Honestly, who wasn’t excited to tune into Superbowl XLVIII this year? Whether the commercials, halftime entertainment or the anticipation of Peyton Manning taking the field caused you to watch, more than 110 million viewers chose to watch the Seattle Seahawks defeat the Denver Broncos with a final score of 43-8. Families and friends gathered for parties and either carried on or created new Super Bowl traditions across the country. Without question, the Super Bowl this year was a television success. Television viewers were able to witness the largest victory in twenty-one years as the game set a new record for the most television program in U.S. History.

But what about that halftime performance? Every news source across the country is reporting on the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ performance alongside Bruno Mars. According to a recent Times article, many are criticizing the fact that the band’s instruments were not even plugged in during the performance. The band’s bassist, Flea, admitted that he was more or less playing the air guitar. The semi-fake performance (the band’s vocals were live) has caused many to speculate on why the band would choose to perform to previously recorded music. Apparently, the NFL requested that the band didn’t perform live in case of audio issues. Of course, the backlash has since pushed the Red Hot Chili Peppers to the forefront of subsequent Super Bowl discussions.

A few, notable Super Bowl halftime shows from the past few decades include; Michael Jackson’s 1993 performance in which he lip-synched “Jam,” “Billie Jean” and “Black or White,” Paul McCartney’s 2005 performance in which he closed with “Hey Jude” and of course Beyonce’s epic 2013 performance.
As far as this year’s Super Bowl goes, the Los Angeles Times reported that Bruno Mars did a “stand-up job” and delivered an entertaining performance that most generations could enjoy watching. Overall, this year’s Super Bowl performance was a safe option compared to a few past performances. I would guess that the NFL won’t mind asking Bruno Mars back to the 50-yard line one day in the future.