The Vonghurst Star
VTV gone mainstream?
VONGHURST - One of the lasting impacts of Taxgate is that VTV became the country's Olympic broadcaster. CBN, who had originally been awarded the rights to broadcast both the V Winter and Summer Olympics withdrew their bid when they learned of the taxes that the Cafundelense would impose on them and thus, the small, somehow publicly funded VTV won the rights to broadcast the games. Before this, the network was practically unheard of outside of it's small group of viewers and those who did know of it only knew of it through all the stunts the network pulled, upon itself, the unsuspecting public and much to the ire of CBN and TV their competitors.
It was pure chance that they were awarded the rights to host the games. An aligning of the stars that only happens once every thousand or so years, and an aligning of the stars which proved to be one of the biggest successes for the network. Millions around the country tuned in to see the Sao Jorge Olympics and in doing so they were part of an olympic experience that almost no-one else (especially KBS) could bring.
Their unique approach, which combined sport with comedy, was what was so great about them and for the first time people began to see this. In the immediate aftermath of the games, their ratings soared sky high, and today almost twelve years later they still remain one of the top rated channels. Both broadcast and satellite.
Yet, with this newfound success, something has changed in the network. Slowly, it has become more tame. Long gone are the days where, on a slow news day, the anchor would forgo his duties and instead, along with a crew of their newsies, try to sabotage the nightly newscast of CBN. Gone are the days where instead of the weather, "Weatherman" Al Sanches would see what kind of crazy shit he could get people to put on the signs they brought with them to TV's popular Weather on the Plaza segment. Sure, they still have stunts but, their scripted and usually the other people are in on the joke. They just poorly feign surprise when it happens.
Whats worse is that people eat it up. Last night, when dining with my husband, I overheard a group of Logrians laughing it up over one of the network's stunts where they got someone to start randomly courting the nearest person but, the difference between now and the old days is that they actually had to pay them. I really wonder what they'd think of the old invasion days.
Even these stunts have started to disappear. With each passing month, it seems like more of the networks old identity is being shed and replaced with an image of it self that is just like that of CBN and TV, one of just another network.
It seems like ages ago but, it's only really been twelve years since the days when Olympic coverage for VTV used to included dropping acid and talking to your self in the middle of a snowy forest. Twelve years ago, they had the perfect mix. They had all the trappings of any Olympic coverage and then some. More importantly, though, is that when they did stunts, they were unscripted. They were raw. They were real.
Mark Payton is an entertainment writer for the Star. The opinions in this article do represent the editorial views of this paper.
______________
Mens Curling Trial Finals and What Ii Means for Ashton
PORTSHAM - With the Olympics only 8 days away, it seems rather odd that we have not determined which club will represent us in mens curling. However, last night at the Calvin Hobbes arena in downtown Portsham, we got one step closer when the Negroe Pride were able to overcome the Knickerbockers in a comeback 6-5 vicory in the first extra end. The club's undefeated season was kept alive, if only narrowly. Facing them will be Engine 13 Portsham. Throughout their local and state competitions they did unexpectedly well but, only recently did they begin to turn heads. Of course one of these two fine clubs will have to win the final and represent Virabia in Ashton but, what would each club bring to the table. Well, that's why I'm here.
The heavy favourite to win in tomorrows final is the Pride. They are amongst the most reputable curling clubs in the country and while most of their undefeated season has been the work of the mixed team, the mens side (of which only one person is on the mixed team), has still proven to be a top-tier curling club. One of the key components of their success has been their skip, Roy Harris. His near encyclopedic knowledge of how the rock behaves in nearly every circumstance makes him a force to be reckoned with and because of this (and his position as a professor of mathematics at Preston University) has earned him the rather appropriate nick name ' The Professor'.
The Professor played a major role in the Pride's comeback victory over the Knickerbockers. Going into the final side of regulation, the pride were down by two stones but, through some masterful work, he was able to make up the 2 point difference and send the match into extra sides where the team made quick work of their opposition.
Of course a good skip is nothing if he doesn't have a good team backing him. This is not something the Pride lack. Brothers Devon, Trey and Samuel Martino have proven themselves to be excellent curlers in their own right. While they may not have the amount of experience that Harris has, they are all excellent at what they do and in the future they could well make the main, mixed, squad.
What we get with the Pride is primarily confidence and consistency. Harris, the Martino brothers and even fifth-man Luís Earlsson each have more than fifteen years of curling experience under their belts. In their time, they have honed their skills to the point of near perfection. This is something that will serve them well against the international field and against Engine 13 tomorrow night.
The Pride's victory is not an inevitability though. Throughout this season, Engine 13 Portsham, a team comprised of five firefighters from the 13th firehouse in Portsham have become the cinderella story. In their first season of existence, they have defied all expectations and have not only made it to the Olympic Trials but, to the final of the olympic trials. Only one game away from representing the entire nation.
The team is particularly notable for their modesty on almost all matters. One can recall the now overused 'yay' meme as a prime example of this but, it extends way beyond it. For example, not many of you may know but, before this season, the teams skip Tomás Guerilló had never even curled yet, in a period of little more than six months, he has blossomed into a pretty good. This is no doubt due to his wealth of natural talent. Natural talent can only take you so far though and it's clear that Guerilló has built upon his sturdy base.
He is complimented by three strong curlers in Adam Anderson, Pete DuVille and Antonín Rivera. For the most part, they share Tomáses story. Only having recently come to the sport. That hasn't stopped them from defying all expectations and making it as far as they have.
The fact that they are new to the sport may be their downfall though. A common critique, which I echo us that they simply haven't played enough and that against the best teams they will crack under pressure, something that the've been able to avoid doing so far but, so far all of their competition has been relatively easy. Still, if they are able to stave off making amateur mistakes and cracking under pressure, their modesty will help them greatly. As the old saying goes, "Complacency brings defeat." Hey, we Virabis aren't known for our verse.
Either way, we should fare well in the Olympics. While, the Pride is certainly a safer bet than Engine 13, they are both fine curling clubs and it's a same only one can represent us in Ashton. Thus, we have little choice but to watch tomorrow as in front of an expected 110,000 person audience at a special strip at Bayview Arena. The coin toss for the LRFE is set for 2030. The match, on VTV.
Ta much]
