America's Got Talent (Season 8)

Inside the theatre you're welcome to discuss your favorite television shows, musical artists, video games, books, movies, or anything popular culture!
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~JCGJ~
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Post by ~JCGJ~ »

I will be happy if anyone (except for Taylor) wins, but I really hope Kenichi wins. He's my absolute favorite! :mrgreen:

-- Wed Sep 18, 2013 11:43 pm --

EDIT:

Winner; Spoiler Alert!!!
I could not be happier with the results! I said from the very beginning thay Kenichi deserved to win, and apparenrly, the USA agreed with me! Couldn't be happier! :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
Last edited by ~JCGJ~ on Wed Sep 18, 2013 9:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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I’m really glad Marty did well this time. I knew it wasn’t nerves that messed him up before, it was emotion. America was right to realize that and give him another shot, knowing he could and would do better.



I didn’t enjoy this Chicago Boyz performance as much, and it’s really too bad about that injury now (not that it wasn’t bad before) because I’m unsure if it was because of that and them losing that guy, or just because the group as a whole has peaked. But that part when the three stacked guys jumped rope while jumping another rope was incredible, I’ve never seen anything like it.





I think Howard made a good choice with his Wild Card. They’re good magicians, they just had a bad performance last time. I get what they were trying to do with that trick, but it didn’t come off right because it was the wrong kind of thing for the tv show. If they win and get their own full stage show they can do it then and it will probably work great, it was just the wrong type of thing for a 90 second highlight performance. But that doesn’t mean the act is bad, they deserved a chance to regain America’s confidence.



What Howard said about the Wild Card (“Once America votes you out you should be gone”) misses the point I think. At least, as I always understood it.
I thought the purpose of the Wild Card was to make up for times when there are so many amazing acts on the same show that there simply aren’t enough spots to put all the deserving acts through, like happened multiple times last season for example. When that happens the judges bring back some of the acts that didn’t fit through, which is different than not making it through, because they absolutely deserve to continue on, it’s ridiculous that they would be out simply because the way the acts broke down there was an overabundance of greatness. If there were more available spots they would have made it, so you give them what’s rightfully theirs.
Now, sometimes judges (*coughMel* >_>) abuse the Wild Card and simply bring back an act they personally want to see return, and in those cases Howard is right, that’s clearly not what the Wild Card is about and it’s stupid and irresponsible. So it depends on whether it’s used properly, but when it is it’s a very good and necessary thing.



My gosh, Kenichi is unbelievable! How does he come up with this stuff?! I cannot recall another act this show has had that is at his level of complete and consistent talent, creativity, and diversity!





I didn’t realize until a performance or two ago how great the KriStef Brothers are. I originally thought they were just another balancing act, we’ve seen it before. But they are so much more! The comedy and story they bring to each of their performances takes an act that would already be great on it’s own just from the strength and precision needed for the moves and makes it something truly incredible. I’m glad he recovered alright, that was a terrible fall.



It was amazing to hear Howie of all people give a lecture on making sure to vote on the talent and not the story, and everything he said was spot on, I loved it.



The acts I would put through:
D'Angelo and Amanda
Leon and Romy
Kenichi Ebina
John Wing
KriStef Brothers
American Military Spouses Choir

-- 07 Oct 2013 11:43 am --

It was awesome to see iLuminate again.

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Post by snubs »

The KriStef Brothers are great, and really creative. \:D/
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Once again, I wasn’t as impressed with the Chicago Boyz as I have been before; but once again, they had a crazy move I’ve never seen before. Two, actually. The one where the people jumping rope turned ropes for other people to jump, and then of course the massive five person tower jumping rope.





Catapult finally won me over. Every time I saw them I would think ‘This is good, but Silhouettes is better.’ Catapult has had the edge in shapes, which is always impressive, but Silhouettes had the edge in story and that’s what’s more important here. Catapult is now strengthening their storytelling and I think they’ve finally got their act together; this was by far the best performance of this kind that I’ve ever seen.





There’s not much else to say about Kenichi than what’s already been said. You just end up repeating yourself with words like genius, skill, vision, etc. He has it all, and it’s amazing. I think Howie summed his act up about as well as can be done: “True, pure talent.” And how in the world did he time those jumps?!





The acts I would put through:
KriStef Brothers
D'Angelo and Amanda
Catapult Entertainment
Forte
Taylor Williamson
Kenichi Ebina

-- 09 Oct 2013 10:50 am --

Olate Dogs, as impressive as ever. No matter how many times I see it I cannot believe when that dog does a back flip! And it jumps rope! That is unbelievable!





I am absolutely shocked Catapult didn’t make it. And very disappointed, I really wanted to see them again now that they’re perfecting the act.
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I never really liked Olate Dogs to be honest. :- I always thought they were 'meh.'
Last edited by snubs on Wed Oct 09, 2013 5:27 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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To be honest in response, I actually agree. During the season I got caught up by them, as the rest of America apparently did, but they really shouldn’t have won. They should have gotten to the final, make no mistake, but they shouldn’t have come in first. So in retrospect I’m not as crazy about them as I first was. But that doesn’t stop them from blowing me away each time I rewatch the videos. I mean the dog does a back flip!
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Post by Woody »

*posts for bookworm*
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Interesting change this season having two performances in the Final. Especially when one has to be a repeat. Not sure what the point is exactly, but I guess it’s a good thing. It ensures that all the acts have sufficient opportunity to fully display their talent and growth so the voters are well informed.



Even when doing something we’ve already seen Kenichi shows his incredible talent. To take his audition and hone it into a full performance, it drives home the complete and thorough vision and skill that makes him so amazing.





