by Vera H-C Chan The pants have been picked off the ground, the rejects have gone home, and host Ryan Seacrest is shifting the melodrama into overdrive. " American Idol ," which ended up with the Nielsen silver against the Olympics in its Hollywood Round, should be gunning for the gold this week with its first live show of Season 9. And for a show always known for its Southern boosterism , "AI" has stacked the decks almost too well for Season 10. Out of the 24 hopefuls,