Miss Universe 2007: The Pageant In Review (Part 3)

Swimsuit Competition

The swimsuit competition was the only segment in the pageant (apart from the video clips about Mexico) that has a Mexican flair, thanks to the group RBD, and the Aztec sun covering the topmost part of the massive multi-layer, Victoria’s Secret fashion show-inspired stage.

The delegates who were not able to make it to the Top 15 were in the structure at the back while the Top 15 walked the runway. I personally enjoyed this segment (I normally don’t) even if the choreography (thanks to Scott Grossman again) was similar to that of last year’s. I was very thankful because finally, the scores are back! So okay, the individual scores of the judges were not shown. At least there was a glimpse of transparency in this year’s pageant.

The delegate who in my book gave the best swimsuit performance was Riyo Mori, Miss Japan. She may not have that perfect body, but you have to admit that she was able to project it well. You can really feel that she was comfortable on stage. She was having fun. If we were to judge this portion through the actual proportion of the body, though, I’d give the highest score to Ly Jonaitis, Miss Venezuela. However, the way she projected on stage looks like a typical beauty pageant candidate with a formula. In hindsight, I felt that she may not have the highest score because the Miss Universe pageant was becoming more of a modeling competition rather than a typical pageant. This was the same reason why Jennifer Hawkins of Australia was the best in 2004. Yanina Gonzalez of Paraguay could have romped with it, but since Jennifer had a unique, fun walk, she easily got everybody’s nod. This was what happened to Riyo Mori. Also notable in this segment were Korea, Mexico, Thailand, Angola, USA and Brazil. The Asians were clearly showing the world that they were competitive. They have what it takes to win.

Country Score
Venezuela 8.971
Thailand 7.940
Denmark 7.969
Nicaragua 8.171
Angola 9.150
Slovenia 8.163
USA 8.995
Brazil 9.560
India 8.548
Mexico 8.527
Japan 9.599
Ukraine 7.900
Tanzania 9.223
Korea 9.458
Czech Republic 8.113

Miss Universe 2007: The Pageant in Review (Part 2)

Mexico and Miss Universe

With Mexico as the host country of the pageant this year, MUO may have decided to get a host that would cater to the Mexican audience. Flashback, 1993—the last time Mexico hosted the pageant—Dick Clark did the hosting job and was paired with 1987 Miss Universe Cecilia Bolocco. Despite efforts of providing a Latin American flair with the former Miss Universe, the pageant officials were not prepared for the heckling and booing that Dick Clark received (along with Miss USA 1993 Kenya Moore) all because Miss Mexico was not part of the 10 semifinalists.

From the looks of it, MUO may have learned from the past and decided not to have Nancy O’Dell and Billy Bush (the tandem that hosted the pageant in 2005 and 2006) do the hosting job this year. Instead they gave the job to Mario Lopez (clearly an MUO favorite as he has hosted Miss Teen USA before), and former Miss Teen USA Vanessa Minnillo. Mario provided the more authentic Latin flair this time around and Vanessa, the upbeat American counterpart. From my perspective, it was a good choice to have Vanessa host the affair. She has her MTV (TRL) experienced tucked in her belt along with the fact that she was a beauty queen. Their pair appealed to the global market (even the Asian market since Vanessa is part Filipina).

Booing, though, seems to be something that Mexicans love to do. In 1993, they did it, and this year, they did it again during the National Costume show. Evidently, they just hate USA so much that even an innocent delegate like Rachel Smith had to deal with the harshness that is Mexico. So from the looks of it, the choice to have Mario Lopez and Vanessa Minnillo could be a tactic to balance the emotions by picking people that Mexicans can actually look up to.

It was nice, though, that in between segments, video clips of Mexico were shown. This somewhat reminds us of the glory days of Miss Universe when it was more than a pageant, but a way to educate the world about a particular host country. Sadly, this kind of “tour” was not done in 2005 when the pageant was brought back to Thailand.

The Reigning Queen

In a tradition that started in 2003, the reigning queen was called on stage for some words following a video clip of the year of her reign. This was something that was done this year (again). Puerto Rico’s Zuleyka Rivera was introduced and she emerged on stage in a flowing gown. It was a good choice for a gown because she didn’t look fat. However, the moment she turned sideways to greet the hosts (and talk with them), you can’t but notice that her stomach is just out there. Yup, the girl gained one hell of a weight since the time she sashayed in her infamous gown made of chains.

Zuleyka made an effort to look bubbly—the same bubbly Zuleyka of 2006. However, you can really feel the coldness in her face. Could it be really true that she had some falling off with some people from MUO? Whatever the truth is, it was still evident that the outgoing Miss Universe was walking on that stage with the word HAUGHTY written all over.

The Top 15

This year, 11 of my picks made it to the Top 15. I missed out on Misses Denmark (what was she doing there anyway?), Czeck Republic, Nicaragua (there were other Latin American countries deserving of her spot), and Slovenia.

