First on the chopping block was contestant Sharin Attamimi. Her crystal clear rendition of Gloria Gaynor's 'I Will Survive' proved not enough for Connick Jr. to which he said, "I could have taken you out of there and put another singer in there."
Met with a pattern of jeers from the audience he responded directly, "Y'all need to save your energy. You could be doing that all night."
As if he predicted it, Connick Jr. met his second audience match later in the show.
Contestant Bobby Holmes performed Bruno Mars' 'Locked out of Heaven' to a cheering crowd.
"You're setting yourself up for something less than the record," Connick Jr. said.
"I want to see your artistry and all I could see was a guy...imitating Bruno Mars."
WATCH: Harry Connick Jr. dishes out harsh Australian Idol critique. Article continues after video.
Little to his surprise, he was met with another cacophony of 'boos'. As we progress into the Top 12 live shows, one can only guess how his critiques will go down. As competition gets even fiercer, difficult decisions must be made. But is it the delivery that is too harsh? Only time will tell...