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Post by samuel on Sept 23, 2022 23:00:10 GMT -5
Time pasts so quick! The finale of Miss Hong Kong 2022 will be held this Sunday on September 25, 2022! 19 contestants will vie for the title this year as contestant #6 Wendy withdrew to pursue her studies. Hopefully she will rejoin the pageant again (if eligible) in the future.
I want to begin by saying what a pity it is that the semifinals was cancelled this year! It was suppose to be held on September 4th but five contestants caught covid causing the semifinals to be cancelled! If only they could’ve postponed the semifinals! It’s always better to see more of the contestants and get to know them better (including seeing their personality and catwalk/interview skills, etc.).
Well, time has passed and nothing can be done.
If only the pageant could’ve been extended to three hours (or even three and a half hours)! We certainly should get more time to see all the 19 ladies since the semifinals was cancelled. Two and a half hours is short in my opinion; considering there will be performances from Leon Lai, Stars Academy First and Second Generation, JW, and more.
But on a positive note, it’s great to see the pageant being held in HK Coliseum again. It deserves to be held there, especially for the 50th anniversary of Miss Hong Kong!
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Post by samuel on Sept 23, 2022 23:00:37 GMT -5
Onto the contestants, the quality of this year’s girls quite honestly is one the lowest in recent years. Not much contestants are standing out as much as I feel they are. The quality is also noted by other pageant fans in Baidu as well. But, this year is extremely competitive and many surprises may emerge! I would not be surprised if a dark horse (or even cold door) emerges victorious and wins in the end (like 2007)! The reason is because there are a few that are standing out but no particular contestant that is leading the pack tremendously. Surprises are likely inevitable but hopefully the best contestant wins!
Onto each contestant. I haven’t followed each contestant and pageant extensively because of work lately. But, here are my thoughts of each contestant:
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Post by samuel on Sept 23, 2022 23:01:05 GMT -5
1. Astrid Xu
She seems to be a little timid and her Cantonese is not too good. Her hairstyle drew a lot of attention during the selection phases. She resembles a little like Aimee Chan, Miss Hong Kong 2006. She is currently a PHD student. I currently have her as a dark horse because I think her chances of making top 5 are slim.
2. Hebe Lam
I grew to like Hebe after watching the staycation special (the one hour special that was aired during the semifinals night). She is giving me little sister vibes, the vibes that the second runner up gives off (like Moon Lau). She seems likable but her personality is also a little reserved hence I have her as a dark horse that may make top 5.
3. Reina Chan
She is giving off Miss Hong Kong champion vibes! The way she talks sounds like past winners! She is getting a lot of press attention and is favored by Baidu fans to win. I have her as a top 5 favorite for now.
4. Cecca Xu
A top 5 favorite and in my opinion the one to beat! She has the looks, the education (she just got accepted into Oxford and Harvard), the confidence, eloquence, I think she is top 3 material! The only thing that may hold her back is some negative gossip news that she argued with #15 Chloe Cheung during the staycation. I don’t think this will affect her placement significantly though because isn’t it kinda expected that not all the contestants get along? Different people have different personalities, even if they don’t get along, I don’t find it to be extremely surprising.
5. Chrissy Chan
She hasn’t been standing out as much. Some fans think she has decent beauty but she is not having much stage presence. Not sure how she did during the private judges interviews this week but she is likely not to advance far in the competition. We will see how she does.
6. Wendy Lam (withdrew on August 6, 2022)
One of the younger contestants this year, it’s a pity that she withdrew to focus on her studies. Not that she should give up her college studies but I think she should’ve further thoughts before joining the pageant. Hope she will decide to enter again in the future because I think she is one of the better looking contestants this year.
7. Gabrielle Wang
Another contestant with mainland background this year. Her Cantonese can be better. I think she is decent looking but she isn’t standing out as much either. I don’t expect her to break out of the pack and make top 5 (maybe next round but unlikely).
8. Denice Lam
One of the taller contestants this year, she is one of the press favorites because her dad was a TVB artiste in the 1980s. Many noted that she has a manly appearance. I don’t quite see the favoritism here except because her dad is a former TVB artiste. I don’t expect Denice to make top 3 but we will see how she does. Her modeling and experience on camera may help her.
