Warning: major spoilers ahead for the Season 18 finale of America's Got Talent on NBC!
Season 18 of America's Got Talent was a wild ride from start to finish, to the point that it felt like this might be a year when a golden buzzer winner wouldn't actually become champion. The final eleven was a stacked group of competitors, five of whom did actually get the golden buzzer after their auditions. Now, after a two-hour finale (that predictably didn't start announcing results for about 90 minutes), the newest AGT champion was announced, and the reveal still has me smiling for one big reason.
The first acts to be eliminated in the finale were singer Lavender Darcangelo, dance group Chibi Unity, comedian Ahren Belisle, Mzansi Youth Choir, and dance group Avantgardey. Then, after the Top 5 were confirmed, Ramadhani Brothers were next, followed by Putri Ariani and Murmuration. These eliminations were followed by boos from the crowd, and even the judges looked visibly surprised by the cuts.
It was down to just two: magician Anna Deguzman and dog act Adrian Stoica and Hurricane. After host Terry Crews took a nice long pause to build suspense, he finally announced the results. Congratulations to Adrian Stoica and Hurricane!
Now, I was actually pulling for Anna Deguzman after she won me over with her final performance just the night before. After I realized that my two predictions based on the the finale performances came true, I was feeling pretty good about Deguzman becoming the first female magician to win a season of AGT up until Terry Crews dropped the news about the real champion. So, why am I all smiles about Adrian Stoica and Hurricane winning?
Honestly, it's been a long time since America's Got Talent really pulled off a surprise winner, and I love that I didn't see this coming... and it seemed that a lot of people in the theater where the finale was being taped didn't see it coming either. And the reason that it's a surprise isn't that Stoica and his canine pal were less talented than any of the others, but rather that the golden buzzer winners were getting all the hype.
In fact, I was even second-guessing my own predictions that the champion wouldn't be a singer or a golden buzzer winner after a good night's sleep... and after seeing that Putri Ariani's performance had accumulated more views than any other on the AGT YouTube page. I didn't think that voters would go all-in on Adrian Stoica and Hurricane just because the odds seemed stacked against them. I absolutely love that AGT surprised me like this, which is not something that every show can do when eighteen seasons in.
Plus, Hurricane is adorable and Stoica's reaction to winning was just plain heartwarming. Besides, anybody who made it to the final eleven in a season of America's Got Talent seems guaranteed for success in their field, even if they don't get the $1 million and Las Vegas stage show. Plenty of past performers have become stars in their own rights without winning the top AGT prize. I also wouldn't be shocked to see some of them again in the upcoming AGT: Fantasy League spinoff that brings Mel B back to the franchise.
All in all, even though the first 90 minutes were mostly fluff to fill a two-hour finale, I enjoyed how America's Got Talent ended Season 18, and can't help but be very happy for Adrian Stoica and Hurricane at this point. In case you missed it, here's the performance that won them the top prize:
You can revisit all of Adrian Stoica's performances with Hurricane streaming with a Peacock Premium subscription now. There are also plenty of TV options on the way in the not-too-distant future despite the WGA writers strike and SAG-AFTRA actors strike, so be sure to check out our 2023 TV schedule.
