This is going to be the season of the reaction shot.
The best part about American Idol's 12th year, at least until the singing gets serious, will be watching Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj respond to each other's nonsense. Carey's going to play to her reputation as a diva, and Minaj is going to roll her eyes. Then Minaj will tuck her hair behind her ear and launch into some excited exposition, and Carey will smile like Minaj is a cute puppy that hasn't been housebroken.
This is a good thing, though. Based on the preview of next week's New York and Chicago audition episodes shown in 11 theaters around the country Wednesday night, every time either of them gets out of hand, a producer will cut to the the other, looking witheringly dismissive. Bottom line: Nobody's going to be able to get away with the kind of prattle we've seen in past seasons.
Even better: All three of the new judges -- Minaj, Carey and Keith Urban -- are more expressive than the ones they're replacing. Minaj can say as much just by widening her eyes as Simon Cowell could with any of his well-rehearsed barbs.