[Netizen]

Once the semifinalists are revealed, they will be grouped into three groups of twelve and Idol will begin three weeks of broadcasts in which twelve semifinalists will perform during two-hour pre-taped Tuesdays at 8PM ET/PT performance episodes and the results of the subsequent home viewer voting will be revealed during live one-hour results shows airing Wednesdays at 8PM ET/PT.

At the conclusion of each results show, the male and female semifinalists who received the highest number of home viewers votes for their previous night’s performance will instantly become a Top 12 finalist. In addition, another semifinalist that had received the next-highest number of votes after the performance episode — regardless of whether he or she is male or female — will also become a finalist.

Then on Thursday, March 5, Fox will air a special “Wild Card” performance episode in which each semifinalist group’s highest remaining votegetter who didn’t already automatically advance to the finals will get a second chance to perform along with several additional semifinalists that the judges will select.

After all the “Wild Card” semifinalists perform, the judges — not the show’s home viewers — will immediately select three of them to complete the season’s twelve finalists.

American Idol’s eighth-season Top 12 finalists will then take the stage for the first time on Tuesday, March 10, with one finalist’s journey coming to an end the following night.

--------------------------------------------------------- Looks like the judges want to make sure that they can bring back people that the viewers try to get rid of.

[ken5050]

ah..thanks..

[Palladin]

" Looks like the judges want to make sure that they can bring back people that the viewers try to get rid of."

BINGO!

[silent_jonny]

At the conclusion of each results show, the male and female semifinalists who received the highest number of home viewers votes for their previous night’s performance will instantly become a Top 12 finalist. In addition, another semifinalist that had received the next-highest number of votes after the performance episode — regardless of whether he or she is male or female — will also become a finalist.

What a convoluted mess.

Leave it to Idol to take something simple and turn it completely ass-backward.