Writingbolt's Creation

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I tell you this with nearly 100% certainty; Super Bowl LVI (56) was staged. Staged how you say? No, I am not referring to stages like the ones topped by those hip-hop “legends.” I mean staged as in the whole thing was a promotion and campaign for “Black Lives Matter” and the L.A. Rams. The Bengals were just guests in the arena, or, maybe, the lions in a three-ring circus. And, yet, this isn’t new. I think most of these big games are, somehow, staged and set in some team’s favor.

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By the way, the stages were cooler than the performances, in my opinion. The strongest component of the sampler, sadly, was Eminem, the only “white” guy in the group. His performance of that infamous song from his movie, 8 Mile, which I thought he had once said was part of an identity he was leaving behind, was perfectly paired with a rare opportunity for two football teams. In fact, that song might as well be a Super Bowl theme. But, I don’t think the parts about parenting and financial struggles are all that appropriate.

Not including Mary J. B., the other “talents” seemed ignorant and careless at a time when the world is being force-fed constant concern over a deadly virus. A club crowded with flaunting “hoes” and cloned men boxed together so tightly in an attempt to make a cool formation; not smart, right now. The desperation of wealthy extroverts is apparent…and apparently putting everyone at risk, making all those Jurassic Park and zombie apocalypse movies more of a reality; ‘spare no expense.

The lack of caution carried over into every interview before, during and after the game. Reporters standing very close to the players, staff, owners, whoever; it didn’t matter. No one cared; you’d think it was 1992 instead of 2022. The whole scene reminded me of the Heston classic, The Ten Commandments, when the naughty people partied and abused the most beautiful woman on holy ground. SOME people had masks but carried them on their chins; fewer folks actually had masks over their faces. If no one is reported sick in the following weeks, either a vaccine mandate worked (and everyone at the game got a temporary dose at just the right time, which seems miraculous and unlikely) or our fears are truly inflated and enflamed by television.

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When the Milwaukee Bucks won their recent basketball championship, they had an expensive “pad” already built at home, waiting to be put to good use. Had they lost the tournament, what would have happened to the posh estate? Oh, let’s not even dwell on the grim possibilities for the city…because they won! Right? It was in the bag! No. I think it was very secretly arranged…and staged. Oh, the wonders that mighty dollar can achieve…for a team that gave up its purple to look more green.

Now, the L.A. Rams host a Super Bowl in a newly furnished stadium, costing over five billion dollars…with the “man of the year,” Mr. Charity, on their team, given a spotlight…along with a few Hall-of-Fame legends who were the first black men to play football, also given a spotlight…and the families of those who no longer are able to play the sport, also given a spotlight…and a star defender seeking a coveted prize, given a spotlight and place on the team logo whenever NBC goes to commercial, while the Bengals flash images of their lean, rookie, WHITE quarterback…and you just try to tell me it wasn’t all staged. How could the Rams possibly lose? [But, if you saw some of the camera shots the Rams’ head coach received, you’d think he was rather nervous about losing…until it was in the bag.] It’s almost like the talk about China covering its back in the Winter Olympics by featuring the very people some voice concerns about sparing from further harm. If you doubt the Rams’ right to winning, just look at all of the money and perks put on the table for the world to respect. Throw in a few sad, abused animals seeking your monthly donation of twenty bucks, and the package would have been complete.

[Sadly, the team with the largest number of “black” players, during Black History Month, the Bengals, did not win…even after one dirty play that should have received a penalty. Well, I guess losing the game is a penalty. And, why is it every big game has to have that one dirty play that could spoil the whole victory? But, in this case, it didn’t spoil victory…for the team in the favored, heavily sponsored and recently furnished seat. Had the Bengals not made that foul play, could they have won? We’ll never know.]

