By Sohyung Kang

Last night was the wild-card round on “American Idol,” and Matt Giraud, Megan Joy Corkrey, Jasmine Murray and Anoop Desai made it through to the (surprise) top 13. But I have a sneaking suspicion the judges had already picked their favorite four before the night even started, since at least two of them didn’t have the best performances last night. Here’s my take on the night’s performances:

Jesse Langseth, singing Rufus and Chaka Khan’s “Tell Me Something Good”
I like this girl, so long as she’s singing and not talking. I’d probably buy one of her albums over one by favorites Lil Rounds or Danny Gokey. Last night she was meh. Not bad, not great.

Matt Giraud, singing Smokey Robinson’s “Who’s Lovin’ You”
Although this was far better than his catastrophic Coldplay performance, I wasn’t really feeling it — mainly because he was trying too hard to be Justin Timberlake, with the scarf and hat, over-the-top runs and massive riffs. There’s only one JT, and it’s not you, Matt (or you, Chris Richardson). I love that Simon compared him to Taylor Hicks, and the audience booed. This may be the only time being compared to a winner could be considered an insult.

Megan Joy Corkrey, singing KT Tunstall’s “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree”
I like the jazzy tone in her voice, but a good tone doesn’t mean anything if you can’t hit the right notes. She sounded more like a dying cat than anything near Katharine McPhee’s excellent performance of the same song a few seasons ago. I don’t understand why the judges, particularly Simon, love her so much. I’m sure she could have walked out onstage and flipped the bird and she still would have made it through to the top 13.

Von Smith, singing Elton John’s “Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word”
I knew Von was a goner before he stepped onstage. I’m just glad he stopped screaming at us.

Jasmine Murray, singing Christina Aguilera’s “Reflection”
This performance was so captivating that midway through it, I got up to brush my teeth. Jasmine is clearly a judges’ favorite for her “commercial” appeal, but until she starts showing some personality, I will continue to use her appearances as an excuse to get my daily chores done. However, she did show some improvement, and I, too, was shocked that she could actually sing.

Ricky Braddy, singing Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition”
This guy can sing. He may actually have the best voice out of all the males this season. But Simon’s never liked him, so it was obvious he wouldn’t make it through.

Tatiana del Toro, singing Whitney Houston’s “Saving All My Love for You”
Normally, I hit mute when the crazy and histrionic Tatiana appears onscreen, but I decided to make an exception this time. Sadly, she was one of the better female singers of the night. She has a big voice, which is more than I can say for the others. But she dug her own grave by singing the same song she just sang two weeks ago. I found it funny when she suddenly started speaking with an accent last night — she must’ve liked how the judges reacted to Jorge’s accent the other night.

Anoop Desai, singing Bobby Brown’s “My Prerogative”
I love Anoop. He is definitely not the best vocalist in the competition, but he has a laid-back charm and fun stage presence that make me want to keep tuning into the show to see what he does. I was initially disappointed that he picked a song he already sang during Hollywood Week, but that disappointment quickly faded once he sang, “They say I’m nasty.”

What did you think of the judges’ wild-card selections? Did they leave anyone out? Let us know!