There were delegates I feel who deserved to be part of the Top 15. I would have wanted to see Greece, South Africa, Spain, and Dominican Republic in the list, but hey, I’m not a judge. I respect the decision of the Preliminary Judges and MUO.

What is a bit baffling, though, are the rumors that circulated after the pageant. I’m labeling them as rumors because there are no evidences to prove otherwise. Was it true that Miss Philippines was indeed part of the Top 15 along with other countries, but was removed because MUO puts their 5 choices in the semis? Hmmm…Honestly, while I feel that Miss Philippines was the most elegant and classiest delegate this year, I felt that her evening gown presentation was not enough to take her to the next level. She lacked the spunk and the fierceness that the semifinalists had.

Still, the semifinalists this year were competitive. They were also the most diverse set of semifinalists since 1999. Thank God people are finally realizing that the term BEAUTIFUL does not necessarily equate to Latinas. It was a good mix.

(To be continued)

Miss Universe 2007: Pageant in Review (Part 1)

After 7 long years, an Asian was finally crowned Miss Universe. This is a bittersweet moment for a continent that has been deprived of this right in that span of time. For a time being, people thought that the direction the Miss Universe Organization (MUO) was heading for (under Donald Trump) was to that which would benefit the Latin American countries. And why not? Didn't MUO put as part of the prize package of Miss Universe a part in a telenovela by Telemundo? Certainly, only Latin Americans would benefit from this. Would the Spanish speaking countries want to see an Asian in a telenovela?

But it turns out that the speculations were not going to happen this year. The 2007 Miss Universe Pageant turned out to be one of the more controversial, albeit unexpected pageant in history.

The crowd/press favorites this year seemed to be different from the normal trend. In the previous years, you would see Latin American delegates posing in one picture after another. This year, it was different. It was evident that the people are starting to embrace the fact that beauty is not created in one factory. Beauty can be seen everywhere. Korea was very popular ever since she set foot on Mexican soil. And who wouldn't like her? She has the face that can launch a thousand whatever. The Latin American delegates , although popular with the Mexican crowd, seemed to pale in comparison to the Asian and European delegates.

One thing that I observed, though, was the fact that times are indeed changing. Gone are the days of demure, regal, and poised beauty queens. Miss Universe has (even if MUO denies this) become MORE OF a modelling competition. How can I tell? For one, the stage had a runway. Second, it has been the trend since 2001. Next, part of the prize package is a modelling portfolio. Add to the fact that Donald Trump owns the Trump Model Agency. So if you add all together, what do you get?

Victoria's Secret or Miss Universe?

One cannot deny the fact that the stage of the pageant this year resembles that of the recent Victoria's Secret fashion show at the Kodak Theater. The massive stage had 4 levels where the delegates posed at certain times of the show. In a way, this was a far cry from the cheap-looking stage built in the Shrine Auditorium in 2006. However, during the telecast of the pageant, the stage became a hindrance to the audience to see the other delegates because it was just a bit distracting.

Opening Number

The pageant started with the pre-taped video of the delegates in their national costumes. The scene was as if it was really taken from the Victoria's Secret fashion show--the girls being shown as they are on their way to the stage in their national costumes--being made up and all. I was rather sad to see this kind of opening number. It seems as if MUO is not as creative as it was during its heyday (80's). There was no touch of Mexico on the stage albeit some Mayan graphics. The delegate introduction was also a bit hurried as it is the new trend in Miss Universe with the , , formula. I miss the times when the delegates would say bits of trivia about their country ('I come from a country where love is the essence of life...India!'--ah, I miss that!). The background music didn't help much either--no Mexican flair. I hope I don't insult Nelloy Furtado, but really, I thought that a more festive type of music should've been used (like the one they used in 2002).

After the last delegate was introduced, the ladies appeared on stage (live, this time), wearing their Tadashi dresses. The TV audience was made to believe that they changed outfit that same night. I was happy with the dresses this year. It had that Spanish / Mexican touch. It was also way better than the silver monstrosity of last year.

There was nothing special with the opening number, all in all. It was lackluster, with a similar choreography as last year's, and Miss Congeniality (Part 1) courtesy of Scott Grossman. I think MUO should hire a new choreographer. We are getting bored of the same thing from Scott. It's been the same choreography since 2003! No wonder it was reported that the ratings were not as favorable as previous ones.

(to be continued)

Message to Fellow Pageant Buffs

Greetings!

It took me a while before I finally decided to make my own pageant-related blog site. Don't get me wrong, I still have intentions of writing for www.criticalbeauty.com. However, that site is not really an avenue for me to post my opinions.

To the general public, the posts in this site shall be as objective as possible. The only difference is that I will be posting my views as well.

So, all of you, welcome!

-JP Anonuevo