Well it’s been a while since we checked in on Idol, and the weeks and the performers have gone by… During this period I almost give up on tuning in week after week as it’s just a matter of time until we narrow it down to the top contenders. But somehow I still get upset when Alexis goes home before Anoop or Megan goes home before Scott.

But all is forgiven as long as Adam still keeps cranking out the winners. I actually missed last week’s performance show and it sounded like I missed Adam getting a standing O from Simon so I went back to the site to check out the performances.

And what do we think about the kids, and by we I obviously mean me:

• Adam – clearly the favorite, his voice, his performances, his song choice, his ability to mix it up while still presenting (as Kara might say) his unique artistry, is impressive
• Allison – the only other person who week after week sounds good and feels like she could actually be a recording artist
• Danny – has a good voice and some character, but he’s just got this awkward white guy singing vibe to him that makes it hard to picture him recording anything you’d buy
• Lil – also has a good voice but doesn’t seem capable of picking the right songs, showcasing her voice, or adding any personal style to her presentation
• Matt – has some chops and some style but is inconsistent and not quite willing to put himself into the Justin Timberlake box folks want him to be in
• Kris – a cutie patootie and though he’s not a powerhouse he seems to be picking songs that let him sing just enough, likable but not a ton of personality
• Anoop – though he won our hearts with his early enthusiasm he just doesn’t have the voice or the stylings to be a threat

So stay tuned, or just wait a few weeks for a little more riffraff to go, and see if Adam will be your idol. Next week Quentin Tarantino joins us for ‘Idols at the Movies.’

Between what America wants and what the judges want we’ve rounded out our thirteen finalists! And we’ll get to watch them week after week, after week. For those who don’t recall now we start the theme weeks which are a challenge for some, we’ll continue to hear lots of comments on the importance of song choice. Tonight we’ll hear the work of Michael Jackson. The format mostly keeps to Tuesday performances and Wednesday results (with ridiculous group numbers and dragged out results).

Of the competitors I predict Broadway boy Adam to go far along with MJB singer Lil, though admittedly Danny’s a crowd favorite. But what’s good about this stage is still the surprises, one of our favorites will tend to get flat week after week and one of the less known kids will start to wow with strong week after week performances. We hope. What’s bad about this stage is the kids that just don’t have the chops and having to hear them for weeks too many, as the worst one usually isn’t even the one voted off. Let’s hope Megan Quirkery and Anoop Dawg find a way to work it.

And yes it’s all up to America now. We do hear from each of our now four judges as to what they think, we’re agreeing with Paula that four judges may be too many but Cara is doing a good job with sensical comments. Though I would miss Paula’s slurring non sequiturs and her interplay with Simon should she not return next season. But for now it’s up to us to dial those numbers. The latest is that apparently they didn’t really plan to have that 13th contestant (at least not soon enough) because the usual telephone number format digits are only secured 01-12 and the version with ’13’ dials phone sex, whoops. We’ll have special digits tonight, use them or you can’t complain about who gets kicked off. Oh sure you can, it’s the American way.