X Factor Blog: Down to the final 5 (and Chris Rene is still there)

Oh my god we’re down to the final five! Wow things seemed to have progressed quickly following two double eliminations (and still Chris Rene is with us…doesn’t make sense).

This week was Michael Jackson week. The acts had to perform a song by the man himself (Melanie’s already done that once, there wasn’t such a big deal made about it then) and in front of a contingent of his family, including his mother (with the most awfully scripted “I never miss an episode” plug from her about the show), his brothers, and his three children (did everyone else crack up like I did when Steve introduced Blanket?). Blanket spent the entire show looking rather morose, but with a name like that it’s probably to be expected.

The performances this week were very mixed I thought. Josh Krajcik gave his first performance that I wasn’t impressed with. Simon was the only judge who criticized it and I fully agreed with everything he said. It did not do Josh justice at all. I do feel sorry for him having Nicole as a mentor. It’s got to the point where everytime she opens her mouth I have to stop myself screaming at the TV and throwing things. Please Simon, please, i’m begging you, find someone else next year…bring back Cheryl!

Astro had the hardest time this week. It’s one thing to try and rework a style of song into his limited hip-hop repertoire but a little bit more difficult to have to sing a particular artists song when he has to rewrite the whole thing. So what we got was not Michael Jackson’s Black and White, but effectively Astro’s original composition that sampled Michael Jackson’s Black and White. I still liked it but it really highlighted why this competition is made for singers, not rappers.

Drew was better than I thought she was given credit for. Admittedly she could have FINALLY been given something upbeat, but she did the best with what she had. It was her best vocal to date as well. Rachel Crow was also given a raw deal by the judges. I thought she nailed it actually. She’s getting better at working the stage.

Marcus Canty was a good solid not bad. I was actually expecting him to be a lot better this week and I thought he would have shined, but was let down a little. You already know what i’m going to say about Chris Rene. Pretty bloody awful I thought. What the hell was he trying to do pushing out those big notes. He doesn’t have the voice for that!!

Melanie Amaro owned it tonight. For once Nicole said something I actually agreed with, it was the best of the night, and possibly of the season so far. She has star written all over her!

The results show is really starting to push it with an hour I think. They stretch the tension far too much. The group performance this week was Man In The Mirror which was disappointing considering we’ve already seen Melanie do that. So much for originality. Steve continues to display an inherent awkwardness that does not bode well for a return to the hosting role next year

The elimination, as I expected a little, did not bode well for Astro. He was sent home automatically with the lowest number of votes. Maybe that’s for the best, if anyone could use this as a vehicle for exposure and turn it into a massive career without winning it’s him. Marcus Canty was once again in the bottom two, this time joined by Drew. Personally, I’d rather see Drew stay out of the two of them, as I love her voice. Neither of their save me performances rated that well for me though. I’ve seen some amazing ones over the years of X Factor, and those did not rank among them. Unsurprisingly Simon was outvoted 3 to 1 and Drew is outta there. Having been in the bottom two twice in a row now kinda suggests that Marcus isn’t winning the public over that much though. The rest of the final five have so far never been in that position, so I wouldn’t go betting on a Marcus win.

I’m going to be bold and make a prediction on the order of elimination from here. I think Marcus will go next week, followed by Chris Rene. I think Rachel is going to come third leaving us with a Josh and Melanie final two. I love Josh, and I think he’s given some killer performances, but I think Melanie is flawless as a singer, and her undeniably exceptional voice is going to carry her to victory.