Pop Friday 3/9

• I always have to begin with American Idol: the top 12 are finally set and most of the fat has been cut. But not all. As I feared, Sanjaya is still in the competition but there’s only so long he can last. Of course, he might be better than Haley who, despite being from San Antonio, is not exactly my favorite. Like Sanjaya, she’s dull and has very little range. But she may be even worse because she picks more annoying songs. Sabrina should have made the top 12 instead of Haley, but every year of AI needs its cheesy female vocalist who will be voted out the first week of the finals. That’s Haley.

As for Sundance not making the finals. So what. He’s really nothing more than an average bar singer who managed to have a brilliant audition. His cover of “Jeremy” was emotionally dead. I won’t miss him, even if he was better than either Sanjaya or Phil Stacey.

• So, Marvel Comics is killing off Captain America. You’d think this would be a time when the shielded-one would be most needed. Odd, the character appeared in WWII and died during the War on Terror. Is there a political comment by Marvel in all of this? Of course, in the comic-book world, no one actually stays dead. Just look at Superman.

• Speaking of political comments, I couldn’t help but wonder if the torture-themed flashbacks in this week’s Lost weren’t a veiled comment on U.S. torture policies. The message: do not sink to the level of your enemy. Refuse to even come close.

Good message as far as I’m concerned. And that’s it for this week.