These photos of Susan Boyle rocking a cute little dress and a hip leather jacket will no doubt have some folks crying "blashphemy!" Ever since the Britain’s Got Talent video of the frumpy, bushy-eyebrowed, never-been-kissed Boyle singing angelically first hit the Web a week and a half ago, many among the sobbing masses have lamented an inevitable post-stardom makeover. Few will blame the sweet Scottish songbird herself but will instead blame a ruthless, unfair entertainment industry that forced a woman with a hidden inner beauty to succumb to a plastic, cookie-cutter standard of external beauty.

That’s bull. Who among us wouldn’t take advantage of first-rate stylists and wardrobe options if given the chance? If she goes crazy with it, as some rumors say she might, and winds up leaving a plastic surgeon’s office looking like Joan Rivers, that would be a shame. And frankly, this photo does have me concerned she will try to shoehorn herself into a "hip and young" look that doesn’t suit her. But overall, it’s the most logical thing in the world for Boyle to decide to spruce herself up a bit now that her image is constantly being shown on TV — not to mention every computer on the planet earth. Does it have to be "pressure from media" that makes a person want to wear fashionable clothes, or even (God forbid) choose to groom their eyebrows or whatever else this woman will decide she wants to do? We should give Boyle — and frankly, show biz — a break. The desire to make changes to one’s appearance, even if dictated by society’s standard of beauty, and feel like you look your best is the most natural thing in the world. We all live in that society, after all, and it’s unfair to expect someone to be so secure that they don’t derive some sense of self-esteem from how they see themselves in it. If our interest is in Boyle’s inner beauty, then it shouldn’t matter what she does to her appearance anyway.

So, PopWatchers, are you disappointed to see the makeover beginning, or are you happy to see her taking advantage of the help now available to her? If she does decide to make herself over, is it because of an unfair pressure from show biz? Should any of it matter, seeing as we’re talking, first and foremost, about a singer?

More on Susan Boyle:
Susan Boyle: 14 Candid Photos
Why can’t America have ‘Britain’s Got Talent’?
Music Mix: Susan Boyle: America, what’s your problem?
Ken Tucker: Here’s Susan Boyle’s competition… and he’s 12 year-old Shaheen Jafargholi
Piers Morgan on Susan Boyle: ‘She can do whatever she wants now’
‘Britain’s Got Talent’ breakout Susan Boyle: Why we watch…and weep
Susan Boyle: What’s the big deal?
Susan Boyle on CBS ‘Early Show’: Watch talent triumph over show-biz again this morning
5 reasons why Susan Boyle is different from your usual overnight sensation
Susan Boyle’s ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ audition gives Simon his second spontaneous ‘O’ of the week

I recently put together an EW.com gallery looking at Simon Cowell’s 12 meanest critiques from the first seven seasons of American Idol‘s semifinals/finals. But while I was recounting Simon’s best zingers — ones that conjured up images of sinking cruise ships and teenagers locked in their bedrooms and poodles in leather jackets — a funny thing struck me: Somewhere between David Cook’s confetti shower in May 2008 and the Rise and Fall of Bikini Girl earlier this year, the cranky British judge seems to have lost a lot of his mojo.

This isn’t to say, of course, that Simon is approaching Randy Jackson levels of "for me for you" hackdom. But think about it: When was the last time Simon pulled out a sparkling one-liner durng a live critique — one that went beyond the standard-operating "cruise ship"/"copycat"/"dreadful" template? And over the last couple seasons, hasn’t he seemed more in lockstep with the producers’ preordained favorites, and increasingly less willing to recognize great performances by the show’s underdogs? Maybe the guy is not, as he keeps telling us (most recently in The New York Times), at the start of negotiations for even bigger bucks to keep him on Idol‘s slowly listing (but still totally dominant) warship? Maybe he’s really and truly burnt out from juggling his stateside Idol work with his duties on Britain’s Got Talent and X-Factor? And if that’s the case, would it be such a bad thing if season 9 is Simon’s last on the show?

I, for one, think Idol‘s heart would go on — yes, it’s a Celine Dion reference! — without Mr. Cranky. To me, Idol has never been about the judges — their disastrously annoying on-stage entrances this year have made that point abundantly clear — but rather about the discovery of exciting new musical talent. I love seeing waitresses and pharmacy workers and single moms and chorus members from touring productions of Broadway shows get that seemingly impossible opportunity to make America fall in love with them. And I’m sure the show’s producers can use the $36 million Simon reportedly makes on Idol annually to find another discerning, outspoken voice to keep the wheels churning, even if said vehicle only pulls in, say, 19 million viewers in future seasons, rather than the 25 or so million it draws now.

What do you think? Weigh in by taking our highly authoritative PopWatch polls below, and then share your further thoughts in the comments section below.

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