Football AGAIN? I do love how diverse this thread gets!
Just seen some of the twitterings some of the more, shall we say, hardcore Saula contingent have been sending to Simon and his team and wow, just wow! They take it all SO seriously! Make a pact ladies, if any of us ever get THAT deranged, pinky promise to end it all with a Whitney style bender consisting of a cocktail of meths, crack, vodka and walk across a very high bridge
Do they not realise celeb culture is meant to be a FUN HOBBY?
Wow. Drama, drama, and MORE DRAMA. That will teach me for going to bed early last night.
I'm glad to see that Simon has been able to admit that things weren't working at USXF and is willing to make necessary changes. I don't have a problem with any of the firings, although they maybe could have been handled with a little more class if the rumors about how they went down are true. But that's the way Simon is, and everyone who knows him knows that.
If I were a better person, I'd feel a little sorry for the Saula fans right now. But I'm not.
I really don't care who the new judges are as long as they work well together and seem to be having fun with the show, neither of which was the case last fall. Some big names would be nice, but that should be the secondary consideration. And, for goodness sakes, get a host that can actually carry the show and not just stand there and look pretty. Although, if Simon plays his cards right, maybe he can have his own Seacrest that is capable of doing both.
Just seen some of the twitterings some of the more, shall we say, hardcore Saula contingent have been sending to Simon and his team and wow, just wow! They take it all SO seriously!
Are they worried about who will get custody of their secret love-child? :eek:
:eek: busy at work all day and come back to this :mad:
Just had a look at the Saua board:eek: think our Simey needs to get a bullet proof vest Nothing confirmed yet by the looks of it. I have a tendancy to agree with allie on this one all *spin*. I do feel sorry for the Saula's tho if it is true well most of them Hope he did tell her himself if it's true. Pity he couldn't give her a behind the scenes role. Not bothered about loosing the others. Looks like my favourite LA Reid is safe----oops sorry Simon my second favourite
No doubt we will have to endure months of "rumered replacements" :yawn:
:eek: busy at work all day and come back to this :mad:
Just had a look at the Saua board:eek: think our Simey needs to get a bullet proof vest Nothing confirmed yet by the looks of it. I have a tendancy to agree with allie on this one all *spin*. I do feel sorry for the Saula's tho if it is true well most of them Hope he did tell her himself if it's true. Pity he couldn't give her a behind the scenes role. Not bothered about loosing the others. Looks like my favourite LA Reid is safe----oops sorry Simon my second favourite
No doubt we will have to endure months of "rumered replacements" :yawn:
The number of Tony's followers on Twitter are about to be slashed to a fraction of what they were. :rolleyes:
Oh dear, those who play with the Saulas are in for a bit of a dry spell I fear
Well it sounds like how we thought - this wasnt a shock to Paula and the wheels have been in motion for awhile. I cant say I feel sorry for her per se - its a cut throat business and it looks like she was dealt with, with the respect she deserved. She had a good crack at the whip and at the end of the day, the panel just didnt work. The idea to capture those glory days of Idol never took off so it was absolutely the right choice to give the panel a major shake up.
We always said it felt too old, too similar to Idol and didnt flow - it needs BIG BOLD changes to move on. It looks like Paula completely accepts this and its nice to see how all involved have acted respectfully. Good luck to her - as Ive said before, I like Paula and didnt HATE her on XF, she was a victim of combined factors that just didnt work.
Been reading the media reports on The XF USA "bloodbath" today. Just like the show itself, apart from the few die hard fans, it hasnt caused much of a blip. Certainly Steve and Nicole's departure was more a case of "when" not "if". Paula's rather more surprising axe has caused a bit more a ripple - not least amongst our old nemesis', the Saulas - who seem to have gone from sweet but mildly deluded to scary and clinically insane overnight. :eek:
Saulas aside, there has been a small backlash over her firing - many wondering just what FOX wants from S2 of the show.
I thoughtTHIS article had some good points to make...
Having spent the last few months actively spinning the media that The X Factor was a really big success that just needed a few tweaks to make things better, Cowell and Fox are now sending the message that last season was, like the eighth season of Dallas, a giant dream that never really happened.
After Simon's now infamous remarks about "20 million viewers" and FOX's subsequent mega spinning of the ACTUAL much lower numbers, they made all the right noises about how happy they were with the performance of the show, so the changes do seem drastic and high profile. It is like FOX are saying "Well actually it was a bit crap really so we are changing EVERYTHING".
And it WASN'T that bad really and I wonder what direction they are going to steer it next. Out of all the criticisms of the show, I never saw a great deal of venom against Paula (plenty for Nicole and Steve) so it appears to me she has been chopped so they can finally shake the "Idol 2" image.
This, I feel will only work if they bring in the right two judges. Like it or not, a massive chunk of the audience loved the more Idol like feel to the show - hence the winner being Melanie not Chris. With Paula gone one assumes the logical move would be to try and make things edgier and more current. Doesnt fit with the Mariah rumours, but the more I hear about Nicki Minaj, Katie Perry and Miley Cyrus the second seaons already sounds more promising and exciting.
I still firmly believe the panel needs someone Simon can bounce off for the show to work. The chemistry sucked last year - I felt it was scripted and unatural. Simon needs to find his David Walliams for XF USA then they wont need scripts or silly feuds - the banter will just flow. Whatever Simon and Paula had on Idol, it didnt translate to XF.
If Cowell has already secretly done a deal to get Ryan Seacrest to defect, or secretly plans to offer Neil Patrick Harris an ungodly sum of money to somehow do both How I Met Your Mother and a reality show, then, fine, Jones's beheading is logical. But otherwise, it seems to be change for change's sake. And this brings us to the notion that Simon's Slaughter could actually leave Fox with the worst possible scenario next fall: A revamped X that fails to attract new audiences while simultaneously alienating the core group of viewers who actually liked what they saw each week.
