The Semifinals

After an amazing episode last week with the Quarterfinals, it was time for the Semifinals! I was looking forward to this episode, as I knew that all three singers were great, which meant that we were in for three great performances. When I first saw the trailers for this episode, I was a little confused as to why they weren’t showing Rita in the trailers, but I quickly found out from the internet that she was sick during this episode, so she wasn’t there at all. I was a little surprised that there was nobody filling in for her, but if I had to guess, this probably happened at the last minute, and they didn’t have enough time to find someone else to fill in for her. 

The episode started off the same way that many other episodes this season started, with a group performance from the three remaining contestants, who performed “Some Nights” by Fun. As I have said several times already, I enjoy these group performances, as they give each contestant a chance to stand out together and show off their own unique vocal abilities. After this, Nick explained how the Semifinals this season would work, as all three singers would perform, then the audience and panel would vote, the singer with the most votes would automatically advance to the finale, and the remaining two singers would compete in what Nick described as their surprise little showdown. 

After this, it was time for the first performer of the night, which was Strawberry Shortcake. In her clue package, she said that what no one tells you is that like a good cake, Hollywood is layered. She then said that it does sparkle and is super fun, but there’s also so much pressure to make it big, and it comes with a lot of rejection, a little bit of self-doubt, and a dash of feeling like you’ve poured your whole heart into something that people might not ever see. She then said that she thinks that’s why so many people start to feel disenchanted with their dreams, which she then said is what happened to her. She then said that she was so triggered by the drama of early fame that she decided to take a long break, and she felt that she had to lose the lights in order to love what she did again. She then said that as a result of becoming Strawberry Shortcake, she has been reminded of why she started all of those years ago, saying that it’s fun, it's silly, and it’s so her. She then gave an amazing performance of “Lose You to Love Me” by Selena Gomez, during which she showed all the emotion and power that she has in her voice, and her performance even caused Jenny to get emotional. As an additional clue for this episode, each of the contestants gave a friendship bracelet to the panelist that they had a special connection to. Strawberry Shortcake gave her friendship bracelet to Ken, and it said, “Press Tour,” and she then said that one of the highlights of her career was the press tour they did together, and he made her laugh the entire day. At this point, I was still confident that Strawberry Shortcake was AJ Michalka, as she and Ken would have done a press tour for the sitcoms they starred in on ABC at the same time. When I saw none of the panelists guess her at this time, I knew that either one panelist would figure it out at the last minute, or they would never figure it out.

The second performers of the night were The Buffalos. In their clue package, they said that growing up, they had to work harder than anyone, as they were constantly being told that they should be something else, something they were not, and that they would never make it. They then said that they didn’t listen and staying true to themselves was the main reason for their success. They then said that they now know that was an important example to set for the next generation, and especially their children. They then said that their kids love to sing, and they sound better than them, and they are thinking to themselves, “What have we done” and “What miracle have we created.” They then said that hearing their voices turns every day around and gives them a real reason to keep going, and every decision they make together is with them in mind to make sure they’ve got all they need in this life. They then went on to give an amazing performance of “Africa” by Toto, during which they showcased their amazing harmonizing abilities and how much power they have in their voices. The performance was so great, that while it was still happening, my mom said that it was great. The way the performance started was also clever, as they started off sitting in a safari Jeep, with the beginning of the song playing on the radio before the driver turned the radio off and the performance started. After the performance, they gave a friendship bracelet to Jenny that said, “Donnie,” and they then said that they go way back with Donnie and Jenny herself. Jenny then shared the correct guess for The Buffalos, which is that they were Boyz II Men, as she explained that Boyz II Men were there when she and Donnie started dating, and Wanya was on a secret date with her and Donnie when no one knew about it as a way of supporting them, and they have also gone on tour together.

The third performer of the night was The Wasp. In his clue package, he said that he has never felt so powerful, as the show brought out a super competitive edge in him that he hasn’t felt since he was a kid. He then said that his mom knew there would only be so many opportunities for him to get out of the hood, so when she saw a poster for a talent show, she signed him up on the spot. He then said that he was shook, but he tapped into the fire inside of him and he won the whole thing, and an industry mogul was there and signed him on the spot. He then went on to give an amazing performance of “Beautiful Things” by Benson Boone, which he started off performing in a lower register, before showing all the power in his voice at the chorus. After the performance, he gave a friendship bracelet to Robin that said, “Nashville,” and he then said to Robin that he had a blast when they painted the town red in Nashville. I am still confident that Wasp is R&B singer Mario, as he was discovered at age eleven at a talent show and signed by producer Troy Patterson. 

After everybody had performed, it was time for the audience and the panel to vote, and whoever got the most votes would be going straight to the finale. The first singer who made it to the finale was The Wasp, which surprised me a little bit, as while he was great, I thought that The Buffalos were better. Still, I thought it was well deserved, and was looking forward to what was coming next. 

Nick then said that it was time for the Smack Royale. He explained that how it worked would be that Strawberry Shortcake and Buffalos were going to perform the same song back and forth as a duet. This had me excited, as it meant that we were going to have two group performances in this episode. They then went on to both sing “Counting Stars” by OneRepublic, during which they both showed the power they have in their voices. 

After that, it was time for the panel to vote, and the winner of the Smack Royale was revealed to be The Buffalos, which did not surprise me, but I thought that they were both great anyway. There was also a very quick sweet moment, as one of The Buffalos went up to Strawberry Shortcake and hugged her and told her that she was awesome. This meant that it was time for Strawberry Shortcake to unmask, and much to my surprise, none of the panelists guessed correctly, and she was revealed to be AJ Michalka. I found her unmasking interview to be sweet, as you could see her getting emotional with all the compliments that the panelists were giving her. She also said that the reason she did the show was because she had never done anything like it on her own, so she wanted to challenge herself, and since her sister just had a baby, she did the show with the two of them in mind. The last thing that she said to everybody was that she had a blast, she was blown away by the panelists who were so sweet, and then she said that the show is heartwarming, lovely, and brings out a lot of people’s natural gifts on and off stage, which I think perfectly sums up why it’s such a great show. After that, she performed an unmasked encore, which was her song “Potential Breakup Song,” which I found cool, as not only did I write about how she would be perfect for the show last November, I also said that it would be the perfect song for her to sing after being unmasked.

Overall, this was another amazing episode of Season 12 of The Masked Singer, and I’ll see you all next week with the Finale!