The Group of Bleh - American Idol

A very safe middle passage.

Last night's American Idol turned me into some sort of amnesiac. At the end of the two-hour episode, I had almost no recollection of what I had just seen. I had to rack my brain to remember the contestants in the second group of 12, who seemed to take their shot at stardom with a Robert Pattinson-like nonchalance.

While I can't say I was as excited for the second group of 12 as I was for the first, there were some contestants I was looking forward to seeing perform. The beautiful Jasmine Murray seemed like a strong contender - and I still think she is - but her performance last night was bleh at best. She chose "Love Song" by Sara Bareilles - the kind of song you listen to only when there's nothing else on the radio. She looked beautiful, but her sass, her spunk and her soul were absent.

The poor song choices continued as Matt Giraud - the dueling piano player - tried to breathe some funk into Coldplay's "Viva La Vida," an impossible feat if ever there was one. Nothing says anti-funk like Chris Martin. I'd like to see Matt advance to the Top 12, but I think it might be a hard road for him after that performance.

So, some early disappointments. Young mommy Megan Corkrey managed to look both hard and soft at the same time - and she definitely exuded some rock chick presence up there - but I wasn't a fan of her song choice ("Put Your Records On") and I thought her performance was uneven. I was, however, impressed by another young mommy, Jesse Langseth. I might be the only one in America, but I thought Jesse did a nice job with "Bette Davis Eyes," which displayed the interesting aspects of her voice.

If there was a stand-out performance of the night, it has to be Allison Iraheta's rendition of "Alone." Her outfit was a hot mess, her jewelry looked like cast-offs from Paula's QVC collection, and her hair is about five seconds away from combusting. But her vocal talents made that all fade away. It takes a big voice to sing Heart and Allison has that big voice. If America listens to the judges, who are fawning over her one-by-one, she'll make it through.

Then again, if America listens to the judges, Adam Lambert will also make it through. And, from what I've seen of the musical theater man so far, that would be a mistake. Unlike Randy, Paula, Kara and Simon, I was not wowed by Adam's version of "Satisfaction." Like his goth-meets-punk-meets-tranny outfit, his performance was all over the place - dramatic, screeching and sometimes just downright frightening. I don't think this guy has the singing chops the judges seem to think he does. And I'm just going to say it: I'm uncomfortable with the amount of foundation he wears. Richard Nixon could be hiding under there for all we know.

Well, would you look at that. I've gone on and on and I didn't even mention Nick/Norman. Check out what everyone's saying about the Gentle and the rest of the second group of 12.

If I were a betting woman, I'd say Allison, Adam and Megan will move on, with the wild card spot possibly going to Matt.

Let's see how many of this twelve actually don't suck. [tvsquad]

'American Idol' recap: There Will Be Blood. [ew]

It was a poor night of performances, mostly, but that just makes it easier to pick the top two. [huffingtonpost]

Allison Iraheta, Adam Lambert, Megan Joy Corkrey Heat Up Competition. [mtv]

A rough night for Round Two. [latimes]

The 'Unwanted' American Idol Judge Speaks. [perez]