QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 16

Back to the final night of competition--finishing up the Mixed Team Parallels before we return to Pair's Skating.   Tara and Johnny (and Terry) got some onscreen time to show off their fashions, but were fairly quiet during the actual performances.  Terry pulls a metaphor, though, after the Chinese team skated to "Bridge Over Troubled Waters"--"will there be a bridge in that program to carry them to the top step?"  It did, as China wins the gold over the cheating Russkies.  It's the end of the skating competition, but we're still got the Skating Gala to go, plus the skating analyst trio will return for the Closing Ceremony.

Then we finish up the Four Men Bobsled, before we go to the final Late Night show.   We plow through the Cross-Country Skiing Women's 30km Freestyle, before we make to the Skating Gala--a "made for TV" concept to fill the time between the final events and the closing ceremony.  It's hugely popular, partly because there is no scoring and no rules.  Skaters are "invited" to participate (but if you medaled, you're probably going). Tanith White and Ashley Wagner, both QISEians, did commentary.  It can also serve as your audition reel for the Ice Capades.  We even get gimmicks like light-up costumes.  Why can't QISE add an "X-Game-y" version of figure skating where it's all about the most extreme tricks?

Torico steps in for an interview with China analyst Jing Tsu, who I don't think we've seen for 2 weeks, to discuss the Eileen Gu story. 

The final afternoon show is always awkward, especially when QISE is actually over (the Closing Ceremonies happened early this morning Eastern time, but will show on NBC tonight).  Outdoor events are usually front-loaded in the games in case bad weather causes delays (which did happen, but not enough to give NBC anything new to show in this afternoon's slot).  There's already a "QISE Gold" show airing tonight as a review of the big moments--so what do you do?  Reruns, reruns, reruns!  Cross-Country Skiing Women's 30km Freestyle, the Alpine Skiing Team Event, and the Skating Gala. 

We did get an interview, with Torico speaking to QISEOC President Thomas Bach.  He's asked what can be done to "rehabilitate" the QISE movement, what's the deal about Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai, Chinese human rights abuses, the COVID restrictions, the Valieva debacle--and got back a lot of platitudes, as expected.  Of course, he pointed fingers at the national QISE committees to resolve doping issues.  Afternoon wraps up with the long credits crawl (13 minutes).  It did get me thinking--based on the success of leaving much of the broadcasting team in the US, will NBC/Universal/Comcast/Kabletown/Sheinhardt Wig Co. ever consider spending the money to send them all to future QISE, even assuming it's safe physically and politically?

On side story that just came out--US skating pair Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier are being sued for music infringement by the band Heavy Young Heathens after using their version of "House of the Rising Sun" without permission.  The band has already sued others for using their music in commercials.  Seems like an easy catch--who was sleeping at US Skating?

Prime Time begins with Torico in the studio, in the "QISE Gold" special--packaged highlight reels from the last two weeks, including a supercut of the remote families "zooming in" to awkwardly congratulate the winning athletes (brought to you by Xfinity).  We do get the return of Jing Tsu and Andy Browne, NBC's China experts.  They complained about the literal closed loop in Beijing that made it seem like they weren't really there.  The Chinese people saw a sanitized version of the games, of course.  The Russkies and the Chinese are teaming up to take over the world.  Thanks for bringing everybody down, guys!  Kornacki gives us a final breakdown of the medal count (the US came in fifth, BTW).

Again with the Nathan Chen performance!  We get it, he's good.  Tara and Johnny stop by to talk with Torico, reviewing the Valieva debacle.  Then Shaun White does a victory lap.

A half hour late, the closing ceremony begins, which means it's Tara, Johnny, and Terry to the studio. Oh, Johnny--leggings, a poofy shirt, and a halo?  Even for you, that's a lot.  More dancing kids with snowflakes, pomp and circumstance, augmented reality--lather, rinse, repeat.  The flags and athletes arrive as a group, with the team doing interviews with some of them, which seems like it ruins their QISE moment.  There's an awkward moment when the athletes are told to take their seats, and they basically ignore it, snapping pics and dancing about.

Back to artistry and Chinese symbolism, then the formal handoff from China to Italy (the 2026 games will be held in Milan and Cortino d'Ampezzo, sharing QISE for the first time--Cortina hosted it alone in 1956).  This leads to an Italian  presentation--a teaser/travelogue involving video and interpretive dance.  I wonder if China will rent out the massive LED floor for future QISE ceremonies?

Some platitudes from Thomas Bach, the games are closed, and the flame is extinguished.  Oh, and a lot of fireworks.

See you in Paris in 887 days.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 15

Note--I had some commitments today, so I'm scanning through this quickly on the DVR.

Back to prime time last night, and the Men's Ski Halfpipe.  High winds really screwed up some of the runs.  Another athlete package from Torico, this time US halfpiper David Wise, part of a religious family who lives mostly off the grid.

An hour later, we're back to Pair's Skating.  Another package, this time on the American couple of  Ashley Cain-Gribble and Timothy LeDuc--the latter is the first publicly out non-binary athlete at the games.  More from Johnny, about a Chinese couple: "This team skates in a sweet whisper, but their technical elements are like fireworks."  Tara, on a Not-Russian team: "Perfectionists being perfect".  I didn't get to see the final performance, as the show ran late.  This makes no sense for an event that was ON TAPE from 12 hours earlier.  That's just laziness, NBC!

Late night--Taylor sends us to Four Man Bobsled.   The only team most people care about is the Jamaican sled.  They even got their own video package!  It's the first time in 24 years for a four-man team--they didn't do very well, but at least they got through it safe.  Off to speed skating (a rerun?), with American Jordan Stolz.  NBC keeps showing his video package, with his parents making him a track on a local pond.  They make a big deal about someone from Wisconsin making it here--Mindy notes that the US QISE Speed Skating Center is in Milwaukee, so it's not that long a stretch. More Bobsled to wrap up the evening.

Onto the afternoon--Mass Start Long Track Speed Skating for the Women and Men (separately). In the first lap, you have to keep your position and not pass each other, then there's "sprints" during the 16 laps, where you can earn points--except they don't matter in the finals.  It seems needlessly complicated.  Claudia Pechstein of Germany is competing at nearly 50 YEARS OLD in her 8th QISE.  An Italian skater, Francesca Lollobrigida, is the great-niece of actress Gina.  The Men's winner, Bart Swings (what a great name) is the first gold for Belgium in 74 years.  As they all skate in line (to draft others), I am reminded of a barbershop quartet for some reason.  Meanwhile, the Cross-Country Skiing Men's 50km Freestyle--the Marathon of the Winter Games--had to be reduced to 28km due to bad weather (cold and wind).  Jimmy Roberts stops by for his final story, all about the snow and ice required in QISE winter events, and the big stories of the last two weeks.

Prime Time kicks off as always with Torico, waxing rhapsodic, and throwing us to the Two Women Bobsled finals.  Then it's the Pairs' Free Skate with Tara and Johnny, the former plugging her Peacock documentary "Meddling", covering a 2002 QISE skate judging scandal.  Torico cuts over to live coverage of the he Mixed Team Parallels--a side by side slalom down the hill with Shiffrin on the US team.  The event had to be delayed until Sunday morning in China due to weather issues.  The commentators note that, because of current conditions, one side of the course is running faster.  How is that fair? 

