[Beanie]

I'm not clued up on the personality side of things(although Beverly's conduct during the vote off last week in looking far more relaxed than the tearful Andy suggests that she is easy going enough to have personality down as a positive beside her name) but Nikki was certainly a bit dodgy on Saturday. No doubt she's one of the stronger singers in such a weak field, but she was pretty wobbly, and in such a poor lineup I think it's a case of (with the exception of Rhydian) 'anyone can beat anyone' - lots of 50/50s floating around, and so a heavy odds against in a 2 horse race is definately the one to side with. You've tempted me and I could join you there.

Gonna do a quick overview of all the markets...

Outright

Starting with the winner market...Rhydian is at 1.70...the question really is whether any of the others can develop enough in the remaining weeks. They wouldn't necessarily have to become better than Rhydian, rather develop a story/identity which is marketable and appealing, which the show would then push for them. Otherwise it's his for keeps.

So on that topic...we're looking for acts where the talent is there, but the image is wrong. Niki can't really be marketed any differently, while Leon and Alisha's vocals aren't strong enough. Hope have a strong lead singer, but are unlikely to deviate from the current look and sound and so will probably come up short. Not for me at 8.00s anyway. Same Difference actually sounded not too bad on Saturday, the problem is that their image is appaling. It's like Disney singalong stuff - horribly cheesy that is in no way marketable. If they were to be able to change that, then they might just have a chance. But at 15.00s, that's a big if. Beverly has a big voice in there somewhere, and perhaps the potential to go far if she plays on the big belting diva image...24.00s says she can.

Rhydian's problem is that the judges comments last week have made him a sitting duck. They've alerted the public to just how far ahead of the competition he is at the moment, which leaves him with nowhere really to go in terms of improvement, or 'journey' - that classic reality TV phrase, and leaves him vulnerable to someone who does, even if they are still not at his level.

I'd be tempted to say that while that's true, Rhydian is still the value here, given that whatever happens in terms of development, Rhydian is still going to sound by far the best in just about every show from now on, although if I do end up taking him a saver on either Hope, Same Diff or Beverly could be in order to secure the money. Undecided.

Winner Without Rhydian:

Niki's 2nd favouritism in this series doesn't convince me, in terms of vocal ability or(from what I've read) in terms of personality. As a result, this could be the market to oppose her in at 3.60ish. Rather than that, for the reasons above covering Hope, Same Diff and Beverly would yield a bet not far under 1.80 and would look solid to me. Considering that at the moment.

Best Over 25:

As trick has mentioned, the price differential here looks a bit bi, so I too could be tempted on anything 3.50 and upwards.

Best Group:

Hope v Same Difference - Hope's problem is that as a girl group they will always struggle for votes, lest we forget that Girls Aloud were beaten in Popstars the Rivals despite being far stronger than whatever the boys group was, as they went on to prove. However, the support for these two could both be pretty volatile if they change image/direction so I'll give this a miss.

Will wait for song choices before looking at Saturday's elimination.

Any thoughts fellas?