Hopelessly Devoted

Is anyone else watching Grease: You're the One that I Want? If you aren't, you should be. The premise of the show is simple: this summer there will be a Broadway revival of Grease, and the lead roles of Sandy and Danny will be played by the winners of this talent show, voted on by television viewers.

The premise is very American Idol: a bunch of young people sing for judges, some are awful, some are great, the good ones eventually advance to a top twelve. They all sing Broadway-like shows every week, and viewers vote for their favorites. The elimination works very much like So You Think You Can Dance: the bottom two girls and the bottom two boys, based on the viewer votes, are forced to have a sing-off for the judges, who then choose who they will save and who will go home. The finale is different, being based solely on viewer votes.

This Sunday the winners will be announced. But for those who are late to the party, no worries: Fox is re-running the show, from the top ten down to the finale, this Sunday. So set your DVR and enjoy. (And don't read further, as I reveal who is left in the competition.)

There is some real talent in this mix. My favorite girl from the beginning has been Laura, an atypical Sandy in that she is a brunette. But I think she is the best singer, and a dynamic personality, even if she runs around the stage with her arms spread wide as an excuse for choreography a little too often.

I don't have as much of an opinion on the guys, who I feel are generally less talented, although at this point I'm rooting for Max. Max isn't very attractive--almost to the point of being difficult to watch sometimes--but he's a good singer and I can buy him as a high schooler, in contrast to Austin, who looks about 35 years old (his IMDB profile says he's 31). And if your DVR is already taping Amazing Race: All Stars and a new episode of King of the Hill on Sunday night, creating a conflict for the finale of Grease, it's okay--the finale reruns on Thursday night!