Mike, Casey, Mike, Casey …

No third-act surprise on “Idol’s” non-cinematic movie night

For a week based on “Songs of the Cinema,” there wasn’t a whole lot of suspense on last night’s “Idol” results show. The judges have been setting us up for a Crystal-Lee showdown for a while now and I can’t imagine a world where that wouldn’t happen. Then again, before I couldn’t imagine a world without Siobhan in the Top 3 — or Alex Lambert or Lilly Scott — so what do I know? 

Regardless of this season’s past “Idol Shockers,” it didn’t take a genius to figure out whose numbers were up. Though the Magic 8 Ball told me to “ask again later,” everything from the blogs to the Farmers’ Almanac said that it was either Mike’s or Casey’s time to go. 
 
So then why did they announce Casey’s safety before anyone else’s? His fate pretty much confirmed everyone else’s but we had to sludge our way through three performances that had absolutely nothing to do with “Songs of the Cinema” to know for sure. (OK, that’s not completely true. Bon Jovi has had songs in movies … but they didn’t sing them last night.)
 
The obvious choice for guest performer would have been Oscar-winning “Idol” alum Jennifer Hudson, of course, but I have a feeling that she may be too big for “AI” these days. So we had to settle for Fantasia, who actually won Hudson’s season. I’m not sure what her connection to movies is, however, as I’ve seen her reality show and I wouldn’t exactly call it “cinematic.”
 
Chris Daughtry made more sense to me, not because of any cinema connection but because he also made it to the Final 4 before being eliminated. I think it was meant to be inspirational to the Idols, a way of saying, “You don’t have to win to be a success.” I mean, look at Daughtry’s season; Taylor Hicks was the winner! Just sayin’.
 
No shockers here, it was Big Mike’s time to leave the show just short of his longtime goal of making it into the Top 3. His downfall could’ve been in this week’s song choice, though I wouldn’t have expected him to make it to the finale. He admitted that Michael Jackson’s genius was in making everything sound effortless. (Read: This was a hard song to sing.) To Mike’s credit, though, his reprise of “Will You Be There” last night was more heartfelt than his performance a day earlier.
 
He came to “Idol” to take his family’s life to another level. I say mission accomplished, Mike. (And at least now you have video proof of why you were to busy to attend the birth of your firstborn.) My Magic 8 Ball said that “signs point to yes” when I asked it if Big Mike would see success after “Idol.” He’s such an affable guy and he’s undeniably talented, though his singing’s “just not my thing.” Maybe I’m being influenced by Movie Week, but does anyone else think Mike should be an actor? I could totally see him in one of those buddy cop movies or as the Incredible Hulk.
 
While Big Mike may be returning home to St. Petersburg, I doubt there will be any parades or mini-concerts awaiting him. And he can forget about one of those AT&T Store appearances that Ryan kept touting. (Seriously, what was up with that?) As for the Final 3, they will get to experience all these things on one of my favorite episodes of the season, the Hometown Visit. Stay tuned to see what Crystal’s hippie commune looks like.

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