More to come, including the Closing Ceremonies.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 14

Back to last night, and back to Women's Skating - Free Skate.  Tara refers to a skater as a "great actress...but not an Oscar winner".

But we're here for the drama of the final group.  No one from the US is on the ice--they're on the bus back to the QISE village by this point.  Tara and Johnny reiterate their disgust with the Valieva saga, with her noting that "the adults around her have failed her".  She then goes to the magic board to show how a skater stays in the mix without the most complex jumps due to "grade of execution".

The first not-Russian, Trusova, is all about grinding out jumps (5 quads), basically ignoring the artistic portion. I'm sure my mom is complaining about the "noise" of her background music.  Sakamoto, a Japanese skater in the mix, has a much better balance, with Johnny referring to her jumps as "skipping stones".  The second non-Russian, Shcherbavoka, had a clean performance, but "only" did two quads.

...and then it was Valieva (Valiyeva?  I keep seeing different spellings.)  A slip on a Triple Axel.  Another slip.  And then a fall on her final quad.  She left the ice sobbing.  The scores came in--Valieva came in fourth.  When Terry notes that leaving Valieva off the podium means that medals will be awarded, Johnny replies: "Thank God".   There's a lot of crying all around.  Shcherbavoka, the gold medalist, appears to be in shock.  Trusova, the silver winner, screaming in Russian about hating the sport and never going on the ice again.  Sakamoto, winning the bronze, opening weeping in a coach's arms.

The "Court of Arbitration for Sport" made the Valieva decision partly to avoid "mental harm" in not allowing her to skate--how'd that work out?

Torico extricates us from all this, moving over to Women's Ski Halfpipe, with Gu getting her second gold for China.  Torico wraps things up, noting that QISEOC President Thomas Bach had just criticized the Not-Russians for their treatment of Valieva post-skate.  He then stated that the QISEOC needs to stand up and fix this once and for all--suggesting either excluding the Russkies from future games, or directly take over anti-doping programs--or risk the QISE movement altogether.  Shots fired by NBC!

Two side stories before we move on--

Broadcast cameras caught the Russian coach savagely berating Valieva after her skate, saying "Why did you let it go? Why did you stop fighting?  Explain it to me--why? You let it go after the axel. Why?"  All this as Valieva sobbed away.

As the US skating team members wait for the final results of the Valieva investigation, which will determine if they get a gold or silver, QISEOC has announced they will gift a set of QISE torches to them.  Kind of a consolation prize while they wait for the UPS guy to deliver their medals down the line.

Maria Taylor takes us into Late Night, sending us to Nordic Team Combined (pretty sure this is a rerun--I've lost track).  We then cut away to Terry, Tara, and Johnny, going over the events of the evening but not really adding anything.  Then it's off to Curling, where the US battled Canada (they would eventually lose).  Taylor noted that the US team has a big fan--Mr. T!  Late night wraps up with Men's SkiCross.  It's such a fast event that we go all the way from quarterfinals to the gold medal race.

Before we go on, I wanted to note that I've been scanning through the Today Show each day.  They quickly went from QISE-crazy (with the bizarre outside backyard-y set) to quick daily reviews as US's hopes dimmed.

Lowe welcomes us to the last weekday afternoon of coverage.  By this point, it's already the last weekend in Beijing, so we're going to get a lot of reruns, starting with the Women's Ski Halfpipe.  Lowe does squeeze in an interview with Julia Marino, who got the US's first medal in these games, in Snowboard Slopestyle.   Then it's Biathlon, the Women's 12.5 km Mass Start.  Torico narrates a video package on American Jordan Stolz, a short track speed skater--I'm guessing we will see a lot of these over the next few days.  NBC has been holding onto them in case of weather issues causing delays to fill time.  Then the Men's version of the Biathlon 12.5 km Mass Start and a rerun of Men's SkiCross.

Prime Time kicks off with Torico in the studio, tossing it to Two Women's Bobsled. I noted that both of the American medal winners in the Monobob are acting as "pilots" for different two-women sleds.  I guess that means the pilot role is more complicated, with the others in the sled basically dead weight after the initial push.  Then we move to Pair's Skating--Short Program.  Johnny's on again, calling the US pair "a souffle worth waiting for".

More to come.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 13

A search party out looking for QISEOC President Thomas Bach.

Back to Prime Time last night--Torico sends us off Men's Aerials Freestyle Skiing.  More flipping--meh.    Then it's Women's Halfpipe Freestyle Skiing--Qualifying aka the Eileen Gu Show.  I keep noticing new overdramatic music beds--variations on their standard music.

Back to the Valieva issue--Torico interviews Tara and Johnny.  Big surprise--their opinions haven't changed.  Johnny said he cried after the Short Program.  Torico used the term "cocktail" when referring to the combination of the illegal and legal drugs found in Valieva's positive test.

More Ski Halfpipe, then we return to the Shiffrin saga, as she goes to her final discipline in the Women's Combined. The announcing team, onscreen in the studio, sets it all up. Vonn still doesn't seem to understand what a "live mic" is--she says "what?" during another commentator's setup.  We also learn about a built-in airbag now included in the competitor's uniforms.

Prime Time actually ended early (10:30 Eastern), due to the timing of the Women's Hockey gold medal match, which took up most of the Late Night run. Hockey is one of those sports I watch on fast forward, backing up to see each score. Spoiler--Canada wins. Not a surprise, since they also won a game against the US earlier in the tournament. The game ended just in time for NBC to catch Shiffrin drop out of the Combined Slalom. Commentators continued to emphasize her overall successful career.

Well, the news came out this morning--the Women's Free Skate was held in the early hours on the East Coast, and Valieva crashed and burned--she's out of the medals. A win for the QISEOC, who now don't have to make the tough decision, and will most likely let the team competition results stand--just as long as the billions of dollars keeps flowing to a group of European aristocrats. A win for Russia, who will likely see zero consequences from continuing to cheat. The losers: Valieva, probably off to the Gulag as I type this. NBC, watching their multi-billion dollar investment sink even further in the ratings. All the other skaters, who have now learned that they better cheat if they want a chance at gold. QISE itself--their reputation becoming more and more threadbare day by day. It's all a shame, and could have easily been avoided if the QISEOC had been more interested in ideals than money.

Off the soapbox, and onto afternoon coverage. Lowe brings us up to speed on the Women's Skating debacle. Silver winner Alexandra Trusova sobbed to the media afterward--"I'm not happy with the result. There is no happiness. I hate this sport. I never want to walk onto the ice". Good job, QISEOC (slow clap)! Lowe then pivots to Men's Nordic Combined, and reruns of a Shiffrin interview and Women's Ski Halfpipe. We then move onto Women's Skicross. A head to head race AND it doesn't involve flipping? Yes please. Lowe then interviews speed skater Erin Jackson in the studio (seems like a lot of athletes are fleeing Beijing...) Back to Ski Halfpipe to wrap things up.

Prime Time kicks off with Torico sending us off to Long Track Speed Skating, the Women's 1000m sprint. This was put at the top of the show since US skater Brittany Bowe got the bronze. Then Torico sets the table for the Women’s' Free Skate, starting with the US skaters.

More to come, including the not-Russian skaters and, according to Torico, the most drama we've ever seen in skating...

