Um, American Idol?

OK, I admit that I’m not a diehard fan, and have only watched the show a handful of times this season, but … Taylor Hicks? Are you kidding me? In the famous words of Paula Abdul, “I think America got it wrong this time.”

We’re seriously supposed to idolize this old grey-haired guy? They may as well have just picked that Chicken Little kid people liked to call “Squishy” as our new role model. I think they should rename this show American Dork.

How could America vote off the amazingly talented and drop dead gorgeous Chris Daughtry, and then vote a guy named Taylor Hicks from Alabama as the American Idol? In my opinion, the voting system is messed up. Some people have presented the theory that the only reason Daughtry was eliminated is because voters already had him pegged to win. Therefore, they did not pick up the phone to vote for him. Alternately, fans of the underdog, Hicks, dialed in. From now on, I think voters should have to call in and vote for the contestant they want OFF the show. It would make the process a whole lot fairer.

So in the end, 21-year-old L.A. native Katharine McPhee was left as the runner-up. To be honest, when I found out that Hicks and McPhee were the final contestants, I didn’t even bother to watch the finale. Not only was McPhee incredibly talented, but she totally fit the mold to become America’s next pop icon – along the same lines as previous winners Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood. But once the votes were tallied, such was not the case.

The crowning of Taylor Hicks as our American Idol has only more firmly justified my belief that the only reason to watch this show is the first few weeks of auditions. The crazy antics of thousands of untalented wannabes from across the country is completely hysterical, as they attempt crazy and idiotic stunts that may result in a 30-second television spot. Even still, we usually end up with a few moderately talented finalists.

But Taylor Hicks over Katharine McPhee? Laughable. Sheesh. We might as well have let William Hung win.