Penultimate post on X Factor final: Saturday's show

It's been a long, looong road, but the X Factor is almost over for another year. I tuned into last night's show more with resignation than excitement, but the show was actually less tedious and full of padding than I expected so I was actually reasonably entertained.

I began watching the show wishing with all my heart that Cher would be voted off (I expected she would but there was also a part of me that thought, 'This is the same shit series that saw Katie Waissel last for eight weeks - who knows what horrific injustices are in store?'), but I thought she performed quite well and was actually better than Matt and 1 Direction on the night. Obviously, she was never going to win the competition but I thought that Cher left on a good note and redeemed herself somewhat by how she carried herself last night. I think she made the show more interesting and went as far as she deserved to go.

In terms of X Fashion, both female judges opted for full-length dresses; Dannii wearing a pretty but unspectacular red number, while Cheryl wore a cream, diamante encrusted, off-the-shoulder gown which showed neither leg nor cleavage :O Dannii looked better, obvs; I wasn't a fan of Cheryl's wet, slicked-back hair. Did she come straight from the shower or what?

The group song saw the final 16 reunited and was predictably awful. What a Feeling? What a Load of Shit! Katie wore what can only be described as American football armour fashioned out of a disco ball. Cher's rap was sort of cringey - she kept going on about musical chairs and I had no idea what it had to do with the song and whether she had written it herself or lifted it from another song. Rebecca sounded well and looked the most animated I've ever seen her, while Matt sounded poor for him and 1 Direction were 1 Direction.

Round 1 - Solos

Matt was the first up, and watching his VT, I thought (not for the first time) that he lacked something behind the eyes. He doesn't have the warmth or the joi de vivre that one looks for in a winner. As far as his first performance is concerned, I thought singing a Dido song was a bad move. When you're an artist who airs on the beige side, the last thing you should do is sing a song by the beige overlord. Watching him, I thought 'This is NOT how you win the X Factor!'; the song choice was naff and his voice didn't sound fully recovered.

It wasn't one of my favourite Matt performances and it was a lukewarm start to the show.

Rebecca - Watching her VT, I thought, 'Aw, she's a lovely woman!' and also, 'Cheryl is clearly not as pro-Rebecca as she is pro-Cher'. I thought Rebecca's speech to students in her old school was heartfelt and touching; her personality has blossomed into the personality of an X Factor winner (unlike Matt).

I thought the song choice was perfect; Corinne Bailey Rae's Just Like a Star is an absolutely beautiful song and its laid-back, soulful sound suited Rebecca down to the ground. I thought she was performing better than usual; she was looking out at the audience and giving charming smiles. Her vocals were great and she looked amazing in her long, ruched, beige dress (so on trend!). The only thing I didn't like about the performance was when those male dancers came out and spun the platform on which she was standing around; it mocked the fact that she never moves when she performs. That said, it was still my favourite solo performance; she is peaking at a perfect time.

I thought Dannii's comment about how she hoped this was the start of Rebecca's confidence was so nice! However, I wasn't so keen on Cheryl's tears; she's such a manipulative cunt.

1 Direction - After they 'smashed' Elton John's Something About the Way You Look Tonight, I thought them performing Your Song would be magical, but it wasn't. It was a safe move and it didn't move me like some of their other performances. It seemed like they weren't fully present.

That said, I loved Liam's Bieber hair flick when he was trying to get the artificial snow off his head and, let's be honest, when you've got crazed teenage girl fans, there's no stopping you.

Cher - Is it just me or was there a real disconnect between Cher and her family in the VT? It came across like Cher wasn't that close to anyone at home.

She performed YET ANOTHER MASH-UP, but I respect her for singing a Missy Elliot song on the X Factor (cos let's be honest, what other contestant ever would?).

It was quite good - entertaining, unlike Matt or 1 Direction's solo performances.

Round 2 - Duets

Matt - Again, I didn't think the song choice was very good; there are better songs than Murderer in Rihanna's back catalogue. I thought that Matt sounded quite sharp at the beginning of the song and when Rihanna joined him I just thought they were an odd pairing; she is clearly not someone who influences him musically. I thought her hair was hilarious (Sideshow Bob called...) and it served to make her look even taller than him than she already is, which was unfortunate.

I didn't think there was any chemistry between the two of them, despite what the judges said, and I think that she is too sexual to be a good match with Matt.

Rebecca - I wasn't sure about her multi-coloured shawl thingie but I thought she sang very well in the beginning. However, when Ms Aguilera came on stage, she was kind of forgotten about - I forgot how incredible Christina's voice was! Sure, she was dressed a little sluttily and she is a bit fat at the moment, but they're the only flaws people can pick out of her performance because she sounded amazing.

It wasn't an Alexandra and Beyoncé moment but I think that was down to Rebecca's shyness and the fact that they didn't have as much time to sing this year. (Can you imagine how incredible it would have been had they gotten to sing the middle eight! Rebecca: "The sun will always"; Christina: "Always!" Together: "SHI-I-I-I-INE!" *Robinita faints*).

It was short of spectacular, but nonetheless, it was my favourite of the duets.

1 Direction - I thought She's The One was a great song choice and I liked their multi-coloured suits (Zain looking especially well in racing green *swoon!*). Personally, Robbie Williams was the least exciting of the duet artists for me and while he is praised for being 'so involved' with his duet partners, I think it the way he interacted with Olly Murs last year and 1 Direction this year made him look desperate and amateurish. I also didn't think 1 Direction sounded that good; they're harmonies were off.

Also, how gauche is Niall? He's like an over-excited puppy the way he jumps up on people. I love how Robbie picked him up and then put him down and got as far away from him as possible.

Cher - When I heard that Will.I.Am was duetting with Cher, I imagined it would be one of the most overblown performances in X Factor history, but there were no gimmicks to be seen. No robots; no pyrotechnics; no Nicki Minaj being lowered onto the stage from the ceiling. Personally, I thought that Cher sounded better singing Where Is the Love? by herself than she did singing I Gotta Feeling with Will.

It was a disappointing enough performance and I lay the blame with Will.I.Am, who didn't interact with Cher very well in my opinion. Well, I guess he is a robot so it's no surprise he doesn't have the human touch...

As far as the celebrity performances are concerned, I thought both Rihanna and X-Tina sang well and put on a good show. My lord, Rihanna is a whore! I thought her performance was brilliant and her stage presence and live vocals have come on lots since she first came on the scene.

Christina was also great. I usually prefer it when she sings ballads but she gave the performance socks and her voice held up really well (if anything it was her matted extensions that let her down. I wonder if she has the same hairdresser as Britney?).

Overall, I thought Rebecca was the best; she gave my favourite solo and duet performances. Silver would probably go to Cher, as I thought 1 Direction didn't give their all and Matt had an off night (on the last bloody night you would want to have one!).

I predict 1 Direction will win the competition and Rebecca will come second based on last night's performances, but I wouldn't be surprised Matt's fans outnumber Ms Fergusons.

Anyhoo, that's all for now; there'll be more tomorrow!

Hope you enjoyed this post.

Love, Robinita ;)