For the love of Britney Spears, The X Factor returns

On Thursday night, The X Factor aired the second part of its two night premiere. On both nights, Britney Spears received more attention than she bargained for.

|
Ray Mickshaw / AP Photo/FOX
The X Factor judges, from left, L.A. Reid, Demi Lovato, Britney Spears and Simon Cowell. The X Factor aired part two of its two-night premiere on Thursday night.

Part two of The X Factor premiere aired on Thursday night and began with an example of the show's biggest problem: It's wildly over-produced.

The entire opening credits segment is a ridiculous montage reminiscent of a low-budget science fiction film meets a Sesame Street letter "X" lesson. But that opening segment also gives clues to the cause; The X Factor has six, yes six, executive producers and two co-executive producers. Perhaps over-production is really just an elaborate scheme for job security? 

Well, if job security is what the show's producers are after, then they still can't rest easy even though the addition of Demi Lovato and Britney Spears continued to charm into Day Two of the premiere. That means viewers have tolerated the two female pop stars for about 2 hours and 15 minutes, which is exactly 2 hours and 14 minutes longer than any of us dared to hope for. And if the producers insist on grossly manipulating every last shred of reality out of the show, the least they could do is attempt to conceal their influence – although that may be counter-productive to their efforts to prove that each and every one of them is very busy, thank you very much.

Interestingly, it seems like the only two people who have managed to avoid the ugly grip of the show's over-production are Demi and Britney (although in my opinion, Britney's make-up artists could use a dose of over-production stat – her face looks like it just needs a good wash which is probably not the look they were going for). But dirty-face or not, Britney continued to dominate air time, while also continuing her odd tendency to show as many teeth as possible in every facial expression.

The first stop in The X-Factor tour Thursday was San Francisco, where contestants were herded into Cow Palace to sing for Simon Cowell as he continued to chew his cud from last night. It was in San Francisco that cameramen somehow caught a rare, unscripted moment between contestant Johnny Maxwell and his mother. In their car. 2.5 hours prior to the audition.  As she told him, "This is the performance of a lifetime, remember - not an audition," in full theater make-up, without a touch of irony. Johnny took to the stage and performed an original song that resulted in an influx of hyperbole from the judges in an attempt to convince viewers that a backwards cap and a catchy hook are enough to compensate for the fact that Johnny can barely hold a tune. Perhaps he would have had better pitch if he wasn't gasping for air throughout his entire audition? After getting four yeses, he was moved into the next round.

Another San Fransisco auditioner, Jason Brock was eager to give Britney her fill of talent and the 34-year-old Tech Support Operator didn't just look like a cross between Elton John and Adam Lambert, but he also possessed some of their talent. His performance of "New York State of Mind," was enough to earn him a standing ovation from judges, a gesture that has yet to completely recover from the debasement inflicted upon it by last season's American Idol judges.

Lest you suspect that San Francisco was all rainbows and butterflies, it was not without its share of heartbreak. Enter Patrick Ford, a 20-year-old cashier who was desperately in love with Britney but seemingly untroubled by his suspicions that she may actually be his sister. Patrick's unsettling audition consisted of a horrific performance of "Circus,"  several professions of love for Britney and a dozen red roses. But what did Britney do?  She played with his heart. Got lost in the game.

She's not that innocent.

Which is precisely what 13-year-old Carly Rose Sonenclar was out to prove when she sang the Nina Simone version of "Feelin' Good." Carly was the first contestant whose voice actually warranted the hype and manufactured excitement that viewers were being force-fed like geese. (Even viewers in Chicago haven't been able to escape the gavage.) Carly also received a standing ovation from the judges, with a voice so beyond her years that L.A. Reid used three of his 30-second per episode allotment of screen time to exclaim, "Honey you may be 13, but your soul is old."

Surprisingly, the audience didn't seem to hold that against it.

So let us end on a high note, which, in spite some of my scathing observations, is what I felt the show managed to do this week. What did you think? Are Demi and Britney a good fit? Have they already outperformed other celebrity judges like Stevn Tyler and Jennifer Lopez? Share your comments below. 

Follow me on Twitter @JodiBWrites

You've read  of  free articles. Subscribe to continue.
Real news can be honest, hopeful, credible, constructive.
What is the Monitor difference? Tackling the tough headlines – with humanity. Listening to sources – with respect. Seeing the story that others are missing by reporting what so often gets overlooked: the values that connect us. That’s Monitor reporting – news that changes how you see the world.

Dear Reader,

About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review – under the charming heading of “do things that don’t interest you”:

“Many things that end up” being meaningful, writes social scientist Joseph Grenny, “have come from conference workshops, articles, or online videos that began as a chore and ended with an insight. My work in Kenya, for example, was heavily influenced by a Christian Science Monitor article I had forced myself to read 10 years earlier. Sometimes, we call things ‘boring’ simply because they lie outside the box we are currently in.”

If you were to come up with a punchline to a joke about the Monitor, that would probably be it. We’re seen as being global, fair, insightful, and perhaps a bit too earnest. We’re the bran muffin of journalism.

But you know what? We change lives. And I’m going to argue that we change lives precisely because we force open that too-small box that most human beings think they live in.

The Monitor is a peculiar little publication that’s hard for the world to figure out. We’re run by a church, but we’re not only for church members and we’re not about converting people. We’re known as being fair even as the world becomes as polarized as at any time since the newspaper’s founding in 1908.

We have a mission beyond circulation, we want to bridge divides. We’re about kicking down the door of thought everywhere and saying, “You are bigger and more capable than you realize. And we can prove it.”

If you’re looking for bran muffin journalism, you can subscribe to the Monitor for $15. You’ll get the Monitor Weekly magazine, the Monitor Daily email, and unlimited access to CSMonitor.com.

QR Code to For the love of Britney Spears, The X Factor returns
Read this article in
https://www.csmonitor.com/The-Culture/TV/2012/0914/For-the-love-of-Britney-Spears-The-X-Factor-returns
QR Code to Subscription page
Start your subscription today
https://www.csmonitor.com/subscribe