Alan surfed past “Queer Eye” tonight; the boys were taking on a frat house. And as those words passed through my brain — “oh, they’re taking on a frat house” — I wondered how much, er, San Fernando Valley-school cinema if-you-catch-my-drift has used QE as the framework for their plotlines. Because, you know, it’s perfect: The Fab Five take on the Sigma Chi house, and the Sweetheart gets locked out — for good! Maybe Ashley will do the soundtrack.
That may have been the most interesting thought I had all day. Illness passed through our household Monday evening and into Tuesday, and that tends to take your attention away from everything else. I discover, yet again, why I’m not cut out for nursing — too results-oriented. I want everything to happen the way it does on a Tylenol commercial; I want everyone feeling better within 30 seconds. Alas this rarely happens, although a good two-minute barf can do wonders.
I did get some reading done, and I recommend this interesting take on Bruce Springsteen, from Slate. I also heartily endorse “Gilead,” but so did the Pulitzer jury, so my second is probably unnecessary. And just to show I can roll in the gutter with the best of them, I wish the voting on “American Idol” would switch to a who-do-you-want-to-leave format, so I could give either Scott or Anthony the hook. Someone defend them — that should get the party started.
jim gauuan said on May 3, 2005 at 11:34 pm
I always wondered why none of his post Jon Landau songs featured syncopated rhythms. Just simple anthems for simple minded music consumers. While he may have had something to say lyrically compared to hairspray rockers of the 80’s his music does not groove or swing.
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mary said on May 4, 2005 at 11:41 am
Supposedly the “Vote for the Worst” movement is doing the opposite of what you suggest, in a way. They are voting for Scott, whom I would agree deserves the hook, but of course their votes keep him on the air. Anthony is marginally less bad than Scott. I think Scott’s attempt at sounding like a homeboy when he speaks bugs me as much as his crappy singing.
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Nance said on May 4, 2005 at 12:19 pm
I’d hook Anthony before Scott if only because Scott’s homely and sullen, and so clearly bugs the producers — to have him stand up to Carrie’s country-girl loveliness week after week! It must rankle.
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mark said on May 4, 2005 at 12:30 pm
Savol is a great storyline, because he’s the anti-Idol — and his story is being scripted by viewers outside the control of the the show’s producers.
The show is choreographed to push a handful of favorites to the finish line. They’ve gotten so un-subtle about it (with the “judges” openly stumping for their favorites no matter how well or poorly they sing) that there’s now a backlash among viewers.
Savol doesn’t fit into one of the cliched packages that AI favors. This year’s models: the pretty girl with a country twang (Carrie), the urban girl with the R&B flair (Vonzell), the “authentic” rocker (Bo, Constantine), the high-voiced Aiken clone (Anthony).
Instead, he was scripted into the other cliche in AI’s formula — the final-round roadkill. These are the 3 or 4 weaker contestants in the bottom 12 who take a beating from the judges and get eliminated in the early rounds, allowing the producers time to build up the storylines of the favorites. He was perfect for the part — fat guy, aloof personality, reedy voice…
Unfortunately, the voters didn’t cooperate. They obliged by taking out Lindsey Cardinale and Mikalah Gordon, two other finalists the producers scripted as roadkill. But Savol hung on as favorites like Nadia Turner and Anwar Robinson fell by the wayside.
Now, he has momentum exactly because he upsets the producers’ carefully packaged apple cart.
In our household, we were saying “Scott’s got to go” for several weeks (when we were still in the thrall of AI’s “it’s a vocal competition” storyline). Now we’ve turned around, and are enjoying Savol’s run — and the producers’ pain.
Sure, if it were a real vocal competition there’s no way in hell he should still be in the running, let alone win. But it’s not a real vocal competition — it’s a TV show, with carefully scripted storylines. I’m tuning in now for one reason: to see the judges and producers squirm every time Savol crosses up the storyline and gets a step closer to winning it all.
The only way I turn on him now is if the producers surrender and start scripting his storyline as the “underdog who’s captured America’s heart.” Don’t be surprised if that happens as soon as next week, assuming he avoids elimination tonight…
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4dbirds said on May 4, 2005 at 1:58 pm
Mark, did we see some of that last night? The judges were very gentle with Scott perhaps hoping to minimize the backlash.
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joodyb said on May 9, 2005 at 7:19 pm
Wow. That’s the scariest wallpaper I’ve seen in a long time!
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