Superstar blog: Tweetgate

To tweet or not to tweet – that is the question. And also what to tweet and what not to tweet? What I am going on about? Well, just when you thought Superstar was becoming boring – it all kicked off. But it left this blogger feeling disappointed and embarrassed.

The show started badly with a group performance of “We Are Young” which was totally unsuitable for the show; it was all over the place and many of the guys were completely out of tune. The Lord mentioned that now it was time to get serious as they “can’t cast a one dimensional voice; it’s all about character.”

The most written about contestant – Nathan (or Satan as he seems to be portrayed) – is up first. He had been all over the tabloids presented as a diva which is never a good sign. After reading the story, it’s quite clear someone wants him out of the competition. I looked at bookies’ odds on Monday morning before the show started and he was the favourite to win. Hence this tabloid story and what we were about to see. Nathan’s song was “Born This Way.” The arrangement was not perfect as it was Sister Act meets Gaga and it was suitably bonkers. He pulled it back at the end though and the voice did shine through.

Dawn told him that he was ideal to play Judas – great feedback because that role has already been cast! It felt like a bank-handed compliment. The Lord though, clearly wound up, went for him. He mentioned his arrogance again and then had a rant about his tweeting. “Why do you tweet this nonsense?” He shouted, jabbing his finger. Nathan looked like he was going to cry. It was embarrassing to watch. But then Nathan took to twitter and claimed that Andrew clearly hated him.

There are a few things at fault here. Andrew or one of the producers should have spoken to Nathan days ago rather than attack him on TV. These guys are performing nightly and twitter is their salvation really. But they should have been taught twitter etiquette before the show. Whatever the reason though, this show wanted Nathan off and it was really evident from minute one. Yeah he is cocky – and yep his tweets to the likes of Colleen Nolan saying “Andrew doesn’t like me” are needy and unprofessional but watching him being attacked like that was disgraceful. He hadn’t killed anybody, after all. And after screening him and seeing his behaviour earlier, why put him through?

The problem is with this piece of drama is that as a viewer, it stayed with you and all of the other performances were a bit of a blur. Poor Roger though – seems to be being used as a “get him through to get rid of Nathan” which is hardly fair, either. His performance of an old Rod Stewart classic was just ok. Not much life in it and quite dull but the judges love it. The Lord swipes at Nathan again by saying to Roger – “You will take direction.”

David does a modern song Alex Clare’s “Too Close” – clever choice as it brings something contemporary for the role. Still not sure about him taking on the role though. He’s good and he can act but I can’t help but feel he will seem miscast as soon as he walks out. It’s not his fault – I just think he should be in another singing competition. To be honest, he would be great on X Factor and that’s not an insult.

Rory does Queen and it’s at this point, I realise that he would be wonderful in WWRY. He can sing Queen which is very rare as these are not easy songs to sing. But he makes it look effortless. Like David, I’m not convinced this art is right for him. The level of acting required is too much for him. I worry for anyone who has bought a ticket now because many good actors/singers have left the competition. Andrew never criticises Rory and has some hyperbole ready – “Land of hope and Rory.” Tonight is very strange and surreal and mediocre performances seem over praised.

Ben sings “It Must Have Been Love” and delivers humility. Where Nathan has the swagger and the “like me” approach – Ben makes it all seem effortless. You end up liking him naturally because the guy can sing and he can emote also. For me, he is the winner. By default, I might add – as he hasn’t always been on the money. But he has no genuine competition, now the path has been cleared for him.

So, a bit of a sorry state of affairs. Elements of this show – the failing sound, the whizzing camera, the confused host and at odds with the audience judges have been very amusing. But tonight, it all got serious and reminded me of Big Brother. Why wasn’t there anyone to help a contestant when they had been berated? Why appraise his tweeting and not his performance and why do this on camera? Nathan then jumped to tweet his defence which makes it worse as he then lives up to this image. But social networking has helped this ailing show. You know what this show and situation needs – apart from starting again? Sheila Hancock. She would have sorted this mess out weeks ago, guaranteed. You miss a judge like that on a show like this.

By the way – the bottom two was Roger and Nathan. Many tweeters are asking for the voting statistics now. Did the Lord’s attack put viewers off Nathan? I don’t think that many people are voting to begin with, considering the viewing figures. The Lord saved Roger again. (see earlier points).

Who do you want to win? After Monday, many of you may be thinking – who cares and I wouldn’t blame you – as it’s now turning into a plot from the Bible.