* Seemed to me like a so-so game with a great finish. I think Terry Bradshaw called it the greatest Super Bowl he had ever seen.
* The Fox production crew was on top of its game. When all was lost for the Patriots, Fox was right on cue with images of the 1972 Dolphins.
* Joe Buck and Troy Aikman weren't flashy, but they were solid. Didn't sideline reporter Pam Oliver once refer to the "green zone"? Where is that, exactly?
* I know the Mannings generally aren't everybody's cup of tea, but I thought the Fox cutaway to Peyton in his private box celebrating Eli's winning touchdown toss was a neat moment.
* Repeating Hunter's thought: Really liked Tom Petty. Not a lot of glitz, just good music.
Anyone else think it was classless that the Patriots coach wasn't on the field when the game ended? I know there was confusion about that last second, and the coaches shook hands already, but still. Seemed a little disrespectful.
Former American Idol contestant Katharine McPhee got married this weekend, wedding producer Nick Cokas. With her new 42-year-old hubby, the 23-year-old sounds like she's at peace after being dropped by her record label.
"[Nick] is the love of my life," McPhee told People. "This is a once in a lifetime occasion, and everything is just perfect."
This is taking so long because I'm just speechless. Not only have SalesGenie's animated ads been dreadful, but the last one to run -- pandas who have a struggling bamboo furniture business -- is bound to draw all kinds of complaints about the stereotypically Asian (Chinese?) accents.
The last place we'd picture Shaq is as a jockey in a horse race. But that was pretty funny. The slap on his back side by a fellow jockey at the end was priceless, too.
OK, I'm not even watching this game. So let's all suggest artists for next year's halftime show. Prince last year was amazing, Petty this year delivered as well, so who can follow?
Madonna: Yeah, you don't normally put the Material Girl and football in the same sentence, but at this point in her career she's well-known to every demographic. And now that she's British, she's too much of a prude to do anything that would make censors nervous.
Michael Jackson: He's planning his big comeback, and you know you'd tune in. Just no close-ups on the face, please.
Britney Spears: They could roll her out in a gurney! ... OK, sorry. That was wrong. I hate myself.
I love it when I gets what I wants. Petty and his Heartbreakers opened the 12-minute show with "American Girl," continued with "I Won't Back Down," and then it was "Free Fallin'." The closer was "Runnin' Down a Dream."
Straightforward songs, no strange choreography or color-card stunts in the stands. Petty's an American classic -- he doesn't need all that extra junk. Screw the second half -- just let the concert keep going. I wanna hear "Don't Come Around Here No More"!
Not very entertaining, so far. I think the commercials hold a 14-3 lead over the product on the field. Hoping for better in the second half. Where is Tom "Superman" Brady? Anybody home?
The Justin Timberlake Pepsi commercial (with a cameo from Tony Romeo) doesn't suck -- no pun intended -- but I'm still a little mad that the golden boy gets any airtime during the Super Bowl, considering his part in the infamous wardrobe malfunction of '03. He was just as much to blame as Janet Jackson. Plus, he was part of the most God-awful halftime performance before that one -- remember when he and Britney teamed up with Aerosmith? Ugh. I shudder thinking about it.
Seeing Naomi Campbell (was that Naomi?) do the "Thriller" choreography with a bunch of CGI reptiles was pretty cool, but I'd rather see those Filipino prisoners do it any day of the week.
Farah is the expert at this, but I'll go ahead and give a few movies grades, based on their trailers.
IRON MAN: A-. I didn't think Robert Downey Jr. belonged in a superhero movie, but dayum, that looks pretty good. I'm ready for another summer of explosions.
WANTED: C+. Sleek, stylish, but a little too Matrix-like. Angelina Jolie is a total badass, though.
LEATHERHEADS: B. George Clooney and Renee Zellweger are the big stars in this football-themed flick, but I'm most excited about the appearance of Jon Krasinski from 'The Office.' Wonder if he'll look at the camera and shrug at least once.
... has to be the spot produced by King of Advertising Bud Light. The one where the guy impresses his date with his fire-breathing abilities, and then proceeds to damn-near kill her pet cat when he coughs. The best Super Bowl commercials are always the ones that are ridiculous for the sake of being ridiculous.
You know you've wondered who sings that sweet and sunny little ditty in that Apple MacBook Air ad (why can't Apple just add the info in the corner of the screen?!?!) ... it's Israeli-born French songstress Yael Naim singing what's gotta be the next "1234" sensation, "New Soul." With her similarly perky voice and spirited melody, I believe we have a Feist-alike!
That Tide-in-a-stick commercial was pretty hilare. A guy's at a job interview but all he can hear while he's attempting to answer questions is the stain on his shirt saying things like "Abalabanlabbababal!" and "Baaa baaa baaa!" It's one of many commercials attempting to get viewers to fire up their laptops and get online during the game. Another was the GoDaddy.com Danica Patrick spot. Since it was too hot for TV, they figured they'd just tease to the real commercial online. We'll see if the tactic works...
Landon Austin, the 19-year-old local singer-songwriter who was a finalist in Doritos' Crash the Super Bowl contest didn't get his 60 seconds in the spotlight after all -- he was bested in the online vote by some Colbie Calliat sing-a-like from California. D'oh well. At least he got a trip to the game and a few seconds of airtime during the pregame festivities. Every little bit helps!
Fox arrives at 2005, gets itself a MySpace page. Visit their Super Bowl page to catch any of your favorite ads, or those you might have missed. So far, not worth the click, but just in case...
Jordin Sparks sang live and sang well week in and week out last year on American Idol. So why, in front of her biggest audience ever at the Super Bowl moments ago, did she lip-synch the National Anthem? Was something wrong with the sound that made them resort to a pre-recorded track? Did her nerves get the best of her? Whatever the case, I'm not sure I've ever seen anyone lip-synch "The Star-Spangled Banner" at a national sporting event. It's just not done, and quite frankly, I'm more than a little disappointed. Thoughts, anyone?
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