Spice Girls Love em, loathe em, envy em, ignore em: whatever you feel about Britain's most successful girl group since the 'Rama, they're not about to go away. And even when they do eventually go away, you sense they're not going to go quietly. Spice Girls are a 24-carat bona fide phenomenon. Asking "who's your fave Spice?" has replaced talking about the weather as a national pastime (Emma still has the edge, apparently) and not a day passes without at least one Spice-y exclusive gracing the pages of our beloved tabloids. Whether they're putting the lid on Cannes, zig-a-zig-ah'ing Britain's future monarch at the Prince's Gala or pepping up soft drink commercials, the Fab Five have lodged their way into the nation's psyche in a way no other band since the Beatles has managed. And now, the uncrackable nut that is America seems to be falling over itself to clasp the gals to its chest. In fact, half of Nostradamus' predictions are probably really about the Spice Girls and their unstoppable sass machine. But are they any cop? Too much spicy food can give you indigestion: can too much Spice Girls have a similar effect on the music world's patience? Well, let's examine three aspects of the band and attempt to pass judgement by considering their image, their music and their marketing.

The image Image wise, the girls are spot-on. None are too beautiful in an untouchable Debbie Harry kind of way, but all of them are undeniably attractive - sexy even. Their almost ordinary looks endear them to female fans, meaning that they regard the band more as role models than rivals: as a gang that they want to join. Male fans probably have a slightly more predictable viewpoint on the girls' looks, but even at that the band are not sexual icons in the same way as Madonna. Suffice to say, in one way or another, everyone wants to be in the Spice Girls. With each Spice having a separate image - Sporty, Posh, Scary etc. - the band is elevated to superhero status. Why bother with the X-Men when you've got the Spice Girls? This aspect of the group's image has been exemplified by the video to "Say You'll Be There", in which each girl is given a super-identity and super powers. Larger than life and totally memorable - an image most bands would sell their souls for. The nicknames too are vital to the band's image, giving them a jokey cartoony Monkees-style side: surely the animated series is already in production ("and I'd have got away with it too if it hadn't been for you pesky Spice Girls..."). This also gives rise to another national sport: coming up with new Spicy nicknames (see our 5 Seconds To Midnight section to see what some bands have come up with). Old Spice, Mixed Spice, Twice As Spice - the fun just goes on and on... Image then? 10 out of 10.

Music...

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