This fall, Simon Cowell, producer and talent judge seen on American Idol, is back in the States, determined to find someone who possesses the undefined and indescribable quality referred to as the “X Factor.”
“You don’t have to necessarily really have the best voice, or you may not be the best looking one in person, but you have something that defines you as a star,” Cowell said in a video promoting the show on The X Factor USA  website.
Last spring, The X Factor USA only traveled to six cities in search of talent. During the audition process, these contestants not only had to face the four judges but also impress the 5,000 people in the audience watching their performance. If they possess the undefined greatness, they are up for chance to win the largest guaranteed prize in television history: a $5 million record deal. 
X Factor has its differences from other talent competitions, but really, it’s just another performing show filled with more drama. It isn’t even worth watching, unless you’re intentions are purely to view some of the amazing acts that present themselves to the judges. It can be compared to putting the unique aspects of every talent competition on network television into a melting pot and X Factor is the resulting brew.
Along with Cowell, the judges include: Paula Abdul, former American Idol judge; L.A. Reid, record producer, responsible for signing Mariah Carey, Rihanna and Usher; and Nicole Scherzinger, former lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls.
But unlike other talent competitions, X Factor is based more on judges than anything else. Yes, Cowell and the panel are in search of a new performer to win and become a successful global music superstar, but the judges themselves really seem to want the attention. They are too sappy and not harsh enough on the contestants. Their style could almost be that they don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. They are also too dramatic and emotional. The contestants bring their own drama to the show; X Factor doesn’t need any more.
From the few episodes broadcast so far, senior, Jenny Gale saw a different side to the judges she had seen on American Idol and noticed some new faces.
“Paula, personally, was nicer on American Idol than on X Factor. Simon is the opposite too. He doesn’t live up to the harsh reputation he earned on Idol,” Gale said. “I’ve never even heard of the other two judges.”
Scherzinger and Reid’s judging styles are different compared to Simon and Paula, but all of the judges aren’t very critical. There was more controversy with Idol. Most Idol contestants have to receive at least two out of three yeses to move on to the next round. On X Factor, almost all of the acts have received four yeses, even the contestants who didn’t do the greatest job. But if the judges feel a person has undeveloped talent, they’ll say yes to give them the chance to develop their talent and to move on in the competition.  

Alina Smirnova, senior, liked what she saw on the premiere of The X Factor USA.
“There were around 25 auditions in the two hour time slot. Some of the performers sang really well, and some were really bizarre. Some people legitimately believe they are good singers, when they actually aren’t,” Smirnova said.  “But there was a big age difference between the contestants, which is different from other competition shows.” 
As a result of the age differences, contestants are split into four categories of performers: Young Men, Young Women, Over 30s Singers and Vocal Groups. Anyone 12 and up can be a potential contestant on the show, unlike American Idol’s contestants, who are only solo artists between 15 and 28 years old.
 “The contestant pool is polarizing. Some will make you teary-eyed, others will make you want to gouge out your eyes. Increasing scale wherever possible, the show has elevated the level of gimmicky contestants looking to score some air time,” said Yvonne Villarreal, in an article for the Los Angeles Times.
Those who make it past the audition round will go on to boot camp, where each judge is assigned to a particular category to mentor the contestants. The judges collaboratively choose 24 acts, six from each category, to participate in the unknown process of “judge’s houses” to further reduce their number to three acts each to participate in the live shows.
The boot camp phase includes choreographed dance routines as part of the contestant  evaluation. Perhaps that goes behind the idea that this isn’t just another singing competition show, but rather a full package deal where you have to be able to do it all.
The premier of The X Factor USA drew about half the audience of the most recent season opener of American Idol (which delivered about 26 million viewers) but its premier was significantly higher, however, than the 2009 debut of NBC’s The Sing Off.
Later in the season, The X Factor USA may obtain a higher viewership, because fans will need to stick around to see the one contestant that will win the five million dollar record deal with Syco/Sony Music, and the chance to be in their own Pepsi commercial airing during the Super Bowl in February 2012. 
Tune in Wednesdays and Thursdays to FOX to see for yourself if X Factor really has the “X Factor.”