Bruce forgiven

I was pleased to see that Bruce Springsteen admitted that his deal with Walmart was a mistake. He put on about as high-energy a halftime show as one could ask for in the twelve minutes allotted to him at this evening's Super Bowl, and managed to avoid giving a lecture between songs. In fact, he hardly paused between songs at all, trying to squeeze as much as he could into the performance. Pretty good for a 59-year-old. However, I can't say I am a fan of the Super Bowl halftime show. It is all a bit too forced and contrived to come off as very enjoyable. A stage set is rushed onto the field, along with a thousand fans (where do they come from?), and then the band comes out and plays three quick songs, and it's over in time for the next commercial break. I wouldn't mind seeing the NFL try a simpler, more low-energy halftime show, something in contrast to the high energy of the game. Maybe Springsteen alone with his guitar and harmonica would have been a good show. He could have performed, among other songs, "The Wrestler," which he wrote for the movie by the same name. It's a beautiful song that functions as a moving epilogue following the abrupt ending of the movie, and playing as the credits roll by. That the Oscars didn't nominate it for Best Song still has me scratching my head.