After Wednesday night's Idol Gives Back, I was anxious to find out who was going to leave American Idol this week. We haven't had a huge, crazy surprise yet, and we normally do every season - and with the contestants dwindling in number, I kind of wondered if this would be the week. If so, who would it be?

The show opened with another group performance by the top 8. Nothing spectacular, but nothing horrible either. Maybe I'm just tired this week, with three nights of AI in a row, but there seemed to be some enthusiasm lacking on stage. Though - it could be everyone at AI was tired from three shows in three days.

Throughout the show, more time was spent on Idol Gives Back. The highlight of the night, for me anyway, was seeing Jordin Sparks, the reigning American Idol, return to the Idol stage to sing. She and Chris Brown performed their hit single "No Air."

Finally, we were down to the final three. Color me annoyed AND surprised to find Michael Johns there. I assured myself he would be safe - that there was no way he'd be leaving this soon. Rounding out the bottom three were Syesha Mercado and Carly Smithson. I suddenly had a bad feeling it would be Michael, even though I didn't want it to be him and I didn't think it should be him. It turns out the feeling was correct.

Personally, I thought Ryan Seacrest was a little mean when he reminded the audience that, although last year no one was sent away during Idol Gives Back week, that wasn't the case this year. It wasn't so much what he said, but how he said it, with the perfect amount of dramatic effect to give people hope. I'm bummed that Michael Johns is leaving. He's been one of my favorites from the beginning. And yes, I do think there are people still in the running that shouldn't be, so that makes me doubly annoyed.

We're down to seven. At this point, I can't even hazard a guess as to who will be leaving next week. It could be anyone.