Tonight's podcast: www.ohiomm.com/podcasts/tv/idol_results_051006.mp3

Tonight's notes:

I've said more than once that I don't like making predictions, and that I make wrong ones. Still, I stuck my neck out in a podcast and on my blog last night said that " it feels like Elliott's time to go — although an uneasy little corner of my mind says that Chris may have put himself in jeopardy, too."

So I was distressed today to see that smarter "Idol" watchers than I — among them Alan Sepinwall and Daniel Fienberg — were figuring that Katharine was on her way out, and www.dialidol.com had Katharine and Chris as the bottom two, although it had Chris in last place. And, at the beginning of tonight's show, while the three guys were relaxed and smiling, Katharine looked as if she was bracing for a teary farewell.

Now we know: Chris and Kat were the bottom two, and Chris has gone home. Kudos to www.dialidol.com, for nailing not only Katharine and Chris, but Taylor and Elliott as the top two. As for me, if I was any good at making predictions, I'd hire myself out as a seer; I'm happy to go back to expressing my solitary opinions about likes and dislikes.

In the results show, was it an omen that Chris got relatively little face time during the Elvis medley? By my estimate, Taylor had two solos — and was brought back afterward for that utterly bogus bit where Rebecca Romijn asked for "Jailhouse Rock" — and Elliott led off the sequence and Katharine got two solos as well as the "Go, Kat, Go!" showcase.

Chris, meanwhile, had his "Love Me Tender" solo, but that was after all the other three had one, and it was far from climactic. Pretty remarkable considering how much Chris was showcased in the group sing a week ago.

What else? Car video, more scenes from Graceland, celebrities in the audience, recap of nutty comments from the judges. And goodbye to Chris, who looked as if he could dominate this thing many weeks, only to stumble when victory was in sight.

There aren't enough hours these days to keep up with TV, and everything else. Because of "Idol" and the podcast, and a few home things, it was after 10 before we got to "Gilmore Girls." I was thinking about sleeping then, only my stomach decided it was time to do some flip-flops. So while I waited to see if it would flip or flop, I watched "Veronica Mars."

These are two shows I very much like, but tonight they were wide apart on my enjoyment scale. Aside from the troubadour-invasion merriment, "Gilmore Girls" was just a bummer, and one I'm heartily sick of. The Palladinos are leaving the show, and it's already been pointed out that they're leaving the show in a box not unlike the one Aaron Sorkin left behind when he departed "West Wing" — a nightmarish puzzle for the next producers and writers to get out of. (I'll save the details about it and "Veronica" for an update sometime tomorrow, since people may not yet have watched tonight.) But it's also the sort of ending that says, "That's it, we're out of ideas, we're back to places we've been before, sorry, it's all we've got, goodnight." (To make that sound more "Gilmore," say it very fast, and throw in your favorite pop-culture reference or anti-Bush joke.) I am kind of sick of it. Not sick enough that I'll refuse to watch next season, but sick enough to approach next season with a fair amount of skepticism.

"Veronica Mars," assuming it gets another season, I am already looking forward to. What a wowser of a finish, even if I haven't sorted out all the pieces, and one that solved the bus crash mystery, took us back to the second season and wrapped up a big, ugly, nasty loose end. If it ended here, so be it, but I want to know where those last scenes were leading. If "Gilmore Girls" said the ideas have run out, "Veronica Mars" said it's got plenty more to throw at us. And I'm ready.

Here's the link to the latest podcast:

http://www.ohiomm.com/podcasts/tv/idol_show_050906.mp3

And here are the notes I wrote before and after podcasting, with one line added near the end…

My podcasting buddy Amy Carlson Gustafson has spent more than a few weeks declaring herself bored. Tonight, I was.

Maybe it's that I brought a love of Elvis Presley to the table — lots of his songs in my music collection, biographies on my bookshelf, the special-edition DVD of the 1968 special.  I was hoping that the contestants would use his catalog well. (See my previous post, "When Elvis Met Simon (Sort Of)." And, well, they didn't. On a night when someone really could have closed the deal with the audience, could have been head and shoulders above the others, they all faltered along the way. I mean, no one was a D or an F, but at this stage of "Idol," and with decent singers all around, I wouldn't have expected anyone to get less than a C.

