That's The Straw...

Am I disappointed with last night's results? Of course. Am I surprised? Not really. All things considered, this is actually about the point at which I'd imagined for awhile now that Aaron Kelly would leave the competition. He's never quite had the raw talent, natural charm, or stage presence of David Archuleta, so I never had the feeling he'd win or be the runner-up, but he was definitely a talented young singer who undoubtedly belonged firmly in the Top 12.

But the problem here is that all things were not considered -- specifically, this week's performances. After Casey James sang with all the snap of a stale, soggy Saltine cracker, he should have gotten the boot, or at least been in the bottom two. Compare that to Aaron's solid performance ... not his best, I'll admit, but still miles ahead of Casey. Not to mention the fact that Aaron has demonstrated more potential for growth than Casey, whose performances over the course of the show have, for me, all been blurring together.

Add to that the fact that Big Mike actually ended up being the second-lowest vote-getter, and you have my official announcement that this season of "American Idol" will be my last as a viewer. I've invested a lot of time and emotion in this season already, so I'm going to see it through, but I'm just getting tired of how flighty and flaky the audience seems to have gotten this year. (Or have they always been this way and it's just taken me two years to notice?) All the wrong people have been voted off the show at all the wrong times -- Lilly, Alex and Siobhan way too soon ... and Casey and Tim not nearly soon enough.

So, for what it's worth -- and I tell ya, it ain't much anymore -- I'll trudge ahead into the final three weeks of "American Idol" Season 9. Who do you think are going to be the Top Two? Right now I'm seeing Crystal and Lee for the finale ... but, of course, as we all know, that could change. Hell, with my luck Casey will somehow make it to the end.