I initially planned to do a full-fledged review of Miss Grand International 2023 but I decided not to anymore as the choice of winner didn't quite match the story I thought would unfold during that evening. Instead I'll do a results reaction / capsule review of the proceedings.
- The stage is slick and grandiose with state-of-the-art LED screens providing multiple backdrops throughout the pageant proceedings.
- The opening number was very upbeat and peppy, as the reigning queen Isabella Menin led the contestants to a techno-remix upbeat version of Celine Dion's 2002 international hit "I'm Alive", interspersed with Isabella's own vocals singing the song. I suppose the choice of song was to match Vietnam's tourism campaign, #AliveVietnam.
- Within this opening number, the 69 contestants individually walked across the length of the stage in their silver-embroidered halter-tops-and-orange-shawl ensemble to do their now-patented energetic introductions ("[Name], Miss Grand [Country Name]!" This sequence took almost 40 minutes. It's interesting to note that even with the pageant's founder and owner Nawat Itsaragrisil's legendary dis towards Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray, Catriona's legendary "Lava Walk" loomed very large during this sequence as 25 performed a variation of her classic walk, with varying success*1. If we included delegates who performed their twirls at the beginning or end of their catwalks*2, the ladies who attempted the influential walk would rise up to 31. I know several pageant fans and pundits would find this manner of introduction annoying, but with the Vietnamese audience enthusiastically shouting the contries' names alongside the delegates, it made for an engaging, almost interactive experience.
*1 Most successful in performing the walk were NETHERLANDS (Melissa Bottema) and PANAMA (Julia Leong). Most awkward were HONG KONG (Ada Le Tan Tan) and TÜRKİYE (Beyan Kubra).*2 COLOMBIA (Maria Alejandra Lopez) and COSTA RICA (Kristell Freeman) performed their twirls at the beginning of their catwalks, while GHANA (Kilaya-Yvettlana Fosuwa Amankwaa), GREECE (Loanna Skoula), PHILIPPINES (Nikki de Moura) and ROMANIA (Denisse Vivienne Andor) performed theirs at or towards the end prior to their introductions.
- The pageant was hosted by Thai singer/actor/TV presenter Matthew Deane Chanthavanij (credited as Matthew Dean) who has been doing this gig for four consecutive editions of this pageant now (and previously co-hosted the 2014 and 2015 editions). With his mixed ethnic background (he is half-Australian on his father's side) he has excellent English diction and he also delivered the "carny-barker" energy that Nawat likes in hosts as he displayed relentless enthusiasm throughout his hosting. Having been immersed in Thai showbusiness for over two decades now, it's a given he's already seamless in pronouncing the tonal subtleties in Thai and Vietnamese names.
- The structure of the pageant remains unchanged since its inception--the Top 20 were selected where they would then switch into swimsuits for the swimsuit competition, and from there the Top 10 would be selected who would then give "world peace" speeches*3 and parade in evening gowns before they are whittled down to a Final Five where they all would answer a final question. The swimsuit segment was set to a techno remix of Rita Ora's latest single "Don't Think Twice". For the Top 10 speech round, it began with video news footage related to the ongoing Israel vs. Hamas conflict before the Top 10 appeared in uniform yellow silk ao dai and sporting headpieces called mẩn as Michael Jackson's 1991 song "Heal the World" played on. For the evenig gown round, the Top 10 paraded elegantly to Lewis Capaldi's latest single, "Wish You the Best". Then of course the Top Five would be announced and the final question given, and ten the announcement of winners.
*3 A feature initiated since the 2nd edition of this pageant in 2014.
- I thought we would see more Top 20 semifinalists borrowing from Catriona's playbook, but only three performed the "lava walk": NETHERLANDS, SPAIN (Celia Sevilla) and UZBEKISTAN (Amaliya Shakirova). NETHERLANDS gave the walk a twist as she twirled three times. Several other semifinalists also did twirls, but they either performed it at the beginning and end of their catwalks (like COLOMBIA) or did a full stop before performing their twirls.