9. Cherry Chan
She is a KOL on Douyin, the famous Chinese version of TitTok. I feel that her fans following and her on screen experience will help her. Although she has Mainland roots (and that is frowned upon by TVB), she is a dark horse for top 5.
10. Ceci Ho
Based on the staycation special, she taught the contestants on her team to dance. She seems to be quite good at dancing. I don’t think her look is one TVB is looking for but she seems to have some presence so maybe she can pull off a surprise and make it to the swimsuit round (assuming there is an elimination round before swimsuits Q&A).
11. Yohanna Fung
She is getting noticed by Baidu fans as the one who may pull off a surprise top 3 placement. She fits the bill that past Miss Hong Kong winners have - overseas background, smile, sweet aura. Her occupation is also a plus - elementary school teacher. I think she is a suitable contestant to win Miss International Goodwill (btw, the award is FINALLY BACK!!). Depending on her performance, she may pull off a higher placement .
12. Naomi Zhang
I think she has one of the most beautiful eyes in the pageant. Unfortunately, her Cantonese is one of the weakest in the batch so I don’t think she will advance past the first round.
13. Sharon Ying
A press favorite because she is Shiga’s friends and she is one of the taller contestants this year. Her catwalk, poses, interview skills are also really strong. I would watch out for Sharon but she has been receiving a lot of negative press attention lately (having tattoos, her mom is a Mahjong parlor owner), hence I don’t see her winning. Top 3/5 placement is still possible though.
14. Joey Leung
One of the prettier contestants this year, Joey was also a big favorite during the earlier stages of the pageant. However, she has somewhat faded away probably because she isn’t very good in presenting herself. She also has some negative press about having a tattoo on her arm and her height is also an issue hence I am not too sure about her winning the pageant. Top 3 is still highly possible though.
15. Chloe Cheung
Chloe was one of my favorites during the selection rounds because she was noted for her politeness and occupation (she is a doctor). However, she is extremely shy and many people have noted about her lack of confidence. Even TVB Entertainment News reported that she was nervous and walked the wrong way during an outdoor swimsuit event last week! I think her chances of making the next round are slim to none but we will see how she performs during finals night.
16. Catherine Ao
I think she has a unique look and decent height. She also stood out a little in the staycation special (although her screen time was very minimal). Seems like she graduated from NYU so we will see how she performs.
17. Janice Cheung
One of the not as well liked contestants in Baidu forum. I think she has decent beauty and probably interviewed better than the other Mainland contestants but she is giving Miss Asia vibes more than Miss Hong Kong vibes. She actually was a top 10 finalist at Miss Asia 2008 Hong Kong Region Pageant. She received some negative press about some online profanity she made during the age of 15. I don’t see her making top 5 but making it to the second round should be likely.
18. Maggie Ho
She actually received positive spotlight when it was reported that she does charitable work at an elderly home. However, Baidu fans has been blaming her to be the Covid spreader and the one that caused the other contestants to be sick. They feel that TVB will eliminate her in round 1 because she caused TVB to lose 6-7 million HKD. True or not, I think that her chances are affected and she will likely not make top 5/3.
19. Stacia Yeung
Another contestant that hasn’t been standing out or getting a lot of attention. Although she was praised by TVB (Scoop program) to carry a night gown quite well, I don’t see her pulling an upset. In my opinion, making it to the second round will be a win for some contestants. We will see how she does.
20. Khaki Leung
Another polarizing contestant this year. Many Baidu fans find her to be ugly although I think her environmental awareness platform is a plus in this year’s pageant. Some fans that she may pull off a surprise Miss Photogenic win (or even a top 3 placement) but I see those more as conspiracy theories rather than feasible possibilities. Some feel that this year’s Miss Photogenic panel of judges have unique taste and have selected polarizing Miss Photogenic winners in the past like Wanda Yung, Janet Chow, Jessica Shum and hence it will be an upset decision this year. We will see how Khaki does.
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Post by samuel on Sept 23, 2022 23:06:14 GMT -5
Still formulating my final predictions for finals! But, since Miss Friendship will be voted and announced shortly in 2 hours (2 PM HK time on September 24, 2022), I will post my prediction for Miss Friendship 2022.