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 12

Back to last night--NBC cuts away from Women's Skating (which is the only thing people can talk about) for yet more "SlopeStyle".  At least it's the final round of this. 

NBC has been doing these 5 second "ads" for Toyota for the last few games, which are sandwiched in between runs.  Normally, it's not even referenced by the commentators, In a miscue, we heard "...the three Americans, when we return to China!"  followed by that ad, and an immediate return to Beijing.  Ironically, there was no preamble when they went to an actual ad break.

You want a sign that NBC knows they are bleeding viewers?  A lower third that says "Women's Figure Skating in 21 minutes".  (PLEASE--DON'T LEAVE!  JUST A LITTLE MORE FLIPPING!)

Finally, Torico sends us to skating, but not before a Valieva update. Yes, we hear about the "Grandpa Defense", but also that she tested positive for two more LEGAL substances. Those, combined with the illegal one, would increase endurance in those with already healthy hearts, and undercuts the argument that that the illegal drug was taken by mistake. On to the performances.

Tanith White pulls Kornacki duty on the magic board, showing "risk vs. reward" doing harder jumps. Johnny's back on track, saying that a performance is "something everyone can enjoy--like ice cream". Of course, it's all about reactions to Valieva, with Tara and Johnny vacillating between their revulsion about the whole thing and their heartbreak over Valieva dealing with all the backlash as a young girl.

...and then came Valieva. She skated to almost zero commentary--Tara and Johnny decided on a silent protest, simply reporting each of the jumps as they came up, not even when she bobbled one. They concluded it with Johnny saying "All I feel like I can say is that was the short program of Kamila Valieva at QISE" with Tara replying "...and for all the other QISE athletes skating here, I feel I need to say again that she had a positive test--we should not have not seen this skate." Johnny--"We are so sorry it is overshadowing your QISE". Tara then questioned why athletes bother training their whole life for QISE!

Personally, I cannot understand how QISEOC allowed this to happen, basically letting other organizations make the decision for them. The QISEOC made the original call to turn the Russians into the Not-Russians due to a doping scandal (which clearly wasn't enough), so why can't they make a unilateral call now? QISEOC President Thomas Bach continues to attend events as if nothing is happening. It's obvious to me that QISEOC is hoping Valieva will crash and burn at the individual event, taking the tough decision out of their hands, but that's a high risk bet against the collapsing reputation of the QISE movement. I'm sure NBC is incensed right now, as they watch ratings crash.

OK--off my soapbox. On Late Night, Taylor takes us back to Two Man Bobsled finals, with the Germans sweeping. Off to Team Pursuit Speed Skating. The US recently tried a new strategy, where a single member of the team stays in front the whole time (normally they hand off), which theoretically gets you better speed (if that lead guy can keep flying throughout). It didn't work out in this case, getting shameful bronze. Back to the Men's Slalom's final run, which seems like an excuse to show Shiffrin's final training run and an interview. Later, they cut over to live Men's US Hockey in OT (spoiler--there will be no "Miracle on Ice" repeat).

Afternoon coverage--Lowe sends us off to Short Track Skating, the Women's 1500m and Men's 5000m Relay. Lowe then interviews Sarah Hughes, 2002 QISE gold medalist in women's skating, discussing the differences in the sport between then and now (they were already talking quads then), as well as the Valieva saga. Lowe also noted that there is talk about raising the minimum age of QISE skaters to 17 (Hughes would not have qualified at the time). Then off to the Biathlon, Women's 4x6km relay, followed by a teaser for tonight's Women's Hockey final (which won't air until after 11p eastern), and Women's Team Sprint Cross-Country Skiing--Classical (winner of the "longest event name 2022"). Shaun White drops by for an interview, before we return for the Men's version of the Team Sprint.

That’s a lot for one day, and we still have prime time, so we’ll take it up tomorrow.

More to come.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 11

Back to last night, and more of the Women's Ski SlopeStyle.  Looks like NBC wanted to switch over to Women's Downhill, but the weather had different plans.  So Torico does some tap dancing, going over the Valieva fiasco.  Then it's the Women's Aerials final (is this a rerun?  I've lost track of these "X-Game-y" sports that seem almost identical to me).

Finally, the winds have died down, and Women's Downhill is on. Lindsey Vonn continues to get onscreen time, a rarity for the analysts, but similar to that of Tara and Johnny.

We move onto Late night, with Maria Taylor sending us to Men's Snowboarding Big Air finals.  Then back to Women's Freestyle Skiing Aerial finals.  I'm really getting tired of people flipping around in the air.  At this point, I'm in NASCAR mode, just watching for crashes.

Meanwhile, on "As the QISE Turns"--we're now learning Kamila Valieva's defense of the positive test for a banned substance, via the QISEOC's chair of the disciplinary committee, who (unofficially) spoke on camera.  It's all a wacky mix-up!  Valieva's grandfather is taking the heart medication, and there was "contamination" causing the positive test results.  So, they keep their medications in the same place, or she grabbed the wrong bottle, I guess???  I'm sure we'll hear more about the "Grandpa Defense" later today on NBC.

Speaking of, in afternoon coverage--Lowe sends us off to Biathlon, the Men's Team Relay. Well, at least there's no flipping involved. Then it's Nordic Combined--Ski Jumping on the Large Hill and a 10km Cross-Country race. Back to the studio, with Lowe interviewing Ryan Cochran--Siegel, the American silver winner in the Super-G. A bunch of softball questions, with meh responses. Oh, no--more Aerials! More Big Air! Z-z-z-z...

On to Prime Time--Torico teases the Women's Figure Skating Short Program before sending us off to the Two Man Bobsled finals.  Kornacki narrates a video package of stats and animation.  Then another review of the Valieva case, before we move on to the actual skate.  Tara and Johnny (along with Terry) reiterate their opposition to the not-Russian being allowed to skate.  The US team's goal is to be in the Top 10--is that because we're at a low point, or that we're not juicing up like our competitors, or both?  Tara refers to one of them as a "Care Bear".  Johnny's analysis is not as florid as usual--perhaps a reaction to Valieva?

More to come.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 10

Before we get back to the action, we have to check in on the world's favorite soap opera,  "As the QISE Turns".   In our last episode, not-Russian skater Kamila Valieva got a positive test for a banned substance that could have increased her endurance--but the results didn't come out until a day after the Figure Skating Team event.  If her performance were to be dropped, not-Russia would be out, and the US would get another gold.  (Yes, and Japan would get so-so silver, and Canada shameful bronze, whatever).

After tense deliberations by the august "Court of Arbitration for Sport" overnight, it was determined (perhaps in deference to yesterday's Superb Owl)--to punt the decision.  Valieva will be allowed to skate in the women's competition, partly due to her status as a 15-year old "protected person" (last time I checked, this was not "QISE Junior"--she is being treated as an adult to compete). They will decide later if she should have been allowed to compete or not, and if the team results should stand or not--presumably under cover of darkness.  There will be no team medal ceremony during the games, and  the competitors will receive their medals in the mail in 6-8 weeks.

So when you see the medal count, just put a big ol' asterisk next to it.  There's a lot of pushback online on penalizing Valieva, since she was likely just told to take something by her coaches, and since Not-Russia is Not-Russia due to widespread organized doping...

