Frank Micelotta / FOX
My American Idol reviews of Mariah Carey Night are up bright and early at time.com. Predictions for tonight? The safest one is that it will be an all-female bottom three. While no configuration of the women would surprise me, I’m going to say it’s Brooke, Carly and Syesha, with—this is a slight upset pick—Carly going home. (Reasons: she was pretty roughed up by the judges, and doesn’t seem to have much of a base of support.) But any of the three should be nervous; Kristy Lee, meanwhile, made her performance enough of a wash that she should be safe this week. (Famous last words?)
Whichever way it goes, Idol will probably eliminate someone who has a stronger voice than Jason Castro, who got the pimp slot last night and should be safe. Which, as I said in my review of Jason, raises that eternal Idol question: is it a singing or a performance contest? Is it better to be Syesha, who is a good technical singer but unmemorable, or Jason, who knows exactly how to work with his limitations? We’ll find out tonight.