Whilst Steve was thirty kinds of crap, to be fair so were Ryan and Dermot in their first seasons. I guess the difference is no-one had the huge expectations of those shows in the early days and with the huge sponsorships in place for XFUSA there is no time to allow a host or judge to grow into their roles like Ryan and Dermot have done. Again, it was another mistake in my opinion to have a white, male 30 something host to mirror Idol - why didnt they have a woman, a duo, an older person (Kathy Griffin anyone ) to give the show a bit of an edge? If Simon could find the right pairing a duo would work well on a show like XF. Everyone seems to scared to use this format since Brian Dunkleman's cringeworthy performance on Idol S1 but a decade on, surely its time to try the format again?
And I agree totally that TOO MANY changes for S2 could backfire spectacularly and actually lose some of the viewers (and there were a decent amount - granted not 20 m but a decent amount ). Yes the show needed tweaks, of course it did, but this high profile axe swinging isnt sending out a great message. I guess they are relying on another few months of everyone from Tone to The Pope being considered for a role as a judge
Well if XFUS fails he could always try to sell them another unforgettable format, what was its name, Red or Black. It's totally original, sob stories and giving away loads of money for no skills.
Been reading the media reports on The XF USA "bloodbath" today. Just like the show itself, apart from the few die hard fans, it hasnt caused much of a blip. Certainly Steve and Nicole's departure was more a case of "when" not "if". Paula's rather more surprising axe has caused a bit more a ripple - not least amongst our old nemesis', the Saulas - who seem to have gone from sweet but mildly deluded to scary and clinically insane overnight. :eek:
Saulas aside, there has been a small backlash over her firing - many wondering just what FOX wants from S2 of the show.
I thoughtTHIS article had some good points to make...
Having spent the last few months actively spinning the media that The X Factor was a really big success that just needed a few tweaks to make things better, Cowell and Fox are now sending the message that last season was, like the eighth season of Dallas, a giant dream that never really happened.
After Simon's now infamous remarks about "20 million viewers" and FOX's subsequent mega spinning of the ACTUAL much lower numbers, they made all the right noises about how happy they were with the performance of the show, so the changes do seem drastic and high profile. It is like FOX are saying "Well actually it was a bit crap really so we are changing EVERYTHING".
And it WASN'T that bad really and I wonder what direction they are going to steer it next. Out of all the criticisms of the show, I never saw a great deal of venom against Paula (plenty for Nicole and Steve) so it appears to me she has been chopped so they can finally shake the "Idol 2" image.
This, I feel will only work if they bring in the right two judges. Like it or not, a massive chunk of the audience loved the more Idol like feel to the show - hence the winner being Melanie not Chris. With Paula gone one assumes the logical move would be to try and make things edgier and more current. Doesnt fit with the Mariah rumours, but the more I hear about Nicki Minaj, Katie Perry and Miley Cyrus the second seaons already sounds more promising and exciting.
I still firmly believe the panel needs someone Simon can bounce off for the show to work. The chemistry sucked last year - I felt it was scripted and unatural. Simon needs to find his David Walliams for XF USA then they wont need scripts or silly feuds - the banter will just flow. Whatever Simon and Paula had on Idol, it didnt translate to XF.
If Cowell has already secretly done a deal to get Ryan Seacrest to defect, or secretly plans to offer Neil Patrick Harris an ungodly sum of money to somehow do both How I Met Your Mother and a reality show, then, fine, Jones's beheading is logical. But otherwise, it seems to be change for change's sake. And this brings us to the notion that Simon's Slaughter could actually leave Fox with the worst possible scenario next fall: A revamped X that fails to attract new audiences while simultaneously alienating the core group of viewers who actually liked what they saw each week.
Whilst Steve was thirty kinds of crap, to be fair so were Ryan and Dermot in their first seasons. I guess the difference is no-one had the huge expectations of those shows in the early days and with the huge sponsorships in place for XFUSA there is no time to allow a host or judge to grow into their roles like Ryan and Dermot have done. Again, it was another mistake in my opinion to have a white, male 30 something host to mirror Idol - why didnt they have a woman, a duo, an older person (Kathy Griffin anyone ) to give the show a bit of an edge? If Simon could find the right pairing a duo would work well on a show like XF. Everyone seems to scared to use this format since Brian Dunkleman's cringeworthy performance on Idol S1 but a decade on, surely its time to try the format again?
And I agree totally that TOO MANY changes for S2 could backfire spectacularly and actually lose some of the viewers (and there were a decent amount - granted not 20 m but a decent amount ). Yes the show needed tweaks, of course it did, but this high profile axe swinging isnt sending out a great message. I guess they are relying on another few months of everyone from Tone to The Pope being considered for a role as a judge
Anyone else got any thoughts?
Wow this article rambled on for, like, ever, so I didn't read it all BUT I do sgree that too many changed could backfire
Well if XFUS fails he could always try to sell them another unforgettable format, what was its name, Red or Black. It's totally original, sob stories and giving away loads of money for no skills.
Hi Ivan,
Just a quick question in a non fangirl way, cos lets get this straight, I couldn't care less what you say about Simon - but I have noticed that ALL your posts are very bitter towards him, so it really makes me wonder what's the point? I mean I hate Cheryl Cole, but I don't go in her AT (If she had one) and post bitter stuff about her, I don't waste my time thinking of her.. so I guess my question would be, why bother?
Been reading the media reports on The XF USA "bloodbath" today. Just like the show itself, apart from the few die hard fans, it hasnt caused much of a blip. Certainly Steve and Nicole's departure was more a case of "when" not "if". Paula's rather more surprising axe has caused a bit more a ripple - not least amongst our old nemesis', the Saulas - who seem to have gone from sweet but mildly deluded to scary and clinically insane overnight. :eek:
Saulas aside, there has been a small backlash over her firing - many wondering just what FOX wants from S2 of the show.
I thoughtTHIS article had some good points to make...
Having spent the last few months actively spinning the media that The X Factor was a really big success that just needed a few tweaks to make things better, Cowell and Fox are now sending the message that last season was, like the eighth season of Dallas, a giant dream that never really happened.
After Simon's now infamous remarks about "20 million viewers" and FOX's subsequent mega spinning of the ACTUAL much lower numbers, they made all the right noises about how happy they were with the performance of the show, so the changes do seem drastic and high profile. It is like FOX are saying "Well actually it was a bit crap really so we are changing EVERYTHING".
