The summertime is when I could get a breath of fresh air from Ryan Seacrest. By the end of American Idol, I'm just hoping that Ryan would stop interviewing contestants and just get to the singing. Eventually the confetti falls, we have a winner, and Ryan Seacrest disappears from my television until January.So You Think You Can Dance rolls around and we're greeted by the wonderful Cat Deeley. I have to admit that she's light years ahead of Ryan Seacrest. She may not be as witty as Tom Bergeron, but she brings a flair to her hosting duties.
Ryan Seacrest's power went to his head. On the other hand, Cat Deeley knows what an opportunity it is to host a very popular show and performs with happiness and gratitude. Here are some reasons why she shines:
She's cheeky – She can throw wit back at the judges without sounding like an ass. There is no sexual tension between her and the judges and she knows her place. Ryan on the other hand has this sarcasm that just screams asshole and will disrespectfully challenge the judges.
She's motherly – One of the things that I love about Cat is that she will both physically and vocally shield the contestants when they get harsh criticism. She'll pull a mother hen and step between the contestants and the judges table. Then she comforts the contestants.
The way she pronounces things – Who can resist a British accent? Anyone who can say "jidges" is good in my book. Also, as grating as it is, its funny to hear the name Asuka be pronounced as "Oscar."
Her style – Yeah, sometimes her clothes are a miss (remember that drape last week?), but the fact of the matter is: she's willing to try anything. She's hit every color in the rainbow at least once and will probably cycle through the rainbow several times this season. Her hair evolves with the pieces as well. Ryan doesn't really have much of a choice past ties and jackets, so he automatically loses. Overall, her clothing options will always be better than Samantha Harris.
She looks like she's having a good time – She seems chipper to interview contestants during the audition process and feels a lot more genuine than Ryan. She dances around when she enters the stage
Her blog sounds realistic - Her Entertainment Weekly blog sounds just like a fun recap of the show. Sure it doesn't have much content about eliminations and the like, but her inside take is actually fun to read. I love that she wanted to channel her inner Madonna when she was wearing the white suit last week.
She's better than who preceded her - Lauren Sánchez scared me. She wasn't as personable and she just didn't have the charm.
One doesn't think that introducing contestants should be so hard, but one has to learn how to roll with the punches. Cat Deeley has a calm nature about her that emits in her hosting style. Is she fit to host American Idol? No; I hear that she does interviews for the British airing of Idol and it doesn't work as well. Anyone out there want to tell me why they like Ryan Seacrest better? Leave comments below.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-25-2009 @ 3:47PM
The Deej said...
Between helping Chelsie get her toe back in her shoe all the way to the three way chest bump last week, she is the best host on TV right now. She's so game for anything and her mothering of "her babies" is awesome.
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6-25-2009 @ 4:04PM
Grover said...
and don't forget putting on Twitch's Gold glasses frames AND putting in his Gold teeth last season! Playful, gamely, and hilarious!
6-25-2009 @ 3:51PM
RLNYNY said...
Love Kat ! Ryan Seacrest is a total waste. I never have seen his appeal or so called talent.
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6-25-2009 @ 3:59PM
Dan said...
Quite a few British presenters are preferable to their American equivalents, if you ask me. US presenters always look so damn false and manufactured, with no spontaneity of real wit. A good 70% of the reason the original I'm A Celebrity is so good is because of Ant n' Dec, for example. It's kinda weird that only Cat Deeley has jumped over the pond, but clearly Nigel Lithgoe's a smart man.
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6-25-2009 @ 4:10PM
unc69dmo said...
I think they are both ok......with Ryan better without all the extra curricular crap......
However.......Seacrest is the BEST...when it comes to Red Carpet interview gigs......
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6-25-2009 @ 4:18PM
Nate said...
I heard once in an EW article or blog post that she's always stationed as an emergency host for "American Idol" should Ryan get sick or collapse from exhaustion and not be able to get through the show. It would be interesting to see her host the show once.
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6-25-2009 @ 5:28PM
David said...
I don't want to compare the two. They have different styles, and those styles work for them.
But I think Ryan Seacrest really is the heir to Dick Clark's throne. He's the everyman, who comes across as humble and normal and average, while being smooth and articulate. He's America's comfortable average white guy television host. As a producer or network executive, you know you can count on Ryan to host your broadcast capably, consistently well, and without controversy.
Just my opinion.
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6-25-2009 @ 5:31PM
Michael Pascua said...
I think that Ryan Seacrest *wants* to be the Heir to Dick Clark, but remember when people were throwing Carson Daly's name because of his work on TRL?
I'll give him a few years to see if he maintains his stride for a few more decades.
6-25-2009 @ 11:07PM
Tim said...
"I'll give him a few years to see if he maintains his stride for a few more decades."
That makes no sense.
At any rate, I'm not a big Seacrest fan but his work has been consistent for more than a few years now and I don't see anyone else that could be "heir" so to speak. He's the man as of now.
6-25-2009 @ 11:18PM
Jimmy said...
I've never seen Cat Deeley, but I have no doubt she's better than Seacrest. Everyone is.
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6-25-2009 @ 11:20PM
Michael Pascua said...
Two Words: Samantha Harris.
6-25-2009 @ 11:19PM
Michael Pascua said...
"I'll give him a few years to see if he maintains his stride for a few more decades."
Here's the explanation to the stated sentence. American idol began in 2002. A few more years would be one decade and one knows that AI will not make more than 10 seasons. If he's still popular post-decade on Idol and gets a real job after idol (that doesn't involve E!) i'll consider him higher on the Dick Clark replacement level.
Carson Daly started off similarly from radio, did TRL from around 1998 and has Last Call with Carson Daly which has more than 1000 episodes. As much as he's not heavily music related, one can argue that neither is Ryan (he's entertainment news based). One can argue that Carson Daly is on the short list for a Dick Clark replacement as well.
I don't think there will ever be a replacement to Dick Clark because of how our television and radio is formatted. Dick Clark is lightyears
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6-26-2009 @ 8:47AM
Lilith said...
And another thing - I think the fact that Cat talks with british accent and can choose interesting clothes to wear on her show is a bad examples of her talent.
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6-26-2009 @ 8:49AM
Michael Pascua said...
Sometimes its the natural things that become advantages. I think her accent and fashion sense are both positive and strategic. They both make her memorable (rather than Ryan who wears the same ties and sounds like everyone on the radio), but they also stand her out from the crowd.
6-26-2009 @ 8:47AM
Jason said...
Tomorrow, I want to see "Why a ball of twine is better than Ryan Seacrest."
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6-26-2009 @ 8:47AM
lauren said...
bahaa samantha harris my god, i mute the tv whenever i see signs of her about to speak...just awful.
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6-26-2009 @ 11:36AM
sjackson said...
Seacrest Out, Cat In.
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7-21-2009 @ 9:03PM
Laine said...
I think they are both great!
One thing I enjoy about both of these hosts is the way they show their respect to all of the contestants........both at the auditions and during the show. Cat is lovely, fresh, funny, and full of life. Ryan is attractive, funny, energetic, and asks good questions. I, too, believe that Ryan is being groomed to take over Dick Clark's empire, but I think Dick Clark is the one who has chosen him, and he reminds me a lot of Dick Clark in his early days.
Cat is the best female host/hostess I have ever seen on television! Samantha Harris is very pretty, but doesn't project much personality. This is all my opinion, of course.
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