Every long running TV show needs a spring clean every so often, just to keep the audience hooked. But TV bods should be wary that they don't trim away any of the elements that viewers genuinely love.
Which brings me to the new look live judges houses on The X Factor over the weekend.
While the pair of shows were edge-of-seat stuff, as we waited with baited breath to discover which of the twenty-four acts would make it through to live shows, somehow it felt as though something was missing.
And there was - the distraught tears of the contestants!
Yes, we were cruelly robbed of that TV moment that is brilliant for us and heart-breaking for the contestants when the judges finally reveal to them their fate in an excruciatingly drawn out and nail-biting final assessment.
You know the drill. 'You are so specific as an artist, such a specific sound that I don't really know if the public could relate to that,' a straight-faced Cheryl told pop hopeful Laura White in St Tropez back in 2008. 'But I have made a decision...' [Syrupy emotive music swells as we cut back and forth from an unreadable Cheryl to a trembling-lipped Laura...] 'You're going to have to be in my final three!' The result? Laura dissolves into juddery tears, followed by Cheryl giving her a big warm hug.
And who can forget Rylan Clark's unforgettable over-the-top outpouring of emotion when Nicole Scherzinger announced that he was one of her finalists? It was classic car crash TV, the kind of which makes us bellow with laughter until our sides ache and live in our minds forever.
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Sadly this new format has taken away from us this uncomfortable and yet tantalising moment. Instead, our judges simply had to choose their three favourites from a line up, just as they do after the live Sunday night sing offs.
And while it was enjoyable watching Simon, Cheryl, Nick and Rita momentarily squirm as they wondered whether they were making the right decision, we were frustratingly denied seeing our fragile hopefuls collapse into a messy heap on the floor, mascara smudged as they beg for another chance and plead that 'singing is my life'.
Instead, the losing acts merely shuffled off stage back to obscurity without so much as a sniffle or a tear, giving us at home no overly emotional reaction for us to savour. And that's no fun!
So please Simon and X Factor producers, can we have the brilliantly torturous one-on-one pre-verdict preamble next year back please. It makes such great TV and makes the Judges Homes such a watercooler moment. Yes, it's cruel, but for us the viewer it is TV gold, just like the even more wicked Six Chair Challenge.
That quibble aside, the judges have done us proud this year, having selected some of the strongest talents we've seen in a long time - even Mason Noise, who will no doubt divide the nation from now until Christmas!