And it WASN'T that bad really and I wonder what direction they are going to steer it next. Out of all the criticisms of the show, I never saw a great deal of venom against Paula (plenty for Nicole and Steve) so it appears to me she has been chopped so they can finally shake the "Idol 2" image.
This, I feel will only work if they bring in the right two judges. Like it or not, a massive chunk of the audience loved the more Idol like feel to the show - hence the winner being Melanie not Chris. With Paula gone one assumes the logical move would be to try and make things edgier and more current. Doesnt fit with the Mariah rumours, but the more I hear about Nicki Minaj, Katie Perry and Miley Cyrus the second seaons already sounds more promising and exciting.
I still firmly believe the panel needs someone Simon can bounce off for the show to work. The chemistry sucked last year - I felt it was scripted and unatural. Simon needs to find his David Walliams for XF USA then they wont need scripts or silly feuds - the banter will just flow. Whatever Simon and Paula had on Idol, it didnt translate to XF.
If Cowell has already secretly done a deal to get Ryan Seacrest to defect, or secretly plans to offer Neil Patrick Harris an ungodly sum of money to somehow do both How I Met Your Mother and a reality show, then, fine, Jones's beheading is logical. But otherwise, it seems to be change for change's sake. And this brings us to the notion that Simon's Slaughter could actually leave Fox with the worst possible scenario next fall: A revamped X that fails to attract new audiences while simultaneously alienating the core group of viewers who actually liked what they saw each week.
Whilst Steve was thirty kinds of crap, to be fair so were Ryan and Dermot in their first seasons. I guess the difference is no-one had the huge expectations of those shows in the early days and with the huge sponsorships in place for XFUSA there is no time to allow a host or judge to grow into their roles like Ryan and Dermot have done. Again, it was another mistake in my opinion to have a white, male 30 something host to mirror Idol - why didnt they have a woman, a duo, an older person (Kathy Griffin anyone ) to give the show a bit of an edge? If Simon could find the right pairing a duo would work well on a show like XF. Everyone seems to scared to use this format since Brian Dunkleman's cringeworthy performance on Idol S1 but a decade on, surely its time to try the format again?
And I agree totally that TOO MANY changes for S2 could backfire spectacularly and actually lose some of the viewers (and there were a decent amount - granted not 20 m but a decent amount ). Yes the show needed tweaks, of course it did, but this high profile axe swinging isnt sending out a great message. I guess they are relying on another few months of everyone from Tone to The Pope being considered for a role as a judge
Anyone else got any thoughts?
3rd time i've replied and had to log back in to this tonight :mad: DS get your act together :mad:
I didn't think Paula was the right choice. I do think she is too old. I think they may have just lost a load of viewers they couldn't afford to loose. Paula will understand she will want her friends show to be a success
Uncle Tone was hinting last night she may be brought back like Louis due to public demand:rolleyes:
Like the thought of Katy Perry, plenty to say for herself and not afraid to say it
No thoughts on hosts as yet but preferably fit
I thoughtTHIS article had some good points to make...
I thought that was a very interesting, well-thought-out analysis of what's going on.
Something the author pointed out that I hadn't seen discussed elsewhere is how Melanie has her big hyped Super Bowl commercial coming up on Sunday, and how the bloodbath now overshadows what should be XF's first big step in promoting the Big New Popstar that the show promised. I liked the analogy of "someone announcing that he's divorcing his wife a week before their daughter gets married." I guess you could argue that the buzz from the firings could feed into the buzz for the commercial, but no one is making (or pushing) that connection, so I don't think that was the intention. It's important that they have some kind of success associated with their first-season winner going into the second season, which is why I was surprised that there was no "winner's single" from Melanie. (Unless they try to pull a Daughtry and pretend that Chris Rene and his "Young Homies" were the real winners.)
The timing of the announcement of the firings in general is interesting, and I don't know what to make of it (if indeed there is anything to be read into it). It sort of came out of the blue, was done all at once, not long after the season was finished, with no one seemingly lined up as a replacement. It's not like Simon to get things done earlier than needed, heh. And it's hard to believe that he did it out of compassion so that Steve, Nicole, and Paula wouldn't be left hanging, thinking they still had their jobs. Seems to me like there are people pushing Simon now and forcing him into decisions, although I expect he is in agreement with them.
My impressions from reading around is that no one really cares that Steve and Nicole are gone, most expected that. With Paula, people seem to be more surprised than upset. Or if they're upset, they're upset at the way it was handled (being fired by her supposed long-time good friend via a phone call from a lawyer). I don't think many actually care that she's not going to be on the show anymore, thinking that she was too good to lose. If Paula had announced she was leaving on her own due to some great offer or unhappiness with the show, the reaction would be a lot different.
Kind of funny how LA was the first person Simon hired for the show, and now he's the only one left. It's like a time-travel back to last March, with a clean slate to make new choices. I have a feeling we are in for another several-months-long cycle of rumors. (My favorite so far is the "Old Spice TV Commercial Guy" as the new host. Because a pretty-face male with limited hosting experience worked out so well the first time. :rolleyes:)
As I said before, I really don't care who the new judges are as long as they have good chemistry together. If they're big names who are younger, with current successful music careers, that's all the better. But I hope Simon is not planning on hiring Mariah (or whoever) just because she is a big star. I want him to hire her because he knows that she is entertaining, that he can work well with her, and that together they will make good TV.
As far as hosts go, I really don't get the idea of having two of them. Having never watched Ant and Dec (the only successful hosting duo I'm aware of) in action, I'm not even sure how it would work. Even though there are technically two hosts on Dancing With the Stars, Tom Bergeron is very much The Host, while Brooke Burke mostly just does the backstage interviews while waiting for scores. Maybe shows here shy away from the typical duel-host format since Ryan and Brian were such an utter fail. And one of the reasons why was because they were just thrown together, whereas Ant and Dec had spent years working together, developing almost an act together before they hit it big. And there is nobody like that in the US (that I'm aware of anyway). So I remain skeptical of that concept. The best hosts are the ones where you don't notice how good they are, like Ryan, Tom, Jeff Probst, and Cat Deeley, because they are so natural and make everything seem effortless. It shouldn't matter if they are white, black, male, female, younger, older, attractive, or not-so-attractive, because you should not really notice them if they are doing a good job at actually hosting. The ability to subtly interact well with everyone (the contestants, the judges, the studio audience) while simultaneously keeping the show moving is what is most important. (A sense of humor helps, too.)
