MANILA, Philippines?A few weeks ago, the final square-off in the current season of ?American Idol? pretty much appeared to be a foregone conclusion: Adam Lambert was definitely in, and to a slightly lesser extent, so were Danny Gokey and Allison Iraheta.

Then came the ?shocking? night when Matt Giraud was voted off?and Adam ended up in the bottom three for the first time in the competition. Even more shocking was the announcement that Adam had ranked fourth that week?in other words, he had gotten fewer votes than Gokey, Iraheta and even Kris Allen, who until then was deemed to be the weakest surviving finalist next to Giraud.

That was truly a shocker, because it revealed that Lambert was beatable?and by somebody as ?weak? as Allen! The upset was a tribute to Allen?s persona, as well as a chilling reminder to Lambert that, while he was clearly the tilt?s frontrunner, he couldn?t afford to take anything for granted, and had to hustle up to the ?final-finals,? along with the other survivors.

Allen?s surprising upset in turn ruined our ?psychic? prediction of the tilt?s final three (Lambert, Gokey, Iraheta), prompting us to abort our fledgling career as spot-on prognosticator of all things show biz (we got last year?s ?two Davids? finale and winner Cook absolutely right).

Appeal

Having retired from the visionary game, we can now merely and timorously speculate (this is being written on a Wednesday) that this year?s final two will be Lambert and Gokey, with Lambert favored to win the ?AI? crown. Again, however, Allen and his new legions of fans and voters could prove us wrong, so ?timorously? is the word for the week.

Having said all that, we should further note that, as far as versatility and long-term appeal are concerned, Lambert, Gokey and Allen all leave something to be desired?for different reasons.

Lambert?s vocal range is spectacular, but after a number of weeks of performances, his high and extended notes are no longer all that surprising. They may have even overstayed their welcome for some viewers, because he banks on them most of the time.

Orientation

Gokey is a fine singer in his own right, but his performances on ?AI? are sometimes found wanting due to his generally and safely pop orientation, and occasional poor song choices.

As for Allen, he?s the tilt?s most improved finalist, but his lack of vocal power is sometimes still an issue, so he can?t really afford to play it cool and collected, should he squeak into the ?final-finals.?

Another issue that needs to be noted is the increasing infighting among the tilt?s jurors. Last Wedenesday, Simon Cowell roundly criticized his cojudges for their comments and/or song recommendations, prompting everyone else to gang up on him.

Discordant note

All this may have been orchestrated to add zing and sting to the final-finals, which may not be all that exciting since Lambert appears to have outpaced the competition. Still, jurors are supposed to criticize contestants, not each other, so Cowell?s tirades strike a most discordant note.

P.S. As of this writing last Thursday evening, the tilt?s ?results? telecast revealed that ?American Idol? Season 8?s two surviving finalists are Lambert and Allen. That?s two for the ?AI? final-finals?what about the one for the money and the American Idol title? The final square-off explodes next week.