Of course, the crafty conspiracy theorist in me wonders if this was a ratings ploy all along: You know, bring Jermaine back for the semifinals to create some drama and buzz, then create even more drama and buzz later on, when his criminal-past bombshell leads to his "shocking" disqualification. I just find it a little hard to believe that "Idol's" staff would not have been able to uncover Jermaine's (very recent) alleged crimes via a standard background check, and it seems fishy that the one contestant that was given a last-minute reprieve is now the one getting the boot. Is it possible that by bringing back a contestant who was already set up for an early disqualification, the show's producers had sneakily hoped to generate headlines and boost "Idol's" flagging ratings, without jeopardizing any actual worthy contestants' future chances? We'll never know.
But if so, then I beg to differ on that last point: Bringing Jermaine back to the show and playing up his public-vote-garnering sob story just may have stolen a legitimate spot in the top 13 from one of the show's other promising male semifinalists who could have gone farther, like Reed Grimm, Creighton Fraker, or Aaron Marcellus (or any other bonus contestant the judges could have elected to reinstate, such as David Leathers Jr.). While Jermaine's short "Idol" stint may have made for some good television--and Wednesday night's show will be dramatic indeed--it may have negatively altered Season 11's outcome in the long run.
Now it remains to be seen how, in the short run, Jermaine's dishonorable discharge will alter this week's results. Will there be no elimination this Thursday? Will a previous castoff be brought back to replace Jermaine--and if so, who will that be? I am certainly interested to find out, so perhaps "American Idol's" masterminds will get what they probably wanted all along, in the form of a big ratings spike this week.
I still take care of my uncle, the youngest of 14 children and my Dad was the oldest. He is a pleasure to have around, it was worth everything I passed up.
