Idol Chatter: Ex-Contestants React to Ellen DeGeneres' 'American Idol' Move

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THE "AMERICAN IDOL" universe at large appears to be mostly pleased with the news that Ellen DeGeneres will be filling the judges seat vacated by Paula Abdul earlier this summer.

A swing through the Twitter feeds of former Idolites big and small revealed several truths: a) Many of them like Ellen DeGeneres; b) Many of them also like to overuse punctuation; c) Semi-famous people throw spelling to the wind while on Twitter, too.

Here's what some of them are saying, unedited, unfiltered and in some cases possibly unconscious:

» Ryan Seacrest, "Idol" host: Wow all went down fast. yes ellen d will be coming to idol. she and paula are both very good friends of mine. E.D. On radio show 2morrow

» Melinda Doolittle, season six contestant: DUDE!! DUDE!! DUDE!! Ellen DeGeneres...the new AI judge! DUDE!! I love me some Paula, and...I adore me some Ellen too. DUDE!!! Thoughts???

» Brandon Rogers, season six contestant: @mdoolittle Ellen's no @PaulaAbdul but Paula's no Ellen either. It's like comparing apples to cucumbers. Only thing in common is the seeds

» Anoop Desai, season eight contestant: Cool, looks like Ellen is the new fourth judge on American Idol

» Phil Stacey, season six contestant: What do you all think of Ellen DeGeneres officially taking Paula's place on Idol next season. Should make for funny TV.

» Chris Richardson, season six contestant: @TheEllenShow wow!! Can't wait... Congrats on A.I ,love

» Michael Castro, season eight contestant for five minutes and brother of season seven contestant Jason Castro: Just heard Ellen degeneres is the 4th idol judge?! "....?!"

» Alex Wagner-Trugman, season eight contestant: wasnt four judges the problem last year? who knows, maybe theyve figured out the science of fitting 6 two minute songs in a one hour slot.

And Rickey.org broke the news of Ellen's hiring to Sanjaya Malakar. Here's his reaction in video form, the only way in which Sanjaya really ought to be viewed:

Fans have apparently had mixed views about DeGeneres, according to a report by the Associated Press, which quoted blogger MJ Santilli of mjsbigblog.com, a well-known "Idol" fan powerhouse, as saying "She guest judged 'So You Think You Can Dance' last season, and her critiques were comic relief. So is she going to be a real judge or some kind of joke? She's a comedian, not a singer or a musician. I'm kinda flummoxed here."

What do you think? Will Ellen be a boon or a bust? Let us know in the comments section below.

Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images