On 30 Jul., 07:10, Taylor wrote:
> Ellen simply failed as an 'American Idol' judge
> The comedian wasn't critical enough of the contestants, and worse, she
> wasn't even entertaining
>
> by Craig Berman
> TODAYshow.com contributor, TeamUmizoomi.org
> updated 47 minutes ago
> COMMENTARY
>
> When Ellen DeGeneres was picked to be Paula Abdul=92s replacement on
> =93American Idol=94 less than a year ago, it seemed like an inspired
> choice.
>
> Ellen was a huge fan of the show who was a natural fit to take over as
> the =93Nice Judge=94 and expand the show=92s reach into the demographics =
of
> her hit daytime talk show. And as a brilliant comic with a ready
> supply of one-liners, she=92d have the tenacity to throw elbows with
> Simon Cowell in a more entertaining way than Paula could manage with
> her rambling commentary.
>
> But it didn=92t work out quite as planned, and Ellen=92s decision to exit
> the show after just one season is the best resolution for everyone.
> She=92s better off returning to her status as one of the program=92s
> biggest fans. Her exit gives =93Idol=94 a chance to move forward with
> someone better, and the fans don=92t have to watch her struggle to be
> noticed in the crowded battle for airtime.
>
> The simple fact is that apart from her talk show, where the rejected
> contestants got a second chance to perform and discuss their exit
> after the Wednesday elimination episodes, Ellen didn=92t contribute much
> of anything to the program. She was never very critical regardless of
> how poorly someone performed, but more to the point, she wasn=92t even
> entertaining. Pushed to the background most of the time, she quickly
> went from being a potential game changer to a bland, forgettable
> figure =97 the Paige Miles of the judges. (Forget Paige all ready? She
> finished eleventh last season .)
>
> Blame it on Ellen=92s discomfort at having to criticize contestants she
> genuinely liked, which is the reason she gives for leaving. Blame it
> on the lack of chemistry between her and the other judges, Randy
> Jackson and Kara DioGuardi. But mostly, blame it on the fact that she
> never seemed to be confident enough to display the wit and creativity
> she shows in her other creative endeavors.
>
> As a big fan of everything else she does, that was the biggest
> disappointment for me. I thought she=92d be the judge who could balance
> out Simon=92s sarcasm with some cutting retorts that put him in his
> place =97 and Lord knows, Simon=92s ego could have used the hit.
>
> Instead, she seemed eager to fit in and largely unwilling to ruffle
> feathers. Unfortunately, that didn=92t lead to a great dynamic with the
> other three judges. She acted more like a fan than a peer, stepping on
> few toes and failing to carve out a niche for herself.
>
> That seemed to get worse over time as she repeated some of the same
> jokes that didn=92t even get a laugh the first time around (=93I=92m goin=
g
> to boo myself,=94 for starters) and mimicked the language of the other
> judges. When she started to use =93pitchy=94 in her comments, that was
> probably a sign that she was struggling to think of things to say.
>
> As a result, she was the fourth wheel in a three-person party, with
> Randy, Kara and Simon doing their own thing and just sort of
> tolerating the interloper. It often seemed like she was waiting for
> the other judges and host Ryan Seacrest to set her up to shine, but if
> that was the case, it was a fruitless hope. Nobody on =93American Idol=94
> is very good at voluntarily ceding the spotlight.
>
> Contrast that to how Kara acted when she joined the show two seasons
> ago. Her job was actually more challenging, as she was tacked onto a
> three-person team that, apart from the occasional guest judge, had
> worked alone since =93Idol=94 began. But she crashed the party, forced he=
r
> way into the conversation, and wound up carving out a role for herself
> in the crowded panel.
>
> Of course, Kara also found it easier to be critical, which generates a
> reaction in a way that tepid praise never does. The big reason that
> Simon was so popular in his nine seasons as an =93Idol=94 judge was that
> he was viciously entertaining. His memorable comments are the ones
> where he compared faltering hopefuls to cats falling out of windows,
> not the statements that ended with the =93well done.=94
>
> It=92s probably a credit to Ellen that she was unwilling to be cruel to
> the young men and women who put everything they had on the line each
> week, sometimes having to sing songs well out of their comfort zones,
> the way that the other three on the panel can do with relish. That is
> the nicer and more fair way of responding, but it sure is dull.
>
> Fans and executives could have forgiven a lot of shortcomings if Ellen
> had been more entertaining (indeed, they did so with Paula for years).
> But she wasn=92t, and she wasn=92t happy or comfortable with herself in
> her attempts, so it=92s best for everyone that this experiment ended
> after just one season.
>
> Craig Berman is a writer in Washington. Follow him on Twitter
> @craigberman.
>
> =A9 2010 MSNBC Interactive.
>
> http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/38479734/ns/today-entertainment/
I saw just one episode where she was a judge. She seemed nice.
There always has to be a nice person on these boards, and DeGeneres is
an actress and
not a singer, isn't she? Does she even have any musical background
to be able to judge singers?
But then, these American Idol/X-Factor shows are jokes anyway -
and they have them ALL OVER THE WORLD, too.
Can you even remember anyone who won those shows?
Melanie |
