Casey James and Aaron Kelly will likely join him in the bottom three.
By Gil Kaufman
Michael Lynche
Photo: FOX
He might have gotten the judges’ save a few weeks ago, but time appears to have run out for brawny personal trainer Michael Lynche — at least according to MTV’s “American Idol” experts.
“I think it’s finally Big Mike Lynche’s time to go,” said MJ Santilli, webmaster of the “Idol” fan site MJsBigBlog.com. “He sang a very competent version of [Shania Twain’s] ‘It Only Hurts When I’m Breathing,’ but unfortunately, Aaron Kelly and Casey James, two other contestants on the cusp, stepped it up this week.”
Lynche got mostly positive notes from the judges — except Simon Cowell, who cryptically called the performance “wet” and “girly” — and he brought mentor Twain to tears, but even his Luther Vandross-like take on the songs might not have been enough to push him past other audience favorites.
“Aaron had all the grandmas and mommies heading for the tissues first and then their phones to vote after he transformed Twain’s romantic ballad, ‘It’s in the Way You Love Me,’ into an ode to his adoptive mother,” Santilli said. “And Casey James went back to the thing that works for him — wrapping his country growl around a tender ballad.” Santilli thinks Kelly and James will join Lynche in the bottom three, but it will be Big Mike who gets sent home.
MTV News’ “Idol” obsessive, Jim Cantiello, had to agree. “All the good will from the judges’ save has dissipated, and we’re left with a performance that viewers may feel like they’ve seen before,” he said. “There was a lot of hoopla from most of the judges about how well Michael connected to the song, but by the end of the episode, Casey and even Aaron managed to perform their songs in a more believable way.”
Yes, Twain was driven to tears by Lynche, but Cantiello isn’t sure voters were moved in the same way. “Remember: The guy first went home after a similarly praised and similarly theatrical ‘Eleanor Rigby,’ ” he recalled.
Do you agree with our experts’ opinions? Who do you think is going home tonight? Write in your comments below and check the Newsroom blog on Thursday morning to see how our experts did.
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