My assumption was that the firings have been done so early because they want months of speculation again - they can fill the entertainment columns with XF Judge news on a weekly basis "Is *insert name of unlikely popstar/ TV star / movie star* bound for X Factor" like we had last year. Ive no doubt the Mariah thing will be off and on like the Cheryl business was *stifles a yawn. I just hope and agree 100% that whoever they choose has big personalities rather than be "just a name" - they need screen tests and maybe even some audience testing. Cant really visualise Mariah turning up to audition though!
Simon is always at his best with people he likes and feels comfortable with so he needs to go through his contacts list on his phone . Ryan would be epic as a judge on many levels but back in the real world I guess we might hold out for Elton - who probably wouldnt lower himself but the epic bitchyness would be TV gold.
It does amuse me greatly that they bandy about names for host that have no experience - Victoria Beckham, the ice queen is today's favourite! If audiences found Steve cold and detatched then Vicks is hardly a savvy choice.
Duel hosting is quite popular in the UK - although Ant & Dec are fairly unique as a "double act" a lot of shows like Strictly Come Dancing and Dancing on Ice have two hosts that work more separately - which would be the way to go on XF if they did decide to go that way. I agree it would be a huge mistake to try and replicate a double act with two people who have never worked together before, I do feel having two hosts doing their own thing would be an asset for the kind of show XF is. They want a warm personality that is able to focus on back stories and show empathy with contestants - but they also need a vivacious, lively person to handle the pressure of the lives. Hard to find that all in one package (Mr Seacrest does a fine job of course) - but rather than struggle to find another Ryan, why not choose two people that compliment each other and can work as a team?
I'm more cynical than most of you. I think that Simon very intentionally timed the firings knowing that they would generate publicity. Yes, Melanie is singing at the Superbowl on Sunday BUT following the Superbowl on tv is the 1st program of S2 of 'The Voice'. Cheryl was fired a few days before the season finale of AI. If they were going to be fired anyway, why not time it to his best advantage when he gets to steal a little bit of his opposition's thunder.
Also don't think that Simon was hurried into these decisions. I suspect that he made them as early as last October. He had to have known that it wasn't working. And now as DE53 said, we will go through several months hearing about the rumoured replacements.
Just a quick question in a non fangirl way, cos lets get this straight, I couldn't care less what you say about Simon - but I have noticed that ALL your posts are very bitter towards him, so it really makes me wonder what's the point? I mean I hate Cheryl Cole, but I don't go in her AT (If she had one) and post bitter stuff about her, I don't waste my time thinking of her.. so I guess my question would be, why bother?
This is the only thread that seems to be talking about Cowell regularly and I did not want to talk to myself, which I am doing anyway, aren't I. I am not obsessing about him, just reacting to news, I just don't find anything at all to appreciate in what he's doing lately, quite the opposite. Anyway I will XFUK off now.
It was an interesting article. It had also occurred to me that firing 3 people does not support the message Simon gave out - which was that the show was no disaster (it wasn't) and that it just needed to grow gradually and that Fox were really happy with it. I guess the reality lies somewhere in between, but i hope Simon also concentrates on slight format and style/production changes to suit America's tastes. Most did not like the showy production numbers that we love. For this reason, i would have sent Brian back to the UK and let Paula be chief choreographer.
People need to get used to panel changes. We all have our favourite judges, but the idea that only a select band of people are qualified to judge is nonsense. If for example, Nikki Minaj was not available last year, but she is now - it's reasonable to think she will be given a place at someone else's expense. A show like XF needs to be hiring the most current and relevant judges available and that changes all the time. I think the long years of Simon, Randy and Paula have led people to expect the same panel each season.
Lastly, i think Simon needs to stop giving the impression that he was so disappointed with last season, as it leaves a negative image surrounding the show. The Voice got roughly the same ratings and make no apology for it, even when the winner's album has bombed. In fact they seem to coast along as being the more credible/cult favourite, rather than having to justify why they did not match Idol's ratings. I guess that is the downside to being Simon and all the expectation that goes with it.
I'm more cynical than most of you. I think that Simon very intentionally timed the firings knowing that they would generate publicity. Yes, Melanie is singing at the Superbowl on Sunday BUT following the Superbowl on tv is the 1st program of S2 of 'The Voice'. Cheryl was fired a few days before the season finale of AI. If they were going to be fired anyway, why not time it to his best advantage when he gets to steal a little bit of his opposition's thunder.
Also don't think that Simon was hurried into these decisions. I suspect that he made them as early as last October. He had to have known that it wasn't working. And now as DE53 said, we will go through several months hearing about the rumoured replacements.
Oh I think we are all pretty cynical here
I do completely agree that FOX would have been making rumblings about changes way back before the season ended. And of course they will time hirings and firings to maximise publicity - it just seemed strange to many of us that after all the hype, SO many changes have been made I guess.
This is the only thread that seems to be talking about Cowell regularly and I did not want to talk to myself, which I am doing anyway, aren't I. I am not obsessing about him, just reacting to news, I just don't find anything at all to appreciate in what he's doing lately, quite the opposite. Anyway I will XFUK off now.
The things is Ivan, if you start a Simon Cowell thread in Showbiz, you will get dozens of replies from people only too willing to join you in slagging him off. Fine if you dont want to "Appreciate" him - we arent all sycophants in here and we do our fair share of LIGHT HEARTED bashing, however its not very fair to come into this kind of thread ONLY with negative comments really. It's not really surprising no-one is interacting with you in here because you only seem to want a portal to have a go at Simon and this is the wrong place. Ive enjoyed your posts in the past but recently you seem intent only focusing on getting a dig in at every opportunity.
