Live on the Set with Germany's Idol

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None of which inhibited Bohlen from telling Rania (the contestants are always known by their first names) that her singing was "as flat as Holland." Bohlen never tires of reminding the aspirants that show biz is a ruthless business, and even the sight of tearful parents in the audience doesn't seem to blunt his critiques.

"We're not looking for composers, we're looking for singers," Bohlen railed at Collins Owusu, from Ghana by way of Dusseldorf, after he unintentionally added some notes to his R&B number that didn't exactly belong. Collins' mother and father, memorably named Comfort and Johnnyfix, looked distraught.

Pumping Up Conflict for the Cameras

Every Idol show needs its troublemaker, and Germany's was Benni Herd, a 16-year-old pipsqueak who had gone AWOL the previous week after delivering a tirade against the jury, his co-contestants, and even guest performer Mariah Carey. Backstage cameras dutifully captured the outburst, which was replayed for viewers of the live broadcast. The producers allowed Benni back, but there were scattered boos from the audience when his name was mentioned.

That level of negativity exceeded even DSDS standards. During a commercial break, moderator Schreyl stepped to the front of the stage and addressed the studio audience in a grave voice. "I would really like it if you would be fair to Benni," Schreyl said. "He's only 16 years old." Unmoved, a pair of women near me screamed, "Benni go home!"

Despite a few people who take DSDS way too seriously, the show seemed less vicious and emotional live than it looks on TV. During commercial breaks, the contestants and judges bantered in a way that suggests a good deal of the conflict is, if not exactly staged, at least pumped up for the cameras.

Mostly One-Hit Wonders in Germany

What surprised me about DSDS the most was that some of the performances—backed by a first-class live band—were actually pretty good. Fady did a killer rendition of Elton John's Your Song. Linda Teodosiu, a 16-year-old with Romanian roots, impressed even Bohlen with her delivery of One Day in Your Life, a hit by American pop singer Anastacia. "That was rather perfect," Bohlen conceded. Fady and Linda both advanced easily to the next round, but TV viewers ejected Collins. (Benni survived, but got the thumbs-down the next week.)

The odds that the winner of DSDS will become a major money-maker are slim, though. Unlike in the U.S., where winners such as Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood have become Grammy-winning stars, winners of DSDS tend to be one-hit wonders at best. The one thing that Bertelsmann can't duplicate around the world is what happens to the contestants after the show is over.

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Ewing is BusinessWeek's European regional editor .