Archie vs Cook: A Rated "Aaarrrggghhh" Finale

The results are in and it’s official … America voted and decided to make David Cook this year’s American Idol.

I was never an Archuleta fan. Ever since the auditions, I have always rooted for non-R-rated-movie-watching nanny from Arkansas but watching everything from start to finish makes it seem like the finals this year had been written in stone ever before the top 12 had been decided. For the first time in years, America was dead on placing the best of the best on stage last night.

The Kiss of Death

For years, Idol has been known for shocking departures. I still remember Seacrest calling Latoya London’s name when it was pretty clear that Jasmine Trias should go. Three years later, Melinda Doolittle, who has never been in the bottom two or three position and who I think (together with the rest of the world) is the best singer to ever perform on the Idol stage would meet the same fate leaving the top two spots to Blake Lewis and Jordin Sparks.

In my opinion, Simon Cowell is partly to blame for this (sorry). The kiss of death has been mentioned a few times during the competition which started when Carly Smithson was voted off the show after Cowell gave her a great review. David Cook even had a feeling the week after that he’s about to be voted off because the meanie brit gave him a raving review. For all we know, declaring David Archuleta last night’s winner by Knock Out sparked and urged America to vote for Cook simply to prove him wrong. After all, it wouldn’t really matter who won because at this point, both of them are definitely stars in their own right.

Mariska Hargitay (bow)

The venue may be new but the entire thing is getting old and boring. I did enjoy the Guru Pitka (Mike Myers) and the Pips (Ben Stiller, Jack Black and Robert Downey Jr.) skits. The "Mariska Hargitay" greeting slayed me and still makes me laugh until now whenever I remember it. However, the entire thing felt like watching a regular elimination night stretched into two hours.

All I can think of while watching it is that it ain’t no season 4 finale where the Idols get to sing with their Idol — Vonzell Solomon’s performance with Billy Preston still brings me to tears whenever I watch it. Carrie Underwook and Rascal Flatts singing Bless the Broken Road still makes me want to sing. And Bo Bice jamming with Lynyrd Skynyrd still makes me want to rock! Now, THAT was definitely a finals worth watching!

C  is for Cookie

It’s official. The bartender from Kansas City, MO did it with a 12 million vote difference. What could be in store for David Cook? Will he follow Carrie Underwood’s footsteps sweeping awards after she won? Will he be rocking like Chris Daughtry? Perhaps an Academy Award like Jennifer Hudson? Or will he simply be another Idol to be inflicted of the where-is-he-now syndrome after a year or two? Time will tell, I know, but for now, all we can do is celebrate for the idol and hope that he can rock his way into the business the same way he did winning the finals!