[LMBTO] What My Dream Finish For Eurovision 2018 Would Be...

Those of you who keep track of things will look at this and think that it looks very similar to my SF1 rankings and will be trying to work out who from SF2 is there.  I'll give you a helping hand:


The likelihood of my eight from SF1 getting to the Final will be pretty unlikely, given that Israel (strong favourite still at this point) and Cyprus (the latest bit of staging to get all the other pundits and press into a hot steamy sweat) are outside that top ten.  Out of all those in my top ten, I would be really annoyed if my top two did not make it - the others would be a shame but I suspect that I could live without them there.  This year more than any other has shown that I have some sort of in-built aversion to the 'top Eurovision nations' at the moment and I am not quite sure why - perhaps it is the almost 'factory production line' that produces clones of the previous entry, year after year, or maybe it is the fact that some nations now have a reputation that clouds the judgement of many pundits and press to 'like' their entry, irrespective of how good it is.
Effectively up to now you've had my preferences of all the semi-finalists, all 37 of them.  There is still the 'big 5' and hosts Portugal to fit into my Final preferences somehow - you have my top ten above, here is the rest of the 26, including the other entries from SF1 and SF2 that would make my 'prefered Final'...

He is a nice guy, that Michael Schulte, and I have nothing against him, his song or his vocals.  He deservedly won the German NF by miles and has given his best in London and Amsterdam.  The emotional connection of the song to him, it being about his father who passed away thirteen years ago is obvious and the lyrics are quite wonderful too.  It is just unfortunate that "You Let Me Walk Alone" is yet another bland MOR ballad that would be played on Radio 2 in the UK because it sounds a bit like Ed Sheeran and that will be Germany's downfall, in my opinion.  They have been sending safe, non-risky songs to Eurovision for a few years now, songs that don't offend but also aren't memorable or catchy enough to snag votes from jurors or the public alike.  It wouldn't surprise me if Germany diced with the bottom spot again for the fourth year in a row with this song and that will be a real shame, given the amount of effort that the German Eurovision organisation has put into finding a suitable entry this year.  Michael is partly at fault here because whenever I have watched him in London and Amsterdam, he is not the most dynamic or emotional of performers and this story about his deceased father at least needs plenty of passionate delivery, which it doesn't get from him.  Having said that, Germany have stuck two fingers up to RTP and arrived with their own LED screen, showing that the Big 5 do really have the money to spend on such things.  Some of the images provided by the EBU do show a decent storyboard for this song, giving bullet points and phrases as Michael sings his way through YLMWA - if these become the focus instead of the singer himself, this might help push his nation up from where I consider him finishing this year.  Having one act with LED screens might make this unique enough...


24.  Italy
One of this year's 'message songs hidden by a foreign language' - the Direct Finalists have appealed to me in one way by keeping to their native tongue (all bar Germany) and yet two of them have then installed a major social tale within their entry that only their citizens, a small smattering of expats and their neighbours might understand.  Enter left, Italy with a story about how warfare and terrorism is bad and we should all be nice to each other, focussing on no less than SIX terrorist atrocities within three minutes (originally 3 and a half).  Unfortunately, unless you actually understand Italian, this entry comes across as an exercise is how to cram as many Italian words into 180 seconds as you can and have them sung by a duo comprising of an angry Albanian and and an angry Italian singer.  Ermal Meta and Fabrizio Moro are certainly passionate and bring bags of attitude to this song and their Sanremo performance was definitely a wow moment but as I said when I reviewed this before, a LOT is lost in translation - a lot!  Will RAI have had the same idea as Malta have had in Lisbon with using small LED screens or perhaps the on screen lines and figures that other delegations have used to get their message across?  The rumours from the press centre on the first rehearsal is that they have tried to show off what this is all about in that way and if that works, this might be one of the standout performances as the duo's aggression and passion will then have a meaning and a purpose.  That knowledge might have pushed this up my preference list and it would definitely give Italy a better placing on the night than third from bottom.  "Non Mi Avete Fatto Niente" will be one of the songs of the night as far as listening to it is concerned - will the staging save it from being one of Italy's lowest placings since they returned to Eurovision?


