Super Bowl? Eh....Whatever.

[JWBear]

Originally Posted by Moonliner

People getting together, breaking bread (or chips) and sharing in a common bond. Yeah. What's this world coming to.

Originally Posted by Strangler Lewis

...They certainly matter at least as much as the Oscars.

Originally Posted by Cadaverous Pallor

What he said. I don't like football all that much, but I've been going to my sister-in-law's party every year for about 10 years now and it's a lovely annual social occasion. We get to catch up with all of their cool circle, have a drink and some catered food, and generally have a good time. It's nice.

Like SL said, when all you nancy boys are drooling over the Oscars, just remember that it's now someone else's turn to be close-minded and roll their eyes at your personal moment to gather around the TV.

Speaking of which - who's hosting the Oscar party?

Indeed. Much better than the halftime show anywhere else.

You guys are missing my point. It's not about the getting together and breaking bread; I didn't say there was anything wrong with that. It's about the fact that the Super bowl has become an obsession in American society somewhere on the par with Christmas and the second coming. It's about the strange looks you get when you tell people you don't watch it; the kind of looks you would get if you stated that you didn't "do" Thanksgiving or the 4th of July.

And I'm sorry, but the Oscars do not compare. While there is the same (or greater) level of obsession on the part of some people, it is really a very small percentage of society. None of my friends, gay or straight, are as obsessed by the Oscars as most of the people in my life are over Super Bowl Sunday. Are the grocery stores as packed the day before the Oscars? No. Do complete strangers ask you if you're ready for Oscar night, and wish you "Happy Oscars!"? No.

(And just for the record, the cashier at the grocery store really did ask me if I was ready for Super Bowl Sunday, and the bagger really did wish me a Happy Super Bowl. You can't make this sh*t up!)

[Alex]

I've never had anybody inquire about my Super Bowl watching status or view it as odd that (most years) I'm not doing anything in particular. I was probably 25 years old the first time I actually watched one. But if there is any segment of the population that would come to see the Super Bowl and a truly universal event I imagine it would be grocery store employees; Lani and I specifically called of a trip to Costco today once we remembered tomorrow was the game.

But one thing I suspect has changed in recent years is the prevalence of very large TVs that are much more suitable for making the centerpiece of a big party than the old giant Sony 32". Yes, there was always the stray bird that had a 48" rear-projection TV setup.

I've been saying for a while now that whereas porn was the killer app for VCRs, sports is the killer app for widescreen HD. When I go to a Super Bowl party it is only 40% about the game and 60% about the party but even if we're only paying attention with one eye, it is a nice improvement that the one eye is seeing something so dramatically better than SD TV presentations were.

[LSPoorEeyorick]

Originally Posted by JWBear

And I'm sorry, but the Oscars do not compare.

Maybe not to some people. But in my household, Oscar night is a high holiday, totally on par with other celebratory days. So I certainly understand why those who love football would make an effort to do special food shopping and have parties and celebrate. We absolutely do for our big day (and we'll do it again on February 24, baby.) We just don't do it on Super Bowl Sunday.

So there's a huge percentage of people who care about the Super Bowl. So what? Everybody has their own thing that excites them. So the Super Bowl does it for a bunch of people. So the Oscars do it for another. So Super Tuesday does it for somebody else. I'm not sure I see what the big deal is.

(And for the record, I DO wish people happy Oscars.)