The Buzz with CCX - Season 19 Episode 16

[ScarletDevilCCX]

Ugh, took so long to get this started. Cape Codder tonight. Our show starts with something called a Sophia Carson singing "A Whole New World", eventually accompanied by the Top 9. Then the judges come out, and this year's Katy Perry Disney Cosplay is Tinkerbell. Tonight's mentor is John Stamos. Also, we've got the results from the comeback show, and unsurprisingly, it's Arthur Gunn. Also, new numbers! Rather than keeping them with the numbers going up to 24, tonight's performance order will be their numbers. Caleb Kennedy is singing "Real Gone" from Cars. It was probably the best that could be expected from him, which is to say, his voice is still awful and he needs to leave. 42; I want to say nice things about everyone because I'm a nice guy, so I'll say...on stage is not where he belongs. Whenever he performs an original, I'm amazed by how great he is as a songwriter at such a young age. But his voice...just isn't there.

 

Willie Spence is doing a song from Lion King...yeah, it's "Circle of Life". A lot of the pre-show speculation thought Alyssa would do that song. For all I know, she wanted to, but Willie won the hat pick. ...I like his coat. Very appropriate for this performance. That said, this is a bit of a misstep. I think it's maybe only a 55. Definitely the worst performance we've heard out of him.

 

DeShawn Goncalves is up third, doing "When You Wish Upon a Star". I'm a little worried because this is a fairly short song, but then again, the show cuts longer songs down anyway. And I do have a soft spot for this song. Ryan name-drops a bunch of famous people who are apparently talking about Idol on social media. We see DeShawn at Disney World, completely letting his smooth on-stage demeanor go. He's like a little kid. He's at the piano, and it's grandiose. He gets up after the intro, and we've got a trumpeter, a saxophonist, and a trombonist on stage with him. I love this jazzy rendition, though my worry about the length of the song was founded; it dragged out a bit to fill out the slot and it wasn't good at the end. Still, 82 because of how well it went up until the end.

 

Casey Bishop's up fourth, and the teaser before the commercial said she'd be singing an "emotional ballad". Also, showed that she's as impeccably dressed as ever. She's from Florida, so she gets to meet up with family at Disney World. We get the theme for next week being Mother's Day, as usual, and also...Coldplay week? Interesting. Oh, she's doing "When She Loved Me" from Toy Story 2! Brilliant. Yeah, her stepdad and brother show up to surprise her. This performance is...I'm not sure what to make of it. The notes are all over the place, but I think that was intentional? If so, this was very Poppe-esque. Katy's still spouting puns. 88. We're told what's coming up, and it's Hunter doing...a lullaby from Dumbo oh my G-d he's actually doing it. This...this is going to be a trip.

 

For as serious and at times uptight my father came off, deep down he was just a big kid, just like me. And nothing exemplified that more than the story of him refusing to leave the hotel room go to dinner on his first honeymoon (he got a divorce; my mother is a second wife) until Dumbo was over. (...Wait, this isn't Hunter, it's Chayce. Okay, that's even better; I actually like Chayce. Or is it worse because it increases the chances of me crying?) And even watching it as an adult, he'd still cry when they take Dumbo's mother away. There's something about losing a loved one where you forget all the things you didn't like about them and only remember the things that made them great--perhaps in part because seeing all the well-wishers, they only saw his good side. It's been almost two years since I found him having a stroke on the bathroom floor. I'm going to cry. The song's over, I'm just barely not crying. 85. I'm still crazy about it. Also, hello again, Graham DeFranco! Also, we're not going to commercial yet. Alyssa Wray is a big Cinderella fan and she's doing "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes". She's wearing a big shimmery dress and looking like a real Disney princess...oh, right. This is the type of song that she's actually good at, which means we might be stuck with her for another week when, presumably, the theme will be awful for her and she'll put up two stinkers. ...92. I was about to give it a lower number and then she went full Whitney on the ending.

 

Arthur Gunn is giving us the annual performance of "Remember Me" from Coco. Wow, this is pretty good! And he plays off the band (the trumpet/sax/trombone trio from DeShawn's number is back). 97. Hard to believe that DeShawn's performance, which seemed damn near perfect until he missed some notes during an ending that never should have been, could end up as one of the worst performances of the night.

 

John Batiste is coming on to do the theme from Soul, before Cassandra Coleman brings us back to the competition with an Oscar-nominated song from Hercules. ...Oh wow. Last week, we had awful performers and amazing professionals, and this week, we've got one great performance after another and then this travesty of a song and singer from a guest star. Even with a 30-point stage presence bonus, this performance is a 26. I'm not kidding; this was awful. Also, Cassandra's a Star Wars geek? She, too, gets a surprise visit from family at Disney World. She's doing "Go the Distance". I love her dress; she themed it well to her movie choice. I wasn't sure about this song choice since it's one that Herc sings in the movie, but it still works with a female singer. 84.

 

Angry Orchard Unfiltered again. Yes, that's right, we're going double tonight. I might need it since Hunter Metts is up now and he's doing Tarzan. "You'll Be In My Heart", which has been done very well on this show before. We're revisiting the mistake in the previous show. He, too, gets a surprise visit from family. ...He barely even has to start the song and I'm rethinking my feelings about him. Wow. This is the Hunter Metts we need! 100. I like it as a ballad, and I'm glad he didn't try to imitate the original.

 

Grace Kinstler is closing out the show with "Into the Unknown" from Frozen II. It starts a little shaky, but she gets into it eventually. How about a...96, if only because of the slow start. Once she got going, it was the best.

 

The first contestant into the Top 7 is Chayce Beckham. Second is Casey Bishop. So far, so good. Third is Willie Spence, and fourth is Hunter Metts. Fifth...damnit, you had nine choices to put someone deserving through and you picked the one bad one. Caleb Kennedy's through. He's followed by Grace Kinstler, and the final spot belongs to...Arthur Gunn. Well, Alyssa going home is fine, and DeShawn, I like him but I'm not surprised he's gone. Only real disappointment is Cassandra gone and Caleb there.

Edited May 3, 2021 by ScarletDevilCCX