Some Contestants Step Up...

This season of American Idol is not the two-way race everyone wants it to be. In theory it should be, but it's not.

Because while the show is supposed to be a talent competition, it's also a television show. The producers and the audience know deep down that a 12-week diva-off between Melinda Doolittle and LaKisha Jones wouldn't really make for good television. Tuneful, yes. Soulful, definitely. Compelling and suspenseful, well, not so much. While LaKisha and Melinda are, as Simon declared, performing at a completely different level than their ten competitors, there are still four other singers who could deny the front-running duo their predicted places in the finals. In no particular order, the major threats to Idol's New Diva Order are:

1. The One the Producers and Judges Are Pushing: For those of you who've missed the last three weeks of Idol, that'd be Jordin Sparks. Guest coach Diana Ross, who nailed each singer's strengths and weaknesses in what appeared to be a matter of minutes, summed it up when she described the "glitter, the shine" in the 17-year-old's eyes. Not only that but Jordin is a pretty good vocalist too, as she proved tonight on the tricky ballad "If We Hold On Together." I thought she looked great and commanded the stage very well. I believe she should go far and could give an upset.

2. The One Who's Not Getting Enough Respect: If Jordin's getting lauded for having so much stage presence at 17, shouldn't 19-year-old Stephanie Edwards get a little of the same, especially after delivering "Love Hangover"' with a slow and sultry self-assurance? Stephanie may not be as polished as Melinda, or have the sparkle of Jordin, but every week, she takes the stage, rips into her number, and makes me believe that she's actually here to win this thing. And while there was truth in Simon's criticism that Stephanie's failure to dive into the song's awesome, disco-fied second half made her performance something of a tease, it also gave her the kind of originality she's been previously condemned for lacking.

3. The Man With a Plan, Blake Lewis: He is not the strongest singer or maybe even the most likable, either, with the tiny hint of arrogance that flashes across his face during the judges' critiques. But while Randy and Simon criticized his beat-heavy interpretation of "You Keep Me Hangin' On," I really loved it. I loved the electronica beats he added to it. It made the song more modern. I actually agreed with Paula that Blake could release it to radio tomorrow and have a hit. I wish all 12 contestants had the confidence and the vision to aim for something beyond karaoke.

4. The Justin Doppleganger: A lot of folks I know think Chris Richardson, with his husky-dog eyes and close-cropped hair, is the perfect, accessible sex symbol — a Justin Timberlake who's battled and beaten the bulge. I happen to agree and I think he is the leader of the pack on the men's side this year. Last night, he performed "The Boss" and I really, really liked his performance. I thought his voice was a bit nasally at times but the performance was solid and he worked the satge well just as Diana had instructed him to.

Now the ones I didn't like:

Chris Sligh: For once, Paula said something right by stating that Chris is trying "ultra hard to be ultra hip and cool"' — and it's ultra not working. The Coldplay-lite arrangement killed his version of "Endless Love" and he sounded strained and out-of-breath right from the opening notes. When you take away the unusual look and the snarky jokes that annoy me, he might not be a particularly skillful singer.

Gina Glocksen and Phil Stacey: They are the classic Idol midpack players, trying desperately to squeeze their way into the top six, while occasionally screaming at the top of their lungs. They're triers — and who doesn't like triers? Gina's "Love Child" was decent but again shrieky. Phil, meanwhile, showed vast improvement with a rousing cover of the not-terribly-exciting "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me." That Diana Ross pep talk appeared to have boosted his confidence and stage presence.

The Troika of Torture: Somewhere out there, A.J. Tabaldo, Sabrina Sloan, Nicholas Pedro, Tami Gosnell, Rachel Zevita, Sean Michel, and a couple dozen other talented Idol wannabes are sitting on their living-room couches and wondering how Brandon Rogers, Haley Scarnato, and Sanjaya Malakar managed to get this far into the competition. In honor of Brandon forgetting the words to the two-note sleeping pill of a song that is "You Can't Hurry Love," I'm going to forget to say anything more about him. He is so going home on Thursday!

Sanjaya Featuring Sanjaya's hair, I suspect, will be around to terrorize us next week. Miss Ross may think "Sanjaya is love," but I'd use a different noun to describe him. Unease? Discomfiture? Mortification? Shame spiral? His rendition of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" was like a child's gasp wrapped in a kitten's cough — only with a disconcerting flip of permed hair at the end. Really, I'm running out of words to describe how painful Sanjaya's performances have become. If he survives Thursday's eliminations, I'm going to walk around Manhattan and ask people, ''Who are you and why are you voting for him?''

Poor Haley. I felt so bad for her last night. I know why she's getting public support. She's pretty, the judges are mean to her, and sometimes it makes her get a little teary eyed. She performed the ballad "Missing You." She started so breathily I worried she'd caught a case of the whispers from Sanjaya. She also even forgot her words on the bridge. But, she picked things up in the end and ended the song beautifully. I also agreed with Simon on her stage presence. She didn't get lost as some of the others did. At the end of her performance, I was waiting for Simon to drag her off stage with a hook. But instead, he declared, "I didn't think it was that bad." This bought the poor girl into full tear mode.

She won't win, but she won't go home this week. At least Haley's not threatening anybody for the top two spots. I mean, LaKisha's "God Bless the Child" was the kind of awesomely restrained vocal that every screaming pop and R&B diva on the charts today should be forced to watch and take notes on. Better still, this magnificently low-key, humble everywoman has yet to hit one solitary sour note in four live performances this season. Then again, you could heap the same praise on Melinda, whose misty-eyed response to the live-audience love seemed really genuine to me tonight, too. I'm going to admit I really did not care for her choice of the rambling ballad "Home," and I thought she started her performance a little tentatively, but that's only because, at this point in the competition, I hold LaKisha and Melinda to a higher standard.

And who knows? Maybe, just maybe, Kiki and Mindy Doo will actually surprise and take this all the way into May in a good old-fashioned diva-off. There are worse ways the season could play out, no?