Tag Archives: eurovision 2018

Cookie Fonster Sails Across Eurovision 2018 (Final): Elaborate Props and Tight Voting

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Intro Post

< 2018 Semfinals | 2018 Final | 2019 Semifinals >

As of the writing, two Swiss cities remain in the running to host Eurovision 2025: Basel with two potential arenas, and Geneva with just one. I’m rooting for Basel because it’s a three hour drive from my grandma’s house in Germany, and thus I’d be more likely to go to next Eurovision if it’s in Basel.

Introduction

In Lisbon, the capital city of Portugal, 26 countries battled on the annual Saturday night to take the prize of Eurovision 2018. It was a tight competition this year, especially among the jury votes where the country on top kept changing. Fortunately, no song came anywhere near zero points this year: on the bottom was Portugal with a still impressive 39 points. Two of the top three are countries we usually don’t see this high. In third place (and first in the jury) came Austria, in second place came a huge fan favorite from Cyprus, and the winner was a more divisive but perhaps more fiercely loved entry from Israel, who took home their fourth victory.

RTP clearly had a lot of fun showcasing their country with this show, but for the opening films they seemed to be on a tight budget—all three nights used the same film. On the other hand, the opening act has an indulgent medley of songs from famous Portuguese artists (including the first proper fado representation in Eurovision!), all sung in Portuguese because this country is too cool for anglophone pop. Then comes a nautical-themed flag parade set to Portuguese DJ music, which is just the most charming thing. As with last year, the host country was introduced last. The postcards are what I would’ve hoped Portugal would do: the artists opening a door to a location in Portugal and performing an activity there. As a soft spot for all things Portuguese, these postcards get my stamp of approval.

I watched the grand final with Finland Swedish commentary, parts of which my friend Liv translated for me. Finland Swedish is intriguing to listen to, because it feels like it’s from a parallel universe where Finnish is a Germanic language. The pronunciation is generally closer to the spelling than in Sweden, it doesn’t do silly things like pronouncing “de” (they) as “dom”* or the singsongy pitch accents, and there’s plenty of words that sound goofy to Swedes, but it’s better to ask a Swedish speaker to explain them. I would nerd about languages more, but that’s not the point of these reviews. These commentators are extremely funny and snooty and I’ll refer to them as the Yle commentators from now on, since that is Finland’s national broadcaster.

* That’s actually a simplified description of something more nuanced, which you can learn about in this video.

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Cookie Fonster Sails Across Eurovision 2018 (Semifinals): A Refreshing Revival of Native Languages

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Intro Post

< 2017 Final | 2018 Semifinals | 2018 Final >

Starting from this post, my Eurovision blog schedule will speed up a lot! That’s because I now have a more efficient schedule for when to watch the shows with Liv and when to write the posts.

Introduction

If I had written this post before visiting Gothenburg, Malmö, and Copenhagen for Eurovision 2024, then Eurovision 2018 would be first contest since 1983 to take place in a city I’ve been to: Lisbon, Portugal, a beautiful city that I visited in 2014. I have a huge soft spot for Portugal as a country. It’s a little rustic and less modernized than other western European countries, which gives the country a lot of charm, though Lisbon is very much a modern city deep down. I particularly remember exploring an elaborate network of underground malls there with my dad and sister, and we were all blown away.

But I’m not here to talk about my vacations from a decade ago, I’m here to discuss Eurovision! RTP had waited over 50 years for this opportunity, and I’m blown away by how good of a show they put on. Most of the first-time host broadcasters in the 21st century ranged from “a respectable first attempt” to “ugh, these hosts are stilted and the show is too self-indulgent”. I’d say Finland’s Yle was the best newbie host broadcaster in the 21st century, until Portugal came along. They made their show feel as Portuguese-themed as can be while still passing perfectly as a modern Eurovision year. Hiring four hosts (all women, I can’t remember which is which) is a bit excessive, but they’re enthusiastic and professional exactly as hosts should be. It was one of only two contests in the 21st century (along with 2010) to do away with LED monitors, but this time the stage doesn’t feel any less modern than the last few years.

This contest featured the same lineup as 2017, except Russia came back and for the only time in Eurovision history (unless you count 1996) failed to qualify. This means this year is close to having a complete map of Europe: the most noticeable gaps are Turkey, Slovakia, Bosnia, and Luxembourg. It features an impressive 43 countries, equaling 2008 and 2011 as the years with the most participants.

As with last year, I watched the semifinals together with Liv with Swedish commentary, then alone with German commentary.

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