It’s Week 4 on “The Masked Singer,” which means its time for three all-new competitors and no champions to face off against. Tonight, it was Group B’s turn to fight for the championship.
It also means the Ding Dong Keep It On Bell is back in play. The panel can use it once per Group, as they did last week when they saved Medusa from getting unmasked after she lost to California Roll. Now she moves into a special wild card round with other Bell-saved singers.
Tonight, the theme was DC Superheroes, though the panel seems to think DC starts and ends with Batman, based on their costumes. There was some cool Batman and DC related memorabilia throughout the studio, including the original 1989 Batmobile, a Bat-Signal and several famous costumes.
On the stage, we were introduced to Gargoyle, Squirrel and Wolf, three new competitors. In a refreshing twist, none of them were obviously terrible. Instead, it was a pretty tight competition from beginning to end. But in the end, there can be only one champion who moves on to next week to face off against two more masks.
The night also began with a very strong vocal performance from the panel — possibly stronger than any from the masks (but don’t tell them we said that) — as Nicole Scherzinger was definitely hamming it up like the 1960s “Batman” series.
We get why Nicole wanted to put on a sexy catsuit to portray Catwoman, because she loves a sexy look. The character choice did add an extra layer of complexity for her performance of Bonnie Tyler’s “I Need a Hero.” For all that Catwoman is one of Batman’s notorious villains, the two have also shared a passionate and at times romantic relationship across the decades. We know who she’s singing about — and it ain’t Robin!
Let’s jump right in with this week’s masks. And don’t worry, before we get to the shocking unmasking, we’re going to make you power through the terrible (and occasionally good) guesses made by our illustrious panel of Robin Thicke, Jenny McCarthy, Ken Jeong and Nicole Scherzinger first. We do this because we love … to torture you.
Along with the panel’s guesses, we’ll be sharing some internet speculation, too, so if you don’t want to be potentially spoiled (because they are very good at this), you may want to skip past the guesses sections.
(“One Call Away,” Charlie Puth) Gargoyle came as a huge surprise. With all those athlete clues, we were not expecting a vocal so stunningly gorgeous. He has control throughout his range, an effective falsetto on the upper end and this rich and sweet tone that actually hit us emotionally — which doesn’t happen often through these masks. That’s an artist right there. At the same time, though, he did not physically move like a seasoned performer, making the moment a little enigmatic.
Guesses: As we said, his clues were so athlete driving, from talking about how his peers “seemed to fly” while he was “stuck on the sidelines” earlier in his life to the point later he became they guy they passed to. He also spoke of his father giving him the advice, “Don’t ever let anyone tell you you can’t do something.”
The advice came while papa was holding a video game controller and wearing a “World’s Greatest Dad” t-shirt. The clue package was filled with images, including a jukebox, an “I [Heart] LA” bumper sticker, a taco and hot sauce being held by a guy with a classic barbershop quartet hat and fake mustache, as well as an express charge card.
“It’s been a while since I had a crush on this show,” Nicole told Gargoyle, with Robin quipping, “She likes the big ones.”
While they didn’t snag them in person, they did get “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” stars Zachary Levi and Helen Mirren on video to present Gargoyle’s celebrity clue. After a series of rock puns Robin would be jealous of, Zachary finally dropped the clue: “Record Maker!” Now, that can lean into making records in sports, or in the studio, so it’s intentionally being obtuse.
“I’m keen on making waves in the field, but being a part of history is the best bonus I could ask for,” Gargoyle added, clarifying nothing, but tantalizing everything. Robin focused on the credit card and bumper sticker, leading to the Los Angeles Chargers. The opening gate in the clue package has him suspecting it’s Antonio Gates.
Ken said it was so easy even George Clooney’s Batman could solve it, but the audience was right to start booing him even before he said TheWeeknd. Does he even try anymore or is he going for the cheap laugh? Jenny, though, wondered if it could be former LA Ram and NY Giant Odell Bekcham Jr., who can sing.
The internet, though, had a lot of confidence in a few different choices, openly mocking anybody who didn’t know it was their guess, Names like Nick Jonas, Justin Timberlake and even Frankie Jonas. The bottom line is they’re no more certain than the panel … but leaning a little Nick Jonas.
