One of the great things about American Idol is that it’s live, so you never quite know what’s going to happen. Last night, my favorite contender, Andrew Garcia, made a major comeback after weeks of mediocre performance and harsh judgments from the panel.

Garcia was struggling to live up to his performance during Hollywood week, when he blew the judges and viewing audience away with his rendition of Paula Abdul’s “Straight Up.” Each week he put his spin on a different song, but it failed to impress the judges, especially Simon, who is ultra-critical no matter what the contestants do.

After last night’s performance, assisted by music icon, Usher, during practice, Garcia was back in good form. He performed a smashing rendition of Chris Brown’s “Forever.”

All the judges said he was back, and it was his best performance in weeks. And then it was Simon’s turn. He criticized Garcia for not knowing who he really was, and claimed his inability to connect with himself as an artist was holding him back.

When Ryan Seacrest talked to Garcia after the judges panel, he spurred on Garcia’s mom, who was sitting in the audience, asking her how she felt about Simon saying her son was boring. Mrs. Garcia, clad in bright Zebra print, gave Simon a piece of her mind, while her son stood on stage telling her to be nice.

It pays to have your mom on your side! Go Mrs. Garcia.