This season of “American Idol” had talented singers, a doe-eyed teenage contestant for the prepubescent crowd, visits from pop royalty, stinging comments from Simon Cowell and jaw-droppers from Paula Abdul.
So why have some fans and observers found it a dull slog as the show built to its David Archuleta vs. David Cook finale tonight (at 7 on KDVR-Channel 31)?
Because contestants who were good but not memorable made for mediocre television, watchers say. Where was the drama, the unpredictability, the oddball personalities? In short, where was the fun?
Such criticism is ironic given the heat “Idol” took last year when Sanjaya Malakar, more a hairstyle than a singer, held the spotlight. Producers of the Fox show made an effort this year to go for vocal gold over glitz, and this is the thanks they get — along with remaining the No. 1 show, albeit with slimmer ratings.
“American Idol” executive producer Nigel Lythgoe isn’t buying any criticism. He says the talent this year has been “phenomenal” and he expects the David vs. David finale to be the “humdinger” that judge Cowell predicted last week.
The audience for “American Idol” has dropped by about 8 percent from the nearly 31 million viewers who watched last year. But there’s been a general erosion in TV viewership, partly blamed on the writers strike, with the big four networks drawing about 9 percent fewer viewers in April and May so far than during the same period last year.
“Idol” has withstood the downturn better than many other hit series, such as “Grey’s Anatomy,” down about 20 percent.
Lythgoe maintains that even before Malakar became a topic of discussion, he and fellow producers realized the show was “losing focus” and needed to give precedence to the contest and follow-ups on past finalists.
For a show that makes an art of product placement, however, an old artist with a new CD to promote still represents a viable commodity. Neil Diamond was among this year’s fusty but famous visitors, graciously offering advice to contestants.
Bruce Flohr, a former record company executive now with Red Light Management, is an “Idol” admirer but said the show has to do a better job of weeding out lesser singers who make it too easy to guess who will make it through to the end.
“Part of the problem is people are starting to use the show as a vehicle to stardom, whether they truly want to sing or not,” he said.
But the show can’t ignore one particularly ominous ratings sign, although Lythgoe contends it’s cyclical and reversible: The median age of an “American Idol” viewer, once in the mid-30s, is now up to 42 as viewership by teenagers and women age 18 to 34 has dropped.
One beneficiary of the “Idol” machine, 2006 winner Taylor Hicks, remains upbeat about it. He’s headed to Broadway to join the cast of “Grease” next month.
“The idea and the dream is still alive in that show,” Hicks said. “American Idol” has the ability to “cultivate a talent to put them on their way to becoming a great entertainer and a great performer, a musician, actor, whatever.”
