Created by Simon Cowell, Ken Warwick, Cécile Frot-Coutaz, Jason Raff

Presented by Jerry Springer (2007-Present), Regis Philbin(2006)

Judges Piers Morgan, David Hasselhoff, Brandy Norwood (2006), Sharon Osbourne (2007-Present)

Running time Varies

Original channel NBC

Original run June 21, 2006 – present

W hile America’s Got Talent is entertaining, the judges rate very low on the scale of reality show judges. Their quips are predictable, constantly repeated, and the most creative thing they contribute during a performance is the press of the buzzer during an annoying or bad performance.  If you don’t hear Hasselhoff say, “That is what this show is all about!” at least once a week, you probably missed a week.

What really makes this show entertaining are the exceptional off-beat acts we could never see anywhere. A cowboy that can lasso the audience, a magic act that dazzles like Married Magic act David and Dania that change costumes right in front of your eyes Or perhaps an Elvis impersonator that is so original and talented you would swear he may be better than Elvis himself. It would, however, be much better to stick to that theme and not make this just another place for American Idol wannabes or rejects to get another chance, so it would be better for the show to cut most singers out of the competition rather than allow every one that has even a decent voice to get to the finals. The other sickening thing about the show is the elderly and kid factor. Any kid that can sing decently or any elderly person gets special treatment, wasting spaces for real talent.

The camera work on the show is horrible. When we are watching a performance, we want to judge it ourselves. But the America’s Got Talent cameras are all over the stage, on the audience and on the judges’ faces during the middle of critical parts of many performances. The television audience doesn’t need to see Hasselhoff’s face ten times during a dance routine. And they really don’t care about his reaction until the end, if they care at all. The live audience isn’t watching his face, they are watching the performance. Why do we have to see Pierce’s ugly puss (the straight-faced British judge that is a Simon Cowell wanna be) in the middle of a potentially prize winning act? We see him enough before and after.

All that said, this is a majorly entertaining show with some of the most amazing and unique acts ever seen on television. Who can resist seeing twenty dancers all clog in step on a Las Vegas stage? Or perhaps a magician that you have never seen that stuns the audience. Or last year’s amazing victor, Terry Fator, a puppeteer of unmatched talent and an unparalleled master ventriloquist.

This show rates number 3 on our list of favorite reality shows. If they fixed the camera problem and got rid of the “too many singers” problems, it may even make it to number 2.