And so to the report card:

Taylor led off with "Jailhouse Rock," and it was just OK. Decent energy, monotonous vocal and his hunched-over dancing didn't really work. Doesn't matter if Paula is especially crazed during his performance; Paula is crazed through much of the night. C.

I really anticipated Chris, especially when I learned he was doing "Suspicious Minds," which seemed like the perfect song for him — especially if he gave it a dark, brooding arrangement similar to "I Walk the Line." But no. He just sang the song. Later in the show, he mentioned being faithful to Elvis. He should have been faithful to Chris. Better vocal than Taylor's, though, so he gets a C plus.

Elliott was at least nervy, taking on "If I Can Dream," Elvis's climactic performance in the 1968 special. But there was a lot of quaver in his voice at the beginning, and he had trouble with the high notes. C minus.

That left Katharine to close out the first half…

I'm off to podcast. Back later. …

And we're back! Katharine's "Hound Dog"/"All Shook Up" medley was cute looking but didn't make me want to hear it again. And, of course, she muffed the lyric. But I thought the vocal was worth a C plus, and a slightly better C plus than I gave Chris.

Second half: Taylor's "In the Ghetto" surprised me. It's not my favorite Elvis song, but he did some good things with it — especially when he dropped into spoken voice on the word "turns." I ended up giving it a B, which turned out to be the highest mark for any performance tonight.

I have to credit Amy Gustafson with one of the best podcast lines of the night, about Chris's "A Little Less Conversation." She said: "A little less mikestand." I thought most of the performance was just blah, although he amped it up some at the end. C plus, with the ending giving him the plus.

When Elvis says, "If you're looking for trouble," it's credible because he sounds and looks like someone who could be big trouble. When Elliott does the same thing, uh, not the same effect. Another bold choice — showing that Elliott knows that he's in trouble with voters, whether he's looking for it or not — and his vocal was adequate enough that I gave it a C plus. But the lack of authority still bothers me, and I probably should have marked him lower.

Katharine closed with "Can't Help Falling in Love." This should have been the big moment of the night. This should have been something for the all-time "Idol" highlight reel, and the production they built around the number sure made it look as if they expected her to nail it. But with a chance both to close the show and seal a pact with the audience, she couldn't quite pull it off. B minus.

I'm not sure where that leaves me in average grades for the night, since there was so much "ehhh" built into my reaction to the show, and not one performance I felt really passionate about. I don't like to make predictions, either, but it feels like Elliott's time to go — although an uneasy little corner of my mind says that Chris may have put himself in jeopardy, too. Could be wrong. (As you can see in the comments section, an Elliott fan has already disagreed.) Have been before. We'll see tomorrow night.

If you read the above line and immediately thought of a certain movie, then I don't have to explain to you why the following is newsworthy:

MGM Home Entertainment and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment bring Road House 2, the sequel to the action-packed film Road House, to DVD July 18 for an SRP of $24.96.  Road House 2 is an all-new sequel to the cult favorite and stars Jonathan Schaech (The Sweetest Thing, 8MM2), Jake Busey (Identity, Enemy of the State) and Will Patton (“Into the West,” Remember the Titans).  The film depicts how one man must stand up and fight to save his community from drugs and crime.  Road House 2 is directed by Scott Ziehl (Cruel Intentions 3) and produced by Yoram Pelman (Confessions of an American Girl).

I cannot vouch for the quality of "Road House 2," but I am among the many who love — for reasons past all understanding — the original "Road House," the action film starring Patrick Swayze. Besides, since I already have "Road House" on DVD, there is no reason for me to covet the direct-to-DVD sequel (which does not star Swayze) except for the sake of weird comparisons.

Also because The Bride might like it.

