Idoloonies, start your engines! American Idol judges, start your critiques! The first live semifinal performance episode of season 9 is upon us, I’m hoping with all my heart that the addition of Ellen DeGeneres to the judges’ panel will prove as zesty and colorful as cranberry sauce on a Thanksgiving plate. Sign up with our special CoverItLive live-blog widget below…I’ll be online just before 8 p.m. EDT to get the party started. And although I’ll try my hardest to occasionally pull your comments into the live-blog stream, bear in mind that my No. 1 priority will be keeping my eyes on the TV screen (the better to catch all of Kara’s gaffes). In other words, you are strictly verboten from getting offended if your witty and perceptive remarks don’t make the stream! (And there’s always the comments section below for letting your Idol flag fly!) Finally, fret not, I’ll still be writing my regular TV Watch recap, to post early tomorrow on EW.com. (Follow me on Twitter @EWMichaelSlezak to get an alert every time one of my Idol articles posts!) Related: 18 Idol Theme Nights We’d Love to See!
Image Credit: Patrick Ecclestein/Fox
Ellen is the beginning of the end of the show.
Amen.
She’s unfunny and one of the fakest “nice” celebrities in the business.
I hear she’s a real tyrant to work for.
Simon’s pretty smart jumping ship.
Please delete your apocolyptic email.
ELLEN YOUR WONDERFUL WE LOVE YOU YOUR DOIN A GOOD JOD
Ellen is great, the end of the show is when Simon leaves next year.
Hate that she is on the show. Adds nothing to it at all.
I am not an Ellen Fan
SO far I am fine with her. There are times I think she brings a “I am not a stuck up singer or producer, but I like music” vibe to her comments. I thought I would hate her. All we need now is Katie Perry to take Simon’s spot next year, she was my favorite guest judge.
I like Ellen. I have always enjoyed her humor. She shouldn’t be on the show. She doesn’t have a music background, so how can she judge a singing competition?
Everyone starts somewhere, right? She knows what it’s like to be an entertainer.
Cant stand Ellen’s comments. She has no music background to give constructive criticism. All she says is “people will vote for you because you look good, or you looked comfortable up there” She looks like a deer in headlights when it is her turn to comment.
i just miss paula :’(
Ellen was better before she was in the big theatre. I’m giving her a break for last night. It was her first night in front of a live audience on this show, no doubt a long day for her and the concept of her role seems less than confident. She should give her two cents first.
Kara and Randy were giving intelligent, helpful criticism last night (ya, I was shocked, too”), and all Ellen could say was, “I don’t know that technical stuff, I just enjoy listening to music”. And that’s all it takes to judge singing talent on a huge TV show? I don’t think so..
Why isn’t that all it takes? Isn’t that how we determine whether or not we like a particular performer? I don’t have to know “that technical stuff” to decide whether I’d buy an album or not.
Skoobs, the difference is you buy an album, an AI judge decides who gets a contract to record an album. Big difference. With your logic someone could say, I get sick, so I could be a doctor; who needs that technical stuff?
I think ellen is great on her talk show but on the Idol, whats there to say but a big hell no!!!!!
She’s unwatchable, unfunny, and annoying all wrapped up in an overrated ball.
Well, we can look forward to you not watching and leaving comments, then?
Haha.
I can’t believe all of the comments defending Ellen and people saying she’s actually funny.
Wow. What a bunch of simpletons we have here.
Right, Claire. You, clearly, are a bucket of laughs.
I never I said I was funny, dope.
Go back to laughing at mediocrity.
I cringed last week when they were showing a preview of this week and they showed Ellen doing ther dopey dance she does on her own show.
*GROAN*
I’d like to see Randy and Ellen do it tonight!
Impossible.
Ellen’s a rug muncher.
She’s probably creeping the female contestants out.
That’s a pretty homophobic thing to say, moron.
What kind of backwoods comment is that? Rug muncher? That went out with the 80′s. Tool.
You are such an intolerant jerk. People are not that in a huff about sexuality.
Totally. What a jackass thing to say.
Wow, you are idiot. Wasn’t one of the suggestions for posting a comment “keep it clean”? Why don’t you try to keep it intelligent as well?
Yeah, jerkwad. It’s carpet muncher.
