Blog Posts by Lyndsey Parker

Lyric 145 go home on "The X Factor" [photo: Ray Mickshaw/Fox]"The Voice" and "The X Factor" continued apace last week...and more than ever, it was abundantly obvious just how different the two singing shows truly are. Over on "The Voice," it was all happyfuntimes, group hugs, and unflagging team spirit, while on "The X Factor," it was all about that series' usual stock in trade: "shocking" eliminations, icky judge infighting, manufactured drama, and just plain old bad vibes. Oh, Simon Cowell, will you ever change?

Last night, two of my favorite contestants on "The X Factor" Season 2--potential hip-hop superstars Lyric 145, and rocker-girl-next-door Jennel Garcia--went home on a very controversial double-elimination episode. I was not happy. My "The Day After" co-host, Matt Whitfield, was not happy. Many "X Factor" viewers were not happy. Demi Lovato was not happy, since her attempt to save Jennel was outvoted by her fellow judges. Basically, it was a really unhappy night--and a potentially shark-jumping one for the show.

So today, I'm rocking my eyepatch one last time in honor of the wrongly dethroned Lyric Da Queen. And I'm dressed in black, not just because I'm still in mourning over these controversial eliminations, but because I'm mourning the possible death of what could have been a great "X Factor" season. With three of Season 2's most interesting and unique contestants--Jennel and Lyric 145, as well as last week's colorful castoff, Jason Brock--already out of the running, I am starting to get (to use Demi's favorite adjective) bored.

Two of the most vivacious and voracious fanbases in modern-day entertainment are the Twi-hards and the Idoloonies, so when Twilight actress Nikki Reed and "American Idol" Season 10 finalist Paul McDonald got married last year (following a meet-cute moment captured for all posterity by "Idol" cameras and a whirlwind romance), it truly was a fusion of pop-culture dynasties.

And it wasn't long before the newlyweds' partnership became professional as well as personal: Paul encouraged his bride to pursue her deferred dream of singing, and soon the two were making beautiful music together, literally--culminating in the release of their indie EP, The Best Part, and "All I've Ever Needed," a love duet that's not only on the Twilight: Breaking Dawn 2 soundtrack, but actually plays during the movie's all-important end credits. The song is literally the last impression Twi-hards will have as they leave the theater and the Twilight saga comes to a bittersweet end.

Jennel Garcia goes homeIt was Diva Week on "The X Factor," but ironically, the two biggest divas of the entire show were voted off this Thursday. No, Jason Brock was not among them--he went home last week, sadly. This time, it was the amazingly eyepatched Lyric Da Queen and her trio Lyric 145--potential superstars who basically defined "X factor"--and Jennel Garcia, possibly THE best female singer in the top 12, who went home.

Yes, the three most exciting and entertaining contestants in the competition are already gone--all within just two weeks. Someone please pass me a fork, because I need to stick it in this show right now. Or maybe just in my eye. I'm upset. And judging by the immediate reaction clogging up my Twitter feed, I am not alone.

Last night, "The X Factor" top 12 performed for Diva Week, but not all of the contestants were so divalicious. While 13-year-old "little DEE-vah" (Britney Spears's words) Carly Rose Sonenclar completely slayed "My Heart Will Go On," others sank like the Titanic itself, including two former standouts, Arin Ray and my beloved Lyric 145. Conspiracy theorists (i.e., me and my "The Day After" co-host, Matt Whitfield) can speculate if those two were set up for failure (Arin was thrown off his game, as he later tweeted, when the wrong track  played at the start of his performance, and Lyric 145 were forced to change their song at the last minute)--or if the other contestant most at risk this week, CeCe Frey, was set up all season long, from the bad edit job she got during the audition rounds to the horrible second makeover she received this week.

Today, Matt and I break it all down for you, complete with our own diva-worthy outfits. Which wannabe diva had the X factor last night? Which two are going home in tonight's big double-diva elimination? Let's discuss.

Arin Ray fails to tap into his inner divaWell, it was Diva Week on "The X Factor"--which made it even sadder that last week's castoff, Jason "Mr. Entertainment" Brock, wasn't on the show this Wednesday. Seriously, Diva Week would have been his time to shine! And if he'd competed this week, he would have sung THIS!

Le sigh. But let's move on. This Wednesday, each of the remaining 12 contestants attempted to become what Beyonce has on occasion described as the female version of a hustla, or something like that--with very mixed results. Not everyone really hustled or flowed.

Without further ado, here's how everyone did...

On Tuesday night, two of the top 12 contestants from "The Voice" were voted off by America--and I really do mean voted off by America. You see, for the first time in "Voice" history, team quotas did not apply when it came to the eliminations, meaning that just the two lowest vote-getters, regardless of coach affiliation and definitely without any coach intervention, got the boot.

This was a good thing--after all, those frustrating team quotas were what kept other "Voice" standouts, like Nakia, Jamar Rogers, and Lindsey Pavao, from making it as far as they deserved in past seasons. And usually when the coaches had too much of a say in the past, they messed things up, big-time. (Remember when Blake Shelton cut Jordis Unga, Christina Aguilera eliminated Jesse Campbell, or Adam Levine ditched Pip?) Sometimes, it really is better to just let America decide. And while I would have ideally kept one of the two contestants who went home this week, overall, I could live with America's decision.

Diego Val sort of got a raw deal on "The Voice"--competing on Team Cee Lo, arguably Season 3's strongest team, and additionally being forced by Cee Lo Green to sing a Latin pop song that absolutely didn't suit him, Enrique Iglesias's "Bailamos," during the Live Playoffs.

Diego ended up going home last Thursday, but now, thanks to Sons Of Mariel, his new project with Black Eyed Peas cohort George Pajon, he's back to making the raw, organic, rootsy music that is his stock in trade.