Topping it all off, you get “the Rock,” Dwayne Johnson, to introduce the teams, wearing a shade of purple which looks closer to the Rams’ blue than the Bengals’ orange and giving greater emphasis in his voice when speaking of the former. [I detected the difference.] And, during the rather weak game which might as well have been played in a snowstorm (for the lack of points put on the board and the number of mishaps that occurred), we see both star quarterbacks fall to the ground, grabbing their “wounded” legs, making very painful faces…only to get back on their feet and play like pros a few minutes later. Hmm. What does that remind me of…oh…I know…WWE wrestling. Someone might as well have hit the quarterbacks with a “steel” chair. Puh-lease! Injured my foot. The only injured person was Odell B., Jr., who looked like he had been stripped of the right to play and his pride in favor of letting Kupp take all the glory…because…let’s be honest…the shaggy white guy got the job done in the end. Isn’t that just like Tom Brady and his pal “Gronk?” Oh, no, wait. It’s not; the Rams have Reggie White…I mean…Aaron Donald to praise, as well. Thank goodness it wasn’t just two white guys getting all of the credit…in a staged championship…where plenty of wealthy faces can be seen and share in the excess. No one can say an Aaron or a Donald failed to get the job done. [Is that going to rally Trump supporters?]

The best commercial–for Salesforce–was being aired days if not weeks before the Super Bowl; so I can’t include it in the lot of possible “hits” but give it credit…though I know nothing about Salesforce. And, the ad, as poetic as it is, doesn’t define the company, similar to most insurance commercials, in which we get an amusing scene but little to no content to justify an interest in investing in the companies. Plenty of good intentions but no clarity regarding how the company assures/provides them; I could just as easily say I am pro- every noble cause on the planet and then commit some scandalous crime with your financial contributions and labor, unseen, simply because I pleased you with my good intentions. Amusement does not equate personal security/safety.]

The Uber Don’t Eats ads made one thing rather clear. The company you trust to deliver good food today could easily send you something not good to eat tomorrow when they buy out some other company or dip their toes into other non-related businesses to boost profits (greed spawned from fading leadership/responsibility leaking opportunities to ambitious fiends). We need to be mindful of companies like Uber Eats and not just turn mild amusement into blind compliance and financial support. If we just laugh and use those “services,” we contribute to the next big monopoly to send people into space in rockets shaped like male genitals and replace human workers with robots until only a select few actually have the financial resources to enjoy life on this planet, while the rest crumble under the illusions of televised advertising and “fast” convenience.

I was surprised the Bengals even made it to the Super Bowl. How did that happen? Was that…arranged, too? Considering they were there in the year of the (Water) Tiger, in terms of Chinese astrology, how perfect would it have been for them to win the thing? But, as I’ve read about tiger years, you have to expect some shocking disappointments. And, this Super Bowl was one.

[And, the Bengals’ head coach? Don’t ever wear that black cap, again. That looked stupid. You could barely see the “B” because the whole thing was black! That’s not your team logo.]

Commentators; I’ll say it again; they suck. They predicted big things for the last game between the Green Bay Packers and San Francisco 49ers. But, they didn’t have a clue about snowy weather in the Midwest. Point predictions were WAY off. Now, being closer to their own homes, they simply predicted the Rams as the winners, no point spreads given (unless you count that confusing talk about betting pools and who got what square). Well, one chose to back the Bengals, but he looked like the sad, odd white loser in the group, anyway.

And, who needs someone pointing out statistics like the odds of winning a coin toss and losing the big game. Why do we bother watching if we predict the winner from the coin toss?! Who won the toss? Oh. Okay. Game over. Pay up. We don’t need to sit through all of this. Let’s go hit the club and spread germs, instead. I’d rather party with Charlize Theron and Jennifer Lopez.

I chose to back the Bengals for a number of reasons, one being I like tigers and thought it was cool how the quarterback came from a town called Athens (being I’m a fan of Greek mythology and, particularly, the goddess Athena who won a contest to claim rights to Athens, Greece). But, I guess, none of that matters in a contest of riches and racial exhibition. You’ll never see me sport a set of Rams horns (at least, not yellow and blue). You’ll beat them, next time, Bengals. Just don’t spoil my support.