It was an interesting article. It had also occurred to me that firing 3 people does not support the message Simon gave out - which was that the show was no disaster (it wasn't) and that it just needed to grow gradually and that Fox were really happy with it. I guess the reality lies somewhere in between, but i hope Simon also concentrates on slight format and style/production changes to suit America's tastes. Most did not like the showy production numbers that we love. For this reason, i would have sent Brian back to the UK and let Paula be chief choreographer.
People need to get used to panel changes. We all have our favourite judges, but the idea that only a select band of people are qualified to judge is nonsense. If for example, Nikki Minaj was not available last year, but she is now - it's reasonable to think she will be given a place at someone else's expense. A show like XF needs to be hiring the most current and relevant judges available and that changes all the time. I think the long years of Simon, Randy and Paula have led people to expect the same panel each season.
Lastly, i think Simon needs to stop giving the impression that he was so disappointed with last season, as it leaves a negative image surrounding the show. The Voice got roughly the same ratings and make no apology for it, even when the winner's album has bombed. In fact they seem to coast along as being the more credible/cult favourite, rather than having to justify why they did not match Idol's ratings. I guess that is the downside to being Simon and all the expectation that goes with it.
The idea of more fluidity on judging panels is definitely becoming more of the norm than it used to be. This has good and bad connotations really. With so much chopping and changing it makes it hard for viewers to build up a lasting relationship with a show - the reason Idol IS so popular I believe, is because it's like slipping on a favourite pair of comfy slippers - it has that feeling of comfy, warm familiarity that audiences love. Even with Simon gone, they have done well to keep the show true to itself and subsequently keep a good chunk of their ratings.
With judges on other shows changing faster than Simon's relationship status with Mish it just doenst allow for connections to be made. But on the flip side one could argue that it keeps shows fresher bringing in new blood. And in XF case where the panel so obviously didnt work, it was, I believe the right choice to make big changes. Simon should look at taking the show outside the box this year - the days of the panel based, judged talent shows is dying and the format is done to death. If I were Simon I would be looking at making XF a more reality based show. Reality TV is on the up whislt talent shows are on a downward spiral - combine the two and they might have a hit on their hands.
Scrap the "singing in front of the judges" auditions that everyone is tired of - take a pre selected group of 50 -give each judge a team of stars to work with (they could come and go so big names could dip in for a few weeks) film these stars going to the "Big Brother" style house to mentor them on singing, dancing, stage presence etc and whittle the 50 down pretty quickly. Simon could just tell some hideous, slightly plump Whitney wannabee she is completely "irrelevant" and we watch her sob whilst she packs her bags, cursing Simon and how her dream is OV-AH. Cue Twitter to be enraged, axed contestant would weep on The View and everyone would talk about it.
I do completely agree that FOX would have been making rumblings about changes way back before the season ended. And of course they will time hirings and firings to maximise publicity - it just seemed strange to many of us that after all the hype, SO many changes have been made I guess.
The things is Ivan, if you start a Simon Cowell thread in Showbiz, you will get dozens of replies from people only too willing to join you in slagging him off. Fine if you dont want to "Appreciate" him - we arent all sycophants in here and we do our fair share of LIGHT HEARTED bashing, however its not very fair to come into this kind of thread ONLY with negative comments really. It's not really surprising no-one is interacting with you in here because you only seem to want a portal to have a go at Simon and this is the wrong place. Ive enjoyed your posts in the past but recently you seem intent only focusing on getting a dig in at every opportunity.
The idea of more fluidity on judging panels is definitely becoming more of the norm than it used to be. This has good and bad connotations really. With so much chopping and changing it makes it hard for viewers to build up a lasting relationship with a show - the reason Idol IS so popular I believe, is because it's like slipping on a favourite pair of comfy slippers - it has that feeling of comfy, warm familiarity that audiences love. Even with Simon gone, they have done well to keep the show true to itself and subsequently keep a good chunk of their ratings.
With judges on other shows changing faster than Simon's relationship status with Mish it just doenst allow for connections to be made. But on the flip side one could argue that it keeps shows fresher bringing in new blood. And in XF case where the panel so obviously didnt work, it was, I believe the right choice to make big changes. Simon should look at taking the show outside the box this year - the days of the panel based, judged talent shows is dying and the format is done to death. If I were Simon I would be looking at making XF a more reality based show. Reality TV is on the up whislt talent shows are on a downward spiral - combine the two and they might have a hit on their hands.
Scrap the "singing in front of the judges" auditions that everyone is tired of - take a pre selected group of 50 -give each judge a team of stars to work with (they could come and go so big names could dip in for a few weeks) film these stars going to the "Big Brother" style house to mentor them on singing, dancing, stage presence etc and whittle the 50 down pretty quickly. Simon could just tell some hideous, slightly plump Whitney wannabee she is completely "irrelevant" and we watch her sob whilst she packs her bags, cursing Simon and how her dream is OV-AH. Cue Twitter to be enraged, axed contestant would weep on The View and everyone would talk about it. Or something like that anyway .
That is a brilliant idea. Hopefully Tone will be on one of his 'research' missions soon and have a read of your post - pass the idea onto Simon
Simon best move now will be to try to find the 'Next Generation' of talent shows. He doesn't seem to have many production ideas away from that genre, given that his cookery show plans still involve a panel of judges, so the next move is to change up the format. I agree Allie, auditions are tiresome and so predictable now. Even the great ones don't excite me that much - i just want to get the the live shows asap. Scraping the auditions would be a bold move, but if it works, he can really claim to be leading talent shows into a new era (even though he will just be pinching your idea, Allie ).
Im a just a frustrated TV Producer Mich truly It was always my true calling in life .
