And so it goes: the last American Idol semifinal. Simon predicted last week that tonight's octet would outshine last week's. It didn't. But it didn't fail, either. It was pretty much a push.

For the first time, though, the guys were clearly better than the women. Sylvia started off, and was OK, but she has a very unusual sound to her voice which didn't help her. Simon also noted she sang with her mouth open too wide, which she denied, but at times she looked like a Muppet. Juanita brought thrice the attitude and none of the vocal skill that Frenchie, who she replaced, would have. She stunk, and had the temerity to tell Simon and Randy they didn't know anything. I may not like the acts those two have produced, but you can't argue with results.

Nasheka had a similar problem as Sylvia, having an unusual tone that didn't work well with the piano alone. Ashley mostly got comments on her looks and how she could get into modeling or acting, which tells you how the singing went. Sarah says she sounded like Baby Spice, which is probably comment enough.

So, to the guys. The first guy out was Chip, who I thought sounded pretty good but according to the judges was lacking in emotion and character. I must not have the eye for finding that, because most of the guys look pretty much the same. Some manage to appear more emotional than others, but I can't see such dramatic difference.

Anyway, next up was Patrick, the "rocker" who sang a song either by Damn Yankees or Bad English; I can't tell them apart. I would like to see him get through just for some variety, but I think Simon was on to something when he called him a "wolf in sheep's clothing." If you look at Patrick's bio, what musical act does he mention the most? Michael Jackson. An odd choice for someone who's only hand gesture is the horns.

That leaves us with Joshua, the Marine, and Corey, one of the party guys from the Glendale auditions who, upon forgetting the words to "Kiss From a Rose" during the group portion, made up words and got next to Paula to flirt his way to her vote. I'd have to say that these guys will most likely get through. Joshua sang "I'll Be," kind of funny given Edwin McCain's appearance on last week's audition special pleading people to stop butchering his songs. Joshua did pretty well, comparatively.

Corey was a big surprise for me, given that I was set to dislike him based on the events in Glendale. Apparently it was a growth moment for him, as he was probably the best of the night.

So I'll say Corey and Joshua get through, with the third finalist being one of the women, though which one is pretty much a toss-up. I'm holding out for Chip as a dark horse, at least so he can get on the wild card show.