Will All of the London Olympics be Like a Bad Super Bowl Halftime Show?

Even before I saw and heard Leona Lewis belt out a too-slow-cover of Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love" (with Jimmy Page on guitar), during the Olympics closing ceremony, I was nervous for London.

Yeah the hub of the United Kingdom has four years to prepare before it hosts the summer Olympics in 2012. But with its fireworks, lush green landscapes, crazy-cool commemorative torch made out of people, one million volunteers, acrobatic performers, sophisticated swimming pools, vibrant costumes, advanced technology, really awesome lights, Water Cube (!) and Bird's Nest(!!), Beijing is going to be a tough act to follow. Yeah the Chinese government bulldozed poor people's houses to build the stadiums and the games cost the nation about $40 billion (yes that's 40 BILLION BUCKS!).


But, I mean, the transformer-like, double-decker bus, Lewis elevated out of, was only about as cool as ONE of those Beijing bikes, equipped with rotating, neon lights.


And not even the multi-color, LED umbrellas, or David Beckham (yeah he also popped out of the bus), were enough to help the odd, high-pitched performance that followed. (Who knew you could go wrong with Leona Lewis and Jimmy Page?!) In case you missed it (too bad because the rest of the show was pretty amazing), think bad Super Bowl halftime show.

I guess I should have seen it coming, given the Olympic flag wouldn't cooperate, and got all folded, as it was passed from Guo Jinlong (mayor of Beijing) to Jacques Rogge (president of the International Olympic Committee) to Borris Johnson (mayor of London). But let's hope that wasn't a harbinger of what's really in store.

Come 2012, you better bring it London! :)

Here's a look back at what Beijing had to offer; i.e. what London's going to have to outdo if it doesn't want to disappoint.

1. The Fireworks 2. Crazy-Cool Commemorative Torch Made Out of People 3. Hundreds-of-Thousands to Over a Million Volunteers 4. Acrobatic Performers 5. Sophisticated Swimming Pools 6. Vibrant Costumes 7. Advanced Technology 8. Really Awesome Lights 9. Water Cube! and 10. Bird's Nest!!


Images via The Guardian and Daily Mail.