But yes, XF wasnt a bad show by any means it was just TIRED - the format has been hung, drawn, quartered, put out to dry, then dragged in again, rehashed and reused - people are sick of it. Yet they cant get enough of assorted Kardashians swanning round doing absolutely nothing. People like People - and all these wannabee singers generally have quite "diva like" personalities which would make great TV. My very favourite years on Idol was when Hollywood week went spectacularly tits up - the groups formed would get drunk, fail to practise then slur a Boys 2 Men song in front of the judgery, forgetting all the words and shuffling unsteadily instead of dancing . It used to be EPIC. XF could capture something like that with a "XF House" and the contestants all fighting for 12 slots on the live shows. Mentors could come and go giving masterclasses on stuff. It would be interesting and different - and still result in a "traditional singing show" but with a twist.
I do completely agree that FOX would have been making rumblings about changes way back before the season ended. And of course they will time hirings and firings to maximise publicity - it just seemed strange to many of us that after all the hype, SO many changes have been made I guess.
The things is Ivan, if you start a Simon Cowell thread in Showbiz, you will get dozens of replies from people only too willing to join you in slagging him off. Fine if you dont want to "Appreciate" him - we arent all sycophants in here and we do our fair share of LIGHT HEARTED bashing, however its not very fair to come into this kind of thread ONLY with negative comments really. It's not really surprising no-one is interacting with you in here because you only seem to want a portal to have a go at Simon and this is the wrong place. Ive enjoyed your posts in the past but recently you seem intent only focusing on getting a dig in at every opportunity.
The idea of more fluidity on judging panels is definitely becoming more of the norm than it used to be. This has good and bad connotations really. With so much chopping and changing it makes it hard for viewers to build up a lasting relationship with a show - the reason Idol IS so popular I believe, is because it's like slipping on a favourite pair of comfy slippers - it has that feeling of comfy, warm familiarity that audiences love. Even with Simon gone, they have done well to keep the show true to itself and subsequently keep a good chunk of their ratings.
With judges on other shows changing faster than Simon's relationship status with Mish it just doenst allow for connections to be made. But on the flip side one could argue that it keeps shows fresher bringing in new blood. And in XF case where the panel so obviously didnt work, it was, I believe the right choice to make big changes. Simon should look at taking the show outside the box this year - the days of the panel based, judged talent shows is dying and the format is done to death. If I were Simon I would be looking at making XF a more reality based show. Reality TV is on the up whislt talent shows are on a downward spiral - combine the two and they might have a hit on their hands.
Scrap the "singing in front of the judges" auditions that everyone is tired of - take a pre selected group of 50 -give each judge a team of stars to work with (they could come and go so big names could dip in for a few weeks) film these stars going to the "Big Brother" style house to mentor them on singing, dancing, stage presence etc and whittle the 50 down pretty quickly. Simon could just tell some hideous, slightly plump Whitney wannabee she is completely "irrelevant" and we watch her sob whilst she packs her bags, cursing Simon and how her dream is OV-AH. Cue Twitter to be enraged, axed contestant would weep on The View and everyone would talk about it.
Comments
Just seen some of the twitterings some of the more, shall we say, hardcore Saula contingent have been sending to Simon and his team and wow, just wow! They take it all SO seriously! Make a pact ladies, if any of us ever get THAT deranged, pinky promise to end it all with a Whitney style bender consisting of a cocktail of meths, crack, vodka and walk across a very high bridge
Do they not realise celeb culture is meant to be a FUN HOBBY?
I'm glad to see that Simon has been able to admit that things weren't working at USXF and is willing to make necessary changes. I don't have a problem with any of the firings, although they maybe could have been handled with a little more class if the rumors about how they went down are true. But that's the way Simon is, and everyone who knows him knows that.
If I were a better person, I'd feel a little sorry for the Saula fans right now. But I'm not.
I really don't care who the new judges are as long as they work well together and seem to be having fun with the show, neither of which was the case last fall. Some big names would be nice, but that should be the secondary consideration. And, for goodness sakes, get a host that can actually carry the show and not just stand there and look pretty. Although, if Simon plays his cards right, maybe he can have his own Seacrest that is capable of doing both.
What about Nick?! Was he on the list? THAT oversight would be the true tragedy here!
Are they worried about who will get custody of their secret love-child? :eek:
No, there were no Cowells on the list. Clearly an oversight Vanilla, it must be.
Just had a look at the Saua board:eek: think our Simey needs to get a bullet proof vest
No doubt we will have to endure months of "rumered replacements" :yawn:
Paula's released a statement now.
http://insidetv.ew.com/2012/01/31/paula-abdul-x-factor/
Poor Uncle Tone having to cope with all those Saula tweets
Beat me to it Jane
The number of Tony's followers on Twitter are about to be slashed to a fraction of what they were. :rolleyes:
Well it sounds like how we thought - this wasnt a shock to Paula and the wheels have been in motion for awhile. I cant say I feel sorry for her per se - its a cut throat business and it looks like she was dealt with, with the respect she deserved. She had a good crack at the whip and at the end of the day, the panel just didnt work. The idea to capture those glory days of Idol never took off so it was absolutely the right choice to give the panel a major shake up.
We always said it felt too old, too similar to Idol and didnt flow - it needs BIG BOLD changes to move on. It looks like Paula completely accepts this and its nice to see how all involved have acted respectfully. Good luck to her - as Ive said before, I like Paula and didnt HATE her on XF, she was a victim of combined factors that just didnt work.
Saulas aside, there has been a small backlash over her firing - many wondering just what FOX wants from S2 of the show.
I thoughtTHIS article had some good points to make...
Having spent the last few months actively spinning the media that The X Factor was a really big success that just needed a few tweaks to make things better, Cowell and Fox are now sending the message that last season was, like the eighth season of Dallas, a giant dream that never really happened.
After Simon's now infamous remarks about "20 million viewers" and FOX's subsequent mega spinning of the ACTUAL much lower numbers, they made all the right noises about how happy they were with the performance of the show, so the changes do seem drastic and high profile. It is like FOX are saying "Well actually it was a bit crap really so we are changing EVERYTHING".
And it WASN'T that bad really and I wonder what direction they are going to steer it next. Out of all the criticisms of the show, I never saw a great deal of venom against Paula (plenty for Nicole and Steve) so it appears to me she has been chopped so they can finally shake the "Idol 2" image.
