'America’s Got Talent: The Champions' kicks off with Howie shutting down Simon

America’s Got Talent: The Champions (Monday’s at 8 p.m. ET on CTV) premiered its second season on Monday night and featured the return of some familiar faces and the introduction of some new ones. After the very public fallout between the talent show and former judge Gabrielle Union (Julianne Hough was also released from her contract), Simon Cowell and Howie Mandel were once again joined by returning judge Heidi Klum. The new season included the addition of Britain’s Got Talent judge Alesha Dixon, as well as the return of the contagiously happy Terry Crews as host.Monday night’s show featured a packed two hours of returning champions from America’s Got Talent as well as iterations of the show in other countries. There was a powerful performance by the dance group Junior Creative from Myanmar, the debut of gifted singer Jack Vidgen who won Australia’s Got Talent at only 14, and the return of dancing duo Paddy and Nicko, who have a 40-year age difference (she’s 85 and can still perform death spirals–we bow down).[video_embed id='5993936958001']RELATED: Simon Cowell reveals how he feels about trolls[/video_embed]Klum was the judge with the power to push the golden buzzer on the premiere, giving one act a spot in the finals. That honour went to 13-year-old singer Angelina Jordan, who gave a stripped down and emotional rendition of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.” The teen singer won Norway’s Got Talent when she was only seven and finally realized her dream of getting to perform in front of Simon Cowell on the AGT stage. Is Simon big with 13-year-olds in Norway? Maybe it’s the hair.

 

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@heidiklum knows a GOLDEN performance when she sees one and @angelinajordana's definitely was worthy! ✨ #AGTChampions

A post shared by America's Got Talent - AGT (@agt) on Jan 6, 2020 at 6:28pm PST

As for the remaining nine performers, a group of superfans from all over the U.S. got to pick two of the remaining three spots, with the coaches having the final say on who should be the fourth semifinalist. The second spot went to magician Dania Diaz, who impressed the audience with her creativity and vulnerability, using a deck of cards to share her life story. A finalist on the 2018 season of Venezuela’s Got Talent, Diaz’s talent as a magician isn’t new for AGT, but she stands out for being one of the few female magicians to appear on the show.

 

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A post shared by America's Got Talent - AGT (@agt) on Jan 6, 2020 at 6:51pm PST

Former AGT finalists Duo Transcend returned on Monday night, performing more death-defying trapeze stunts that make us want to both run to the gym and stay firmly on stable ground. The married couple celebrated Tyce’s eyesight-saving surgery that was performed after their last appearance on AGT by blindfolding one another for half of their performance, a move that was ironic. impressive and terrifying. [video_embed id='1818921']RELATED: Heidi Klum shows, once again, why she is the Queen of Halloween[/video_embed]