Saturday, August 02, 2008
Idol Worship
I tried watching an episode of Pinoy Idol on GMA Channel 7 one boring night and you know what? I actually enjoyed it. Honestly, I was expecting a bad show with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. I watched it expecting non-talented wannabes, incompetent and pretentious judges, plus a boring host in a cheap rip-off of American Idol. Imagine my surprise upon realizing how enjoyable the show can be. I had high expectations, bad ones, but still, not every show can live up to them. In this respect, Pinoy Idol Takes the cake. If you're a fan of the show, you might be enjoying it for completely different reasons. Me, I enjoy it for the sheer comedy it provides.
I admit the show initially turned me off; I was expecting the best of the best in Philippine amateur entertainment. I got amateur entertainment, but not from the contestants. I watched the so-called judges as they expressed amateurish and biased opinions regarding each performance. What I got from the contestants was desperate groveling which, in a real talent show, wouldn't have made the cut. The final 12 they got right now shouldn't have made it that far in the first place. Are they really the best Pinoy talents out there? No wonder Philippine show business is deteriorating, mediocrity is the name of the game nowadays. Just take a look at the new blood we keep initiating into the business and you'll see what I mean. Everybody should enjoy a good laugh once in a while but if this is the future of Pinoy entertainment, we're screwed.
I do not have anything against talent shows, but being the one forced to stomach their products I may have something against their criteria and manner of judging. For example, I would like real talent to play a major role in deciding which contestants go home or not. I would like for the judges to give objective opinions as opposed to the pretentious banter that either patronized or insulted the contestants. By lying to these spotlight seekers, the judges are as guilty themselves for the contestants' deficiencies as artists. What do they know about talent and superstardom, if there is such a thing? That's like asking a plumber if justified true belief is real knowledge. Everybody seems or claims to know what philosophy is – even your ordinary bum in the street corner can philosophize. They're no Wittgensteins, though. This is why we leave philosophy to the philosophers. Talent show contestants have no choice but to leave all the talent show judging to “qualified” talent show judges because they're supposed to know what makes a star shine. How are non-talented-wannabes supposed to learn from washed-up-has-beens?
I'd very much like to give the Pinoy Idol judges the benefit of the doubt, but how can I? Have you seen their “final 12”? Am I supposed to believe that these are the best in the Philippines today? Are these nitwits supposed to be our idols? If that's the case then I refuse to be a part of this “show” in any way. I will not succumb to its standards of mediocre showmanship foolishly dubbed the crème de la crème of Pinoy new artists. I would rather turn the TV off and listen to the rhythm of my feeble mind as it churns out reminiscences of the not so distant past. A past made sweet and memorable by real and inspired artists like Gary V. and Raymond Lauchengco. A time where music was taken seriously, where music was an end in itself. A time where “Ang Bagong Kampyon” was the ultimate talent show. A time where “tatlong bentesingko lang ang aking kailangan para makausap siya kahit sandali”. A time where Pinoy Idol, even American Idol, ceased to exist.
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