A painful round leads 'American Idol' to the semifinals

McClatchy Newspapers (MCT) - If you needed any reminder that "American Idol" is, first and most, a television show with a singing contest, rather than just the contest, the round of 36 semifinalists starting Tuesday should do it for you.

Part of "Idol's" success is that it's very tightly _ and usually very cleverly _ produced. The screaming fans, the idiot tryouts, the crazy rejects are chosen carefully, and often goaded, to make them, in theory, more fun for viewers.

Every year, there's a strikeout or two on those fronts. The sorority girls who were bused in last season and stationed down front to wave and sway, for instance, were a clear swing-and-miss.

But last's week round of final Hollywood eliminations may have been the worst strikeout ever. It was excruciating and at times seriously cruel. No one knows why the producers figured it would bring more life to the show.

The sing-offs were silly and unnecessary, and twice horrifically mean when friends were paired off against each other. If the producers wanted to be more civilized, they could have split those two pairings. But this isn't about decency, it's about ratings.

Worse, though, was the "yes" given to the world's most irritating person, Tatiana Del Toro, the shrieking, narcissistic, socially tone-deaf 23-year-old who got way too much face time during the Hollywood rounds.

"Just once," Simon Cowell told her last week, "try not to be annoying."

She couldn't do it. In any kind of real world, there's no chance Del Toro would get a callback during auditions for anything, except a reality show that needs someone to hate. And that's why she was put through to the semifinals. Until the voting starts, "Idol" is just a reality show with some music.

The good news is that starting Tuesday (at 8 p.m. on Fox), viewers get to vote, as the semifinalists come at us in waves. The first bunch, sadly, includes Del Toro. Time to vote for change.

Now, here's this week's What To Watch (or Not).

Tuesday:

"Frontline: Inside the Meltdown" (9 p.m. on PBS): People may be guessing about how to fix the economy, but this always-strong documentary series tells us with clarity how we got into such a mess.

Wednesday:

"Lie to Me" (8 p.m. on Fox). "American Idol's" results show moves to 9 p.m., so "Lie to Me," a bright new procedural, gets a slot an hour earlier and away from the 9 p.m. logjam against ABC's "Lost" and NBC's "Life."

"Top Chef" (10 p.m. on Bravo): We're hitting the two-week final, and the chefs go down to the Big Easy where New Orleans icon Emeril Lagasse is the guest judge. No, no "bam" jokes.

We're Back - Greatest Meat on Earth

Thursday:

"ER" (10 p.m. on NBC): As the (too-)long-running series heads toward its April 2 finale, lots of stars who made the show such a phenomenon back in the Pleistocene age are returning for guest shots. Tonight, it's Noah Wyle as his still-earnest Dr. Carter.

Friday:

"Monk" (9 p.m. on USA): This season is ending _ told ya it was going to be a short run this time _ with Monk trying to save the place where his wife was killed, which is a parking lot. The series will be back for its last go-round this summer.

"Psych" (10 p.m. on USA): If "Monk" is finishing the season, could "Psych's" season finale be far behind. It's back in the summer, too.

Sunday:

"The 81st Academy Awards" (8:30 p.m. on ABC): Hugh Jackman hosts. Hard to know what to think about that. ABC's pregame show starts at 8 p.m., but the better red carpet coverage runs on E!.

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Rick Kushman: rkushman@sacbee.com

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© 2009, The Sacramento Bee (Sacramento, Calif.).