I was waiting until the live shows to write about The X Factor, but after spending last night screaming at my television I figured I’d fast track some posting.
The X Factor has had its critics, especially those who applauded the “resting” of Australian Idol, but I was thrilled to see another musical talent show on Aussie television. I’d watched all the auditions and picked my favourites, and was really enjoying the process. At least I was until last night, when it seemed that the best performers wouldn’t make it to the live shows after all.
With the exception of Natalie Imbruglia, every judge had a few dog acts. I just didn’t expect them to make the final cut.
My first disappointment came when Guy Sebastian cut Jahmaking it Funky, a band that hadn’t put a foot wrong in the competition thus far. Criticising them for sticking to reggae seems a bit hypocritical to me when bands like Mahogany and Kharizma are sticking to R ‘n’ B. But there were more shocks to come when Guy opted to put Luke and Joel into the finals over Lazy J and Big Guy. I wanted to get behind Luke and Joel as a fellow Novacastrian, but they just haven’t delivered. Lazy J and Big Guy had their flaws too, but at least they showed some originality. As far as I can see it, Guy has one serious contender in Mahogany. Kharizma aren’t bad, but everything they can do Mahogany simply do better.
There were more shocks to come when Ronan Keating decided to give Altiyan Childs yet another chance. I just don’t get it. He hasn’t remembered the lyrics once, and even when he does perform he seems like a bit of a poser. I couldn’t believe he made it through the auditions, so I’m shocked to see him get to the main event. Something tells me he’s going to go pretty early.
But my biggest shocks came when Kyle did the culling. I don’t claim to know everything there is to know about music, but I know what I like. And what I liked was Darcy, TJ, and George. Three of my favourite competitors, now all gone. Kyle has a snowball’s chance in hell of winning this thing.
Which left Natalie, who couldn’t put a foot wrong because her group was so strong. Still, I was thrilled to see her put through the stand-outs, Sarah and Hayley. Any one of the other girls could have easily got that third place, so I’m happy there.
I was excited about The X Factor, but after last night’s show I’m feeling deflated. We were meant to be looking for performers with something special, and there seems to be only a handful left that fit the bill. What do you think of the judges’ decisions?
You can’t please all of the people all of the time. We as viewers have only seen what they want you to see, where as the judges have spent a lot of time with all of their acts. Only they can make that judgement based on everything they have seen over the whole 4 days of auditions. They also need to be able to mentor them, so connecting with their acts is also important. Some people will surprise you I think.
Your post has made me glad I haven’t committed much time to the X Factor. That’s exactly the thing that used to frustrate me about Australian Idol – the judges seemed to be hearing something different from me. Singers that were out of tune or time or who just generally lost it somehow got nothing but praise from the judges. It never made sense.
Definitely can’t please all of the people all of the time Karla, but on reading through The X Factor forums it seems a lot of people were shocked by the calls made. I hope you’re right and that these people surprise me, but right now I’m not optimistic.
I think the biggest difference between this and Idol Katie is that only one person is making the call about who’s going through to the finals, rather than a panel of judges. They had celebrity guest helpers, but ultimately one person is responsible for their charges. I have a feeling that if they had to pass their decisions through a majority, things would have been different.
I’ll stick with it, but this is the show I’ll be taping rather than watching live. Junior Masterchef left me feeling a lot perkier ;-).
It’s edited to death. We only get to see what 7 want us to see, to stir us up. Lazy and Big were Guy’s favourites and one of mine. He now tells us on Twitter that they couldn’t get through anything they started and he didn’t want them failing on national TV so early in their careers. Re Kharizma and Mahogany being R&B, with respect, that’s a much broader genre and they’ll still be able to shine in the other genres that they’ll have to cover. I can’t see JIF being able to roam so broadly. I’m hoping Wayne’s World … I mean, Luke and Joel have something to offer that I haven’t seen yet. There are several I have hope for, but I’ll reserve my judgment until I see an unedited performance. There were a few I was sorry to see go but, as I said, who knows what really happened. I see Centrebet has the first betting up. They’ve got the top 3 as Mahogany/Hayley equal first, and Kharizma second.
I know you’re right Sally, but that sort of manipulation doesn’t make me feel any better about it! Perhaps I’ve just been lucky in the past, but I don’t remember feeling like we’ve ever lost so many talented people in the past in any of these TV shows. Right now I don’t have any favourites, which is probably what’s making me feel so grouchy about it all. Still, I’ll stick with it and hope to be wowed by one of these people I’ve underestimated.
All I can say Lauren is you were seeing something in Lazy J and Big Guy that I couldn’t. Sure they did great in their first audition, but during Boot Camp and the Judges Houses episodes they really did not perform well at all. Being put on the spot to deliver good performances with limited time to prepare and practice really showed up their weakness. And Guy tweeted last night that they edited out the worst of their performances as he didn’t want those bits shown in the episodes because they had faltered so badly.
When all is said and done it is the way the show is. It is the judges call until the live shows begin, and as we don’t see the full performances during the early episodes how can we judge the judges. They see it all, the stuff ups, forgetting lines, the missed notes, everything, while we just see what Channel 7 wants us to. But in my opinion Lazy J and Big Guy did not come across well even edited. And if the look on Usher’s face was anything to go by they impressed him the least, even less than Luke and Joel.
I don’t think Guy could have done much with Jahmaking it Funky in the live shows either. The Jamaican thing could wear thin after awhile. They are not much more than a tribute act. I reckon his two girl groups could do ok though.
Oh don’t get me wrong Sam – I wasn’t sure that Lazy J and Big Guy deserved a place in the finals either. It just seemed like the only logical choice to me when they were put in the face off with Luke and Joel.
I guess R n B sells more records, but honestly I love a bit of reggae. I could listen to what Jahmaking it Funky were doing all day, and I thought they could have gotten more people excited about this genre that doesn’t enjoy a lot of mainstream attention these days, but not to be.
The girls are good, but I worry that their similarities are going to split votes. I think Guy would have been better strategically to have put forward three completely different groups, but hey – I’m just an armchair judge! I guess we’ll just have to wait and see :-).