Toodles Simon

Simon Cowell is doing the honorable thing and taking the last lifeboat off that sinking ship known as American Idol. (Frankly, I think his main reason for doing so is that he didn't like the way the whole Paula thing went down and the new direction of the show is just not what he'd bargained for.)

Simon Cowell announced Monday that he is quitting "American Idol" in order to judge the show he created, "The X Factor," when it debuts on Fox in 2011...While "X Factor" will be yet another singing competition on network television, there are some notable differences between it and "Idol." Contestants audition — either alone or in groups — in front of an audience, like they do on "America's Got Talent." They can also be any age above a minimum, which Cowell said will likely be 14 or even lower. The most notable difference is that, as Cowell told TV critics, "the judges mentor a selection of contestants" and "the judge is judged as well as the singer." [msnbc]

It won't be the same without him. Then again, it won't be the same without Paula. Who knows? Maybe he's bringing Paula over to the X-Factor to right some very wrong wrongs.