Eurovision 2024 Final

[yuuago]

And now the ESC final (which I will be watching in pieces). I decided not to watch it live because honestly, I had too much stuff to do today.

Brief opening remarks from princess Victoria. I don't remember something like that the last time Sweden hosted?

Anyway. The little light show at the beginning is neat! Aaand opening act is a classic - "Hooked on a Feeling". Well, fun!

And the opening with the flag parade. Lots of cheers for Ukraine; glad to see it. <3 And ahhh the duo from Spain is so cute. Whoa, Switzerland in with the Pride flag, good for them.

The hosts - Malin's dress is weird, but Petra looks very elegant! (Lol, so many cheers for Petra) "When we finish tonight's show in approximately three to eight hours" - Fff

And now, the songs.

Sweden - Marcus & Martinus, "Unforgettable" - Yeah, I still really love this. It might even be in my top five (but we'll see). IDK, Sweden probably doesn't want to host again, but I think this is a really strong entry. The song is fun, the light show is fun, it just looks great. Very y2k, though, haaa (which might be why I like it so much. Nostalgia?) Awww, the hug at the end, too.

Ukraine - Alyona Alyona & Jerry Heil "Teresa & Maria" - Beautiful performance from Ukraine. 1000/10, nothing further. Peace and love for Ukraine!!

Germany - Isaak, "Always on the run" - IIRC this is a less popular entry, but I honestly enjoy it. Not a winner, but I like it a lot.

Luxembourg - Tali, "Fighter" - I prefer the French parts over the English parts, but regardless, it's a fun song. Nice to see that Lux had a comeback with a strong entry!

Israel - Eden Golan, "Hurricane" - I didn't notice the streaks in her hair last time, are those new? Anyway, the song is okay. The Hebrew part sounds pretty. The dancers gave a great performance. I don't have many thoughts about this one.

Lithuania - Silvester Belt, "Luktelk" - Yeah, I dunno what is going on here, but it sounds great. I enjoy it, anyway.

Spain - Nebulossa, "Zorra" - Disco disco disco! Fun!! Definitely can see this becoming a cult classic. Ahh I wish I could be in the audience for this one, it seems like the crowd has such fun energy.

Estonia - 5miinust x Puuluup, "(Nendest) narkootikumidest ei tea me (küll) midagi" - 11/10, no notes. IDK what's happening here but I love it.

Ireland - Bambie Thug, "Doomsday Blue" - The Swedish commentary is saying that this song winning the Irish selection was controversial due to its occult vibes, lol. Anyway, the performance was amazing! Just as theatric as the semifinal.

Latvia - Dons, "Hollow" - I'm really curious about the studio version. This isn't one of my favourites, since it's kind of slow and the stage/costuming doesn't impress me, but I think I'll like it outside of ESC context.

Greece - Marina Satti, "Zari" - I do like the traditional Greek elements in the music + dancing, but I still hate the song itself. And whatever the heck the singer is wearing.

Great Britain - Olly Alexander, "Dizzy" - Not a fan of the visuals, but at least they're kinda creative. The song is meh.

Norway - Gåte, "Ulveham" - This was amazing. Douze points for Norge!!!

Italy - Angelina Mango, "La Noia" - Well, I like it more the second time around than when I first saw it, but it's still not one of my favourites.

Serbia - Teya Dora, "Ramonda" - Not a winner, but I enjoyed this. Glad it went through to the final. It's slow, but she's very dramatic!

Finland - Windows95man, "No rules!" - Hahaha. <3 Finland clearly doesn't want to win this year, but at least this is silly fun. Loved the pyrotechnic shorts. :D

Portugal - Iolanda, "Grito" - I still have no idea what's going on here (haven't looked up the translation) but I still think it's very good. Very dramatic performance, and she has a nice voice!

Armenia - Ladaniva, "Java" - Wah, the singer is so cute. This is a very fun and bouncy song, and I really enjoy it. She has so much energy!

Cyprus - Silia Kapsis, "Liar" - The styling in this is so very early '00s. Anyway, the song's fun. Not a top pick for me, but hey, it's energetic!

Switzerland - Nemo, "The Code" - This guy is one of the most skilled singers in this final, and regardless of how I feel about the song, I think he should win. He did SUCH a good job.

(Ah, Malin's green dress looks much nicer than the white monstrosity she was wearing earlier.)

Slovenia - Raiven, "Veronika" - Man, the song sounds great, but I haaaate the costuming. That sure is some intense dancing, though.

Croatia - Baby Lasagna, "Rim Tim Tagi Dim" - Man, there's so much going on here. What an act! Fun song, intense performance, memorable show. Definitely a candidate for a winner, I think.

Georgia - Nutsa Buzaladze, "Firefighter" - Sexy, intense, and energetic! IDK man, it's a fun entry.

France - Slimane, "Mon Amour" - I saw someone say that they figure France doesn't want to host, so they sent something very French and "just for them". Haa, I can see it. It's very French. But very lovely, this guy is a good singer. And ahhhh, the part where he steps away from the mic!!! SO GOOD. WHAT A VOICE.

Austria - Kaleen, "We Will Rave" - Bloody hell, is her costume ever hideous. Anyway, the song is dancey - not a favourite of mine personally, but I can see it getting a lot of replay.

The upside of watching after the fact is that I can fast forward if I get bored.

Loreen's performance was weird. The song's okay, but like, I hate the costuming (though the cyborg elements are neat). And even though she's moving a lot, she's still in one place. One of the reasons "Euphoria" was so cool was because of the fluid dancing that went along with it; this is just doing nothing for me.

I still really love the Green Room "open sesame" gimmick. It's just nice! And dramatic.

And now, Jury Votes.

Aw, Jamala got a lot of cheers. <3 That's nice. I'm forever glad I was able to see her sing live in person. And ah, 12 points to Switzerland, Ukraine has good taste!

Wow, everyone's voting for Switzerland. I'm a little surprised, but not complaining. Aw, Nemo is just totally losing it with joy, ha.

I'm a little surprised Germany gave Sweden their 12! Not complaining, though, I liked that act.

Aahhh, Eesti has Ukraine flag colours in the background. NICE

"We finally found you, Nemo" Omg. xD

Jury top 5:
Switzerland
France
Croatia
Italy
Ukraine

Bleh, Italy. But I'm happy with the others! I'm curious how the audience vote will shake it up.

Aww, the Eesti group were waving flags from the other Baltic states too, that's cute.

...Norway only received 4 audience points?! What?!!! That is INSANE.

And aww, the Latvian group had a Ukraine flag, that's so nice. <3

...Very surprised that Israel received so many points; their act wasn't that good.

Happy for Armenia that they were pushed into the top 5, even if this will probably change later.

Wow, 307 audience points for Ukraine! Way to go, those gals deserved it. And they moved into first place (though there's still time for things to change).
... And they they were unseated by Croatia, but y'know, Croatia had a great act, so.

And the winner is... Switzerland! Well deserved; that was an incredible act. Like, really really good. It wasn't even my favourite, but it was really good.
(And aww, Switzerland guy getting hugged by the other singers, that's so nice.)

Top 5 with audience votes:
Switzerland
Croatia
Ukraine
France
Israel

Surprised about that last one, but I'm happy with the rest!

And ahhh, Nemo's reprise. Still wearing Bambie Thug's witch crown, haa. Cute. <3 And even now, still with amazing vocals! What a well-deserved win.