Like reality TV competitions or not, The X Factor premiered last night on FOX...and it's already got people talking!
In case you missed it, one man decided to drop trou, exposing his genitalia (strategically covered by an "X"), sending Paula to the bathroom gagging and gasping for air (we'll spare you the rest of the details).
The show originated in the UK, so it's only natural some of their own critics weighed in on the US version. The U.K Sun's Pete Samson said:
"The star-spangled American version of Britain's most extravagant TV spectacle hit US TV screens last night - and it even makes the UK show look prudish. And the American nutty novelty acts make our quirky Brits look normal."
Meanwhile, Los Angeles Times critic Mary McNamara saw only a few differences between The X Factor and Simon Cowell's old show, American Idol:
"Watching, in recent weeks, as Simon Cowell explained that The X Factor is a completely different show than American Idol was a bit like watching Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada explain to her neophyte assistant why two turquoise belts of similar width and style represent utterly distinct looks. Um, OK, if you say so, Miranda."
She added:
"Like American Idol, The X Factor begins with the cattle calls — lots of shots of the crowds, the signs, the hopefuls, the fans — although, this being a new show, things are mercifully accelerated. Viewers are spared the vast quivering middle and see only the very bad and the very good (or at least the quite promising), so there’s not much for the judges to do except admire or dismiss."
Something else people are taking issue with is that Cheryl Cole disappeared mid-show without explanation, and was replaced by former Pussycat Dolls member Nicole Scherzinger.
Check out our favorite performance of the night, below, of 13-year-old Rachel Crowe singing Duffy's hit song, "Mercy."