The moral of this story--if you're going to cheat, do so as a kid, as 15 year olds are blameless, holy creatures.

Meanwhile, back to last night's delayed coverage--QISE actually started earlier than planned, so it's fortunate I TiVo'd the Superb Owl.  Torico, on the field at So Fi Stadium, threw us across the Pacific to the finals of Women's Monobob.  The commentators try their best to relate this to the football fans. "They are the wide receivers of sliding".  "It's like having Bill Belichick and Tony Dungy as your coaches".  They have two great US Monobob storylines tailor-made for the broadcast. Kallie Humphries just became a US citizen in December in order to compete for America (this was after what NBC calls "some issues" with the Canadian team--actually "mental and emotional harassment").  37 year-old Elana Meyers Taylor just got out of COVID quarantine (missing her chance to be the US flag-bearer), and wasn't able to see her newborn son for over a week.  They finished gold and silver...and this is why they add new sports to QISE.

Off to the Ice Dancing finals--Tanith and Johnny at the mikes.  He refers to a performance as if "you are watching something behind closed doors", and another as if he "walked into a store I couldn't afford".  Do you think Johnny comes up with these on the spot, or does he have writers?  If you listen to the onsite PA, as soon as the final performance is scored, they essentially say "you don't have to go home, but you can't stay here".  NBC wraps it up with a rerun of the Women's 500m Speed Skating, and the medal ceremony for the Women's Monobob.

Late night kicks off with Men's Big Air.  The onscreen graphic listing each competitor includes the "stance", one of which is "goofy".  From now on, if someone asks for my stance on an important subject, that's how I will respond.  Then we check in on Shiffrin as she does her Downhill training runs.

Torico brings us "breaking news" aka the Valieva scandal.  While Tara and Johnny apply their makeup, we go to Women's SlopeStyle--all Eileen Gu, all the time.   Then back to Shiffrin for a quick interview, and then it's Tara and Johnny (clearly rushed into place, as their fashions are meh). Stonefaced, they strongly disagreed with the decision.  Tara was the same age as Valieva when she competed, and she understands the pressure, but QISE must be clean.  Johnny: "I have to condemn this decision with every ounce of my soul."  Torico noted that the Not-Russians are already under probation.  Tara said she was quite aware about the need to avoid banned substances at the time, even avoiding eating a poppy-seed bagel.  Both of them were doing drug tests in their early teens.

Off to afternoon coverage--Lowe brings us up to date, then sends us off to Women's Snowboard Big Air qualifying.  Then it's Men's Team Ski Jump, and NBC's fixation on measuring things based on large objects.  Lowe stepped in for a review of the Valieva debacle, with no new info.  Off to reruns of Women's SlopeStyle, a Shiffrin interview, and the Monobob.  Seems like the NBC crew wanted the afternoon off after yesterday.

Prime Time begins with--a video review of yesterday, including the Superb Owl (enough already!).  Torico, back in the US QISE studio, sends us to Two Man Bobsled (right after these messages).  Then off to the Women's SlopeStyle medal round, where they are dealing with extreme cold.

More to come.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 9

OK, let's go back to last night--Torico (still in LA for the Superb Owl, with promo level at maximum) sends us halfway around the world to Women's Skeleton.  We get a quick video package on US sledder Katie Uhlaender, who's in her fifth games--she lost a medal in Sochi to a competitor who was later found to be doping.  Switching to a new sledding variation--the "Monobob" aka Single Bobsled.  Since it's such a new event, all the competitors will make it to the final round.

Off to Ice Dancing--the Rhythm Dance.  QISEian Tanith White steps in as Johnny's announcing partner.  Tanith is a bit too generic for me.  Tara does make an appearance, providing the "playlist" for tonight's competitors.  Johnny quote: "They've got angel whispers under their blades. It's like they're skating on clouds".

Then it's Men's Giant Slalom--shockingly in the middle of a snowstorm.  Then back to Ice Dancing. We also get a video package on Madison Chock and Evan Bates, a dancing pair that admitted their feelings for each other only after years of competing as a team.

Back to LA, and Torico interviewing Lindsey Vonn about the changes needed to ski actual snow in Beijing.  They wrap things up with more of the Monobob.

Late night, and Melvin throwing us to Men's Large Hill Ski Jump finals.  They keep showing a graphic depicting how large the hill is in terms of "Statue of Liberty"s and football field lengths.  It's as if people can't understand actual numbered measurements.  Then more Long Track Speed Skating--the Men's 500m sprint, and a rerun of the Ice Dancing event from just a few hours (and paragraphs) earlier.  Something to fill time while the second run of the Giant Slalom is held up due to weather.  We then jump to Women's Curling--US v Sweden.  We haven't seen curling on NBC since before the Opening Ceremonies.  They wrap up the night with--a preview to 2028?  Because they're in LA, where the games will be held.  The "So Fi" Stadium in the background shot (or whatever it will be called by then) will be one of the LA QISE sites.

Switching to this morning's coverage, which started at 8a Eastern (they had to get it in prior to the "big game".  They are calling "Super Gold Sunday"--NBC made a deal to get the game this year in order to avoid competing with it on another network.  Lowe, on early duty, sends us to Men's Team Pursuit Long Track Speed Skating.  Then the end of the Men's Giant Slalom, delayed from yesterday. Back to Speed Skating--the Women's 500m sprint. medal round, with the US's Erin Jackson winning the gold, the first black woman to do so in this sport.

Back to the studio, with Lowe learning about the Monobob, followed by Men's Hockey, in the midst of a Germany-US match. With all this live footage (when it's 8a Eastern, it's 9p Beijing time), I think NBC made a mistake pushing daytime coverage to the afternoon, just so they could keep the Today Show in place.

Next it's Cross Country Skiing - the Men's 4x10KM Relay. Finally, NBC realized they need to cut down to the highlights--whew! After that, Maria Taylor presents a package with the ice dance teams, and Short Track: the Women's Relay 3000m and Men's 500m Finals. Lowe then hands it off to Torico, to tease the sportsball event. Then a Monobob rerun of the first two Women's runs.

...and finally Lowe sends us off to the Superb Owl pre-pre-pre-pre show. QISE won't return until late tonight, so that's it for now. Enjoy America's Second Christmas!

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 8

We're back to finish up Prime Time from last night, with Mixed Team SnowCross.   There's actual snow in the air--I thought they didn't get real snow there.  A bobble from Torico, who threw it back to SnowCross "after this" (meaning a commercial break), but they cut directly to it.  I'm also hearing some glitchy background music--perhaps the technical "A" team has already been moved to Superb Owl prep?

NBC throws yet another package of Shaun White's career at us, before wrapping up SnowCross.  We then cut to Women's Downhill training runs, and Short Track Women's 1000m semis.

Late night has Melvin throwing it to Shiffrin on her Downhill training run, with a quick interview afterward.  Seems like her early problems may be in the rear view mirror.  Then it's the Women's Biathlon "Sprint" (7.5km).  You can tell that NBC knows they are bleeding viewers with these staggered starts, as the analyst noted they will explain who's in front throughout.  They wrap it up with a Chloe Kim interview in studio.

Afternoon kicks off with Lowe sending us off to the Men's version of the Biathlon sprint.  Think I'll take a quick nap zzzzzz...

