Stupor Bowl VV
It was the only football game I tuned in throughout this entire strange season. I was ready for some excitement. Hey, after 11 months of lockdown, the entire nation was ready for some excitement. Instead, we got bionic Tom Brady again plodding up and down the field in his inexorable campaign to win his seventh Super Bowl ring. Yawwnn… The boring blowout was not the game that America needed for rejuvenation.
Somewhat more entertaining were the commercials, although too many companies blew their kajillion ad dollars on completely forgettable spots. Among the ads that were somewhat amusing: Lemon Seltzer (a relentless downpour of lemons for a true lemon of a year); Dr. Squatch (apparently a soap for men who are hairy outdoors types — who knew!); and Alaska Air, with its harried flight crews doing “The Safety Dance.” Apart from these and a couple of others, the parade of commercials again revealed a morbid America hooked on violent superhero “entertainment,” junk food, pharmaceuticals, smart phones, and stock gambling. America, America, God shed his grace on thee?
The frequent medical reports on the players didn’t revive my love of the game: a QB had a bad toe that would require off-season surgery; other starting players were soldiering on with injured backs, knees, pelvises; and one was listed as “questionable.” I was reminded that NFL football is more of a train wreck than a sport. And Super Bowl VV even lacked the perverse pleasure of a demolition derby.
To relieve the oppressive lethargy of the game, l looked forward to the halftime show. I’m not part of his fan base, but I’d caught The Weekend not long ago on Saturday Night Live and was moved to download a couple of his songs. Yesterday’s extravagant show biz display did not make you forget Prince’s stellar Super Bowl show or even the gray-haired Who. But I did enjoy The Weekend’s final number — “Blinding Light” — featuring the star romping on the field followed by an army of dancers swathed in head bandages. It was a weird but ecstatic moment — a reminder of our medical sorrows and a liberation from them.
And for one fleeting moment I cheered.
