By the end of this article, you will know who the Top 10 finalists are on Canadian Idol. No further hype needed.
On my last night at the Trinity Studios for Canadian Idol Season 5 (the show will be moving to the John Bassett theatre next week), I have to say that I wasn’t sure how I was feeling before the show started. On the one hand, I was definitely ready to switch locales as I am a big fan of the Bassett setting for Idol and I was excited for the competition to really begin. On the other hand, many improvements were made to the Trinity set-up this year, and I especially liked the fact that the band played for all the live performance shows this season, from the Top 22 forward. If I was to describe my mood before the show began, it was definitely one of confidence. I was pretty confident in my pre-show predictions of Matt, Brian, Khalila and Mila leaving and I thought that aside from Martha Joy possibly replacing Mila on the elimination block, Wednesday’s results show was simply an act of semantics as the Top 10 was completely obvious.
After sitting down, I noticed that there was a different stage set-up, as 10 stools had been placed in front of where the band usually plays. The stools were in addition to the ‘white Wednesday’ couches that we have grown accustomed to over the past three weeks. You didn’t need to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out that the stools were for the final 10 (who would move over there from the couches).
I also noticed that there were many more people in the audience for this week’s results show than there were for last week’s. It was quite clear that this one was for all the marbles.
Honestly?
Aside from the finale, I thought that this was going to be the most important results show of the season.
The warm-up started with Sue Brophy introducing the judges and Ben Mulroney. She talked to the judges for a bit and Jake said that tonight wasn’t sad news. He said that they weren’t announcing who was going home, but actually announcing the identities of the Top 10 contestants. Zack also managed to get a nice shot in at Ben before the show started when he jokingly threatened him and said that he had his Honeynut Cheerios wrap-up “right here.”
Brophy then introduced the Top 14 contestants. I immediately noticed that Matt and Farley looked quite similar, both clad in blue. The contestants then took their positions on the couches.
On the front couch (from left to right): Montana, Dwight, Greg, Liam, Jaydee, Khalila, Annika.
On the back couch (from left to right): Martha, Matt, Tyler, Brian, Carly, Tara, Mika.
Hmm. I thought that the set-up was interesting, because it meant that three of my predicted evictees were in the back row (Matt, Brian, and Mika) leaving only Khalila to go from the front.
I still thought that Brian was definitely a goner, especially because he was sandwiched between top contenders Carly Rae & Tyler Mullendore.
The show began and Ben said that “since the start of the competition, this is what they have all been playing for.”
Ben introduced the judges and asked for their thoughts.
Jake: Surprises were more on the negative side (Murtz note: Answering Ben’s question about whether he was surprised by anything up to this point in the competition).
Farley: Standouts were Carly and my buddy Greg. Honorable mention to Dwight.
Sass: We’re going to see more high’s and low’s.
Zack: From now on, it’s totally do or die. Think outside the box where you are the showstopper in every moment.
A recap package of the performances was then played.
This was followed by a video package which showed the male Idols attending a day at the racetrack while the girls were given a spa treatment on a boat. Plug was for Gilette Fusion.
Commercial.
Time for the real show to begin as Ben started to read the results.
MARTHA: SAFE
MONTANA: ELIMINATED
MATT: SAFE?!!!
DWIGHT: SAFE
I was stunned. Who voted for Matt? The results continued.
GREG: SAFE
TYLER: ELIMINATED
BRIAN: SAFE
Wow. What kind of alternate universe was I living in? Montana and Tyler eliminated?! They were two of the favorites to make the final five at minimum. I was stunned. I was telling people yesterday that Mullendore is so good, that I thought he was a lock for the final four? And he’s gone? Did the East forget to vote?
While Montana was equally as shocking, her send-off didn’t really surprise me as she wasn’t the best yesterday and she was from Quebec (notorious for not voting a lot).
I was still reeling from Tyler leaving and Brian staying.
Commercial.
Back to it.
CARLY RAE: SAFE
TARA: SAFE
LIAM: ELIMINATED?!!!!
JAYDEE: SAFE
Words could not even describe my reaction. Liam? Liam and Tyler? What was Canada thinking?! Liam was another singer who I thought would be in the competition until the bitter end. I guess the bitter end came earlier than I expected. I am sorry, but there’s simply no explanation. He deserved to stay and was one of the strongest male contenders this season.
This meant that there were only two more spots left in the Top 10 and three contestants waiting to hear their fate. Either Mila, Khalila or Annika would be eliminated after the break.
Commercial.
Ben continued with the results.
MILA: SAFE
KHALILA: SAFE
ANNIKA: ELIMINATED
I was and still am speechless. There was probably a video package that featured the eliminated competitors and maybe some final comments from the judges and the contestants, but I honestly did not hear any of it.
I was too busy rationalizing the SHOCKING result and analyzing its ramifications. I can tell you with certainty, that this was the most unbelievable 22 minutes of reality television that I have seen in my entire career. Usually on an Idol show, you are used to getting a couple of surprising eliminations over the course of the season. But to have four contenders leave, who all had a shot of winning the entire thing in my mind is uncharted territory.
As I sit here and type that Montana, Tyler, Liam and Annika are gone, it still makes no sense to me. I know what you are thinking. Annika wasn’t nearly as strong as the other three, but the fact is that she had the best performance on Tuesday and I thought that she definitely had saved herself.
Shows what I know.
This just makes the entire season even more interesting.
Next week, the Top 10 move to the Bassett and the theme of the first performance show (airing on Tuesday) is #1 Hits. On Wednesday, Rihanna will be performing her own #1 hit (“Umbrella”) on the Canadian Idol stage.
I will be there.
Montana, Tyler, Liam and Annika won’t.
I am numb with shock.
See you next week.
