Simon isn’t even out the door and already Idol is underperforming: 24.2 million people watched the not-so-epic Bowersox-DeWyze matchup, which is still more people than watch anything but the Super Bowl and Oscars, but is 18 percent less than watched last year’s Kris Allen–Adam Lambert sing-off. Lesson: Idol finales are better when lots of eyeliner is involved. [ArtsBeat/NYT]