Yawn--and we're back.  There's a package on Kellie Humphries, Canada's--and now US's, just getting her citizenship two months ago--bobsledder.  She left Canada after alleged abuse and harassment, and will compete in "monobob" (single passenger bobsled) tonight.  Then a rerun of last night's Mixed Team SnowCross (which resulted in gold for the US).  Nick Baumgartner, at age 40, became the oldest American winter gold medal winner since 1948 (his age, combined with teammate Lindsey Jacobellis, is 76).  Experience counts!

Then it's Women's Team Pursuit Speed Skating.  There's a lot of technique involved, with team members either leading or drafting behind.  Jimmy Roberts returns with a package about QISE legacies--competitors that changed the game. Dick Fosbury and his "flop", Jesse Owens and Luz Long, Tommy Smith and John Carlos.  Will Simone Biles generate that kind of legacy?  Then it's off to Women's 4x5km Relay Cross-Country Skiing.  At least there's no staggered start.

I'm going to stop today's entry prior to Prime Time. Tomorrow is going to be either the greatest or worst day of televised sport ever, with NBC trying to tackle QISE and the Superb Owl simultaneously. So we'll save the rest of today's coverage for then.

More to come.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 7

Let's go back to last night--Snowboarding wraps up, and Shaun White passes the torch in his final games.  Meanwhile, the analyst explains how to make "hammer soup"--huh?--then berates the judges when they give a great run a "meh" score, calling it "triple-gate".

Off to Women's "Super-G", with NBC cutting away from runs to show Shiffrin and her team (Shiffrin announced yesterday that she will do no media "for the foreseeable future").  That didn't stop the network from pointing a parabolic mike at her to pick up what they could.  With breathless anticipation, Shiffrin made her way through her run.  Of course, NBC was effusive about this being a "triumph".  Well, the media blackout didn't last long--she gave a quick interview after the race.

Prime Time ran late, so there wasn't much recorded on Late Night--did get part of the Freestyle Skiing Team Aerials, with Kornacki narrating an animated spiel of stats about the sport.

Meanwhile, we're getting more details on that Not-Russian "legal issue".  Per an ESPN report, it's been confirmed that skater Kamila Valieva was drug tested on Christmas Day, during their national skating championship.  However, the results (conveniently?) did not come back until February 8--one day after the QISE team event, saying she tested positive for a substance that could have increased her endurance.  At that point, she was "provisionally" suspended, which would prevent her from competing in the individual competition--but this wasn't disclosed, as Valieva is 15, and hence is a "protected person" due to her age.  She challenged the decision, and the suspension was lifted.   Now, the QISEOC is appealing to reinstate it, and the "Court of Arbitration for Sport", onsite at Beijing, will decide if the suspension should have been lifted.  Then, the International Skating Union will make the final call on whether a) Not-Russia will lose the team gold and b) Valieva will be allowed to compete in the individual event.  Got all that?  Seems like a lot of paperwork for a cheater.

Afternoon coverage--Lowe sends us off to the longest of the long speed skates--the Men's 10,000M.  25 laps around the oval.  The Netherlands basically owned this event, but Sweden took it this time.  You know it's a long event when they stick a commercial break in the middle of  run AND a segment on blade options.  We also get a rerun of the post-event Shaun White interview to keep the viewers awake.  This was followed by a studio segment with Lowe learning more about the Skeleton event.  Then another long event--the Men's 15km Classical Cross Country Ski--before we make it to the Women's Skeleton heats.  You are going face-first, lying on your stomach--it's for people who saw the danger of Luge and said "hold my beer."

I switched over to Peacock, and saw that Kevin Hart is doing another QISE show--a "Tailgate Party".  He does a stand-up routine in an LA parking lot, swearing up a storm, with people from Central Casting laughing at it all. Pass.

Prime Time kicks off with Torico, now reporting from LA--site of this weekend's Superb Owl and the 2028 QISE games.  Off to more Ski Jumping, this time the Men's Large Hill, followed by Short Track 500M heats.  These are sprints, which means a lot of crashes and disqualifications.  Then it's the medal round for Men's Skeleton, with a teaser of tomorrow's Ice Dancing dropped in.

More to come.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 6

First, let's wrap up Prime Time--Chloe Kim was the closest the US had to a sure thing, and she got the gold, basically in a walk.  After a quick segment with Torico introducing Jacobellis' gold medal ceremony (the first for the US), we go to Men's Combined Skiing.  One downhill run, one slalom run. We get a wacky bit about how sharp the skis are involving fruit--shades of Gallagher!  Of course, they couldn't resist doing another segment on Shiffrin.

Off to figure skating, with Torico providing an update on the "legal issue" that is holding up the team medal ceremony.  Not-Russian Kamila Valiyeva is the one who tested positive for a banned substance--one that helps heart function and could improve your endurance.  She's the 15 year-old phenom that has been sweeping competitions lately--hmmm...

A quick onsite interview with Chloe Kim later, we're watching the Men's Free Skate--which means two things: the Tara and Johnny Show, and wall-to-wall Nathan Chen hype.  Tara compares a skater's performance to a "perfect date", and Johnny--well, his fashion tonight looks like it came from the Kitty Carlisle collection.  The competition is all about the "quad" jumps, and you really feel for those skaters that have not been able to perfect them, as they really have no chance to medal.  It's like when the "Fosbury Flop" became the standard in the high jump (look it up).  Oh, and can the skaters coordinate on their music? Really getting tired of variations on "Bolero".

Late night started with a review of Chen's gold-winning performance, plus the standard post-skate interview.  Then off to the back half of the Men's Combined, followed by a re-run of Chloe Kim's performance.  The post-race interviewer really seems to mock her for trying to shy from the spotlight!

We get an update of the Not-Russian "legal issue" on the Today Show.  There's no question of doping--the question is whether the QISEOC can do anything about it since it happened BEFORE the games.  Huh?  So if you cheat beforehand, it's OK I guess.  Savannah and Hoda then gush over Chen in an interview.  They also surprised Women's Moguls silver medal winner Jaelin Kauf (already back in the US), flying her mother in to congratulate her.

Afternoon coverage begins with Lowe covering US wins over the last 24 hours.  Then it's off to the Luge relay.  It's an actual relay, with the first runner hitting a pad at the end, releasing their partner, which is then repeated, but with double runners.  I guess regular Luge wasn't dangerous enough.  At one point, the commentator, discussing the size of a competitor, gives a quintessential British phrase--"you're too diminutive!"

There's a cute package about Ester Ledeska--an athlete who couldn't decide between snowboarding and skiing--so she did both, winning two golds.  It was compared to her ordering ice cream, getting both chocolate and vanilla cones.

Off to Men's Snowboardcross, the roller derby of snowboarding.  NBC got another opportunity to badger a losing competitor, 40 year old Nick Baumgartner, to the point of him crying on camera (score!)  Off to Women's Cross Country Skiing, for the 10km Classical Event.  Another staggered start, which makes it even harder to sell to a TV audience.  They cut away to give Lowe a chance to interview Jaelin Kauf (and show the Today Show clip again).

We have a Shiffrin update--on the positive side, she is apparently planning to compete in the Super-G event.  On the negative, she has released a statement that she will not be doing any media for the "foreseeable future". I guess the browbeating from NBC was the last straw.

