American Idol: Sanjaya Departs

Sanjaya has finally sung his last tune on American Idol, just in the nick time to save the credibility of the show. Some would speculate that Sanjaya's ousting was a conspiracy theory, but I think that his rousingly off-key performance of "Something to Talk About," Wednesday, was proof enough that even devout fans, such as the crying girl, will have to admit that it was his time to go.

The real story of last night, though, was the shocking bottom three. It's true that LaKisha lagged on Tuesday with her Mac truck performance of "Jesus Take the Wheel," but in overall performance, she is still riding way ahead of Chris Richardson. But Blake's appearance in the bottom three was seemingly out of nowhere. The judges appeared to like his Robert Smith imitation in the lovely "When the Stars Go Blue," but apparently the viewers are growing tired of his edgy yet vocally unimpressive performances. He's going to have to pull out those old beat box skills if he wants to sail into the final six.

The hour long show was entertaining last night, although something of a hodgepodge. I didn't understand what Fergie had to do with country week. I also didn't understand what Shrek had to do with anything. I suppose this is how it works in the world of extreme(ly expensive) advertising. Throw in whatever you can as long as you make a buck. Not that I'm complaining. At least the days of results shows, filled with agonizingly long rundowns of each performer's progress so far, are over.

What will next week be like without Sanjaya? Easier on the ears, for one. But I think we should pause and have a moment of silence for bad hairdos, for poorly grown mustaches, for Besame Mucho, for something which is not quite dancing, for wearing top hats, and most of all, for the attention the S. Man has brought to the show. If it weren't for Sanjaya, this season would have been just boring. But now it's time to give him his props, and show him the door.