New 'X Factor U.K.' Round Draws Viewer Complaints, Comparisons to 'Hunger Games'

Credit: Thames TV

Is The X Factor UK becoming less singing competition and more Hunger Games? That's what viewers in the UK are alleging after the controversial "Six Seat Challenge" Round debuted over the weekend.

The Guardian reports that both competition regulator Ofcom and series network ITV received a total of 80 complaints regarding the new round, with some viewers going as far as to compare the show to a "blood sport" similar to that of The Hunger Games book/film franchise. In the new challenge, contestants compete to earn one of six seats to advance to the Judges' Houses round. However, no one who receives a seat is truly safe until all the contestants in the category have competed, as the judges reserve the right to switch out a contestant who's already earned their spot if another contestant proves worthy of a seat. The end result of the twist? A lot of devastated contestants who believed they were advancing to the next round, only to find themselves going home the next, and sometimes at the very last moment.

Among the opponents of the new twist was singer Lily Allen, who took to Twitter to espouse what she believed to be the uncomfortable nature of the challenge round, saying the show had become "fully mean."

ITV defended the new round, which makes its debut in the US version of The X Factor this week as the "Four Chair Challenge," with the crucial difference that instead of falling just short of Judges Houses' (the penultimate round before live shows), the contestants will be falling short of the live shows themselves, raising the stakes (and emotions) considerably.

"The new boot camp twist brings genuine jeopardy to the competition and is just one of the ways the series has evolved this year," said a spokeswoman for ITV. "All contestants were briefed in advance on the new format, and as with all stages of the competition, support was available for everyone before and after their performances."

So what do you think about the Six Seat/Four Chair Challenge? Is it unfair? Do you prefer the old format? Or is it good TV? Sound off in the comments!