Super Steps

**This post is dedicated to Hakkai**

Given how fashionable it is to blame IJS for a wide assortment of figure skating maladies (including but not limited to ruining spins in the ever-contorted quest for levels, fan spirals, and the sorry state of pairs skating), I am aware of the fact that having the opinion that IJS step sequences are generally an improvement on their 6.0 counterparts is a controversial one likely to draw scorn, something akin to believing in the tooth fairy as an adult or thinking that tartan pairs very well with paisley. But that is indeed an opinion I hold, and I will now defend it the only way I know how: verbiage with bits of video footage liberally interspersed in between.

The Voices of a Generation

Moments from around the world of figure skating this season, captured in the words of millennials unearthed from that repository of millennial musings known as "Tumblr".

Top Ten of 2012-2013

My personal favorite performances from this season, and the ones I'll return to when I'm old and doddery with more teeth than braincells. The list, in no particular order:

What I'm Watching.....

Currently suffering from huge, crippling writer's block. I can only offer short, incoherent posts on the things I am fixated on right now:

A Last Post...of 2012

It's that time of the year again, that time when we look back at the year that is rapidly on its way to passing us by and ponder those time-worn questions: what was good? What was bad? How much alcohol is needed to forget it all?

When it comes to looking back at the 'good' in figure skating, I find that it isn't necessarily the programs in their entirety that endure the longest in my memories, but certain indelible moments within those programs. That glorious, wind-beneath-the-wings feeling evoked when Akiko Suzuki flew down the ice during her choreographic sequence after nailing all her jumps at the NHK Trophy, for instance, or the memory of seeing Virtue/Moir's brilliant, furious closing lifts in their Carmen free dance at Skate Canada for the very first time. Another great moment that imprinted itself into my mind was watching Takahiko Kozuka skate his beautiful spread eagles set perfectly to the beating of the drums in his short program at Skate America, and who can forget Carolina Kostner's sinuous, sensual step and choreographic sequences and her final, very late 3S right to the music of her Bolero long program.

The State of the Union: 2012 Grand Prix

Some observations from the Grand Prix series this season....

A Smorgasbord of New Programs (so far)

Is it just me, or is there a ridiculous amount of competitions going on this week? Japan Open, Finlandia Trophy, Ondrej Nepala....the mind boggles at how many programs are debuting this week. Rather than write separate posts on each competition, I'm going to amalgamate them into two or three large posts as videos of all the competitions slowly seep out.

Monochrome Men

Approved by the King of Monochrome himself

Venture into the men's grooming section of a typical store and you will find that the vast majority of men's skin and hair care products are packaged with the same sober, manly colors: gunmetal grey, bleak black and minimalist white with the occasional daring forays into colors such as navy blue and Chernobyl orange, the latter two colors suggestive of the ruggedly manly endeavors of military service and donning a radiation suit to heroically battle through clouds of radioactive smoke respectively. Contrast this to the women's grooming section, where you will find near-identical products packaged in a much broader and vibrant spectrum of colors ranging from delicate pastels to vivid jewel tones. Indeed, somewhere along the passage of time, the culturally normative ideal of masculinity in the Western world has shifted from the colorfully bewigged, ruffled and powdered aristos of old world Europe (think Louis XIV, or perhaps the Swiss Guard) to the comparatively far more drab dudebro-type creature today. This is perhaps indicative of how far we as a species have diverged from our animal kin, as it is the males of the animal kingdom that tend towards biological ornamentation (e.g. the peacock vs. the peahen). Exactly how and why this shift has occurred is best left as a subject for another blog, but what I'd always enjoyed about figure skating was the fact that it was a rare exception to the contemporary sea of male drabness, where a man could wear something like this on a mainstream international public broadcast and still be taken (somewhat) seriously:

Of Scylla and Charybdis

There are some things in life that would be much easier to judge if everything operated along a Manichean sort of duality. The sport of figure skating would certainly be included among that number--imagine, after all, how much easier it would be if all skaters with good expression had good choreography and transitions, etc., and all skaters with mediocre expression had mediocre choreography and transitions, and so on. True, there are indeed examples of such (e.g. Daisuke Takahashi on one end of the spectrum with, say, Kevin van der Perren on the other), but despite what the ISU's judges try to tell us with their persistent habit of clumping together the different categories of the Program Components Scores (i.e. SS, PE, IN, CH all within the same narrow range and TR almost always the lowest), things are not always so easy or unambiguous in this world of tears. Instead, we often are witness to skaters with varying levels of proficiency among the categories of the PCS....even if their official scores don't exactly reflect this sad reality.