Hey, Collins got two different performances out of the night. I get that he can’t do the same exact trick again, but that shouldn’t mean he gets to pull out something completely new, everyone else has to repeat themselves. But then again I don’t know what else he could have done. It’s an interesting situation.

Same with Taylor. I don’t think they thought the two performance night through completely or they would have realized it only works with certain kinds of acts.



There’s nothing left to say about Kenichi other than he’s going to win. That’s it. No one I’ve ever seen on this show, in any season, has deserved it more. He goes beyond just incredible skill, he has incredible creativity. He is exactly what the show is about.





It’s weird that the performances were in a different order the second time, the voting lines weren’t lined up with the order most recent in memory. That might cause some confusion.



This was a really good Final, but last season’s was stronger. Any of the acts truly could have won that one. Any act could win this one, but there are clear standouts this time.

All of the acts have done really well and all deserve to be here, some even deserve to win, but there can be only one winner and it has to come down to who deserves it most. That is, hands down, Kenichi.

-- 14 Oct 2013 11:24 am --

I’ve been looking forward to Kenichi’s duet performance because I wanted to see him go back to just dance for a minute now that he didn’t have to do a big production performance for the competition.





This is just unbelievable! How? Just, how?





It’s so awesome that Forte’s duet was with Josh Groban; what an incredible full circle.





Absolutely no surprise and absolutely the right result.



It’s been a great season. There were times when I wasn’t sure about it, but once things got really rolling it turned out fine. I think the judging panel is decent, once the girls figured things out. I’m still not a fan of the four judge system, and I have some questions about their full competence, but they weren’t terrible. I would like to have this group back again next season over someone new coming in again anyway, because even if they aren’t the best they’re alright; a newcomer could be worse. The only change I would approve of would be the return of Piers.



Now if you’ll bear with me for a little repetition (and some new things), I’d like to make some compilation posts with reflective comments on a few of the most noteworthy acts, for future reference. Once I gather up a few more videos.
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*posts for bookworm*
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Post by bookworm »

I clearly have to start with Kenichi. This is far and away the best act I have ever seen on any season of the show. This is America’s Got Talent compressed into one act. Everything the show is about is right here. Talent, obviously, but also the vision, genius, and skill to use that Talent in a truly unique, entertaining, and amazing way. He has such incredible movement that he could just dance and he probably still would have won, but the fact that he could and did go so far beyond that is why he is the most deserving contestant they’ve ever had. He is the quintessential example of what the show is. To be able to first just come up with these amazing ideas, and then to actually go and put them together, all by himself no less, it’s impressive beyond words.














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Post by ~JCGJ~ »

I must say, I agree with you.
However, I can't say that I think he's the best act that's ever been on the show (mostly because this is the only season that I actually watched it regularly), however, I can say that he was the best that I've seen. While each act, individually, may not have been my favorite overall, Kenichi's talent, and creativity far exceeds anyone I've seen on the show.
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Post by bookworm »

I didn’t pick out any of the KriStef Brothers videos during the season because like I said it took a while to really appreciate them, but now that I do I definitely have to post them for future reference. To repeat myself, they are so much more than just another balancing act. The comedy and story they bring to each of their performances takes an act that would already be great on its own just from the strength and precision needed for the moves and makes it something truly incredible.










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They are a great balancing act. I really enjoyed them throughout the show. *nods*
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Catapult was likened to Silhouettes several times, and for good reason. It’s the same concept, and for a while was really just the same thing. But as the group progressed their act noticeably developed and they began to truly come into their own. I’m sad they didn’t last longer in the competition because they were just beginning to perfect the combination of shapes and story that would have really set them apart from being just another shadow troupe.






Similar acts: Silhouettes, Attraction
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While they were very good, and very interesting to watch, I don't think I'd be willing to pay money to watch an hour and a half show of "Shadow Play," no matter how good the story is...
If they were going to have a show in Vegas, I think they'd need to try to expand their act somehow...
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I only posted select videos for Collins Key during the season because I only thought select performances were particularly noteworthy, but I want to do a compilation on him because even though he wasn’t always stunning, I did really like what he was doing. He has taken something everyone has seen, magic and mind reading, and turned it into something no one has ever seen. How he comes up with these ideas is almost as impressive as how he actually pulls them off. (Seriously, how can he know these things?!) I love how he incorporates social media into his tricks and how he isn’t afraid to go big and complex. It didn’t always work out, but that’s because he’s so young. In time he is definitely going to be an outstanding magician that’s not only talented, but fresh and engaging.














Similar acts: Eric Dittelman
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Collins Key was really boring and didn't have much stage presents at all. His dialog or patter wasn't very good either.
Last edited by snubs on Fri Jan 03, 2014 1:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by bookworm »

As the judges said he definitely needs to work on his presentation, but what did you think of the tricks themselves?
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bookworm wrote:As the judges said he definitely needs to work on his presentation, but what did you think of the tricks themselves?
some were pretty good. They weren't really good for a stage though.. and they would have been sooooo much better if his did them a bit differently and had a better presentation. I will give him kudos for not making random women disappear and reappear though.

I am just super picky and critical when it comes to magicians because my brother is one.
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Post by ~JCGJ~ »

One thing about Collins Key is, while, yes, his tricks are mind boggling, and quite impressive, he pretty much only knows one trick; he simply changes the presentation, and items used. I believe a good magician should have a variety of different types of tricks to display. I mean, it works for 2 minute snipits, when you only have time for one trick, but if he's going to go on and do magic shows and big performances, the audience will get bored after the third trick, if he doesn't mix it up a little more.
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