By LIZ THOMAS and ELEANOR GOWER

Fired: Cheryl Cole, pictured arriving at the Los Angeles X Factor auditions in June, will appear in tonight's episode

She was dramatically fired from the U.S. X Factor after just three weeks as a judge back in June.

Yet Cheryl Cole has had an overwhelming response from U.S. critics who hail her as the better judge over her replacement – the pop singer Nicole Scherzinger.

Many prestigious U.S. television critics saw previews of the opening episode, which airs tonight, and branded Nicole a 'downgrade' from the British star, who appears in approximately half of the programme before she is replaced.


Old line up: Cheryl was one of the original judges alongside L.A. Reid, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell, with Steve Jones and Nicole Scherzinger as hosts

'The opening episode gives a surprising amount of screen time to Cheryl Cole, a British pop star whom Mr Cowell jettisoned from the panel last spring, in the middle of auditions,' said Neil Glenzinger of the New York Times.

'In the premiere she just kind of disappears midshow, without much explanation, and suddenly Nicole Scherzinger of Pussycat Dolls is in her chair.


'No improvement': Some U.S. media critics have been scathing in their reviews of Nicole Scherzinger's performance on the X Factor judging panel in comparison to Cheryl

'It’s a downgrade. Ms Cole showed glimmers of being interesting; in two seasons as a judge on The Sing-Off on NBC, Ms. Scherzinger was a pretty face but, judicially speaking, not much more than a seat warmer. '

The Los Angeles Times's Mary McNamara is equally unimpressed with the former Pussycat Dolls singer.


New panel: Nicole replaced Cheryl as a judge on the show, after Cowell said the Girls Aloud singer seemed bewildered and uncomfortable on the talent show

'Cowell has said he replaced Cole because she seemed 'bewildered,' but on a first impression, she is much more interesting than Scherzinger, if only for her fabulous Geordie accent,' she writes.

'In early scenes [Nicole] seems more interested in tearing up and out-glamming Idol’s Jennifer Lopez than bringing much to the commentary.'

Steve Johnson of The Chicago Tribune says: 'Scherzinger doesn't come off as an obvious improvement in the early going. She's more earnest like Kara DioGuardi than lovable like Jennifer Lopez.'


In action: Nicole sits to Paula's right on the show, which Cowell is hoping will compete with American Idol


'Irrelevant': USA X Factor host Steve Jones also gets short shrift from the critics in today's reviews

source: dailymail