{alltv} Nobody saw this coming: An 'American Idol' shocker

Feeling good about saving Casey Abrams now, judges?

American Idol viewers eliminated their fifth consecutive female singer Thursday. In a development that left contestants, judges and the studio audience stunned, Pia Toscano was sent packing. Though the judges had told her she needed to work on her stage presence and had criticized her for singing too many ballads, many considered Pia to have given Wednesday's best performance and to be almost a lock for the finals.

"What a shock, what a surprise," Ryan says as boos rain down from the audience.

Jennifer's in tears. "I have no idea what just happened here. I'm shocked. I'm angry. I don't even know what to say."

"We're all in shock," says Randy. "I'm gutted."

"A mistake is one thing, but a lack of passion is unforgivable," Steven says. "They're wrong."

As her swansong, Pia sings The Pretenders' I'll Stand by You, breaking down at the end and receiving a standing ovation from everyone in the room, many of them in tears.

Pia's exit almost guarantees a male winner for the fourth consecutive year. But with such unpredictable voting from week to week, a once-promising season suddenly looks much, much different.

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