The announcement from Sony is well-timed, since the bride's birthday is on Tuesday. (It would be far better timed if the DVD was coming out tomorrow, instead of in July.) And, as I prepare to help her celebrate, the announcement reminds me of one reason — out of many — why we have bonded so closely. We both love big, dumb action movies.

This is a woman who, when we flew into Las Vegas, understood why the view would make me think of "Con Air." Who will sit through "Die Hard" and its sequels — more than once. Whose Christmas list once included a "Lethal Weapon" box set.

"Lethal Weapon" has been retired from gift lists because, of course, we got it for her. When you find a woman who likes movies in the style of "Lethal Weapon," let alone "Road House," you not only cherish her, you try to grant her every wish. And I expect to keep doing so for as many years as she will have birthdays.

Well, I got those other two bushes out, more easily than the first one, proving that even a little experience can ease the task. (By the way, after writing this morning's post, I went to church, where the sermon was called "Spring Pruning" and the pastor had many stories about his own fun with plants. Sometimes these things are in the air — especially when the air has bright sun and warmth passing through it, and being outside is mandatory.) We have accumulated groceries. The bride cleaned house and put a second coat of paint on the shed door, and washed her car, and made a lasagna. I ran the edger along the sidewalks, which wasn't bad, and swept up the cuttings, which is not among my favorite things. Younger son went to his job.

In other words, the day was full for everyone. And some TV was squeezed in. Well, a little bit of "The Sports Reporters" this morning. At lunchtime, we watched "Survivor" and caught up on all the strategizing and scheming.

I don't really have anything to add to the discussion I saw online after the telecast. Terry seems a lock for the final two, with a game that combines great individual effort with terrible team strategy. He reminds me of the "Saturday Night Live" parody of a Bush/Dukakis debate, where — after ramblings by Bush — Dukakis says, "I can't believe I'm losing to this guy." The folks on "Survivor" must feel that way every time Terry approaches them with a plan. Cirie, on the other hand, is really smart. We'll just have to see how smart. At this point, if I'm Terry, I want her in the final two since she has been so skilled at betraying nominal allies now sitting on the jury. But when has Terry ever managed to influence who joins him at anything?

Watched some of the Cavaliers-Detroit game during the afternoon. Might have watched more if it hadn't gone like this:

Passed through the house at one point, score's tied 14-14, looks good. Back to the yard, where the bride later informs me that Detroit is up 10. A short break around half time, to see Detroit was up 21. Another check later, when Detroit's lead was in the thirties and time was short. Not a lot of reason to sit by the set and expect a Cavs comeback — at least, not in that game.

Finally, evening brought a chance to really couch out in front of the TV. Rewatched "Alias" and it makes more sense to me — well, as much sense as "Alias" ever makes. As I've said before, I'm sick of Rambaldi but I keep hoping it's finally leading somewhere. Odd to have not only two deaths but two involving cut throats — an eerie symmetry underscoring the betrayal and obsession in each. And I like the way Jennifer Garner is playing Anna-as-Sydney, grabbing onto a facial expression as shorthand for Anna.

I thought a lot about faces during "The West Wing" (which I actually watched after "The Sopranos," but I'll order my notes here by the clock). I may be overthinking this, but when I look at "Sopranos" or "The Shield," or tonight's "West Wing," I see shows where the people involved know they're near the end and they want to go out great. Everyone on "WW" was on his and her game tonight, and I don't mean they were chasing Big Moments. They were just working — working together, playing off each other.

Think of the scene where Joshua Malina (Will) and Mary McCormack (Kate) talk about him running for Congress. Timothy Busfield (Danny) on the street. Busfield in the apartment with Allison Janney (CJ). Janney and Richard Schiff (Toby). And what about the way that Jimmy Smits (Santos) is morphing into Bartlet — like in that moment where Santos gives CJ a won't-take-no speech? I will really miss seeing these guys go at it.

'"The Sopranos" was a dud for me, the first one this season. The best explanation I can give is that the show was so intent on showing us why Tony was bored, it made the show boring. The Christopher stuff felt flat. We know he's the victim of his own demons. The scenes at the street fair may have been touching on their own, but in the larger context they didn't really tell us anything. And the flashback to his betrayal of Adriana, while filling in a gap, didn't fill it in a way that brought us a new insight into what happened. And guess what, Pauly is cheap and selfish and mean, and Janice is selfish. Not great.

