ses3225 wrote:
I'm looking forward to the premiere as well. I think shows start next week sometime (maybe Wednesday). Way back when The X Factor premiered I thought I was going to be less excited about Idol simply because I wouldn't have been craving for a singing competition show like in the past. But further into the season, I started getting annoyed with the show and started counting down the days until Idol premieres (not literally btw). I just think it's such a better overall show than The X Factor, even though I'd like to take some aspects of each show to make one big perfect show. Bring on the auditions!

Pretty much ditto to everything you said. I find the AI auditions, and even the Hollywood rounds, to be a lot more genuine than the X Factor auditions were. However, as you get into the live voting rounds, it's hit or miss because that's when it starts to feel manipulative.