- After the Top 10 were chosen (immediately after the swimsuit segment) as the Top 10 changed into traditional Vietnamese dresses for the "world peace speech" round, they made a announcement on the next host country to host this pageant and it emerged to be... Myanmar.*4 There was a formal turnover ceremony onstage with Nawat handing the honor to the the country's national director, who turned out to be Mister Supranational 2017 Top 20 semifinalist Htoo Ant Lwin. We have to hand it to Htoo as he looked very dignified in traditional garb, a far cry from his notorious barenaked videos and layouts that could be seen all over the internet. However some pageant fans and pundits are anticipating another attrition in contestants next year with this choice as the country reverted to being run by a military junta since 2020*5 and it wouldn't help remove accusations of Nawat being hypocritical to the pageant's supposed advocacy as it continues to cozy up to dictatorships.*6
*4 In a way it's a repeat of 2017-2018 as Vietnam was host of the former and Myanmar was host of the latter. Take note though that Myanmar in 2018 was a bit different as the junta gave a lot of leeway to the democratically elected government and it paved the way for the country to attract foreign investors that time.
*5 The junta disregarded the 2020 democratic elections and arrested the election winners, including Aung San Suu Kyi (again).
*6 As exhibited by having Venezuela host the 2019 pageant (and initially the 2020 pageant until the COVID-19 pandemic hit) and how they continuously take in representatives from Belarus, Russia, and sometimes offshoot autonomous regions of Russia represented separately.
- Immediately after the hosting turnover, there was another ceremony conducted, the Grand Award for national directors to reward their efforts in promoting this pageant in their respective countries. The three top-performing national directors appeared onstage: Peru's Jessica Newton (also known as Miss Universe 1987 Top 10 semifinalist), Indonesia's Ivan Gunawan, and Vietnam's Pham Kim Dung. From these three they announced the Golden Grand Award, which went to Indonesia, and the award came with a sash, trophy, and in a surprise twist, a crown. The runners-up were called Silver Grand Award winners and were given sashes and trophies for their efforts.
- While the Top 10 changed from their ao dais to their evening gowns, they paid tribute to the reigning queen, and she made her final walk to the soundtrack tune by Lady Gaga from Top Gun: Maverick, "Hold My Hand". Isabella then gave a heartfelt 8-minute speech, and there was a crown-switching ceremony as Nawat replaced the crown she was wearing with a replica that she can keep as her own and take home.
- To serenade the Final Five, Miss Grand International 2022 1st runner-up Engfa Waraha of Thailand sang a cover of Bea and her Business's ballad "Born to be Alive". She does have a good singing voice though her diction issues were obvious in this English-language song. Anyway, the quality of her vocal tone is why she is now a recording artist and was actually going to hold concert gigs at the same venue a few days later. She was also belatedly awarded the Grand Voice Award for her batch, mainly because of her new career.
It's time to discuss the contestants, starting with the ladies who didn't make Top 20 but at least had the consolation of garnering special awards. JAPAN (Yayoi Machida) became one of the three winners for Best National Costume, a worthy winner as she delivered a dramatic presentation with her black warrior outfit. RUSSIA (Anastasiia Volkonskaia), meanwhile, won best in evening gown for her provocatively sheer gown with strategically placed sequins--I still would've wanted COLOMBIA to win this, but I suppose Nawat & Co. are more in a provocatively sexy mood at this time.
They made a big to-do of awarding the Grand Voice Award, as they gave out the award prior to the announcement of the winners. This provided a spotlight to the five finalists for this award, four of whom were non-Top 20 finishers. This gave an extra spotlight to JAPAN, GERMANY (Naya Rivera Maria Tavitha Kilonzo), and SINGAPORE (Jiahui Jade Woo) but of course a lot of spotlight to the winner, GHANA (Kilaya Yvettlana Fosuwa Amankwaa).
