Pbmom's Blog

I am burned out on singing shows. American Idol, The Voice, XFactor. It takes a lot to move me anymore. I had preconceived notions about the addition of Britney Spears and Demi Lovato on the show. My greatest criticism of XFactor last season was that it felt too much like American Idol, all the way from where they sat to judge, a similar format of judging the initial auditions, and why I thought The Voice Season 2 was more successful than XFactor Season 1. Having finally caught up on the auditions shows of the XFactor Season 2, I have to say that change is GOOD. I do not know all the technical talk about how the filming process is done, but I like how 1) they are bouncing back and forth from city to city, not showing all the auditions from each city at a time and 2) they are interviewing people, and not just the ones who are going to make it through. You can see the reactions of the people competing for spots for boot camp before they hit the stage and after they exit. I like seeing the judges in between shots, talking among themselves. I like the variety. And shockingly enough I love the addition of these two female judges.

As with every season, I question some of the choices the judges have made. So far none of the groups impress me. And Cece Frey made me burst out in hysterics because she looks like Jadzia Dax from Deep Space Nine, no insult intended to Terry Farrell:

Cece Frey

Terry Farrell as Jadzia Dax on Deep Space Nine

It would be impossible to recap all the audition shows, so these are some of the contestants I’m keeping my eye on:

Ally Brooke (San Antonio, Texas)

Carly Rose Sonenclar who auditioned in Providence, Rhode Island

Diamond White (even has a star-like name), Detroit/Los Angeles

Jason Brock, San Francisco

Jessica Espinoza, San Antonio, Texas

Jillian Jensen, Rochester, Massachusetts, who made me cry

Panda Jones

I hope Panda is feeling better and that we will see her at boot camp.

Who are some of yours favorites this year?