Hasta La Vista Haley: Top 8 Results

Finally!

I don't hate Haley, I really don't. If I was on a cruse ship and she was that evening's entertainment, I'd probably be pretty psyched. But Top 8 of American Idol, the show that has given us the likes of Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, and Chris Daughtry? Gimme a break.

The saddest part of her elimination this evening, in all honesty, was that we didn't even get a chance to say goodbye to her legs, which were cruelly covered up with long pants.

Yes, it was time for Haley to go, and now she's gone (with Phil Stacey making his debut in the Bottom 2 and Chris Richardson slipping into the Bottom 3). Sure, it would have been nice to get rid of Sanjaya this week, but hey, as far as I'm concerned this is the next best thing. And at least we have put a halt to three straight contestants leaving before they should have. Maybe, just maybe, we'll actually wind up with a deserving Top 4 after all, which would be quite a feat considering this crazy season.

Let's hope I didn't just jinx it.

As for the rest of the show, at double the length it was, predictably, double the torture. That segment on "the public's opinion"? Obnoxious. The Tony Bennett audition? Painful, and no way to treat a legend. The judge's contribution to the evening? Practically nothing.

La Lopez, however, was in fine form, showing us (and the contestants) how Latin music is really meant to be performed. I've gotta say, I am a much bigger fan of Jennifer Lopez now than I was 30 hours ago. And that group number was unintentionally hilarious, with the corny, dramatic choreography and Sanjaya's whispered final line. What can I say, I'm a sucker for a cheesy group number.

But hey, despite some of this evening's more painful moments, I'm not complaining. As I predicted in my post Who's Going Home Tonight, we bid Haley adieu. Everything else is just icing on the cake.

When you book that cruise ship, Haley, lemme know -- I'll even come to both the early and the late show!