(“Break on Through,” The Doors) Wolf actually sounded echoey, like we could tell he was singing inside a hollowed-out mask. But there was no denying as the song went along that he has a trained voice and knows how to use it. The face he stood stone still while performing would have made him a better fit for Gargoylye, honestly. He seems like perhaps a singer who’s aged a bit and doesn’t have the physicality he used to at one point.
Guesses: We became just about convinced that someone else was wearing the costume in the clue package, because Wolf on stage just did not move at all. In the package, though, he was lurking around his love den, laying on the bed and trying to seduce us … and Andy Garcia?
He also name dropped friends like Lady Gaga, Jay-Z and Andy Samberg, while cracking a joke about maybe being “responsible for more than one baby out there,” referencing Nick Cannon and his growing brood of children with multiple women.
Images included what appeared to be Leopard (Seal’s) head from when he was on the show, as well as a saxophone he played, a heart-shaped bed, a clock that appeared to have no hands and an old-school monitor. Aside from name-dropping, he shared that he also has a few Grammys (though we’re guessing not for singing, unless his voice has really gone downhill).
Zachary and Helen returned with another clue, “Timberlake!” Is he dropping another big name? This dude has clearly been involved with a lot of big names. “Here’s a thought, JT and I collaborated,” Wolf said in response. His hand also looked a little shaky gripping the mic, making us wonder if maybe Wolf is dealing with some health issues.
Robin immediately pinpointed the voice, and it did have a very distinctive sound that very few artists have. Plus, we recall seeing Michael Bolton on “American Song Contest” last year and remembering him standing just about perfectly still while performing there, as well. He still found strength and volume, just like he pulled off here.
There have been rumors swirling for a year or more now that Michael may be dealing with some health issues, but nothing has been confirmed. Nevertheless, those have surrounded the way he moves, or doesn’t, and presents himself. In other words, the same things we were noticing here with Wolf. He even stands slightly tilted to his left, as Michael does.
Ken wasn’t feeling that guess at all, instead going with Richard Marx, who won a Grammy and collaborated with *NSYNC. Nicole, though, wasn’t buying it, either. She had a fun guess — that admittedly came into our head during the clue package, too — in Rico Suave. Was she thinking of the “Weird Al” Yankovic parody, “Taco Grande,” too? Just us? Actually, she was kidding, instead aligning with Robin on this one.
Michael does have a distinctive voice. It was that voice that Twitter was fixating on, too. Michael Bolton had a lot of support among their best guesses, but so did some other artists with a distinctive sound — just not nearly as much.
(“Try,” P!nk) Squirrel has some singing ability, but we’re pretty confident it’s not her primary passion, nor what she has spent the most time developing. That’s because there’s a push missing on such a powerful track in her delivery. She was a little hesitant in how she attacked the song and she wasn’t stretching her range whereas a seasoned singer would have.
Guesses: An interesting character, Squirrel might just be a multi-hyphenate threat, because she does have pipes. She also shared that she modeled at the highest levels, starred in teen acne commercials as a youth and even made out with Tom Cruise. She said she loves playing superheroes as much as she enjoys being the funny girl next door. Throw in sitcoms and what hasn’t she done?
The entire thing took place on a film or television set, with a gorilla seeking an autograph, a smiley button on a patient when she talked about her dream of being a top psychologist when she was younger. She also revealed she was a professional figure skater at one time with eyes on the Olympics, though it appears that never came to pass.
“The Masked Singer” brought out a comic book legend with CCO and Publisher (and WildStorm founder) Jim Lee for Squirrel’s on-stage clue. He’s also an incredible artist, creating an original Batman piece as part of the clue. The image included “Hero Time” in the building marquees, as well as the names of the panel. Batman is also notably wearing a watch.
“Just like that piece of art, I put time into my work,” said Squirrel. “But it’s all worth it when I get to watch the final product, like this clue, ‘Hero Time.'” Jenny got excited about the clues, thinking of the gorilla and Naomi Watts in “King Kong,” before shifting to the more obvious guess of Katie Holmes as someone who’s definitely made out with Tom Cruise. She also starred in “Batman Begins.”
