"American Idol" used to be the number one show in America. Those days are long gone, and after numerous changes at the judges' panel and other controversial rule changes, it's almost like a different show. The Season 13 contestants are a promising bunch, but will they have the standout talent that will put AI back in the driver's seat?

The sad part of the story is that even 21^st Century Fox President Chase Carey has admitted it in a press conference announcing the company's quarterly returns.

From Click Music: "We know American Idol is winding down,"  (The ratings have) "fallen faster than we hoped".

Last year was a disaster for the American Idol franchise. On-screen Bickering among judges Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj took the spotlight from the performances and turned it into a circus. This prompted the producers to recast the judges panel, leaving only Keith Urban, and adding Harry Connick Jr. and the returning Jennifer Lopez.

The new Idol judges have vowed to keep the spotlight on the contestants and concentrate on what the show was set out to be: A singing talent show.

They recently made the choice to cut away most of the ridiculous auditions. While these have worked in the past (especially with Simon Cowell's comments) it is clear that it has become gimmicky and dated.

Positive critique for the show from wetpaint.com:

"The judges are (mostly) spot-on with their critiques and the talent is top-notch. Harry continues to hold everyone to high technical standards while Jennifer Lopez and Keith Urban, although more likely to coddle a contestant, keep their comments fairly straightforward.

In the end, the new season gives us music lovers a chance to enjoy some incredibly gifted artists and skip the stupid. By cutting out the dumb auditions, we get to watch the real stars from the very beginning and based on what we've seen so far, we think the talent this year may just be the best in Idol history. Yeah, we said it."

Will they be the best, or will they be the last?