This, I feel will only work if they bring in the right two judges. Like it or not, a massive chunk of the audience loved the more Idol like feel to the show - hence the winner being Melanie not Chris. With Paula gone one assumes the logical move would be to try and make things edgier and more current. Doesnt fit with the Mariah rumours, but the more I hear about Nicki Minaj, Katie Perry and Miley Cyrus the second seaons already sounds more promising and exciting.
I still firmly believe the panel needs someone Simon can bounce off for the show to work. The chemistry sucked last year - I felt it was scripted and unatural. Simon needs to find his David Walliams for XF USA then they wont need scripts or silly feuds - the banter will just flow. Whatever Simon and Paula had on Idol, it didnt translate to XF.
If Cowell has already secretly done a deal to get Ryan Seacrest to defect, or secretly plans to offer Neil Patrick Harris an ungodly sum of money to somehow do both How I Met Your Mother and a reality show, then, fine, Jones's beheading is logical. But otherwise, it seems to be change for change's sake. And this brings us to the notion that Simon's Slaughter could actually leave Fox with the worst possible scenario next fall: A revamped X that fails to attract new audiences while simultaneously alienating the core group of viewers who actually liked what they saw each week.
Whilst Steve was thirty kinds of crap, to be fair so were Ryan and Dermot in their first seasons. I guess the difference is no-one had the huge expectations of those shows in the early days and with the huge sponsorships in place for XFUSA there is no time to allow a host or judge to grow into their roles like Ryan and Dermot have done. Again, it was another mistake in my opinion to have a white, male 30 something host to mirror Idol - why didnt they have a woman, a duo, an older person (Kathy Griffin anyone
And I agree totally that TOO MANY changes for S2 could backfire spectacularly and actually lose some of the viewers (and there were a decent amount - granted not 20 m but a decent amount
Anyone else got any thoughts?
Wow this article rambled on for, like, ever, so I didn't read it all BUT I do sgree that too many changed could backfire
Hi Ivan,
Just a quick question in a non fangirl way, cos lets get this straight, I couldn't care less what you say about Simon - but I have noticed that ALL your posts are very bitter towards him, so it really makes me wonder what's the point? I mean I hate Cheryl Cole, but I don't go in her AT (If she had one) and post bitter stuff about her, I don't waste my time thinking of her.. so I guess my question would be, why bother?
3rd time i've replied and had to log back in to this tonight :mad: DS get your act together :mad:
I didn't think Paula was the right choice. I do think she is too old. I think they may have just lost a load of viewers they couldn't afford to loose. Paula will understand she will want her friends show to be a success
Uncle Tone was hinting last night she may be brought back like Louis due to public demand:rolleyes:
Like the thought of Katy Perry, plenty to say for herself and not afraid to say it
No thoughts on hosts as yet but preferably fit
I thought that was a very interesting, well-thought-out analysis of what's going on.
Something the author pointed out that I hadn't seen discussed elsewhere is how Melanie has her big hyped Super Bowl commercial coming up on Sunday, and how the bloodbath now overshadows what should be XF's first big step in promoting the Big New Popstar that the show promised. I liked the analogy of "someone announcing that he's divorcing his wife a week before their daughter gets married." I guess you could argue that the buzz from the firings could feed into the buzz for the commercial, but no one is making (or pushing) that connection, so I don't think that was the intention. It's important that they have some kind of success associated with their first-season winner going into the second season, which is why I was surprised that there was no "winner's single" from Melanie. (Unless they try to pull a Daughtry and pretend that Chris Rene and his "Young Homies" were the real winners.)
The timing of the announcement of the firings in general is interesting, and I don't know what to make of it (if indeed there is anything to be read into it). It sort of came out of the blue, was done all at once, not long after the season was finished, with no one seemingly lined up as a replacement. It's not like Simon to get things done earlier than needed, heh. And it's hard to believe that he did it out of compassion so that Steve, Nicole, and Paula wouldn't be left hanging, thinking they still had their jobs. Seems to me like there are people pushing Simon now and forcing him into decisions, although I expect he is in agreement with them.
My impressions from reading around is that no one really cares that Steve and Nicole are gone, most expected that. With Paula, people seem to be more surprised than upset. Or if they're upset, they're upset at the way it was handled (being fired by her supposed long-time good friend via a phone call from a lawyer). I don't think many actually care that she's not going to be on the show anymore, thinking that she was too good to lose. If Paula had announced she was leaving on her own due to some great offer or unhappiness with the show, the reaction would be a lot different.
Kind of funny how LA was the first person Simon hired for the show, and now he's the only one left. It's like a time-travel back to last March, with a clean slate to make new choices. I have a feeling we are in for another several-months-long cycle of rumors. (My favorite so far is the "Old Spice TV Commercial Guy" as the new host. Because a pretty-face male with limited hosting experience worked out so well the first time. :rolleyes:)
As I said before, I really don't care who the new judges are as long as they have good chemistry together. If they're big names who are younger, with current successful music careers, that's all the better. But I hope Simon is not planning on hiring Mariah (or whoever) just because she is a big star. I want him to hire her because he knows that she is entertaining, that he can work well with her, and that together they will make good TV.
As far as hosts go, I really don't get the idea of having two of them. Having never watched Ant and Dec (the only successful hosting duo I'm aware of) in action, I'm not even sure how it would work. Even though there are technically two hosts on Dancing With the Stars, Tom Bergeron is very much The Host, while Brooke Burke mostly just does the backstage interviews while waiting for scores. Maybe shows here shy away from the typical duel-host format since Ryan and Brian were such an utter fail. And one of the reasons why was because they were just thrown together, whereas Ant and Dec had spent years working together, developing almost an act together before they hit it big. And there is nobody like that in the US (that I'm aware of anyway). So I remain skeptical of that concept. The best hosts are the ones where you don't notice how good they are, like Ryan, Tom, Jeff Probst, and Cat Deeley, because they are so natural and make everything seem effortless. It shouldn't matter if they are white, black, male, female, younger, older, attractive, or not-so-attractive, because you should not really notice them if they are doing a good job at actually hosting. The ability to subtly interact well with everyone (the contestants, the judges, the studio audience) while simultaneously keeping the show moving is what is most important. (A sense of humor helps, too.)
