Ellen DeGeneres (dih-JEN'-ur-us) hit the right notes with "American Idol" viewers.

Fans took to the Internet to express their pleasant surprise over the funnylady's debut as the singing competition's fourth judge. DeGeneres assumed her new post for Tuesday's episode chronicling the first round of "Hollywood Week," the cutthroat post-audition phase in which 181 contestants will be narrowed down to 24 semifinalists.

Most folks posting about DeGeneres on the social networking Web site praised the talk show host's performance. Some admitted they were only tuned in because she was added judge.