On this page
01The take
The Strong Field.
The original panel's final intact season, and the strongest audition class they ever worked with.
02The shape of the season
A rhythm worth tracking.
Season eight closes out the original panel's unbroken run with what many consider its strongest audition class. The Hollywood round brought through a top twelve with genuine range — gospel-rooted singers alongside theatrical pop performers — and the competition ran with that variety across the studio weeks. Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, and Paula Abdul were working together for the last time without knowing the outcome. That gives the season a retrospective weight the viewing didn't carry in real time.
03Where it sits in the canon
The #06 slot.
Slot #06 of 23 in the American Idol Editor's Canon. The seasons on either side show what I ranked it against.
No spoilers. Every page is reviewed before it goes live.
06Also appears in