‘America’s Got Talent’ review: Acte II, Jaycob Curlee, Mat Franco, Darik Santos, and live show #2

For its second live show, “America’s Got Talent” hit less of a home run, and more of a double that was barely even a double at all. There were a good many acts who played it too safe, some that made puzzling decisions, and also Juan-Carlos. We almost want to vote for him out of spite to keep him for the show not putting Dustin’s Dojo through.

As we do with all of these competition-show reviews, we’re going through here and ranking the acts in order from worst to first.

12. Juan-Carlos – Without a doubt, he was absolutely terrible. With that being said, did anyone expect him to be good? We suppose that were this a sequel to “Napoleon Dynamite” he would fit right in with that world. Also, he reminds me of Tingle from “The Legend of Zelda.”

11. Livy, Matt, and Sammy – Who thought it was a good idea to have kids singing “Fat Bottomed Girls” by Queen, especially an acoustic version? This was just no bueno. The kids seem nice, but there was nothing else appealing about it.

10. John and Andrew – First of all, we really wish the editing would stop trying to sell the story again and again. The best way to take them seriously is for us to stop having to hear about them like they are a gimmick. Their dancing is really good, but when judging them only on that, there was not anything here that comes across as new to us.

9. Hart Dance Team – What they do is extraordinary, but this was the same thing that we saw from them last time more or less. We know it’s unfair to ask dance groups for so many different things, but that’s what you have to do to win the competition.

8. Mara Justine – The judges loved it, and to an extent we understand. The stage presence and the personality was there; we just wish that there was more care put into the tuning. Some notes were a little out-of-control, and Howard Stern gave her some really great advice about this. Also, that disco dress needs to be permanently retired.

7. Darik Santos – We like Darik, but this was mostly just awkward and not really that funny. The other problem right now is just that we had a better awkward comic last season in Taylor Williamson, and another great one on “Last Comic Standing” right now in Joe Machi. There’s not a lot of room for him.

6. Loop Rawlins – We second almost exactly what we said about the dance team. It’s very cool, but Loop needs to do something other things to make this into a full wild west show. This wasn’t enough to get him a ticket to the next round, even if we do love someone original like him being in the competition. That originality gives him a little bit of an edge.

5. Jaycob Curlee – A very nice vocal performance, and we’re sure that it will be enough to get him through to the next round. Still, we’re with Howard here about wanting to see more passion from him vocally, and get a little more of the grit in his voice.

4. Andrey Moraru – The interesting thing about him is that we don’t really see anything Andrey is doing as completely original, or worthy of getting a million dollars. However, it’s the way that he moves, and the artistry that flows through his veins that has us so entranced by him. He’s a very gifted guy, and we feel that the best still could be to come.

3. Acte II – We give them this placement based on the talent that’s here, and the fact that they stayed mostly in tune. We didn’t love the idea of making Whitney Houston into opera, especially since there are so many ballads that suit it better. Still, the judges (and the audience) obviously loved it.

2. Aerial Animation – We really like this act a ton. The animations are at times a little cheesy, but we really connect to Abigai’s story, and love the way that she tries to do something unique and different with every routine. There was something new in there tonight, but also once again great acrobatics.

1. Mat Franco – We’ve seen so many card tricks, but Mat is so slick! This was really creative, and one of the best magic acts that we’ve had on the show in some time. We really do feel like if he continues to do so much with so little, imagine what he could do with larger tricks.

What do you think about the “America’s Got Talent” show tonight, and who was your favorite? Share with a comment, and head over here to see where we ranked everyone before the show! You can also sign up now to get further TV updates via our newsletter.

Photo: NBC