‘The X Factor’ UK rankings: Matt Terry, Sam Lavery, 5 After Midnight still lead the way

We assumed that there would be a shock elimination on “The X Factor” coming at some point this season, and it’s fair to say that this happened and then some on this past weekend’s show. We ultimately saw the elimination of Relley C, someone who is supremely talented, over Four of Diamonds and Ryan Lawrie. More surprisingly, neither Saara Aalto or Honey G were even in the bottom!

We’re entering Fright Night on Saturday with a super-chaotic lineup, and that makes ranking all of the remaining contenders all the more challenging. Rest assured, though, that we’re still giving it every bit of a chance that we can! The criteria is the same as always: Performance quality, screen time, placement, and perceived audience size.

9. Ryan Lawrie (last week: 8) – We’re thinking here in terms of who has the greatest capacity for a comeback, and in the case of Ryan, it’s hard to see it. He seems like a very nice kid, but he just doesn’t have the big voice to compete with some of the other singers in this competition. Not to sound too harsh, but it just comes down to that.

8. Four of Diamonds (6) – We didn’t have a sense until now of their popularity, or apparently lack of it among the British public. We do think they’re talented, but they need more of an angle and an edge to them.

7. Honey G (9) – We’re almost two weeks past the Honey G experiment being fun anymore, but the reality is still that she hasn’t been in the bottom just yet, whereas there are three other acts in the competition who have. That could mean she’s safe … again.

6. Saara Aalto (10) – She’s still not going to be the sort of performer who everyone likes, but that’s probably okay given that we don’t think Saara expects that. She just needs to continue to stay true to herself and her talent. If she does that, she’s got a chance.

5. Emily Middlemas (5) – We’re coming off of Emily’s best performance of the live shows, but we’re still missing the days of her coming out and strumming the guitar.

4. Gifty Louise (4) – Gifty’s raw talent, but if she can cultivate that before the end of the season, she could easily win. Ultimately, though, we do think there’s a good chance that she is able to go on and get a record deal almost regardless of where she finishes.

3. 5 After Midnight (2) – We didn’t think that their “Valerie” performance was anywhere near as terrible as Simon Cowell made it sound; even if you didn’t love it, don’t you still have to respect their work ethic and how much they’re putting into just about every performance?

2. Sam Lavery (3) – Sam’s been climbing our personal rankings for some time, mostly because she’s consistently strong vocally, she’s got rock flavor that sets her apart, and we do think that she’s got a little bit of that underdog spirit that people will want to root for.

1. Matt Terry (1) – Still, it’s hard to put anyone ahead of a guy who made a very difficult Motown song interesting. Matt’s got one of the competition’s best voices, and we do still feel like he’s the sort of contestant viewers are just naturally drawn to.

Who tops your own “X Factor” ranking? Vote in the attached poll, and head over here for some other news related to the show. (Photo: ITV.)