For discussion of all the tricks the producers use to promote, push, protect, and propagandize their Chosen One. There are a lot of them. Every last one was stolen. All of the originators will never sue because doing so means admitting those tricks exist.

Right for, for the voting premiere, we could argue that the Agenda is titled towards 'We found the biggest crop of talent in the history of singing competitions and anyone who says otherwise will be turned over to the tender mercies of the news division.' But as things progress, the Agenda will become more clear -- and eventually, perfectly visible to anyone who cares to look for it. Which basically means 'us', because the public doesn't care -- or at least, doesn't care enough.

Lovefests don't last. Someone is going to be crushed because that's another one of the stolen tricks. Let's see if we can spot the anvils before they drop...

Fervent wishing for targets is best reserved for other threads.

• Results #1.,Estee, 08:41 AM, 11-04-11
• Inventive, Simon, really?,Snidget, 09:12 AM, 11-06-11
• RE: Spot the Agenda.,emydi, 01:54 PM, 11-10-11
• Agenda confuses Stacy,Snidget, 05:27 PM, 11-10-11
  • RE: Agenda confuses Stacy,Estee, 05:49 PM, 11-10-11
    • RE: Agenda confuses Stacy--again,Snidget, 10:58 AM, 11-17-11
• Sacrifices.,Estee, 07:58 AM, 11-11-11

Stacy closing the 'why we don't want to go' section with still more tears, given the golden lighting again during the group number, and forced into the last safe position in order to terrify and rally her fanbase.

Petty much all of the praise from last night recapped as-is. No real second opinions from the judges -- except for Simon undercutting the Hoggz during the vote. Sabotage attempt or going for his patented 'America votes for the ones I don't favor' tactic? Lending Paula a little boost?

Astro, the Worster pick, safe fairly early in the process.

Note that the panel vote is a perpetual save chance for the Agenda. No matter who lands in B2, the one most favored by production can stay. The only chance for us to switch this up is at the finals -- assuming we're allowed to pick the winner. Assuming anyone counts the votes...

Gee, I wonder where Simon heard Rachel's rewrite of the lyrics before.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRG7N_koxF0

now Fakethis says she "has had opportunities" but not like this...

http://www.etonline.com/tv/115925_Stacy_Francis_Criticizes_The_X_Factor_Judges/index.html

Gee, the judges don't seem to really be all about making the contestants better.

You'd think the girl would have realized reality TV isn't about the careers of the contestants by now.

Funny how I don't seem to find anyone else getting as many interviews with celebrity news outlets as she does.

Thus dies the chance of her being genre savvy. Open questioning of the panel? The verbal equivalent of Lauren's 'criticism?' face? Not realizing there's a chance everyone doesn't luv her any more and it just might be her own fault? The more she does this, the more the Agenda has to turn against her.

I'm curious to see what placement her 'safe' announcement finds in the order (as I don't think she's B2 with an honest vote count). Last week, they made her wait until last -- but that could have been a fanbase rally move. This week, they're annoyed with her...

http://www.eonline.com/news/watch_with_kristin/live_x_factor_stacy_francis_fires_back/275607

Who told her she was on pitch?

One of the problems with making predictions in this format is that AI's favorite trick of Cast To Lose is arguably out of play. We don't have one team picking twelve people with only three of them having a real chance: we arguably have four individuals with their own agendas, each of whom wants the winner to come from their field. To that extent, letting the panel choose their own trio might have gotten some of the actual cream from the offered crop -- as long as that cream was marketable, heterosexual, had all scandals under wraps at the time...

But within their trios, the panel has their favorites. And they may be more than willing to sabotage each other to keep weaker acts in when a strong one lands in B2. But if it comes to their own people, what elimination order is the panel thinking about?

Simon: I still feel Melanie is the overall Chosen One, although I don't know what made the Agenda think it's possible to produce a female winner when you have any delusions of accurate public vote counting: for details, see pretty much bloody everything. To date, Drew has been his one-genre performer: she can easily go first. Rachel's more flexible and closer to the all-purpose Disney/Nickelodeon sales goal he's been longing for over the last half-decade.

Reid: Marcus has already been tied to the altar. I feel Reid's the most cold-blooded panelist (yes, even more than Simon) and the most likely to have picked his three with forethought about how he wanted the dominoes to fall down. He'll throw Marcus away without a second thought, even if the vocalizing of the first one makes Timekeeper sweat blood. Astro will be carried just long enough to make sure he has a fanbase and then get signed to a cut-rate contract, as in 'you can't even afford to cut yourself.' He wants Chris as his last man standing -- but he might give him up without too much of a fight if he felt the show was getting a sales-drawing ultimate winner.

Nicole: At this point, unless we're in the all-out RussHell/Elise edit, I think the producers have made it clear to her that Stacey has to go. On her own, she might have tossed Leroy first (with fake tears attendant), then rolled the dice on Josh vs. Stacey -- with Josh getting the pair that had the shaved corners simply because he has the stronger sales potential. (Not that the fraus ever seem to buy the works of their voting favorites. But maybe one day). If FOX is getting sick of playing coverup, then the order is simple: Stacey, Leroy, Josh. But if the network feels people will keep watching just for the day the bitch goes home, Stacey could be the last singer in this category for the deliberate intent of irritating the viewership. And if you feel anyone here is above that, hi! Have you read the guidelines yet?

Paula: You're kidding, right?

So with this guesswork, the ideal F3 would be Melanie, Josh, and Chris. But with that trio, I don't know how you avoid a Josh win. Yes, Chris could conceivably pull off the darkhorse gallop -- but no matter how I work the perceived voter bases, Melanie's toast.