I'm hoping to post tomorrow about "Grey's Anatomy" and maybe "Saturday Night Live," which I recorded. But for now, I'll leave you with my hope that there was sunshine in your day, too.

Imagine two bushes covered in red leaves and thorns, each more than five feet high. Now put a smaller bush, anemic and past its prime between them. In front of the smaller bush is a sidewalk light, but it's easily removed. Near the back of the bush is the house itself, and an overhang that is a little under five feet above the ground. Now try to dig out the little bush, and its thick, persistent roots.

I managed to get it, and a different bush, standing free in the yard, but the getting explains why I woke up this morning with sore knees and hands, and a longing to stay in bed. I am not a plant guy; otherwise, I would give you the names of the bushes, maybe even in Latin. In addition, I am only intermittently a yard guy. But I got out the bush, and later today expect to tackle two others in the same situation, and then will congratulate myself on a job done — if not well done.

And then, Monday morning, I will count my aches and long to stay in bed again.

But these are getting-things-in-order days. Yesterday morning, for example, while my younger son took his SATs at UA, I went to my nearby newspaper office and dug through the accumulated trash on, under and around my desk. Bag after bag was filled, but now I can see both the floor below the desk and the top of most of it. The effort was not without melancholy, especially when I came across a series of copies of Channels, our Sunday TV supplement, spread over several years of sad, diminishing change. Still, like the empty spots where the bushes were, I can look at the clearing around my desk and feel that something got done.

With those and other chores, what hasn't gotten done much is watching TV. Today includes church and grocery shopping. There will be some viewing today, when the Cleveland Cavaliers play, and tonight, with "The Sopranos" and "Grey's Anatomy" on deck, but the only shows we've watched in toto since Friday are "Gilmore Girls" from Tuesday and an episode of "My Super Sweet 16.' The DVRs whimper from their load.

The bride had never seen "My Super Sweet 16," and I had only recently gotten around to watching it (even though a co-worker had long and repeatedly urged me to do so). It was appalling, of course, and treated self-indulgence as a common character trait, but if you've seen the show (or even read much about it) you know those things. You may also recognize the current of class warfare in it, especially when it comes to the distribution of invitations to these overblown parties — groups of students divided into haves and have-nots based on whether they get to see a spoiled brat's display of excess. But I keep wanting to watch more, and when I figure out exactly why, I will post more here.

As for "Gilmore," I just don't like the direction it is taking. The whole buying-a-house thing should have been obvious to Lorelai back when she first learned Richard and Emily were home-shopping. Her inaction regarding her issues with Luke is unbearable, and in some ways atypical.

One of Lorelai's great moments in the show involved her dealing with Rory's friends over misdeeds — coming down on them hard, and maternally, and reminding us that Lorelai is not only smart but tough, someone who took made a living and raised a daughter in difficult circumstances, without bitterness or self-pity. That Lorelai would have turned to Luke long ago and said, "What's the deal with your daughter?" and "When exactly are we going to get married?" This Lorelai has gone soft. I want the old one back.

The cone of silence about "Lost" lifted late last night. Actually, it had partly lifted earlier, when that co-worker talked to me, since her comment involved Ana Lucia getting shot. I managed to avoid any additional information yesterday, but when watching the show, I kept waiting through the episode for the shooting. But I sure wasn't prepared until the last moment for Michael to be the shooter — or for Libby to serve as collateral damage. What a disaster, what a nightmare, what a thrill. Completely topped the earlier moment when the hostage Other made the overture to Locke. But the shock was so great in this week's episode, it diminished the weeks leading up to it, making it feel even more as if we have been sitting through filler on the way to some really big episodes.

