Being that this year marked the 50^thSuper Bowl, I expected a monumental halftime performance to keep me interested in the game because somehow I missed the fanatic craze of football fans this year. Don’t get me wrong, I like football as much as (if not more than) the next girl and tend to generally follow the season, but this year there seemed to be a disconnect in the enthusiasm of this normally much anticipated event.

One of the major attractions for Super Bowl audiences and viewing parties alike are the Super Bowl commercials. These advertisements are largely sought after for their exclusive time slots and guaranteed views from potential customers. Therefore, these commercials are usually extremely creative and over the top. And while there were a few clever ones, like Steve Harvey’s T-Mobile commercial emphasizing that Verizon’s statistical error was their mistake and not his…this time, I felt that a majority of the commercials fell short of expectations. Cheesy celebrity endorsements, boring drug company ads, weird puppy-monkey-babies, and Peyton Manning’s shameless Budweiser plugs didn’t leave much room for excitement or shock value and some were just cringe-worthy, like the Dorito’s commercial where an unborn baby pops out of his mother during an ultrasound to grab a chip and then shoves himself right back up there! I felt that overall, the commercials that are meant to be the best of the year were utterly forgettable.

Through the drudge of the mostly defensive game, I held out hope for the Half Time Show because the promise of Coldplay, Bruno Mars, and HELLO Queen Bey was enough to keep me intrigued. However, my heart sank when Chris Martin began with “Viva La Vida” and the large display of giant dancing flowers outperformed him. The major disconnect set in when Bruno Mars and his crew came out in shiny black pleather sets and, while he proves to be a talented live performer, was cut short by the quick transition to the queen herself, Beyonce! 'Yonce killed it, of course, with her usual attitude and sensuality owning the stage as she and her dancers worked it in black leotards, gold chains, and fishnet stockings! Then, another quick transition back to the main stage as Bruno Mars and Beyonce have a much too short dance-off combining their backup crews in a major black and gold fashion moment. I was definitely disappointed when all of a sudden Chris Martin and his bandmates join the scene in their ironic whimsically floral outfits featuring Coldplay’s front man himself in a stark white long sleeve shirt and denim pants with large floral appliques and rainbow sneakers that looked incredibly out of place amongst the sea of R&B performers in all black.

Aside from the erratic fashion choices, the theme of the show was completely lost in direction. Coldplay tends to push for a culturally relatable vibe by mimicking Indian culture, while Beyonce makes a statement for "Black Lives Matter" through her debut performance of Formation. Then we have the whole Super Bowl babies slideshow thing during Coldplay’s melancholy “Fix You”, Bruno Mars and Beyonce giving a black history month vibe in Black Panther-style berets and the general message of black positivity, and the original theme of Super Bowls “Past, Present, and Future”. There was way too much going on and no focus leaving viewers wondering, what just happened?

It seemed that the whole game was over before it began since it was pretty obvious that the Broncos were going to win, despite Cam Newton’s growing popularity. With the ghost of Super Bowls past looming over, expectations fell short this year, and all I can do is forget about the heinous offenses of the present Super Bowl, and follow the coming season just enough to become excited for the Super Bowls to come! And next time, to ensure a compelling halftime performance, please just have Beyonce headline!!!