My assumption was that the firings have been done so early because they want months of speculation again - they can fill the entertainment columns with XF Judge news on a weekly basis "Is *insert name of unlikely popstar/ TV star / movie star* bound for X Factor" like we had last year. Ive no doubt the Mariah thing will be off and on like the Cheryl business was *stifles a yawn. I just hope and agree 100% that whoever they choose has big personalities rather than be "just a name" - they need screen tests and maybe even some audience testing. Cant really visualise Mariah turning up to audition though!
Simon is always at his best with people he likes and feels comfortable with so he needs to go through his contacts list on his phone
It does amuse me greatly that they bandy about names for host that have no experience - Victoria Beckham, the ice queen is today's favourite! If audiences found Steve cold and detatched then Vicks is hardly a savvy choice.
Duel hosting is quite popular in the UK - although Ant & Dec are fairly unique as a "double act" a lot of shows like Strictly Come Dancing and Dancing on Ice have two hosts that work more separately - which would be the way to go on XF if they did decide to go that way. I agree it would be a huge mistake to try and replicate a double act with two people who have never worked together before, I do feel having two hosts doing their own thing would be an asset for the kind of show XF is. They want a warm personality that is able to focus on back stories and show empathy with contestants - but they also need a vivacious, lively person to handle the pressure of the lives. Hard to find that all in one package (Mr Seacrest does a fine job of course) - but rather than struggle to find another Ryan, why not choose two people that compliment each other and can work as a team?
a source said :yawn:
http://m.radaronline.com/exclusives/2012/02/paula-abdul-fired-x-factor-not-ok#bmb=1
Also don't think that Simon was hurried into these decisions. I suspect that he made them as early as last October. He had to have known that it wasn't working. And now as DE53 said, we will go through several months hearing about the rumoured replacements.
This is the only thread that seems to be talking about Cowell regularly and I did not want to talk to myself, which I am doing anyway, aren't I. I am not obsessing about him, just reacting to news, I just don't find anything at all to appreciate in what he's doing lately, quite the opposite. Anyway I will XFUK off now.
People need to get used to panel changes. We all have our favourite judges, but the idea that only a select band of people are qualified to judge is nonsense. If for example, Nikki Minaj was not available last year, but she is now - it's reasonable to think she will be given a place at someone else's expense. A show like XF needs to be hiring the most current and relevant judges available and that changes all the time. I think the long years of Simon, Randy and Paula have led people to expect the same panel each season.
Lastly, i think Simon needs to stop giving the impression that he was so disappointed with last season, as it leaves a negative image surrounding the show. The Voice got roughly the same ratings and make no apology for it, even when the winner's album has bombed. In fact they seem to coast along as being the more credible/cult favourite, rather than having to justify why they did not match Idol's ratings. I guess that is the downside to being Simon and all the expectation that goes with it.
Oh I think we are all pretty cynical here
I do completely agree that FOX would have been making rumblings about changes way back before the season ended. And of course they will time hirings and firings to maximise publicity - it just seemed strange to many of us that after all the hype, SO many changes have been made I guess.
The things is Ivan, if you start a Simon Cowell thread in Showbiz, you will get dozens of replies from people only too willing to join you in slagging him off. Fine if you dont want to "Appreciate" him - we arent all sycophants in here and we do our fair share of LIGHT HEARTED bashing, however its not very fair to come into this kind of thread ONLY with negative comments really. It's not really surprising no-one is interacting with you in here because you only seem to want a portal to have a go at Simon and this is the wrong place. Ive enjoyed your posts in the past but recently you seem intent only focusing on getting a dig in at every opportunity.
The idea of more fluidity on judging panels is definitely becoming more of the norm than it used to be. This has good and bad connotations really. With so much chopping and changing it makes it hard for viewers to build up a lasting relationship with a show - the reason Idol IS so popular I believe, is because it's like slipping on a favourite pair of comfy slippers - it has that feeling of comfy, warm familiarity that audiences love. Even with Simon gone, they have done well to keep the show true to itself and subsequently keep a good chunk of their ratings.
With judges on other shows changing faster than Simon's relationship status with Mish
Scrap the "singing in front of the judges" auditions that everyone is tired of - take a pre selected group of 50 -give each judge a team of stars to work with (they could come and go so big names could dip in for a few weeks) film these stars going to the "Big Brother" style house to mentor them on singing, dancing, stage presence etc and whittle the 50 down pretty quickly. Simon could just tell some hideous, slightly plump Whitney wannabee she is completely "irrelevant" and we watch her sob whilst she packs her bags, cursing Simon and how her dream is OV-AH. Cue Twitter to be enraged, axed contestant would weep on The View and everyone would talk about it.
Or something like that anyway
That is a brilliant idea. Hopefully Tone will be on one of his 'research' missions soon and have a read of your post - pass the idea onto Simon
Simon best move now will be to try to find the 'Next Generation' of talent shows. He doesn't seem to have many production ideas away from that genre, given that his cookery show plans still involve a panel of judges, so the next move is to change up the format. I agree Allie, auditions are tiresome and so predictable now. Even the great ones don't excite me that much - i just want to get the the live shows asap. Scraping the auditions would be a bold move, but if it works, he can really claim to be leading talent shows into a new era (even though he will just be pinching your idea, Allie
But yes, XF wasnt a bad show by any means it was just TIRED - the format has been hung, drawn, quartered, put out to dry, then dragged in again, rehashed and reused - people are sick of it. Yet they cant get enough of assorted Kardashians swanning round doing absolutely nothing. People like People - and all these wannabee singers generally have quite "diva like" personalities which would make great TV. My very favourite years on Idol was when Hollywood week went spectacularly tits up - the groups formed would get drunk, fail to practise then slur a Boys 2 Men song in front of the judgery, forgetting all the words and shuffling unsteadily instead of dancing
Wow, Allie, you don't half ramble on love
Fab idea by the way