Ken also threw out Michelle Moynahan, Renee Zellweger as other actresses who’ve made out with Tom, but landed on Margot Robbie aka Harley Quinn herself and the star of figure skating movie, “I, Tonya.” He also tied “all dolled up” to her upcoming “Barbie” movie — but the Tom Cruise clue threw the rest.
Robin, though, leaned into the Swedish meatballs of the clue package to find Uma Thurman, who was Poison Ivy in the movies. There’s another Swede, though, that fits even more clues: Malin Ackerman.
Malin was born in Sweden (meatballs), worked with Noxzema and has talked about being a figure skater. Also, the key clue, she and Tom Cruise did make out in “Rock of Ages.” The smiley face button could be a reference to her superhero role in “Watchmen.”
Ackerman hit Twitter’s radar, but not with as large a groundswell of support as we’d have expected. They were, instead, guessing just about every costar Cruise has ever had! And even some he hasn’t.
Tonight featured a lot of strong performances and there were no outright terrible voices. If it comes down to overall performance, though, we have to say that Wolf delivered the least. His voice was a little tinny and shaky in the start and he never really lifted up to the caliber of even himself, if it’s who we and the internet and at least some of the panel is convinced he is.
In the end, that’s the way the votes came down, too. After the use of the Ding Dong Keep It On bell last week to save Medusa, Wolf became the sixth to get unmasked this season. But would anyone stick by the internet’s favorite guess?
Robin Thicke: Michael BoltonJenny McCarthy: Michael BoltonKen Jeong: Richard MarxNicole Scherzinger: Michael Bolton
At this point in the game, all signs were pointing to Michael Bolton and of course that’s who it was. Anyone who’s seen him appear in recent shows knows how he’s been presenting himself physically, and that is one of the most iconic and recognizable voices of all time. He’s been wowing audiences for decades now with his silky, sultry sound.
(“Kryptonite,” 3 Doors Down) Gargoyle was pretty straightforward in his take, and then struggled a moment with breath control, betraying that he may not be a professional singer. He’s got a pretty voice, but it’s hard to stand out when it’s note-for-note like the original. Squirrel, meanwhile, had so much character in her voice from the start, we didn’t even care that she seemed to have an even more limited range. There was a grit and passion in her performance that was infectious.
With all the emphasis tonight on the Ding Dong Keep it On Bell, we really started to wonder if there would be a second unmasking. Certainly Gargoyle did enough in his first round to keep his mask on, but we were less impressed with his Battle Royale performance. Squirrel had her limitations, too, but she won that round, making it a veritable tie overall for the night.
Honestly, we wouldn’t necessarily use the bell on either of them, were it up to us, as they both had some significant flaws in their performances across the whole episode. Ultimately, we thought Squirrel brought just enough unique flare and personality, that she’d get our vote. She got the panel’s vote, too, taking the first new crown for Group 2 — she’s gonna have to work hard to keep it! — marking the end of the journey for Gargoyle.
Robin Thicke: Antonio GatesJenny McCarthy: Odell Beckham Jr.Ken Jeong: The WeekndNicole Scherzinger: Mario
Or was it? It was not, as Jenny and Nicole inexplicably decided to use the Ding Dong Keep It On Bell to save his fate in the game. We don’t think it was the right move — especially if they really liked Squirrel. We don’t think she’ll fare too well when the bigger guns come out over the next two weeks.
Gargoyle now joins Medusa as the first two Masks who will compete in the upcoming wild card round. The winner of that round will move into the Quarterfinals with the other Group winners. While Medusa is a flawed singer, as well, she’s also got the grit and the power to pretty easily dispatch Gargoyle, we think. Maybe they’re trying to stack things in her favor?
The bottom line, though, is that per the rules established on Night 1, this was their only save for Group B, so there will be no more saves over the next two weeks, no matter how many incredible singers might show up.
“The Masked Singer” continues with “Sesame Street” Night night next Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.
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