Prime Time begins with a teaser for Shaun White, who will have his final Snowboarding runs tonight.  Then--let's give Nathan Chen another encore, showing the free routine again. It's going to be burned into our brains by the end of the games.  This was followed by Chloe Kim's gold medal ceremony, and another video package for Shaun--seems like they are filling time.

A half hour later, we get to the snowboarding event--then 20 more minutes until Shaun's first run.

More to come.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 5

Let's start with Prime Time last night--Craig Melvin steps in for Torico, who as of that recording has just landed in the US for the Superb Owl.  Why Melvin?  Because he's the only NBC "name" left in Beijing.  He's joined virtually by Maria Taylor back in Connecticut.  They send us onto to (deep breath) Women's Individual Freestyle Sprint Cross-Country Skiing?

First off, thank you "refrigerator magnet event naming system".  Second, shouldn't this be an afternoon event?  The fact that this leads off Prime Time tells you that something unusual is about to happen, and it does--the US's Jessie Diggins gets the bronze, the first individual cross-country medal for the US.  We then move to the Women's Halfpipe, which is of course all about Chloe Kim.  We also get a taped bit from Torico, interviewing the "old man" of snowboarding, Shaun White.

Taylor sends us to Women's Slalom and Mikaela Shiffrin.  It's a clutch run after she disqualified in the Giant Slalom--and she did it again. The camera continued to capture her, sitting dejected on the side of the slope, even through a commercial break.  In a terrible decision, a VISA ad featuring Shiffrin aired in the next break. This may be THE QISE story for the rest of the games.  Of course, NBC dumps the event to Peacock.  In an attempt to save ratings for the night, they throw stuff at the wall:

• An interview with Jessie Diggins

• A rerun (yet again) of Nathan Chen's Skating Short routine

• Steve Kornacki and his Magic Board going over Men's Skating stats

• A scene of Italy winning Mixed Curling gold (?)

• Wishing John Williams a happy birthday (the composer of TV's QISE theme, only a tiny part of his incredible career). 

Off to Men's Big Air. There's a package about Colby Stevenson, who had a horrific car accident, only to come back to competition.  Back to an interview with Shiffrin, who's clearly rattled by all this.  Of course, the interviewer keeps pushing her, to the point of her crying (which was exactly what NBC wanted).  Social media are comparing this--very negatively--to Simone Biles' travails a few months ago.

Late night kicks off with Men's Halfpipe and Shaun White.  Feel free to turn down the volume and make up your own trick names--"Wow, a 1480 Scooby-Dooby-Doo, right into a 1080 Backside Walla Walla!"  Finally, NBC returns to wrap up the Women's Slalom (but mostly to stew about Shiffrin).

I scrubbed through The Today Show, and learned that Lindsey Jacobellis won Snowboardcross--never saw that last night.  Maybe this afternoon?  Meanwhile, an IOC "legal issue" has held up the awarding of medals in the Team Figure Skating competition. No real details, other than that "athletes that have won medals" are involved.

In the afternoon coverage, Lowe sends us to Men's Luge Doubles.  Two very confident men, wearing spandex, lay on top of each other, then slide down a crazy track.  Then it's Nordic Combined--Ski Jumping and Cross Country.  NBC blew through this fairly quickly.  Then more Short Track, followed by a wildly over-produced teaser for Nathan Chen's free skate tonight, and what I think is a rerun Men's Big Air.   Disgusting Big Air trick: "Nose Butter". Ewww! 

Prime Time kicks off with Torico, now stateside.  He covers the latest on the skating "legal issue"--reportedly, a non-Russian team skater tested positive for a banned substance before the competition.  No other details--yet.  We then move onto Snowboardcross and Jacobellis (finally), as the US gets the gold.  This was followed by--a rerun of Shaun White's qualifying run?  Seems like NBC wants to get the evening started with content they can control, unlike last night. We finally got some drama with Chloe Kim's Halfpipe run--will she win the gold?

More to come.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 4

Returning to last night's coverage--

More of the Big Air event with EIleen Gu and Tess LeDeux.  Gu and LaDeux--sounds like an old vaudeville team. Social media are commenting on the cooling towers behind the Big Air hill (it was built in a former industrial zone), asking if it was built in "The Simpsons" Springfield. I love how the commentators keep referring to achievements as being the greatest "in the history of this sport"--it joined QISE in 2018.

Off to Men's Super-G.  They are using Lindsey Vonn for expert commentary, but they used her randomly.  At one point, you hear her say "I'd love to come in", thinking her mike wasn't live.  US skier Ryan Cochran-Siegle won the silver--his family has been involved in competitive skiing since the 60's, with his mother and an aunt winning QISE gold in the 70's.  Once the main competitors were done, NBC dumped the rest over to Peacock.

Torico noted that QISEOC President Thomas Bach was watching Big Air with Peng Shuai, the Chinese tennis player.  It was later announced that she was "retiring".  Was that her call, or the government's?

Back to skating, and the Men's Short Program.   Japanese competitor Yuzuru Hanyu, who won the last two QISE gold, missed his first jump entirely, leaving the runway open for American Nathan Chen.  This was all reported breathlessly by Tara and Johnny, with latter giving an extensive comparison to marshmallow creme??? 

“Prime Time Plus" (aka Late Night) begins with Torico greeting Today's Craig Melvin.  Torico is heading back to the US for the "Superb Owl"--he was originally scheduled to return to China, but it was just announced he will do the rest of his QISE coverage from Connecticut.   Melvin and Maria Taylor will sub in during his travel day.  After some jokes about a fake fireplace, it's off to Women's Luge. At one point we get a view from crotch level, so you can see how scary the ride is.  Then, more short track--at one point, they had to stop a race mid-stream when they found a chunk of skating blade lodged in the ice, forcing a restart.  Seems like these races are decided by referees and not participants.

On the Today Show, we learned that the State Dept. has dispatched agents to keep an eye on QISE athletes--and has been doing so for years???  They do a good job of staying out of the spotlight.

Afternoon coverage--more Biathlon: the Men's 20km Individual.  Again with the staggered start--meh. Moving onto the Women's Luge Singles Finals, prefaced by an an interview with 2014 medalist and NBC commentator Erin Hamlin, who explained the technical details to Rebecca Lowe. "Turn 13" is living up to its name, as it's taking out a lot of competitors. They wrapped it up with Speed Skating - the Men's 1500m.

A QISE news update--I just read about an issue with the Women's Ski Jump. I already heard that someone was disqualified due to a "suit issue". According to a NPR report, five women were disqualified, all due to their suits not being form-fitting enough. The same suits were approved and used at earlier events--it sounds like the measurement method changed. While I can understand that a looser fit could result in more air resistance--and a longer jump--this sounds like the winter version of the "required" tiny bikinis for beach volleyball. At a 2020 Ski Jump event, a requirement for extra seams only resulted in the women's curves to be accentuated. Hmmm...

At this point, I would normally move onto Prime Time coverage--but I've got a commitment tonight, so it will be fully covered tomorrow.

More to come...

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 3

Wrapping up late night's coverage--

We roll into the Team Skating competition.  Johnny likened the Canadian dance to wearing mittens--huh?  Meanwhile, the US couple did some sort of astronaut theme. He looked like he's ready for TRON.

