'American Idol' - '4 Finalists Eliminated' Recap

It's the first elimination show of the year! Generally, it feels like a huge loss when four contestants are eliminated all at once, but based on the lackluster performances by both the girls and the guys, I have a feeling that unless there's some huge shakeup, few tears will be shed.

But before we get to all that, we have a (lip-synced?) Top 24 performance, and 'Idol' winner Kris Allen makes an appearance, along with runner-up Allison Iraheta. We also get to see Kara's husband and one of the contestants in a bathrobe, so let's get started!

Seriously, though. Let's talk about that Top 24 performance. They sang 'American Boy' by Estelle, and it was totally lip-synced, right? Crystal and Casey both looked particularly confused by the whole thing. I know that some of the group sings were lip-synced last season, but is that the way it's always been? It seems to me that there used to be more live singing, but I could be pining for a bygone era that never really existed.

After the song, Seacrest gets right into it and calls up the girls for elimination. If you've read the recaps of the two episodes this week, then you've seen the poll I've put at the bottom of each one, asking for your favorites. Based on your responses, the four people who are going home are as follows:

Girls:
Janell Wheeler
Lacey Brown

Guys:
Tyler Grady
Tim Urban

Those four contestants had the lowest number of votes from the readers of TV Squad. Now let's see how your opinions stack up against America's.

Siohban Magnus: SAFE
Haeley Vaughn: SAFE
Michelle Delamor: SAFE
Katelyn Epperly: SAFE
Katie Stevens: SAFE
Janell Wheeler: OUT

So far you guys are one for one, so congratulations! I really liked Janell, though, so I'm sorry to see her go. I really think she could have done well in the competition -- especially since she performed so much better tonight than she did on Tuesday.

After our first elimination, we have Allison Iraheta singing her new single, 'Scars.' I haven't seen her since the end of 'Idol,' and I must admit, I had hoped she'd given up the Manic Panic hair. But I guess she is 18, so she has a few years yet. The whole performance is kind of weird: she sounds like Melissa Etheridge, but she's dressed like a more demure Lady Gaga. I've always been a fan of her voice, but this song isn't really doing it for me.

Instead of eliminating one of the guys, Seacrest returns to the girls to finish them off. Let's see if there are any surprises:

Paige Miles: SAFE
Lacey Brown: SAFE
Lilly Scott: SAFE
Crystal Bowersox: SAFE
Didi Benami: SAFE
Ashley Rodriguez: OUT

That's a little bit of a surprise. Ashley didn't score well in our poll, but as I said earlier, she wasn't in the bottom. I really didn't like her performance on Tuesday, though, and tonight's isn't much better. She kind of loses it in the middle there a little bit.

After the break, the guys are on the chopping block. After an interesting video of Tyler rehearsing for Wednesday's show in his bathrobe, you've kind of got to pull for him. Even though he's at the bottom of our poll, that would be kind of a sad way to go out. However, he's not in this group of guys finding out their fate right now, so we have to wait a little bit longer to see what happens to him.

Michael Lynche: SAFE
John Park: SAFE
Aaron Kelly: SAFE
Todrick Hall: SAFE
Tim Urban: SAFE
Joe Munoz: OUT

YOU GUYS. Did you see how surprised Tim was? I'm pretty sure he crapped his pants when Ryan told him to sit down. Look, Joe absolutely did not deserve to be eliminated tonight. I'd be willing to bet that Vote for the Worst had more than a little bit to do with this particular result, and unfortunately, Joe was just collateral damage.

After that surprise, Kris Allen is on talking about his recent trip to Haiti. He's also on to perform, of course, but instead of giving his album a boost, he sings The Beatles' 'Let It Be.' At first, this seems like a dumb decision, but as this performance has a slideshow of the disaster in Haiti as its background, it's a good choice. Promoting an album like that would have been just plain tacky.

Casey James: SAFE
Jermaine Sellers: SAFE
Lee Dewyze: SAFE
Andrew Garcia: SAFE
Alex Lambert: SAFE
Tyler Grady: OUT

I'm not really a fan of this decision either. I didn't like Tyler's performance on Wednesday, but Alex was a complete mess. However, I do think it's kind of funny how he threw the judges under the bus on his way out. So not only did they show the video of him in his bathrobe, but he barely gets his sing-out. It was completely cut off for people who watched the show on DVR, and his song was cut off midway through on the live show. A fine farewell, indeed.

Well, the TV Squad poll was half right. Tyler Grady and Janell Wheeler are out, but Tim Urban and Lacey Brown remain in. What do you think about America's decision?