OK, I admit it. I am no longer an American Idol virgin.

I watched the show this year beginning-to-end. And I must say, I enjoyed it, thanks in no small part to the excellent and hilarious post-show deconstructions of BeckEye and Chancelucky. (And of course, Michael Johns who’s demise came far too soon.)

But when it comes to Canadian Idol, I’m still pure as driven snow.

It is yet to be seen whether I will go all the way with Canadian Idol. I’m not normally big on summer time TV watching and what with the Olympics coming up this summer - it could be iffy.

But last night I sat down in earnest for my first CI show. Season 6 kicked off with the usual crop of wouldbes, couldbes and wannbes.

For my American friends who don’t see it, Canadian Idol is more or less a clone of its American big brother. You have the same format, look and music. The big difference is that Canadian Idol has four judges, not three: Jake Gold, Sass Jordan, Farley Flex and Zack Werner.

Not sure why - it adds unnecessary bulk to the show and there is the spectre of a tie.

It seems there are two Simons, one being the enforcer, Jake, the other delivering the brutal lines, Zack. “You sound like Alvin without the Chipmunks,” Zack said to one hapless wannabe last night. Girl rocker Sass is the Paula, although I daresay a more articulate and together Paula. And Farly is the Randy.

Then there is the slick, tanned host Ben Mulroney who is no Ryan Seacrest. I’ve blogged on Ben before and will leave him alone. For now.

It was my impression last night that the judges went out of their way to be either brutal or excessive in their praise. Their rude laughter at auditions struck me as too loud for Night One, too intense and quick off the mark. It didn’t ring true, somehow. We need to warm up to judges before we can accept their more extreme reactions.

The auditions took place in Toronto, Calgary and Edmonton. If you got through this round, you emerged with your gold ticket screaming “I’m going to Toronto!” For some reason this struck me as comical. Not sure why.

Auditions included the predictable screeching on stage, the tearful I’ve-worked-so-hard-you-gotta-let-me-through, the off-key stuff, and the weirdness.And what would Idol be without the weirdness?

There were a few notables, Earl from Lloydminster for example. By day, he works at Bob’s Backhoe and by night he projects his passion on his music. He sang Heard it on the Grapevine which wasn’t bad. The judges fawned. Not sure if he deserved the high-octane fawning he received.

There were brothers Oliver and Sebastian Pigott who were also OK, but I wasn’t moved in the same way as the judges, who said one of brothers was the best audition ever on Canadian Idol.

Then there was 17-year old Brianne Chalifour from Leoville, Saskatchewan.

“What year is it in Leoville?” asks Zack, commenting on the ill-conceived get-up worn by the small-town teenager trying to look like a rocker. True, she was over-the-top with jungle garb that brought to mind American Idol’s Amanda Overmeyer. But Zack’s comment was another example of the unnecessary brutality. It was the first night and she was obviously a young and naive girl. Even Simon wouldn’t have gone for a low blow like that.

Brianne sang Heart’s “Barracuda.” Not bad, not great. When it didn’t look likely that she’d get though, Brianne cried and begged. She needed this to help her grow up, she wailed, tears streaming down her made-up face.

The judges recanted and put her through.

“I don’t think you have a hope in hell of making it to the Top 10, but I think it will be a life-changing opportunity for you so on that note Brianne, pick up the ticket kid because you’re coming to Toronto,” says Zack.

OK I may be a sap on the dissing of her clothes, but if Brianne doesn’t deserve to be put through based on talent, then don’t put her through. If this is the criteria for Canadian Idol, then I don’t know if I’m going all the way.

But the real problem with the show was the vibe, or lack thereof.

On the first night, you need to feel that you’re embarking on a journey with these people. They are your travel mates, sometimes friends and sometimes not. For better or for worse, it should be an adventure and you should feel the excitement and anticipation for what is to come.

But I didn’t get that last night on Canadian Idol. It left me neutral, cold and flat.

The little typists expressed this too, only they put it more bluntly. “Don’t know if we’ll bother with this next week.”

We shall see.

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 4th, 2008 at 12:34 pm and is filed under Canada, culture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.