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There simply is nothing else to talk about today except the American Idol finale, and not just the final result, but the whole big entertaining two hours they gave us tonight.

People that read my articles regularly, be it here, another blog, Reality Shack , etc., know I’ve been really hard on American Idol this year. They also know it took a lot to get me to this point, as after seven seasons, I was always the show’s staunchest defender, no matter what. I’ve always been a TV addict, not to mention a reality TV junkie, but American Idol is numero uno with me. From January to May, there just isn’t much else. Yet, I saw things I didn’t want to see in the show this year, and it was hard to deny, even for me, that there was something else at play here.

But tonight, I’m forgiving them for anything that has happened this season, from the early dismissals of Carly Smithson and Michael Johns that seemed somehow orchestrated, to the horrible treatment Jason Castro seemed to get in his final weeks on the show. If even Simon Cowell can apologize to David Cook for being too harsh on him, then I can drop it all and just enjoy a very entertaining two hours.

American Idol has always been about production, big production. They do nothing small. This season they seemed to save it all for this finale. It was big. From big stars to performances we wanted to see again. There really wasn’t too much that was boring tonight. There wasn’t anything I skipped past, and I had a time crunch going on. I was going to have to pick my son up as soon as the finale was over, and I was already getting a ten minute late start on the beginning of the show, followed by a fifteen minute phone call.

After the top six girls came out and sang the Donna Summer medley, and Ms. Summer herself came out and joined them (was it me, or did she look a little stiff?), we knew when the top six guys were singing the Bryan Adams medley, that he’d make an appearance as well (he seemed to just be having a good time!). For the final twelve, singing a medley of George Michael songs, it had to be, and it was (although those were quite outrageous glasses!).

If it were just those stars, it would be a stunning show, but it wasn’t even close to being done. David Cook got to sing Sharp Dressed Man with ZZ Top. ZZ Top! That was the most exciting thing I’ve seen since Bo Bice combined with Lynyrd Skynyrd. Archuleta wasn’t left out, though, as he got to sing Apologize with OneRepublic. Both sounded really good. You have to think they set all this up weeks ago, not sure who was going to be in the final two, and kept scheduled performances even when people were voted out, as we also had Syesha Mercado singing alongside Seal and Graham Nash singing Teach Your Children with Brooke White. I must admit, though, I struggle to think they ever saw Brooke as a serious final two contender, despite the fact I liked her.

There were also stars that sang without Idols, such as The Jonas Brothers, meaning the young girls in the audience got double the thrill with both them and David Archuleta. Stars that were reigning Idols at one point themselves were also in attendance. Carrie Underwood and Jordin Sparks each took the stage, although we were definitely missing appearances by our other Idols. Just once, it would be neat to hear them all sing together. Can you imagine if Kelly, Ruben, Fantasia (if Simon could have managed to contain himself), Carrie, Taylor, and Jordin took the stage together? I guess it’s a testament to their success that they can’t all be congregated at once.

As a true testament of the show, and what had me seeing my way to forgiveness, the producers either listened to us complain the last several months or were saving this just for us all along. I suspect they are reading and listening. To have the eliminated Idols that we were most upset about sing alone on the stage, without other stars or finalists, vindicated both the eliminated Idols and the show. Jason Castro redoing Hallelujah was just the right touch. It game him his due that he was robbed of his last few weeks. And to have Carly Smithson and Michael Johns in a duet showed us what we knew, that they were eliminated way too soon, but they definitely have careers ahead of them.

In what I hope becomes some type of a staple on the show next season, they provided some great comedy bits, along with the music. I know American Idol is about music and not comedy, but the Gladys Knight and the “Pips” bit was great. I’m tempted to think that they filmed that for Idol Gives Back, and it was so great, they decided to save it until now. The Love Guru bit with Mike Myers was a lot of fun, and to see David Cook just crack up at the end of the bit, that’s the thing we’re missing with the show. They keep trying to show more of the artists’ personalities, but all they need to do is that. With that little moment, we saw what a great sense of humor he had. We had fun, because he was too! The same thing can be said about the Davids’ Guitar Hero ads. I thought Archuleta’s would fall short, as it’s so not him, but in some ways, that’s what made it even funnier!

American Idol is just so important to me, and I just couldn’t mess up the story of the finale by forwarding through any of it, despite being on a time crunch. I was trying to make that time up on the TiVo, forwarding through the commercials (making me almost miss the Guitar Hero ads), but I still had to pause it to leave halfway through Carrie Underwood. I had to stop in at a neighborhood store, a store where I’ve seen Dancing With the Stars on the TV above the register. I literally went into the store with blinders on, trying to block out the Fox newscast I saw on the television, hoping I wouldn’t hear something by accident about the winner.

Back home and hitting play, Simon showed true class by apologizing to Cook at the last minute, and saying it didn’t really matter for the first time who won. I think he was being sincere, although others have suggested he was saving face, as he knew Cook was about to be crowned. Ellen this week showed Simon some of the meaner things he’s said this week, and it honestly took him back, saying he didn’t even like himself there. I think we need him to stay just the same, but if he can come back after, and realized when he was a little too harsh, perhaps no harm, no foul.

After the excitement of the night, I was right on par with Simon. It didn’t matter at this point who won, but I still hooped and hollered like crazy when Cook when. You couldn’t have a more gracious winner with Cook, and I don’t think you can have a more gracious runner-up than Archuleta, who showed more poise at 17 then many do that are two or three times his age.

Let’s see what you do in the off-season, Fox. You went out with a bang, unlike last year’s whimper. Let’s see if you can build on that to start off next January, because as Renaldo Lapuz keeps reminding us, We’re Brothers Forever!

Photos Courtesy of americanidol.com

For more information on American Idol, see SirLinksalot: American Idol.

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