Last Night For Canadian Idol's Day

08/06/08 6:20pm

by Michelle Singerman (CHARTattack)

Victory is mine! Mark Day was finally booted off Canadian Idol on Tuesday night, leaving six contestants to fight for the crown. I never thought this show could be so satisfying. I've been waiting for Day's riddance since day one.

Tom Jones has become synonymous with the Carlton Banks character from The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air for me. So when the show's guest mentor and performer's name was mentioned before the Idols sang "Green Green Grass Of Home" and "Delilah" as a lead-up to the Welsh superstar belting out "It's Not Unusual" and "If He Should Ever Leave You," I couldn't help but chuckle, let alone contain myself from shouting profanities when show host Ben Mulroney called Jones "one of the most dynamic" voices in music history. It may be true (though it's not my opinion), but all I see is Carlton's little arms flailing about from side-to-side with a dumbfounded grin splashed across his face as he dances to "It's Not Unusual," which you can see here:

The dragged-out elimination round began to feel more like a Tom Jones televised concert than a Canadian Idol episode. I'm not sure which is worse (though certain ChartAttack editors may vehemently disagree). It became quite a challenge not to switch the channel.

Mulroney did his gratuitous roll call with the judges, asking each one to reflect on the previous night's competition. I found it laughable when Farley Flex said he hoped Theo Tams would stick around because he was impressed with his Monday performance. Flex felt Tams performed out of his element. If out of your element means changing nothing but going from playing an instrument to not, then fine, Tams was out of his element. But if it means something more like shaking up your song choice and creating a new arrangement to come up with something we haven't heard before, than Tams certainly didn't budge from the week-to-week routine we've come to expect.

The bottom three were finally called at the usual time — with five minutes remaining in the half-hour show. Much to my surprise, Tams and Earl Stevenson were two of the contestants with the lowest votes. I was only surprised by Day's position because it seemed like it had somehow become inevitable that he'd continue. Each week I prayed for Day to be booted, and some higher being (or at least a bunch of Newfoundlanders) laughed in my face every time. But not this week. Salvation at last.

I was thrilled to see some of the earlier competitors, like Katherine St-Laurent, leave the set. But Day's elimination brings a different sense of satisfaction. It's almost as if the mouse has taken the thorn out of the elephant's foot (yes, I still reference that children's story and find high value in it). I can come back next week at least knowing there will be one less authentically painful performance to sit through.

With just five guys and one girl left vying for the Canadian Idol title, things are bound to get interesting (or maybe they won't). Find out for yourself next Monday at 9 ET/PT when Simple Plan will be the guests in a night dedicated to Canadian rock.