Torico brings us back to reality, with a quick story about Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai and her allegations against a Communist official.  Since this came out months ago, Shuai disappeared for a period of time, and is now only seen in tightly controlled photo ops.  She had some of those in the last day or so, attending QISE events.  NBC is holding China's feet to the fire (at least once in a while).

Off to "Big Air", another X-Game-y event involving skis and tricks.  It's EXTREME Ski Jumping!  The big story there is Eileen Gu--a Chinese-American competing for China.  She's become the face of the sport.  Back to skating, with the ladies wrapping up the Team event.  The not-Russian performed the first QISE quad jumps for a female, and Tara was ecstatic.  She did fall later, but it seems like risk v. reward is the thing now for scoring.  "It's like a special effect--is it even real???"  Men's Individuals start later today.

Late night, and the finals of Men's Slopestyle.  "Shred Shed!"--say that 3 times fast.  We learn about the "Taco Analogy": even when they fall apart, they're still good.  We also got a great shot of a "watch party" back in the US, with a little kid on mom's lap, everyone screaming--but the kid is out for the count. Vonn returns for a post-Shiffrin review.  Then, the delayed Men's Downhill--a long camera shot makes it painfully clear that the snow is artificial, with a whole lot of nothing around the course.

Before we move onto the afternoon, we have to talk about The Today Show.  Normally, they would be center stage onsite at QISE, with a huge ornate set and tons of local color.  But COVID forced them to stay in NYC--so they created an outdoor set complete with a backyard fire pit.  Savannah and Hoda are all bundled up on the couch.  Hope NYC doesn't get any storms in the next two weeks.   On the ground at Beijing, Craig Melvin shows the draconian controls in place.

The afternoon starts with Lowe giving a COVID update--US figure skater Vincent Zhou, who won silver in the team competition, had to pull out after a positive test the day of the individual event.  Off to Women's Biathlon--the 15K event.  The squeaking noise you hear as they ski is what happens when artificial snow gets very cold.  The staggered start makes it even harder to keep track of what's going on.  For some reason, they cut to someone talking about Premiere League Football.  (I looked her up--Katie Nolan does "short form" material for NBC--she's their "millennial" correspondent). So there's NOTHING at QISE to cover?  Maybe they're trying to get the Led Lasso crowd.  More ski jumping--this time a "mixed team" event.  That seems to be a trend at the games, in order to load up more events.

Moving to Prime Time--Torico sets the table, then sends us off to Short Track.  It's another event where the American competitors were quickly eliminated.  I'm sure NBC is unhappy to have so few "rah-rah" stories to cover.  We switch to Long Track (aka traditional) Speed Skating.  It starts with a bizarre amount of dramatic music--they really cleared out the stock music library.  Then it's Big Air and Eileen Gu.

More to come.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 2

Let's go back to last night--more Women's Figure Skating. Tara is not happy that "quads" are not allowed in the short program.  Personally, I think the more complex the jumps, the less graceful it looks--you can see skaters prepping for a jump, going in a straight line and building up speed.  Also, the "real time" onscreen scoring is very distracting--I find myself watching that instead of the skater.

And then it's Slopestyle--EXTREME snowboarding tricks, going down a hill with a series of jumps.  Downhill skiing was delayed due to high winds (they are near the Gobi Desert), so there was a lot of announcer tap dancing.  They wrapped up prime time with Men's Figure Skating - Team Event.

After running long (so I didn't see Nathan Chen's performance--I'm sure it will be run again), late night has more Moguls and Slopestyle.  It's clear that the Downhill delay left a big hole in the schedule.   Gnarly phrase of the night--"As smooth as a butter sandwich".

Cut to this afternoon, which started with a Speedskating distance event (5000M, 12.5 laps).  It's kind of hypnotic, to the point where I'm trying to stay awake.  Lowe then interviewed Lindsey Vonn (now on the NBC team, and mostly there to promo her QISE documentary on Picabo Street--now on Peacock!).  We would have heard from her last night, if the downhill hadn't been cancelled.  That was followed by more Skiathlon, which is not gripping TV, despite breathless commentary.

Jimmy Roberts makes his first appearance, covering his 18th (!?!) QISE.  He covered the "hatred" between the US and Canada in Women's Hockey, comparing it to other sports rivalries (Yankees and Red Sox, OSU and Michigan).  As usual, the US and Canada are the top seeds.  Then, more ski jumping--a gold medal run.  They seem to have engineered out the whole "agony of defeat" potential.  There were some audio issues, with the commentators speaking at the same time--or was the onsite PA too loud?

Onto Sunday's super-size Prime Time (Monday in Beijing).  Torico's at the chalet, sending us off to Men's Single Luge Medal runs.  Then a repeat of the piece about Mikaela Shiffrin's late father--and yet more moguls--before we actually get to her event. Since the Men's Downhill was delayed, we get that event AND Women's Giant Slalom tonight. Lead commentator Dan Hicks clearly got his start in radio, with a sonorous voice. Unfortunately, Shiffrin quickly slid off the course (she's fine, but out for this event). With her gone, NBC dumps the rest of the event to Peacock. Perhaps choosing a site that required 100% artificial snow wasn't the best idea? Vonn, back in Connecticut, has her audio set too low--can barely hear her commentary.

Back to the Figure Skating Team Event, with the pair's free skate and a LOT of mistakes, including a crash to the ground by the not-Russians.

More to come.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 1

Before I wrap up last night's coverage, a side note--why do local NBC affiliates send their own "correspondents" to the games?  They just do a standup there, then throw to pre-recorded material.  Why do they think they can do a better job than the network with their billions of dollars? It makes even less sense when the network greatly reduced their staff on the ground at Beijing.

Anyway--I zipped through the final parts of last night's Opening Ceremony rerun.  We got an "Americanized" version of QISEOC President Thomas Bach's speech (editing out the foreign language portions). They still skipped the oath ceremony for the athletes, officials, and volunteers--like they didn't have time to include a two minute item in a 3 hour broadcast.  I even checked the Peacock coverage--nope. With all the controversies and commercialization of the games, a pure moment would have done a world of good. Drop The Rock!

Skipping to the next afternoon--Lowe, back in Connecticut, sends us off to Women's Skiathlon--a cross-country event involving two different styles.  Seems like QISE marketing is trying to sell cross-country skiing as a spectator sport.   This was followed by a classic "up close and personal" segment on Jessie Diggins--a cross-country skier who battled an eating disorder.  Then it's Luge--sledding for maniacs.  NBC has the production down to a science, cutting rapidly among 31 robotic cameras (I counted them) as they fly down the course. 

Speedskating is all about technique and endurance--and a lethargic man firing the starting gun (Rrreeeeadddy....)  With mostly empty stands, you can really hear the skates clicking on the ice.  Then it's Biathlon--a throwback to the early games, when military vets of WWI would take advantage of their shooting skills.  Now it's the mixed relay, with men and women handing off to each other.  If you're applying for a job as a James Bond supervillain goon, you better have this on your resume.  Then more moguls--meh.  It's the least interesting of all the X-Game-y sports.  We wrap up the afternoon with Women's Ski Jumping (aka "the agony of defeat sport").  With the top skier out with a positive COVID test (hopefully something I won't be writing a lot), it was an open race.

