mr.x

Fingers crossed.

Well done Sochi! Hands down the best Closing Ceremony yet, if not the best.

Nah, the ballet was entirely different... and ballet is totally expected considering this is Russia.

Mr. X is back momentarily after a long absence from here. Overall, it was a spectacular ceremony - nothing we wouldn't expect from Russia and the most expensive Olympic Games ever. But disappointingly it lacked originality, a lot of the concepts or even the narrative were glaringly 'borrowed' from Vancouver. I don't think we've ever seen Ceremonies that practically use the same concepts. 1. The cultural segment that followed the Parade of Nations began with ice breaking, revealing the ocean and a whale formed by props and performers. Vancouver also began its cultural segment in the same way

It's the summer equivalent of Vancouver, plain and simple. The world press, include the British, praised how great Vancouver was after the 2010 Games ended, and many went as far as saying it was the best Winter Games ever. LOCOG was also at Vancouver, praised the Games and sought to mimic the same festive and nation-loving mood that was found throughout the streets of Vancouver.

"Happy and Glorious Games," as Rogge put it. It was a summer version of Vancouver. Well done London!

Not sure why Lord Coe wouldn't want the Olympic Cauldron to become London's mecca for 17-days....unless, he knows they screwed up and is trying to grasp at straws for an excuse.

Yet if they had also built the Orbit to double as a secondary permanent cauldron, it would be even more of a "tourist attraction!"

Wow, that media seating section in the stadium is huge. If the stadium normally sits 80,000, then what is the current seating capacity with the media stands?

Vancouver's secondary permanent outdoor cauldron wasn't an expense of VANOC, rather it was built and donated by the local natural gas company at a cost of $5-million. Maybe LOCOG could have done something creatively or cut back elsewhere...

Apples and oranges, Vancouver may have been extinguished but it was relit at the permanent cauldron outside minutes later.

Extinguishing the cauldron, with no replacement other than putting it back into the lantern in which it came from.....simply, scandalous.

An event I organized earlier this year...

And yet, those expensive close-up tickets are some of the worst seats in the stadium. You don't get to see everything, you need to be up high to see the entire spectacle.

Yes.