'America's Got Talent' - 'Episode 504' Performances Recap

(S05E04) "You're in for the ride of your life." - Nick

This week, Nick promised us the ride of our life in his introduction. Would this mean that the performers would be as fantastic as last week's acts or maybe even better? They sure had a really tough act to follow as Fighting Gravity rocked last week and supportive comments poured in everywhere on the Web.

Sadly, this week's episode was quite the bumpy ride. It started with a "what were the judges thinking" moment, when you just know they voted the person through for the sake of having a few bad acts move to the next round, since the producers surely asked for that to get people talking. And later in the episode they had another lapse in judgment when they sent a talented little girl packing. Oh, and at the end of the episode, they sent a really terrible magic act to Vegas! Bad judges, bad! Can't you be a bit consistent and vote for talent and not for shock value?

Some of the acts I didn't enjoy:

Mary, singer & musician: Oh. My. God. What were the judges thinking?! This is one of the acts that got voted through just to get people talking around the water cooler -- for all the wrong reasons. This show is about TALENT, not extremely terrible acts that are pushed through just so to have fans go WTF?! I can't wait for the 'AGT' judges and producers to take the 'So You Think You Can Dance' route and vote for talented people and ditch the fakes. We will still watch the show if only good acts are voted through. Mary Hellen had terrible makeup, clothes and hairdo. Her piano playing and singing were just as terrible. She should have been booted instead of having the judges give her false hope.

Just the Two of Us, musicians and singers: As Nick said, Just the Two of Us at least have each other because they don't have talent, especially as singers. We didn't hear the woman play the flute, so I'll pass on judging how well they play their instruments. If their music is an expression of their love, as the man said, does that mean their love is out of tune? They shouldn't quit their day jobs to become professional musicians/singers.

Chalé, singer: He may be a terrible singer with fake and over-the-top facial and body expressions. However, his voice does sound good enough for him to at least try to get work as a voice-over artist.

Chipps Cooney, illusionist: Another "what were the judges thinking" moment. I firmly believe Chipps thinks he is a world-class magician. If he had sold himself as a comedic illusionist it would have been another story, but he said he was an illusion, period. His tricks were so weak that they looked like they were the ones he learned when he started magic at 12. They are the type of tricks a kid starts to do before moving on to something more daring, creative and impressive. Howie and Sharon, the clowns of the night, decided to give him a chance to move on. At least, he is not taking someone's spot at this stage. He better not move on beyond Vegas as he will be taking someone's spot then.

Some of the acts I enjoyed/loved:

Michael Grasso, magician: Finally, a magician who may have a real chance at going to the final 10. That's something rare on 'AGT.' The switch was extremely impressive, especially with his hand being out all the time. Yes, it was surely a fake mechanical hand, but it was still a brilliant performance.

Nina & Legit, singing & dancing: If the judges hadn't let Mary go through earlier, I could have accepted the fact that they decided not to send Nina to Vegas since she isn't ready yet. Nina offered us an extremely good performance when compared to extremely bad Mary. Why not give her a chance, as Howie said, to learn from the judges' feedback and prove them wrong in the Vegas round? Too bad. I hope she returns next season with a more actual act to prove the judges wrong.

Alice Tan Ridly, singer: And the crowd goes wild for the mother of Oscar-nominee Gabourey Sidibe! She may not have gotten a record deal yet, but she will surely soon get one as she has amazing pipes! She offered us an entertaining performance thanks to a rich and deep voice. By the way, Alice appeared as a subway singer in the 2005 movie 'Heights,' which starred Glenn Close.

... and ... Rudi rocked at balancing on his head. I can't wait to see how he can make that more daring than we've seen in his audition. I love music from the '80s, so that helped me root for the energetic and in sync Spangles Dance Company. Eric, the yo-yo guy, was fantastic. However, he doesn't have Vegas headliner material.

Do you think the judges made a lot of bad decisions in this episode? What was your favorite act of the night? Watch the full episode below.



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