Given his surprise boot from American Idol after making it to the Top 8 of the show's seventh season, former finalist Michael Johns would seemingly be one of the biggest supporters of the new "The Judges' Save" rule change.
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"I personally don't really dig it that much. As someone that was the shock value and it would have helped I don't really think its necessary," Johns told Access Hollywood at a recent taping of Fox Reality Channel's American Idol Extra program.
"I think that's the drama of Idol isn't it? That sometimes America gets it right," Johns added. "Sometimes they get it wrong. You gotta vote for the people you love."
Johns' fellow seventh-season contestant Brooke White agreed, telling Access that "The Judges' Save" would get in the way of having the competition play out naturally.
"In some ways things play out for a reason and you just take it for what it is," she said.
"The Judges' Save" was introduced during last Wednesday's elimination episode as a new twist to the elimination rules that will give the show's four judges -- Paula Abdul, Simon Cowell, Kara DioGuardi, and Randy Jackson -- a one-time opportunity to save one contestant that would have otherwise been eliminated based on home viewer voting before the show's Top 5 are determined.
Former sixth-season Idol contestant Phil Stacey was more literal with his criticism of the rule change, saying that it essentially acted as a warning by the judges to the American public to not vote out their favorite contestants.
"Basically what they are saying is don't vote Adam Lambert or Danny Gokey out cause if you do they will get saved. Paula wants to see them in the finale. So they will save them," Stacey told Access. "I don't know that it's going to change the way America votes or the way the judges vote to be honest. For the most part America agrees with Simon Cowell."
Fellow sixth-season finalist Gina Glocksen also added in her two cents as well, calling the rule change "stupid." Instead, she suggested that the show look to Jackson and the way eliminations are handled in America's Best Dance Crew, the MTV reality dance competition he executive produces.
"I love how they eliminate. They have the bottom two. America votes for the bottom two and then the judges watch them perform for their lives and then the judges choose," Glocksen said.
About The Author: John Bracchitta
