'America's Got Talent': It's off and running!

Well, it's no American Idol , but that doesn't mean America's Got Talent doesn't have its charms (Regis Philbin instead of Ryan Seacrest). NBC's latest reality entry, which drew a very solid 12 million viewers, made me think of that old Country Time Lemonade slogan -- ''not too tart, not too sweet'' -- in that it played more like a hybrid of old-fashioned local talent contest and The Gong Show 2.0 than a modern, cut-throat reality contest.
Still, does anyone actually think AGT is going to unearth the nation's next superstar? Take the episode-closing performance by the ''Rappin' Granny'' (pictured), for example. While some folks are bound to be charmed by the sight and sound of a senior citizen in a housedress spitting rhymes about CNN, not even Kanye himself could buy this woman a spot on the Billboard charts. Seriously, are any of you genuinely jonesing for a repeat performance? (Insert sound of crickets here.) Yet if we're to believe pitiful Simon Cowell clone Piers Morgan's claim that Rappin' Granny is ''what this show is all about,'' then I'm not sure I want to stick with AGT for the rest of the summer. Similarly, I didn't get the judges' enthusiasm for 8-year-old Syd the Kid's self-penned standup routine about fat black women. Yes, she had beyond-her-years self-confidence, but she wasn't funny , merely alarming .
Such lack of discretion from Morgan, along with fellow judges David Hasselhoff and Brandy, made me miss the brutality of Idol 's audition process, something that, interestingly enough, gives the latter show so much heart. Dreams of marginally talented folks get crushed every day; it's only superstars like Kelly Clarkson who are (and should be) left standing when the competition's done. Certainly, even Paula Abdul would've hesitated before saying yes to 14-year-old Alexis Jordan, whose rendition of ''I Have Nothing'' could've easily been redubbed ''I Have Nothing (Particularly Special to Offer).'' (That said, the episode's unintentional comic highlight stemmed from Brandy lauding Jordan's vocals and stage presence, then declaring, ''It's like watching myself in a mirror.'' Talk about E to the G to the O!)
All complaining aside though, I will admit there was something innocent and fun about AGT . Seeing Bobby Badfingers, a self-proclaimed ''professional snappist'' who dresses like a tore-down disco-era Elvis impersonator, let his fingers walk him right into the next round was as delightful as it was shocking; Idol would've made mincemeat of his sideshow skills, but AGT gave the guy the props he deserved, along with the basketball-dance troupe, the surprisingly funny ventriloquist, and the multiracial hip-hop-apella act, At Last. Now if Hasselhoff's fellow panelists promise to stop pressing his buzzer, AGT might actually become my Wednesday semi-addiction.
What did you think of the show, PopWatchers? And more importantly, will you be back for more next week?

• 'America's Got Talent': It's off and running!