American Idol’s ratings were up this season, and fans cast more that 122 million votes for last night’s finale, even though young Scotty was heavily favored to win from pretty early on. What gives? The contestants this season were dull, the judging was so repetitive and useless that the show itself edited together a supercut of Randy’s “in it to win it!†lines, and even the competent performances lacked the power and potency of songs from previous seasons. But it didn’t seem to matter! People loved it! Can Idol rescue itself from the clutches of dullness next year, even though it doesn’t have to? Are you resigned to just living in a nation of strangers who apparently love even crummy Idol seasons, or do you think the show can hang on to its ratings resurgence while injecting more talent, and more drama, into subsequent seasons?