a short - and very much delayed - american idol post-mortem

so, david cook won. for the first time, someone i was betting on with all my heart finally won one of these reality singing competitions. even if simon cowell totally owned the title "master manipulator" with the reverse psychology pimping omg.

i actually had mixed feelings about him winning instead of archie. there is still some sort of stigma attached to the show, and there is the danger of too much pimping and unfulfilled expectations. taylor hicks ring any bells? i also felt a little bad for archie, because he needed the win more than cookie did. but it's done, and i can only hope for the best for those two and the other finalists.

so, my favorite performances on ai season 7:

1. top 8, seasons of love - it seriously gave me goosebumps the first time i saw the video. even if kristy had a louder mic and brooke didn't have a solo part.
2. michael johns, across the universe - i didn't know this song except as a title for that movie. i looooove this performance.
3. brooke white, let it be - i'm sure she was genuinely thrilled to perform this song on top 12.
4. jason castro, hallelujah - if only because he bumped jeff buckley to #2 on itunes! but jason's a unique singer as well.
5. brooke white, love is a battlefield - another song i was introduced to this season.
6. david cook, happy together - lss factor! this first performance of david is a precursor of great things to come.
7. david cook, billie jean - anybody with the guts to bring chris cornell into ai has my utmost admiration.
8. david cook, music of the night - no, david cook is not a fluke. nor is he a boring rocker. he has serious vocal chops man.
9. david cook, first time ever i saw your face - hay naku kaka inlove ka talaga.
10. david cook, the world i know - this is why i decided that david cook is the best representation of the kind of music i go for. aside from chris daughtry, who else in the whole idol history could be counted on to bring in chris cornell, switchfoot and collective soul? obviously, wala. and this song is actually one of the best songs of the 90s alternative rock - i rank it up there with last goodbye in the senti factor. at buti na lang cookie left this song for the last, it made listening to this song all the more poignant because of the wait. omg david i so love you for that. thank you.

btw, idol gives back is such a disappointing show performance-wise, but the finale made up for it. especially archie's duet with onerepublic (this is the sort of song david archuleta would do really well in) and the "audition tape" for gladys knight and the pips. jack black you are so hilarious!