I have to go back to "Survivor" to watch all the details leading up to the ouster; last night was one of those with a series of meetings, so we got to "Lost" fairly late, then fast-forwarded through "Survivor" to see who got the boot. I've got mixed feelings about Shane's end, though. Yes, he was annoying and it was great to see him finally knocked down. But he was also an entertainingly bizarre character.

I wrote a column for today's Beacon Journal about how important writers and directors can be to actors. (You can find it here.) In it I mentioned the collaboration of Aaron Sorkin and Bradley Whitford, and that Whitford was planning a new project with Sorkin. Today, NBC picked up that project as a series for the fall. Here's the announcement:

NBC has added "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" - the new backstage television drama series from Emmy Award-winning executive producers Aaron Sorkin and Thomas Schlamme (both for NBC's "The West Wing")– to its Fall 2006-07 primetime schedule, it was announced today by Kevin Reilly, President, NBC Entertainment.

"Aaron Sorkin and Thomas Schlamme's work is TV at its best and 'Studio 60' lives up to that standard," said Reilly.  "I'm thrilled they are back on NBC for the Fall."

Among the stars of the ensemble cast are Matthew Perry ("Friends"), Amanda Peet ("Syriana"), Bradley Whitford ("The West Wing"), Sarah Paulson ("Down with Love"), D.L. Hughley ("The Hughleys"), Nathan Corddry ("The Daily Show with Jon Stewart"), Timothy Busfield ("thirtysomething"), Steven Weber ("Wings"), Evan Handler ("The West Wing") and Carlos Jacott ("Being John Malkovich").   

Sorkin returns to television with this crackling take on the drama behind the humor of producing a popular, late-night comedy sketch show, "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip."  He lays bare the backstage politics, romances and delicate balance between creative talent, on-air personalities and network executives in an instant text-messaging world. 

Prominent are Jordan McDeere (Peet), a savvy new network entertainment chief who inherits a massive public relations disaster on the series — even before she starts her first day - and Matt Albie (Perry) and Danny Tripp (Whitford), a brilliant creative team that she wants to resurrect the program.  Also playing crucial roles are the sketch comedy series stars Harriet Hayes (Paulson), Simon Stiles (Hughley) and Tom Jeter (Corddry), their normally cool-headed director, Cal Shanley (Busfield) as well as supreme network honcho Jack Rudolph (Weber).

"American Idol" is about to take on Elvis Presley. Or, as the official announcement from Fox says, "Next week, put on your blue suede shoes and don’t leave the building as the remaining four contestants each perform two songs by the original (Hound) Dog – Elvis Presley. To prepare, the finalists will travel to

Graceland

for an Elvis workshop with music mogul Tommy Mottola."

I've been wondering about the songs the performers will choose. Elvis has such a vast catalogue, and crossed so many genres, it should be easy for all of them to find tunes that they are comfortable with. I have no idea what they will pick but can imagine what Chris could do with "Suspicious Minds," say, or Katharine trying "Teddy Bear."

But how would Elvis have handled "American Idol" itself? Pretty well, I suspect. He came to prominence, after all, doing covers of other people's songs — but finding a way to make them his own. He had charisma on television. And he had enough Simon Cowell moments over his career that he would probably think of the "Idol" judge as an insult amateur.

There's the story (told many places, including Peter Guralnick's epic Elvis biography) about a young Elvis auditioning for a musician named Eddie Bond only to be advised — as Elvis later told it — to stick with driving a truck because "you're never going to make it as a singer." Presley confided to friend George Klein that Bond "broke my heart," though not enough to keep him from persisting in his musical dreams. On the train to make the movie of "Jailhouse Rock," Elvis told Klein, "I wonder what Eddie Bond thinks now."

But even when he was famous, Elvis faced the carping of critics who did not cotton to his brand of music. New York Times TV critic Jack Gould, reviewing an Elvis appearance in 1956, wrote: "Mr. Presley has no discernible singing ability. His specialty is rhythm songs which he renders in an undistinguished whine; his phrasing, if it can be called that, consists of the stereotyped variations that go with a beginner's aria in a bathtub. For the ear he is an unutterable bore."

Stack that up against Simon's complaints about karaoke and wedding singers.

