I went into this evening with an open mind about Jamie Foxx, even after hearing several negative comments about him today from my FB friends, the majority opinion being he is a “total douche bag!”  And after watching his “mentoring” tonight, I might have to just join that consensus.  Jamie was supposedly helping the contestants out for movie theme week, but I do not think he added any value whatsoever – evidenced by allowing the contestants to select those lame songs!  Yes, I know, they got to choose their own songs, but after hearing them sing, he could have demonstrated just a wee bit of candid criticism by telling them perhaps a different song from the broad array of songs from which they had to choose might suit them better.  He was all “thugged” out with his shaved, tattooed head and overgrown goatee which was just nasty!  And his “contribution” of the t-shirts for contestants versus artists was just ridiculous – why did the  producers even allow him to pull those shenanigans?  Just plain stupid I tell you!  Moving on…

Lee Dewyze, 23 years old from Mount Prospect, IL

Lee started off the show with Seal’s “Kiss From a Rose” which did not showcase his vocal abilities as well as another song might have – bottom line, bad song choice for my favorite Season 9 guy!  During rehearsal, Jamie got all up in Lee’s grill just like he did to Danny Gokey last season – good Lord Jamie… get a new routine would ya?  Poor Lee – I sure hope Jamie at least had minty fresh breath for that close encounter of the strangest kind!  Lee looked adorable and I feel his confidence level is adequate now, but oh honey, I sure wish he would select something other than plaid shirts each week.  Perhaps he thinks it is his trademark (reminiscent of Kris Allen from last season), but it makes him look very John Mellencamp/working class compared to the other contestants.  Just sayin’!  His vocals were jusy okay for me for most of the song, and it almost seemed a little rushed in the beginning, but he pulled it together by the end and salvaged the performance overall.  I really expected more from Lee tonight and was a bit disappointed, but he is still my favorite guy this season and I do not think (especially after his duet) he is in any danger this week.

Michael Lynche, 26 years old from Astoria, NY

Sometimes I wish Ryan would just stop talking to these contestants altogether.  I am not interested in why certain songs are important to them or what they were doing a year ago today.  And when asked about the pressures of the past week, Big Mike gave some sort of Martin Luther King Jr. styled oration that made me dislike him even more (which I did not know was even possible).  Shut up dude!!!  So Pimp Daddy sang MJ’s “Free Willy” theme song “Will You Be There” with the added theatrics of a back-up choir – probably because he cannot carry a song like that on his own.  I wanted him to fail miserably, but it could have been worse quite honestly.  I was delighted that the judges did not praise him this week and reminded him that it was predictable and lazy.  Fingers crossed, Big Mike is our weakest link this week!

Casey James, 27 years old from Fort Worth, TX

Our resident “cougar bait” from Cool, Texas chose Simon and Garfunkel’s “Mrs. Robinson”… why dear Lord, why would he do such a thing?  Of ALL the songs he could have chosen to showcase his star qualities, he chose this lame, sleeper of a song, only worsened by the fact that he sang it while playing the ukulele and sitting on the stage in the middle of the mosh pit.  I just don’t even know what he was thinking when he was planning all this! He looked unhappy singing it, almost as if he has thrown in the towel in terms of the competition and provided no “wow factor” for me tonight.  The only saving grace was that he wore his hair down and looked so pretty.  The judges were underwhelmed as well, with Ellen quipping, “I wish they would have given you a big boy guitar,” to which he replied, “this is what a guitar looks like on Big Mike.”  Yeah – I had to LMAO at that comment!  Hopefully Casey has staying power for tonight, but I would not be totally surprised if this was his last performance on the show.

Crystal Bowersox, 24 years old from Elliston, OH

Crystal chose Kenny Loggin’s “I’m Alright”… the theme song from Caddyshack.  Hhhmmmmm… again, of all the songs, why this cracker-jack selection?  But I was pleased that she “Crystallized” it and actually made it sound cooler than the original.  With her acoustic guitar and fancy microphone stand, she stayed in true Mamasox form and delivered the best solo performance of the night.  She looked good in her black Stevie Nicks styled get-up and black boots – but still, with that rat’s nest hair.  Really?  I mean isn’t it itchy?  And WTF with her goofy-ass boyfriend in the front row of the audience, wearing his American flag boxer shorts, dancing like Elaine on Seinfeld?  Sit your ass down and have some dignity please!  This guy is definitely not the sharpest tool in the shed.  Nonetheless, Crystal is in it to win and is no danger of leaving tonight!

And the duets – the best part of the evening!  Lee and Crystal singing “Falling Slowly” was moving and amazing and I loved every moment of it!  It was the perfect song for them and Lee totally redeemed himself from his earlier solo performance.  Mike and Casey sang Bryan Adams’ “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?” – to which Ellen replied “Yes, as a matter of fact I have.”  Classic moment!  Casey’s guitar skills were incredible and his heartfelt vocals were fabulous!  Big Mike stood next to him, pretending like he could play the guitar, and making some grunting noises now and again – all I could think was “shut up!”

Tomorrow night’s results show with Jamie Foxx (douche bag), Fantasia (nasty beyond words), Daughtry (acceptable) and Bon Jovi (yum)!  Until then friends – good night and have a pleasant tomorrow!