UPDATED! last three standing...

It's arguably the most stressful night of the season: final three night. Two of the kids will sing in the last show of the seventh year. The other, coming oh so close, will be relegated to one of the aisle seats, watching from the audience and after months of putting in as much effort as the other two, will play nothing more than filler during the grand finale next Wednesday. (And as an added kick in the butt, #3 doesn't even get to make the talk show circuit, because rehearsals for the finale start right away.)

So after tonight, all three have a chance of winning. After tomorrow night, one just loses.

Three contestants, three songs. One of the songs is his or her personal selection, no restrictions (except clearance issues). One of the songs is chosen by one of the judges. And the third song is drawn from a fish bowl, errr, chosen by the producers.

Of course, history and superstitions still abound. Until last year when Jordin was first up on final three night, every singer who led off final three night got kicked to the curb the following day. I still maintain that the order of performance on this night is dictated by vote accrued during the season, from least-voted to most-voted. That's why #1s always got the boot. It wasn't some lead-off curse; they just didn't have the votes in the first place to stand a chance.

And if that's the case, I strongly expect Syesha Mercado to lead off tonight, followed by Archuleta and ending with Cook. But we'll see. UPDATE: Performance order is Archuleta/Syesha/Cook.

And then there's the Paula curse. In five seasons of judges choosing song selections (individual judges did not choose songs during the first season), Paula has never chosen a song for the kid who eventually wins. Clay Aiken finished second in season two, Jasmine Trias got totally thrown under the bus in season three, Bo Bice couldn't overcome the Underwood express in season four and Elliott Yamin got shortchanged in season five.

Tonight Archuleta gets to sing a Paula selection. Seems the kid is just not having a good week.

Now for the song spoilers. We've known of the judges' selections since the three contestants visited their respective hometowns, and some of the other choices are making the rounds as legitimate. I am not making any claims as to their validity; I'm just passing along the titles that seem to be the general consensus, but I have yet to see any single source, so take them for what they're worth.

Song selections are now official. Seems that Cook has pulled a fast one on us with a switch.

Syesha Mercado:

Personal choice: Fever (audio by Peggy Lee)
Randy's choice: If I Ain't Got You (video by, well, Syesha. Seems she's familiar with the song.)
Producer's choice: Hit Me Up (video by Gia Farrell)

David Archuleta:

Personal choice: With You (video by Chris Brown)
Paula's choice: And So It Goes (video by Billy Joel)
Producers choice: Longer (audio by Dan Fogelberg; video of record player)

David Cook:

Personal choice: The World I Know (video by Collective Soul).
Simon's choice: The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face (video by Roberta Flack)
Producer's choice: unknown
David's other two selections are Dare You to Move (I suspect his personal choice) and I Don't Want To Miss a Thing (I suspect the producer's choice.)

The fact that Syesha has already performed Randy's choice on television is interesting. Did he know that? Or did she just get lucky? And will she sit - again - on the piano to deliver it?

Simon's choice for David Cook is fascinating. It has the potential to be spellbinding. Or to put an entire voting audience to sleep. The choice is David's.

David Archuleta gets the short straw. Not only did the kid get thrown a curve by having his little league parent abruptly yanked after all of these months breathing so incessantly down his neck, but he gets possibly the worst Billy Joel song imaginable. (I like the Fogelberg tune, and if he can pull off the Chris Brown song, I'll be the first one applauding.) If any of the three is at a disadvantage, therefore, it's him. (Although the continuous coverage of Dadchuleta-gate could garner him some extra sympathy votes.)

All of the makings for a David-squared finale have been in place since Beatles week. We haven't had an all-male final since season two, and we haven't had a same-gender final for three years. Somehow I have a gnawing feeling that we're due for that shocker we've been deprived of so far.

So, what do you think?

As soon as song spoilers are out, I'll update it here.