Super Bowl XL is tomorrow. Although XL is the Roman numeral for forty, it's fitting it can also stand for "extra large," because that designation also happens to define the Super Bowl for all time. And for better or for worse, it defines us Americans as well. As television critic Matt Zoller Seitz of the Newark (N.J.) Star-Ledger wrote on the eve on Super Bowl XXXVIII in 2004 (the one with the Janet Jackson halftime show debacle), the Super Bowl defines this nation through its pomposity, its hype and its grandiosity. It reflects the everyday values of American life, with every vulgarity (Super Bowl commercials, cheerleaders, the halftime show before the censors did something about "wardrobe malfunctions"), every indignity (the nature of the game itself, the unruly crowd), and every arrogance (the national anthem being sung by a celebrity, the ostentatious display of raw power by the players) this land has to offer on display for all the world to see. The Super Bowl, as a reflection of ourselves, is a pretty damning indictment.
And if you think that's bad, imagine what we'll see if England makes this year's World Cup soccer final! :-O :-D
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