TVSquad

Several billion years ago, give or take a few billion, a few neutrons decided to get together with a few protons and form what has been called the Big Bang, which pretty much started the universe as we know it. As things cooled down stars, galaxies, and planets were born. On the planet we know as Earth some primordial ooze became cozyu with their amino acid friends, creating the baseline needed for life. At about that same time this season of America's Got Talent premiered aired on NBC.

Okay, I may be exaggerating a bit here, and my science may be slightly off, but it does seem to me that AGT has been on the schedule a bit too long. Premiering on June 17th, most of the shows that aired before the Olympic break have been just the tryouts. Only the very end of July and first few weeks in August dealt with the callbacks and elimination of those initially chosen by Piers, Sharon and the Hoff. Finally, we are now into the live competitions and eliminations, which means two nights of AGT a week for the next several weeks. According to the schedule posted at NBC's media site, that puts the finale of the show around October 1st! Nah, that can't be right.

Nearly five months seems an incredibly long time, particularly since the other talent-based shows that aired this summer, So You Think You Can Dance? for instance, completed their runs weeks ago. Yes, the Olympics put a hold on AGT, but that still doesn't account for the duration it took to get to these live elimination rounds. To me, the whole process of getting to this point was, well, pointless.

There are just too many people chosen to go into the callbacks. As the viewing audience, we really only get to see an handful of those performers doing their full acts. In many cases they seem to be aired if they are downright awful or are so heartwarming that their acceptance into the next round is telegraphed by sappy music. Even when we get to the first round of culling we only get to see a few snippets of the performers before judgment is made.

Now, you fans of AGT may be shaking your fists at me right now, exclaiming to the flat screen that Dance and American Idol also have their lengthy weeks of tryouts. This is true but, for some reason, they are more tolerable than those on AGT. Actually, to clarify, the audition episodes for Dance are definitely more interesting. Perhaps it's the fact they are concentrating on one aspect of talent only and not jumping across the board from singers to dancers to guys who play music with a circular saw on a metal plate attached to their chest.

Plus, for the most part, we get to see the full auditions for the performers on Dance and Idol, which allow the viewer to maintain a closer connection with the candidates as they go through this nerve-wracking process. With more of the emphasis on the auditions rather than the eliminations America's Got Talent runs the risk of losing viewers, despite its popularity. As has been the case with American Idol, fans tire of the tryout process and want to get right into the competition. That's where they link up with a favorite or rally against an opponent. The rest of the episodes, many say, are just filler.

Loading up on competition shows in the last half of the season doesn't help AGT either, particularly when these shows move well into the fall viewing season. Despite the fact American television networks are moving to a year-round schedule viewers still have that mental barrier separating their summer viewing with their fall viewing. With networks like FOX and CW kicking off their new primetime schedules right at Labor Day, AGT runs into a potential wall as the show's fans move towards their normal viewing habits.

What it comes down to is this: America's Got Talent needs to thin down a bit. Seven weeks of tryouts is just too long. One month of tryouts, at the most, should be the limit before callbacks and eliminations begin. By doing this, you have a show that can keep the attention of the viewers and, potentially, allow for some breakout stars that can be a benefit for all parties involved with the show. Keep it the length it is right now and the network may be the one that does the eliminating.