23.  United Kingdom
I am obviously praying that my nation, represented by SuRie, doesn't end up in the bottom five after Lucie Jones got us 15th in 2017 but as an entry has to be about singer, staging and song, "Storm" has never really gripped me when heard just as the studio version.  It still has the main issue of not really having a major climactic moment or musical hook and the revamp actually made this aspect worse for me.  What the UK entry does have this year is a superb singer - SuRie is charismatic, has an incredible amount of on stage influence and nounce and will really get the crowd behind her in the Altice Arena, hopefully as she did in Brighton.  Will she have the staging to at least get two sides of the triangle perfect?  From what we can see during the first rehearsal, it is clean, it is tasteful and professionally done and allows all the focus to be on SuRie, who is attired in a very classy white trouser suit.  Will that get the UK much past last year's placing is the question to be answered - "Storm" was the clear winner in Brighton but like a lot of other nations this year, being the standout at home doesn't necessarily translate to votes from jurors and the public.  Fingers crossed for lots of marks but I am being realistic this year, I have been burned too many times recently, especially with the hype about Molly in Copenhagen...


22.  France
The highest of the Big 5 for me but only just, Madame Monsieur probably do give the best overall package out of these nations but like Italy, they have have a 'social message' song with "Mercy" and it will be a case of whether that message of the refugee child, born on a boat coming from Africa to Europe, will be picked up by the viewing public and the jurors, or just ignored because they don't understand French.  Émilie and Jean-Karl have become the darlings of the pre-Party circuit which has helped France shorten their odds to become one of the favourites but I am still not convinced that without additional visual help that the message will be passed on.  Will that make a difference?  The duo are visually appealing, charismatic on stage and have that quirky look of the marionette black outfit and red shoes (although supposedly visually enhanced by Jean-Paul Gaultier, where I don't know) but the song itself is a middling pop song that bounces along without really grabbing me musically.  If the message can be passed on via either small screens or by tv imagery then what this is all about can really push this entry forward but in itself, a story about a child refugee can tug on some heart strings and some nerves in others.  The arm waving mimicking the sea has never caught on anywhere outside of the French NF so I cannot see that wonderful image helping either, despite the duo really trying their utmost - fine amongst us fans who know what to do in the Altice but will everyone there on Final night know that they should be waving their arms?  For me, "Mercy" has been an okay pop song but nothing more than that - I suspect that France will be the highest placed of the Big 5 though, probably with a top ten finish...


15.  Portugal
Of all the Direct Finalists, the host nation has my favourite entry with "O Jardim".  Cláudia Pascoal, together with composer and backing singer Isaura, blew me away in the Portuguese NF with this entry, such a passionate and emotional performance, so stripped down to give all the emphasis on how Cláudia presented it to the viewers.  This is yet another song with a message but unlike France and Italy it is not necessary to know the strict interpretation of the lyrics - the power of the lead singer's acting and movements are enough to know that this is all about loss and coping with that.  Having no bells and whistles with this one stays true to what RTP were hoping would happen across Eurovision - that all the nations would just send a singer and no props but that hasn't happened.  Portugal will therefore stand out again, with just a singer and the slight twist of Isaura sitting on her chair (maybe) and assisting part the way through.  As I said when I reviewed the song after the NF, Cláudia is so immersed in the lyrics and the ambient nature of the music that you cannot fail to feed off the almost nervous energy that she exudes.  A beautiful song and performance will hopefully be rewarded with a decent finish - for a Portuguese act apart from Salvador Sobral, a upper mid table finish would do fine...
If the Big 5 finish the way I have them above then there would be a huge post mortem by their delegations and the EBU, I am sure of that.  Given that France are currently one of the favourites, I would be surprised if they finish anywhere other than top ten but of the others?  Could be a finish anywhere - my gut says that Germany and the UK are most likely to finish in the rankings I have them.  I'll be supporting SuRie all the way this year but my hopes for success aren't very high.


My rankings now complete, I am ready for Lisbon blogwise.  I will not be in a position to post entries (I think) whilst I am away but I will be able to obtain plenty of pictures, videos and maybe some extra material to include when I return on May 14th.  I have tickets for all shows:

My partner Ellen is coming with me to the televised shows, hence the tickets in the disabled area, due to her mobility issues.  With the Jury shows, I will experience the backstage tour, the chance to be standing and a seat along one side of the arena to give me a different perspective on the show.  I am really looking forward to watching my first ever live Eurovision and I am sure that it won't be my last.  Almost five years after starting this blog in July 2013 and 43 years since I watched my first ever Eurovision on tv (1975) I have now reached a new personal pinnacle - attending the Contest as a fan.  What will I find out?  Will the buzz take my fanaticism to a whole new level?  Who will I see take the title in Lisbon?  Will it be someone that I have chatted to previously in some capacity?  There would be one artist that I would be delighted to see lift the trophy (apart from SuRie, of course):
The UK will have my total support next week in Lisbon but I will always have a soft spot for...