Is anyone else watching AI? Already, I am hooked on it. I sort of ignore what the judges are saying. It's pretty obvious to me that they are trying harder than ever to sway the voting ... and to keep their ratings up. That is pretty annoying.

A very talented group of contestants exists this year though. It really is coming down to where I think some very talented people could get voted out potentially just because of a minor problem such as a cracked note or missed word.

I am not even sure who my favorites are yet. I am a little cynical though over the whole thing because I believe that, more so than in past seasons, a great number of this year's contestants have some pretty serious singing, training and coaching behind them. These are not people who just sang in their showers before they tried out for AI. Quite a number of them have past professional gigs. Even the one who seems to be the judges' favorite -- David Archuleta -- was a Junior Star Search Champion a few years ago.

Oh well, call me odd, but I do enjoy watching it.