Last night ran late, due to some technical difficulties with the "American Idol" podcast (and thanks again to everyone who is tuning in the 'casts and to this blog) and then the Cavs going overtime, and I still have not gotten to "Lost." So I'm in the cone of silence until I can catch up to it. (Well, mostly a cone of silence. I was just with a group of co-workers and one wanted to talk about a news report she had seen about last night's episode. I began screaming, "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" She said she thought I saw all these shows a week ahead of everyone. Would that it were so.) I haven't seen Tuesday's "Gilmore Girls" yet either.

I did see pieces of "Alias," but was sufficiently confused that I'm going to have go back later; I did see enough to be snarling about more Rambaldi nonsense, and to enjoy a bit of Jennifer Garner playing Anna-as-Sydney. Also may have to revisit '"The Amazing Race." I know how it turned out, and — like many of you, I suspect — marveled that BJ & Tyler were saved yet again by a non-elimination round. My paranoid little self wondered if this miracle of timing was designed to keep an entertaining team in the game.

As for the Cleveland Cavaliers, I was delighted to see them pull out a win — and in exciting fashion — and not just because they're the home team. Although I didn't see all the game, what I saw included a lot of fawning commentary about Gilbert Arenas. So it was sweet to have LeBron James provide the grand finale.

The perils of stunt scheduling are on view below in the comments about my post on the "House" two-parter. Several people wrote in because they missed the second part, since it was scheduled outside "House's" usual time slot. Another blog reader provided a summary of the ending, and I have added a clarification to that explanation.

But all that back-and-forth just shows how a network can really mess up fans of a show by moving it to different time slots. In the House of Heldenfels, we keep missing "Everwood" because we forget that it has moved back to Mondays.

And speaking of looking for shows, if you're all set for "Commander in Chief" tonight, you should probably un-set. ABC has yanked the show — which has suffered through producer shakeups, long hiatuses and a time slot change — after it performed poorly in the ratings. I'm not a fan of the show. But when we look at why it performed badly, we also have to consider the producer shakeups, long hiatuses and time slot change.

Podcast link:

www.ohiomm.com/podcasts/tv/idol_results_050306.mp3

Notes from results show:

No real shock tonight, as the "Idol" voters said "We won't always have Paris." I would have made a different choice but she's been skating near elimination for some time, and somebody has to go. Elliott's being in the bottom two does not bode well for him, either, since it suggest some mushiness among the voters who got him this far. Also, See the comments from Taylor fans on my post from last night. People are strongly committed to their faves now, with the title so close, and voting passion is essential.

Interesting that in the opening question, Chris and Taylor were queried first, then in the group song, they got the first solos.

I was fearing that the song was going to be the new "Idol" single — goodness knows it was treacly enough — but from what I can find on the Internet, it's a tune by Delta Goodrem and became a hit when performed at this year's Commonwealth Games.

Not sure why Katharine looked like such a zombie during Elliott's performance. She must have really thought she was close to going home.

And speaking of going home, Simon on Tuesday wondered why Elliott would sing a tune that referred to going home on a show that's about not having to go home. My friend and colleague Alan Sepinwall suggested earlier today that some ambitious thesis writer might make something about a correlation between "Idol" singers and the songs they do when they're ousted. And he may have had a point with Paris — "Be Without You" is sure a farewell-sounding title.

The bride and I finally got around to Sunday's "Grey's" on Tuesday night, squeezing it in between obligations, before focusing on "American Idol." While there were plenty of things to like about the episode, the thing I've been thinking most about is Alex (Justin Chambers). He is such a — well, I can't use the word I want to use here. But he is an awful human being. Not awful because he's misunderstood, or awful because he has inner pain. He's just awful. Although he might pretend that he ratted out Addison because of some principle, we know he did it just to get even with someone he didn't like.

That said, I thought the episode underplayed the potential trouble facing Addison, as if it had become inconvenient late in the telecast. Did like the way the show continues to give TV veterans interesting roles — Jayne Brook as the divorce attorney, "Yes, Dear's" Jean Louisa Kelly as the mother wanting to stop getting pregnant. Loved the head twitches when Brook mentioned a bad marriage.

