I've argued for years that between 2002-2006, there was no better produced television program on Earth than American Idol. However, Tuesday's episode was a mess.

And it's symptomatic not just of bad luck or accident, but of a trend that signifies either laziness or ineptitude.

Idol producers decided to alter its format a bit this week, not by having singers in the Top 5 sing two songs -- that's common -- but by having the judges judge them after both were done.

What you, the home viewer, don't know is that there is a "rehearsal" right before the show, and the judges for the most part formulate their remarks based on the rehearsal performance if they're there. And, this week, Paula gives that away by critiquing Jason Castro on both of his performances after only one.

In a panic, host Ryan Seacrest -- suddenly looking 35 -- stopped to correct her, guiding her toward a path of (sobriety?) clarity regarding her comments.

Simon looked at her as if he expected it, like he would have if she had just shot up heroin.

If Idol is truly headed downward not only in terms of ratings but also within the realm of pop culture, it's off to a train-wreck of a start, perhaps aspiring to be the Judy Garland of television shows.

That could make it all the more entertaining.

Beyond Paula's slip-up at the midway point of the show, it truly seems again this season as if all the judges are mailing it in. At times I think Randy Jackson is the only one staying true to himself, sticking with judging vocals.

Unfortunately, he rarely even looks interested anymore.

With Simon, you wonder what his motivation is, such as tonight when he suggested Syesha Mercado was in trouble. On this show, to those of us who follow it closely, that is Cowell's signal to coax callers into voting.

It was essentially him saying, "You absolutely deserve to be here, and I am going to say you're in trouble to wake people up."

Evidence? After two hours on dialidol.com, Syesha held the top spot in its Top 5 predictions, based on phone traffic, and Mercado's performances were hardly worthy.

Long run, I'm not sure what Simon's motivation would be although I don't think it is as sinister as him trying to ensure that a big seller wins the competition for the purpose of his profit, not that it would even be sinister to do so. If that were his motivation, in retrospect, wouldn't he have stepped in and proclaimed Chris Daughtry the God of light and power two seasons ago?

No?

In my opinion, the show has outlived their usefulness. Idol execs were looking for input from viewers regarding the show, and there you have mine. It needs major refreshening at the host level.

Neither Simon nor Paula nor Randy looks interested. They act as if this gig is being taken for granted, and they have become boring and predictable, as Cowell might say. Unfortunately, I don't think it's their fault.

The show's producers have failed to switch this puppy up enough over the past four seasons. It's the same format, the same shtick, the same lame Ford or Coca-Cola commercials, the same cringe-inducing singalongs, the same terrible band arrangements.

And the blame for that probably should ascend to Nigel Lythgoe, who probably decided not to tweak anything about the show because it was all working so swimmingly. I can't argue with that.

But then there are the performances.

Yikes. This has happened over the past couple of seasons, and it's this phenomenon of contestants clearly being "over it" by about the Final 7. Brooke White looks like she'd rather be hit over the head with a frying pan than perform another week. She rushes through songs and performs to avoid messing it up, as opposed to making it great.

She's not the only one. Castro clearly would like to be anywhere else than that stage (smoking a blunt?). And when that's apparent to the public, then why should we be interested?

Perhaps I'm wrong. If so, again, I'd blame it on production because it sure as heck appears that way. In fact, Idol production has become so predictable and blase that every music or talent competition show out there pretty much picks up on the Idol format.

Recently, The New York Post put together its list of the 35 greatest shows on TV -- EVER. And predictably, Idol was in the Top 5.

While I disagree with their top pick (The Sopranos was highly overrated. I would have picked Seinfeld.), I would have placed Idol second. It was a masterful concept, a trend-setter, a pop culture icon, a ratings nightmare for its competition and a cash cow.

However, as Tuesday night's disaster of show signified, Idol has turned into a mess. Change or die. That is the challenge.