Final 11 (Redux) Results

"No more second chances!" preached Ryan Seacrest. And with that, this season's three weakest performers fell out of American favor, with the two least-promising going home (imagine that)!

After a slew of generally awkward and uninteresting performances (save for one country-slay-me-moment courtesy of Lauren "stair-rider" Alaina), Thia and Naima suffered what seemed to be expected downfalls-- almost as tragic as Fantasia Barrino's bizarrely chosen red-slitted frock and twinkie hair-roll. Seriously, has Fantasia decided that her post-win Idol showings all have to end in disaster (cue Simon Cowell jaw-drop)?

At the end of it all, we have a Top 9. And out of that group of 9, only 5 remain viable contenders for the crown (that's right, I'm sticking by my Bottom 3 rule, this early in the game). I mean, out of roughly 90 eliminations across 9 seasons, Idol winners have only appeared in the bottom grouping 4 times (Fantasia twice, Kris and Ruben once each)-- and 6 out of 9 winners never ever saw the B3. So scroll on down and check out the rankings...

Top 9 Most-Likely-To-Win Rankings:
1.) Pia Toscano
2.) Lauren Alaina
3.) Scotty McCreery
4.) James Durbin
5.) Jacob Lusk
6.) Casey Abrams (Bottom 3: Final 11)
7.) Haley Reinhart (Bottom 3: Final 13, 12)
8.) Paul McDonald (Bottom 3: Final 11.2)
9.) Stefano Langone (Bottom 3: Final 11)
10.) Naima Adedapo (Bottom 3: Final 12, 11.2)
11.) Thia Megia (Bottom 3: Final 11, 11.2)
12.) Karen Rodriguez (Bottom 3: Final 13, 12)
13.) Ashton Jones (Bottom 3: Final 13)

Now in a season this tightly packed (and without a clear frontrunner), I do think that Casey-Haley-Paul-Stefano all have shots at climbing higher (and maybe even jumping back into the winner running), given the fact they've all demonstrated immense potential/talent at one time or another. But right now, smart money is on Pia-Scotty-Lauren to bask in confetti come May (because I don't think James-Jacob are quite marketable enough for an Idol win).

Whatever may happen, one thing is starting to become crystal clear-- this season's results, more than any other, are contingent on each contestant's weekly showing. At this point, if anyone falters, it means certian doom (Stefano and Casey serve as living proof). For the first time, maybe ever, I believe it when Ryan says that "No one is safe."

And that, my friends, shall make for a continually exciting season!

Till next week,
Z