If last night's episode was the last of the season, it would be a pretty dazzling ending. (One quibble: Shouldn't Veronica have thought of Mac as math tutor? First person I thought of.) Once again, money and power had reigned in Neptune. Justice would be denied. Veronica, Logan, Keith, Wallace — all would have emotional baggage to carry into another season, while evildoers like Woody and Aaron would still be safe somewhere.

Of course, it's not the last episode, and the promos promise some resolution next week. But I hope whatever explanations we get, they don't undercut "Veronica's" core issues: the class warfare never ends, that pain doesn't just go away, that life is hard and unfair, and still all we can do is figure out the right thing, regardless of consequences. And I have to admire any show that can fill me with dread for an hour — and refuse to comfort me at the end.

I've been having some difficulty logging on to post tonight, so I'll apologize in advance if things go haywire. (In fact, I did have some trouble later, so I didn't get the podcast link here as soon as hoped. But here it is now:

http://www.ohiomm.com/podcasts/tv/idol_show_050206.mp3

And the following continues my notes last night.)

And, to get the info out early, here's how I ranked the contestants tonight, in descending order: Chris, Elliott, Paris and Katharine/Taylor.

As you know, each did two songs (which makes for a very fast-moving show and much more concise judges' comments) — one from the year he/she was born (which was pretty depressing, considering where those years land on my timeline) and one from the latest Billboard charts. Taylor demonstrated how flexible the latter category can be by grabbing a song from the catalog charts — the Beatles' "Something."

But the first half of the show was about the singers' birth years, complete with pictures from their youth.

Elliott (1978) led off with the George Benson version of "On Broadway." Very wobbly, and some terrible scatting, but he can still sing. C plus.

Paris (1988) followed with Prince's "Kiss," a song that's as much about the funk as the vocal, and it didn't entirely work for me, even if Randy liked her getting back to "the youth thing." C.

The King of Rock was back and his name is Chris (1979) . Monster version of Styx's "Renegade." B plus.

I gave Katharine (1984) high marks last week. This week, not so much. She did "Against All Odds," a song that in "Idol" lore is closely associated with Scott Savol. Not the best connection to make. Not a great performance either. C minus.

That was one horrible shirt Taylor wore tonight, and his dance moves are as ungainly as ever. Still, I kind of enjoyed his cover of Wild Cherry's "Play That Funky Music" — a song that fit his limited range but allowed for that sort of bluesy shouting that is his specialty. B minus.

Then, somewhere among the plugs for the latest "Idol" CD and the tour, were the performances of chart songs. Same order as the first half of the show, Elliott starting with Michael Buble's "Home." Pretty good, too. In fact, I thought everyone was better in the second half than the first when I was thinking about it during the weekly podcast. But my report had Taylor dropping in the second half.

Anyway, Elliott gets a B. Paris got a B, too, for Mary J. Blige's "Be Without You," a performance that got better and better as it went along.

Chris was my favorite during the second half; in fact, I gave his version of Shinedown's "I Dare You" an A, and I don't give many A's. (My podcasting buddy Amy Carlson Gustafson disagrees.) If I'm going to listen to Chris on the radio after "Idol" is done, this is the kind of thing I want to hear him doing.

I've heard K.T. Tunstall's "Black Horse and a Cherry Tree" a lot on WAPS (91.3-FM), and I like her voice. Katharine's version felt too show-bizzy to me, maybe because of the way she kept grinning during a song that calls more for a snarl. And the crawling on the stage thing was just puzzling. Still, the vocal was impressive enough to get a B.

Which brings us to Taylor, and the Beatles' "Something," and a performance that was completely ordinary. Meaning a C.

On "How I Met Your Mother": Marshall trying to put wedding invitations in envelopes. On "Two and a Half Men": The toes playing "Family Feud," the rendition of "Bohemian Rhapsody." Neither show had a sustained episode, but both had moments that were fiercely funny.