I got 18 of the Top 20 correct, one of my best prediction records (if not my best) so far. I know many netizens would have their choice of 1st runner-up for the Ruth Ocumarez Award different from mine, as they concentrated on the sash power of VENEZUELA (Valentina Martinez), but as I mentioned in my homestretch review, this is a very fiercely competitive batch and I had sensed early on that VENEZUELA would fall by the wayside. I picked CANADA (Yuliya Shcherban) in my Top 20 forecast but even then I know her grip on the Top 20 was tenuous as there were several other worthy choices (including VENEZUELA) I could've picked in her place.
But the clear winner of the Ruth Ocumarez Award is the PHILIPPINES (Nikki de Moura). She did all she could as far as most of us observers saw performing at a high level to secure that Top 20 slot, but it's just that she still didn't win favor with Nawat and Co. We could've licked our wounds and leave it at that and just attribute this loss to a highly competitive batch of contestants. But Nawat decided to add salt to the open wound a few days later by going on a tirade during a livestream declaring that we "chose the wrong queen" and condemned Nikki as being "unprofessional". For a guy who founded a pageant supposedly espousing to "stop the war", he sure likes to bait the already testy Filipino pageant fandom, right? It continues to create the impression of Nawat's hypocrisy by committing this act of cruelty.
About the two ladies I didn't get but made it to the Top 20, LAOS (Phetmany Philakhong) has always been in my radar so I don't find her inclusion surprising. The shocker was FRANCE (Clemence Drouhaud)'s inclusion, as she has weak stage presence and was merely a decent but not remarkable interview, which was why I only put her in my "Striking Distance" list. Sure, it can be argued she's a "refreshing" choice as she's gorgeous, but I have a feeling Nawat included her to make a spiteful statement towards the Filipino fans that he would rather put this pretty lady with raw stage chops into the Top 20 instead of Nikki, because somehow Nikki rubbed him the wrong way.
I can also pat myself on the back as I got eight of the Top 10 correct The two I didn't get I also rated highly as I included them in my "Shoo-Ins" list, so it's a minor method of swapping a couple of fierce performers for another pair. Anyway, I have to note that this is the first time since 2017 that the Popular Vote winner was actually already part of the Top 20 instead of outside, so we indeed only have strictly 20 semifinalists instead of 21 as it would have been in other years.
I thought Nawat would've wanted CZECH REPUBLIC (Sophia Osako) because he had an extensive chat with her during the preliminary interview and focused on her background as a recording artist, but admittedly from the Preliminary Competition onwards there was another comely brunette European who made a more compelling case for herself and hence she took this lady's place. In the case of NIGERIA (Boma Dokubo), I thought she was too compelling that I thought this would cause the contestant from the country where this pageant is based would end up missing the cut, but I think Nawat and Co. still has a soft spot for his own country so there simply was no room for this lady to advance. Her consolation is that she got extra airtime as she was one of the co-winners for National Costume and was one of the five finalists for the Grand Voice Award. If Nawat at last minute declared that there would be a Top 12 instead of a Top 10, these two ladies would easily make it in.
Now, it's time to discuss the Top 10. Since last year, the Top 10 placers were given the honor of being designated as joint 5th runners-up and were included in a significant amount of promotional duties after the crowning. I have no objections at all to the 10 ladies that were so honored. I also have to note regarding the evening gown round, as I observed unlike the Preliminary Competition, the gown choices and presentation was subdued and lacking splashy flair and drama (with a couple of exceptions). I suppose it's to fit with the mood of the choice of music that is why this was what we ended up with.
THAILAND - Thawporn Phingchamrat. Though I might have preferred NIGERIA to make it here instead of her, she delivered a consistently strong performance all throughout that I don't really mind her inclusion Though all the Top 10 in this batch were ferocious, she's relatively the weakest link in this group.
