Simon surprisingly shows some soul

Contrary to popular (my) belief, Simon Cowell appears to have at least a sliver of a heart.

The Man on the Couch and I have been watching “American Idol” auditions leading up to Thursday night’s big show on FOX, which was the first official episode of Season 7.

While I sympathize with judges Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson, who have to listen to thousands of off-key, offbeat wannabe superstars who aren’t so super, I feel bad for the contestants who are laughed out of the room.

Someone along the way has made the mistake of telling these people they can sing, when in fact they can’t carry a tune in a bucket.

One of my favorite auditions this season was 16-year-old Tempest. She was a sweet girl who was trying to succeed for her mother who is overweight and has medical problems.

While I expected Abdul and Jackson to show her some compassion even though she was far from being a performer, I was surprised when Cowell got up and joined the group hug and then went out into the hallway to meet Tempest’s family.

Cowell stayed true to his testy temperament for most of the terrible tryouts, but to see a few glimmers of kindness was a treat.

On another note, reality TV has taken another trip to Maine, and “Dirty Jobs” with Mike Rowe and “Some Assembly Required” co-hosts Brian Unger and Louis Bloomfield are set to feature two Maine-based businesses.

Slime eel (aka hagfish) fishing truly is a dirty job, and Rowe gets to experience the nasty task firsthand aboard a boat where he must separate buckets full of eels from their slime.

The eels release slime when they’re caught as a defense mechanism, and I’m guessing the goop was a little more than Rowe’s stomach could handle.

Back on shore, Rowe goes to the sorting house where the eels are packed on ice before being shipped overseas.

The slime eel episode of “Dirty Jobs” is scheduled to air at 9 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 22, on the Discovery Channel.

After “Dirty Jobs” on Tuesday, the New Balance shoe factory in Skowhegan will be the focus of a portion of “Some Assembly Required” as the hosts get a custom-fit running shoe.

This is a new Discovery Channel show that opens factory doors to show viewers what it really takes to make everyday items. They’ll be off and running in their new sneakers at 10 p.m. Jan. 22.

adolloff@bangordailynews.net

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