Wow. That was a fantastic Super Bowl, from start to finish.
Big plays, trick plays, suspense, offense - this game had it all. And the Patriots lost! America rejoices.
The game itself was one of the better football games I've ever watched. Justin Timberlake's halftime show was also fantastic. And the commercials? Oooo did I like them.
Without getting into the X's and O's of the actual game, let's talk about the halftime show. I'm not a huge JT fan. I'm not a huge fan of pop music. Sure, I liked 'N Sync in 1998 when I was 13, but then again, so did almost everyone.
His performance at the Super Bowl LII halftime show was simply fun. There was good dancing, and you could tell he was singing for most of it. His Super Bowl selfie with the young high school kid was pretty cool, and I felt bad for the kid who had 1,000 messages flooding his phone and couldn't actually take the selfie the first time around.
And that Prince tribute. Man, did I like that.
I was in Minneapolis by chance the day Prince died. The Twin Cities were his home, for those who don't know. I was there with my buddy Alex Bennett to see Mumford & Sons, and after the concert we headed downtown where instead of grieving the death of their favorite son, the city celebrated the man behind "Purple Rain." That was a fun party, and though I never lived in the city, I gained a lot of respect for all of its residents for the way the city embraced Prince. Every radio station played his music that day - whether it was a hip-hop station, country, classic rock or classical music, they all played Prince.
And seeing that Prince holds the title as "Best Super Bowl Halftime Ever" - a title I just made up - and yesterday's game was being played in his hometown, you knew a tribute would happen. JT and his crew delivered. Not only inside the stadium, with the drop-down curtain and projection shots of Prince, but the purple lights that lit up downtown Minneapolis - finishing up with his famous symbol. It was a great tribute.
So, the game was great, the halftime show was fantastic and the commercials (the other reason people tune in) were fabulous. I kept a running tally, a very generic scoresheet where I rated commercials based on how funny or intriguing they were and how emotionally appealing they were to me.
Tide won the Super Bowl. No individual ad or series was as well executed as Tide. Bud Light's "Dilly Dilly" war was funny but lacked a lot of the Super Bowl fun we've come to expect. Eli Manning held his own for NFL Network, especially with the "Dirty Dancing" homage at the end.
Other commercials that I thought were exceptionally well done were the Amazon Alexa voice changes, Jeff Goldblum daydreaming about out-running a T-Rex in his new Jeep, Bill Hader and the film crew making Pringles-flavored stacks, Peter Dinklage and Morgan Freeman rapping for Doritos and Mountain Dew, Keanu Reeves surfing on a motorcycle, and the guy whose bleep don't stink in the Febreze commercial.
And can someone open a Kickstarter for Danny McBride as Crocodile Dundee in a remake with Chris Hemsworth? Sure, I want to go to Australia, but I really, really, really want to see Danny McBride wrestle a crocodile.
And lastly, after months of waiting, we finally got our first glimpse at the new "Star Wars" Han Solo movie. While not as intriguing at first glance, I watched it multiple times during the game while Chris Collinsworth was attempting to determine what a catch was or wasn't. After multiple viewings, I thought it was excellent and got me very excited.
May. I have to hold out until May to see Chewbacca and Lando again on the big screen.
And best of all?
Pitchers and catchers report one week from today.
- Adam Krebs is a reporter for the Monroe Times and only feels slightly bad for his doppleganger, Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, for losing the Super Bowl. Krebs can be reached at akrebs@themonroetimes.net.
Big plays, trick plays, suspense, offense - this game had it all. And the Patriots lost! America rejoices.
The game itself was one of the better football games I've ever watched. Justin Timberlake's halftime show was also fantastic. And the commercials? Oooo did I like them.
Without getting into the X's and O's of the actual game, let's talk about the halftime show. I'm not a huge JT fan. I'm not a huge fan of pop music. Sure, I liked 'N Sync in 1998 when I was 13, but then again, so did almost everyone.
His performance at the Super Bowl LII halftime show was simply fun. There was good dancing, and you could tell he was singing for most of it. His Super Bowl selfie with the young high school kid was pretty cool, and I felt bad for the kid who had 1,000 messages flooding his phone and couldn't actually take the selfie the first time around.
And that Prince tribute. Man, did I like that.
I was in Minneapolis by chance the day Prince died. The Twin Cities were his home, for those who don't know. I was there with my buddy Alex Bennett to see Mumford & Sons, and after the concert we headed downtown where instead of grieving the death of their favorite son, the city celebrated the man behind "Purple Rain." That was a fun party, and though I never lived in the city, I gained a lot of respect for all of its residents for the way the city embraced Prince. Every radio station played his music that day - whether it was a hip-hop station, country, classic rock or classical music, they all played Prince.
And seeing that Prince holds the title as "Best Super Bowl Halftime Ever" - a title I just made up - and yesterday's game was being played in his hometown, you knew a tribute would happen. JT and his crew delivered. Not only inside the stadium, with the drop-down curtain and projection shots of Prince, but the purple lights that lit up downtown Minneapolis - finishing up with his famous symbol. It was a great tribute.
So, the game was great, the halftime show was fantastic and the commercials (the other reason people tune in) were fabulous. I kept a running tally, a very generic scoresheet where I rated commercials based on how funny or intriguing they were and how emotionally appealing they were to me.
Tide won the Super Bowl. No individual ad or series was as well executed as Tide. Bud Light's "Dilly Dilly" war was funny but lacked a lot of the Super Bowl fun we've come to expect. Eli Manning held his own for NFL Network, especially with the "Dirty Dancing" homage at the end.
Other commercials that I thought were exceptionally well done were the Amazon Alexa voice changes, Jeff Goldblum daydreaming about out-running a T-Rex in his new Jeep, Bill Hader and the film crew making Pringles-flavored stacks, Peter Dinklage and Morgan Freeman rapping for Doritos and Mountain Dew, Keanu Reeves surfing on a motorcycle, and the guy whose bleep don't stink in the Febreze commercial.
And can someone open a Kickstarter for Danny McBride as Crocodile Dundee in a remake with Chris Hemsworth? Sure, I want to go to Australia, but I really, really, really want to see Danny McBride wrestle a crocodile.
And lastly, after months of waiting, we finally got our first glimpse at the new "Star Wars" Han Solo movie. While not as intriguing at first glance, I watched it multiple times during the game while Chris Collinsworth was attempting to determine what a catch was or wasn't. After multiple viewings, I thought it was excellent and got me very excited.
May. I have to hold out until May to see Chewbacca and Lando again on the big screen.
And best of all?
Pitchers and catchers report one week from today.
- Adam Krebs is a reporter for the Monroe Times and only feels slightly bad for his doppleganger, Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, for losing the Super Bowl. Krebs can be reached at akrebs@themonroetimes.net.