ANGOLA - Eugenia das Neves. I was so rooting for her to make the Final Five as physically she has what it takes and I so wanted to see a black African representing an African country be part of that winners' circle as the last time an African made it that far was way back in 2014*7 and she's way more charismatic than that 2014 runner-up. But admittedly she wasn't that compelling or impactful as the ladies who advanced further, so this is why she ended up here.
*7 Ethiopia's Hiwot Bekele Mamo won 1st runner-up in 2014, and interestingly when she later tried her luck at Miss Universe three months later (unplaced), Nawat "dethroned" her. We do have a couple of footnotes as in 2020, Abena Appiah, who previously represented Ghana at Miss Universe 2014 (unplaced) and Miss Earth 2019 (Top 20), won but she represented the United States of America, and the following year, South Africa's Jenny Van Dam became 4th runner-up but she's white. There were only two other occasions when an African made Top 10, 2017 with South Sudan's Eyga Mojus, and 2022 with Mauritius's Yuvna Rinishta (who made the cut by virtue of popular vote and later declined the 5th runner-up prize for personal reasons, paving the way for the Philippines' Roberta Tamondong to be elevated to that placement).
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC - Skarxi Marte. She won Best in Swimsuit, and performed at a high level all the way to the end. However, though I do consider her "world peace" speech solid, it's not as compelling, and like most of the gowns in this round, it was missing that fiery flair and excitement.
INDONESIA - Ritassya Wellgreat. I pegged her as one who would advance to the Final Five, but I have a feeling Nawat had to make concessions to the loud and passionate crowd that he opted to have the host contestant advance instead of her. Performance-wise, I think she only missed the Final Five by very little and edged out DOMINICAN REPUBLIC by delivering the stronger "world peace" speech.
NETHERLANDS - Melissa Bottema. I may have pegged her as only finishing in the Top 20 because I thought Nawat would choose CZECH REPUBLIC over her, but ultimately this lady made a convincing case for herself as she's a compelling presence onstage during the Preliminary Competition (Morticia Addams, anyone?) and then mastered Catriona Gray's legendary "Lava Walk" and put her extra twist to it during the swimsuit round by doing triple twirls. She delivered one of the strongest speeches during the "world peace" speech round, and dazzled in her swirly orange-and-fuchsia evening gown. I have a feeling she was knocking on Final Five's door but missed it by very little (or by Nawat pandering to the Vietnames crowd).
For the final question, the Final Five were asked a question relevant to the Israel vs. Hamas conflict--which of these parties would you want to talk to first to bring forth peace? I got three of the Final Five correct. One of those I missed I regarded as a big favorite (alongside almost all the other pageant fans and pundits) though I had reservations because she admitted she has other ongoing contracts and commitments--it turns out she has a compelling factor that Nawat could not let go and felt there are great opportunities if she ended up in this circle, and the other lady I missed, I tsensed it's more because Nawat wants to pander to the hometown crowd though on second thought...
4TH RUNNER-UP: VIETNAM - Lê Hoáng Phựợng. I thought the host delegate would only go as far as Top 10 and no further, but I suppose she fed off the energy of the crowd and delivered her strongest performance when it counted--in the finals. She was appropriatedly impassioned in her "world peace" speech, so I gave her high marks there, and she was one of the few exceptions in teh evening gown round as she delivered drama with er white gown with billowing shawl. For the final question, she opted to ask Hamas, and I actually subscribe to her view. But I think many non-Western countries have an anti-Israel sentiment and felt they are retaliating with disproportionate force, so perhaps ultimately this was taken against her and she ended up taking the rear in this group.
3RD RUNNER-UP: UNITED STATES OF AMERICA - Sthephanie Miranda. Based on the "world peace" speech, her performances in evening gown and swimsuit, and her final answer, I thought she deserved to finish 1st runner-up. She is one of the three ladies who still presented their evening gowns with an extra dash of flair and drama with her white shawl. She was performing at a top-notch level, but I have a feeling her critical stand towards Hamas (instead of Israel) made Nawat & Co. just rank her at this level instead of higher.
