Steven Tyler, as an "American Idol" Judge, Rocks the House

Steven Tyler, as an "American Idol" judge, debuted his skills Wednesday night. The 62-year-old rocker gave a winning combination of sex, humor and snark.

It's the 10th season of "American Idol," and Simon Cowell, Ellen DeGeneres and Kara DioGuardi are gone. It's not a huge problem with DeGeneres or DioGuardi. Many felt DeGeneres, a woman with no music background, had no business as a judge. As far as DioGuardi, not everyone warmed up to her.

But snarky music executive Simon Cowell had left his mark with "American Idol." Paula Abdul was the nice one. Randy Jackson was the neutral one, and Cowell was the mean one. It was a team that worked. Even when that team was disrupted, Cowell's no-nonsense approach was one good reason we watched. Now, the only original "American Idol" judge is Randy, and we have two new team members.

We expected Jennifer Lopez to be exactly the way she is - beautiful, nice and not as loopy as Abdul. But what about Steven Tyler as an "American Idol" judge?

We didn't know what to expect. We know he is the crazy rocker with the big lips and the colorful scarves. We love him as the Aerosmith front man. We know he's got years of musical experience under his black leather belts.

As it turned out, Tyler brought a refreshing new approach to "American Idol." First, he's secure. He may be 62-years-old, but he's still got it. Expect to see a parade of young and beautiful hopefuls flirt with him during their auditions. And he won't play it down. He'll flirt right back. It's that rock star confidence we like.

"Did you eat a lot of paint chips when you were a child?" joked Tyler to one less than stellar wanna be. It may have been somewhat Cowell like, but Tyler is nothing like Simon Cowell. He's got a sense of humor, he doesn't take himself too seriously and he's not a dull dresser.

Last year, Dominic Patten of The Wrap said about Tyler as a possible judge, "He's too damn old. He's too damn dull."

Steve Tyler as an "American Idol" judge may be old, but he's far from dull.

Sources:

"American Idol" on FOX

Jolie du Pre, Can Steven Tyler Save American Idol?, Associated Content

Dominic Patten, Why Steven Tyler Would Suck as an 'Idol' Judge, The Wrap