My goodness! I bet you think you are so funny, don’t you? Well, why don’t you take yourself and your snide comments somewhere else? If you don’t like Ellen, there is no point of you being here.
Homophobic much?
Oh Jenny,
You are so wrong. This is a forum to voice your opinion on the topics (Ellen as a judge, 1st live show, etc.)discussed. Those opinions don’t have to match yours my dear. I happen to like Ellen but think she is sadly miscast as a judge of musical talent.
Sorry.
Tuna Trowler.
I assume Simon and Randy are rug munchers too..think maybe they were creeping out the female contestants? What a stupid thing to say. Not that I’m an activist, far from it.
Ellen fits
in with the rest of the judges, All bad! I hate the judge part. If we vote why do we need these idiots to tell us what we like?
love Ellen. And shocking, Katie in the pimp spot. They want a Taylor Swift in the worst way.
At least Katie can sing LIVE. Taylor Swift is a lame singer who is overproduced and overhyped. Her fanbase is about as mature as her songs, which feature the same teenage cliches about love. Gag.
I agree Tayler Swift songs make me want to break my Siruis Radio
Why was my comment deleted? I said Katie can sing LIVE, at least better than Miss Swift will ever be capable of. Yes, Swift is a semi-talented singer/songwriter, but she is overhyped and overproduced. Her fanbase is as juvenile as her song topics, most of which are based on teenage love and mindnumbing clichés. Taylor Swift Katie is not.
Sorry, EW’s comments are being so weird.
Ellen already fumbling to say the right thing and failing.
Ellen is HILARIOUS!!!
Ummmmm….okay.
What was so hilarious?
Ellen is the BEST
Sorry, I love Ellen but she was awful tonite. She said the same thing over and over and added nothing. Oh, wait…she’s JUST like Paula!
If anything she was trying way to hard to be serious. I would have liked to see her add some levity. Anything would have helped, IMO. The contestants did not seem to bring their “A” game last night and the judges repetitive comments are REALLY getting old. And, (again IMO) Kara really needs to go. Everything she says makes me uncomfortble.
You’re exactly right about Kara. I do the exact same thing with her that I did with Paula: mute her every time she tries to speak. I’ve found I throw up in my mouth less.
finally somebody covers Pepsi and Shirlie’s cover of “All Right Now.”
I want to smack Kara already, it may be a record
ew live blog gets on my nerves. none of my comments ever go thru.
Be persistent…and funny. Funny always wins.
Slezak has to watch the show, blog, read the comments and of those comments post what he can. I’ll give him a bit of a break on that one.
I think Ellen will be real and tell it like it is.
I love Ellen! She’s funny, quirky, and smart. Much better than Kara!
They should have kept Angela Martin on the showshe was the best singer and some of these girls 2nite r whacked?
I don’t like Ellen at all, never did. She’s what I can a non personality, trys to hard to be funny and she’s not.
Perhaps you should learn how to spell, Doni. It’s tries too (not trys to).
Actually, it’s “tries to”. You might want to get your correction straight before you jump on someone else.
Just saying…
tess,
No, You’re incorrect. It’s “tries too”
It’s “tries to”.
Sorry, it’s “tries too”
it’s tits tools
While you’re arguing over “tries too vs tries to” (it’s tries too, for the record) – I’m going to point out that it’s “what I call” not “what I can”.
You may be right in your judgment of Ellen as a judge but if you don’t think she’s funny you have never seen her do stand up – she is hilarious
I bet Paula is sitting at home laughing her @ss off. What a sad and pitiful show – not just the singers but the panel too. It’s like watching a sink ship. Very sad, but you still have to watch it sink, LOL.
I cant believe how boring this is….everyone seems to be fumbling……
I so agree…Ellen is so NOT funny and where you get that she is hilarious, I have NO idea. I didn’t laugh once at her. She says “uh” too many times and has no clue that she is repeating herself way too many times. Even the contests are looking at her with their eyebrows scrunched while they TRY to comprehend what she is trying say. Definitely a sinking ship.
REGUARDLESS WE ALL SIT AND WATCH THE SHOW SO ENJOY IT, CLEAN YOUR HEARS OUT AND ENJOY THE MUSIC