2ND RUNNER-UP: COLOMBIA - Maria Alejandra Lopez. If she had won as I forecasted her to do, I would've turned this into a full-fledged review, as I would explore how her trajectory almost mirrored Catriona Gray's Miss-World-to- Miss-Universe journey. I was very much impressed with her "world peace" speech as she delivered the most substance of the Top 10, and she delivered the most drama in her evening gown presentation as she let two billowing shawls along her shoulders to flow. But I have a feeling doing that dramatic presentation may have been pinged by Nawat against her as he wanted a more subdued presentation for the Top 10 evening gown this time. It could be said that her answer to the final question was also a minus as the question asked her to choose one party first but she addressed both parties, and despite again delivering the most substantial answer out of everyone, the fact that she didn't pick one side cost her the win. There might also be another factor that prevented her from winning--Nawat seems to be checking on who has the largest Instagram following, and this lady's 590,000 followers, albeit relatively substantial, was only a mere less than 1/7 the followers of the eventual winner.
1ST RUNNER-UP: MYANMAR - Ni Ni Eain Lain. I'm aware she's highly favored from the get-go, and she delivered the goods. She was able to deploy her following to vote for her that not only she got an automatic ticket to the Top 20 via the Country Power of the Year award, she also won the Popular Vote to secure her Top 10 slot. That she placed this high indicates that she actually doesn't need those fast-tracks to place, as she could make it based on her merits. If I had my way, I would've placed her only as 3rd runner-up, but her final answer, as much as I felt is not that substantial, conforms to Nawat's own stance on the matter (she chose Israel) and so she was rewarded with this high placement.
MISS GRAND INTERNATIONAL 2023: PERU - Luciana Fuster. Though I did regard her as a "Top Contender", I was concerned about her ongoing radio career back home in Peru that was why I thought she would be the one of the six "Top Contenders" that would fall by the wayside. But it turns out there was one factor she possessed that Nawat was salivating after--her Instagram following. Nawat had mentioned that he is looking for a lady with "4Bs": Beauty, Brains, Body, and Business, and with that kind of following, Nawat saw a huge opportunity to tap and ultimately promote his business by making this lady win. In terms of looks and stage presentation, she is top-notch, and she is also a good communicator. But to be honest, even if her speeches were heartfelt and emotional, I felt content-wise COLOMBIA was better, but her stance in the final question was more compatible with Nawat's so she ended up winning.
I have to admit that I made a mistake describing her in my Homestretch Review--I confused her with her Miss International counterpart (who also did very well--see my full-fledged Delegates Review on that pageant) as I described this lady as "petite" and possessing a Brazilian beach vibe. She might be shorter than, say, COLOMBIA, NETHERLANDS, or VIETNAM, but she's not petite, and her look is actually more of a mix of a girl-next-door with a Classic Latina Beauty Queen (CLBQ) archetype, and that is also a potent combo.
After the coronation, pageant fans learned that the new Miss Grand International has a boyfriend, and they swooned at the sight. Patricio Parodi is a model who used to be a volleyball player. After witnessing her victory, he went on to continue in his grand tour of Asia, as reflected on his Instagram feed. Hope they'll find a way to maintain their relationship even if Luciana is likely to be on full-time duty with her title (her contract lasts for two years).
In general, I found the conduct of the pageant to be slick and fair. Yes, international website Global Beauties will heap praise on the quality of production and the caliber of this year's contestants, and I would agree with that assessment. Too bad Nawat decided to create a bad taste in the mouth post-mortem with his tirades, but I have a feeling the reigning queen will indeed increase the pageant's profile and help sustain this pageant's popularity. Would they be able to wear down resistance towards the choice of host nation next year? That is still to be determined.
JUST ME!
JOSEPH
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