THE VOICE—SEASON 4

I missed the entire last season of The Voice, and you know what? I didn’t feel I had really missed anything at all!

But, after suffering through every duller-than-dull episode of American Idol this year and last season’s X Factor, and needing room on my DVR, I decided to stay up almost overnight this past this week-end to catch-up on The Voice before I get too backed-up on it.

I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I realized I was smiling the whole time!!!

New mentor-judges Usher and Shakira are adorable people, not full of themselves, and supportive to the poor auditioners. They were a pleasure! And there was none of the stupid Adam Levine-Christina Aguilara fighting, and no sleazy Ceelo lechery. (I do like his singing, though.) It all just ran smoothly this time, with a lot of amusing and respectful joking amongst the celebrity mentors.

So far, the show has been fun and not too painful. There were just a few people whom I was disappointed didn’t get chosen by anyone, and not too many I was upset did. (I do feel really bad about some who slipped through the cracks, though, but I have a feeling they’ll get a second chance later during these “blind” auditions.)

I was worried that Shakira wasn’t going to get anybody to choose her, though, because she can’t really sing! (In case you’re not familiar with the premise of The Voice, if multiple mentors choose a contestant for their “team,” the singer gets to choose their own mentor from among the ones who threw his or her hat into the ring.) She can perform, but this show is supposed to be about the voice, isn’t it? But she’s so charming and sincere that she won several of them over. I was on edge until she finally got one!

I appreciate that this show doesn’t waste our time with dreadful “singers,” like the other “talent” shows do. Everyone can sing at least well enough, even if they’re not everyone’s cup of tea.

They also don’t waste our time with the pat host-judges awful repartee. Host Carson Daly may be dull as dirt, but at least he doesn’t try to make it about him, rather than the contestants. (Are you reading this, Ryan Seacrest?) As a matter-of-fact, he hardly even appears on the show until the teams start competing! It runs so much smoother without an active host. Viewers aren’t idiots, (wait–I take that back; probably the majority are,) so we don’t need someone letting us know that they’re back from commercial! I’m pretty sure that even people with no teeth and a shotgun on their lap can figure that one out!

The only aspect I don’t like about show, and I actually hate, is the stupid interplay between the judges about pushing their buttons. It debases the people who are on-stage, fighting to get a better life, or at the very least, not embarrass themselves. Adam Levine and Blake Shelton make it too much of a game, which is just wrong.

After getting up-to-date on the episodes, I don’t have a favorite yet. I think that Michael Jackson’s former duet partner, Judith Hill, is the frontrunner, so far, and as soon as she turned-up there, I declared her the winner. But I have to hear them more, and see their personalities, to really decide what’s what. I just hope that none of the judges screw their charges, after promising so many of them that they’ll get the victory together; Christina did that last year to Jesse Campbell, who was the best singer by far. As far as I know, she still hasn’t given an explanation as to why she cut him early. But even this nice panel is making too many promises they can’t keep.

One last note: did any of you notice that little guy in the duo, Midas Whale? He’s Jon Peter Lewis, who was so popular on Season Three of American Idol, and proof that success on Idol doesn’t guarantee you anything. I was not a fan of his, but I was impressed by what he and his co-hort did on this show. As soon as I saw the clip of these guys walking down the street with their posse, they brought to mind Tenacious D, who are comprised of manic Jack Black and his pal, Kyle Gass. This duo is like a toned-down, but also amusing and talented, version.

I’m actually looking forward to tonight, not just to hear the new singers but to see if the judges finally change their attire, (which they won’t, so the producers can screw with the real order of the auditions,) and if Usher will finally put his left leg down! I’m not holding my breath, on either issue!