A few notes from the first night of live performances for the men on American Idol:

• The show needs to ditch the "joke" that Kara has a crush on Casey James. It led to Ryan's funniest line ever (regarding the HR meeting), but it's far more creepy and inappropriate than funny.
• If the judges didn't like Tyler Grady's 1970s gimmick (and neither do we), why did they select him? We had the same reaction the night before when the panel critiqued the quiet, acoustic-based women for playing songs true to who they were.
• Tim Urban? Sorry, man. But... ouch. Our eardrums are still hurting.
• Another question for the judges: Do you want contestants to mix up a song or don't you? Yes, Todrick Hall went to the extreme last night, but give the guy credit for trying.

Still, complaints about the judging panel aside, the simple fact is that few men stood out last night.

It's still early, and many need to work out their nerves, but no front-runner has emerged from the male or female side yet. Should make for an interesting season.

Read about our five favorite men from last night right now and then chime in: Who did you like the best?

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.