Idol's back -- for the last season as we know it

As usual, I'm not going to do a recap of the audition episodes of Idol, because half of these people we'll probably never see again--and it's hard to tell how hard anyone is after twenty seconds of a capella singing.

I do want to say one thing, though: This show is likely dead next year when Simon is gone. To be honest, while I missed Paula, it didn't really have that much of an effect on tonight's show. But Simon was the whole show tonight. Every auditioner wants to see him. Every auditioner wants his approval. And it's not just in the auditions. When we get to the final round, when is the audience most excited? When Simon likes someone. Why did people start watching Idol in the first place? Because there was a judge who was willing to actually say people were bad when they were bad.

I have no idea whether the X-Factor will be successful. And I have no idea who will replace Simon on Idol. But I can't imagine Idol will continue to be successful without him.