My prediction for Miss Friendship 2022 is
No. 11 Yohanna Fung 馮嘉敏
Other favorites to win Miss Friendship are:
10. Ceci Ho 何思懿, 13. Sharon Ying 邢慧敏，and 20. Khaki Leung 梁家琪
I also heard 9. Cherry Lam is quite friendly too.
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Post by samuel on Sept 24, 2022 23:35:05 GMT -5
Congratulations to #13 Sharon Ying for winning Miss Friendship! Looking back now, I am not too surprised (actually many Baidu fans were correct) because Sharon was very nice and chosen as one of the group leaders in the Staycation special.
She was one my suspects for Miss Friendship.
Now, after much final consideration and analysis, here are my final predictions. Not sure about the final format and elimination process this year (since it is not announced by TVB) but I will list each contestant by ranking.
It was really hard to formulate the predictions but here they are:
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Post by samuel on Sept 24, 2022 23:35:56 GMT -5
MISS HONG KONG 2022: Cecca Xu (no. 4)
First runner up: Reina Chan (no. 3)
Second runner up: Sharon Ying (no. 13)
Fourth place: Hebe Lam (no. 2)
Fifth place: Joey Leung (no. 14)
Top 12 Finalists:
6. Yohanna Fung (no. 11)
7. Denice Lam (no. 8)
8. Astrid Xu (no. 1)
9. Cherry Chan (no. 9)
10. Chloe Cheung (no. 15)
11. Catherine Ao (no. 16)
12. Janice Cheung (no. 17)
Other placements:
13. Khaki Leung (no. 20)
14. Gabrielle Wang (no. 7)
15. Stacie Yeung (no. 19)
16. Maggie Ho (no. 18)
17. Chrissy Chan (no. 5)
18. Ceci Ho (no. 10)
19. Naomi Zhang (no. 12)
Special awards:
Miss Photogenic: Joey Leung (no. 14)
Miss International Goodwill: Cecca Xu (no. 4)
Miss Friendship: Sharon Ying (no. 13, already announced)
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Post by samuel on Sept 24, 2022 23:36:23 GMT -5
Although some have noted that Reina has been getting a lot of favoritism from the press and even TVB, I feel that her overall performance is not as strong as Cecca. Cecca has the eloquence, confidence, looks, and stage presence. If Cecca delivers a performance like she did throughout the pageant, she should have no problem making top 3 (and will likely win). But, I can also see Reina winning since she is favored by many. Sharon is tall and commends attention but Miss Friendship typically doesn’t win (and actually seldomly makes top 3) but she has shown a lot of confidence, eloquent answers, nice catwalk, so I am giving her third place. I think her negative gossip will affect her final placement hence a little here. Hebe has the girls next door look and seems the type TVB likes so I would not be surprised if she makes top 3. But, the probability of the numbers 2-3-4 (consecutive numbers) winning is really low and she hasn’t been as strong as the other contestants hence I think this is a very high and likely placement for her. Joey was in my top 3 at one time but seems like she has dropped out of many people’s lists largely because she is not too tall and she has some negative gossip (she likes to party and has seven tattoos on her body). I think she may pull off the Miss Photogenic win but will likely not make top 3. We will see how she does though and whether or not TVB will overlook her negative gossip.
Yohanna has a great smile and not much bad press so I can see the judges liking her. She can pull a surprise and make top 5/3 and maybe Miss International Goodwill. Denice has a great figure and height but I’m not too sure whether she fits the Miss HK criteria. Astrid is similar to Yohanna but not much presence and Cantonese is quite weak hence I think she will likely fall short. Cherry has a very large Douyin following but doesn’t seem to fit the Miss Hong Kong mold. Chloe seems quite nervous so I wouldn’t be surprised if she gets eliminated in the first round. However, she is rumored to be one of the three “predetermined top 3” alongside Yohanna and Joey so I am placing her in 10th place. Catherine Ao has one of the better faces in the pageant but a lot of people are not quite feeling her. Janice rounds out my top 12 with her pageant experience. I had difficulty placing Khaki because I know she was nominated by Miss Chinese International 1988 second runner up Sharon Kwok but she doesn’t seem to have the Miss Hong Kong face. We will see whether her Cantonese and stage presence will get her into the second round.
May the best girl win! Good luck ladies!!
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