American Idol Season Ten, Top 24- who's going to make the cut?

It always surprises some people when they find out I like Idol. Last season was a disaster and I didn't bother with it. This season has been great so far. Lopez and Tyler have turned out to be inspired choices for the show and amazingly, Tyler now owns this show as if it was always his. Nobody right now is missing Simon nor Paula. This may be the best season of Idol ever, and who would have thought that possible? Also, when Randy has differed from J-Lo and Tyler, so far I'm with Randy all the way.

As the final 24 gets cut down, here is who I think should make the final 12, based on this week's performances.

The guys who should make the cut:
Jacob Lusk- phenomenal voice, phenomenal skills. Barring some huge mishap or sheer idiocy on the part of the Idol audience, he's going to go far, maybe all the way. Either way, a star is born. Yes.
Casey Abrams- weird, unique, charismatic and can sing. Yes.
Paul McDonald- yes.
Sefano Lagone- the darkhorse for the contenders, but definitely yes.
James Durbin- Adam who? Yes, but let's see how versatile he is- he may be a one-trick pony.
Brett Loewenstern- most of the audience may not remember Simply Red, but Loewenstern does and he's got more tricks up his sleeve than most. Yes.

Say goodbye to:
Clint Jun Gamboa- his initially strong performance faded from memory as the night wore on. Plus he comes off as a jerk.
Jovanny Barreto- not a chance.
Jordan Dorsey- another jerk, bad performance, can't hold a candle to Lusk. Bye!
Tim Halperin- totally non-descript, boring performance.
Robbie Rosen- had the misfortune to follow Durbin and came off as a young, effete Neil Diamond. No.
Scotty McCreery- yes, he has a great voice for country music, so give him a contract and send him to Nashville, but please get him off the show already- everything he does sounds the same.

The women who should make the cut:
Naima Adedapo- she has it all. The voice, the looks, and charisma. I LOVE her. Yes.
Karen Rodriguez- she has a beautiful voice, great range, she exudes charm. Like J-Lo, I love that she sings in English and Spanish. Needs to pick better songs, but definitely yes.
Ashthon Jones- her voice reminds me of Teena Marie's with a deeper timbre. A classic R&B singer- and has personality to burn. Yes.
Thia Megia- this 15 year-old has so much going for her and she's going to be a huge vote-getter. Absolutely.
Lauren Alaina- she's unique among this group and has a lot of versatility- perhaps more than any of the other female contestants. Yes.
Pia Toscano- the most solid woman from the beginning, she killed it tonight. Yes.

Say goodbye to:
Ta-Tynisa Wilson- it can't be easy going first on the show, but sadly, no, nothing new nor interesting here. She looks hot, but that's all she's got.
Kendra Chantelle- I have no idea how or why she made the top 12, much less how she's going to stay there.
Rachel Zevita- oh, hell yes I loved her, but it's not going to happen. Not a great vocal on this night, but as a performer she's interesting and would shake things up. Too bad she's going home.
Lauren Turner- she'd be great fronting a bar band or on the blues circuit, but for Idol? I don't think so, but everyone seems to like her.
Julie Zorrilla- I love this contestant but the judges did her in tonight. Too bad, but she's going home.
Haley Reinhart- she's a little bit too Christina Aguilera for me, and in a less-competitive field she'd make it through, but the talent on the female side is deeper than on the guys, and there's no room for her this year.

We'll know tomorrow.