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Eurovision 2017
- Thread starter Jonathan
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Jonathan
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So, erm, Russia's contestant for this year has been banned from entering Ukraine by the Ukrainian SBU security service due to performing in Crimea in 2015. She has thus been deemed to have entered Ukraine illegally, as Crimea is still seen by Ukraine to be a part of Ukraine.
Oh dear.
Oh dear.
Craig
TS Administrator
Well it was only a matter of when rather than if the government did this. It's been expected since their entry was announced. Now the interesting bit is how they go about resolving it. Ultimately, it's the government not the organisers who've done this, so not sure what can be done aside from threats of pulling the contest. That's something I can't see happening considering the possibility of this has no doubt come up in discussions ever since the Ukraine won last year.
Jonathan
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And here we have it. Confirmation that Russia will not be taking part in Eurovision this year due to their refusal to broadcast it. Honestly not surprised in the slightest that this has happened.
Jonathan
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It's a little more complicated than that. It all started because of the whole visa thing. Russia were given the opportunity to compromise by either sending another artist who was able to enter Ukraine legally or by letting their chosen entrant compete via satellite. These options were turned down by the Russian broadcaster. It seems that neither Russian TV station that broadcasts the show (they alternate it between two each year) was willing to broadcast it this year, and as a result, the country is not able to compete in Eurovision this year.
Jonathan
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With the semi-finals beginning in just under two weeks and rehearsals starting on Sunday morning in Kiev, I thought I'd finally publish my thoughts on each entry. Instead of putting them all on here, I've decided to post it on my blog. I haven't used it for a while anyway, and it ended up being pretty lengthy, and would've ended up on several posts. 
Even then, I'm splitting it over three blog posts to avoid it being an even bigger wall of text.
Semi-Final 1
Semi-Final 2
Automatic qualifiers and who I think will win
TL;DR - Lots of ballads. Portugal have come up with a surprisingly charming entry. Sweden is once again good, if unspectacular. Lithuania, Montenegro, Spain and Germany are just bad. Epic Sax Guy is back for Moldova. Overall, I think this year's winner will be Italy.
Even then, I'm splitting it over three blog posts to avoid it being an even bigger wall of text.Semi-Final 1
Semi-Final 2
Automatic qualifiers and who I think will win
TL;DR - Lots of ballads. Portugal have come up with a surprisingly charming entry. Sweden is once again good, if unspectacular. Lithuania, Montenegro, Spain and Germany are just bad. Epic Sax Guy is back for Moldova.
Overall, I think this year's winner will be Italy.
Tim
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For the second year running I found Eurovision a massively overwhelming, meh.
I used to love meeting up with mates just to mock how over the top nuts it was but now it's neither interesting nor good, just bland.
either it needs to be a genuinely good talent contest with people that can sing or so jammed full of ridiculous special effects and quirky acts you find yourself loving it anyway.
when the filler acts brought on to keep the crowd amused are more interesting than the show you know there's a problem.
As for Portugal I didn't get it. The first time around we thought our sound had broken because no one could hear the singing. Collectively we voted it the worst act... But everyone (even the UK) went nuts for it. It was like they'd just witnessed some emotional second coming rather than a stoned guy who couldn't even sing it as well as his Sister(?) the second time around.
I used to love meeting up with mates just to mock how over the top nuts it was but now it's neither interesting nor good, just bland.
either it needs to be a genuinely good talent contest with people that can sing or so jammed full of ridiculous special effects and quirky acts you find yourself loving it anyway.
when the filler acts brought on to keep the crowd amused are more interesting than the show you know there's a problem.
As for Portugal I didn't get it. The first time around we thought our sound had broken because no one could hear the singing. Collectively we voted it the worst act... But everyone (even the UK) went nuts for it. It was like they'd just witnessed some emotional second coming rather than a stoned guy who couldn't even sing it as well as his Sister(?) the second time around.
It's not just me that just didn't get it. It goes to show that democracy doesn't always work, look at people voting for Trump. I can only assume that tactical voting was in play here
We should have know, even if we had the best song in the contest, we wouldn't win, England is not popular in Europe
Craig
TS Administrator
Well I worked for the first time in who knows how long for this year's Eurovision (accidentally mucked up holidays!), and after catching bits of it over the course of the night - I didn't seem to miss much! It's a shame that it's slowly losing the kitsch factor in recent years, every ballad/slow song that wins every year just causes every country to go for the same thing the year after.
This year really showed how the quality of the production can lift the whole show though. Celebrating Diversity by having three white blokes presenting was hilarious, and who knows what the producers saw when said they ended up choosing them because they worked so well together! The whole thing came across as cheap and last minute, especially when following Sweden last year when we had one of the best presenting duos we've ever seen .
As for Portugal, I'm in the same boat where I really don't see what the hype is about it. I wasn't a fan of it whatsoever, and his speech when he won about real music went down like a lead balloon in the arena. My only hope is that next year countries don't just take notice of the ballads that rate highly, but also those dark horse upbeat songs of the competition such as Moldova which did FAR better than many expected.
Roll on Portugal I guess, but countries really need to up their game next year after one of the most lacklustre selection of songs we've seen in recent years!
This year really showed how the quality of the production can lift the whole show though. Celebrating Diversity by having three white blokes presenting was hilarious, and who knows what the producers saw when said they ended up choosing them because they worked so well together! The whole thing came across as cheap and last minute, especially when following Sweden last year when we had one of the best presenting duos we've ever seen .
As for Portugal, I'm in the same boat where I really don't see what the hype is about it. I wasn't a fan of it whatsoever, and his speech when he won about real music went down like a lead balloon in the arena. My only hope is that next year countries don't just take notice of the ballads that rate highly, but also those dark horse upbeat songs of the competition such as Moldova which did FAR better than many expected.
Roll on Portugal I guess, but countries really need to up their game next year after one of the most lacklustre selection of songs we've seen in recent years!
CGM
TS Member
I quite enjoyed it overall. There were enough quirky acts to keep me entertained. It might not have been the best Eurovision ever, but it was far from the worst. There have certainly been more bland contests in the past.
I too didn't think much of the winning song and can't see what the juries and voters saw in it. (I was backing Moldova). But then again, the songs I like never seem to win so I've sort of gotten used to being baffled by the choice of winner.
His speech did irritate me as well. I'm all for having artistic integrity, but Eurovision is not the place for it. I want catchy, disposable pop music with over the top stage performances and memorable gimmicks. The last thing we need is for Eurovision to be taken seriously.
I too didn't think much of the winning song and can't see what the juries and voters saw in it. (I was backing Moldova). But then again, the songs I like never seem to win so I've sort of gotten used to being baffled by the choice of winner.
His speech did irritate me as well. I'm all for having artistic integrity, but Eurovision is not the place for it. I want catchy, disposable pop music with over the top stage performances and memorable gimmicks. The last thing we need is for Eurovision to be taken seriously.