Alright, so Syesha is still doused in sparkles and is still pairing gold and silver. I know it's no longer taboo and is actually "in", but I hate the look. Paula, however, looks much worse in her garish, oversized 80's sequins. David A is also looking a little rough. From far away, his wrinkled leather jacket looks almost plastic. Randy, Simon, and David C are simply predictable.

DA's song was chosen by Paula, who picked Billy Joel's "So It Goes". The echo effect is cool, the first time (but not the last) we'll hear it tonight. And the beginning is a capella! I was hoping he'd go all Bo Bice on us, but instead he simply went Katherine McPhee, picking up instruments midway. However, instead of Kat's slightly overdone "Over the Rainbow", his arrangement was very simple and understated with Pride and Prejudice-esque violins. It was very beautiful, but as I've found myself doing before, I yearn for an older, deeper, more experienced voice to match the lyrics. Ah ha ha, and there's Dad in the audience. Honestly, I wouldn't mind DA going home, but I'd hate to have Dad gloat, "You see what happens when you don't have me there?!" or worse, rant and rave and take it all out on his son. Simon declared it "not outstanding" only to have the swaybots yell "Yes, it was!!" They speak! They're real!

Randy chose Syesha's song. He went obvious, picking Alicia Keys's "If I Ain't Got You". What, no hometown videos for her? A simple, dark car interior? Harsh. I wanted a sassy fun song a la "One Rock and Roll Too Many", but instead got... this. It was simply blah. Her voice blended too much, except for the sharp, thin notes she threw in every now and again. Now, everyone, pay attention to the possibly Freudian slip by Randy. "You peaked at the right time... you're standing there at number three." Catch that? Not "in the top three" but AT three. As in, "There, that's your place, as far as you're going." Hmmmm... And what was with the dorky "Thanks, girl!" shout-out to Paula?

David Cook drew the lucky straw and was nabbed by Simon to sing Roberta Flack's "I Saw Your Face". Anyone else notice the waving, cheering camerawoman? The song was good. The high run near the beginning was smokin' and the tender notes were wonderful, but I was distracted by the woman with the clunky black necklace they kept panning too. Mom? Is that his mom? Not his mom? A creepy, obsessed old lady? IS his mom? Oh, that screaming at the end wasn't needed, David. Judges comments are coming, so I have to pay attention again. Randy belittled Simon's choice as predictable and then tried to hype a rock and roll song for DC. Now THAT would be predictable, Randy. Paula made a (unintentional?) jab that David's wasn't as good as the original, but Simon, grinning like a Cheshire cat, awarded this round to "Cook and Cowell". Aha! It IS his mother! Wait, he waited until Tuesday to flippantly wish her happy Mother's Day?

Take a breath and hold it, because Archuleta is daring to be different! He chose Chris Brown's "With You", and I for one am shocked. Chris Brown? Sultry, hot Chris Brown from "No Air"? Ooookay. Props on doing something new though. I don't know if being confused by Ryan's stage directions rattled him, but this performance is totally awkward. He's not smooth, not suave, and also seems to be blowing his words! The voice just isn't right. Too preteen and strident and not enough coooool. He struggled on that one, folks. But Simon was right, it was better than another "treacly ballad".

Syesha picked "Fever" and I groaned. Girl, this was DONE by Paris Bennett. You may be older and sexier, but her voice kicks butt on yours. I shall try to keep an open mind. That dress isn't helping. It's much better than the first, but she's still drowning in sparkles. As in music, diversity in apparel is key. She's like an anti-goth. Instead of wearing all black, she wears all glitter. I also have to wince when she describes "Fever" as "fun and happy"! Well, we'll see. So far it's not bad, but here's a tip. If you want to be sultry and seductive, showing a white bra strap with a silver and black dress is not the way to go. Her feathery notes aren't good and that one high note was extremely sharp. Her hemline seems to be rising with those sharp notes. All in all, it was good and sexy, but not as good as the original OR Paris Bennett. Now, all the judges seemed surprised by the choice and dissed on it. Why? I'm not in for Syesha to win it, but let's upset the system! Overthrow the judges!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!! David Cook is doing a Switchfoot song! And not just any Switchfoot song! DARE YOU TO MOVE!!! Please, please, please do us proud. Oh... oh no. He's doing his "Innocent" song voice again. He's pronouncing the words funny. It's "moooove" not "Muh-AHve!" Bleck. Oh that was horrid. The original version had his feel and none of the judges would have know it. Why didn't he just stick with that? This is bad bad bad bad bad. I just keep thinking of Mandisa's version of "Shackles". Between all my head-shaking, though, I have made three observations. First, what's with the red flower? Second, his dad is adorable. Third, I will NOT let him go, especially after he tried such a beloved song (even if he stunk).

Now, DA was told to do "Longer" by Dan Foglebird. Aaaand it's a treacly ballad. Oh goodness, gag me, this stuff is sickly sweet. It was predictable, expected, and boring. Boo for the producers! Simon got it right: "gooey". Yuck.

Hey, there's Justin! And... Harry Tang from Chuck!?!? If not Harry, then certainly his doppleganger. Hi Harry!

Syesha has been given "Hit Me Up" by... who? I know this song! Who's done it on the show before? Jordin Sparks maybe? Anyways, partway through the song we can all tell she's very proud of her body. And is totally obsessed with sparkles. I'm not really impressed, honestly. But I do feel sorry for her, trying her best but knocked around by the judges and having to sit through a random tangent about penguins instigated by Simon! Not Paula, Simon! I'm almost willing to through DA under the bus to save her and get back at the judges and the producers.

DC is up for the last time singing "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing", again a song I've heard before but have no idea who it's by. It's treacly as well, but he handled it nicely. The guitar parts were awesome. He did very nicely, I think. Why, though, does he always go up in the middle of the last note? We need diversity for the end notes! My living room was wondering if the producers purposely favored DC. I mean, the other two picks were mediocre while they pretty much nailed it for Cook. Was that on purpose?

In the end, it was an okay night. I wouldn't buy any of the performances, and I'm nervous over who would be the shocker. The most logical shocker would be if Syesha beat it out into the finals and DA was let go, but if they wanted to go for REALLY controversial, all they have to do is make DC the next Chris Daughtrey. Yikes!