with one of the strongest contestants, Pia Toscano, given her walking papers. Before this revolting development, the remaining 9 contestants sang a medley comprised of "I Love Rock 'N Roll," "The Letter," and "Sweet Home Alabama." The ubiquitous Russell Brand also appeared. The most obvious explanation for his lame appearance was his upcoming outing as "Arthur," the remake of the Dudley Moore, Liza Minnelli film, and an animated gig as a rabbit. Iggy Pop also took off his shirt and sang, "I'm a Wild Child," (my spouse suggested that he keep his shirt on in the future, since the man is now 63 years old.)

Casey, Stefano and Lauren were called out; Stefano was told he was in danger. Next, James, Haley and Jacob were brought forth; Jacob was pronounced in peril. Then the remaining three (Pia, Paul and Scotty) yielded the second-biggest miscarriage of justice: Pia's dismissal from the competition.

After one of the best performers of the 9 is eliminated, you have to remind yourself that stars like Jennifer Hudson and Chris Daughtry have done better than the so-called "winners," but let's discuss why tonight's miscarriage of justice might have occurred.

There are 4 reasons that explain Pia's surprising elimination:

Reason #1: Simon Cowell is no longer a judge. Simon, although unnecessarily brutal at times, honestly pointed out who had the goods and who didn't. All three judges this year have been unremittingly positive about almost each and every performance. The judges serve a useful purpose in pointing out who has performed well or poorly. The judges this year seem to believe in that old adage "never is heard a discouraging word." Therefore, audience members at home, who are not necessarily musical, have no one's expert opinion to rely on. Unguided, they are making poor decisions.

Reason #2: Mean girls. You may remember there was a movie with that title. My point? Girls are threatened by females who are more attractive than they are. More females than males are likely to vote for contestants on "American Idol." It's a girl-y thing. Pia was gorgeous. It's the Old Green-eyed Monster. Girls are this way. Mean girls would rather vote for the cute (but less talented) boy than one of the two best singers in the competition.

Reason #3: The Judges' "save" had already been used. If the "save" had been in play, the judges would have "saved" Pia. Randy even said, "You're one of the best singers in this. This makes me mad. What is going on?"

Reason #4: As stated earlier, "Man (or Pia) cannot live by ballads alone." Pia never did perform a truly "fast, upbeat" number. As I mentioned once before, I would have loved to have heard her sing "Stop, in the Name of Love" on Motown night, but the closest she came to a "fast" song was "Mountain High, River Deep." Song choice has done in many a contestant before, and it saved a few (like Naima), so let's not under-estimate the boredom factor brought on by ballad after ballad after ballad. If Jacob isn't careful, he will be the next one done in by boring song selections, although Stefano should have been gone at least 3 times back for the same reason.

In the aftermath of Pia's elimination, Jennifer Lopez, at the Judges' table, looked as though she were going to cry and Pia actually did break down while being hugged by Jacob after she sang her farewell song, "I'll Stand By You."

Interviewed backstage (www.AmericanIdol.com), Pia had only good things to say: "I was just trying to smile and be positive. It is absolutely terrifying...I'm going to miss going out there and performing for the judges. I'm going to work on my weaknesses and build on my strengths and try to grow as a person." She thanked all who had voted for her.

My husband stomped out of the room declaring he was never going to watch the show again, and several comments on the "American Idol" web page echoed that sentiment.