Among the Major Beauty Pageants, Miss International has been the most traditional. Despite being the third oldest international pageant, Miss International has long ceased from TV broadcast. In recent years, Miss International final show has been long, arduous, and tedious.

This year, Miss International made some improvements. The stage for the 2018 finals was an improvement from the previous editions. Despite this improvement, Miss International’s stage is still poor in comparison to other major pageants. The stage design still gives that “school auditorium” vibe. 

The lighting, however, this year is impressive. The stage lights allow for clearer and crispier resolution on the screen, allowing fans to appreciate the contestants more. There were also several musical numbers and a light show, to the amazement of the live audience and those watching via live stream. 

But Miss International’s format has still remained. It was a very long show which resulted in complaints by viewing fans, expressed during the live stream.

Miss International started with all 77 contestants each parading in their national costumes. Then, they sashayed with their swimsuits and evening gowns, all 77 of them. 

Even a dedicated pageant fan would find this format really dragging. In this era where many individuals have short attention span, a 5-hour show would be incredulous. Yet, Miss International still chose to stick with this format.

The announced preliminary judging for swimsuit delighted fans as they thought that the show would be shorter. Instead, Miss International repeated the swimsuit competition during the final show. 

But with all the flaws and complaints of the pageant’s format, Miss International remained steadfast in adhering to its standards. This was reflected by this year’s results. 

Venezuela and the Philippines are the two most successful nations in Miss International, in that order. These twi countries sent representatives that are well within the so-called Miss International prototype. 

And indeed, Venezuela won its 8th crown while Philippines settled for 1st runner-up. And for two straight years, Miss International crowned a Black African queen as one its runner-ups.

Social Media Engagement

But the most drastic improvement of this year’s pageant is the Social Media engagement of Miss International. Recognizing the importance of social media to keep and win fans, especially for a pageant that is not aired on any TV network, Miss International amped its social media updates on Facebook and Instagram. 

Fans were treated to some inside infos, candidates’ background, and exclusive images and videos on various pre-pageant activities. 

This improvement is heading towards the right direction. Miss International has to level up in the presence of more aggressive younger pageants like Miss Grand International and Miss Supranational. 

When there were still four major pageants, there was a peaceful co-existence. Four major beauty pageants are still not a “crowd”. But with two new additions, the fight for the market has stiffened. Many big national pageants can only accommodate three to four international franchises. As such, Miss Earth responded with transparent preliminaries and more TV networks. 

Miss International also responded with much improved social media channels. As such, Miss International is still in the game and is still fighting for its place as the third oldest beauty pageant.

Full Results

Miss International 2018 – Mariem Velazco (VENEZUELA)
1st Runner-up – Maria Ahtisa Manalo (PHILIPPINES)
2nd Runner-up – Reabetswe Sechoaro (SOUTH AFRICA)
3rd Runner-up – Bianca Tirsin (ROMANIA)
4th Runner-up – Anabella Castro (COLOMBIA)

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