World Team Trophy 2012: Men's LP

A (hopefully) more rational post-facto dissection of the long programs by the men at the World Team Trophy, after the après-competition buzz has mostly died down....

World Team Trophy 2012: Men's SP

Need...some...coffee...but at least there were enough good performances among the men to keep me mostly awake during the event!

Worlds 2012: Men's SP Recap

Splat, splat, splat. No, that was not the sound of posteriors hitting the ice, but rather the sound of my head banging against the wall in exasperation. Sadly, the men's short programs at Nice generally ran the gamut from relatively subpar to truly tragic. Podium favorites fell by the wayside like cattle at a meatplant, and only a precious few seemed interested in that whole carpe diem business. We can only hope that the men will redeem themselves in the long program....

Your Rachmaninoff Sucks

Sergei Rachmaninoff composed a varied and extensive repertoire, yet those with little exposure to his music aside from figure skating can be forgiven for thinking that the man wrote only a mere two pieces of music. Or, to be more accurate, a mere 1.67 pieces of music: the 18th variation of Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini and the first (Moderato) and second (Adagio Sostenuto) movements of Piano Concerto No. 2. Both works of music have been used ad nauseam in figure skating, and one can always count on one or both to be used by a skater/team every season.

In some ways, this is understandable. The first and second movements of Piano Concerto No. 2 are ravishingly beautiful pieces of music, their rich orchestration and lush lyricism sure to be pleasing to the judges' ears even if the skating is not quite on that level. Any skater would understandably want to harness the intoxicating blend of power and poetry of Piano Concerto No. 2, especially since a few enduring masterpieces have already resulted from this particular pairing of Rachmaninoff and skating:

Romeo, oh Romeo

The character of Romeo from William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is one of the most famous and instantly recognisable characters from the English literary canon. Indeed, the name Romeo has at this point become more or less synonymous with the word lover, whether star-crossed or in a more general sense. The fame of the character of Romeo is a reflection of the widespread popularity of Shakespeare's play, one of the most famous and frequently performed plays even in Shakespeare's own lifetime. As such, it is not surprising that the enduring popularity of Romeo and Juliet has also extended to other media, including music (Tchaikovsky, Berlioz, Rota, etc), ballet (Prokofiev, among others), film (Zeffirelli, Luhrmann and countless others), and finally, figure skating.

With such a famous plotline built-in and a vast array of music choices to choose from, it is easy to see why the Romeo and Juliet theme has become a popular choice within all disciplines of figure skating. Romance, passion and angst are fashionable subjects to portray in skating and a Romeo and Juliet-themed program offers plenty of opportunities to indulge in such emotions. Rather tellingly, all three of the top Japanese men this season have used an incarnation of Romeo and Juliet sometime in their careers, to very different results.

NHK 2011: the Menfolk

What a sartorially drab podium...

Daisuke Takahashi thoroughly obliterated the competition at the 2011 NHK Trophy with a total of  259.75 points, a giant 24.73 lead over silver medallist Takahiko Kozuka. Mr. Takahashi's total score of 259.75 is the season's highest score so far and his short program total of 90.43 is the third highest total score ever, a remarkable accomplishment given that Mr. Takahashi had multiple under-rotations in his long program, and did not manage to land a fully-rotated quad the entire competition.

But despite all that...I have to say that Mr. Takahashi deserved his astronomical scores at this event. He was just in a completely different league in terms of both execution and intent in comparison to his beleaguered competitors. One could argue that the hometown advantage was on Mr. Takahashi's side, but no matter how one slices it, he was just brilliant this weekend.

Let us begin with his In the Garden of Souls short program. Mr. Takahashi's performance of the program here was, in my mind, the performance of the season so far. I know I had previously said that perhaps the judges were rather GOE-happy in scoring this performance, but the more I watch the program, the more I believe that the very substantial GOE was justified. The spins, a persistent weakness of Mr. Takahashi's, actually looked decent. The jumps--3F-3T, 3A, 3Lz--were all smooth as butter. The 3A particularly was to die for, with just gorgeous height and distance covered. But with Mr. Takahashi, it's never all about the jumps--it's the program itself and the performance that just shines. Such beautiful transitions that capture the nuances of the music (which is unfortunately less common than one thinks), linking all the elements together so that the entire program is a completely seamless whole. A common criticism of CoP programs is that the structure of CoP scoring leads to fragmented programs that are less the sum of its parts, but In the Garden of Souls transcends that. I also love how the choreography blends in original movements within the program as well--the moment when Mr. Takahashi grasps his knee and arches his back before going into the camel spin is very inspired, and perfect for that particular moment in the music.

