VIDEO: Hollywood Week Kicks Off On American Idol

The search for the next American Idol took judges Randy Jackson, Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez back to Southern California on Thursday's show, as the show's Hollywood Week kicked off from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, where the star trio had to whittle down the 327 hopefuls they approved during the show's audition phase.

Again, we saw a parade of contestants who look poised to make a good run, with the lethal combination of raw talent and a sob story to tug at the judges' heartstrings.

There was Brett Loewenstern, a teen bullying victim; James Durbin, who's been diagnosed with Tourette's and Asperger's; Paris Tassin, who has a daughter who's hearing impaired; and Chris Medina, whose fiancée is confined to a wheelchair after an auto accident. All of them were approved to move on to the next level.

The song wasn't so sweet however, for Nick Fink and Jacqueline Dunford, a young couple whose auditions went different routes: Jacqueline's rendition of Sam Cooke's Bring It On Home to Me impressed the judges to grant her the go-ahead, while Nick's take on Paolo Nutini's New Shoes got him the heave-ho.