Massive Air: Olympic Edition

With all the complaining about NBC's coverage of the Olympics, I thought someone should say something in favor.

1. You can enjoy a full evening out and still not miss anything. Last night Tina's book club was hosting MOURNING BECOMES CASSANDRA and me until 9:30P (thanks, Tina!), but when I got home and immediately flipped on the television I discovered, to my joy, that I was still in plenty of time to catch the good stuff. Meaning, Shaun White had not even begun to think of putting in an appearance.

2. Insomniacs now have something quality to watch. For heaven's sake, if no one but Hawaii can see the key events in prime time, that means the rest of us don't have to sit through reruns of GOMER PYLE while we sip our warm milk and wander the halls.

3. NBC has learned the magic of the twist ending. I tell you, they really had me going with Lindsey Jacobellis the snowboarder. All the replays of her last-minute fall in Torino after finding herself out in front on snowboard cross. All the "she's waited four years for this moment, four years for redemption!" And then--boom!--down she goes again. Did not see that coming.

4. Awesome expert commentary. I mean this. I absolutely love listening to the snowboard commentary. Half-pipe last night had my hands-down favorite bit so far. As they watched the next-to-go guy gear up for his final, medal run, the commentator said, "We have a saying for this: we call it 'tapping into the Eye of the Tiger.'" I have no idea what that even means, but it's wonderful. Is it "drawing on your inner awful pop song"? Or "making another sequel when you should have let the franchise rest in peace"? Whatever the case, "tapping into the Eye of the Tiger" is my new, soon-to-be-overused catchphrase.

And finally...

5. Chances to bone up on national anthems. If your "Star-Spangled Banner" needs some work for the upcoming baseball season, don't miss a single one of the medal ceremonies. Plus, there are the occasional other medal ceremonies they air, where other countries have won, and they must explain to the viewing audience why we will not be hearing the "Star-Spangled Banner." Wait--could we go over that again?