Omaha, Nebraska seems an exceedingly random place for American Idol to set up shop for a day of auditions.  Wikipedia just informed me that Omaha has a population of 427,872 (Also, did you know that Omaha actually means “Dwellers on the Bluff?”  I feel like Alice Cooper).  I bring this up because there are much grander metropolises out there in our great country that American Idol has never visited, especially ones with other big cities in close proximity.  Omaha is close to corn, and that's about it.  In the one day of auditions in the heartland, the Idol judges sent 19 lucky singers on to the Hollywood rounds which, for one day, isn't an awful showing, but I'm willing to bet that, for example, Portland would have done better.  Just a thought.

The Good:

Jason Rich: 

This small town farm boy has a really good voice, if not a little bland, but he kept forgetting his lyrics.  He almost completely and utterly choked.  It was early in the day so, thankfully, the judges showed some patience and on the fourth try he remembered his lyrics. 

Rachael Wicker:

Rachel's thing is that she is an arm wrestling champion.  She also has a pretty good voice.  She's a gregarious, kind of cute blonde lady who isn't really anything special, but you never know.

Samantha Sidley:

This shy girl came in and sang a very solid rendition of a Norah Jones tune.  She sounds exactly like Norah, and I liked the low smokiness of it, but I fear what might happen when she's forced to really belt something out.

David Cook:

Mohawked rocker who showed off some big time pipes while singing Bon Jovi.  The judges all really like him. 

Elizabeth Erkert and Michael Sanfilippo:

We saw about five seconds of each of these singers.  They made it to Hollywood, so let's assume they're pretty solid. 

Angelica Puente:

The sob story of the night.  She had a falling out with her parents and now lives with her grandma.  She has a powerful voice, but it's a little out of control at times.  The judges like her potential, however, and she's through.  Afterwards, Seacrest calls her father and they have a nice little talk. 

Leo Marlowe:

Nice guy from a really small town (200 people) came in and gave one of the easiest, most natural auditions I can remember.  The judges were all super impressed with Leo and his personality.  There was nothing forced about him.


The Bad:

No bad tonight, just baffling. 


The Baffling:

Chris Bernheisel:

Chris is obsessed with American Idol.  He is also a frenetic, effeminate personality who brought gifts to the judges.  His singing was terrible, of course, but his sheer energy was astonishing.  After the judges deny him entry to Hollywood, he asks to audition for a reporting gig at the Idol finale.  He continues by pretending he's on the red carpet.  He's not completely insane, but he's on the fence.

Sarah Whitaker:

A large goth lady who is proud of her diabolical and freaky laugh.  She also previously worked as a pro wrestler under the moniker Lady Morgue.  And then, incomprehensibly, she came in and sang this cheery, vaudevillian number.  It was ll very weird. 

Johnny Escamilla:

This was the best they could get for weirdo of the night.  He wears a gold jacket and introduces himself to America, saying he's one of the weirdest people you'll ever meet.  His singing is predictably terrible, but it's his tap-dancing and constant jazz hands that make him stand out from the crowd.


-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image Courtesy of FOX)

Read EW.com's take on this episode of American Idol