This is...The Twilight Zone

In my opinion I think they should rename last night's show to "American Idol Season 8 Results Finale: The Largest Compilation of Random Performances Ever" because I'm pretty sure that's what it was...which is why it felt like the twilight zone to me. I am thrilled and shocked that Kris Allen won but am still not quite sure what to think about the two hours of randomness that preceded the announcement. Performances by Jason Mraz, Keith Urban, Cyndi Lauper, Santana, Rod Stewart, KISS, Queen, Queen Latifah, Steve Martin, Lionel Richie, David Cook, Fergie, The Black Eyed Peas, and Kara D made me extremely thankful for the invention of DVR and the capability of pushing fast forward at any moment. I thought the best way to recap and provide my thoughts for anyone that cares (that's you mom!) would be through a list of moments

Moment I thought "who is that singing with Queen Latifah?": I honestly didn't recognize Lil Rounds. We fast forwarded through the intro and most of the song so we thought it was just Queen and some other famous person signing, I didn't realize it was Lil until I got to work this morning and my coworkers told me. Big improvement Lil, sorry I forgot about you girl!

Moment I was reminded of Janet Jackson's "malfunction" at the Superbowl halftime: Who knows what Fergie and/or the Black Eyed Peas were doing or saying that caused the cameras to cut away during part of their performance but props to Fox for thinking ahead and building in a slight delay to prevent another "malfunction". The Kara D "incident" was enough for me for one show, but more on that later.

Moment I was reminded my high school reunion is this year: Can anyone hear Cyndi Lauper's Time After Time and not think of Romy & Michelle's High School Reunion? It's just like every time I hear Girls Just Wanna Have Fun I immediately think of Dance TV and the movie with the same name as the song. Cyndi may be crazy and I think her and Paula could be bff's, but her duet with Allison was my favorite duet of the night.

Moment Kara D passed Paula to take the crown as my least favorite judge: Just when I thought Kara D might be slightly redeeming herself through actual singing ability she goes and rips off her dress. My roommates and I gasped and dropped some "What the? and No she didn't" phrases and definitely had some Jim Halpert faces. I have to give CC credit for stating what I think is the most accurate feeling after such a performance- violation. I also love anything that Kristen Baldwin at Entertainment Weekly writes about the fourth judge and she didn't disappoint last night; saying, "I think Kara's 'charity' is the National Bruised Ego Fund". I still feel like I'm in a state of bewilderment thanks to the annoyance that is Kara D so I'm just going to leave it at that.

Moment I was worried someone might seriously get injured: Bless Rod Stewart's heart, I admit I covered my eyes several times during his performance because I thought for sure he was going to take a nasty spill on the stairs or when he was twirling around. Definitely let out a sigh of relief when he made it through his performance injury free. Not quite sure I thought you were sexy then or ever Rod and I definitely didn't want your body, sorry.

Moment I thought for sure Adam Lambert was winning: During his performance with KISS, no question he fits that genre. And I think now that the voting was over he didn't feel the need to hold back or tone down any of his theatrics. Nope, with the metal/glass shoulder pads and huge platform shoes and glitter eyeliner he was letting his freak flag fly high for everyone. I don't necessarily mean that in a mean way, I truly admire his willingness to be himself out there. As many of my friends can attest to I have a special interest in some weird music/musicians/fans of musicians but Lambert is beyond my scope enjoyable music. I just never got into the hair metal rock bands and that is definitely who he is. He's a great entertainer and a respectable second place finisher.

Moment I jumped up and down: "And the winner of American Idol Season 8 is...Kris Allen!"!!!! Loved his genuine shock and humbleness. Didn't love that he had to sing that terrible Mountains/Hurricanes/Overcoming Boundaries song again. Raise your hand if you wished he would have just started singing "Heartless" or "Ain't No Sunshine"! (hand raised!) I'm still so excited and shocked that he actually won; he may be the second American Idol winner that I actually purchase music from (first and only being Kelly Clarkson). He definitely deserved to win this season.

So Season 8 is in the can. I thought I would be sad about this day, but I couldn't be happier with the ending (yay Kris!) and therefore I think I'm ready for an Idol break. Farrell is encouraging me to watch So You Think You Can Dance? which I've never gotten into but I may try this season. We'll see...I'm about ready for a break from all voting reality shows; the stress to save everyone by calling in is a burden! If you have time I definitely recommend checking on the live-blogging transcript from EW here and the recap here, those people are hilarious. I'd like to close my Idol posts with the following video for your (and my own) viewing pleasure, enjoy!