The proverbial glue that held the entire thing together was, of course, Mr. Takahashi's performance of the program itself. Mr. Takahashi's ability to express the nuances of music with his entire body--including his feet--is unmatched by any of the men skating today. And, as I've said before, the sheer command Mr. Takahashi had during this short program was just intoxicating to watch. Mr. Takahashi really was a Man among boys at this competition, and it's perhaps for the best that nobody had the misfortune to skate after him. It was very gratifying to see Mr. Takahashi receive such high PCS (though I personally would have marked him even higher), as it is a glimmer of hope that the judges still acknowledge artistry, musicality and the other intangibles that make our beloved sport unique. We can only hope that this will continue outside of Japan.

I still prefer In the Garden of Souls over Blues for Klook, but I admit that the long program is slowly growing on me. Nonetheless, its great to see Mr. Takahashi completely morph from INTENSE SRS BSNS to a much more languid and playful creature overnight. Aside from the fall on the under-rotated 4F and a slight bobble here and there, the jumps looked improved from Skate Canada and Blues for Klook gelled together much more nicely as a result, given the fact that the jumps are so seamlessly woven into the choreography as a whole.

Skate America 2011: Ze Menfolk

Like coronaviruses and taxes, the Grand Prix season has inflicted itself upon us once more, albeit with (hopefully) cheerier results. Hurray! This year's Grand Prix has kicked off with Skate America, held in Ontario, California, which, judging by the rather empty arena, is a rather Laodicean place unfortunately largely uncoverted to the great religion that is Figure Skating. But we faithful still continue chanting our hymns and whirling our dervishes in hope for the glory days of the early 90s.....(end non sequitur)

Anyway, I for one am extremely glad I did not make public my woefully incorrect predictions for the men's podium at Skate America.


Michal Brezina placed first overall at Skate America--his first Grand Prix victory--albeit with a third-place free skate. With a 9-point lead coming into the short, Mr. Brezina would have to bungle up his free skate quite significantly to give the title away, and he really made it much closer than it should have been. If Mr. Kozuka was really on his proverbial game during the free skate, Mr. Brezina's gold medal would have been toast. It's understandable why Mr. Brezina would go conservative and skate in order to not lose, but it really makes for an anti-climatic event. Plus the jump content Mr. Brezina ended up doing is just embarrassing for a skater with his natural jumping ability. Gorgeous jumps when he's on, but Mr. Brezina really ran out of steam at the end with those pops and the fall--this seems to be a trend. Is it an injury problem? Lack of double run-throughs to build stamina?

I know I've said this before, but Mr. Brezina really needs some better choreography. His new program really isn't much of an improvement from An American in Paris in terms of choreographic sophistication and intricacy. Mr. Brezina was apparently portraying a mixture of the detective from the Untouchables (Good) versus the proverbial devil on one's shoulder (Evil)--hence the split costume, etc--but frankly, I would never have realized this if Kurt Browning wasn't there to enlighten me on this via his commentary. Really blah performance overall by Mr. Brezina. However, what I'm truly puzzled about is where all that techno music is from--if I recall correctly, Ennio Morricone didn't exactly dabble in techno at all. Overall, Mr. Brezina was definitely lucky to be that generously awarded in PCS, especially in comparison with what Takahiko Kozuka received.....

Japan Open 2011

New programs, new season, new post! I am excite!



Am I finally on the Chan crack? That shit is potent yo. I have to admit--I actually quite enjoyed Patrick Chan's Concerto de Aranjuez. Yes, it's a Lori Nichol hand-me-down (via Takeshi Honda and Joannie Rochette) but it's a much more palatable offering than last year's Phantom of the Opera. No, Mr. Chan does not quite have the soulful maturity needed to fully wring all the subtle angst out of this particular piece of music, but he does look more mature, the way he holds himself has improved and the program does showcase his mastery of skating skills very well. At this point, however, Takeshi Honda's Aranjuez is still superior, but the season is still young and there's plenty more Chan crack to smoke.

OMG WTF: Men's event at 2011 Worlds (Part One)

Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later....

A Menu of Options

Like services that arrange dates between compatible people, it can be extremely amusing at times to mate food with skating in a similar manner. As the popular pastime of pairing food with wine demonstrates, it is evident that every dish has a certain personality as does every skater.

Morozombie Christmas Wishlist: Menfolk

It's December and we all know what that means...Christmas!

Santa Claus may want to bring gifts to all good little children but Morozombie Claus has another target audience in mind...skaters! Here are some of the entries on Morozombie Claus' gifting list: