Archie’s first performance – not to sound like the Randy-robot – actually was one of his best all season. (I realize that isn’t saying much.) You’re right about the George Michael tones on the Elton cover, and it was better than that: the kid looked in command of himself, to me, for the first time all season. I actually remember saying, This isn’t blowing me away, but if he performed like this all season, I wouldn’t have turned against him. The cynical part: Clive had to know it’d be a showstopper; ever since Live Aid, “Don’t Let…” has been a guaranteed live crowd-pleaser.

As for Cook, the whole night was marred by song choice, IMHO. The U2 song is one of my favorites by them, but it allows remarkably little Bono-esque vocal reaching, which is part of what makes it great, actually (for mid-’80s U2, it’s so wonderfully restrained). The only way to make “I Still…” special is to play up its gospel underpinnings, which U2 themselves already did on Rattle and Hum, and besides that wouldn’t have suited Cook anyway. So Clive threw him under the bus there.

But Cook threw himself under the bus with the Collective Soul choice. What kills me is, I’m rooting for this guy (by default), and there are plenty of grunge and nü-grunge songs he could’ve picked that would’ve given him a chance to show some range, and instead he picks this reined-in song. He did do a fine job with it, but c’mon: the Archie/”Imagine” freight train is on its way, and you actually think this is gonna stop it?

Hated Archuleta’s other two songs (despise what he’s doing to “Imagine”), but it doesn’t matter. Simon cold-blooded assessment was correct: Archuleta won the night. (And remember, Cowell was actually in the tank for Cook going in.) The whole thing depressed and deflated me, but it’s Archie in a walk, IMHO.