Down to the wire

(Click on the chart to view standings)
To see everyone's picks and a full standings breakdown, click here.

We're just one week from the IDOL finale - can you believe it? Three contestants remain and, believe it or not, our pool is still up for grabs.  If you're like Mike Sis, and you fast forward through the performances to get to the judges' comments, you probably just want me to give you the standings and get on to the finals.  So I'll keep it breif this week.  Just a few notes from last week.

... Paula Abdul should not perform on Paul Abdul's show.  I can put up with her idiosyncratic, borderline-nonsensical ramblings on the show but don't ask me to take her seriously during the same 1-hour block of TV.  I don't want sexy, early-nineties Paula and crazy-aunt-who-never-makes-any-sense-but-you-still-love-her Paula to exist on the same plane of reality.

... No Doubt, on the other hand, was like taking a time machine back to 1996 and I loved every minute of it.  It's still not out of the question that I will marry Gwen Stefani.

... Kris Allen's performance was not only way better than they judges gave him credit for, but about a hundred times more real than either of the other guys.  The Judges have been pretty obvious about who they want in the finals.  Luckily, their assassination attempt on Kris was unsuccessful.

... Danny ... woah ... Danny, what the hell was that?

... I for one was sorry to see Allison go but her exit performance was a moment of triumph, right down to the fist-pump after they showed her loser video.  She'll be in the studio within weeks.

Ok, some pool results and then we'll call it a day.  Melissa Clement is STILL clinging to first place but with Allison and Lil in the finals, she's locked at 262 points.  Joanne Trahan will pick up at least 18 points next week, with Adam over Danny in the finals but she's far from a lock.  Even if Joanne picks up all 36 points, next week it will still come down to the finals where Larry Shay can win it all with a Danny Gokey victory.  Its all coming down to the wire so stay tuned to see who comes away with the crown. 

The Swami says, "Gokey's a gonner.  Adam will face Kris in the finals and Joanne will get a new pair of shoes."  You heard it here first!