Why does So You Think You Can Dance have such a different feel than American Idol?

Because “So You Think You Can Dance” is funny, while, “American Idol” is stupid.

I can’t say anything, other than I feel exactly the same way. I love watching “So You Think You Can Dance”, but I loathe “American Idol”.

Because terrible singing physically hurts the ears.
Terrible dancing is just pleasing to the eyes.

That said, I don’t watch either of them, and never will.

Maybe because American Idol is pure pop, and is more so because everyone is a music consumer. Dance is more esoteric in the public consciousness, and tastes are less well defined which invites a mix characterized more by experimentation, artistry and variety.

The talent level is higher.

I think the dancing shows are more popular because even when the dancers completely suck, it’s always more fun to watch dancers fail miserabely than have to endure an entire off key singing performance.

@kevbo I think you nailed it.

I haven’t seen enough American Idol to know—really appreciate that the judges on SYTYCD fully acknowledge that it’s a show—I don’t recall anyone on Idol being “in on the joke.” Is that accurate?

They’re always doing new and interesting things on SYTYCD. They’re not on AI. Singing the same old stuff with the same crappy voice week after week gets very old, very fast. There are a lot of things that differentiate the two, but the variety is the foremost. Plus the judges are professionals who know want they’re talking about and want the dancers to succeed, even when they don’t.

@andrew, I think there’s more of a sense of the brute capital involved. People are screened out based on whether they can possibly be the next pop sensation, so there’s a built in (and acknowledged) element of whether one entertainer versus another can garner mass appeal, sell a bunch of CDs and make money for the label.

I watched one season of American Idol and a few episodes of I think You Can Dance. I think the difference is that singing is more of an inherent talent and it’s harder to hone it and be a good singer. Dancing however, one can learn so even the bad ones are of a higher caliber than the bad singers because they probably have some kind of experience/training.