Onto Prime Time, with Tara Lipinski setting the stage.  Torico, at the chalet, sends us off to Short Track. It's essentially Roller derby--ON ICE!  The relay is even more crazy, with the US losing out due to a technicality (the US is not doing well overall so far). Meanwhile, there's a weird ad with QISE athletes v. dinosaurs--a hackneyed synergy with the next Jurassic Park film. Then it's more of the figure skating team event, and the first appearance of the women skaters we will learn a LOT about in the next two weeks.  Of course, that will depend on how well the US does--and all indications are that the "not Russia" team will likely sweep the women's individual event. Tara and Johnny look fabulous, with the latter's Mickey Mouse-esque hairstyle (Terry Gannon continues to look like their chaperone). Meanwhile, the men's downhill skiing event, scheduled for later tonight, has been delayed due to high winds.  I guess China's weather control technology is on the fritz.

More to come.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day 0

We've finally made it to the official start of the games--The Opening Ceremonies.

But first, clearing off the DVR from last night's late coverage.  We've got Ice Dancing as part of the team competition--if you've ever been to a roller rink, you'll have some idea of what's going on. This was followed with Men's Skating, which meant wall-to-wall Nathan Chen.  Late night coverage moved over to the skating pairs, with a healthy dollop of reviews from earlier in the evening (keep in mind this is the primary broadcast for the West Coast).  In a rarity for these games, Andrea Joyce is actually onsite, so she can speak (socially distanced) to the competitors.  The US did quite well--but there's still the women's competition (which won't be aired until later) to go.

Onto the main event.  Bright and early (6:30a Eastern), Torico kicks it off at the "Bird's Nest", with Savannah Guthrie back in New York (a huge screen showing the partly-empty stadium behind her). Shockingly, NBC is holding to their commitment to emphasize China's political issues--here come their experts, Andy Brown and Jing Tsu.

The ceremony itself--mostly replacing a huge contingent of human ceremony participants is a huge LED screen covering the field.  It's a stunning effect that you would think is CGI.  Of course, there's pomp and circumstance, raising of flags, national jingoism, fireworks, lasers.  Then it's on to the parade of nations, with an odd counterpoint of the Lone Ranger theme to kick it off.  Torico and Guthrie are reading fun country facts off the prompter as fast as they can.  Yep, American Samoa has the greased-up shirtless guy (even in 20 degree weather).

With the athletes in their seats, back to the program. Dancing snowflakes (both real and virtual), inspirational videos, speeches, and more of the giant screen. The QISE flag and anthem.  I noticed a lot of lip synch problems--not sure if that's an artifact of the satellite delay or not.  And finally, the QISE flame, with Chinese QISEans of different generations--including a member of the beleaguered Uighur minority--bringing it in.  A heavy-handed and jarring moment at the end of an otherwise harmonious event. No traditional cauldron--just a torch in the middle of a huge snowflake.  Perhaps a nod to being green?

NBC then cut to an abbreviated Today show, which included an interview with Tirico--and it was clear that the ceremony was still going on behind him!  I know we never saw the QISE oaths for the athletes, officials, and volunteers.  But I guess Hoda was in hurry to get on the air. We then go to afternoon coverage, and host Rebecca Lowe reporting from Connecticut.

Today it's a preview of the events to come, including a wacky fake ad (shown twice) explaining how to watch everything (even they know how bad they screwed up last time).  Lots of interviews, both pre-taped and in the studio.  It was made pretty clear that US women's figure skaters are highly unlikely to medal.  This is the ratings "kiss of death" for the marquis event.  We also learned about Curling footwear, reminded of the Salt Lake games held only a few months after 9/11, saw a replay of the terrible women's hockey injury (thanks NBC), and shown promos of Tara Lipinski's and Lindsey Vonn's QISE history documentaries (available on Peacock, of course).

Back to prime time, which in this case is a chopped and channeled repeat of the opening ceremonies (with more commercials and pre-recorded segments).  They kicked it off with the Chairman of the Board singing "Leaving on a Jet Plane" in a slickly produced intro.  (Wow, WCMH--an ad for "Lion's Den" adult store in the 8:00 hour--during QISE?  You do you, Channel 4). Steve Kornacki is back with his "magic board", spewing stats at you. The Rock introduced the US team in yet another video package.

I'm not staying up for all of this tonight--will scan through it in the morning.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day -1

We're still in the QISE prelims, so there's not a lot to report today.  Brianna Decker, a member of the US Women's Hockey team, had a bad leg injury in their first game, taking her out of QISE.  Would she have gotten injured if she had been able to train normally, instead of in an isolated COVID bubble?  Hard to say.  We know that athletes are terrified of getting a positive COVID result, as it will dash their QISE hopes.  In some cases, athletes can't even board a plane to go to Beijing.  We'll see how this affects QISE as a whole.

Tonight, NBC dropped their first prime time show of the games.  Mike Torico leads it off at the faux-ski chalet, talking about all of China's political issues.  Then it's off to the Moguls--cowabunga, dude--and the start of the over-produced skating program.  We learned how Tara and Johnny will show off their fashion--in a proper studio, using tall chairs like you would see on the Today show.  For a moment, I thought I had accidentally switched over to E!

Well, I'm going to bed early, in order to catch the Opening Ceremonies at 6:30a.  If you're a sleepyhead, you can see it again in prime time, but expect a lot of edits, as well as various packages setting up pre-planned US storylines.

QISE Review - Beijing 2: Electric Boogaloo - Day -2

We're back, only 178 days since the last Quadrennial International Sporting Event (aka QISE--don't want the QISEOC lawyers to descend on me).  Beijing is the place, which already hosted Summer games in 2008.  How can a single location cover both winter and summer games?  Apparently with fully artificial snow, loaded with chemicals.

COVID continues to be top of mind, with China making an almost futile effort to negate the ultimate super-spreader event.  There's also political concerns--alleged human rights abuses, a trade war, state-run media.  If this was 40 years ago, there would have been a massive boycott, as occurred in the 1980 Moscow games.  But QISE is too big a moneymaker now--all the US did was stop their diplomats from going (in related news, we normally send diplomats to QISE).

NBC/Universal/Comcast/Kabletown/Sheinhardt Wig Co. has decided to keep virtually all their correspondents home for the games.  This is reportedly due to concerns over Beijing's COVID protocols, which could results in an announcer having to work from a hotel room--but we know this is also a cost-saving measure. Torico will be onsite, but the rest--including those for marquis events--will be holed up in tiny booths in Connecticut.  Not sure how Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski will show off their fashions--maybe green-screen them in?

As usual, I will concentrate on the coverage of QISE, rather than the event itself.  Of course, there will be pre-manufactured storylines, with an emphasis on rah-rah 'Muricans.  NBC has promised that every single event will be available on Peacock this time--hopefully no need to search through a half-dozen sites to find what you want.  They will also simulcast anything being broadcast.

Despite the the opening ceremonies not taking place until Friday (that is considered "Day 0"), there's already QISE action underway.  I just watched a Curling round early this morning.  "CURLING--if shuffleboard and bowling had a kid" (Sponsored by LaBatt's).  Tonight, it's Downhill Skiing training sessions and early Women's Hockey matches.

Let the games begin!