Image Credit: Frank Micelotta/Fox
Fox has already renewed The X Factor for a second season, even though our laser light migraines are still pounding from last week’s first live performance show! Fox’s president of alternative entertainment called the pickup “a complete no-brainer.” Well, here is our possibly incomplete no-brainer list of what the show should keep and what it should ditch for next year. After you check out our suggestions, please add your own in the comments:
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Image Credit: Fox
Last night’s two-and-a-half-hour X Factor — a.k.a. American Idol on Steroids, a.k.a. Simon Cowell Must Think We’re REALLY Stupid — was a big ol’ trainwreck full of flashy lights, over-produced backing tracks, faux-bickering by the judges, rushed eliminations, and the list goes on. Reading over the comments on my recap of the telecast and Adam B. Vary’s hilarious on-the-scene report, it seems people are torn between liking the rawther British, unsentimental, over-the-top gaudiness of the show, and loathing it.
I can see both sides, and in my recap I said that The X Factor‘s quick pace and unsentimental approach was a refreshing change from American Idol. I miss Idol too, but this is a different show. Simon is clearly aiming for pure spectacle here, and if the U.S. X Factor is supposed to be as campy-bordering-on-idiotic as the British version or something like America’s Got Talent, then mission accomplished. But if it’s supposed to be a singing competition, it’s largely a joke. The question is, are we willing to let it be what it is and have some escapist fun, or does Simon’s idea of fun make us want to throw ourselves off a cliff? READ FULL STORY »
We at EW scoured the TV line-up last night to find the best lines from your favorite shows. Quippy Dancing With the Stars host Tom Bergeron riffed on last night’s winner, our most biting Bite yet. The comedic stylings of X Factor judge L.A. Reid proved he shouldn’t quit his day job. And Rachel Zoe cooks? You’ll never guess her signature dish. Read on!
Image credits: The X Factor: Ray Mickshaw/FOX; Dancing With the Stars: Adam Larkey/ABC; The Rachel Zoe Project: Barbara Nitke/BRAVO
Want more? Read our recaps for The X Factor and Dancing With the Stars.
Read more:
EW’s Bite of the Night for Monday, Oct. 24, 2011
EW’s Bite of the Night for Thursday, Oct. 20, 2011
EW’s Bite of the Night for Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2011
Image Credit: Fox
I’m torn. After spending two-and-a-half hours inside the sound and light and choreography blender that is The X Factor live studio, I cannot decide whether my nom du snark for the place should be the Xanadome or Starship Migraine. Whatever I’m calling the joint, it lives in the exact same space as American Idol‘s Idoldome — Studio 36 at CBS Television City in Los Angeles — but other than the live studio audience and the judges’ table, that is where the similarities end. READ FULL STORY »
We at EW scoured the TV line-up last night to find the best quotable lines from your favorite shows. Did our pick emerge from the lips of A.) One of the schemers from Ringer? B.) A Dancing With the Stars contestant? Or was it C.) The most unexpected admission of error (read: humanity) from the most confident (read: arrogant) man on TV, The X Factor‘s Simon Cowell? (Hint: Always choose C!) Read on…
Image Credit: Charlie Riedel/AP Images
Any baseball fan would have to agree that this has been one of the most exciting (grand slams for everyone!) and unpredictable post-seasons in recent memory. As unpredictable as the weather. It’s a fitting comparison — after all, several rainstorms have halted or postponed games entirely. Besides the pitchers of those games, there may be no group of people more frustrated by the onslaught of crummy weather than TV fans. Baseball can already screw up your TV-watching schedule as is come October, so when you throw in a rain delay, it’s a big ol’ swing and a miss for non-baseball fans.
Just ask devotees of The X Factor. The reality competition was scheduled to start at its regular time at 8 p.m. on Fox last night. Only problem is that the Game 4 of the ALCS endured a two-hour rain delay, prompting the Detroit Tigers and the Texas Rangers to play ball at 6:32 p.m instead of the scheduled 4:19 p.m. And seeing as baseball is a particularly long game, rain delay or otherwise (though, to the Rangers credit, they made it worth the wait for their fans watching back in Texas), the game was only in its fifth inning when The X Factor was supposed to start. READ FULL STORY »
Image Credit: Ray Mickshaw/FX
A few weeks into the new TV season, we’ve already seen a few new shows fall victim to low ratings and overall stink. (Sorry, Free Agents.) But on the glass half-full side, we’re also slowly learning which shows have a strong pulse, and subsequently — if you’re one of those who waits to get invested — which ones we should be jumping on board.
Admittedly, that’s still a crap load of shows to sift through. Personally, three have floated to the top of my must-watch list (at least, this is the standing until Once Upon a Time premieres in two weeks): American Horror Story, 2 Broke Girls, and Hart of Dixie. My most controversial pick is easily Dixie — and not because Rachel Bilson’s microscopic shorts are basically illegal in Alabama. But it’s not a critically adored new show and hasn’t garnered huge ratings. (It has, however, gotten a full season pick up. WOO!) Whatever. I like it. And that’s the attitude we all have to adopt when talking about our new faves. Hold the torch even when it seems like there’s no one else who likes it. Spoiler: There’s always someone else.
That’s my official pep talk. Now, ‘fess up. What are your three favorite shows of the season, readers? READ FULL STORY »
Simon Cowell has terrified his share of aspiring stars during his years as a judge on American Idol and The X Factor. But last night (check out Annie Barrett’s recap), someone had the nerve to throw it right back at him, and Cowell’s stunned reaction was priceless. Fourteen-year-old Brooklyn phenom Brian Bradley took the air out the arena when he called Cowell out: “Yo, I swear to my life, you lucky we’re ain’t in the streets because if we were in the streets, this is what I’d say to you…”
Cowell was stunned. All the judges were stunned. The crowd went silent. But then Bradley launched into his rap, the oddly adorable “Stop Looking at My Momz.” Watch. READ FULL STORY »
Image Credit: Fox
Are you an American Idol fan? Were you tired of having to wait until January to watch the season 11 premiere of Idol? Well, Fox had the answer for you last night: The premiere of The X Factor, a reality competition singing show complete with heart-wrenching stories and a judge’s panel that includes Idol alums Simon Cowell and Paula Abdul. (Read our recap here.) Sound familiar? Inevitably, the similarities between Idol and X Factor will lead us to ask the question, which show is better? Of course, it’s far too soon to tell — though last night’s ratings worked in Idol‘s favor — but, at this point, we can compare the two series’ audition process. To make it fair, I made sure to argue the issue with a fellow Idol die-hard, Adam B. Vary, who attempted to convince me that X Factor‘s auditions were enjoyable, despite the schmaltz, the mediocre talent that in no way approached Kelly Clarkson levels of amazingness, and the utter lack of Ryan Seacrest. (Believe me, I’m surprised myself to be writing the last part of that sentence.) Read our exchange below, and let us know in the comments who you agree with!
KATE WARD: I’m a huge fan of Idol and Simon Cowell. Therefore, I was dying to love The X Factor. But, instead, the only letter I was seeing during the first audition episode of the season was Zzzzzzz. READ FULL STORY »
Leave it to hump day to bring a little humor into my life. While Wednesday nights this season feature two compelling reality series, Survivor and The X Factor, for me they’re all about the laughs. With shows ranging from the new (and totally adorbs) Up All Night to returning favorite and Emmy darling Modern Family, it’s the one night that doesn’t leave me torn over what to watch. So without further adieu, check out my stress-less picks below and let me know if they align with your plans for the night. READ FULL STORY »
