Finale

Last week the judges went out of their way to heap praise upon Lee and make sure that he made it to the Finale. Heck, they went on so much that I was starting to believe that they wanted him to win over Crystal. I was brought back to reality tonight. Crystal cemented her eventual win by winning the coin toss and choosing to go last (smart girl).

Round 1: In this round each contestant was allowed to choose their favorite song from the competition and give it another whirl. Lee chose "The Boxer" and did a better job with it this time than he did originally. It was consistent with very few bad notes and he seemed more confident. Unfortunately for him, he is up against Crystal who reprised her performance of "Me and Bobby McGee" which was wonderful the first time around and only got better. Winner: Crystal

Round 2: In round 2, the producer Simon Fuller chose the songs that they would sing. Simon did Lee a huge favor with his choice of song. While I would not have chosen "Everybody Hurts" for Lee, it was a much better song then "Black Velvet". Lee is no Michael Stipe but it was much better than Crystal's breathy, nervous rendition of Alannah Myles. Winner: Lee

Round 3: The coronation song round threw me. Cover songs as their first singles? Who picked them out? There is no way that Lee wanted to end his Idol career with "Beautiful Day" and it showed. Not very good. Crystal knocked her Patty Griffin/Susan Boyle cover, "Up to the Mountain" out of the park. It cemented her Season 9 victory.

The results show is going to be 2 hours and 5 minutes long. Completely not necessary. I am not interested in watching any of the old season 9 contestants perform (except maybe Siobhan and Casey). It is kind of sad considering how much I usually enjoy this show but I can't wait for this season to end. There is talk of massive changes to the show next season. They need to do something drastic or this show is over (especially if X Factor is a hit). Until next season...