As Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler depart 'American Idol,' it's clear being a ... - New York Daily News

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From left, Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez are leaving as judges, and Randy Jackson may make it a clean sweep.

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On television talent shows these days, the old Pigmeat Markham/Flip Wilson “Here come de judge” routine could be rewritten as “Dere go de judge.”

The overhaul at Fox’s “American Idol,” where judges Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler are leaving the panel and Randy Jackson reportedly could make it a clean sweep, is only the latest in the exit game.

Simon Cowell’s “X Factor” starts season two this fall with Britney Spears and Demi Lovato in the judges’ chairs occupied last year by Nicole Scherzinger and Cowell’s old BFF Paula Abdul.

While NBC’s “The Voice” has kept the same four judges into its third cycle, the deck has also been shuffled at shows like “America’s Got Talent,” which this year brought in Howard Stern.

Truth is, this judging gig is harder than it looks.

So it will be interesting to see if “Idol” can find judges whose shelf life runs past their star novelty.

That was the story with Lopez and Tyler, whose first “Idol” season delivered a ratings bump and whose second produced a plunge.

NBC/Virginia Sherwood/NBC

From left, ‘America’s Got Talent’ judge Howard Stern, host Nick Cannon, and judges Sharon Osbourne and Howie Mandel

Presumably many pop stars and celebrities would be happy to take a judging gig that can pay up to $10-$15 million for a few months work and offer one of the highest profiles on television.

Queen Elizabeth doesn’t get more pageantry on her Diamond Jubilee entrances than “Idol” gave Lopez and Tyler. Their show-opening entrances last season made it clear the judges and host had become the real stars.

When the celeb also has to be a good judge, however, the candidate list gets shorter.

Ellen DeGeneres is very popular as a talk show host. Kara DioGuardi has written songs millions of people hum. Scherzinger has sold millions of records.

Quick, try to remember anything they said or did as judges.

Abdul’s problem on two shows, “Idol” and then “X Factor,” is that she ran out of ways to freshen up her act.

She was the nice one, which was fine and novel when Cowell was the heavy sitting next to her.

But there are only so many ways to play that shtick before you’re into reruns â€" and an audience that has “seen it before” is an audience that can drift away.

There’s also the problem that most performances have good and bad in them. Good judges would point that out, serious performers would want to hear it.

Most TV viewers, though, don’t want calm, balanced analysis. They want a rip or a rave.

That’s why it’s been interesting to watch Stern on “America’s Got Talent,” because he comes in with the right tools. He’s opinionated and he also understands that drama works better when you get all parties involved.

Yet even he, as he would probably admit, has hit situations this season he didn’t expect. For all his improv skills, he’s been learning as he goes along.

That’s not an easy situation, especially now when the big shows have become an industry with multimillions riding on them.

Maybe it’s all Cowell’s fault, because he did make it look easy. Even Simon, though, is having trouble finding more Simons.

dhinckley@nydailynews.com