"by the end I felt that Diana was the better vocalist and performer and that she was robbed."
Well said! I'm in total agreement.
Let's pause from the Season 5 drama and move back to Season 3 for a quick review:
In the beginning (Hmmmm...I've read something that started like that...), it appeared that the "Finals" would be between what Idol had dubbed, "the 3 Divas" - Fantasia, Latoya London and Jennifer Hudson.
I liked all 3 at first, but I liked Jennifer the best. I thought she was the most "real" and had the best pipes.
There were a few "dudes" who looked promising at first as well. George Huff was the "Ben Vereen" of the group. He had a contagious smile and seemed like a nice guy.
Simon liked a kid named John Stevens because he thought a "crooner" was "different." I liked him at first, but as weeks went on his "youth" and "inexperience" proved that he wasn't the Idol. Not by a longshot.
Back to the Divas. When Jennifer was voted off, I was upset because I really liked her. But I didn't throw an Elton John tantrum. Life goes on. Latoya became my favorite. Simon saw the battle of three turn to the battle between two. I don't think he had a favorite between them, but the NAME "Fantasia" gave the "screecher" a slight edge. I mean, you at least can remember it.
As the competition went on, something happened. Simon (and probably everyone else watching) didn't expect this little girl with a beauty pageant smile to suddenly show that she has real talent. Diana DeGarmo, previously know as "Diana who??" was a great singer in spite of her age. She also had a nice, sweet and "perky" (Sorry Katie) personality. But Simon was not a fan. He had already picked out his winner after Fantasia sang "Summertime."
Summertime was her best vocal of the season, but Latoya could out sing her any other night.
For some reason (week 9, I think) there was a vote spilt between Fantasia and Latoya, and Latoya went home. Fantaisa was the "chosen" winner by Simon and the Idol staff once Latoya left and they went into total PUSH mode.
Diana could out sing her in her sleep, but she didn't stand a chance.
When the "Finals" came, 3 things happened....
1) Most of Latoya's votes went to Fantasia
2) The "Idol song" for that year was written as an R&B tune (conspiracy to let Fantasia win or possibly just because the writers thought it would be Latoya and Fantasia in the finals.)
3) The last straw for Diana was when her "in ear" monitor went out during the finals and she flubbed a note. (Diana was pretty much "perfect pitch" all season long but a bad monitor can screw up even the best singers)
A combo of those 3 things sent Diana home in 2nd place and "her screechiness" Fantasia as the winner.
But that's just what Simon wanted. He thought Diana's youth and "pageant girl" image was "wrong" for the "American Idol."
Singing competition indeed!!
I've always wondered about the ear monitor bit. Do they 'need' the ear monitor? Did Diana rely on it too much? I mean, if she hadn't relied upon it so much, could she have survived its malfunction?
Simon is nothing if not totally inconsistent in his appraisals of the contestants -- from year to year, from week to week and even from performance to performance on the same night. In interviews, Randy Jackson often says Simon doesn't know what he's talking about. I agree with Randy.
Simon appears to know what he's talking about, but it's an illusion. He usually states the obvious in a blunt way. When there isn't anything obvious to say, he usually says something snarky and/or off the wall. He also does that when he doesn't want to praise a good performance by a contestant he doesn't like.
Clay was "too Broadway." Diana was "too young." Remember when he asked Taylor after a performance earlier this year, "Are you drunk?!" This year Simon has ditched, "it's karaoke," for "it's indulgent."