So it was the girls chance to impress us tonight. I think some of them accomplished that and some of them really disappointed…again.

Let me start with my favorite of the night…and that goes to Crystal Bowersox!!

I was so glad to see she actually made the show tonight and hope she continues to feel better. Crystal started the show and sang ‘Long As I Can See the Light’ and I really think she did an awesome job! Simon told her “we’ve got a really serious artist here” and I couldn’t agree more. She makes performing on that stage look so effortless. She knows who she is and doesn’t stray from her true self. If Crystal is not with us next week there is something really wrong with the voting population. I’m just saying is all!!

On a side note, as someone who works in television and knows a little about the “Idol Engine” I have no problems in saying that FOX and the folks at Idol absolutely played up her illness and wanted us to believe that she wouldn’t be back tonight. I am not downplaying her diabetes and do believe she was truely ill, but in television is all about the ratings. They leak the news that she might be out of the competition and of course viewers tune in to see the outcome. It’s a smart play and every show on television use the same ploys to pull in those rating numbers!

Siobhan Magnus of Barnstable, MA

I think my second favorite of the night has to go to Siobhan Magnus. She was the last to perform and sang ‘Think’ by Aretha Franklin. I totally agree with Simon when he says she is a funny little thing. This girl is quirky, but when she opens her mouth I am like…WOW! She has an incredible voice with such a huge range. She absolutely killed on the power note at the end of the song. The girl from New England is making us(or at least me) proud!

There were 2 girls that really stood out to me as the worst of the evening. Haeley Vaughn sang ‘The Climb’ by Miley Cyrus. I really liked this girl when she first auditioned. She is young and so full of life. Her smile can really make the day brighter. That being said, she is totally out of her league in this competition. She was almost completely off key the entire time she was singing. I also think her stage presence is really lacking. She just doesn’t know what to do with herself when she’s on stage. I think she has potential, but just needs to grow as an artist.

My other least favorite was Lacey Brown. She sang ‘Kiss Me’ by Sixpence None The Richer. I think she had a horrible week last week, and she did nothing this week to improve on that. I think she was really trying to please the judges by going with a song that Kara recommended. She had pitch problems through the entire song and there were points where she sounded out of breath. She is a cute girl, but again I think she is just out of her league.

I was really looking forward to Katie Stevens and Paige Miles this week.

I think for being 16 years old Katie Stevens really has a great voice. She sang ‘Put Your Records On’ by Corrine Bailey  Rae. I do think this was a better song choice for her this week. It was something a little more current and had a fun side to it. That being said, I think the song was a little safe for her and didn’t give her a chance to really showcase her voice. I also think the ending of the song was pretty rough for her. She really had problems with the pitch on the last few notes. I’m am betting though that she will be here next week.

Paige Miles is someone I have liked from the beginning. She is a beautiful and girl and has a great big powerful voice. I think her song selection last week and tonight has not helped her at all. I do think however that tonight’s choice of ‘Walk Away’ by Kelly Clarkson was better than last week. She was able to have fun on stage and show her personality but that song didn’t really give her a chance to showcase that big voice. She did hit a couple of big notes, but overall the  performance was lacking.

So, those are my thoughts. I’m not going to break down every performance. The other girls Didi Benami, Michelle Delamor, Lilly Scott, & Katelyn Epperly gave OK performances, but nothing that really stood out to me.  Overall I think the girls might have a slight edge on the boys at this point.

My picks for those going home this week are:   Haeley Vaughn, Lacey Brown, Tim Urban and John Park.