Very good post, merry_mead. It is hard to believe. But I do think it's also true, as has been mentioned before, that Joseph isn't as tough a part as Maria because so much of the show is being carried by the Narrator. ALW hasn't chosen experienced MT performers in the past (eg Philip Schofield). He knows what it take to train an inexperienced person up to play the part. I think the point of the show was to build a massive popular following for one of the Josephs in order to sell tickets. And it is possible to believe that ALW did think Lewis would get a massive teenage vote.

On the main question, 'Maria' was a great show, I really enjoyed it, and I was rooting for Connie from the first time she sang 'Shout' so I was really happy with the result (which almost never happens for me with public phone votes). However, shame-facedly, I have to admit that I have enjoyed Joseph more. Enjoyed is the wrong word - in Joseph, I have sobbed my heart out (Daniel leaving), sworn and shouted at ALW(Daniel leaving), spent lots of money on my phone bill, and even sat in a hotel room refusing to watch the results because I knew another of my favourites (Ben) was going to be voted off and then cursed the people in the next room because I could still hear it through the wall!! I have cared much more, and that is, shallow as I am, because they are blokes and however much I might admire and be in awe of a talented woman's great singing, she's never going to make me go 'Wow' the way Daniel made me go 'Wow' the first time I heard him sing. Sorry!

I think ALW believed Lewis was 'the one' in the beginning !

I wouldnt have thought Connie would have been his first choice, judging by the way he described the Maria he wanted..... from what I remember Abi would have been more of a tom boy.

So his plan could be to always have an insurance policy.... in both cases he cashed them in with Connie and Lee

Joseph

personally i didnt warm to any Marias but did to a few Josephs.

Songs seemed to be better in Maria or it could be i really thought that some people (daniel) got a really rough ride when it came to them being given the same old cheese and it was noticeable.

However with these reality tv formats I personally find that the 2nd and 3rd series tend to be the better ones
Last edited by tellyaddict82 : 13-06-2007 at 18:27

Joseph all the way. I watched Maria but didn't have any interest in who would win. Any of the others would have suited just as well.

With Joseph I saw Lee right at the beginning and thought "Yesssss!!!"

Absolutely - watched from week 2 and attraction was instant. Much more fun than Maria...could take or leave that.

actually thats the thing that I think Maria DID have. It was very lighthearted and whimsical, the choregraphy was fun and silly. I wish some of the choregraphy had been a bit like that in Joseph sometimes... the show was much more intense and emotional.

Oh joseph had far better costumes than Maria. Some of the Maria dresses were awful they looked homemade!

Joseph for sure .... it was the first musical I ever saw. Liked Lee from the early stages and then in the first live week - POW - Daniel sang and that was it ... I was hooked.

My husband liked Maria because he fancied Siobhan!!!

I returned the favour this time around by lusting after Daniel.

Funny but one of my main issues with ADWD was Bill K. If I never see him again it'll be too soon .

Like I said I didnt get into Maria as much, and also didnt see every show, plus it was a while ago (I can barely remember last week , nevermind last year..) but I'm thinking David Ian couldn't have been as bad? Bar his infatuation with Siobahn that is...

Now, let's just be crystal clear here: it was Joseph and by miles and miles!! Not that I didn't get caught up in the Maria contest either, because I distinctly remember doing so ....but from the beginning I thought it had to be Connie but apart from Aoife (and was there another lovely Irish girl too?) I couldn't warm protectively to any of them, really. The standard of singing was higher, but maybe that was to do with better song choice than on Joseph?

Anyway, as many have already mentioned, you only have to hear DAniel Boys' voice and just about keel over, come over all faint, tremble with adoration and when that is allied to such a drop dead lovely smiling face and an equally loveable personality, no wonder you are hopelessly hooked !! And that was just Daniel! Then there were Chris B. Chris C, Seamus( loveable rogue!) and bonkers Lewis,Keith's splendid voice, let alone Lee's talents plus all the hilarious histrionics and floods of tears....well, high camp or what??!!
Yup, I doubt the BBC will fully realise just what a money spinner they could have if they made the whole thing into a dvd...but we can hope! They might even realise MT does have real ratings power, given its combination of vocal, visual and personality .....Daniel being the prime candidate, of course!!

I enjoyed Maria but I think where it was really different was Connie was right for the part pretty much from the start....she in my mind and probably many others was "Maria" everything about her reminded me of Julie Andrews.......I just thought she was awesome and no one got a look in after I heard Connie sing.
Joseph I think was not so much a certainty even with Lee probably being the most popular......there were a good few of the guys that could have been Joseph, they all brought something to the show.

Joseph most definitely

I watched all of the Maria show and loved the fact that a MT star was being chosen on a reality tv show (much better than watching another wannabe pop star search) but i never felt personally involved with any of the girls and my favourite changed week by week.

I was a bit the same at the beginning of ADWD and didn't have a favourite after the audition stage (my favourite then was Sean who didn't make the top 12).

The first show i loved Daniels song and he was my favourite but then came week 2 and Lee sang Bad Day..........

I'd never particularly liked the song but his interpretation and delivery of it absolutely blew me away. I thought it might go the way of the Maria show with someone else impressing me the next week but no - it continued to be Lee from week 2 until the very end.

Everyone else faded into insignificance for me and while i continued to enjoy some of the performances, not a single one of them exuded the sheer class and star quality of Lee.

So i'd vote for Joseph everytime because without it i'd never have had the sheer pleasure of being introduced to the wonders of all things Lee

I preferred watching the Marias as I prefer female voices to male, but the Josephs genuinely seemed to get on and were more likeable.

Mmmm, yup, I think you could say Daniel is 'more likeable'!!

that sums it up for me as well. The girls weremore being performers I felt, less genuine on the show. Only Aoife and Abi were really endearing. I've met a few Marias and they are all pleasant and down-to-earth, have nothing but good to say about each other, but on the show it didn't quite come across that way because they were being professional and not letting emotions get the better of them.

I watched Maria on and off really and watched quite dispassionately, didn't care who won, didn't care if I watched or didn't, didn't want to see the musical.
Joseph I emotionally invested in the show,I loved, laughed, cried, shouted at the tv and lusted after Lee with an intensity that is scary in a woman my age. But it is the most fun that I have had watching a tv show since BB2 probably.
I also preferred the male voices, I find a lot of the women very screechy!

I preferred Joseph by far, and a lot of the reasons were of the "personal preference" variety (rather than anything that can be used in a logical argument as to why Joseph was better than Maria).

It was mostly because I prefer Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat as a musical to The Sound of Music. So when I watched Maria I didn't really care who won as I knew I was never going to see it. Whereas with Joseph I wanted to see it... depending on who won, so I had more invested that way. It also meant I really enjoyed the opening Joseph numbers, which put me in a good mood for the rest of the show, while with the Maria numbers I was just a bit bored.

I was really drawn into the Joseph series, which didn't happen with Maria. To the point that I nearly cried when Daniel went out, and was shaking (with happiness) for half an hour after Lee's win.

The only thing I didn't like about Joseph was the closing number. To me the coat-stripping was unnecessary, upsetting and rather cruel.