I think it's clear the judges are pimping Mario and Constantine for a good run. The 3 winners of the show so far have been a white female, a black male, and a blak female. I think they want a light-skinned male to win this season (or a female like Carrie who they can market in a way so as not to compete with Kelly), and so far Mario and Constantine have gotten a lot of airtime. They have also been let off the hook by the judges. Constantine picked a terrible song for himself, and he missed some notes; he was criticized, but not to the extent that some other guys were. Mario certainly wasn't Michael Jackson on the stage, and his vocal wasn't anywhere near as good as Stevie, yet Randy and Paula acted like he was the 2nd coming. When Paula disagreed with Simon about Mario's vocal, I wish Simon had asked her, "So you would buy that record before Anwar's 'Moon River?'"

"Every element, from the masterful picking to the gorgeous,
keening vocals and a song selection of tremulous grace,
thrills with authenticity and emotion..." - Entertainment Weekly