Monday, February 4, 2008

It's over and the fat lady didn't even sing

During the weeks leading up to the Superbowl, the only thing you hear more about is the battle of the politicians. Seriously, in the past week, the Super Bowl has been mentioned roughly a million times. Everywhere you turn, something or someone is touting the BIG GAME. You see it online, on television, on billboards, and even in grocery stores.

Honestly, I don't care much for watching football. Sports just aren't my thing. But, once a year, I try to be a supportive wife and join my husband to watch football. I start out interested mostly to see who sings the National Anthem and what commercials are going to be aired, but somewhere along say the middle of the first quarter, I start losing interest. I wonder how many wives submit themselves to this annual torture, er I mean ritual? And I also wonder how many men watch the SuperBowl because they love football?

The fact is that I don't think all that many people watch football just because they love it. I think it has more to do with hanging out, drinking a few beers, maybe inhaling (I mean eating) some pizza and seeing who can scream the loudest when someone fumbles the ball. I think I have evidence to support this because at the end of the game what you hear mostly is a series of mumbles that slowly escalate to full scaled gripes about what a terrible game it was.

So what exactly makes half of the American population, including those non-sports people like me, sit down and watch the SuperBowl? Is it the thrill of seeing the best against the best, the half time show, or the commercials? Speaking of commercials, why would any company pay $2.6 million for a 30 second commercial? Do they seriously think that I am going to rush out and buy a brand new Chevrolet or six pack of Pepsi because I saw their commercial during the Superbowl? And still, millions of Americans wait with bated breath to see what Victoria's Secret (okay so maybe the men) is "unveiling" or what antics ________ (fill in the blanks here) will show on their commercials.

So who is really center stage in this whole show? Is it the players, the artists who perform at half time or is it the advertisers with their million dollar commercials?

Was the SuperBowl all it was touted to be? In the end there is always a winner and a loser. Last night, the Giants emerged as victorious over the Patriots. But, was it worth all the hype? And the same can be asked of the commercials. Were they all that super after all or just a bunch of fumbles?

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